“Are you going to walk me to school every day?”

Sehun looked at her and nodded. “Mhm.” They walked on opposite sides of the road as usual. “In case…something ever happens to you, I can call for help.”

“Hm?” Hanbyul stopped and turned to him. “What do you mean?”

Sehun stood in front of her and avoided her gaze. “I…I don’t know, maybe if you trip or fall into the water…I could call for help.”

Hanbyul raised an eyebrow. “That’s …what made you think like this?”

“You met Xiumin yesterday.” Sehun recalled. “He’s the spirit who was once a human, he drowned in the river when was little…and came back as a soul.” He said. “I just…I just thought about a lot of things.”

“Like what?”

He shook his head and shrugged. “What if…what if you fell in the water?” Sehun asked. “What if you were in danger and it was just us around?” He sighed and shuddered. “I can’t imagine what I would do…”

Hanbyul walked up to him. “Are you sure we can’t touch?” She asked.

Sehun stepped away. “We can’t.” He mumbled sadly. “I’m a nature spirit, nature and itself shouldn’t be touched…it’ll get destroyed.”

She frowned. “Don’t think like that… Don’t worry about me…I’ll be okay.” Hanbyul pointed to her school building which was now in sight. “I’ll see you soon.” She said before leaving.

“Hanbyul!”

She spun around. “Hm?”

“How come you don’t leave the building during lunch? All the kids come out and spend time with their friends in the school yard…”

Hanbyul wrinkled her nose. “I don’t want to.”

“Why not?”

She shook her head. “I just don’t.”

“Where do you go? I’ll meet you there…”

“Being in school is dangerous, Sehun.” She bit her lip. “You never know what could happen to you…”

Sehun waved his hand. “I’ll be extra careful, I don’t want you to be alone all the time.”

Hanbyul smiled. “Homeroom.”

Sehun grinned and pointed to the building behind her. “I’ll meet you soon…Byul.”

She flushed pink and rolled her eyes. “W-Whatever.”

To which the forest spirit stood there and smiled. I made her blush.

Hanbyul pulled out her books nonchalantly during her first class and waited for Sehun to pop up in the seat near her. The two have gotten very careful around each other and matter of fact, the spirit could even sit next to her and nothing would happen. She looked around her full class and sighed, the only seat empty was the one next to her…would it be safe for Sehun to walk around the class room?

Minutes before the bell, Chanyeol came stumbling into the room with his bright messy locks. “S-Sorry! My alarm was off!” He stammered before waddling to the back row. He took a seat next to his best friend and grinned sheepishly.

“Are we missing chairs?” He whispered.

“I guess?”

Chanyeol closed his eyes for a moment and regretted waking up this late. “I can’t see the board…” He whined quietly.

Hanbyul reached into his bag and pulled out a glasses case. “Just…Just put these on!”

Chanyeol slipped them on in defeat and looked at her. “Hate it.”

“Love it.”

Later on during her lunch hour, Sehun popped into the empty classroom and peered around, as expected he saw Hanbyul sitting in her seat with a rice ball in hand and a comic book in the other.

“Byul!”

She looked up and smiled. “You came!”

Sehun walked up to the seat in front of her and turned the chair around; he took a seat and looked at her. “Does Chanyeol hate his glasses?”

“Yeah.” She nodded. “How did you know?”

“I was going to come this morning but all the seats were taken, I saw Chanyeol sit in the back and he didn’t raise his hand once today.”

“Ah…you noticed.” Hanbyul chuckled. “He hates his glasses, that’s why he sits in the very front all the time. I’m surprised he could even see there because his vision is horrible.”

Sehun smiled. “What’s it like having a best friend?” He asked.

“It’s really nice…to have someone you can depend on. It’s nice knowing that you have someone who will answer whenever you need them. He takes care of me all the time and when I’m sick and home alone, he drops everything to see me.” Hanbyul put her book down. “Chanyeol’s antics really get me sometimes but …I’m very grateful to have him around.”

Sehun nodded. “Keep Chanyeol by your side.”

“Are there other forest spirits?”

Sehun shook his head. “I don’t know a lot of spirits…or people. Spirits are separated most of the time.”

Hanbyul listened and glanced at him. “Are there…girl spirits?”

Sehun laughed. “Of course!”

“Do you know any?”

“I actually had a crush on a spirit named Minji when I was little. She was the spirit of the skies and galaxies; I followed her around all the time when she was near. I haven’t seen her in years but I hope she’s doing well.”

Hanbyul cocked her head in confusion. “Skies and galaxies?”

“She resonates within the stars and the skies, and all the constellations.” Sehun looked out the window. “When I first met her, there was a shooting star storm in the sky. I was 10 or 11 at most but she just appeared near me. Then all of a sudden, the sky was dressed in black silk and silver stars and I’ve never been graced with such beauty before…not until I met you.”

Hanbyul chuckled and held her book up to cover her face.  

“How could you compare me to the galaxies? The stars? The blue sky???”

Sehun looked at her. “I’ll never get tired of the blue skies.” He looked at her desk and raised an eyebrow. “What is that?”

Hanbyul looked at the thin booklet and sighed. “Piano sheets.”

“You know how to play the piano?”

She nodded. “I used to.”

“Used…to?”

Hanbyul put the book aside and looked away. “I…stopped playing.” She said. “During freshmen year, I attended a talent show and played the piano. Chanyeol stood in the front row and cheered me on and I won second place but after that…all the girls me. They gave me for playing the piano and told me I’d never amount to anything.”

“They were just jealous.” Sehun said. “That they didn’t have as much talent as you did.” He flipped the book open. “Do you remember how to play?”

Hanbyul nodded. “I do.” Then she playfully looked at him and asked “Do you?”

To her surprise, he nodded. “I do.”

“R-Really?” Hanbyul looked at him with a face full of surprise. “H-How…?”

“There used to be a girl who lived in a cottage in the forest just a few years ago… she lived there with her aunt and only recently did they move away. They had a piano and her aunt taught her, I heard the piano all the time… and eventually I hung around and watched her learn all the notes. I even know how to read music!”

Hanbyul looked at him hesitantly before flipping her book to another page. “There’s a music sheet in here and …and it requires a lot of hands to play. My music teacher calls it an impossible remix because it’s so difficult…and I was told that I would never be able to play it.” She looked at him. “C-Can…we?”

Sehun stood up and reached his hand out. “Let’s go.”

Hanbyul smiled and held the booklet out, he grabbed hold of the other end and they walked down the hall side by side to the music room.

They sat together, separated by a textbook and played with opposite hands. The music was sheet was difficult for sure but soon enough, Yiruma’s River Flows in You echoed through the halls.

In the midst of the song, they turned to each other and just smiled.

When the song ended, Sehun looked at her. “Forget about those girls who were mean to you. Remember that life is like a piano. The black keys resemble sad moments and the white keys resemble all the happy moments, but when they’re played together…they produce sweet melodies.”

Just then, Chanyeol popped his head into the room. “H-Hanbyul?”

She turned around. “Chanyeol…”

“How…” He walked up to her and looked at the piano sheets. “How…did you…do that?”

Hanbyul stared at the empty spot next to her and briefly thought about Sehun who sat there and helped her play. Even if she mentioned his name and explained to Chanyeol what spirits were, Hanbyul knew her best friend wouldn’t believe Sehun existed.

So she simply looked up and grinned. “Magic.”