I: Final

If there’s one thing in the world that Baekhyun hates with a burning passion, it’s the Sea of Flames.

The gemstone lies on the night table in his room, and everyday, his gaze sweeps past it. When he catches sight of the gem, there’s a distinct feeling of anger that rises in his chest.

It’s the thing that cost him his family, his kingdom, and every person he loved. Yet it still lies there, in plain sight, because he can’t quite let go of it. Because even though he hates it, he cannot let go of the immortality it grants him. After all, it’s the only thing he has left, and after he’s lost everything, Baekhyun sees it fitting that he at least keep it, because in a way, he earned it — sacrificed everything for it. And now that he has nothing to sacrifice, the Sea of Flames is all he has.

Baekhyun’s unsure if the stone is what has slowly taken away his memories throughout the years, or if it was time itself. At first, he kept count of the days clearly — day by day, month by month, year by year — but now, he’s unsure of how long he’s been living. Is he two thousand years old? Three thousand? Ever so faintly, he’s able to remember how he used to live — loved by many, loving many — all taken away by the cursed gem. And now, because it’s so faraway, he rarely ever yearns for it anymore. Because you can’t yearn for something you really don’t know, at least, not fully.

Still, he keeps it. As he looks at it again, the familiar splash of orange-red inside the whitish blue, Baekhyun turns away bitterly.

But he still can’t let go. His fingers are clenched too tightly around it, and even though he thinks about it sometimes, his hand doesn’t open and still, he holds it.

***

Baekhyun lives near the outside of town, alone. The house is large, but he’s lived in it for more than fifty years and it’s not very empty; it’s filled with his belongings that’s he gathered through the years. Of course, a quarter of it is probably filled with his books — but nevertheless, it’s home and it’s something that’s familiar in a nice kind of way. Baekhyun likes familiarity, and more than that, he likes knowing what will happen next. It brings an odd sense of comfort to him in his empty life.

He doesn’t leave the place often anymore. A couple hundred years ago he had tried to amuse himself with travelling, but Baekhyun had soon gotten bored of it. Nowadays, he spends most of his time at home alone.

He sometimes wonders if the Sea of Flames has also taken away living in life. Immortality is odd — he had wanted it, but when he really got it, it was… useless. But it’s a strange kind of useless too — even though he has no use for it, he still can’t bear to throw it away. So Baekhyun goes on in life, breathing but not really living. Each day that passes is a deeper spiral in a pit of meaninglessness, but there’s no way that he’s able to pull himself out of that pit either.

And then, for the first time in what is forever (at least fifty years), Baekhyun talks to someone properly.

***

It’s not a very elegant first meeting. He’s sitting in the living room, listening to the heavy pitter-patter of raindrops as they fall on the roof harshly. The storm outside is angry and violent, thunder loud and lightning sudden. Baekhyun doesn’t really mind, because despite everything, the sound of the raindrops are quite comforting.

And then he hears it.

It’s a sound that’s foreign at first because it hasn’t happened in a couple thousand years, but after a couple more knocks, it clicks into his mind. Baekhyun shoots upwards, surprised.

Someone is knocking. On his door.

Perhaps the reason Baekhyun opens the door is because he doesn’t believe that someone is knocking. His home is secluded, away from others, solely to prevent this sort of meeting. Perhaps there’s some other invisible force compelling him to open the door — whatever it is, he makes his way to the front door slowly. Then, just as carefully, he opens it.

It’s not what he’s expecting. The figure that stands in the doorway is considerably short, and even though he has the lights outside, he still can’t see the person’s face properly. Drenched hair hugs her face, bangs over eyes, and she’s hugging her arms and shivering. Her, Baekhyun concludes. It’s a girl.

“Hi,” the person says in a small voice, “I know this is a really awkward question, but is it possible that I shelter at your house until the storm passes?”

Baekhyun’s really unsure how to reply. In fact, it’s the first time in god-knows-how-long that someone’s actually spoken to him, and he finds himself unsure of what to say or respond with.

She seems to take his silence as a yes, because she steps through the doorframe.

“Thank you,” the girl says, and now that she’s standing underneath the light, Baekhyun can see her more properly. “I’m going to freeze out there. God, you don’t know how glad I am I found your house out here. It’s absolutely pouring out there and it’s late. Do you know what time it is?”

Baekhyun stares at her. It’s an awful lot to take in, but he glances at the grandfather clock ticking in the corner of the room. “Nine,” he tells her slowly, “Why are you in this area at such a late time?”

She gives him a sheepish smile, and Baekhyun eyes the trail of water she left on his carpet and fights the urge to immediately run and get the mop. He hates messes. Almost as much as he hates the Sea of Flames.

Baekhyun contemplates throwing her out again. He’s never had to deal with a situation like this before, and quite frankly, he’s not sure how to deal with it. Telling her to leave seems too cruel, but Baekhyun’s learned throughout the years that getting close to someone is a definite no.

It’s just until the storm passes, he reminds himself.

“You’re… dripping water all over the floor,” he states carefully, hoping that he doesn’t sound too rude, “Do you need a towel?”

She looks up at him with wide eyes. “Oh! I’m really sorry. It’s just…”

“I’ll get you a towel,” Baekhyun says awkwardly, and then practically flees the entry hall.

He stops in the kitchen to catch his breath. He searches his mind for memories of how he used to talk to people, but they’re faint and he’s unsure of what he’s supposed to do. There’s many times in when he’s yearned for human company, but now with the girl here, it’s so sudden Baekhyun’s unsure of what to do.

He grabs the roll of paper towels and heads back to where she’s still standing.

“I’m Baekhyun,” he says, albeit a bit cautiously as he hands her the roll of paper towels. “You’ll be leaving tomorrow, right?”

She flinches. “I’m really, really sorry for the intrusion. I’m Seo Haewon.” Her eyes flicker to the paper towels he’s holding out to her. “But… uh… do you want me to dry myself off with those?”

Baekhyun stares at Haewon. “What else would you use?”

She stares back, mouth open. And then abruptly, she snaps it shut and takes the paper towels. “Thanks. Again, I’m really, really sorry for this.”

Baekhyun shifts uncomfortably. The atmosphere is so awkward that he’s tempted to give her one of the empty bedrooms and then lock himself away in his own room. Finally, he offers tentatively, “Are you hungry?”

Haewon looks up from wringing her hair with the paper towels. It’s dyed a light brown color, and if Baekhyun squints, he can see freckles scattered over her cheeks.  “I’m fine. You really don’t have to make anything for me.”

Baekhyun looks at her clothing again. It’s dripping, and even if she does dry herself off with the towels, it’s still going to drip all over his carpeted floor, and the thought itself is terrible enough. Damp carpet is a pain to deal with.

“I’ll get you clothing,” he decides, for the sake of his house and carpet, “Just wait here.”

***

Thirty minutes later, Baekhyun is standing over the stove. The white sweater he’s wearing is beginning to feel hot since he’s been standing over the fire for so long, but what’s really uncomfortable is the fact that Haewon is sitting on the table behind him. He doesn’t look at her, but he can feel her gaze on his back. He stirs the noodles vigorously.

“Baekhyun,” Haewon says, and Baekhyun feels himself shiver. It’s so strange to hear someone say his name.

“Yes?” he replies, hoping the tremor isn’t noticeable in his voice.

“Do you live alone here?”

“Yes.”

“Ah.” There’s a long span of silence, in which Baekhyun stirs the noodles even more violently. Then, Haewon says, “I think I’ve apologized a lot, but I realize that… uh… puts you in a really awkward position. If you have a drier, I can dry my own clothes so I don’t have to wear yours.”

Baekhyun keeps his gaze on his soup so he doesn’t completely panic. “It’s fine,” he says tightly, hoping his voice sounds normal, “Really, it is. But what were you doing in this area at such a late time?”

Haewon perks up. “Did you know there’s a super nice hiking trail near here? I was hiking today when I got caught up in the storm. And then I happened to stumble across here. It was really dark and I really had no choice because it’s literally the only building for like a five kilometre radius and I’m so sorry I barged in.”

Baekhyun’s never gone hiking, and he’s not sure if it’s something he’d enjoy. Walking for hours doesn’t seem like something enjoyable. He also feels extremely uncomfortable at the amount of times Haewon is apologizing to him, but he’s sure he’s going to feeling more awkward if he tells her to stop apologizing so he chooses to ignore the apologies. “It’s been raining like that for a couple hours, though,” he points out.

“Yeah, I’ve been trying to find my way through the storm for a couple of hours too.” As if on cue, Haewon suddenly sneezes. “I might’ve caught a cold too.”

Baekhyun stares at the noodles, unsure of what to say. He doesn’t really care if she’s caught a cold or not because he doesn’t get sick, but he manages, “That’s too bad.”

He’s unsure of whether or not he’s said the wrong words or not, because Haewon stops talking after that.

***

The rain doesn’t stop, and at eleven o’clock, Baekhyun tells Haewon to sleep on one of the couches. She’ll leave tomorrow, he thinks, as he locks the door of his room.

Involuntarily, his gaze is drawn to the rock that lays on the nightstand. In the warm, slightly dim glow of his bedside lamp, the red splash in the middle of the Sea of Flames seems to stand out even more brilliantly.

Once upon a time, Baekhyun had thought it was beautiful. It’s an otherworldly kind of beautiful, the pale blue contrasted with the fiery red. But Baekhyun’s stopped seeing the beauty in it a long time ago — the only thing he feels is bitterness in his heart. Bitterness at the stone for all it’s taken from him, and most of all, bitterness at himself for not being able to let it go.

***

Baekhyun doesn’t sleep well that night, and when he goes downstairs, disoriented and still sleepy, Haewon doesn’t look like she’s had any better a rest. There are smudges of grey under her eyes, and she’s peering out at the desolate, cloudy sky. The rain has stopped, though.

She has her own clothing on, and his clothes are folded in a neat pile on the sofa, as well as the blanket Baekhyun lent her. He blinks at her. “Are you leaving?”

Haewon nods. “I’m so sorry for camping over at your place when you’re a complete stranger. I owe you.”

Her eyes seem to brighten. “Wait. Is there anything you’d like me to help you with?”

Next time, mop up the water on the ground, Baekhyun thinks to himself, but there really won’t be a next time so he doesn’t say it. “No,” he replies, feeling somewhat embarrassed. “Goodbye.”

And it concludes his first meeting with Seo Haewon.

It isn’t the last.

***

Baekhyun lies on the couch, staring idly up at the ceiling.

He thinks of Seo Haewon, and he wonders what’s so fun about hiking. It’s odd meeting a person and then know that he’ll never see them again, especially when it’s the first person he’s properly met for years.

Perhaps he’ll try hiking someday, to see if it’s as fun as Haewon says.

***

Their second meeting isn’t as coincidental, and it’s not at night, either. It’s noontime, exactly four days after their first meeting, when Baekhyun hears another three knocks on his door.

At first, he wonders if he’s hallucinating. It sounds exactly the same as the last time Haewon knocked, and he thinks that perhaps his mind is making it up. It’s been an awfully boring three days, and strangely, there’s a feeling of emptiness in him that’s even stronger than before.

Then the knocks sound again, and Baekhyun makes his way to the door to check.

He opens the door, expecting no one to be there. He’s greeted by the light chestnut brown of Haewon’s hair, a slightly awkward smile and freckles.

Baekhyun nearly falls back onto the carpet.

There’s a moment of awkward silence. Finally, Haewon cracks a tentative grin. “Hi again?” she says in an unsure voice, “Uh… I came to bring you coffee. And actually, I left something at your house last time and it’s important.”

Baekhyun’s life is full of things that he expects and knows will happen. He likes having a schedule planned out everyday, he likes knowing what’s going to happen — and Haewon’s appearances are always the opposite of that. The spontaneity is something he dislikes.

Nevertheless, some part of him isn’t totally against it, and for some odd reason, Baekhyun opens the door wider. “Okay,” he says, “What is it?”

Haewon scans the house. “A necklace.” She hands the bag in her hand to him. “Also, here’s coffee. I work at a coffee shop and the coffee’s really good there, and I owe you.”

Baekhyun doesn’t drink coffee — he drinks tea in the mornings with sugar and water. Sometimes juice. But he doesn’t have any sort of special liking to coffee. However, he takes the brown bag from Haewon wordlessly.

She’s much cleaner than last time — or at least, she’s not dripping water all over his carpet — and instead, she has on a long, navy blue colored coat that reaches to her knees. It’s hanging open, and there’s a white blouse underneath. She stands at the door, the half-smile still lingering on her lips. “Can I come in?”

Baekhyun takes a step back. “Yes,” he replies. “Where do you want to look?”

She slips off her shoes, then takes another step into the house. “Sorry again,” she says, looking around the house. “I think it might’ve slipped off my neck when I was sleeping at night, so I guess the sofas?”

Haewon seems to have a thing for saying too many apologies. “Go ahead,” Baekhyun tells her, and Haewon makes her way to the living room, where she had slept four nights ago. Baekhyun shuts the door behind him, staring at her quietly. He’s not considered tall, but Haewon is significantly shorter than him.

He watches as she bends down, searching the floors. Baekhyun doesn’t tell her that he doesn’t remember ever seeing any sort of necklace and he sits on the sofa quite a lot. As Haewon searches his house, he stands by and watches without speaking.

This is the last time I’ll see her, Baekhyun says to himself as Haewon pulls off one of the couch cushions. She left something here, that’s all.

He glances down at the coffee she gave him. Baekhyun’s not quite sure if he’s actually going to drink it, and he’s never tried coffee before. He’s heard it’s bitter, and he doesn’t like bitter things. He’s had enough of bitter to last several lifetimes.

There’s at least a span of five minutes when he stands in the middle of his own living room, unsure of what to do as Haewon searches for her missing necklace. Finally, as she takes apart the last cushion, Baekhyun offers, “Why don’t you search in the kitchen? I don’t think it’s here.”

There’s a look of obvious distress of her face when she looks up. “I’m sure it dropped here…”

“Well, you’ve destroyed my living room and it’s not there,” he can’t help but remark dryly, and it doesn’t help with Haewon’s distraught expression.

Did I say something wrong? Baekhyun wonders, frowning slightly. Then he amends, “I’m sure you’ll find it. If you can’t find it, then get another one.”

Haewon looks stricken. “I can’t just get another one. It was from my friend.”

It’s been millenias since he’s last had a friend, but for some reason, Baekhyun still somewhat remembers the feeling. There’s a pregnant pause, before he finally says, “Go look in the kitchen, then.”

Haewon turns to go to the kitchen, and then forms an o. She turns back to the living room and the couches she had messed up (and it’s exactly 7 cushions that she’s flipped out of place, and Baekhyun’s pretty sure she’s only slept on three of them), fixes them, and then hurries into the kitchen.

***

“It’s not anywhere,” Haewon says, burying her face into her hands. “What do I do?”

“Is it very important to you?” Baekhyun asks her. There’s not much of the kitchen that she’s look through before she gave up, and now they’re standing at the doorway.

Haewon bites her lip. “Yes. My best friend gave it to me.”

“I’m sure your friend will understand.”

“My friend isn’t alive anymore, though,” she replies, squeezing her eyes shut. “Actually… can I give you my cell number? That way, if you find it, you can call me.”

Baekhyun doesn’t have a cell phone. He doesn’t need one. But Haewon looks so sad, and the fact that her friend is dead makes Baekhyun feel bad for her. It’s also been quite a long time since he’s properly interacted with another person, and he can’t help but admit that it’s sort of nice in a strange way with Haewon around. Don’t get used to it, he chides himself, This is the second last time you’ll see her. If you find her necklace, give it back to her and that’s all you’ll see of her.

“Okay,” he tells her, “Give me your number, then.”

Haewon writes down her number on a small piece of paper. Before she leaves, she tells Baekhyun to try the hiking trail near his home. Then she disappears in a blur of dark blue.

***

Baekhyun’s not sure what prompts him do so, but for the first time in fifty years, he walks further than the small market near his home where he gets his food and into the city itself. After a couple hours of confused wandering, he manages the buy a phone.

It takes him exactly four days to figure out how the phone functions. He adds Haewon’s number in, though he doesn’t call her.

And then, on the fifth day, he decides to try the hiking trail Haewon told him about.

***

Baekhyun’s not sure why Haewon likes hiking.

He hates it (of course, not nearly as much as he hates the Sea of Flames).

Through the trees, he can see the sun going down. When he looks up, he can see the clouds dyed a pinkish orange, and though it does look beautiful, it’s getting very cold and Baekhyun is lost. There’s a tear on the beige colored coat he’s wearing — it’s one of his favourites — and his shoes are speckled with mud. He’s also not very sure if he’s going the right way in which he thinks his house is.

There’s a rustling behind him, and Baekhyun jumps in surprise. He takes a step back, blinking in the direction. It’s getting harder to see without the sun, and he’s regretting his choice to do what Haewon had said to him.

A figure steps out from the bushes.

Baekhyun takes another step back, alarmed. It’s hard to see what it is from just the silhouette alone, and from what he sees, it looks horrifying.

Why did Haewon recommend me this path? he wonders, just as the thing exclaims, “Baekhyun?”

He still can’t see her quite clearly, but the voice is definitely recognizable. Hesitantly, he leans forward. “Seo Haewon?”

Now that they’re standing closer, he can make out the basic outline of Haewon’s face (though it’s too dark to see her freckles). They stare at each other in shocked silence for a little while, before Haewon lets out a quiet laugh. “Did you decide to try out the hiking trail? But why are you on here this late?”

Baekhyun’s not quite sure why he keeps on running into her. If I get too close to her, she’ll probably die.

“I was just walking along here.”

Haewon squints at him, pushing her hair back. There’s twigs and leaves stuck in it, but she doesn’t seem to notice. “Why are you dressed so fancily?”

“It’s not fancy,” he protests, looking down at his attire. It’s what he normally wears, anyways, and Baekhyun doesn’t know if he has any other clothing in his closet.

“You’re wearing dress shoes,” Haewon notes dumbly, “Don’t your feet hurt?”
 

“No,” Baekhyun replies awkwardly, though his feet do sort of ache. “Uh… do you possibly know the way out of here?”

“Are you lost?” she asks, realization hitting her. “It’s…” her eyes flicker to his feet quickly, “It’s probably your first time hiking, right?”

Baekhyun nods at her, because it is. And he’s also unsure where his home is, and wandering around the forest at night doesn’t sound like something he’d want to do. “I’m not sure which way to go. And I’m also not sure which path leads back. There were a couple.”

Haewon squints at the sky, which has become even darker. The first stars are beginning to appear, and though they look pretty, Baekhyun’s sure it’s not the best sign. He’s been wandering outside for hours, and the stars signify that it’s night.

Meeting Haewon isn’t bad, he tries to convince himself, though the Sea of Flames keeps on coming to his mind every time he thinks of her, I don’t love her. She’s not going to die because of the curse if I don’t love her. I don’t care much about her, frankly.

“I can walk you back,” Haewon offers, though she gives a sheepish smile. “Could I crash at your place again? Or if you don’t want it, I’ll just bus home or call a cab.”

Baekhyun thinks about his options. He can either let Haewon go to his house again — the pros of that is the fact that he’s actually getting company, which, undeniably, he yearns for — but the cons sound scarier. It’s been centuries since someone’s died of the curse because of him, and he doesn’t want Haewon to become one of those people. Still… refusing her after she shows him the way back is… rude.

“Alright,” Baekhyun agrees. “But you’ll be leaving tomorrow, right? I haven’t found your necklace yet.”

He doesn’t mean for it to sound rude. In fact, the only reason he tells her to leave the next day is solely because of the curse, and enough people have died because of it. But she doesn’t know that, and she flinches. “I’m sorry about it.”

Baekhyun shakes his head. “Really, it’s fine.”

They lapse into silence, and Baekhyun walks quietly behind Haewon. Her steps are steady (steadier than his; the shoes do hurt). As he keeps his eyes on her faint silhouette, his thoughts go back to the Sea of Flames again.

What if the curse is gone? Baekhyun wonders. The stone has been sitting on his table for so long, untouched, unused. What if the curse doesn’t work anymore?

“What do you think of hiking?” Haewon asks him, turning around. “Do you like it? I mean, as much as you can wearing dress shoes. I can barely walk in dress shoes.”

“It’s okay,” Baekhyun says cautiously, looking around him. “I just… don’t really know how? But it’s sort of relaxing too.”

“If you want, I can take you on a few trails,” she offers, beaming. “Or I’ll suggest you a few trails. Just wear proper clothing next time and it’ll be even more enjoyable.”

No, his mind says, and it’s his first thought, you can’t meet her ever again. It’ll kill her.

Baekhyun thinks of his life, spent day by day shut inside his house, reading and rereading the same books. It’s a repetitive cycle of boring, but Baekhyun can’t bear to let go of the gem and the immortality either. I won’t fit in even if I try, he tells himself as he looks at the rock. Better to stay like this because I’m used to it. Because I know what’s going to happen, there’s no spontaneity.

But it’s odd. Because Seo Haewon brings spontaneity into his life, and Baekhyun doesn’t hate it. In fact, he likes it. He yearns for it.

“I’ll think about it,” he tells her. “Thanks.”

***

They take at least another hour (or two) for Baekhyun to finally recognize the path home. He hasn’t even realized how far he’s strayed from the original direction and how long he’s been wandering around until he actually makes his way back with Haewon. It had been around noontime when he left, and now, Baekhyun’s positive that they’re nearing midnight.

Not far in the distance, he can see his house, lights gleaming in the darkness, standing out against the shadows. Haewon is using the flashlight on her phone to light the way, though it’s beginning to flicker. A couple minutes prior, she’d given him the warning that her phone was dying.

Baekhyun hasn’t used his own phone much; he sees no need for it. He’s pretty sure it’s out of battery because he doesn’t charge it. The only thing he really has on it is Haewon’s number, and he hasn’t found her necklace yet so he sees no need to call her.

Not that that really matters either, because they’re currently walking to his home together.

When they’ve finally reached the house, Baekhyun digs out his keys. He’s exhausted and he wants the shoes off.

It’s the third time Haewon’s been in his house, but this time, Baekhyun is too drained to do much. “I’m going to go to bed,” he tells her as he flicks on the living room lights for her, “There’s a blanket and