{Chapter 11: 4419{

“4419, it’s you right?” Chan asked as Hani looked at him.

“You probably thought C.B was me at one point didn’t you?” Chan chuckled as Hani awkwardly turned away

“Changbin has never had a girlfriend. Not because he was too busy after his dream or because he had better things to do. He had you…4419” Chan smiled

“He told me about this girl who rode the same bus as him, how he fell in love on 13^th August 2015 when she came and sat next to him when he had no friends and no one to give him company …” Chan narrated as flashbacks drew

Summer, 2015:

A summer romance <3

Hani pushed her way into the bus, a cup of coffee and a bar of chocolate to supplement her daily breakfast.

Life of a 16 year old without a mother and a father who was always away was hard.

Hani promptly went and sat next to the guy at the backseat as she sipped her coffee casually as the guy stared at her.

“Chocolate?” she asked as the guy turned away.

*Why so weird* she thought

“Do you study or live around here? Are you a trainee?” Hani asked as the guy nodded

“Did you have breakfast? I usually skip breakfast so I need to have these to give me strength” she said as the guy looked at her from time to time, his facemask covering his face most of the time.

...

...

...

“You’re really weird you know that?” Hani asked making a face.

***

“That was HIM?!” Hani shouted as Chan chuckled

“He told me about how he came back nearly a year later and rode the same bus and how you had grown up and you’d always sit there at the front listening to songs, staring out”

“He noticed me from before? I thought it was me all alone!” Hani covered her face

“We even wrote a song together titled Bus 4419” Chan said handing her his headphones as Hani took it slowly as music started, bringing her flashbacks of that one summer where she fell for Changbin.

STRAY KIDS – 4419

How are you doing? Your spot next to me feels so empty
I try pushing back the unforgettable days but I wonder how you’re doing
I’m sitting at the back of the bus, where we used to sit
Humming as I remember the memories with you

I still remember the day I first met you
I remember we were almost the same height
We were the same age and we got so close
I know I still wanted to go to the end with you

Memories of fighting against each other
My friend, who comforted and helped me
I’ll find my dreams, buy my ticket
Get to the station of debuts and cheer for you

How are you doing these days?
Its fall soon, the leaves are falling
When you left, it was the hot summer
But your spot is empty like the winter

We’re in different places with the same dream
Some day, we’ll meet again in the same place
I keep thinking about our memories
In this small vocal room where we fought and talked a lot

How are you doing? Your spot next to me feels so empty
I try pushing back the unforgettable days but I wonder how you’re doing
I’m sitting at the back of the bus, where we used to sit
Humming as I remember the memories with you

Recently, I got to know a lot of people
It’s been a while since I adjusted to this new place
I think I grew up a lot
I used to be afraid to go to the academies alone
So I begged mom for us to go together
But now I can go to Seoul alone
It’s cool, I buy my own clothes now
We used to bond over comic books
But continuing to find that common interest as we grow up
Is an unrealistic comic, yeah

How are you doing? Your spot next to me feels so empty
I try pushing back the unforgettable days but I wonder how you’re doing
I’m sitting at the back of the bus, where we used to sit
Humming as I remember the memories with you

Thank you my friend, I won’t forget you
I’ll cherish all the moments with you
Thank you my friend, I won’t forget you
Let’s meet again in the same place
Trying to stop time to relive our memories

How are you doing? Your spot next to me feels so empty
I try pushing back the unforgettable days but I wonder how you’re doing
I’m sitting at the back of the bus, where we used to sit
Deeply engraving our memories in my heart
Thanks my friend

That one summer I fell for you. When you asked me if I had breakfast and if I lived around there, I fell in love.

I came back the next year but you wouldn’t notice me. Your seat had now moved up to the front and I was at the back, the seat beside me always felt empty without you.

How could someone like you even notice someone like me? I was just a 16 year old kid, a trainee, a nobody in life. But I promised to myself, one day when I become a star, I’ll come back to 4419 and I’ll search for you.

I hope it won’t be too late by then. I hope you too search for me in every person you meet. And I hope you recognize me when you see me –the guy with whom you rode the bus together for three years and never yet, noticed him.

I promise you pretty girl, my first love, one day the songs you listen to when you’re tired of life would be my songs. I hope to be the one who sings it to you too.

I just hope…

Changbin sighed as he looked at the sky and thought of Hani

*When will you come to me?*