A lone figure stood at the shores, the biting December air hitting his face continuously and unforgivingly. The cold was slowly creeping in, seeping inside his bones. He paid it no mind. Snow had accumulated everywhere – his clothes, his hair, the shores – yet his eyes remained solidly determined. His mind which had been chaotic eventually calmed down, his inner storms gradually surrendering to his stubborn will for a standstill. Finally, a foot was lifted and the lone figure started walking.

The waves still continued to crash along the shores. Like how the seas continued to roar in the vast ocean, the stars continued to twinkle in the winter night sky.

Seungcheol trudged on.

**

“Where are you going?” Jun asked him as he saw the duffel bag in his hands. He was just about to leave when the other had suddenly entered his room. Seungcheol smiled at his best friend. “Somewhere I needed to be,” he simply answered.

The Chinese stared at him, inquisitive eyes obviously trying to read his mind. Seeing the obvious determination in Seungcheol’s gaze, he helplessly sighed and shook his head. “I guess we should have seen this coming,” he muttered, smiling wryly at the other. “It was only a matter of time anyway.”

Seungcheol questioningly raised a brow at him. “What do you mean?” he asked, somewhat confused with his words. Jun shrugged his shoulders and took a seat on the edge of his bed. “You’ve changed,” he answered, drawling the words lazily. “Ever since we came back from Busan, you’ve seriously changed,” he furthered.

A woeful smile stretched across Seungcheol’s lips. “I know,” he stated, sighing under his breath. He really couldn’t hide anything from his friends. He was that obvious. He gazed back at Jun, the corners of his lips curving upwards. “That’s why I must go back.”

“What about Soonyoung?” Jun suddenly asked, surprising Seungcheol a bit. The latter shook his head, understanding what the other meant. “He doesn’t deserve an empty Choi Seungcheol.”

Jun stared back at him, the unwavering determination twinkling and dazzling in his friend’s familiar doe eyes. “Take care,” he simply told him. “And come back whole again,” he added.

**

Taejongdae was one of the sights he and his friends had visited that summer. He planned on retracing their steps, going back to the sights one by one they had visited in ord