The Lake

Coming Home

It had been Sunday since Kyungsoo had set the small box on the kitchen counter. Today, Thursday, he got a postcard in the mail. It was a picture of a lake, and the message on the back, in all too familiar handwriting simply said; "Open the damn box, Soo." There was also a sloppily drawn heart next to the name. "Yeol".

Kyungsoo wiped away a tear as he smiled. Taking the box to his room, he sat down on the bed and peeled off the tape. Opening the box, he took out the CD. He swallowed the lump in his throat and tried to take a deep breath. His breathing was a bit ragged. A few more tears spilled from his eyes and again he wiped them away with his sleeve. 

He couldn't do this here. He knew what he needed to do. He'd always known what he needed to do, but he'd been afraid. He had to go home. 

Once he was out of the city, with the wind blowing through his hair, he put the CD in to play. 

A thousand memories came rushing back. Once again, he had a lump in his throat. This time, he let the tears flow. 

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Kyungsoo got out of the car and sat on the grass. It had been ages since he'd last been there and he'd forgotten how beautiful it was in the evening with the sunset reflecting off of the water. He hadn't planned on stopping at the lake, but somehow that's where he ended up. Truthfully he wasn't all that surprised. After all, some of his happiest memories lived there. 

The lake had always held a special place in his heart. He smiled as he recollected the countless summers he'd spent there with his friends. They had learned how to swim together, gone fishing with each other, and later when they had gotten older, had group dates and bonfires by the shore. One particular summer will forever stand out in his mind. It was the summer between his Junior and Senior year . The summer when he'd first met Chanyeol. 

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In his mind's eye, he could still see the awkwardly tall boy with his big toothy grin that had outshone the sun. He had been startled by Chanyeol's deep voice and his booming laughter that never failed to make those around him happy. The boy was always tripping or bumping into something but as goofy as the boy was, Kyungsoo couldn't help but to be drawn to the big oaf. His attraction however, hadn't turned into anything more until one summer evening when Chanyeol literally ran into him causing them to both fall to the ground in a tangle of arms and legs. 

Chanyeol had been horsing around with Baekhyun and Jongdae, each trying to dump buckets of water onto the other. The two had, had Chanyeol cornered when in a last ditch effort to get away, Chanyeol had spun around and charged forward at full speed.

Startled, Kyungsoo found himself on his back with the taller boy on top of him. Kyungsoo didn't know if he was breathless because he'd just been tackled to the ground, or because of Chanyeol's big brown eyes staring into his own with a mix of remorse and wonder. Time seemed to stand still as neither boy made an effort to move. Strange thoughts suddenly began to run through Kyungsoo's mind. Thoughts he shouldn't be thinking. Thoughts of how pretty Chanyeol was, and wondering what it would be like to kiss him. All of the sudden, as if reading Kyungsoo's thoughts, Chanyeol scrambled off of the shorter. "I'm sorry." he said, his cheeks dusted in pink. He reached his hand out to help the other up. Kyungsoo took his hand. Immediately, he felt a jolt of electricity shoot up his arm and to his heart. "It's ok." he said softly, turning away to hide his own blush. 

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Kyungsoo smiled to himself as other memories began to surface. How Chanyeol had looked like an addonis when he emerged from the lake with droplets of water stuck to his body, glistening in the sun. How safe he'd felt when Chanyeol had wrapped his arms around him in a back hug while sitting by the campfire. How chapped Chanyeol's lips were the first time they'd kissed....

He remembered the terrible rainstorm in which he'd almost drowned trying to retrieve the ring Chanyeol had given him. The very ring that he'd thrown into the lake in a fit of anger, although he'd long since forgotten why. Chanyeol fought to pull Kyungsoo out of the lake and dragged him to seek shelter in an old barn on Mrs. Lee's property. Amidst the tears and the "I'm sorry's" they had made up, and then made love. 

With the good memories, eventually came the bad. Just as he'd remembered their first kiss, he also remembered their last. He remembered the way Chanyeol looked, the way he tasted. He remembered the tears running down his own face as he told Chanyeol "I love you." for the last time. 

Chanyeol had used his last breath to say "I love you more." He died with that stupid smile on his face. The big idiot. 

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Chanyeol's mom had given him the package after the funeral. "He wanted you to have this." she said, giving Kyungsoo a hug. 

Chanyeol must have known that Kyungsoo wouldn't open the package, thus having his mom mail  him the postcard after the funeral. "Smartass." he said to no one. 

The sun had long since set letting the moon and stars have their turn. They always looked the brightest at the lake. This was Chanyeol's goodbye. He had poured his heart and soul into each song on the CD, knowing that Kyungsoo would return to the lake. This was his final gift.  One final night together, sharing the night sky.

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BR_exo
#1
Chapter 1: Thank you for writing this, makes shippers realise that life without chansoo is nothing really. They're everything together.
upiek8288 #2
Chapter 1: Didnt expect it will be angst... but it is beautiful..