6. Skies of Angeles

A Glimpse of Freedom

"Don't tell them." Yeonjun whispered to Beomgyu while he was still waving at the new arrivals.

"Oh, hey guys!" Yeonjun turned to greet them. Tears are still falling from his eyes. The two girls didn't mind this as they were also crying a lot just a few minutes earlier.

"Come on, take a seat." As he tapped the platform on his left, he said.

"That looks scary." Ryujin said, but she immediately ran to sit down near Yeonjun.

Yeji soon followed by sitting right next to her.

"We broke up." Ryujin said, which shocked the two guys, but their faces eventually changed.

"To be honest, we saw it coming." Beomgyu replied.

"It was a healthy one, though. Imagine seeing toxic couples break up in a healthy way. " Yeji commented.

"I'm proud of you guys. We just met, but it feels like we really know each other. " Yeonjun said.

"Same." Ryujin agreed.

"Maybe you, know we could still hang out after this?" Yeji suggested.

Yeonjun smiled bitterly. He knows that is not going to happen. He will be going to jail, and he will not see them for a long time.

"Yeah, we sure will." He lied.

They then pointed at several stars and cloud formations that they saw. They found mutual interest in their love of the skies. Their conversation went on for a few minutes until they saw Jeno coming up from the stairs.

"Get your in here." Yeonjun said to him, to which the latter happily obliged.

Jeno then sat beside Yeji.

"So, how was it?" He asked.

"It went well. I did not expect that it would go really well. How about yours?"

"I said it to him. I did not regret it." He lied.

"That's good. From now on, we shall live without regrets. It is difficult to carry the emotional burden of regrets. They're excess baggage; it is better to let go of them. But of course, we need to keep the lessons with us."

"Right." Jeno agreed and reflected on what she said.

A few minutes later, another set of footsteps can be heard.

"Come on, you're the last ones." Yeonjun called them. "Now that we're complete, let's watch all the stars together."

And so they did. They watched the stars while sitting on the ledge of a 30th-floor building.

Winter then leaned on Jaemin's shoulder while pointing at the stars. He appears hesitant at first because of Jeno, but he eventually decides to leave her alone.He watched her become fascinated as she pointed out several constellations in the sky and talked about them. He watched her with love in his eyes. I might've fallen way too deep. I love this.

On the opposite hand, there sat Ryujin, who was looking at Yeji's right hand instead. It's pretty. It is still pretty after all these years. I miss the feeling when it touches my hand. I love how it perfectly fits in my hand. I'm going to miss it. I want to hold on for one last time. I can't. Right, I'm the one who broke up.

"What are you looking at?" Yeji caught her staring at those hands.

"O-oh nothing." Ryujin stuttered, then she went back to watching the stars.

Suddenly, she felt a warm feeling in her left hand.

"Just tell me if I should stop. I want to hold it one last time. "

"Don't. Don't stop." Ryujin said as she smiled at her. Yeji smiled at her back and then looked up at the stars.

It is already 4:30 in the morning. Their time is running out. Yeonjun realized that, so he pulled out his guitar. He then took out Beomgyu'phone in his wallet, went to the music app, and then hit shuffle.

Green Day's Boulevard of Broken Dreams came out. Yeonjun knew the chords, so he started strumming his guitar.

'I walk a lonely road, the only one that I have ever known." Beomgyu started singing. This time, he won't hold himself back.

"You have a good voice. You should sing more often." Jaemin, who was sitting beside him, said.

"Thanks, but I rather not." He laughed.

"My shadow's the only one that walks beside me. My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating. " Ryujin sang the chorus.

"Sometimes, I wish someone out there would find me. 'Til then, I walk alone. " Yeji can't help but sing.

They still finish each other's sentences.

Time flew fast. They hadn't realised They were busy enjoying the moment. The song ended.

"No this is not a boulevard. This is a ing building of broken dreams. And maybe the building of newly born dreams. " Yeonjun commented.

Just before the others could react to what he had said, another song started playing.

"This is ing sad." Ryujin commented.

Emotions build up as they try to sing along. It was just a short song, but the impact it had on the atmosphere of their jamming session is quite big.

"That if you say good bye today, I'd ask you to be true. 'Cause the hardest part of this, is leaving you." Yeonjun sang.

"Right... we will separate as soon as the sun rises." Jeno commented.

"Let's keep in contact with each other, shall we?" Jaemin asked.

That pained Jeno a bit.

"Come on! Let's exchange phone numbers. "

They all exchanged for phone numbers, except for Jaemin, whose phone is low-batt, and Yeonjun, who didn't bring his phone. Fortunately, both of them memorized their numbers. Yeonjun still gave it even though he knew he wouldn't be able to respond to them.

"So I guess, you guys should just call us." Jaemin said, referring to Yeonjun. "Call us if you guys want to meet for dinner or something.:

"I'm looking forward to it, as long as I don't have to pay for it." Yeonjun commented. This made Beomgyu look at him with sadness in his eyes.

"Hey look, the sun is rising!" Winter said as she pointed in front of them.

"I feel lucky that I chose to live on the eastern side." Yeonjun said. "So I guess this is it." He said as he stood up. The others followed him.

"I had fun with you guys. Thanks for the memories." Winter thanked them.

"Hey, hey, let's save the emotional goodbyes for later. We're all coming back to the hotel, right?" Yeji asked.

The other people nodded. All of them headed to the stairs, except one.

"Beomgyu!" Yeonjun called him.

Beomgyu was peacefully watching the sunrise, when he heard Yeonjun call his name. He looked back at him, knowing what Yeonjun would say.

"I'll just stay here for a bit longer." He said. "You'll drive." He then threw the car keys to Yeonjun, who caught them. Along with the car keys comes a paper slip. "You still need to pay me a lot for this."

"Yeah, yeah, just make sure you won't get caught." Yeonjun reminded him.

"I will." Beomgyu said with a smile, and then tied his hair in hopes of seeing the sunrise properly. He faced the sun, even though he knew that this would be the last time he saw Yeonjun.

Beomgyu feels freer this time around.

It is already 5:30 AM. Downstairs, the others started boarding the truck. They have to do it quickly to avoid being caught sneaking in a danger-prone area.

Except for Winter and Jaemin, their seating positions changed compared to the last time they were in. Ryujin and Yeji decided to sit together on the left side of the truck. Jeno sat at the front seat while Yeonjun took the wheel.

It was a quiet fifteen-minute drive. No one dared speak. They all just sat there quietly watching the scenery. This is the end. They all know.

They were able to arrive safely at the motel. Jeno was initially shocked at how Yeonjun was able to remember how to get there. After arriving, Yeonjun gave Jaemin the keys to unlock the motel. He stayed behind with the truck to park it.

"This." He showed him the paper slip that Beomgyu gave him along with the keys earlier. "Beomgyu wrote the directions. I don't know when he did it, but it's here."

Beomgyu also wrote another thing that Yeonjun almost forgot to say.

"I almost forgot. He said thank you and he said he can't wait to meet us again." He said, then smiled as he stepped out of the pickup truck.

When he and Jeno went into the lobby, nobody was there.

"They must have gone upstairs." Jeno said as he also went upstairs. When he realized Jaemin was there, he decided to wait outside until the other left.

Meanwhile, Yeonjun sat in the lobby alone. He doesn't have any items in his room. He is done.

I should go now. I suppose I should leave a note for them.

He then began writing notes. He placed some of his money along with it. He has to face his consequences.

Minutes later, Yeji and Ryujin arrived at the lobby. They immediately noticed the note that Yeonjun left. It wasn't the note that caught their attention, though, it was a huge sum of money.

"I had the best night. I'm sorry I couldn't see you again in a long time. I left my money for you all to split. I don't need it anymore since I cannot use it. I hope you can find a good use for it. Thank you again for this night. I have experienced freedom again in such a long time. 'Til we meet again. " Yeji read the letter.

"What does that even mean?" Ryujin asked.

"I guess he gave us his money, but for what? Why doesn't he need it anymore?" As soon as she said it, she heard footsteps coming downstairs. "Guys come here!" She called for Winter and Jaemin' attention.

The two hurriedly went downstairs. Yeji then gave them the note so that they could read it.

"He is giving us this money?" Jaemin asked.

"I don't think I deserved this. Is there a way to return this to him?" Winter asked.

"I don't think so. He left without telling us where he was going. We don't even know anything about him. All I know is that he is Yeonjun, a lead guitarist of a band, and for some reason, the people are angry at him yesterday." Yeji replied.

A couple of discussions later, they decided to split it. They decided to leave Beomgyu's part at his counter to make sure nobody could take it. As soon as they finished splitting the money, they saw Jeno coming downstairs.

"Yeonjun gave this to us without saying goodbye." Yeji said to him as she handed him the note. "Oh, and this is yours." She then handed him his part.

"What's this? To be honest, I don't think I need this much money. "

"Nor do I, but I guess we can't return it to him. I think we should just try to find better uses for his money. I don't want to waste all of this. "

The rest nodded.

"So what are you all going to do next?" Ryujin asked.

"Honestly, I don't know. I might settle down here." Jaemin replied.

"Oh wow, that's quite an impulsive decision."

"Have you thought about it?" A concerned Winter asked him.

"Yeah, this place seems nice. I might look for cheap apartments around me. If I find one, then I settle here. If I don't, then I'll go to another town. "

"Oh I thought you were here because the two of you got lost." Yeji asked while motioning to Jaemin and Jeno.

Jaemin just smiled back in response. Realizing that it might be something private, Yeji decided not to look into it further.

"Good luck on that. How about you two?" She asked Winter and Jeno.

"I might tour here for a while, then go back to my hometown." She told them.

"I think I will go home straight. How about you two?"

"I think I'll go home to my parents. I'll just be prepared for any scolding and grounding. " She smiled even though she had negative feelings about this.

"I'm also going to return home. Maybe I'll even re-enroll back to university this school year. " Ryujin said.

"Goodluck with you two." Jeno told them.

Seeing that it is already time for them to go, they bid each other goodbye. Yeji and Ryujin both headed to the same train station that they entered when they got here.

They might have broken up already, but they are still going back to the same place. They rode the train next to each other, walked towards the town center, and that's where they decided to separate.

"Thank you for everything." Yeji said.

"Thank you too. Let's meet each other again once we become better individuals. "

They hugged each other one last time, and went their own ways.

Seeing that the others had already left, Jaemin and Winter decided it was time to go now. The two of them headed outside, with Jeno following them behind.

Without Jaemin noticing, Jeno secretly put his part of Yeonjun's money into Jaemin's bag. He needs this more than I do.

Winter noticed this. In response, Jeno immediately put his pointer finger near his mouth, telling Winter to keep quiet about this. Winter decided to oblige, even though she was confused.

She then felt an arm on her shoulder. Her and Jaemin are already on the street, with Jeno following them far behind. It is time. They both knew what was coming.

"You should talk to him." Winter said to him.

"I wanted to, but I also wanted to give him more space."

"Are you okay with that?"

"That's what he wanted. He always gives me whatever I want. Maybe it's time for me to repay him. "

"This might be the last time he will talk to you."

Reality hits Jaemin. He is unable to gather words to form a coherent sentence."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"No, it's okay. I guess you're right, we might never talk to each other again, but I wanted to respect his wishes for the time being. I have trust that we will still be friends when we meet each other again. "

"I hope you guys will be friends again."

"It will happen, eventually. So... how about us?" He smiled.

"I don't know." Winter looks back at him."Let's just go wherever the future takes us. We might miss each other later, then decide to meet again, or we might just move on, carrying the memories along the way. "

"If we meet again in the future, then we're destined, right?"

"Yeah, and this time I won't be distracted by your scars while we make out." She laughed. "You still haven't told me about those."

"I'll tell you about that next time. So this is it." He leaned in to kiss her forehead, which prompted her to hug him.

"Thanks for the memories. Farewell."

Jaemin took one last look at Winter and Jeno and began walking away. And just like that, Jaemin left the motel. Alone.

Winter followed soon after taking one last look at the hotel and at Jeno, who is still there.

"Thank you for making him happy." Jeno said as he smiled.

"Thank you for taking care of him after all these times. I hope things will be better for the two of you." She said as she awkwardly waved him goodbye.

Jeno was left alone to guard the motel.

Later that morning, Beomgyu returned to the motel. He is surprised to find Jeno in there.

"Oh, you're still here?" He is surprised as he expected no one to be present.

"Don't know where they put the keys, so I can't lock it. I don't want to leave those places open for robberies to take place. "

"Thanks. I'll just find the keys later. "

"I should go now. Thank you for touring us around the city. " Jeno said as he smiled at him.

The two bid each other goodbye.

Beomgyu entered the motel. It was empty. All of them left. He was alone again.

He then decided to get to the garage to check on the pick-up truck. It is still there, nice and rusty. As he checked the car seat, he saw the car keys, two paper slips, a wallet, and a guitar.

Yeonjun, that idiot.

He picked up the papers to check what was on the insides. The first one was the paper that he gave to Yeonjun earlier. The moment he arrived at the building he decided he wanted to stay longer than the others. That's how he decided to give him the paper.

He then checked what was written on the other paper.

I had the best night of my life. I figured out I wanted to live the best way I could before I went to prison. I had fun. I can go to prison without any regrets and face the consequences of my action. Take the money from my wallet and the guitar too. I don't know if you know how to play it. You can sell it if you don't want it. I don't have someone to leave my belongings with, so I hope you like my present. Sorry for giving you problems earlier by forcing you to participate in my wishes. Thank you for tonight. 'Til we meet again.

Tears started falling from Beomgyu's eyes. You idiot. Now I have to learn how to play a guitar . He bitterly smiled.

Just as he thought of it, coincidentally, Yeonjun found the police station at the same time. After an hour of wandering, asking people where the police station is, he found it. His final destination

"I am not afraid to keep on living. I am not afraid to walk this world alone. Honey, if you stay, I'll be forgiven. Nothing you can say can stop me going home." Yeonjun sang as he walked towards the police station.

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RedRascal
#1
Chapter 1: Interesting