xiv

Chasing Summer

 

Myungsoo was two years old when his mind registered his first memory. No matter how many times he tried to forget the horrid scene, he couldn’t seem to do so. It was engraved there, deep within the groves of his brain, never to be removed again.

It amused him how his surroundings at that moment were familiar and foreign all at the same time. He knew the curtain behind his parents’ bed was the same one he used to grab whenever the wind would sway it over to his direction if given the chance; he knew he was in his crib; he knew he was hugging his blue teddy bear tightly; he knew what he was seeing was wrong, and he should look away, but he couldn’t; he knew it was his father kissing someone on the bed; he knew she wasn’t his mother.

“The baby might wake up,” she said.

“He won’t know a thing,” he replied.

And then he heard moans, together with the creaking of the springs. Myungsoo forced his eyes shut, and he his thumb while tears emerged from his eyes.

That was his first memory of his father.

<:>

Daehyun turned to his side, taking his time in opening his eyes. The rays of the sun already entered his brother’s room, and as he sat up straight, he stared at Myungsoo with a slight smile on his face. Several minutes later, the older one woke up, and Daehyun said in a throaty voice, “Good morning, Sunshine.”

A smile automatically graced Myungsoo’s face, and he tousled the young boy’s messy hair. “Good morning, Summer.”

Silence surrounded them, and Daehyun didn’t seem to mind. He was usually talkative around his parents, but he figured being silent together with Myungsoo was better than being boisterous.

“Did you sleep well?” Myungsoo finally asked.

Daehyun nodded. “Do you want to eat breakfast together?”

“No.”

“Why?”

Myungsoo groaned, and he lazily sat up straight. He scratched his head before facing his brother with a somewhat irritated face. “It reminds me of someone.”

“Of who?”

“Why can’t you stop asking questions?” he snapped.

Daehyun paused and he looked up at the ceiling, where the glow-in-the-dark stars slightly glimmered because of the rays of the sun spilling from the room’s slightly opened window. He breathed in deeply, and answered, “Because I want to know.”

“Why?” Myungsoo pushed.

“I don’t want to look like a fool,” he quietly replied.

The both of them stayed quiet, and the morning wind blew, sending off the scent of summer in every nook and cranny of the room. Myungsoo felt a pang of pain in his heart. Not once did he question his father about the thing he saw on that night, back when he was two years old. He didn’t ask, because he didn’t want to know the truth that could hurt him. And he was young. He might be mistaken. But of course, there still was this possibility that he wasn’t. Myungsoo was twenty-one years old. He had been a fool for nineteen years.

“Back when my mom was still alive,” Myungsoo began. “The kitchen would smell like food every morning. It’s a memory I’d like to forget.”

“But it seems like a nice memory,” Daehyun reasoned out.

“Not all nice memories are good for the heart,” he said.

The young boy set his teeth on his lower lip, and he glanced at his brother. “Hyung, what’s your first memory?”

Myungsoo’s eyes widened and he stared at Daehyun, long and hard. What he asked was an innocent question, and he could clearly see how he thought of that one. Nevertheless, cold sweat trickled down his forehead and back. The air around him seemed to thicken up to the point he couldn’t breathe and once again, he was back in his parents’ room. Once again, he was resting in his crib, with his blue teddy bear pressed against his chest. Once again, he heard the sounds and the creaking of the springs in the bed. Once again, he was trapped in his own little nightmare.

Daehyun held Myungsoo by the arm, and this woke him up. “Hyung, are you okay?”

He gagged and coughed. The burning sensation in his throat indicated he has indeed returned to reality. It felt like he was finally out of the water after being in it for so long. His hands began to tremble, and he tried his best to hide it from Daehyun, but it was too late.

“I’m sorry,” the young boy whispered.

“W-Why are you apologizing?” he choked out.

Daehyun didn’t reply. Instead, he hugged his brother, and he closed his eyes. A specific kind of peace swept over Myungsoo. It was the tranquility he had subconsciously missed. Soon, his heart began to calm down, and he started to breathe normally again. He would feel like this whenever he and his mom prayed.

That was when Myungsoo figured out why Daehyun had his eyes closed in the first place.

<:>

Sang Moon raised his eyebrows. The Bae siblings were in their local park, then, having a morning stroll. “Are you sure you’re going to be all right?”

Suzy nodded. “Now give me it.”

“You might fall.”

“I won’t.”

“You’re very accident-prone.”

“I’m not.”

Sang Moon scoffed, and he handed her his skateboard. “Do you even know how to ride this thing, noona?”

She leered at her brother, and he could only pass off an amused smirk. Suzy decided to not say anything anymore. She set her right foot on the middle of the board while her left foot stayed on the ground. She was ready to skate away when she heard her name. She looked back, and saw Sunggyu, already approaching them.

“Give that back to Sang Moon,” he said.

Suzy looked at the older one, and before she knew it, her body had started to rebel by skating the opposite direction with all her might. Ever since she received a bad fracture back when she was younger she wasn’t allowed to do anything ‘extreme’ whenever Sunggyu was around. That included climbing trees, riding bicycles and skateboarding. Back then she thought it was nice, because she’d rather have Sunggyu stay by her side. That changed, however. At that moment she simply wanted to run away from him. Her childishness managed to break out, and all she wanted to do was to aggravate Sunggyu. The wind was gushing by her ears, and it drowned the sound of the plastic wheels rolling against the concrete path a little. She blanked out for a split of a second, and the next thing she knew, she didn’t get to slip through the sharp curve. Suzy braced herself for the worst, but instead of falling face first, she was yanked back. Instead of crashing her whole body against the rough cement, she landed on something firm and cool. She could hear something thud against her ear. She sat up, and realized Sunggyu was the one who broke the fall for her.

She had to scoff at that one—why did it always have to be him? How could he be around at her direst moments? Why would he make her believe that princes, who were only mentioned in fairy tales, could actually exist?

“Stop being such a stubborn kid,” Sunggyu muttered, as he, too, sat up. He winced a little, but all in all he was okay.

“That’s all you see me as, anyway,” Suzy blurted out. “A kid. So I will keep on causing you trouble, because that’s what kids do.”

“That’s what disobedient kids do,” he corrected her. “Why rebel now, Suzy?”

She didn’t reply.

“And for the record,” Sunggyu added. “I don’t always see you as a kid. Whenever I read the things you write, I don’t see you as a kid at all.”

Her eyes widened with shock, because she was well aware what he was telling her was sincere.

“Sometimes I’m afraid of what’s going to happen next,” he muttered. “Especially when I don’t see you as a kid.”

“Are you playing around with me right now?” she shot back, flustered. Her cheeks were burning, and her emotions were as complicated as ever. She didn’t know if she should be happy or not.

Sunggyu smiled, and this completely rendered her speechless. “It’s revenge, for being so stubborn. But I don’t usually lie. You know that, don’t you, Suzy?”

She didn’t respond.

“I sent Sang Moon home earlier,” he began, finally getting back on track. He was back to being the responsible Sunggyu. “All of us are going out today.”

He stood up, and outstretched his right arm towards Suzy. She looked the other way and stood up on her own.

“You’re becoming independent day by day,” he remarked.

“And you’re losing your gentle touch,” she returned.

Sunggyu grinned. “Since you whined about me seeing you as a kid earlier, I should act like the way I usually do around people while I’m with you.”

Silence filled the air, and Suzy looked at him straight in the eye. Her gaze was honest, and her lips slightly trembled. “By ‘people’…you mean Sunye unnie, don’t you, oppa?”

“Clever girl,” was all he said, before they walked home in utter silence. Suzy was slightly limping, and so was he. When Sunggyu pulled her closer to help her walk, she brushed his hand away and walked on faster, instead.

“Can’t you let me do my responsibility as an older brother?” he spat out.

Suzy paused, and she turned around to face him. Her eyes began to get moist and after a long, droning silence, she said, “You said it yourself back then. We aren’t related by blood.”

Sunggyu had no idea why, but he had this urge to hold her then and there. He was confused if he liked her because she liked him first or if he liked her because of the fact that he simply liked her. He was about to hold her by the shoulders, but stopped the moment the faces of his foster parents flashed before his eyes. It was funny how he was so sure about Sunye, but Suzy—Bae Suzy—the kid he used to look out for, sent his heart in a state of disarray.

Maybe Sunye’s parents were right. Maybe he was already wavering in the first place and the memories he tried so hard to hold on to were nothing but dead weight burdening his back. Sunye was nothing but a safe choice. He never actually took the risk. He simply liked her because she liked him first, and because she was dying and it was one of her wishes to be with a guy she loved. But Suzy? She was another case. He cared about her.

He cared about her too much.


 

"Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life."
- Proverbs 13:12

Thank you for caring. And LonelyDay, you're all right. I love to read long comments, in all honesty. How you see this humble fic of mine is truly encouraging. I think I learn things from you all every time you post your thoughts here.  Suzy only had a glimpse of Myungsoo back then in the train. But we'll see. SkyLeafy, all is well. I know God has a reason as to why something like that happened. Thank you for your kind thoughts. Most of the comments are addressed to Daehyun, and I couldn't help but smile at the things you've just said.  I think I'm flourishing while writing this fiction. I hope you are flourishing, too. If it isn't too much to ask, may I have the honor to know what your first memory is? Mine fleets from one even to another, so I can never really be sure at the moment. I'm certain that I'll say it with confidence one day, though. God bless.

I hope this chapter clears some things up.

Like this story? Give it an Upvote!
Thank you!
summerchild
And please, if you spot any typos, please tell me!

Comments

You must be logged in to comment
tomotomo_
#1

Irashaimase!
Are you looking for a place to have fun?
A place where you can unwind and relax?
A place where you can call home?
We have it all for you!

★ Non-au Facebook based rp

★ All asian faceclaims are welcome
★ All ualities

Come and visit us at Tomo-Mart RP.
[ https://www.asianfanfics.com/story/view/1534999 ]
[ https://photo.asianfanfics.com/user/2495679/b825e4.gif ]
thegarden
#2
a classic
Dodoistwo #3
❤️❤️❤️❤️
Orchidbaby
#4
For one second i thought this was deleted. So glad that it's still here. I read this a long time ago and planning to re read it again ❤️❤️
dindarvlt #5
Chapter 25: This story is so good!!
gyuhyeon #6
I love this so much ❤❤❤
miyoonji #7
Chapter 25: It's a beautiful story.
seokyuroro #8
I'm reading this again because I love this sm <3 !!!!!
anitaklr24
#9
Reading one more time! Because it’s so special!
tiffasdfjk
#10
TIME TO REREAD AGAIN