Chapter 8: Our Own Way

To others, they would've seen a depressed man.

He wore his pajamas—an undershirt with stains of who knew what and plaid pants—and a melancholic expression on his face. There were tears in the corners of his amber eyes that threatened to spill over. But by some unknown dam—he told himself that he wouldn't cry—they remained still. Two empty pints of ice cream sat on the armrest of the couch, where his head laid. Legs stretched out on the couch, remote in his hand, Taemin's eyes were on the television, despite the hole inside of it.

But he knew he wasn't depressed. He was just staring at the aftermath of the truth.

Krystal walked out into the living room, clad in a camisole and blue pants, with her arms crossed over her chest. Her dark eyes were red and puffy from her crying just minutes ago. She approached the couch and stared right at Taemin, a look of pure guilt on her face.

He glanced at her. It pained him to face her, and because of that, his dam trembled. A few tears dripped down his cheeks but the blank expression remained on his face. How some people, and by some he meant Sulli, managed to remain so calm in times of stress and danger, he wouldn't know. He was having the hardest time not breaking down right there. "Yes?" he snapped.

Krystal broke again, sobs escaping and more tears tumbling down her cheeks. She took in a shaky breath before saying through her sobs, "I'm so, so sorry." Sorry wasn't going to change anything. The deed was done. But sorry was all she could say at that point. "I'll do anything to make you forgive me. I just...I can't stand seeing you like this, Taemin."

He looked away for he feared his mask was going to break. "I just want to be alone right now. Please…just go." It was silent for a few seconds.

Krystal sniffled. "Okay." She leaned over, her trembling lips pressing to his cheek. Seconds later, Taemin was listening to her fading footsteps and sobs before closing his eyes, shutting out the light.

And then he allowed the petite beauty to fill his mind once again.

Silence.

Silence was the cacophonous sound that invaded his space. It revealed the truth over and over again. It laughed at him, mocked him for his idiocy. And all Minho could do was listen.

He knew he was wrong and he knew it was kind of his punishment. His fingers grazed the spot where she had slapped the silly out of him. He laughed bitterly at the memory before getting off his bed and grabbing his guitar case.

He unlocked the white case, his eyes drinking in the freshly polished wood of his beloved guitar. Playing this instrument, feeling the strings underneath his fingers, the feel of its nearly weightless body resting on his own, was his secret obsession. Sure people knew he played the guitar. But no one knew how engrossed he could get when creating a new masterpiece.

He sat at his desk, guitar by his side, and pulled out his sheet music notebook. With a pen at the ready and his glasses on, Minho placed the guitar on his lap. With a deep breath, he allowed the melody in his head to come to life.

At first, it was staccato: uneasy, kind of choppy. But then the plectrum dragged out some notes, the melody sounding rather sweet. Minho quickly put it down and copied the notes onto the sheet music, the correct notes in their spots. He it up again, continuing the melody.

For his minimum of six hours, it was a process: play, write it down, play some more, review the notes, scribble out any unnecessary notes, and repeat. But this was where he was at his most peaceful. Playing the guitar was his addiction, his escape from reality. It made everything easy. And all Minho needed right then was easy.

He stared at his four sheets—front and back—of pure genius. This was probably the only piece he's ever created in six hours without breaks. He rubbed his chin, his eyes scanning over the bars of music. Yes, it was just perfect. He grinned at his work before tapping two fingers to the curved body of the Guitar. "Good job old friend."

But the piece was not complete until he titled it. Minho closed his eyes as he thought of what the piece meant to him. The beginning was staccato, but the middle was harmonious and sweet. Towards the end, there were a few choppy moments, some pockets of long notes that stretched out the melody. And at the very end, it ended almost silently like a child's lullaby. Even so, this piece meant more to him than he expected. Just what would be the perfect title? He only had one shot. It had to be just right.

And then the title popped into his head. He wrote it down and stared at it for a few seconds. Was this the title for that piece? "Yes," Minho answered. It brought a smile to his face.

'Decrescendo of Sweet Evil; Symphony of New Love'. Only he would know the meaning behind that name.

The knocking on his door was driving him crazy. He had just spent six hours in a chair; he needed to rest after rigorous work like that. But Minho got off his bed with a sigh, went down the stairs of his two-floored apartment and answered the door. When he saw his sister's familiar hair, he wasn't surprised.

He opened the door with a small glare in his eyes. "Do you have to knock so loudly?"

Luna grinned before pushing past him and taking off her sneakers. She wore athletic gear—yoga pants, a sports sweater—which led Minho to conclude that the girl was probably jogging. She walked over to his kitchen, where she rummaged through his fridge. "Got any ice cream? Or something heavy to eat?" She rubbed her stomach. "I can eat an entire cow right now."

He rolled his eyes. "There's a leftover pizza in there."

"Score," she cheered as she pulled out the box. She put the pizza on a tray before popping it into the conventional oven. She sat on a stool by the island. "I tried calling you."

"I was working."

"Ah," Luna said, already knowing what her brother was doing. She gave him a look over before lowering her gaze. "You definitely look like you were working."

"Funny." He sat beside her, a sigh escaping his lips as he did so. The two spun halfheartedly, their silence comfortable and usual. He wanted to ask her but he wondered if she would get the wrong idea. Either way, she would probably ask. "Hey, Luna."

"Hmm?" Her brown eyes were watching the timer on the oven. Just five more minutes until her pizza was ready to be engorged.

"Have you...spoken or seen..." He swallowed. "Sulli lately?" As if he was predicting his own fate, the girl looked at him with suspicious eyes and the signature Choi smirk on her lips.

She poked his cheek. "Why? Is a certain older brother of mine falling for a certain brunette?"

He pushed her hand away. "That's real funny." The timer went off and Luna hopped off her seat. She put on an oven glove before pulling the pizza out and placing it before her and Minho. She tossed the glove aside and hopped back into place. The smell of the delicious cheesiness filled her nose. The blonde's stomach rumbled in approval.

Minho watched the girl pull off a slice and bite into it. She moaned at the taste. "Answer the question."

"No, I haven't." Luna her lips. "She's busy with College."

"Ah." He chuckled before pulling off a slice and biting into it. It was scalding hot but he didn't care. "Did she tell you about what happened between me and her?"

Luna laughed. "Yeah she did." She narrowed her eyes. "If she didn't slap the crap out of you, I would've kicked the man out of you." He chuckled at her threat before getting off his seat to grab two beers from the fridge. He handed one to his sister and the girl popped the cap open. They clinked their bottles before taking a quick sip of the drink.

Luna burped. "And I would've kicked you really hard."

"I get it." Minho bit his pizza again. She picked up her third slice. "But I have to admit. For someone as petite like herself she sure does pack an -whooping slap."

Luna chewed her pizza, her eyes staring at Minho. "You're just realizing this?" She swallowed and sipped her beer. "She took a bat and put a ing hole in their television. A big one."

"Yeah..." Minho sighed before placing the last bite of his crust into his mouth. Luna took the last slice without hesitation and chewed happily.

"Minho?"

"Hmm?"

She looked away. "Although I won't tell anyone this, and this will remain a secret between us, but..." She looked at him then, a gentle expression on her face. "I'm kind of happy you slept with Krystal."

His eyebrows rose. Was Luna crazy? Maybe she was already drunk. "Uh, why?"

"Because it was the last straw. It was your final move to get over her." He understood then. And in that sense, he was kind of glad he slept with the girl, too.

He rubbed his sister's head. "Me too."

"But don't tell anyone I said that," she said quickly before finishing off her beer and walking back to his fridge. "They'll kill me."

Minho laughed. "Wouldn't dare." He stood beside her in front of the fridge. Luna closed it before opening the freezer and pulling out his tub of cookie dough ice cream.

She grinned. "Feel like eating your weight in food?"

Just hanging out with his sister sounded easy. It had been a while since it was just the two of them. Minho liked the moments he shared with Luna and with her alone. "I'll order take-out then."

Sulli stood up from her seat and put her binder away. Her freshman year was just a month and a half from ending and she still wasn't sure about what to do for her senior year. Her teachers were highly impressed with her work and wrote some recommendation letters for the girl, but what was she going to do with them? She stared at the envelopes in her tote bag before zipping it close and walking out of her row. She headed up the stairs to the door but she was stopped by the University's messenger, Jun-soo. He was twenty, yet to hit puberty, and in desperate need of some acne cream.

He smiled at Sulli. "Sulli, Jung-seonsaeng told me to tell you that she wants to speak to you now." Sulli nodded and walked past Jun-soo, her legs carrying her to the main hall where the professors' office was. She was glad she wore her Converse; the walk from the classrooms to the main hall would've killed her by then.

Sulli entered the building and took the elevator to the fourth floor. She exited the crowd—why couldn't those people move out of her way?—and entered the teachers' office.

Jung-seonsaeng was a woman in her early forties but didn't look a day over thirty. Her hair was always out and slightly curled. Her brown eyes were stern but her smile was kind. Sulli bowed to her Literature professor before sitting in front of her.

"Sulli," she greeted. "I have some news." Her brown eyes watched her rummage through some papers before pulling out a letter and a catalog. She passed them to Sulli. She read over it quickly before her eyes widened.

A bright smile adorned the brunettes lips. "Are you serious? This...for me?"

Jung-seonsaeng laughed. "Yes. It's very much for you." She chuckled. "After seeing your performance in my class, I pulled some strings. You deserve this, Sulli." She gasped before reading it over again, her brain trying to process the words on the paper.

"I can't believe this!"

"It's a wonderful program. Highly advanced. And since your work is just so brilliant, I recommended you to them. And you got accepted." Sulli squealed before standing up and bowing to her professor.

"Thank you so much, Jung-seonsaeng You have no idea how honored I feel right now."

"Well you are my favorite student. It's nothing really."

Sulli shook the letter. "Something like this is just nothing!" Her brown eyes were light and exuberant.

"You have until the end of this term to figure out what you want to do." Her professor pointed at the letter and catalog in the girl's hands. "Think long and hard, Sulli."

"I will." Sulli jumped for joy before running out of the professor's office with a smile on her face. It was just too dreamlike to be real. But it was very much real and very much happening to her. No words could describe the absolute joy she was feeling.

She decided that she had to tell someone about her good news. And since Luna's place was close to her college, Sulli headed over towards their apartment building.

Luna and Onew sat on the couch watching some completely random cartoon when her doorbell rang. Luna kissed his cheek before standing up and rushing over to the door. She answered it without hesitation because she had a feeling it was the person she was just thinking about. And her guess was correct.

"Long time no see," Luna said. Sulli stepped inside and hugged her. "It's only been a while."

"I have big news!"

Luna grabbed Sulli's hands. "What? If it's what I'm thinking, then we need to have a serious talk." Sulli chuckled before taking off her sneakers. She pulled Luna hack into the living room, where Onew had switched to a soccer game. He grinned at Sulli.

"Yo, Swingy!" He laughed at his own joke. Sulli rolled her eyes before looking at Luna with serious eyes.

"Okay. What's your news?"

Sulli grinned and squeezed Luna's hands. "I got a scholarship." Both Luna and Onew hugged her.

"Congrats!"

"There's more." Her expression softened and a smaller smile appeared on her face.

"Tell us!"

Sulli took a breath. "I also got accepted to a one year program...in New York."

A/N: I'm not going to update this story for like one and a half month, since I'm going to visit a friend of mine in America. I will probably update my new Lunew story "Along The Road" once in this two months, but that's all.

Here is the link: https://www.asianfanfics.com/story/view/380821/along-the-road-luna-lunew-minstal-onew-taelli-taestal-minsul

This story is more funny and since I often got asked when I would make a Lunew story, I started this, so please check it out and support it as much as you support this story!

Review & Vote ~*