Eclipse

The commute to Seoul was pretty quick despite their late departure. Yonghwa and Seohyun arrived at Seocho’s central bus terminal before eleven o’clock.

“Do you want something to eat?” Yonghwa offered as he pointed at the vending machines.

“Gwenchanayo, Yonghwasshi, we ate before we left. We ate on the way and now that we’re here… You want me to eat again?” Seohyun said as she adjusted the strap of her bag. “Where should we go first?”

Yonghwa checked the messages on his Sony X10. No messages from Taeyeon just yet. Is she recording already? He asked himself as he searched the address of Seoul Radio Station using his 4G. “Hold on. I think we can catch Noona better if we head straight to her office.”

“Chincha? Ah, but can we do that? Wouldn’t we be interfering?” Seohyun asked with a hint of panic. “Maybe we should ask Tiffany unnie?”

Yonghwa saved the address on his notes and searched which bus or train line they need to take to get there. “Don’t worry about it. If I know those two, they’d be waiting for each other after the broadcast.” He winked.

“Ah, true.” Seohyun nodded.

It took Yonghwa a couple of minutes but he finally got the information he needed. He held Seohyun’s hands and squeezed it while smiling. “Gaja! We’re on an adventure!”

•••••••

Sunny sat on one of the Park’s benches. She didn’t have a camera with her. So she was just enjoying the environment. Kids were running around and their parents would chase them. It was a lovely scenery that made her find peace, if not for the strong smell of food that littered the air.

During weekends, there was one side of the Park that turns to a huge banquet called Banchetto. All kinds of food from different parts of the world would be served. It filled Sunny’s nostrils with a burst of flavor.

Jinkyu sat down next to her. She was holding two pieces of corndogs. “Soonkyu.” She offered.

Sunny reluctantly took one of the deep fried treats. “Ah, gomawo, unnie.” She blew lightly, easing the heat that came from the kebab before she bit it.

“Soonkyu.” Jinkyu inched closer to her sister and took a selca. Sunny was beyond confused at this point. She looked at the photo and noticed that the picture they took was when they were younger.

I’m in my memories. She thought as she looked at the picture. She missed it, being in good terms with Jinkyu. If she could find out what she did wrong, she’d take it all back and start over.

“I’m gonna take care of you, y’know. Eunkyu unnie is heading to college this year.” Jinkyu said and she took her scarf off and wrapped it around Sunny’s neck. “So you have to do as I say.”

I don’t want to. Sunny thought, that was what she said and it echoed in the quarters of her dream.

“Stop being hard headed.” Jinkyu put her arms around her sister and hugged her. “Or else I’ll never let you out of my sight.”

Is this where I did it wrong? Sunny asked herself. If I was to answer differently, would have a different life? “Unnie…” She rested her head on her sister’s shoulders.

“Hmm?”

“One day, if we grow up and I don’t turn out to be what you expect… You’ll still love me, right?”

“I will always love you.” She answered.

“Jeongmal?”

“Jeongmal!” She said

Sunny felt happy. She had wished she had this conversation instead. There were so many things she wished just never had happened. She closed her eyes and felt Jinkyu hold her hands.

If things only stayed like this, she would have been so… Content.

When she opened her eyes, she was a chapel. Jinkyu was still holding her hands but in a different way. She was gripping her hands very tightly and she was crying.

She realized where she was. This was when Sunny chased Jinkyu after their parents and Eunkyu was cremated. Even in her dreams, her nightmare followed her. She wanted to wake up. Nothing can change what happened before. Why did her mind have to play it back to her?

All at once, she smelled smoke. Then she felt heat and everything was in flames. It engulfed the altar and the chairs. The statues cracked and shattered on the floor due to the intense heat. “Unni!” She called as she pulled her hand but Jinkyu didn’t budge. She was still crying. And all she can hear was the fire popping all over the place.

White strips of paper were raining down them and added to the chaos that Sunny was seeing.

Wake up, dammit! She slapped herself but the nightmare wouldn’t end. She let go of her sisters hand and instead grabbed on to her shoulders so she can stop crying. She really wanted to get out of there. It scared her so much.

Jinkyu lifted her head. Her face… It was melting! Sunny fell on her back and crawled away in fear. Her sister looked like she was made of wax that slowly softened and turned to some sort of sticky liquid.

Sunny got to her feet and ran. The tiles were falling apart and she saw nothing but darkness underneath. The door was there but she couldn’t reach it. She fell and stumbled on to a pile of ashes.

The grey sand swirled and her in. The soft powder turned into dark and moist substance that swallowed her limbs. She tried swimming but it only made the quicksand eat her faster. ! I’m gonna die! She thought.

The last thing she saw was a bright light that cupped her cheeks. She closed her eyes because her body had already sunk in the mush but she still felt the warm of the light materialize into hands.

When it seemed that the awful dream would end, she suddenly felt like she could breathe but not really. The sand was gone and wasn’t constricting her movements anymore but she was underwater. She opened her eyes and saw Tiffany’s long red hair dance in front of her. Her bubbly eyes were smiling as their foreheads touched.

Sunny couldn’t take it anymore. She was such an angel! From the roots of her hair to the tip of her toe, it was perfection. Their lips touched. Everything about her was magical. She felt something she had never in her whole life expected to happen:

Love. Was this enough to save her from the nightmare she faced every day? Will the feeling make her want to live again? She didn’t know and there wasn’t any proof that it would cure her lifelong depression.

But she was eager to find that out.

Tiffany’s arms moved from her face, to Sunny’s shoulders, then down to her hips. It was like she wanted to feel Sunny in all ways possible. And their lips, Sunny had not kissed anyone before, but Tiffany guided her all the way, moving in baby steps, gently but surely teaching her how love works between two people.

Tiffany. Save me. She begged.

The water dispersed and they were lying on a bed. She didn’t know where it was, but she didn’t care. She had Fany to herself and she was truly happy.

She felt Tiffany pull away and smile. Sunny smiled back but was unable to find the words to express how she felt at that time. opened but the red haired angel caught it again and they resumed kissing.

Tiffany pulled a blanket over them to hide their water soaked bodies. Actually, since when did they take their clothes off anyway? She wondered. Nevertheless, her hands welcomed Tiffany’s skin.

“Ya. I’ve had enough.” She heard a very familiar voice come from the door. Sunny turned her head, breaking their kiss. Tiffany, however, paid no heed to the voice and continued to dig lower, touching and tasting her neck while Sunny focused on the shadow that came inside the room.

It was Taeyeon.

“Sseoni.” She said as she crept closer. Sunny pushed Tiffany away and sat up. She felt Taeyeon’s weight when she placed her knee on the bed and grabbed a handful of golden yellow hair. “You’re not supposed to get what’s mine.”

Your’s? Sunny asked.

Tiffany laughed as she tapped Taeyeon’s hand. “Cut it out. We were just playing.”

Playing?! She shot Tiffany a surprised face. Which part did it feel like I was playing?!

Taeyeon pushed Sunny away and turned to Tiffany. The next thing she knew they were making out right in front of her! She was seeing everything in slow motion which made it more excruciating to watch.

“Ah, life can be such a troll.” Tiffany smiled. Her voice rang inside the room in echoes.

Thud.

Sunny fell on the floor. The sun was up and her mind made its way back to reality.

THAT WAS THE STUPIEST DREAM EVER. WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED?! She thought as she picked herself up. She snatched her towel and made her way to the bathroom. She took a long look on her face. What’s happening to me?

She tried to remember last night. How she might’ve drunk something she isn’t supposed to by accident, and how Tiffany was there to lay her down to sleep. She’d worried her again.

She washed up and looked for her in the living room and in the kitchen. She wasn’t there.

She saw something on the dining table though:

Sunny, I made some bacon and eggs for you. There’s bread in the pantry so just toast it. There’s also milk and juice in the fridge. I don’t know what you prefer but you can open anything you want, alright? Taeyeon and I will be out until the afternoon. Please take a good rest!

PS. If you’re going out, the code is 3983. Text me, OK? :)))

This girl… She thought. She’s really an angel.

•••••••

Yonghwa and Seohyun were following the tour guide as they and a few other people explored the insides of Seoul Radio. They had just passed by Taeyeon’s studio. Although they couldn’t see each other, they can see how hard at work their sunbae was.

Seohyun was listening very closely and tagged along the group. Yonghwa however, had some plans that he needed to do. A mission he needed to complete. He tapped her shoulder and whispered. “I need to go to the boy’s room.”

“Now?” She turned. “I told you not to drink too much iced coffee.”

“Well, I can’t really stop it, can I?” Yonghwa argued softly. “I’ll be back, okay? I’ll text you. Or we can always meet in the lobby.”

“Will you be okay on your own?” Seohyun asked, concerned because it was also Yonghwa’s first time inside a radio station.

“Yeah. I’ll see you later.” He pecked her cheeks and jogged off, not waiting for a response. He needed to play the part of the boyfriend that really needed to pee badly. That, and because leaning closely to Seohyun like that make him want to kiss her. Two birds. One stone.

He ran back to the previous hallway where Taeyeon was and pulled out his phone.

EmoYoong: Where?

Gorjess: Third room.

One. Two. Three. He counted. This? He saw Taeyeon in the adjacent room, never in his wildest imagination did he think they were at such a bad place.

He turned the door knob and entered the room. His hand trembled as he saw Jessica in the center of the room, already waiting for him.

“Took you long enough.” Jessica said as she crossed her arms. “Did you bring what I asked for?”

Yonghwa pulled out a CD from his bag and laid it on the table. Jessica looked at it and pulled out a player from underneath the desk. She placed the disc Yonghwa gave and played it. She was silent for about three minutes.

“It’s fine. This will work perfectly.”

“Why did you want me to write that song and then have someone else sing it?” He asked.

Jessica stared at him with her cold eyes. “Because you’re a good composer.” She answered. “But admit it; Juniel is the better person to carry emotions like this.”

Yonghwa nodded. That was one of the things they can agree on.

Jessica wrote a check and handed it to him. “Tell Juniel, we would like to have her on the show again, next time… Live?” She raised her eyebrows.

Yonghwa clenched his teeth as he took the check and placed it in his bag. “I’ll ask her.”

“I also have plans for you, Mr. Jung.” Jessica said as she arranged the paper works in front of her into a large folder. “But we won’t be discussing that for now.”

The boy turned his back on Jessica and walked towards the door without as much as a ‘Thank you’. “Then I’ll be leaving.”

He heard Jessica stand up. “I have something I need to show you.”

“If it’s not about Juniel or CN BLUE, then I’m not interested.” He said as he turned the knob.

“Dear Love,” She cooed. “Isn’t that what you were looking for?”

Yonghwa stared at his reflection. The door was tinted just enough to see Jessica’s playful smirk. He can tell she can see his surprised face from across the room. He turned to her. “What do you know?”

“I know a lot, Jung Yonghwa.” Jessica grinned.