*chapter forty three;

In the mid of February, it began to snow again. Bright, glittery snow, light as powder, covered the streets on that morning and it reminded Soah again of the day she went to her old school together with Luhan. What a coincidence that snow had begun to fall again today, when she was about to do the same – but this time it wasn’t to mourn old memories. Instead she would celebrate something. Today, only good and beautiful memories would be made, together with all of her friends and former classmates.

Soah put on her parka, ready to go out that morning, before her eyes examined the huge bouquet of flowers, standing in a vase on her table, for the uncountable time. She smiled as she took it in her hands and the lucent, light purple paper, in which the flowers were wrapped in, made quiet noises as she twisted it in her hands. She leaned in and took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh and sweet scent of the flowers she chose. They were special ones. And she exactly knew the meaning of them. Holding them tightly in her hands, she stepped out in the snow as the clouds gave way to the sun. She looked up and let the winter sun shine on her face, getting the feeling that today was definitely going to be a good one. She felt so content and blissful when she was on her way to Luhan’s house.

---

The third year students were given the seat of honors on the main floor in front of the stage, where the principal would hold his speech later after everyone had gotten their diploma. The students were properly seated in order of their names and classes, wearing their freshly washed and steamed uniform and most of the girls were having their hair especially styled due to this special day. High school graduation would only take place once in a lifetime, so everyone wanted to keep this day as a good one in their memories. No bloopers, no arguments, no intrigues. Even the biggest enemies would try to look and smile at each other even once, tapping their shoulders and congratulate each other, yet still hoping that they would never see each other ever again.

Now, before the official ceremony would start, they were still chatting with each other, praising their friends if they reached a high place on the exam list and sharing with each other their future plans. Yohee and Jinhie were talking to each other when they walked to their seats back from the restroom and Luhan stood with his friends in a corner, though while the others were joking and fooling around, his eyes always drifted away to the door, because he knew that Soah would step in any minute with his grandmother.

In the last week, they had been seeing each other every day, but it still wasn’t enough to make it up for the months they were separated due to his studies. And it didn’t take long for him to see a very familiar face appearing at the door. She was holding a huge bouquet of white flowers in her hand which was covering almost all of her upper body. And he was supposed to carry this all the time? Luhan let out a laughter as Soah and his grandmother headed towards him to greet him.

“You liar!” Soah said loudly with a grin on her face. “I looked at the list and you climbed to third place! How will you explain the hours you spent whining over the fact that you thought you did so bad?”

“I’m.. sorry?” He said unsurely, but she held onto him with her free hand, grabbing his uniform’s sleeve as she got up on her tiptoes and gave him a brief kiss on the lips as a greeting.

“I’m so proud of you,” she whispered and he gave her the brightest smile as an answer.

After Luhan’s grandmother congratulated him as well, claiming with a wink how proud she was to have a grandson as him, she went away to reserve her and Soah a seat, wanting to give her more time with her boyfriend and the girl couldn’t be more thankful for that.

“Here.” With her cheeks slowly turning red, she handed him over the bouquet with the special flowers she chose for him. For him and for her.

“White?” Luhan asked surprised. “Aren’t white flowers for dead people? I am not going to die today,” he joked, but accepted them with happiness.

“No.,” she tried to explain, noticing how her cheeks began to glow. “Those are baby’s breath and marguerites. And they have a special meaning.”

Luhan held the bouquet tightly in his hands and eyed the blossoms. “They do? Which ones?”

Soah gulped before she looked down and folded her fingers in nervousness. “Uhm.. Baby’s breath means everlasting love. And marguerites.. true love.” She patted against his chest and took a few steps back, not giving him a slight chance to answer back. “I’m going to Jinhie and Yohee!” Soah said quickly and before he could open his mouth, she was already gone, leaving him there with a sly grin.

After all the time they’ve been together, after almost a year, she would still become shy and embarrassed when it came down to expressing her feelings directly and properly. Still, Luhan found it totally cute and he would definitely treasure the bouquet throughout the whole day, because it didn’t take him to look behind the actual meaning of this gesture. With her giving him these flowers, she actually told him, that she believed that their love would last forever – something Luhan believed in from the very first moment he saw her. And it brought him closer to heaven, now that he knew, that she was thinking and feeling the same way.

---

Soah was seated next to Luhan’s grandmother at the back of the auditorium when the teachers walked in to take their place at the other side. And she exactly knew who was amongst them – nobody else than Taehyun. Luhan, who was about to take his seat and follow his friends, stopped and watched him walk past Soah who immediately searched for eye contact with her boyfriend.

Oddly, Soah’s main feeling w