3. Demons

She was running late for a very important date. They had a last-minute meeting in which she unconditionally felt infuriated with. She was so tempted to skip it but her assistant said it was “important” which Aki thought was absolute poppycock, but she had to. It was truly annoying seeing that her assistant was the one who held the meeting and she felt like she was tormented.

It was their anniversary, their second anniversary at that, but she was pathetically late. She left him a good amount of text messages, full of apologies and graphical hugs and kisses. Her husband came home early; he was patient so he said it was all right and that he’d wait for her return to celebrate.

When she informed him she was on her way home, he didn’t reply back and that worried her.

“Honey, I’m really sorry if you’re mad at me for coming home late in our anniversary. I’m almost there, okay? I love you so much.” She said while brisk walking towards her Honda jazz.

She was getting anxious and fidgety, constantly drumming the steering wheel and humming a love song he’d always sing to her, but in all honesty she had her full attention on the road. She was worried they won’t be able to celebrate their anniversary since it was so late. She imagined him lying on the bed, completely knocked out and was essentially mad at her for making him wait.

When she arrived in front of their house, she sighed loudly in relief “Thank goodness” she thought. She ran towards their doorstep, while getting the keys from her bag as she unlocked their blue front door quietly as she could.

When she entered their house, her heart exploded into little microscopic pieces.

There he was, sleeping peacefully on their sofa with his phone in hand; his face was a little squished, his stomach flat on the sofa, his hair completely disheveled, his mouth hung open in a very innocent way and his breathing was  loud but it was not close to snores but it exactly indicated that he was exhausted beyond all reason. But he waited for her.

Her eyes shifted to the carpeted floor and if it were possible, her eyes widened more. The floor was covered in DVDs, white covers, fluffy pillows and blankets that looked beyond comfortable and haven-like.

The coffee table had two plates of Sicilian salad and Pesto pasta and there were candles in the middle giving off a warm glow and only then did Aki notice the lights were off, everything was lit by pretty little candles that could absolutely make a girl squeal. “What an adorable bastard.” She said, her voice cracking as she took her flats off, gaining speed to reach the man of her dreams.

True, she badmouthed him but that was their endearment towards one another. They’ve known each other for a long time now. They've made love but they’ve fought countless times. They had near break up incidents but they stuck with each other. They’ve seen each other’s darkest and brightest and they’ve gone through thick and thin. They all did these together. That was love. They didn’t leave each other even though they could've.

She sat on a vacant spot of the sofa, caressed his disheveled dark brown hair with a soft smile. She leaned in his cheek and gave him a soft peck.

He, to her unknowing, felt the warmth of her lips on his cheek. He smiled while his eyes crept open. “Hey.” He greeted her hoarsely, sitting up in the process to give her a soft chaste kiss on the lips.

Aki smiled into their kiss, her heart bursting into a million pieces, kissing him back in delight. “Happy Anniversary.” She whispered after pulling away, pressing her forehead against his.

“Happy Anniversary.” He repeated, rubbing the sleep off his eyes. “How was your day?” he asked with a smirk as he habitually caressed her face with half-lidded eyes.

Aki shrugged. “It was fine but it got better.” Her eyes lowered, sighing as her eyes averted back to his.“I’m really sorry you had to wait for me.” She mumbled, guilt building up inside her.

He was about to soothe her with a tight embrace but she suddenly turned around sneakily taking a petite white box from her purse. “You said you liked this when we passed by the store.”

His eyes widened in surprise when she handed him the box. He looked at her with a stunned expression, asking if he could open the box. Aki’s eyebrows danced, agreeing with the idea. He opened the box and was greeted by an expensive well-made wristwatch. It worked like a natural and it glistened with his smirk. “Aw, shucks.” He paused, “You didn’t have to buy me one, you know. A shower of your kisses is all that I need.” He cooed.

Aki scoffed. “Yeah, but I wanted to.”

"C'mere." he whispered lovingly in her ear, bringing a shiver down Aki's spine. He stood up as he lightly pushed Aki down onto the floor which resembled their bed; soft and fluffy. Aki laughed loudly as he cheekily smiled. He towered over her, staring deeply into her eyes with the mistiest look as if he was completely hypnotized. He dipped his head, slowly taking Aki’s lips with his own, moving them with his. Their lips were grazing softly, playfully. Both smiled into the kiss as Aki wrapped her arms around his neck. After some time, both of them began to deepen the kisses; tongues began to explore, teeth clashing in the process. Their soft chaste kisses turned into a passionate one. Their hearts were exploding like grenades in a war field and with that, they were definitely contented. 

Aki pulled away with a serene smile as she gazed at him in those spellbound eyes.

She grinned as she leaned in to give him one last peck on his irresistible lips. “Thank you so much for this. I love you.” He chuckled lightly, “I love you too.” He kissed her on the forehead as he embraced her tightly with his legs wrapped around her waist, their bodies rolled around the soft covers and blankets. Aki laughed on his shoulder as she embraced him back, burying his neck with sweet kisses.

…

It was just a dream but it was a lovely dream. It was so different from the past nights. She awoke with an unavoidable smile but when her head turned to the vacant part of the bed it faded and just like that, tears began to stream down her cheeks. She wept silently in her pillow.

Truth be told, her emotions were becoming unstable and it scared her to death. She exhaled loudly, taking her hands off her face. She sat up as she fumbled on the drawer beside her where her meds reside. She took them immediately swallowing in four gulps of water. She gasped as she could feel them taking effect on her body. Her eyes closed as she fell back on her bed with a sigh.

…

Aki stared at the apartment for a good while as she climbed out of her car to unload the boxes and baggage full of clothes it contained. She went around and opened her Honda jazz’s door as it flung open revealing a good amount of boxes. Her eyes scanned as it landed on a box labeled Cameras and lenses with black marker. She took this and prayed with all her might that it won’t fall from her grasp because it was undeniably heavy.

When she was about to walk towards the door, it opened from the inside by a tall lean man who emerged from the door. She stopped midway. The man had a bird’s nest for hair and hazy eyes as he rubbed them sleepily. He wore a white sweater and embarrassing pokemon pajamas. His eyes were clouded with dark shadows and he looked undeniably exhausted. He blinked a few times as his eyes widened. “Oh, hello, are you the one moving in next door on the third floor?” He asked, his voice coherently slurry, deep and low.

Aki flashed an uncertain smile as she set the box on the ground. “Uh yeah. I’m Lee Aki.” She said as she awkwardly walked towards to the unknown giant for a seemingly awkward handshake.

“I’m Park Chanyeol, your neighbor! Sorry you had to see me like this on our first meeting. I was writing the whole night and I couldn’t stop myself. I figured, since it was already morning I’d get the newspaper.” He ruffled the back of his messy hair in embarrassment.

“I see. It’s nice to uh, meet you. You’re the novelist, right?” Chanyeol suddenly beamed as he puffed his chest out in a funny proud manner. “Yes that's me!” He said in an obnoxious yet amusing way.

“That is increasingly impressive. Well, Chanyeol-ssi, right? I have to go up to my apartment and, I’ll bring these up.” Aki carried the box again.

“I’ll help you.” Chanyeol remarked, walking towards her with a grin. He took the box from Aki's grasp as he pursed his lips to point at her car. “You go on with the light ones.” He instructed her.

Aki did what she was told and took a box named Vinyl records; it was lighter than the other box as she went ahead inside the apartment. “Thanks Chanyeol-ssi, I’ll go ahead.” She said, almost in a whisper but Chanyeol heard it and managed a smile.

…

When she arrived at her apartment, she wore a smile that was mixed with melancholy and strange relief. She sighed as she placed the box of her collection of vinyl records on the ground, near the wooden coffee table. Chanyeol came in and set the box beside the vinyl records, repeating the same procedure over again.

Chanyeol, even though he stated that he didn’t sleep, he was radiating with odd energy that allowed him to talk and talk nonstop and it was a little funny for Aki since she wasn’t used to it. “Why did you move out here?” was his first question.

“Change of scenery?” she half-asked, half-answered. Chanyeol nodded in reply as he took another box from the car. Obviously, Aki didn’t want her neighbor to think she was mental (for formalities sakes, she’s not mental but she is inclined to think so) she tried to dodge the subject and effectively succeeded.

“Seeing as you know what I do for a living, can I know yours?” Regarding that Aki had become this socially awkward person she merely replied an amusing, “Guess.” She said with a small smile. Chanyeol hummed loudly, looking up at the sky for invisible hints. She was gladdened Chanyeol showed enthusiasm even though she was this gawky, pale twenty-five year old. “Hmmm, you’re an artist?” he asked, his eyes squinting.

Aki shook her head. “But I do like to paint.”

After several boxes, climbing up and down the staircase, Chanyeol guessed a good amount of jobs for her.

A preschool teacher was one of them, which was highly likely. Chanyeol reasoned that she seemed to be a noona who had a lot of patience, but he was wrong. 

He guessed if she was a writer like him, saying that she seemed to be artistically inclined but she shook her head to say no once again. 

A manager. Now, that was possible however she was too comically shy for that job and she was not one who would clearly boss around with a scowl.

A flight attendant, but Aki told him that she was too vertically challenged for her height, which is a huge requirement. Chanyeol patted her head, comforting her that she can still grow, telling her that she could possibly be taller than him. Aki laughed for the first time.

After so many guesses, Aki began to have a soft spot for Chanyeol. He seemed childish in a good way, enthusiastic, carefree and he distinctly reminded her of a cousin who lived overseas of whom she is quite fond of.

“A photographer.” Well, of course he knew. He took the box full of cameras, for goodness sakes so it was evident. Chanyeol just wanted to bond with his new neighbor. He wanted to know her more even though he looked awful and to add, he thought Aki was cool and sarcastic in a good way.

“Freelance.” Aki added as she set her last luggage inside her salmon pink-wallpapered room while Chanyeol placed the last box with all the other boxes. Both he and Aki exhaled in relief. Aki walked up to him, her head slightly looking up just to catch his eyes. He increasingly resembled the Eiffel Tower.

“Thank you Chanyeol, I appreciate it.”

“It was my pleasure. If you need anything, I’m just next door. My roommate, Jongin, is probably sleeping so you might meet him later.” Aki’s eyebrows scrunched.

He scurried to the door. “It was nice meeting you Aki-ssi.”

“It was nice meeting you too.” He opened and closed the door, leaving with a smile.

…

After two hours of rearranging the furniture, everything was in its proper place and this brought her a pinch of happiness. She exhaustedly slumped her whole body onto the sofa with a relieved sigh, wiping the sweat off her forehead. After two hours of cleaning, without her perfect knowing, a lovely jar of daisies was nestled comfortably behind her bedroom windowsill waiting terribly for her to see. 

A/N: Hello dearies!

Thank you so much for subscribing, I'm really glad you're enjoying my story.

Yes, I know it's very angsty but that's the point! 

I promise, Byun Baekhyun-ssi will make his debut in the next chappie.

I feel so sad because they came here in Philippines and I didn't get a chance to see them!

So sad, but whatever, God will make a way for me to meet him, hee hee.

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