CHANGMIN'S POV

I woke up to the sounds of the thunderous screams of the vacuum cleaner, my body slumped atop of the company’s leather sofas they randomly had out in the vast hallways.

I somehow was now part of this company…this yellow building would soon become as familiar to me as the alphabet. It was all too surreal and confusing at the same time.

To my surprise no one was around. Not one eager little hopeful or delusional false hope lingered in the place anymore. But that’s when I realized that the sun had fallen long ago and was now replaced by the charcoal backdrop with a handful of twinkling stars.

My legs ached of unknown pain and my head continued to throb, temples beating along to a drum too complicated to follow. I pushed myself up and the apparent warm wet piece of cloth fell from my forehead. So I’m not alone…despite what it seemed. I turned my head slowly left and right, trying to catch anything that may be moving, but the only thing I spotted was the large figured security guard at the near front who looked like he wanted absolutely nothing to do with me.   

That’s when I caught a glimpse of the ruby red shade message plastered across a small area on the cream coloured walls. I knew right away who the person was that kept me company. It was déjà vu all over again. From the very first night that we had crossed each other’s paths, her hand writing was still very familiar in my mind.

‘Went out to get some medicine…I’ll be right back.”

She ended the note with a cheerful happy face. It was odd displaying such a note on public property. In a way it wasn’t just an ordinary vandalism, but one much worst considering the fact that it was done by someone belonging to the company.

I smiled a tad bit before rubbing the traces off with my wet cloth. There was no way in hell that I’d be the one picking up after this mess. Besides, the way that the security guard seemed to have it in for me, I couldn’t let anything slip on by.  When the remains of the message faded onto the cloth, I neatly folded the material and placed it calmly into my pockets before setting off.

It was only when I pushed open the company doors that I realized that I had fetched a ride over here this morning with Kyuhyun…and who knows where the he was. My legs dragged on into the bare streets of the night. I guess I should have stayed behind and waited as the thought of medicine soon seemed like the most brilliant idea known to mankind.

The illuminating blue light of the streetlamps soon blurred into the reflecting shine of the store windows and my mind went along with it. Everything combined into one before I lost sight of everything and was met with pitch black.

--

KYUHYUN’S POV

We took our time strolling down the streets. I never told her the fact that my car was placed just around the corner. She didn’t seem to be in such a hurry either. For a while I watched her from the back, staying one or two steps behind. She was both tall and lean with hair that perfectly swayed alongside the gusts of the wind. That was how it was like for a long time; footsteps off beat and silence lingering between us. It was strange, but I didn’t mind it.

I had to literally guide her into the café that afternoon, her body flinching from the small yet sudden physical contact. Even though it was nothing, my hand seemed to fit perfectly along the arch of her back, the touch of what seemed to be cashmere from her sweater tingled my fingertips. I flashed her a warm smile, trying to reassure her that I’m a nice guy, but her eyes were lost in some other world where my smile didn’t exist.

I led her carefully to an empty table before ordering two lattes for us to enjoy. She didn’t seem to take any interest upon the warm drink either as all she did was stir the whipped cream until it completely disappeared into the caramel colour.

“What’s wrong?” It was strange as that was the very first words spoken between us in the hour that we were together.

“Have you ever felt so invisible? Or maybe just insecure where one second you’re sure you exist, but the next moment that confidence vanishes….”

Her voice sounded lonely or maybe just incomplete as if a big part of her was thrown away.

“Like the whipped cream…”

I simply replied to her.

She lifted her head slowly and that was the very first time she finally looked at me or acknowledged me for that matter.

“Mianhae…it’s just been a long day.”

She tried to smile, but it failed halfway through her attempt as the sides of her lips fell short and descended once more.

We exchanged basic info about ourselves. Or rather, I did and she just nodded here and there with a pinch of “oh I see” every now and then.

She was fairly quiet for the most part, something that I knew right away wasn’t quite right. Even without knowing the girl for years, she just didn’t depict the type to say so little.

She was heart broken, a thing I knew from the past and all I hoped for during that time was a small crack of opportunity for me to slip on through to her.

I needed more time. I had previously called back to that SM Entertainment place when she went to the bathroom, requesting for her presence for the remainder of the day and surprisingly it was granted.

I talked non-stop, not letting any minute pass on by –for the fear than when I finally did shut up she would find that as a moment to leave. Four hours. That’s how long we spent there talking about one thing or another. Her presence was calming even though she didn’t do much. She was interesting to me and I’m always a curious little bastard. Wanting to know more, I decided to just go for it.

I reached out to one of her hands that held her cup of untouched latte. Her finger which was continuously circling the brims stopped and she brought herself to look at me once more.

“Bwoh?” She mouthed.

“I find you interesting.”

Her eyebrows furrowed and she gave me a stare that examined me from top to bottom as if questioning if she should get up at that instant and run. To my surprise she didn’t.

“Elaborate on what you just said.”

“Well you see, that’s what I don’t know yet. You’re interesting. In other words I seem to be ‘interested’ in you. What do you think about that?”

I wasn’t expecting her to answer at all since she barely opened in the past few hours, but once again I got another surprise.

“I find you interesting as well. But unlike you, I’m not ‘interested’.”

“Fair enough.”  I let out a small laugh.

She was pretty frank with her answers, not beating around the bush but straight to the point. That just made me more curious…

“Well for me to lose interest in something, I need to get to know more about it. So what if I see you every now and then?”

“Timing.”

That was her simple reply. She didn’t look at me or the cup when she said that. Instead, her gaze was transfixed on the window. Her pupils would flutter every now and then as if it reacted to every raindrop that had hit the windowpanes.

“There are many times where one could plead to turn back time, to erase something they’ve just been through. That’s what I’ve experienced today. Maybe if you caught me on another day, at a different time, something could have brewed up…but right now, the timing is just simply off.”

I grabbed her hand once more, but this time I made sure to hold it in mine instead of just having the slight brush of skinship.

“I doubt that’s what you really feel. A few hours ago you easily accepted to go out for a bite with me. I think you need to get off track from that time zone you’ve created in that pretty little head of yours. I’ll help you do that.”

She didn’t say anything after that, but she easily allowed me to give her a ride home.

In other words, I decided upon myself that slowly I was chipping away at the wall that held me outside of her.

We drove in silence. The usual smooth jazz that often boomed from my car speakers that never failed in landing me some wasn’t played. It was strange that for once, after quite some time, I found someone that made me hear some of the most beautiful melodies in my head without one peep actually being played.

--

SOOYOUNG’S POV

It wasn’t exactly late when I arrived home, but the sky was already painted in a dark shade. As my thoughts were jumbled all together like an unsolved puzzle, I longed for the comfort of my bed once I set foot into my dorm.

Jessica’s shoes were no where in sight…something which I was quite relieved about, considering the fact that I knew she’d question about my whereabouts like a drill sergeant. I heard the sprinkle of the tap water from across the bathroom and I knew right away that dear old Mickey was freshening up with his nightly routines—composing of a quick shave, flossing, and brushing of the teeth. I figured that by the time he was through with scrubbing himself dry, I’d be perfectly snuggled up in bed.

I slowly dragged my feet to my room while leaving a trail of clothes behind—my socks, jacket, etc. With just my camisole on and my casual bedtime short shorts on, I realized a lump. It was placed there unexpectedly. I watched the large thing placed calmly upon my bed before tiptoeing towards it. I poked it once and it squirmed just an inch.

For some reason, my initial reaction didn’t tell me to kick it or call the police, instead, the presence of it made me feel safe in an odd way.

This feeling of security crept onto my skin leaving me with a breath of fresh air. Standing before it, I recognized the scent that was flowing. It was a scent that was all too familiar to me back then. My fingertips trembled as I pulled the covers off.

There he was lying upon my bed, head gently rested upon my pillows, his scent transcending onto my blankets…it was a cruel fantasy that I was certain to be too ruthless to be true.

“E-E-Eotokke….” My voice squeaked into the quiet room.

I could feel my heart beating against the walls of my chest.

It hurt.

I never heard the sprinkle of water stop, nor his footsteps that crept behind me as everything besides what laid in front of me was irrelevant.

“Mianhae Summer…I found him lying on the streets passed out. I couldn’t just leave him there.”

I collapsed onto the floor in front of the lying figure that occupied my bed--the vision of the outline of his face inches away from me.

My eyes crystallized into a watery glaze and as I reached forward to brush a single fallen strand of hair away, my teardrop fell.

“Changmin-ah….”

It didn’t take long for my tears to soon match the rhythm of the rain outside…

What kind of cursed timing wrapped itself around me?!