Baekhyun - Beautiful

The scene faded into nothingness before being recreated as a canvas painted in green and stripes of white. It was now the last year of high school and Luhan's last day of practice before his final game. I tried to blend in with the emptiness of the bleachers—just another cold, gray hunk of metal bolted to the ground. However, Luhan didn't see it this way. Once the coach blew the final whistle signaling practice was over, he looked up and waved. The way his eyes settled on me was like he had just witnessed a tiny daisy bloom within the confines of a crack in the sidewalk. It was filled with love and admiration, making my stomach feel as if it had been stuffed with sand, causing me to struggle under such weight. I was nothing like a flower. I thought of myself more as a weed away his vitality and youth.

Luhan began ascending the steps to meet me until a figure appeared in my peripheral vision, effectively blocking Luhan's path. She was a beauty with chestnut hair and a sharp, unyielding gaze. The manner in which she carried herself was confident and feminine; she knew her worth and what was worthy of her. And in this case, she deemed Luhan as just that.

Her skirt fluttered in the breeze as he approached her, and she beamed down at him while he cast her a polite smile. Luhan then changed his direction slightly to the left, preparing to step around her, until she called his name. Her voice was carried by the wind to my ears. When my mind processed it, the very sound was as if all hell had frozen over. It was titillating, flirtatious, sweet, and undeniably irresistible. The way she was able to elicit these emotions in less than two syllables could have driven any man mad with desire.

And with these two vowels and three consonants pronounced in her voice, I could see an entire future flash before my eyes. A future where Luhan possessed someone of equal status by his side. Onlookers would glance at this couple from a distance and nod in approval, in-laws would rejoice as the bride walked down the aisle in white, and I would somberly receive Christmas cards every year until I died of old age.

A feeling of jealousy suddenly consumed me, however, I quickly swallowed it like bile. I wanted Luhan to be happy, he deserved as much. Yet to my horror, he simply nodded towards the girl with a curt greeting and then turned to me with a heavenly smile. He wasn't supposed to be smiling at me like that, he was supposed to be making that expression for her. The girl and I exchanged a variation of faces marked with disbelief before she suddenly walked away, embarrassed.

"Who is she," I asked when Luhan was within earshot.

He shrugged. "Just a classmate from calculus."

"What did she need?"

He turned his head to follow her retreating form. "I don't know. Guess she wanted to say hi." He then whipped his head back around with a devilish grin. "Why? Are you jealous?"

Luhan waggled his eyebrows in a suggestive manner. Quick to defend myself, I loaded a punch but was immediately halted when he pulled his hand out of his pocket to present a tiny flower.

"For you, my dear."

"What's this?"

"A daisy."

I rolled my eyes. "Ha ha, very funny. But seriously, that girl—you should have said more to her. She's pretty and seems nice. Prom is coming up by the way. I bet she..."

My voice was lost as Luhan tucked a lock of hair behind my ear and carefully slid the flower into place. My lungs stilled and heart quickened as I felt his fingertips graze the surface of my skin. The only thing on my mind at the moment was how close in proximity he was to me, and how easy it would be for me to lean forward just a bit to turn his whiteness and purity into a drab gray.

I opened my mouth to tell him he was too close, but was stopped yet again when he grinned and breathed the word "beautiful,"  not once glancing at the flower but instead staring into my eyes the entire time.

His breath ghosted over me, and all the thoughts scattered from my mind. I was so afraid he could hear my heart loudly drumming away as his clear brown orbs gazed into mine. A beat passed and neither of us made a move to start walking.

Summoning up the will to speak, I swallowed the lump in my throat.

"You're staring."

"I'm gazing."

"It's creepy."

"It's romantic."

I lightly punched him on the arm and Luhan released a playful yelp before erupting with laughter. Smiling at me, he interlaced his fingers with mine and tugged on my arm, beginning the trek home.

When Luhan and I crossed the oak tree which marked the start of our neighborhood and the end of the previous one, a lullaby from the past wandered into my mind. It was gentle and soft, and the tempo was quite calming, however, I couldn't remember the title. Hoping that Luhan would recognize it, I began to hum the tune.

He stopped walking for a brief moment, tilting his head to the side and slowly nodding to the rhythm. He then opened his mouth to sing along, and out tumbled a clear, honey-like voice. The notes seemed to echo and bounce off whatever surface they touched, causing a ripple effect. The parts he didn't know, he vocalized. And the parts he did know, he belted the lyrics out with such passion and control, creating the sweetest symphony to ever touch my ears.

I was so awestruck by his raw talent, I didn't notice the last note trail off into the silence of the world, or that even the birds had grown silent to list