Word count: 4 | BrightWin

Seventeen

"Where are you right now?" Tu asked immediately after Gulf picked up the group call. He told her that he's not with Bright and he's at his own dorm.

"Good. But what do you mean Bright is slowly forgetting about Win? You didn't tell him he's his boyfriend?"

Gulf shook his head. "No. Win told me not to mention him if ever Bright's memories started to fade."

"But why, Win?" Tu asked.

"I should be the one to explain it. Having another person tell him won't have an effect." Win sighed before continuing, "This is bad. He needs to wear the bracelet so he can remember me."

"I'm still confused. What's the importance of that bracelet?" Gulf butts in.

"It's normal that he'll forget about me. It's a consequence of making him use all of his word count. But I can prevent it if we have something important to the both of us, that's where the couple things take place. We should wear it at all times, especially the one who has a low word count." Win made it easier to help Gulf understand how it works.

"Oh, that's why his memories are fading. It's because he hasn't worn the bracelet recently. But what will happen next? How can you make him remember?"

"I only need to explain it in person and of course, I have to wear the bracelet to help him remember. I hope he can recognize me again after that." Win was worried for a moment. If his plan fails then he doesn't have a back up plan anymore.

"Are you sure Bright's word count is still zero?" Tu confirmed. Gulf responded 'yes' and told them that he's checking it every day. The two sighed and felt a little bit hopeless.

"When are you going to make him remember?" Tu asked Win.

"Not now, Tu. Exams are coming up, I don't want to bother him. I need to think of how I could explain everything, as well." Win rubbed his temples.

"What am I supposed to do except monitor his word count?" Gulf asked.

"That's all, Gulf. That'd be a great help already."

After a couple of minutes, the call ended and Win stared at the ceiling. I hope things go well. If not, I just want Bright to have the ability to speak again. Forgetting about me is more tolerable than seeing him struggle to express himself.

===

"So what is this group chat for? And why didn't we have a call in our group chat with Bright?" Nani interrogated Win.

"Because I need to tell you something important about Bright." The other three paused to listen to his next words.

"I'm sorry I kept this from you for too long. Tu already knew about this because Bright told him before and it's not my decision to make so I didn't tell you both. Well, Bright is not really mute. He just has a low word count." Nani and Dew were speechless. They just blinked a few times and couldn't even move their mouths.

"What does that mean?" Dew finally spoke.

"Everyone has their own word count that's decided by fate. It can only be seen by doctors upon birth. Word counts aren't supposed to be exposed to children except if they have low word count, this is to help them save the words for their important event in life."

Win's explanation surprised them more. It sounds like it's out of this world and just happens in books.

"But aren't we supposed to know ours as well? We've been speaking since toddlerhood, it's been decreasing ever since." Nani made a good point.

"If your parents never told you about it, that means you also have infinite word count like me."

"You mean we'll never run out of words?" Dew asked and Win nodded. He then let out a surprised reaction.

"That's insane! So, I suppose we all have infinite word counts? But why did our parents never talk about it before? Aren't we allowed to know?"

"Nope. They are only allowed to tell us if we learned about the word count thing on our own. If we'd be the first one to ask then that's the time they'll explain everything. In my case, I asked my parents after I found a way to help Bright in increasing his word count."

Nani and Dew seemed taken aback after knowing that Win could help Bright increase his word count.

"That's possible? You said word count is decided by fate, but how can you twist fate?"

"I'm not the first one to do this. I researched for a month and found out that there are people with infinite word count who helped those with low word count. So, all I had to do was make Bright use all of his remaining word count and he shouldn't be aware of what I'm doing." Nani and Dew nodded and waited for him to continue.

"After that, we needed to have some objects in common. Like a couple things that should be worn at all times. Since one of the consequences of that method is that Bright will have the tendency to forget about me and our memories, I gave him a bracelet. I'm sure you've seen us wearing that since last year."

"Woah, woah! You already planned this for a long time? I'm impressed by your dedication." Dew clapped his hands slowly. Win chuckled and explained some more.

"Hmm, yeah. After that I thought of a way on how I could make him speak. So, I spent time with him and made him feel loved enough so he could trust me with his word count. I'm not entirely sure if it'd work but I just hoped. Then when they sent me off in my dorm, I asked him to be my boyfriend. And poof! I was also surprised that he talked."

Reminiscing what happened before made Win feel hot flushes on his cheeks. He still clearly remembers how sweet Bright's voice is and how he spoke 'I love you' to him softly. Another bonus point is that Bright mentioned his name.

"Jeez, I got the shivers! That's well-planned even though you relied upon mere luck. But, what did he tell you, though?" Nani got curious. Win's lips formed a curve immediately.

"He said 'I love you, Win' " He smiled from ear-to-ear and Tu couldn't help her little screams.

"Dang! That's so cheesy. I like it." Nani laughed and Dew followed.

"But what's happening now? Can Bright talk already?" Dew added. Win and Tu suddenly turned gloomy.

"No. As everybody knows, Gulf is blind. But the special thing about him is he can see people's word count. I know it's unbelievable but it's real. Every day Gulf has been monitoring Bright, but his word count remains zero. Another problem that we got here is that Bright broke their couple bracelets, so his memories of Win started fading." Tu finally had the chance to explain.

"What?! That's a big problem! How about us? Is he forgetting us too?" Dew panicked.

"No. Win is the only one. Since he's the one who helped him, he's the person Bright's mind will try to forget. Win can stop it, though. But the only way is to explain it to him in person." Tu added.

"Why don't you explain to him now before it gets worse?" Nani turned to Win.

"I can't. It's exam week and I don't want to bother him. Also, I still don't know what to say. I hope he remembers me after explaining everything. I'll bring my bracelet too." Win heaved a sigh. His other friends were worried for him but they couldn't be there physically.

"We're going to join you if you meet up with him. Let's hope for the best, alright? I'm sure Bright won't forget about you, Win." Tu tried to cheer him up once again. Win showed them a bitter smile before hanging up the call.