Breaking the Barriers • BrightWin

Twenty-One

Letter

His body hurts.

That was the first thing that registered in Win's mind. It hurts so much that it felt like it was weighing on his eyelids, keeping them closed. He must have slept in the wrong position as his muscles were hurting. He stretched carefully, as he yawned and tried to bring a limb to rub his eyes and blearily, he took in his surroundings.

He looked over the foggy glass. The airport was quiet. It was almost four in the morning, and he arrived pretty early. His flight wasn't for a few more hours, but the weather seemed terrible. It was the end of March and it was still ridiculously cold outside, including the wind.

He tore his eyes from the window and bolted out the cab. He breathed out a slow breath as he stepped out on the ground, his breath forming a small cloud due to the frigid cold air.

"Win!" His head snapped up, searching for the source of the voice.

He smiled and sweetly waved at the familiar figure approaching. "Up!"

Up grinned before he enveloped Win in a tight hug and whispered something in his ear.

"Tss," Win scoffed frantically and a crimson blush dusted his cheeks, earning the other a mischievous smirk. Win's stomach growled but they decided to suppress it with a hot coffee as they waited for their flight to come.

"Passengers, please turn your attention to the flight attendant closest to you as we go over our safety procedures." The pilot's voice was barely audible as Win's mind yelled in nervousness and Up was quick to understand what he was feeling. Until now, he still couldn't find himself getting used to plane flights.

"It's okay," Up assured, his hand found its way to rest atop Win's hand, gently making Win feel at ease.

"I should probably just get some sleep." Win responded.

"Okay, I'll wake you up before boarding." Up nodded. He released his grip a bit, not wanting to hurt Win with how tightly he had been holding.

Win nodded as he settled himself on his place to find the perfect position to sleep. He dozed off eventually and for quite long hours, he stayed that way until Up woke him up half an hour before their take-off.

He stared out the window and before him was a million of lights scattering below in random yet alluring patterns. The sight was indeed breathtakingly beautiful. But a cloud of nostalgia hit his being. He was home.

His stomach abruptly dropped as he could almost feel the plane drop inch after inch out of the sky as they began to descend, until it entirely landed.

The flight attendant was closing the overhead compartments, as Win's phone gave a faint sound notification that he received a new message. He opened it as they stepped out of the plane.

From: Off

Where are you now?

A smile crept to his face after reading the message his brother had sent. The same amount of domestic felicity when he first learned that he was his brother enveloped him. He still felt overwhelmed and not a single sentence was good enough to describe the feelings that were built inside him.

To: Off

From: Win

We're here, phi!

He exclaimed happily. Fifteen minutes later, Off appeared in front of them, enfolding them in his arms. They soon drove home and buildings came in view. Win's smile fainted and he fidgeted his hands as he stared at the distorted surroundings blankly. He closed his eyes as a collage of painful images from the past played intensely on his mind.