what was once so lovely. | jaeyong

the thirteenth.

<7:39pm>
<present>

The store remained lifeless, not a single soul within the premise, only Taeyong's. He turned his head and saw Mark entering the place with a smile on his face as he went behind the counter. Taeyong was thankful that his shift had come to an end. He grabbed an ice cream cone from the freezer and paid it upfront before he bid Mark a farewell.

He walked among the melting snow. Winter was coming to an end and Taeyong did wish that the snow grew perpetual. Though it may lead to his skin feeling as if ghosts were nipping at it if he stood out for too long, the snow was magnificent. It was spectacular to the eye of the beholder. It was something that seemed harmless yet slowly crept under the skin.

Taeyong enjoyed the snow. Everything about it was magical. He got to wear his thick clothing, those peach-colored mittens that Jaehyun got him.

His phone rang at the mere thought of Jaehyun. He read the caller's identification and found out it was indeed Jaehyun. Taeyong smiled at the mere coincidence.

"Hello?"

"Taeyong! I'm sorry if this felt so rushed but I want you to give a speech for my wedding. Can you do that?" Jaehyun spoke through, his background roaring with multiple laughter and comments.

"Yeah, sure, it's not a rush anyway, I don't know what you're talking about but we still have time," Taeyong replied.

"I'm sorry, Taeyong but I have to go now, they really need me, have a safe night," Jaehyun ended the call abruptly.

"Bye," Taeyong said as he heard the beep.

At the end of the call, Taeyong did feel quite disheartened by the loneliness it brought.

He took a puff of fresh air before he entered his house. The large place seemed to be a delight to have but a nightmare to be in once alone. Taeyong threw his phone on the desk of his room as he gripped the pen. His eyes were glued to the black page but not a single word was pouring in.

As more time seemed to pass by, Taeyong decided to just write whatever he could think of. His hand lazily glided the pen to the paper. He took a pause from the writing process. As an artist to their canvas, Taeyong took a step back and looked at his paper. To his dismay, it was only three sentences. Not to mention the horrendous penmanship, the content was utter rubbish.

Taeyong dropped his pen from his grasp and he held his head. His fingers slid their way between the hair strands as he closed his eyes. Who would have thought writing a speech would be this difficult?

After he calmed himself down from the roller coasters that have been operating in his mentality, Taeyong looked outside and looked at the night sky. It was magnificent. Despite seeing it every single day, it was still magical, spectacular to the eye of the beholder.

Somehow, gazing at the stars and moon, he found Jaehyun. He could see Jaehyun smiling at him and telling him that running away was the only option they had. Taeyong rested his chin on the palm of his hands as he revisited that memory. Come to think of it, every single rendezvous that they had occurred underneath the night sky.

It was indeed beautiful to have spent evenings and midnights with Jaehyun back in the days. He wished that they were still doing it.

In the midst of the lonely night and empty thoughts, Taeyong wanted company. He opened his phone and messaged Jungwoo and Taeil, inviting them to come to his abode in an impromptu manner.

After waiting for a couple of minutes, Taeyong heard a knock on the door and a smile immediately erupted on his face as he dashed to the door. When he opened it, Jungwoo stood there with his unwavering enthusiasm.