Dylmas - Until After the End

Chapter 8 - Second Chances

Ki hong stared at me for a few seconds, not believing what I was saying.

His face suddenly brightened, and a beautiful smile appeared, followed by a tight hug that I barely had time to process.

Knowing that me, the walking dead, had been responsible for all that happiness, especially in a person that I loved so much, made that spark turn into a small flame inside me.

If it was him or not... I would never know.

I just want to thank him to give me some life, even if it was only for that night.

I was already exhausted of walking aimlessly in the darkness.

My hands were cold. I expected this.

I didn't dare to look at myself in the mirror, but I knew I was white as milk. Nothing that I also no longer expected.

While the lights of the city passed in the window of the car, as bright blurs, I tried to calm myself with the strong wind.

Uselessly, of course.

Get into a car is too traumatic to keep myself calm.

"Thomas?" I heard Ki Hong call me after a while that I couldn't calculate, lost in the emptiness of my mind.

I looked at him, feeling my conscience still far away, and then I noticed that the car had been stopped in front of Kaya's house.

A loud noise of voices talking came from the house, and my throat tightened immediately as I looked away my gaze from my brother to the faint lights that emanated from the windows.

I had never been there again since everything happened.

The memories were drowning me. Maybe I should let me die asphyxiated by them.

I looked back to Ki Hong, who stared at me cautiously, while his calm voice said what I didn't want to hear.

"Hey, we arrived at the party, Thomas."

For a moment, the impulse to beg him to take me back home seemed uncontrollable. The words were about to escape from my mouth, but before I could find my voice, I saw someone leaving the house and walk toward us.

And that someone, no matter how far she was, had a smile that took away any thought of my mind for a few seconds.

"My loves!" Kaya smiled, approaching to the car "and Thomas... and can't believe you're really here!"

"I said I would make him come!" Ki Hong smiled, and the small flame of happiness inside me grew seeing the joy on their faces.

"He looks beautiful, doesn't he?" Kaya said.

"He is beautiful!" He agreed, looking to me in a friendly way, but I had to force myself too much so his words didn't bring me certain memories to my mind.

"Can I give you a hug or I'll have to wait too long?"

I couldn't avoid to smile at all of her affection, and then, I found myself getting out of the car and walking toward her. She waited for me on the sidewalk, with open arms, and without even hesitating, I hugged her, wrapping her waist with my arms as hard as I could.

It was like everything returned to make a certain sense in my life.

My connection with Kaya always had been very intense.

We had so much in common, we loved to make mess together, we were always those responsible for the pranks and jokes during parties and group trips...

But when everything happened, she revealed herself much more than just a friend. No doubt, we felt something more than friendship for each other. And we both knew it.

It was love... but in a different way. Fraternal, maybe. There were no appropriate words to describe what she meant to me.

All that I knew was that I needed her.

"I'm so glad you came... It wouldn't be the same thing without you here with us." she whispered.

And I saw myself crying again, my face hidden in her neck. I haven't seen her in a few months, and only now that she was with me, I felt how painful was our distance. Perhaps everyone around me were right, in a way. I couldn't keep hiding myself from everyone forever. I needed someone to help me, at least, try to beat everything.

Get over it... Never.

"I missed you." That was all I could say "I'm sorry for have been disappeared."

"It's okay, now you're here with us," she said, pulling away and holding my face with her hands, as gentle as her eyes "That's what matters."

"She's right" Ki Hong said, wiping a tear that rolled down his face "Let's go, I'm sure that has two guys crazy to see you there."

"Yeah!" Kaya agreed excitedly, and I couldn't not smile with her "Come on, let's make a surprise for them!"

I let her pull me by the hand to the door of her house, and I soon found myself running after her, followed by Ki Hong.

I mentally thanked for having escaped from the usual elegant outfit and have chosen for a pair of jeans, a button down shirt and a simple shoes, all black. I still preferred to use that color most of the time.

We walked into the house, and a whirl of memories flooded me.

The memories of the last time I was in that house were still very much alive inside me. So alive that I needed to close my eyes so they don't escape from them and leave me, just like he had done.

"Guess who's here?" I heard Kaya's voice asking, and after a few seconds of hesitation, I returned to look around me, finding out that we were practically in the middle of the room.

She led me by the hand, and then my eyes focused on the two boys sitting on the couch.

Again, the so gorgeous expression of joy filled their faces.

"No way!" Will said.

"Thomas!" Will and Dexter exclaimed in unison, making my smile widen.

They both stood up at once and came to hug me, crushing me with a hug.

I hugged them one by one, feeling happy as I couldn't remember that I could be with all that affection, and I let myself be conducted to the couch, where the four surrounded me with affectionate and welcoming looks.

There was no trace of suffering or pity. And that made me feel very well.

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Why the name of the title is Second Chances?

Because his friends gave him a second chance to live. He was surviving, but not living.

There's a big difference between survive and living.

We may be surviving, but we are dead inside.

All that I hope is that you're living. Not just surviving, but being alive outside and inside.

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I will try to update every week and write the other story.

Thanks for reading <3

Spoiler: something huge will happen in 2 chapters.

Have a good week (: ily