The reawakened soul link

Chapter 34

"I'm not sure what you're thinking right now, but this is the honest truth, Yeol" I said, my voice trembling slightly as I looked down at my lap. I couldn't bring myself to meet his eyes, too afraid of what I might see there.

I heard the chair move, the sound echoing in the quiet room. My heart pounded in my chest as I shut my eyes, bracing myself for whatever was coming next. The silence stretched on and with each passing second, my anxiety grew. Chanyeol had never been this quiet around me before. He was always the one to break the tension, to say something silly or kind to make me feel at ease.

But now, there was nothing but silence.

Finally, I felt a gentle touch on my hand and I opened my eyes to see Chanyeol kneeling in front of me. His eyes were filled with so much emotion—concern, sadness, but also something deeper, something that spoke of the friendship we had shared for so long.

"Hey" he said softly, his voice breaking the heavy silence. "I can't imagine what you went through. And I won't pretend to understand it all right now. But what I do know is that you're here. You came back."

I felt tears welling up in my eyes, the tension and fear I had been holding onto slowly melting away at his words.

"You don't have to try and explain everything right now" he continued, his hand gently squeezing mine. "We have time. What matters is that you're safe and you're here."

His words were like a breath of fresh air. I had been carrying the guilt of not reaching out to him  for a while and seeing him now, I realized how much I had missed his presence in my life.

"Yeol, I'm so sorry" I whispered, my voice choked with emotion. "I didn't mean to hide from you. I just didn't want to rush my memories. Having BTS with me was already so overwhelming."

He shook his head, a small, reassuring smile playing on his lips. "You did what you had to do to survive, Y/N. No one can fault you for that. And now that you're back, we can continue our friendship where we left it. Y/N, you underestimate what you mean to me and what our friendship means."

I nodded, feeling relief, he was a great friend "Thank you, Yeol. I don't deserve your kindness, but I'm so grateful for it."

He stood up, pulling me into a tight hug. His embrace was warm, familiar, and for the first time in what felt like forever, I felt safe.

"You deserve every bit of kindness, Y/N" he murmured against my hair. "You're one of the strongest people I know. Why else would I have befriended a newbie like you?"

I chuckled, playfully slapping his arm while still hugging him. His light-hearted comment brought a sense of normalcy back, a reminder of the easygoing banter we used to share. "You only befriended me because you saw how awesome I am."

He laughed, the sound vibrating through our embrace. "Of course. How could I resist? You've always been something special, Y/N."

I was about to leave, but I felt a grip around my wrist, stopping me in my tracks. I looked back, my eyes questioning, only to find Chanyeol staring intently at his hand on my wrist. I followed his gaze down and when I looked back up, I flinched slightly, taken aback by the expression on his face. It was a look I couldn't quite describe, something deep and intense that I hadn't seen in him before.

I stood there, waiting for him to say something, but when I tilted my head, raising an eyebrow in silent inquiry, he sighed and gently pulled me closer. The unexpected action caught me off guard, but I remained quiet, watching him closely.

"Y/N..." he started, his eyes still focused on our hands. "I always said that if I ever got the chance to see you again, I would tell you." He let go of my wrist only to softly take my hand in his, his touch light but firm.

I watched him, my heart pounding in my chest and whispered, "I'm listening."

His eyes flicked up to meet mine before pressing his lips into a fine line. He looked away, sighing deeply.

"Why is this so hard?" he murmured, his frustration evident.

I stayed silent, giving him the space he needed. Finally, he looked back at me, his brows furrowed, his expression serious. 

"Listen, you and I have been friends for a long time and from early on in our friendship, I knew you were someone I should always keep by my side."

He hung his head again, his gaze returning to our intertwined hands as he began to play with my fingers. I could feel myself tense up, unsure of where this was going, but I knew I had to be patient and let him say what he had waited so long to tell me.

"You were this cute, pretty girl with a beaming smile and honestly, it was so easy to get along with you. But things changed the more time we spent together. I found myself thinking of you, looking for you everywhere. That's when I knew I liked you" he confessed, suddenly looking up at me, his eyes searching mine.

I flinched slightly, my throat tightening as I tried to process his words. I parted my lips to say something, but he continued, his voice steady but tinged with emotion. "At the time, you were a trainee and I had just debuted. Obviously, we have an age gap and you were still in high school, so I knew I couldn't act on my feelings. So, I waited."

He paused, watching my face carefully, as if searching for any sign of what I might be thinking.

"I wanted to confess my feelings after you finished high school, or at least wait until then. But then I started hearing rumors about you and the maknae. I knew the way you looked at him was different, so I pushed my feelings down. But then you disappeared."

He dropped my hand and took a step closer, his eyes locking onto mine with an intensity that made my breath hitch. 

"The panic I felt when they told me they couldn't find you ignited those feelings all over again—the feelings I thought I had buried. And after all these years, I swore that if I ever saw you again, I would tell you."

He reached out, gently tucking a strand of my hair behind my ear, his fingers brushing against my skin. His eyes softened as he met my gaze again and he said, "I like you, Y/N."

I stood frozen in place, my mind racing. All the memories I had of Chanyeol were of a playful, flirty friend. I had never imagined that he harbored these kinds of feelings for me.

"Yeol—" I started, but he cut me off with a sigh, stepping back.

"Wow, at least I said it" he muttered, turning away and running a hand through his hair, his posture tense.

I furrowed my brows in confusion, unsure of how to respond. I found myself at a loss for words.

But then, he turned back to me with that bright, wide smile I knew so well—the one that was so infectious, I couldn't help but smile back, even in my confused state. There was a glint of amusement in his eyes, and I could see the tension in him start to ease.

He threw an arm around my shoulder, steering me toward the door. "Listen, I don't want your response just yet, okay? I can see you've got a complicated situation with BTS and I don't need to know the details. But I'm sure there's something going on with at least one of them, so let's just leave it at that for today, okay?" he said, looking down at me with a reassuring smile.

I sighed but nodded, the smile still lingering on my face. "Fine, Yeol. I'll reject you another day."

He gasped dramatically, clutching his chest as if I had just wounded him deeply, before bursting into laughter. 

"You're cruel, Y/N, so cruel!" he teased, his laughter echoing in the hallway as he pulled me out of the room.

Despite the heaviness of what had just happened, I couldn't help but feel a sense of relief. Chanyeol had laid his feelings bare, but he hadn't pushed for anything more than that. He had always been a good friend and even now, after all this time, he was still putting my comfort first