Wrong Number || BBK

The One Who Lets Go

The flowers smell odd.

That's what Jinae thinks as she puts them to her nose, inhaling shakily before leaning down to set them onto the gravestone. Brushing off some of the dirt that is tainting the concrete, she leans back on her heels and for a moment, a silence engulfs her being, wraps her in a small bubble of condolence.

Tears brimm at the corner of her eyes once they sweep over the engraved letters that make up a name that breaks her heart in two. A year ago, she'd been angry at Taehyung for ditching her and using long distance as his excuse to evade her calls.

And now, there's nothing but regret left.

She's suddenly jolted out of her misery when her phone starts ringing.

Her pale fingers reach for her bag and fishes for the device, pressing the green call button, 'Hello?'

'Hey.'

It's Baekhyun. A faint smile etches its way across her lips at the sound of his voice. With all the things that have happened this past month, it is more than comforting to hear a familiar sound for once.

She settles herself more comfortably on the grass, not really caring whether her pants are getting stained with dirt, 'What's up?'

'I'm guessing you're still there?'

She nods before realizing he can't see her, 'Yeah.'

'Want to rant?'

Her lips twitch at the familiarity of the memory. This is how it has all started after all, ever since they started talking through the phone. As far as she knows, Baekhyun has been the pillar of support that she needed every time whether it had been to cry or to laugh or to share her happiness with. After Taehyung's surgery had failed, he'd held her in his arms and hadn't said anything, only let her cry in the silence and comfort, only gave her the security of his presence as she told him about how unfair this all was, about how the world was playing tricks on her, that Taehyung wasn't supposed to depart so soon because they'd planned so many other things to do.

She'd blubbered on and on, unsure how much time had passed before he'd reluctantly dragged her back to his flat. She'd stayed over for the night and had been surprised at how gentle Baekhyun had been with her. He'd cook her breakfast and managed to sort out all the things that had to be sorted out due to the suddenness of the situation, and Jinae had gladly let him take the lead. They had attended his funeral together and met his parents. Taehyung's mother had bawled into her shoulder, thanked her for spending the last moments with her baby boy, while her father had instructed her to contact their family whenever she needed it. After all, Jinae had been introduced and had been quite close to the other family members ever since they'd started dating in high school.

Twelve months have passed ever since and though time has given Jinae the space and the ability to heal from her boyfriend's sudden departure, there are still many things that remind her of him wherever she goes; whether it's from a familiar song they used to sing together or the flavour of a food that he had cooked once upon a time claiming that his food wasn't all that bad. It still brings tears to her eyes to think about it, but without Baekhyun, Jinae admits it would've probably been worse.

The said young man calls every night, practically taking over most of her time whenever she's alone and meddling with her own thoughts. At first she had been annoyed, not wanting to talk to him because he reminds her too much of the deceased man. But Baekhyun's insistent nature finally drove through her ice cold walls and soon enough she'd find this natural to call him after her classes, whether it's while cooking or just chatting amiably before going to bed. The more she gets to know him, the more she can see the resemblance between him and Taehyung. The way they talk, the intonations in their voices, even the stupid jokes they both crack are somewhat reminiscent of each other, and while Jinae's heart is slowly opening up to another man, the guilt is just as prominent and causing her to watch her behaviour, reel in her emotions.