NEMESIS.

031 • 15:00

15:00 • first snow, alternate

It was cold and Soonyoung had to wear three layers of jacket and a thick coat to prevent himself from freezing. November na kasi kaya naman sobrang lamig na sa Korea.

Kasalukuyan siyang naglalakad papunta sa apartment ni Jihoon. His house and Jihoon's apartment are just a few blocks away from each other, a good twenty-minute walk. Kahit pa sobrang lamig ng panahon ay pinuntahan pa rin niya ito. May kotse naman siya, pero mas maganda kasing maglakad sa ilalim ng snow, tapos ay ikukwento niya kay Jihoon kung anu-ano ang mga nadaanan niya.

Soonyoung liked how cold it was kaya naman tumigil muna siya sa paglalakad. He looked up at the sky and held out his palm to catch a snowflake. He always does this whenever he has the chance to. Ang ganda kasing tignan ng langit kapag madaling araw. The sky is somewhere in between lightness and darkness, the colour blue and violet mixing up in the sky. The falling snowflakes made it even more breathtaking.

He took his phone and captured a photo of the sky, then put it back in his back pocket. Palagi niya rin iyong ginagawa sa tuwing makakakita siya ng magandang tanawin at hindi niya kasama si Jihoon. Gusto niya kasing maramdaman din ni Jihoon ang nararamdaman niya sa tuwing makikita ang mga magagandang bagay na iyon. Gusto niyang maging masaya rin ito, dahil iyon ang nararamdaman niya sa oras na iyon.

Soonyoung adjusted his scarf (it was given to him by Jihoon) to cover his mouth. Lagpas hatinggabi na, pero narito siya at nilalabanan ang lamig ng gabi para lamang mapuntahan ang kaibigan. He's supposed to be curled up on his bed, sleeping soundly with his speakers in a low volume but here he is, walking on the streets, in the midst of the night. But it's fine, he's fine. Sacrificing a few hours of sleep for his best friend is not bad. He'd probably jump off a cliff for Jihoon so this small gesture of love is nothing compared to what he really could do for the younger.

"Hay, Jihoon."

Napangiti na lamang siya at napailing, saka nagsimula nang maglakad muli. Lee Jihoon, that little grump but the biggest and brightest light that he has. Hanggang ngayon ay nagtataka pa rin siya kung bakit sila naging magkaibigan. They're total opposites. Soonyoung is a happy-go-lucky type of person while Jihoon is a I-don't-give-a-shit type of person. Maloko rin naman ito, pero kung ikukumpara kay Soonyoung, malayong-malayo ang ugali nila. Soonyoung is more of an extrovert. Most of the times, he vents out his feelings to his friends while Jihoon always bottle up his feelings then get himself drunk when he explodes.

In their decades of friendship, never did Jihoon tell him about his personal problems. Palaging si Soonyoung ang lumalapit dito at nagsasabi ng problema. Pero kahit ganoon, alam naman nito na may problema ding dinadala ang kaibigan. Kaya naman hindi na rin siya masyadong lumalapit dito kapag may problema siya. Pumupunta na lang siya sa lugar na palagi niyang pinupuntahan kapag malungkot siya o may problema. Ayaw na rin kasi niyang maging burden pa sa kaibigan niya.

Edi kapag naging kayo na, iiwanan mo na 'ko?

Biglang pumasok sa isipan niya ang tanong nito noong isang araw. To be honest, he was really bothered by the question. Never pa siyang naging in a relationship, pero nakakita na siya ng mga couples na nag-break dahil sa mga kaibigan nila. May mga magbest friends din na nagkakasira dahil sa nagkaroon na ng kasintahan ang isa. Soonyoung had never thought of that, and now that Jihoon brought it up, is there even a possibility that they'd end up like those best friends who became strangers?

Soonyoung doesn't know, but his chest suddenly felt heavy with that thought.

"Tsk, Jihoon."

Nakarating siya sa apartment ni Jihoon at nakitang bukas ang gate nito. Nakabukas din nang kaunti ang pinto nito at makikita na bukas ang ilaw sa living room nito. Kahit kailan talaga. Ganito lagi si Jihoon kapag nalalasing. Hindi naman sa lagi itong nag-iinom, but in those rare occasions where Jihoon gets drunk, the younger would always forget small things like locking his doors and turning off the lights. And in those rare occasions, too, Soonyoung could see the side of Jihoon which he doesn't show to anyone.