Shocked, terrified, unexplained.
This guy standing right in front of me is the same guy I am missing for so long. I missed you. I wanted to say those words, but I held it back. What if he wasn't really him? What if it's just a mere coincidence that it was the Chanyeol I'm looking for?
I froze for a minute and realized I was staring at Chanyeol's hand waiting for a hand shake.
"And you are?" He asked.
"I-I'm Baekhyun. B-Byun Baekhyun."
Chanyeol gave his sweetest smile. The same sweet smile I was longing for.
"It's nice to meet you Baek." Chanyeol replied.
"Y-you, too." Still, I am still surprised of what I'm seeing right now, thinking that this mind was making pointless delusions that made my feelings even worse.
Maybe I'm just dreaming.
Chanyeol took his hand and pulled him over a small hut. "Rain's getting worse. Let's spend the time here and wait 'til it stop." His smile never fades. It's like a cure of my sadness.
I nodded.
Nothing but the sound of rain is what we hear. The chilly wind from the east, infinite raindrops kissing the ground, those dim clouds above, and the boy that's with him right now. I don't know what to say tho I had a lot of things I wanted to ask in mind.
"Uhm." I started. "How long have you been here?"
"We moved here with my mom about two days ago." Chanyeol answered.
Chanyeol started humming a song that syncs with the strings he plucked on his guitar. My heartbeat ran fast. Same notes, same tempo, same measures. I know because I loved listening to the same song. "H-HOW DID Y-YOU KNOW THAT SONG?"
Because it was the same song that Chanyeol wrote for me.
Memories flashed back on my mind.
"Baek! I wrote a song for you." Chanyeol said to me one day.
"Really? Can I listen to it?" I demanded.
"Well, it's actually a surprise. But I can play it in the guitar without the lyrics."
"Okay." I blushed.
Then Chanyeol started plucking the guitar as he hums the notes of the song he wrote for me. It was not just a song, but a euphony. I closed my eyes as my ears listen to a song written just for me--a song written by heart.
Things are different now. Same song but sang by a different person. It's not the same Chanyeol who used to promise me that in the end, we'll always be together. He's not the boy I used to know, who'd ran after me when I walk out; the boy who wipes my tears in times that I'm down; the Chanyeol who makes me laugh with his corniest jokes...that Chanyeol I was longing for left me. and he will never come back again.
"Baekhyun? Are you okay?" Chanyeol interrupted me while staring from afar.
"I-I'm okay. I'm just thinking a lot of things."
"If something's bothering you, then it's okay if you tell me. I have ears to listen." Chanyeol joked.
"Nah, nothing. Maybe because I'm too stressed in a lot of things."
"Like?"
"Nothing."
I don't want to talk. How can someone tell his problems easily to a random stranger? I just want to be alone.
We sat there for quite an hour, nobody's talking. All I can hear is the sound of the pouring rain and loud beats of my heart that once stopped beating.
He looked at his watch to see what time it is.
"I better go. Nice meeting you, Baekhyun. I assure you this won't be the last meeting you." He then flashed his sweetest smile as if the world is telling me there's still hope and that Chanyeol is with me again.
I gave him a slight smile and waved goodbye.
The moment I'm with him is like the moment the earth stood still. Like an hour between an hour, a minute between a minute. Maybe there's something in between those hours, minutes, and seconds that are immeasurable by time and that only ourselves know what it is.
The rain stopped. The playground is still wet, water dripping on rusty metal poles. I stood up. "It's time to get going. I'll call it a day." Before I stepped out of the hut, I noticed something shining on the ground.
It's his pick. It was covered with silver like the one I gave to Chanyeol on his 10th birthday. His was fading.
**
I went home. Still, my pants were wet and my shoes, too.
"Where have you been, Baek?" my mom looks worried. She hugged me tight. "Wait, I'll get a towel."
I was still standing there in the living room, staring at a blank ceiling.
"Here you go. Go dry yourself up. You'll get sick if you don't." She handed me the towel. I was still holding it and not doing anything with it.
"Are you okay?" Mom finally asked.
"Y-yeah." I answered, shaking.
"If there's anything wrong, just tell me. Baek, you don't have to be like this...sad. Do you think this is what Chanyeol wants?"
Tears starts to fall from my eyes. I looked up to stop it from falling.
"I'll just go upstairs and take a bath." I said and ran upstairs. I stopped at the stairs and heard my mom cried. I saw on her knees, crying so hard as if it's her fault. "It's not your fault, mom." I whispered to myself and continued going upstairs.
I took a shower and changed my clothes.
My phone rang. It's new to me. Last time I used my phone was when Chanyeol was still alive. He'd call me just to tell silly and nonsense things. But I guess nothing is nonsense if it's about someone you love. He tells things like, "Hey, Baek. I just wanna know I learned to play your favorite song in the guitar," or "Baek, I cooked breakfast for the first time! But mom said the egg was a bit overcooked and was too salty. I can improve it sometime, right?" And I smile. Every single time he calls was like heaven to me and I never want to end it.
I want him to call me every single minute, every second, and tell me things and I don't care how gibberish they were, I just want him.
It was a different number who's calling me. And not the one whom I named "Yoda" on my contacts.
"Hello?"
And on the other line, I heard someone crying.
--
My apologies for updating so late. I had a lot of things to do. I also want to thank those people who demanded me to update this story. I'm really happy that you like the story. I will work harder in the future to update faster for you guys.
Keep supporting EXO! :)
