Climbing the Tower with You (Khun x Reader)

Prologue- Goodbye

     I got lucky. Turns out Dad's work took longer than expected. We ended up staying at the Khun estate for almost a year. Time flew by and life at the estate became a norm. We no longer felt like outsiders.

     I was standing near the river, early in the morning, now 9 years old, waiting for A.A. to show up. As always, he came only a few minutes after.

     "How long can you stay?" he asked. "Do you have a really early lesson again?"

     I shook my head. "Mr. Ben is starting class later. Everything is shortened today. We're only reviewing."

     A.A. was surprised by that. "Really? Why?"

     I smiled sadly at what Dad told me this morning, before leaving for work. "My dad's work ends today. He figured it out earlier so he booked transportation in advance."

     "What?" I could tell A.A. didn't know what to say. "Then... when do you leave?"

     "Tonight." I responded. It had been so sudden.

     "Oh." was all he said. He was silent for a few minutes. Then he smiled. "So that's an entire day. It's hot today, let's go swimming!"

     "Okay!" I said.

     I didn't feel so sad back then. I had been excited to see Mom and Krista again and show of my new skills. I missed them. I was also the type of person who worried about things later. Saying goodbye to A.A. never occurred to me until the moment came where I had to do it.

     The day had gone well for the last day. Mr. Ben treated me to lunch. He told me I was a good student and I was going to do great things. That made me happy. The past year had been so new and different, I knew it was going to feel like a dream once I returned to my old home. That's right. My old home. Because the Khun estate had also felt like somewhat of a home to me in the past year.

     A.A. and I didn't mention me leaving that day. We talked about normal stuff and did our regular activities. I think we were both trying to forget what would happen at the end of the day.

     That evening, Dad had the house cleared out and everything packed. I had tried to delay our leaving as much as possible but now, the vehicle was coming in a few minutes. I remembered A.A.

     "Be right back!" I called out.

     "Soon!" Dad yelled. "I don't want to make the driver wait!"

     The sun was setting and when I reached the river, the water was almost a tint of orange and red mixed with blue. It looked beautiful.

     But not as beautiful as the fact that A.A. was sitting near the river, in the very same spot I first met him. Looking back at it, I couldn't believe that one moment had created a year of happiness.

     He saw me and got up. "I got another catch!"

     "Really!?" That was also a celebration for me by now. "Where is it!?"

     "I let it go, obviously. But it was a big one!" he said and then smiled. That would never change. "So you're leaving now."

     I nodded. "In a few minutes"

     "Then I guess..." A.A. began. "This will be the last time we see each other."

     That last sentence...

     It knocked the wind out of me. I felt like the ground was shaking and no longer felt like my legs could support my own body.

     The last time... that was obvious. I would never go to the Khun estate again and A.A. would never see my small town. I knew that. I had known that for a while. I had simply ignored it. 

     Maybe that's why it hurt so much now.

     But maybe that didn't have to be the case. There was still hope... there was one more place we could see each other.

     "The Tower." I said. "We're both going to climb the Tower, right? We'll see each other there!"

     A.A.'s eyes widened. "The Tower!? Y/n, do you know anything about the Tower? How huge it is? The amount of challenges? We might not get chosen at the same time and even if we are, the chances of us meeting in the huge Tower are low. It's impossible, it's absurd and..."

     A grin spread on his face. "...it just might work. Like I said, you're an interesting person. Maybe with you, the impossible can happen."

     A.A. put his hand out. "I'm looking forward to meeting you in the Tower again, Y/n L/n."

     My throat got choked up. I didn't know whether I would be able to say the next few words. But I had to.

     Forcing as big of a smile as I could, I also put my hand out. "I look forward to meeting you also, Khun Aguero Agnes."

     We shook hands. Feeling his warmth and seeing his smile, I wanted to hug him, right then and there. But I didn't want to make anything awkward. As simple as this handshake was, it was special. It showed our friendship, what we created over the past year. No matter how far apart we were, neither of us would forget the other. We might as well have hugged at that moment.

     I knew it was almost time. Our vehicle was probably here by now. I separated my hand from his, an action that almost broke me to pieces.

     "Goodbye A.A."

     His smile, the last time I would see it for a long time. "See ya, Y/n."

     I ran the opposite direction, towards my house. I didn't stop. When I finally looked back, all I saw was a faint silhouette by the river. My stomach hurt.

     As Dad and I boarded the vehicle, my stomach ache was now a crushing pain. I couldn't speak. I forced a smile to Dad so he would think I was okay.

     I slowly watch the Khun estate fade away in the distance. And with that, the boy who changed my life. 

     Why? Why didn't anybody tell me how much it would hurt? That making a friend would make you float on a cloud while losing one would have you tumbling to the ground in the rain? That was the first bittersweet lesson I learnt. But I also decided that no matter how much it hurt, I wasn't going to stop valuing, wanting friendship. The time I spent with a friend was like gold I would never give up. 

     After a few days, we reached Rosebush. I had felt a little numb for those days but seeing my old home again reminded me of what I left.

     "What's wrong Y/n?" Mom asked after giving me a huge hug. "Your eyes are wet."

     "Y/n..." Krista began. "Are you crying?"

     "No!" I said, a little too loudly. "I'm not crying!"

     That's what I repeated to myself as I went upstairs. I'm not crying, I'm not crying, I'm not crying...

     I went up to my room and had a good cry.