HELIOTROPE ↻ NCT DREAM

twenty-one

Golden rays of the morning sun seeped through the white blinds of Ayeon's room, waking up the girl. She groaned, stretching out her arms.

It was finally the day before Christmas.

However unlike the good weather, she felt restless. Perhaps it was the fact that she could barely sleep last night as thoughts continued to run through her mind. And speaking of that, Ayeon rubbed her eyes and hugged the blanket tighter as she tossed from one side to the other. The vision of her mother's sympathetic look and sigh yesterday crept back up to her mind. She was beyond confused that it kept her until 4 am, extremely puzzled why she reacted that way.

It was only yesterday when she came home. Ayeon's family all catched up with each other over lunch time - they cracked jokes and told each other stories. Genuine laughter rang through their house. However, it was during late afternoon when Ayeon was watching her mother paint on a canvas by the window sill when they finally addressed the issue.

You see, her mother had always loved painting. She would often paint various flowers, and perhaps that was how the little Ayeon had deemed and grew to love them as she had always seen it whenever she accompanied her. It was what they like to call their bonding time. The young woman would always sit by her mother and just watch the tips of her paintbrushes meet the once blank canvas. Ayeon would then be in awe how she manages to stroke in various directions, beautifully.

Moving on, Ayeon's mother wasn't such a talker but the silent treatment she has given her was deafening, and it bothered her. Bit by bit, she slowly laid the explanation regarding the flower tattoo on her neck.

At first, her mother concluded that she had gotten it from a tattoo shop, shocking her that it actually wasn't. She was definitely happy her daughter had found love. However, she couldn't explain why her gut twisted that she almost dropped the paintbrush when her daughter kept on asking her to paint the flower inked on her.

"Be patient. Don't make rash decisions based on what you're feeling right now," was the only thing her mother said before she heaved an exasperated sigh.

Before deciding to finally get off the bed, Ayeon reached out for her phone that was on the nightstand.

Receiving numerous texts wasn't what she usually receives on a daily basis, unless it was from Hyuck. But it wasn't, which surprised her more. Rather, it was texts from Jaemin.

hey hey!!

i said hey !! why arent u respwondung?

tkal to me

ntocie me sempai

are u ugnorign me?

oh ok waht am i to u to even begin with? nothing. i knwo

i miss you. bye.

Ayeon was shocked and speechless upon reading the messages. Although it did made her smile upon the thought of Jaemin possibly being drunk. Hence, the typos. However, it also made her heart flip, especially the last one. Her heart raced and her cheeks flush a bright shade of pink.

No, it probably meant nothing. Just a friend who missed a friend, that's what Ayeon believed. She shook her head in attempt to clear her mind, not dwelling on it furthermore.

And upon opening her social media, photos from the Christmas party Hyuck and his friends went to was the first thing the girl saw. She continued to scroll down until she spotted the familiar figures of her friends. The smiles on their faces were so wide and their cheeks were a mixture of soft shades of red and pink that she couldn't suppress a laugh.

The beam on her face was plastered until she saw the photos of Hyuck and Ellie together. A surge of emotions rushed through her. Although, for most part, she was mostly calm as she processed the image. But a part of her heart tugged and sank, her vision started to blur as she continued to stare at the photo of her boyfriend who had his arms around Ellie's waist. Hyuck basically back hugged a woman that wasn't her. And for that reason, the huge grin drawn on their faces hit her badly. Perhaps, it was because it reminded her of the day they confessed to each other or the fact that they just looked so comfortable and happy together.

"They're just friends. They're just friends." Ayeon repeated trying to make herself feel better. Unfortunately, it didn't help at all as she continued to stare at the photo despite the tears that had flooded her eyes. She just couldn't look away.

It was only when she gasped for air when Ayeon realized she had been holding back a sob.

I will not cry. I will not cry.

The girl blinked her eyes consecutively. She tried so much to convince herself that it was nothing to get upset about. But there she was, spaced out in her bed with her mind on it.

The young woman wasn't mad at all and it was unlikely that she could ever do so as it was Hyuck we're talking about. But she was indeed hurt. In particularly, she felt more annoyed with herself as though love had made her weaker and emotional.

She wasn't like that after all. That's what she believed.

For the rest of the day, with no energy and motivation at all, Ayeon had barely done anything. Although, she did try to get her mind off it, keeping herself occupied as much as possible, doing stuff that didn't need much effort. She accompanied her mom as she painted, watched the news with her father, and even played with her dog. But it didn't do much.

Few hours before the clock struck 12 midnight, Ayeon's sister finally arrived home to celebrate Christmas with them.

A fleeting moment of happiness surged through her as they all set out to meet the holiday, eating to their hearts' content everything their mother had cooked and baked.

As Ayeon was making herself comfortable on the bed, she huffed her cheeks, partly annoyed when her phone rang signaling a notification. All the girl ever wanted was to sleep the night away at that moment, but perhaps the intruder ruined the plan.

"You know you could've just texted me instead of calling, right?" Ayeon groaned upon answering the call. No greetings needed.

The boy at the other end of the line couldn't help but to chuckle. "Yeah, but you might've left me on read if I did." He retorted, knowing her all too well.

Ayeon hummed in agreement. "So, why'd you call?" she asked, a bit impatient.

"I wanted to greet you Merry Christmas." His voice was soft and the way he spoke, Ayeon knew he was pouting afterwards. To that, a smile dangled at the corner of her lips. And perhaps, she too did know him all too well.

"Hmm. Merry Christmas to you too... Is that all?" Her brows raised despite the fact that the other couldn't see her.

A brief moment of pause engulfed them until the boy on the other line broke it. "About the text messages you received earlier, I'm really sorry. I was drunk. I shouldn't have." He apologized, the tone of his voice was getting softer and softer, embarrassed. "It wasn't supposed to be sent to you."

Ayeon recalled the unusual messages she had read in the morning and it came to her senses that it wasn't supposed to be for her, that he got it all mixed up. "Oh. Don't worry about it. I kinda figured it out." She assured him. Although, that of course was a lie. She hadn't really figured it out. And perhaps, a part of her gut twisted.

"Okay, so we're good, right? Tell me we're good!" The boy cooed, his voice suddenly laced with cheerfulness.

"We are, Jaemin. Now, good night." Ayeon ended the call momentarily, not letting the boy speak another word before he could do so.

For the rest of the hour, Ayeon stared blanklessly against the ceiling of her room as though it was the most spectacular thing. Thoughts rammed through her head upon recalling the day.