The People In Our Lives [KTH] ✓

12

Chapter 12: Heartbreak

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The garden smelled fresh. Despite the cool weather, the grass still showcased colorful flowers of all kinds. 

The sun was nowhere in sight but daylight filled the place. People walked peacefully as they tried to enjoy their much needed weekend. Chilly winds and floating leaves played with women's hair. The children skipped merrily on the emerald turf.

Ella and Taehyung watched the scene as they sat still on the bench.

The man constantly looked to his side to observe his friend. He sighed as he made out only a minute change in her behavior.

Dead eyes and a limp body. Yet she was still living.

After days of being cooped up in her room, Taehyung finally dragged her out for what was supposed to be a refreshing walk.

Instead all that they had got was judgmental stares from the public.

"Ella, come on. Say something. Look around you. You're in a beautiful place and you don't even know it."

Just as expected, he heard nothing. He sighed again.

He hadn't heard a word from her ever since she moved in. If it weren't for him, she wouldn't have eaten anything either. 

Her state of depression brought vivid memories to his brain. He too was in a similar state as hers. But in his case, he had nobody with him to comfort him. 

And so for that reason, he had made sure to be there for Ella during her time of need.

As they listened to the chirping of the sparrows, Taehyung spoke, "Do you know how my relationship with Sue ended?"

A few moments of silence were his answer. But in the corner of his eye, he could see the slight turn of a head.

That seemed to gain her attention.

Taehyung continued.

"It was our anniversary. I had come back early from college to surprise her. I attempted to cook her favorite food and succeeded. I bought her flowers and had our apartment decorated. It was going to be perfect. It had to be considering I'd planned it for weeks."

"God, I was so excited to show her everything I had done for her. But when she did come home, it seemed like I was the one who got the surprise."

Ella watched him calmly as he let the story unfold.

"She told me that she had found someone else. She told me that all those times that she had acted distant from me was because she had felt guilty for having feelings for someone who wasn't me. I don't think she even remembered that it was our anniversary that day."

A lump formed in his throat as he tried to blink back his tears. The memory always tore him into pieces.

"She left that day. Up until that time, I thought I knew her. I never knew she could be so cruel. She walked out of that day like it was the easiest thing for her. Like all the time we had spent together meant nothing to her."

His voice strained as he spoke. His words were reduced to whispers, but Ella could hear them all.

"I don't know how she's doing now. I have no idea what kind of person she is now. And that hurts, you know?"

She knew. She understood him completely now. 

It's devastating to realize that the person to whom you've given your everything to, someone whom you thought you knew more than anything, turned out to be a stranger.

It was her karma. 

"I'm sorry", the words slipped out of her mouth. They were the first words that had come out of her in a long time.

Taehyung immediately looked her way with widened eyes. He let out a small smile as he enjoyed his victory in making her talk.

"Don't apologize. Just know that you're not alone, okay?"

Those were the words that she had assured him with back at the rooftop. She wanted to help him then and now he's helping her back.

Everything is everyone's karma.

"Okay."

His smile brightened as he shifted his gaze to the kids who played without a care in the world. A brother and a sister chased after each other while their dog accompanied them.

As he watched, Taehyung thought. He didn't wish to go back to his childhood. Because when he was a child, he desperately wished to grow up.

No, he wished for the two innocent kids. He wished a good life for them. A life with minimum problems. And if there were problems, he wished for them to have all the strength in the world to fight them.

He wished for them to not end up like the people who sat on the same bench as he did.

****

Both souls settled on the couch. 

Ella remained still in her blanket as she blankly stared at the television screen. Taehyung brought out a bowl of popcorn as he played the movie.

Ella's eyes glimmered for a second as she recognized the film that Taehyung had picked out. It was her favorite movie. She remembered gushing about it during one of their many outings. 

He remembered.

For a moment, her mind forgot all recent events. Her eyes followed the character's every action as she mouthed the dialogues fluently.

Taehyung looked at her and smiled at her enthusiasm. 

Suddenly Ella heard another voice that had begun reciting the dialogues. Her mouth parted as she amusedly watched Taehyung act along with film.

Once he noticed that her attention was on him, he began to over exaggerate his every move. The dramatic background music only added to the show. 

When the movie had hit its climax, his lips turned upside down into a frown and he squeezed his eyes shut as he began to fake cry. His acting tickled Ella's insides as she finally let out a suppressed giggle.

Her eyes trained on his figure which had strangely proved to be a lot more entertaining than the movie itself. She wondered whether he had seen the film as many times as she had. 

When Taehyung struck his final melodramatic pose, Ella couldn't keep her face straight anymore. She erupted into laughter at his childish foreplay.

The sound of her laugh lightened Taehyung's face as he patted himself on the back. The evening then slipped into a night of hysterics as Taehyung continued to delight the enthralled woman.

The one night where Ella stopped thinking about her troubled past.

The one night where Taehyung had found the person he used to be, before his troubled past.

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Good chapter??

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