day: 24

saebyeol;
stars

~~

"Don't wait for me when it is past 10 pm." Chaewol nodded and giggled when she met his eyes. It was such rare to see him that close and it will forever be a meaningful moment to her. She was so happy like this was the happiest moment in her life forever. She will never forget this and always treasure this moment until she gets old.

The warm touch when he hugged her earlier was still here- and it made her feel so excited, just forgetting the fact that she got a fever earlier.

"Let's go home, "Sunoo spoke up and watched her who was approaching him with an amazing look.

"I will go first."He said and left the place without looking at the girl anymore. Chaewol was watching him from behind while smiling like an idiot, just waiting for him to turn his body to her but he didn't. She took a deep breath, fixed her clothes, and quickly ran towards him before jumping on his back causing him to almost fall but gladly, he could balance himself and fixed her position on his back.

Sunoo groaned in pain,
"Chaewol, are you crazy? You might break my back!"

She tucked her head on his shoulder and giggled, "Let's go. Let's go."

"Get off."

"No."

"Get off before I throw you."

"You will never do that."

"I will."He replied coldly.

"I don't want to."She teased him and hugged him tighter so he couldn't let go of her.
He then gave up and just walked to her house while listening to her storytime.

"Sunoo, do you know any jobs for me to apply to?"

He raised his eyebrows in confusion, "Why? Do you want to get a job?"

She nodded, "Yes. For my surgery--"

"What surgery?"

"I mean my grandma's surgery. She got a heart problem and it's getting worst. She needs surgery. Since the cost is so expensive. I decide to apply for the job. So I could pay for it."

He hummed in response, glad that he didn't catch the lie. "I don't think you should work at a young age. Plus, the college entrance examination is near. So, I think you don't have time for studying."

"But the surgery is the only thing that can cure my grandma."She replied.

"Then, your parents need to take responsibility for it."

"My parents passed away, Sunoo."

He immediately shuts his mouth after knowing about that and all he could feel right now was guilt and disappointment in himself,
"Sorry."

"It's okay."She giggled.

"Then, do you live with your uncle?"

"Yes. He is an alcoholic person. So, he often wasn't home."

"Alcoholic?" She nodded.

"Don't worry. He is not the abusive one. He paid for the house bills and everything."

"Why don't you ask for your uncle to pay for the cost?"

"He spent a lot of his money for me. I don't want to bother him again."

They went silent for a while and just enjoyed the moment they have like it was just both of them in this world. Sunoo titled his head to look at the sky, the same as Chaewol.

"Stars. It's shining brightly tonight."
Chaewol spoke up.

"Yeah..."He responded and smiled making Chaewol barely smile back when she could feel
that he was thinking of someone on his mind. The eyes told her everything. Just by looking at how glittering it was, she knows that there's someone he was thinking of lately, someone who is so special to him.

her mother once said
if someone looks at the stars with amazed,
not even saying anything for the whole moment. it means they are thinking of someone so special to them. Her mother always did the same whenever she looked at the stars, and the only thing that crossed her mind was her lovely husband, chaewol's dad.
it felt so sudden yet so magical.
like the stars understood what our heartfelt and what our minds think.

"How much do you love her, Sunoo?" Chaewol broke the silence between them causing Sunoo to look at her. He then cleared his throat and focused on the road.

"You're thinking of someone, I know that."She smiled.

"I'm not."

"You don't need to lie to me, Sunoo. I'm
okay. I'm not hurting at all."

"It's normal to be in unrequited love. So,
don't worry." She chuckled.

Sunoo continue walking, just went silent.

"If you know the truth, why did you still want to wait for me? What's the point of waiting for someone who is into someone else?" He asked her.

Chaewol smiled, "I wait for you for nothing then..."

"Even though it's nothing, It's not useless when it comes to you."

"Even though it's nothing, I still want to wait."

"It's okay to not return my feeling. I don't want to force you either and I don't desperate for it. I will never be, Sunoo."

"I just want to be with you. stay with you until
we get old. even though we are not soulmate, we still can be a stranger who is close to each other."

"Sometimes, not being a soulmate is a great thing too."

"as long as you notice my existence, it already makes me feel so good."

"I hope we can get along forever. I hope we will grow up together. I hope we will stay with each other until we get old."

"I want to be with you forever. I want to cherish this moment of us forever."

"I hope one day, we could watch the fireworks together."

"This is my wish to you. The only wish I want to do with you."

"If it happens, this will be the happiest life for me. I will never forget it."

Chaewol tucked her head on his shoulder,

"I can fight over a hundred girls who love you, Sunoo."

"But I will never get to fight over that one girl
that you love."

"It's not that I'm stupid. I know the reality. I know I'm hurting myself but it's okay, this is my choice and I can endure it alone."

"Don't pity of me. I don't like it." She chuckled at the end of her words and leaned her body closer to him.

"Thank you for at least noticing me, Sunoo."

~~

"Red roses."Saebyeol chuckled and took the bouquet of red roses from Sunoo. She looked at it with a soft look, keep smelling it because it was so good.

Sunoo smiled sweetly and patted her head making her look at him in confusion. Saebyeol held his hand gently, put them away from her as she wanted him to remember that they were broken up.

"How are you? Are you getting better day by day?"

Saebyeol smiled in response.
"Thank you for helping me, Sunoo. I was so glad that you were there that time."

"You shouldn't work at the cafeteria, Saebyeol. Your condition... your health... it's not good."

"Sunoo, you will never understand, right?"

Sunoo sat on the bed and hugged her when she was about to scold him again. The warm hug made her feel so emotional for no reason, maybe she misses being in his embrace so much? she didn't understand her feeling too.

"I know it's hard but this is not the only way. Don't pressure yourself. You have me, Saebyeol. You have your friends who will
help you too."

"The cost of the treatment is not as cheap as the convenience store's ice cream, Sunoo. I don't want to burden anyone around me--"

"People who love you and adores you will
help you even though you don't want to. They are willing to help because they love you. It's not that they are burdening themselves for you."

"Everyone will do the same thing when it comes to the person they love, Saebyeol."

"No one wants to see their love one suffering alone."

"love is a heal, not a burden."

"nothing is burdening when it comes to love."

Sunoo cupped her face and smiled, stroking her cheeks gently.
"I'm willing to help you, Saebyeol. I want you to live."

"I want you to live happily with your friends and also me."

Saebyeol looked down as tears dropped on her cheeks,

"Saebyeol, I love you more than you expected."

"I will stay with you and help you to go through this together."

"Please allow me to stay, okay?"

Saebyeol cried more and hugged him back as she felt so thankful to Sunoo for giving her more strength when she felt so down.

"Thank you, Sunoo."

-

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