Spring, 16 years old

That morning, Oh Sehun had been attempting to awaken the sense of his bravery to open up to his friends and his gut told that Park Chanyeol was the right choice. He needed someone to convince him. He didn't want to ask his other friends.

It was about a girl. And Chanyeol who was like an older brother might have the answer which he needed.

He found his friend collecting his books from the locker alone-- it meant no interruption. 

It was kind of weird being confused to start a conversation about that girl at school when the said girl was probably sketching in the classroom eating her snacks because she didn't like going out the classroom with the other girls or socializing in general. Sehun wasn't sure what the point was, but then it could be nice to try to talk about her.

She was a freshman like him. They were classmates and Sehun wanted to hear from Chanyeol if she liked him too. And if he only misinterpreted everything, he wished he could handle it.

"How was the quiz?" Chanyeol who witnessed him studying for English had noticed him leaning on the locker a few steps away from his.

"I didn't expect much." Sehun sighed.

"Forget everything you learned?" Chanyeol who was always playful could be a caring friend. Sehun perfectly knew it.

He nodded.

He was never lucky with English and he didn't want to talk about the dreading grammar quiz. He wanted to talk about something else, something more important.

"This girl," finally he started. He shifted his feet in place.

Chanyeol closed his locker. "Which one?"

There were some girls in their circle of friends. And Chanyeol knew Sehun too well that the options might revolve around their close friends; Seulgi the childhood bestfriend, Joy the generous, Rin the quiet, Yeri the bubbly, May the I-want-to-graduate-soon one. For the last name, Sehun didn't know why Chanyeol included her in the equation-- it had been clear that they liked each other.

Sehun decided to sit down, legs crossed.

"Rin," Then, Sehun continued, "She was mad when I didn't help much as a lab partner."

He found Chanyeol's smile. "So, what's up?"

"I like her. I've been trying so hard to hide it." Sehun admitted.

"And?"

"I assume she likes me too. But I don’t know what to do about it if she doesn't." He stated.

"Come on, you can just man up and tell her what you really feel about her."

It was true that Sehun had been so confused with his own problem, but it didn't stop him from being a thoughtful friend. He knew how Chanyeol had been battling between the idea of precious friendship and his feeling for May.

"You've told noona about your feeling?" He asked.

Chanyeol scoffed and sighed, "We need time to talk more about it. But I can tell you that everything feels right after I let her know."

Somehow, he was convinced.

So, the next day, he plotted an accidental meeting with Rin before the class began.

And for him, the meeting happened.

He noticed that she had trimmed her silky hair. From under the gentle arch of eyebrows shone the brown eyes.

The meeting did happen. He was steps away from her, only it wasn't something he imagined experiencing.

Rin was waiting for her parents outside the principal's office. Her smile was warm but there was a hint that she was clearly deep in thought.

"This week is my last week here," she softly told. "Sorry, I have to tell you like this."

Perhaps, she had chosen her words carefully for she knew how it could repeat themselves in Sehun's head.

And in that moment, in that fraction of time, he had to let go.

~*~

Another spring, 29 years old

Somewhere under the same sky, the fine day such as this had become another significant moment of someone else's life.

Sehun paused his steps, letting his feet join the serenity of peace. That was when he felt the sense energy from the blossoming flowers and the ground upon where he was standing. Sehun had grown loving for jogging to work. His path of a career as a tax staff didn't stop him from prioritizing his fitness.

Then, he ran again, not necessarily balking at the idea of running so fast and far.

Breathing steadily, he remembered the evening he found out his now fiance, Soyoung, wanted to stay with him. And so, he made it cle