The Other Side [EXO]

6

Pre chapter warning. This ones the worst, in my opinion.

Joonmyeon knew very well that the day of his funeral would come, though he hadn't actually prepared himself beforehand. Watching everyone as they got ready in silence, none of the lively boys making the effort to brighten the mood. Even the so called Happy Virus wasn't wearing a smile. Joonmyeon could practically feel the sadness radiating off of the them.

It was a lot worse at the church. He sat beside the eleven other boys on the pew who were all wearing their matching black suits. God, even at his own funeral they were fashionably coordinated. The only one who stuck out in the group was Yifan. He wore a black trenchcoat and black skinny jeans, tinted shades to hide his eyes. Joonmyeon didn't like it at all. Everything was black.

Black. Black. Black.

Joonmyeon had honestly never attended a funeral throughout his life time, never thinking that his first would be his own. He definitley didn't like it. The coffin that held his dead body inside was layed at the altar and a framed picture of himself stood behind it. Everyone wore grim expressions, some were crying, all were quiet. Joonmyeon found that after looking around there were some faces that he didn't recognise . There were even a few of the Press standing on the sidelines with their cameras on standby.

His eyes found his parents who were sitting beside eachother with their hands clasped together, his mother constantly dabbing her tears away with a hankerchief. At first Joonmyeon felt yet another pang of guilt in his chest because, over the past few days, he hadn't even thought about his parents. They had been with him for the majority of his life, paying for his bills and education, yet he hadn't even thought about how they were doing. If they were even okay.

After the priest had finished his reading from the Gospels and the Homily, Joonmyeon watched as his father stood up from his seat and walked up to the microphone. Everyone in the church listened as he spoke about Joonmyeon's childhood and his talents, his success and what a pleasure it was to raise such a beautiful boy. Joonmyeon found himself wanting to run up to his father and wrap his arms around him tightly, but of course he couldn't. The wall seperating the living and the dead was still there, ready to block Joonmyeon whenever he would try and get past.

The next person who stood up to give their Eulogy was no other than Kyungsoo. He made his way up to the altar with slow steps, pulling out a folded piece of paper once he got to the microphone. "If Joonmyeon hadn't been the one who had passed on, it would be him up here giving these words. That was just the kind of person he was. He was the leader of eleven other performers and lead uswell for two and a half years. For those years and the times that had come beforehand that I had spent with him were some of the best years of my life. I grew to know him more than just a bandmate and roommate, but as a friend and brother.

"This year came with a road of hardships, but we as a group overcame them together. Joonmyeon was always there with the right words and the right embraces for every single one of us." Kyungsoo took a deep breath, blowing out onto microphone and making it blister for a second. "The first member of our group to leave because of unknown reasons filed a lawsuit against our company. Those times were... difficult. But now, after having lost Joonmyeon, the pain we felt back then doesn't even compare to what we're feeling right now. What we're all feeling right now. The twelve of us have always managed to pick ourselves up again and... 'somehow, we will carry on in rememberance of Joonmyeon. We will continue to thrive just like we did when he was still here and with us.

"I can remember the times when it was only the two of us before we made our debut. We spoke about how great it was going to be once we made it. How we would be chased by the girls we had spent our life chasing. We dreamed about our perfect group and all the successful things we would accomplish. I can remember Joonmyeon saying how excited he was to gain a second family, just like our sunbaes had, to change the world with our music. He honestly told me that we would end up being the faces of South Korea, that we would become international stars. I think he may have over-thought that part," Kyungsoo chuckled lowly, then paused and regained himself. "The eleven of us are truly honoured to have become the second family of Kim Joonmyeon. We will continue our journey as One, accomplishing his dreams and becoming the faces of Korea and becoming the strongest group. We will never forget Joonmyeon after all he has done for us and after all of the memories we made together. He will be forever in our hearts."