BOSOM. |Bang Chan

Thirty Eight.

A comfortable silence was wrapping the two soulmates while sitting on the bench, facing the horizon. Although it was slightly hot during the days, the wind was cool and chilly at night.

After Chan succeeded in assuring Alana and making her heart settle a little, they both stayed as they were, snuggled to each other with Alana's head resting on Chan's shoulder and their fingers laced together. They would hum every now and then. Alana would fiddle with his fingers and Chan would occasionally place soft pecks on the top of her head.

"Where will you be staying?" Alana asked, breaking the silence. "You'll be at your parents' house, right?"

"Yes and no." Chan replied with a sigh.

"What do you mean?"

"I'll stay in the same apartment building but I'll have my own place." He paused to chuckle. "That's why they were making a fuss the other day. They didn't take my decision well. They wanted me back under their wings but I'm not going to be controlled by them again."

Alana lifted her head from his shoulder to look at him, but never she pulled away. "What do you mean by 'controlled by them'?"

Chan sighed loudly, he looked down at Alana who was now resting her chin on his shoulder while hugging his arm. He couldn't help but smile at how her eyes were wide with curiosity. "I love my parents. They are the most caring and loving parents ever. I couldn't ask for any better. But they tend to be overprotective. They've always been since I was a kid." He smiled bitterly at the memory. "They forbade me from many things just because it might harm me. I ended up a little lonely and left out at school."

"You never talked to them about it?"

"I did. And that was when we started having fights. I wasn't the obedient lovely kid anymore. I was rebellious and they didn't like that. It was my final year at high school when they decided to plan for me my next steps, not knowing I had plans of my own. And surely, they didn't like mine." He chuckled.

"And what was yours?"

Absentmindedly, he started caressing Alana's hair. "Hmm, they wanted me to work in the family business, but I wanted to be a photographer."

Alana's face lighted up and she pulled away a little to look at him with her wide smile. "A photographer? That's what your camera is for?"

"Yes!" Chan smiled widely, mirroring hers. "I faced them and they didn't like that. But I was prepared with a backup plan. I was already studying a few neighborhoods to move out from my parents' house and I had an internship waiting for me with a senior photographer." He paused and sighed heavily. "But then..."

"Hell broke." Alana finished the sentence for him. Her heart ached for him. He was prepared and planned his life. He was a few steps from achieving his dream but he had no chance to do so. "And now? Are you going to resume your plan?" Alana asked, rubbing his arm up and down.

"I don't think so. I don't know where to start but I'm sure I'm late for the photography thing. Plus, I'm not a teen anymore. I lost time in my hibernation and now I'm close to my thirties, I have to be a little more responsible. I have to think of my future more wisely."

"That sounds mature." Alana praised. "But I don't want you to give up on what you love."

"Photography can always be a hobby. I will always need it as my escapism. But now-" He paused to lean in and cup her cheek. He pulled her face closer to his and placed a soft peck on the side of her face, almost at her jawline. "-now, I have someone to take care of and I won't want to let down." He whispered.

Flushed and flustered, Alana couldn't help but giggle. Those sudden pecks and kisses would always catch her off guard. And she would always love how they fill her insides with warmness and little fuzziness in her heart. The bubbly feeling too wasn't to be missed but Alana couldn't name it yet.

Alana pulled back to look at Chan's face that was smiling at her fondly. She moved her hand up to his fluffy hair to drag her fingers along his locks. Chan closed his eyes and almost purred. He leaned in her hand more. He always loved how she touched him. That was one of the things he clearly remembered when he woke up.

"Oh!" Chan hummed softly. "I love this. I'm getting addicted to your touch, Al." He opened his eyes to look dreamingly at her, still leaning more into her palm. "That touch and your voice kept me sane while sleeping. They stopped me from giving up. They brought me back. You brought me back."

"I still don't know how I did that." Alana sighed. "Everyone told me that I was the one to bring you back from your hibernation. They told me that the bond will. And I was confused, not knowing how I may do so. And now you tell me I did and I don't have any idea about what I actually did." She paused and pulled her hand away, earning a groan of dismay from Chan. "I lashed out at you that day. I was harsh! I said things I didn't mean and I-" She panicked remembering what happened that night when she decided to leave for good and go back to Busan.

"Shh." Chan shushed her. He held her hand and lifted it to his lips to kiss her palm. "You did nothing wrong. You had every right to do and say what you did and said that day. You were on your own and trying your best for me, and yet, I was reluctant to let go and follow your voice." He put her hand down and grabbed the other to hold her both. "I almost gave up to my demons. I almost made the wrong decision. I almost left this world, Alana."