You & I

🍂 Part 9 - Dead Leaves 🍂

Myung ran. She ran and ran. She ran as fast as her legs could take her. She didn't know where she was going nor did she care. Her face was red and puffy from crying. She stopped since her legs were tired. Myung found herself at an abandoned train station. She sat down behind a boxcar, and held her legs to her chest. The sun slowly went down as the skies darkened.

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Ji-woon entered the hotel room when suddenly, Joon grabbed him by his shirt. "WHERE IS SHE?!?" he gritted his teeth together. "Chill out hyung! What are you talking about??" Ji-woon asked, confused. "Myung left while I was napping and she hasn't come back since then! She left her phone and the last text she got was from you. So.... WHERE IS SHE?!?!" Joon tugged harder on Ji-woon's shirt. "LOOK! I don't know! Yeah, we met up, and she cried a little....but she ran off afterwards!! I don't know where she is! I thought she came back here!!" Ji-woon panicked. Joon's eyes grew larger. "She....cried?" his grip loosened. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER THAT MADE HER CRY??!?!" he shouted at Ji-woon. Jin-hyuk pulled Joon away from Ji-woon.

"Joon! Please calm down. I'll call everyone to come back, then we'll start searching for Myung. If we do not succeed, then we'll call the police. And Ji-woon, whatever you did, you're telling us everything after we find Myung. I don't want any more fighting because I JUST cleaned the WHOLE room. Got it?" It was like a mother lecturing her two misbehaved kids. Joon and Ji-woon nodded. A little later, everyone else had returned to the room. Jin-hyuk made sure that no one panicked so that they could have time to search for Myung. Everyone was split into groups. Once the flashlights were packed, they headed out.

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"Like those dead leaves there that have fallen and are flying, my love is collapsing without strength. Your heart is only going further away, I can't grab you, I can't grab you anymore...."

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Hours passed. Myung sat there quietly. Her face was drenched in tears and her breathing became heavier. After realizing it was dark out, she stood up and dusted herself off. "I better get back to the hotel...." She wiped her eyes, then she suddenly heard a familiar voice. It was faint, so she concentrated harder on the voice.

"MYUNG!"

It was Joon. Myung panicked again. She heard his voice. Then when she walked onto the train track, she saw him. They locked eyes until Joon sprinted to her. He hugged her, tightly. He then started to cry. "Where were y-you?? I was so w-worried....we were l-looking for you for hours....!!" His voice was muffled by Myung's sweater. Then she burst into tears. "I'm so sorry..... To make you worry like this." Joon took off his jacket and he placed it On Myung to wear. After everyone found each other, they headed back to the hotel.

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After that, no one mentioned of the incident. They just quietly sat in the room. Myung stayed close by Joon's side, but the atmosphere felt different. Especially with Ji-woon. And Joon was barely talking to him. Everyone knew it.

The guys were scheduled to stay in Tokyo for at least two more days. Everyone acted as if nothing happened.

Later on, the guys were having a photoshoot in the hotel room. Each member went one by one. During Joon's photoshoot, Sung-won pulled Myung aside. "Okay, something obviously happened between you and Ji-woon. We need to resolve this because this has never happened before. I've never seen Joon so aggravated. Especially at another member." he said, lazily. He didn't sound like it, but Myung knew that Sung-won cared deeply for her and joon. She slowly nodded.

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"An ambiguous difference that is different from before. A night that's much more quiet today. A single autumn leaf that's attached to the branch, it's breaking, I can see the thing called the end...."

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Later that night, Joon, Myung, Rin, and Jung-hoon were sitting out in the patio of the room. It was quiet, until Rin spoke, "What happened with Ji-woon?" Joon's head quickly shot up. "Uh, well...." Myung's hand were trembling. She started to feel hot and her face went red. "Wait!" Everyone's head turned toward the door. It was Ji-woon. "I'll tell you what happened."

"I will admit, hyung, when you first introduced Myung, I immediately fell for her. And as time passed, my feelings for her grew more. When you asked me to drop off her suitcase at her apartment, that's when I confessed to her. We didn't do anything, I just needed her to know. Then, on the day when she ran away, I told her to meet me at the park. I played a little song for her on my guitar. She broke into tears, yelled at me, and ran away. It was all my fault and I'm sorry. To you and Myung." Ji-woon bowed his head and sighed.

Joon stood up, and left. He flung the door open and shut it loudly after him. Everyone was quiet. Myung ran after him, hoping to catch up. "Joon! Wait!" she shouted for him. They were both outside of the hotel by then. He stopped running, then he turned around. Tears were forming in his eyes. Myung stopped too. They were both a few feet away from each other. Her tears trickled down her cheeks. Before Myung were to say anything, Joon ran to her and hugged her. "I love you....so damn much." he said through his tears. "You are my e-everything, and I'm not sharing y-you with anyone...." he sniffed. They stood in that position for a while.

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"That's right, in order to raise my love, it falls. Even if we're close, my two eyes become further, spreads, further..... Like this, being thrown out, inside my memories, I become young again...."

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It was almost dawn. Myung and Joon were tired, but they continued to stroll around the neighborhoods, quietly. Myung knew she had to do it. "Wait." they both stopped. "Joon....we can't do this." He turned around and looked at her. "What do you mean?" he asked.

She sighed. "I can't be with you." The tears were coming again. "I caused so much trouble....and if this keeps going on, I know, deep down, something will happen. With you and Ji-woon. Something bad is bound to happen if I stay with you.... So I can't. Joon, I just can't...." she sniffed. Joon grabbed her shoulders, but Myung was quick and she shoved him away. "Joon! Please don't make this harder than it already is...." Myung's face was buried in tears and she cupped her mouth with her hand. Joon had a devastated look on his face. "N-No, please, Myung.... I love you, please don't leave.... We can work this out....." Tears ran down his face, but he knew he couldn't change her mind.

"I'm s-sorry, Joon. I love you, but this has to be done. There's no other way.... Don't forgive me." Myung wiped her tears and ran back to the hotel room. Joon stood there, staring at her run away....once again.

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"It was all pretty, wasn't it? Our pathroads.... But it all withered. The dead leaves fall down like tears. The wind blows and everything drifts apart all day. The rain pours and shatters. Until the last leave, you...."

THE END

- TO BE CONTINUED -