❝ Even if the sun rises, without you I'm cold. ❞
She was lost.
He was like a rainbow in the form of a person. Eyes that shined under the warm summer sun. A worn out hand holding on to her pale one. The loudest laughter you could hear from anywhere...
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***
Summer was exhausting.
Every sunrise marked the beginning of a new adventure and it was hard to find a moment to catch your breath. The inn was filled with costumers, there was always something that had to be done and I often found myself hiding in the shed at the end of the garden. I was barely starting to learn what it was like to work and I was slowly finding my own desire. It was tiring, but I wanted to do well.
'' I can't believe you put an actual rooster in my room! Where did you get it? We don't even have chicken! ''
I was glaring at Haneul and complaining, because that rooster stepping all over my face and letting out screaming sounds almost gave me a heart-attack. I was even angrier when I saw that the sun was barely rising outside and I thought that it was just one of her pranks. She reminded me that it wasn't just before I was about to take her own sickle and chase her around with it. I completely forgot that it was bonfire day at Hando island and everyone had to help with keeping up the tradition.
In the years when I still visited the place during the summer, I used to come just early enough to see it. My boat would arrive in the late afternoon, when the sun was already setting and despite my bad mood for being sent to this place once again, I would always admire the flames from up far. I never really cared about the tradition or bothered to ask what it was about, but this year it was different. I was one of the town people now and I had to partake in the numerous activities that were going on from dawn until night. I learned that the bonfire held in the first week of summer was supposed to bring good luck to the island, but of course it involved also working the whole day.
I frowned and glanced at Haneul. '' Why am I not surprised that you people would turn a holiday in to work? ''
On bonfire day different groups gathered brushwood and other things to burn on all sides of the island. Tourists helped by cleaning up the trash from the beaches and the streets. Another group went through the forest and cut of any extra or sick branches. A third group was sent to mow grass everywhere that it was needed. The last one went from farm to farm and helped with different jobs on their properties. At the end of the day they always managed to gather a large pile of things to burn and everyone gathered once again to watch the fire on the beach and wish for a happy summer.
Grandma assigned the workers that could be missed from her inn to the mowing group and to say that Haneul was excited was an understatement. She was swinging her sickle around and practicing cutting motions the whole way up the hill of the island, while I was slowly dragging myself next to her and carrying two rakes on my shoulder. We were on our way to wake up Chanyeol and drag him out of bed. I had no idea, but Haneul told me that he didn't particularly like the work that had to be done on bonfire day and always tried to pretend like he was sick.
We walked in to the front yard of the large house and I looked around with curiosity. There were three families that lived in this big house and first I spotted the soju shop and brewery and their place. Park Chanyeol's family was in the ground floor on the other side of the building and they had potted flowers on all of their window sills. The third family was Byun Baekhyun's, in the red apartment that completely stood out from the others. The doctor just walked outside to leave for work when we got there and she immediately happily greeted us. '' Girls, are you helping in bonfire day too? ''
