The days felt too long all of a sudden, like the light in the sky and the business of the roads didn't want to go away in case they'll be forgotten by people. Like they were afraid they'll never be appreciated again as the coziness and quietness of the night enveloped the tired bodies of the individuals who have just been through an exhausting day.
The daylight clinged annoyingly tight onto the darkening sky despite it being winter. A strong wind blew, making the tiny snowflakes dropping from the fluffy clouds dance around in the air. Their landing had no specific destination, some found shelter on the ground, some on the leaves of the trees, and some on the windows of the highest apartments in the large skyscraper downtown.
Haseul sighed, one snowflake had landed on her nose as she climbed up the slide on the playground. Children and the parents accompanying them were all staying in today, it was too cold for them to stay outside for more than a couple of minutes. And so, the short haired brunette enjoyed the emptiness of the playground, bringing her earphones to her ears and humming to her favorite songs as she watched the cars come and go.
That specific playground was never empty, even when she was a little girl. Every kid from the area would whine to their parents about going there. Back then it was because of the ice cream truck that passed by every couple of hours, Haseul could recall almost every single one of her friends' reaction when they would hear the soothing song it played from it's speakers. Now, it was probably out of habit. There wasn't anything special about the playground she and her friends had grew up in anymore, the ice cream truck had stopped passing by many years ago when it's owner retired. A new, wild and very busy road opened, making it dangerous for the children to freely play around and the air was polluted. The beautiful trees and flowers that Haseul would scold the girls about picking didn't grow anymore, that part of the playground was now a parking lot.
Haseul laughed to herself for thinking about the past too much, for bringing images of her friends' faces when they were younger to her head. Images of the girls she grew up with, the girls she loved. She found it silly, that she kept reminiscing the old days where they were all young and innocent. When they were all happy and smiling, not having to care about a thing in the world.
She was there to watch the girls grow up — apart from Vivi, but she loved her equally— as one of the oldest. Haseul was always the person their parents would trust, she was always the one in charge when they were old enough to go out without supervision. She was and still is the mom of the group, her first priority being protecting her friends. Her family.
"please.accept wants to send you an audio file."
The brunette didn't hesitate, taking off her glove to tap on the cracked screen — her phone had accidentally fell from Yeojin's hands some months ago when Haseul found her crying at a cafe, forcing the younger to call her parents and later accompanying them to the hospital where she was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder — of her phone.
"This shouldn't come as a surprise to you, unnie," Jiwoo chuckled, breathing out against the microphone "I knew you expected this."
Haseul closed her eyes, letting the voice of Jiwoo's send tingles down her back. It was the first time in a while she had heard her so relaxed, calm. Usually and until the night before Jiwoo ended everything, the brunette would have to sleep with her, listen to her cries of despair as she ran her fingers through her red hair. She patiently waited for the younger's heartbeat to settle, her limbs stop twitching. For he voice to stop wavering.
"You have always been there for everyone," said the redhead "You have always been like a second mother to all eleven of us."
Haseul was. She wanted to. She needed to.
"I can still remember the day we first met at the park near your house," Jiwoo sighed "I hope you're there now, listening to this while traveling back in time."
How could Haseul ever forget? How could she ever forget a five year old running towards her, a seven year old at the time, and handing her a tooth. The first tooth Haseul had ever lost that fell from her mouth when they were all playing hide and seek (their mothers would make them meet many other kids and make friends) in the park.
"I don't know how I can still remember giving you your tooth back," laughed the redhead "It was over a decade ago."
That day at the park all eleven of them had met (Vivi joined their group years later) just like many other times, but surely none of them could recall the first actual meeting. There were too many people at the park, too many lost memories, replaced by other dark and scary. Just like Jiwoo's death, Haseul thought, that was a memory she wouldn't ever be able to replace. An image in her head that will never be erased.
"Welcome, Jo Haseul," spoke the girl calmly "To the path of the truth."
-kimwig
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12 REASONS WHY | LOONA
Fanfiction"If you're listening to this, you're one of the reasons why." Jiwoo was always viewed as the happy girl, the energetic one of her friend group. She had no reason to be sad, people thought, and if she was, she was being dramatic. But what if she real...
