Ashley was almost done with her afternoon shift. There was no night shift today. Everything seemed fine with her coming back. Already three surgeries were scheduled for her on a routine date next week.
Seemed like she got some leverage for her solo surgery after all!

She picked up her phone while doing a last round to the ward. Message from Tae.

-" Hey...when you get off the work?"

-" I am about to. What's up?"

-" Can I come?"

-" Come where? Hospital?"

-" Probably? I want to take you somewhere."

Ashley smiled.
-" Where?"

-" Thats a surprise."

-" It better be not someplace crowded or fancy. I am not properly dressed up."

-" No it's not. Just come out."

-" Come out? Where are you exactly?"

-" Well, I am guarding your bike in the parking lot. It's safe. Till now."

-" That's itself a surprise now! You can come up if you want, wait in my office."

-" I am good here. "

-" Ok, give me five minutes. I'll be there."
Ashley quickly typed and sent it. She finished the round within minutes, went to her office to fetch her jacket and backpack.

When she came out, she saw Taehyung sitting on the bench under the trees beside the parking lot. He was wearing all black and once again she realised how unrealistic he looks in black.

She approached him, "Hey."

"Let's go," he smiled at her.

Ashley went towards her bike.

"I got a car," Taehyung stopped her.

"Really?"

"Renting is better than all those cabs thingy!" Taehyung smiled.

He opened the passenger door of the car parked near him, "get in."

Ashley got in the car.
Taehyung got in the driver's seat and started the car.

"Where are we going?"

"You will see," Taehyung replied. But he was a bit worried thinking about what he was risking. He was ready for what's coming next. But really?

Ashley shrugged.
"Alright Houdini, surprise me."

Taehyung smiled and took the car out on the road.

"I am so tired!" Ashley yawned,
"These vacations are killing me. I can't even pull off two shifts in a row now!"

"When is your next shift?" Taehyung asked.

"Tomorrow, I have a night shift. I have to pull an all-nighter. Done with the morning and afternoon shifts today. "

"You can just take a nap. I'll wake you up in time,"
Taehyung encouraged her.

Ashley tried to protest, but she realized there was no point in it either. And she really needed that rest.

" Wake me up at right time, alarm clock," she closed her eyes.

" Liking the names you are giving me." Taehyung teased.

Ashley smiled sleepily and drifted off in no time after.

The night was beautiful as ever. The sky was crystal clear with a vividly visible milky way above. The rushing wind was passing through them reminding the freedom in the air.

She was holding the man from behind. She hated the motorcycle, but this man loved it.

"I need to do that again. It's not enough," She mumbled in his jacket, Closing her eyes.
Why the conversation started and where it was going she can't even remember now.

" You are enough," his voice spoke softly.

She loved these words whenever he said them. She rested her head on his shoulder from the back. She was waiting for this night for so long. To go out, to the escape both of them were looking for, only two of them.

And there was the blur, the whole next thing was a blur. She tried to hold onto the moment. Everything was going down on an eternal abyss. What was happening?

She didn't want to let this moment pass. She wanted to hold onto that with all her might. She knew something was coming to take it away like every time. It's her eternal nightmare. Coming to choke her to her death, trapping her down here for eternity.

"Remember me?" a sweet voice echoed from around.

"Yes, I remember you," she whispered.

"You know what hatred is?"

She felt the shiver going down her spine. It was dark, cold, sharp as a knife. A voice filled with dark hatred that can tear down an iron heart with fear.

"I will go with you," she screamed.
"I will do whatever you want me to do," she begged.
"Spare him. Let me treat him. Please let me see him!" she was looking at the body lying in front of her. There was blood everywhere. She was looking at the man lying in the pool of blood. He was still moving, trying to grasp an invisible hand in the air.

Seriously, how did she end up here?
She was trembling uncontrollably. Fear of losing him was the only thing that was swallowing her like a predator snake.

"You know what pain is?" his sweet voice whispered.

"Please let me call an ambulance. Please spare him. I'll go with you," Her cry was drenching all the energy from her. She couldn't move. She could feel the numbing pain from her dislocated hipbone and the pool of blood drenching out her consciousness. No....she can't pass out now. She has to save him.

She was almost crawling on the street to get to the lying body in front of her.

"I love you," He murmured touching her hands.

" No, no...stay with me, stay with me please!" her voice cracked in pleading. " You are gonna be ok, stay with me."

She tried dialing the emergency number before, but he had already kicked the phone away. She saw the call was ringing the last she saw it. She was just praying that they could trace her location and come here to save them.

No, no need to save her, save the body lying in front of him.

Something hissed near her ears,
"I'll destroy you."

Ashley got up from her sleep with a sudden jerk. Her heart was still beating insanely in her ribcage.

"You ok, Ash?" She heard Taehyung calling her name.

She looked at her trembling hands, she was holding on to one hand of Taehyung.
How long she was out?

"Ash?"

She again leaned back to the seat, sighed heavily releasing her grip around his wrist, and closing her eyes, "Yeah," she sounded tired, "I am ok."

"You look tired," commented Taehyung.

"It's nothing," Ashley tried to assure him.

She took some time to calm herself down.
When would it stop? Why it had to be like that?

She opened her eyes and looked out. She wasn't looking at anything. She saw the reflection of hers in the side view mirror. She tried to smile at her and whispered to the reflection, "you are enough."

He never knew these words one day would be the only thing that would keep her going.

"What?" Taehyung asked curiously.

"Nothing," she looked away out the window.

The late autumn colored the trees in bright tints of yellow and orange.
Birch and Aspen looked like golden burning flames into the forest. The lonely road was lying like an immobile python taking a nap covering in dead leaves all around.

This road looked familiar.
She gasped when she realized where were they going, "Tae, stop the car."

Taehyung stopped the car without any protest.

"You are taking me to the observatory, aren't you?"
She can't go stargazing. No way.

Taehyung shrugged.

"Please turn around," Ashley's voice was firm.

Taehyung looked at her eyes, and reached for her one hand, "Ash, sometimes you need to move on, you know? You need to forgive yourself."

She hated this place, she hated that word. That observatory holds an unfinished story there. The story that never was written, the story that couldn't be hers.

"Wha...what?" Ashley was confused.

Taehyung opened his dashboard and brought out a notebook and handed it to her. It was her scrapbook. Where did he find it? Maya?

"Open it," He said.

Confusingly she opened it. Nothing seemed to be changed. She knew it too well.

She froze as she opened the page of the polaroid of hers and Taehyung's.

There was one thing new.

Neil was smiling at her from a picture below. He took it from Maya the day before.

There was something written below but she saw a blur in her eyes.

She closed the scrapbook. "Take me back home Taehyung," her voice was calm.

"Ash..." Taehyung started.

"Do it, or I'll get down here."

Taehyung turned the car without a word. He knew it would hit her. But he had to do it. She needed to face it. Today or tomorrow.