recommended song: "playlist" - the cassette

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9 p.m, seoul, a december night

sitting on the last bus home after a long day at work, minseok drearily put on his headphones and absent-mindedly clicked on the familiar icon of the s app.

"hmmm, what should i jam to?

new jeans?

ive?

some recently released kpop pops?

nevermind, maybe just some random ones"

...

a song, then two, then three... how familiar it is.

minseok turned on the phone to look at the playlist's name.

"oh, that's why"

that's minhyeong and minseok's shared playlist when they were still together.

come to think of it, minseok hasn't actually taken a look at the song list, even back then as he didn't have to care about it, or now as he no longer cares about it. it had always been minhyeong who kept updating the list and recommending new pieces.

"minseok ah, you really should listen to this new song. that's so romantic of the composer to be able to write this"

"minseok ah, do you want to listen to some jannabi after those new jeans'?"

"minseok ah, listening to kpop girl groups' songs won't help with your concentration, classical music will do."

well, minseok doesn't want to admit this, but minhyeong has never failed to persuade minseok.

who could have ever imagined an always-vibing-to-kpop-songs ryu minseok could be this calming and listen to soft and melodic musical pieces? no one else could make minseok do so, until minhyeong did.

everything back then was lovely, cheerful, yet regretful,

and somehow, minseok doesn't like this.

minseok doesn't like how minhyeong entered his life, out of nowhere, brought the brightest and warmest sunlight to him, and suddenly left in a rainy evening of june.

minseok doesn't like how he couldn't hold his tears whenever listening to the old playlist that they used to jam to with the other by their side.

and minseok doesn't like how he couldn't help but anticipate the one that got away to come back, to make every little moment of them together to come alive again.

it suddenly struck minseok that moving on was hard, was hurtful, but it was all what minseok needs

for now

forever.