⊱Ne m'abandonne pas⊰

Don't bail on me

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Sparkling jewels decorated the dark night sky, taking my breath away. Cool summer breeze brushed against my skin and I breathed together with the lulled sea as time slowed down.

The beach was alive with energetic chatters and festivity. Goosebumps were beginning to rise on my arms when Jay put his jeans jacket around my shoulders. When I told him that I would stay home during the weekends, he dragged me out here for me 'to not rot inside'. I would say he did it because he did not have anyone else to come here with.

"Ugh, when is the fireworks starting?!" A girl shouted in frustration.

I could ask the same.

"What's on your mind?" Jay asked, leaning over to me, and I realized I had not spoken to him since we arrived here.

"I was just... thinking about my life..." I dug my hand into the sand. "All my life, I was focused on doing better. Just a few more scores. Just a little better evaluation. Just a little more compliment. Just one more achievement... But recently, I found out not everything is about all that and life is way bigger than I imagined."

He hummed. "Nothing wrong with trying. It means you're moving towards something."

I breathed out a laugh. "Right. I just felt like the things I did were all for nothing..."

"I don't think so. They were a proof that you lived vibrantly. You didn't just drift through life aimlessly. They made you who you are today."

I smiled at him. "That's a beautiful thought. At least I didn't exist for nothing."

"That's right. You made those choices in those specific moments, so embrace them."

The breeze blew a little colder and I wrapped his jacket around myself. He jogged to a food stand and came back to offer me a hot caffe latte and a corndog. The warm flavors burst in my mouth and I thought about how I might miss these simple pleasures in life.

"I decided to quit my job," I confessed, a sudden urge to let him in my secrets overwhelmed me. I did not want to leave him in the dark. "There's something I've been wanting to do for a while. It's a choice I'm making at this moment, so I'll embrace it as you said."

"Your flower shop?" He immediately asked.

I giggled. "No. I'm selling that, too."

"What?!" He faced his body towards me, shock written across his face. I did not know his eyes could widen that much. "Are you moving somewhere else? A different country?"

I bit my lips. "Will it sound crazy if I say that I'm leaving earth?"

His brain cogs were visibly turning. "Mars?"

My smile widened. "No. I'll... stop being a human."

He gaped at me, speechless. Maybe he wanted to call me crazy, but he was serious from his expression. I had to explain that I was not dying.

I held his hand. "Jay. I'm eternally grateful that you became my friend. I was a loner and my flowers used to be my only friends. I never thought you would approach me or know about me at all."

"Well, you left an impression on me." His voice sounded a little more relaxed now. "And will it sound crazy if I say that I felt a connection to you?"

"Maybe." I giggled, his unusual side was coming up again. "Then you and I are both crazy."

A dark red color suddenly appeared in the corner of my eyes. When I turned my head to find it, it disappeared.

I remembered my gift and dug into my jeans pocket. I pulled his hand and put on a blue flowered bracelet around his wrist. "Here. I thought it would go well with your watch. It has similar shade of color."

He traced the small flower with his fingers in awe. "What flower is this?"

"It's called forget-me-not. I hope you don't forget about me. I will be gone for a long time... but I will see you from time to time."

His eyebrows furrowed. "You're really leaving? Is it somewhere I can't go?"

"It's a place I hope you never go to. I really hope..."

Bursts of fireworks exploded in the sky, making my heart jump. I jolted and grabbed onto Jay's arm as they finally lit up the sky and the people around us cheered in joy. Entranced by the colorful blinding lights and my heart pumping at the thundering sounds, I exclaimed in wonder.

A hand brushed my hair behind my ear and when I turned my head, Jay placed a soft kiss on my forehead while the colors were bursting in the sky.

His smile was dazzling as he said, "Don't bail on me."

When the festival ended, Jay dropped me off in front of my apartment and I still could not forget that. His words kept repeating in my head after I saw him off.

When I opened the door to my apartment, a familiar maroon haired man greeted me from the small sofa. Of course, that peculiar hair.

"I was waiting for you," Jaesung said, standing up when I approached him. "I couldn't help but come to see you when I heard your conversation at the beach."

"Yeah, I saw you stalking me in the corner of my eyes when I was with Jay." I walked around him and sat down in his place instead.

He shrugged. "It's just a thought... Do you think he might be the former Sin of Sloth?"

I scoffed before breaking into laughter. "Be real. Even if he was, do you think Sloth and Diligence would get along well like the two of us?"

He pushed his lips up in thought. "You said you were going somewhere. Where are you going?"

I sighed and sat upright. It was only right that he knew. "Do you know about sacrifices?"

"What sacrifice?" His eyes narrowed, staring at me suspiciously. "Don't tell me..."

"Do you know what will happen to me after this life of mine ends? I wasn't supposed to be reborn, but here I am. That means... this life of mine is at my disposal."

His expression darkened. For someone who usually had a cheerful and bright demeanor, this serious and grim expression was out of character. His voice, too. The deep tone was scarier when angry, but I knew he meant well.

"You can still come back to heaven after living this life well! You're going to make the same mistake again!"

"It's a decision I'm making at this moment," I calmly stated and stood up to pat his shoulder. "In the years to come, too, this decision probably won't change. So let me embrace it."

He pinched the bridge of his nose with a sigh. "I can't let you do that."

Smiling at him, I clicked my tongue. "Intervening in human's life is forbidden, Mr. Diligence."

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