Shared History

Ji-hun was sitting on the roof in the quiet evening, trying to imbibe the same quietness and calm inside himself by staring at the peaceful sunset. He remembered how uneasy he had felt after waking up from that nightmare, and how hard he had to try to convince Chang Min Hyung about the lie he had made up on the spot. Chang Min had been so determined to know about the girl who Ji-hun had proclaimed he 'couldn't live without'. How was he supposed to tell him about the girl, when he himself had never met her? And yet, somehow the uneasiness of potentially losing her after the last dream had never left him for a moment.

He really wanted to meet this girl, he wanted to spend every waking moment hence with her by his side- but why? He had tried multiple times to make heads or tails of this illogical situation, but he came up empty handed each time, with only his emotions in greater chaos than before. 'Who was she, and why did she always feel so special to him? Why did he find himself unmindful of the concept of space in front of her, as if it didn't matter between them. He felt like they shared the same space inside each other's body, each other's souls- ugh! His confusion would definitely drive him insane; he needed to drive somewhere, maybe his mind would get diverted that way. Or he might go out to eat something tasty, it had been quite a while since he had visited a restaurant or even a bistro.'

He decided to go and grab some food, along with something nice to drink- something like hot chocolate or latte! He stepped down to his room and grabbed his jacket; he was busy searching for his keys when Kaoru entered his room.

"Are you looking for something? Or are you planning to go outside for a walk, is that why you are holding your jacket?"

"Hmm? Actually I am looking for the keys to my car, I wanted to visit a cafe for some dessert, I'm thinking of getting a nice beverage as well! Do you wanna join me?"

"Are you really asking me to join you?!" Kaoru asked in surprise. He was aware that his brother usually did accept the fact that he was his elder brother but they had never really spent much time together in their childhood and teenage years. This was not the worst part yet- the worst part was that some really big misunderstandings had cultivated between them and Kaoru wanted to clear them anyhow. He was willing to do whatever it took, to revive and strengthen the bond with his brother.

"Of course I am asking you; I can't see anyone else, can you?" Ji-hun tried to crack a joke, and somewhat succeeded in his attempt. Kaoru smiled and turned, saying "Come on then, let's go in my car-"

"But I will be driving, okay? You are a really bad driver!" Ji-hun interrupted again.

"Sure! As long as you are not denting my car, I am chill with everything."

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Within ten minutes, they were in the most popular and expensive cafe in Seoul.

Ji-hun was teasing Kaoru as they took their seats, saying that he was the one driving the car now, so Kaoru would have to pay for him. Kaoru was gazing with adoration at his younger brother, struggling to hide his smile but failing to hide his emotions at Ji-hun's innocent excitement. They made themselves comfortable and were waiting for a server, when someone made their way towards them from across the room.

"Hello oppa! How are you?" The girl who had walked up to the table then turned to Ji-hun and asked the same question, not even waiting for an answer from Kaoru. "And you!? How are you, Ji-hun? I hope you are doing well..."

Kaoru was instantly triggered at the sight of the girl and was about to ask the staff to throw the girl out of the cafe itself. But Ji-hun noticed that Kaoru was close to losing his calm and stopped him by tapping his arm, indicating that it was alright.

He looked up at the girl and replied in a flat tone, "I am good, how are you? And what do you want from me?"

The girl seemed pleased to have gotten a reply and answered in a flirty tone, "Oh, relax baby! I don't want anything from you, you are the one who constantly wants things, attention from me- as the boy who doesn't even have a friend-"

Ji-hun interrupted her before Kaoru could call security to escort her out of the premises, or worse. "Shut up! I don't want anything from you- it was just one time. Only once did I ever ask you for help, and you refused. Now you can't simply undo the things which you have already done, nobody can- so let's just not bring them up. You may leave us now, me and my brother wanted to have some quiet time, away from some personified headaches!"

"Ouch! Someone seems to have acquired guts as well as a penchant for sarcasm. All the better for me, I like bold boys and you know the things-" She stopped abruptly and continued after a meaningful glance at Kaoru, "Never mind, I will be leaving now. I know you have to return to me in the future, because you don't have any other option, we have a history together, after all! So I guess I can leave you alone, for now. "

"We are not friends anymore, why don't you understand this? And I am not a lost puppy or your property either!" Ji-hun screamed out, attracting the attention of other patrons as well.

"Oh, I never said that you are my property; and we were never friends, we were always more than that- and I think you already know. So forget about it for some time, just enjoy your freedom."

"I have never liked you in that way and I will not pursue you in the future as well! There is absolutely no chance of that, it will be better if you remember this simple fact. And what are you going to do, if I fall for someone?"

"Then that 'someone' will have to bear the consequences," she replied with an icy smile. Saying this, she walked away but turned around after a few steps and said with a smug look "Listen, I always get whatever I want; and if you have forgotten that, then let me remind you of the scandal from last year...Goodbye."

A rogue teardrop disobeyed his command and made its way down Ji-hun's cheek. She was a person he had assumed to be his friend once upon a time. He looked at a seething Kaoru and asked innocently "Hyung, I know you always tell me to not take the words of everyone to heart. But why are there always a variety of people in the world, comprising of both good and bad- why can't it just be the good kind?"

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Amélie reached out and grasped Reneé's hand tightly. She spoke in a panicked voice "It has started...the synchronicity...now they don't have much time left before the encounter! Now poor Nitya will have to go through each and every prediction made in her dreams- without any clue, without any reason or any warning about whether or not they will actually turn out to be her future! Can't we stop everything here; everything before the encounter must have already broken her into pieces by making her feel overwhelmed with love, and yet unwanted at the same time. Do something Reneé, please do something...I really need you right now…"

Reneé's eyes were blank as she spoke "I am sorry Amélie, I am really sorry. I know I have messed everything up, the one time- the only one time you were in need of me, I betrayed you. I betrayed everyone and myself as well. But I am promising you, I will not let history repeat itself again. I will make sure that this writing of destiny will change." Saying this, she pulled Amélie into a hug and both the soul sisters shed quiet tears.

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