Chapter 2: A sudden change

After class, Han left the classroom and went down the stairs, his mind still drowning with numerous thoughts. He continued to go down the stairs, leading him to the lockers, and then the school gate. Just as he was about to depart, a sudden hand grabbed his wrist, he quickly turned around, and realized that it was Elias, panting and trying to catch his breath

"Haah... you're a fast walker huh.. I was planning to walk home with you! Huu..."

Elias continued to pant, still trying to stable his breathing. Han could see him still struggling to breathe, and gave him a bottle of water and a hankerchief. "Here, sorry about that.. I got lost in thought and I didn't notice you.. "

3 minutes had passed, and Elias finally recovered from his unstable breathing.

"Whew... much better.. thanks! Anyway, wanna walk home together?"

Han blinked for a moment, then answered

"Sure."

The two of them walked home together and talked about several entertaining topics along the way.

"Sooo Han, what are your hobbies? Do you do something you like during your spare time?" Elias asked, feeling curious.

"I like to read, and I usually make poems whenever im free. On top of that, I also write my own novels." Han replied. After a few seconds, Han asked Elias "How about you? Do you have any hobbies?"

Elias grinned, and answered

"I actually do have a lot, but I mostly like to play sports! Specifically badminton. I also like to stroll around parks, and go to my favorite pet cafe from time to time!"

Han continued to listen to Elias's chatter and silently admired him in awe.

They both continued to chat as the sun started to set, revealing an ethereal, glimmering orange color on itself.

Before Elias could continue talking, a sudden thought came to his mind. "Ah! By the way, I have a little gift for you!"

Elias rummaged through his bag, trying to look for something

A minute later, he finally found what he was looking for and handed it over to Han.

"Ta daa! I made a little crochet keychain for you as a gift, think of it as a new-friend-welcoming gift!"

The crochey keychain was a cute star. Its outline has a color orange, as for the main body of the star, it had a goldish and yellow color. It looks like some sort of lucky charm

Han felt moved by Elias's kind gesture, to think that he would spend even a second making a gift just for him, makes Han genuinely happy and appreciated.

"Thank you.. i'll keep it with me, I promise."

An hour has passed, and they finally arrived to their respective destinations. The two of them waved their final goodbyes then went on to their seperate ways.

Han felt like he just experienced something new and memorable. He seemed very content with his day in school so far, thanks to Elias who made it quite enjoyable.

As time went by, the both of them hung out together like they were inseperable.

Elias introduced Han to his family, and got along very well. The both of them continued to get to know each other and continued to spend time together for the past 9 months, and Elias also introduced Han to his group of friends. All of them welcomed Han to the group with open arms. And from then on, they hung out together and went out to cafes, shops, parks, and malls all as a group.

Everything was going smoothly with Han's life, but for Elias, it started to seem like he was out of the picture. Each time he wanted to hang out with his friends, along with Han, all of them seemed like they were more focused on being with Han, leaving Elias behind the friend group.

One day, Elias invited his friends to his house to celebrate his birthday, and everyone accepted the invitation. However, several hours had passed, and not even a single person arrived at his front door. He felt quite saddened, all the decorations, prizes, and games were prepared just for nothing. His family felt their hearts ache for Elias.

Midnight striked, and Elias went through his phone to distract himself from being depressed. Just as his sadness started to dissipate, a post suddenly came up on his feed, it was a post coming from Han's account.

There, his post showed that Han and his friends went out to go to an internet cafè, looking very happy and joyful. It was quite odd though, since Elias wasn't included in the picture. Elias felt his eyes water when he saw the post, and felt like he was on the verge of tears. How could his 7 year friendship with his group, hang out at an internet cafè without him? More importantly, how could they forget his birthday? And additionally, he often gets left out by the friend group, making Han stand out more, and making Elias more pushed away. Everything felt so, out of place. One day, a sudden change happened within the group's member.