SINGLE?
Changmin navigated through his playlist and, seeing the song Tifa’s Theme, hit the play button.
He needed the music. Two hours ago, he was searching for his iPod Touch. He took almost half an hour in searching the gadget in his room where chaos ensued – books are scattered everywhere, candy wrappers littered the floor, bed sheets were crumpled. Changmin is very impatient when it comes to searching for things. He loses his cool when he’s taking too long in looking. After giving up the search for the gadget, he approached Jeff, who’s doing some paperwork in his room.
“Hyung,” said Changmin.
“Yes?” replied Jeff.
“Have you seen my iPod?”
“Yes. It is in the sala, on the couch.”
“Oh, great,” said Changmin, with a note of frustration in his voice that Jeff didn’t fail to notice.
“Let me guess. You searched on your room for hours, right?” Jeff teased.
“No, just half an hour,” Changmin replied.
“Really, huh. That’s fast. Well, like I’ve been telling you all these years, try employing some organization in your things. I mean, you keep on asking me where your things are. They are not mine, why do you think I know where they are?” Jeff said.
“But you do know where they are, don’t you?” Changmin responded. “Yes. It is in the sala, on the couch,” Changmin imitated Jeff’s way of speaking.
“Listen to me,” Jeff said, suddenly sounding serious. Changmin braced himself, knowing what’s coming. “Here he goes,” he thought.
“You’re getting married in one month’s time, and you still can’t organize your things. Don’t you know that ladies hate it when men can’t even put their things in their proper places? Where the hell can you find a room where books are not on the bookshelves? Where wrappers are everywhere, as if there’s no trash can nearby? Where bed sheets cover the floor? They are bed sheets, not floor sheets! Look at my room.”
“If ladies love men who are neat with their things, then how come you’re single?” Changmin teased.
“This is not about me, this is about you,” Jeff reminded him, smiling. “Robedith haven’t been inside your room, right? I can only imagine the utter disgust her face would show when she enters in that chaotic room.”
And with that, Changmin lost. He went to his room and fixed everything. Jeff occasionally checked his brother’s room to see how he’s going. After an hour of what seemed like futile efforts in cleaning up the room, Jeff finally offered Changmin help. They finished after 15 minutes.
“Really, thanks for the help!” Changmin said.
“You are really hopeless,” Jeff said, heading outside the room.
“He he he.”
When Jeff left the room, Changmin settled in his bed.
Now, as he listened to the song, he felt grateful with his hyung. He badly needed a distraction. It’s already 3AM, and he can’t sleep. He was bothered by Robedith’s behaviour on the phone. Why did she sounded like that? What made her think something’s happened to him? These thoughts made sleep impossible for him.
It felt well, the music. He glanced at the window in his room which provided him with a clear view of the sky.
There are no clouds in the sky at that moment. Stars shined brightly, unobstructed by anything. The moon is full and beautiful, just like what it had been at L’Renouille, the place where he proposed to Robedith.
“Now where is it?” Changmin told himself. He scoured the sky with his eyes, apparently looking for something.
“There!” he pointed excitedly at the sky.
He saw the constellation that he really loved.
Cassiopeia.
While staring at it, he remembered one of his Astronomy class in high school.
“Kindly organize yourselves into the groups that I assigned to you last meeting and choose your telescope. There are enough of them to accommodate all of you,” said their professor. “Now, when you’re settled, go to page 150 of Stars and the Skies and try to locate all constellations that are indicated there.”
They were at the top of the tallest building in the school. The place is not too vast, just enough to accommodate the students and their professor. Fences wormed their way around the edge to prevent students from, well, falling. A year ago, the telescopes scattered around the place were not present. The telescopes are prizes that the school received when they won the 20th Annual Astronomy Quiz Bee held by NASA. Ten lamps are the only source of light there, but tonight they don’t need it. The moon was full.
It’s 9PM. There are no traces of clouds in the sky. The students don’t know how, but their professor always managed to pick dates when they can get a clear view in the sky. Changmin took his place alone because his partner is absent. Jeff is sick. Jaejoong and Robedith took their place near Changmin (Changmin felt his heart raced when he saw Jae and Robe), followed by Neru and Junsu. Everyone was still confounded as to how Junsu convinced Neru – the girl who, as the students put it, apparently forgot how to speak – to pair with him. Yoochun and Yunho took their places on the other side. Changmin approached them.
“Why are you here?”
Yoochun said, “We don’t want to be there.”
“Yes,” Yunho added. “I mean, look at all of them.”
Changmin turned to look. Now that they mentioned it, all couples on their class are on the other side.
“But how about me?” Changmin complained. “I’m single, too.”
“Sorry mate, no vacancies here. Just be content in that place,” Yoochun said.
“And oh, don’t forget. You should not look at Jae and Robe. No one here knows first aid, and the clinic is so far from here to treat your heart attacks,” Yunho teased.
“You bastard,” Changmin said to Yunho and left the two laughing. He proceeded to his place and carefully avoided looking at Jae.
Changmin opened his book on the page mentioned by the professor and saw that the page was not there. The page seemed to be torn from it. He approached the professor.
“Sir, do you have a spare book? Page 150’s not here.”
“Sorry, Changmin, I do not have an extra with me here. There is one in the library,” said the professor. “But it’s far from here, and it must be closed at this hour. Maybe you should share with Jae.”
Next : Chapter 9 - Reminiscence
Previous : Chapter 7 - The Call
0 comments:
Post a Comment