Sumin Moon's body lay on the road, his breath slowly running out. Cold, blank, snow fell onto him, melting on his cooling skin as the people above frantically dialed the emergency number.
Only by then, he knew it was too late. He could see his own blood pooling beneath him as he slipped in and out of consciousness. His eyes fluttered. He felt his heart slow to a sickly thump....thump.... thuuuumpp....
An awful feeling washed over his tired body. People yelled, but he couldn't hear them.
He closed his eyes.
A warmth took over.
"Wake up now!" A voice yelled angrily.
"Mom, give me a minute," The boy answered without thought, in an almost automatic manner.
Wait.
Something is weird.
Something is off.
That dream, it felt too real.
Eyes darting to the calendar, a chill ran down his spine when he realized the date was nearly five months ago.
"Wake. Up. Now." His mother said firmly.
"Mom..."
"I said wake up! You're going to be late for school."
"New school? Did we move again?" He asked, dazed.
"What are you talking about? Of course we didn't move again. You still have boxes to unpack in this house!" His mother responded.
He looked around his room, his uniform lay out perfectly on his floor.
It was identical to his first day of senior year.
He climbed out of his bed, slowly remembering the day, five months ago. His uniform lay in the same spot, his mother wore the same clothing. Even the smell of sausages his mother made that morning was the same.
It was an impossible situation.
He was dead.
He was sure.
There was no way he could have dreamed the past five months. He was positive they happened, but he was equally as sure he had died that December night.
December 15th.
That was the day he felt the life leave his body.
"Mom?" He said again.
"Sumin Moon. Get ready now." She stood firm
"What's going on? I started school already. I did this all before." He stammered, confused and frustrated.
"Are you sick?" She felt his forehead, "No. Did you have a dream? It's your first day. You need to get ready."
"But-"
"No buts. You start a new school today, and you are going to be late."
His mother rushed him out the door, the same as she had before.
He walked the familiar road with his head down in thought. It was silent aside from the bustling of cars beside him. Piecing it together wasn't easy.
He couldn't find an explanation.
He couldn't find a reason.
He couldn't even remember how he ended up on the road that night.
*Wam*
"I'm sorry," Sumin said as he stumbled backwards. As he looked up, he saw a boy in his school's uniform. He knew him, of course. Andy Park, Class 3 B. Andy was popular, a sweet and gentle person, but Sumin didn't know him well. They had never talked, not
even once.
"I'm sorry too," Andy said as he also looked up, "Oh? You go to Hanin?"
"Yeah, of course I do," Sumin replied.
"Oh, I see."
He continued walking, leaving Andy confused behind him.
It didn't matter. He had no interest in being friends with Andy anyway. He already had friends. Well, he did.
When Sumin arrived at the school, every person he saw, he knew very well, yet their eyes judged him, the new kid, even the people he called friends.
None of them came up to him with their usual greetings. They were strangers again.
He greeted his class. Their empty stares greeted him back.
"I hope we can be friends." He said
There was a twinge of sadness knowing the memories he shared with them were gone, lost in, well, whatever was happening.
Taking his familiar seat in the back of the room, he looked to his left. His best friend, Hwiyoung, looked at the board intently. He had to laugh.
It was too odd to see him paying attention. Usually, he was dozing off or messing around, but whatever he was doing, he never, ever paid attention.
"Sumin, what's funny?"
Seriously, the first minute and he was already being scolded.
"Nothing, sorry."
His classmates giggled.
Mr.Choi was always annoyed with him. Whether he deserved it or was actually trying to pay attention, he always got scolded. His classmates knew every time the teacher paused, it was because either of the two was getting yelled at.
But now they both sat idly in the droning classroom.
When the bell rang to signal lunch, he looked over to Hwiyoung again.
Should he say something or let it go?
Of course, he should let it happen naturally.
Besides, Sumin remembered something about his first day five months ago; an art student painting a mural knocked down a paint bucket, splashing Hwiyoung. It was the one thing that started their friendship. There was no doubt his best friend would come back to him.
Ding dong ding
The bell rang loudly.
Sumin got up, alone, trying to recreate what he did that day five months ago as best as he could. He spoke to nobody, waiting for the moment Hwiyoung walked down the hallway with blue smeared over his usually neat uniform.
Then it came.
He heard the collective gasps as students left their classrooms to go home. The sound of liquid splashing to the ground could be heard down the hallway. People started to giggle, but Sumin only rushed forward towards the commotion.
"Do you need help?" The new student asked.
Hwiyoung looked up, not knowing what to say but he nodded.
That's where it began again.
Just like before, the two stood in the school bathroom frantically wiping away paint. They quickly bonded.
What's your favorite subject?
What do you like in a friend?
Where are you from?
Questions like that flew through the air with giggles.
It felt warm.
Of course, Hwiyoung was his best friend both in the past and present. There was no doubt in his mind that Hwiyoung would still be his friend, even in old age. At least he hoped.
That's what he wanted more than anything. But for now, they had to start from the beginning.
"Why did you help me?" Hwiyoung asked as the two walked out of the school. Sumin didn't have the slightest clue how to respond.
'I've been your friend for five months,' surely would scare him away.
"I hate seeing people being laughed at," He stammered. It was true at least; in his old school, he would always stand up for those being bullied. It wasn't in his nature to stand around and let someone be ridiculed like a circus animal.
"It's fine. They all like me, it was just a funny situation. Did you see the way it splattered my face?" Hwiyoung laughed brightly, thinking about it.
Of course, Sumin saw the way the blue paint splattered his best friend's face. Even when he was blue, there wasn't a single flaw.
They walked for a while, both heading in the same direction home. Hwiyoung lived the block over from him, so they always walked back together. It was one of the reasons they got so close so quick. When they finally split, it was back to figuring out what the hell was going on.