Soompi Fanfix Spotlight: Week 3

Hey Soompiers! Going into our 3rd week of the fan fiction marathon we already have 70+ stories submitted by writers. Readers have also been busy submitting pictures that reminded them of their favorite story, casting ideal faces for their favorite fic characters as well as submitting their favorite quotes through our official soompi fanfix tumblr If any of these activities sound appealing to you, visit our submission threads for more information~ Everyone is welcome to participate even if you’re not already on a team! Reader’s Submission Thread and Writer’s Submission Thread (Help us reach the goal of 500 stories by the end of this summer!)

Welcome to the Underworld by Con.template submitted by eggball (Team 2)

Paper Airplanes by anika submitted by paradicez (Team 1)

Wedding Losers by winterstar92 submitted by xX_Cipa_Xx (Team 3)

Here are 3 one-shots chosen by the moderators to be featured this week, if you want a chance to be featured in the next spotlight, join us in the writer’s thread :).

Username: angelfightrJ
Team Number: Team 2
Submission: Picture 15

I tapped my cigarette, watching as brilliant orange embers jumped off the balcony. They fell slowly, ashy ballerinas performing clumsy, descending pirouettes in the late afternoon sky. The sweltering August heat in Tokyo was at a record high, and most people were indoors, sprawling in front of the AC and sucking on fruity ice pops. They were luxuries anybody these days could afford, but unfortunately, I wasn’t with “anybody.” I was with Kosuke. His only weapon to fight the biggest heat wave of the summer was a tired old fan that noisily tat-tat-tatted, and the sad truth was that this was about as effective as waving around a skinny sapling branch in front of an army of ten million with guns in tow. After fiddling with the buttons and realizing with dismay that “High” was as weak as the feeble breath of a sickly infant, we decided to give up and brought out cold beers to relax on the small balcony instead.

We sat side by side, shoulders bumping and legs dangling over the edge, as we tried to make a game out of peeking into the lives of others around us, but gave up soon enough. Curtains hung over most windows and the street remained empty even as half an hour dragged by. Eventually, Kosuke unstuck his sweaty thigh from mine and retreated to a corner with his dogeared, yellowed novel, and I stood up and leaned against the wooden ledge with my Mild Sevens and dark lapis lighter in hand. I examined the bleached walls and rust-stained rooftop of a building several streets away for a few never ending minutes. A lull settled over us, heavy and warm as the thick air, and at that very moment, it felt as though time had stopped. We were the only two living creatures in an unchanging world, and I was reluctant to break the spell. But I did, my words slicing through the murky, soupy air.

“I think I’m going to quit.”

Kosuke flipped a page, not bothering to look up. “Then do it.”

I closed my eyes and stretched my arms in front of me like a lazy cat, hoping for a breeze to come by. None came. “I mean it this time. Atsu-chan said she’d be fine handling the store without me anyway. She told me to go ahead.”

“You probably won’t be able to afford your expensive hobby for a while then. Maybe I should thank her for saying that.”

How annoying.

“I only do it once in a while. Just when I feel like having a smoke. I’m not addicted.”

Kosuke sighed, pinching the area between his eyes as he closed them. He set the book aside. “I hate those things. I just wish you’d stop completely.” 

“Yeah…maybe one day,” I replied vaguely. “Anyway, listen. I think I’m going to play with Yoji and his band.”

He opened his eyes, staring at me incredulously.

“What?” I asked flatly, blowing out a wispy cloud of smoke. “I’ve been thinking about it lately and I decided I wanted to give it a try.”

“Give what a try? You’ve never performed before unless you count that one time in kindergarten where you ran off the stage in the middle of our winter recital.”

I rolled my eyes. “That was because I felt sick.”

“Yeah, because you were so nervous,” he retorted.

“Well, that was a long time ago. We’re in high school.”

“And this is the most important time in our lives right now.”

I turned around, my long black hair almost hitting me in the face as I did so. “Kosuke, we’re not even in our 20s yet. You can’t be serious when you say this is the most important time in our lives.”

“I said right now,” he replied patiently, his calm, serious brown eyes steadily returning my burning gaze. “We’re supposed to be thinking about college. Do you even know what you want to do yet?”

“Graduate, go to Todai, graduate, get into a prestigious law firm, graduate – just kidding, I mean get promoted – retire, die.” 

“Ruri.”

His sensible short hair was messy today and I wanted to point it out, but I swallowed my words. Snapping at him would be petty, and he would just press his lips firmly into a chastising frown and stare at me unblinkingly until I felt dumb and immature enough to say sorry. But most people felt dumb and immature just standing next to Sugihara Kosuke anyway. 

He was the class president after all, and people always liked to say that he’d go on to be the Prime Minister one day. They weren’t joking. It wouldn’t be a surprise if it happened. It was easy then, to see why it wasn’t particularly unusual to feel small next to serious, intelligent, responsible Kosuke. The difference between other people and me, however, was that I always felt guilty afterwards as he had a real talent of making me feel guilty in a way no one else could. But best friends are like that, I suppose. 

“Ruri,” he repeated softly. “We’re almost done. Now’s not the time to mess up.”

“I’m not going to mess things up. It’s just a way for me to relieve stress, that’s all. Don’t worry about it.”

“Okay, but still. You’re acting a bit different lately.” He made a point to stare at the pack of Mild Sevens resting next to my elbow. “I don’t know what’s got into you, but ever since you started talking to Yoji-”

“I haven’t changed. You’re just being stupid,” I snapped. 

He furrowed his eyebrows. “If you keep on changing,” he said, his voice dropping, “I’m afraid I’m not going to know you anymore.”

I rested my arms against the railing, my back to the city. “You know, people always talk about changing themselves, becoming different, becoming better, becoming cooler, but we’re too comfortable with where we are in life to do anything too drastic. Trust me, Ko-chan.” I gave him a soft smile. “I’ll always be Ruri. But I want to have a chance at least…to be able to become a better me before it’s too late.”

He stayed quiet for a while, bowing his head as if searching for an answer in the small grooves of the planked ground. “I think you’re fine as you are, to be honest.” He sighed and lifted his head before giving me a quirky, unfamiliar smile. “But do what you will. Just don’t change too much, okay?”

His reply was unsettling. I had expected a stern lecture; instead, Kosuke surprised me with a strange expression. The corners of his lips were upturned, but a dusting of melancholy coated his eyes. A distant part of my soul resonated with his sadness, humming and aching as it pushed the retort I had prepared back down my throat. He stood only a few feet away, but when I answered, it felt as though I was calling to him from a distance, an ocean between us, its waves pushing us apart.

I was drifting away, an island starting to separate from the mainland. 

It was a dizzying revelation, and my breath hitched as I attempted to gather my bearings. My eyes traveled down to the ink black crown tattooed on the inside of my right middle finger. It had been a promise to myself, but now it was for Kosuke as well. It was a reminder to be the best I could be.

“I promise,” I said gently, letting go of my cigarette. It dropped to the street below, its collision with concrete too small to reach our ears. I sought his hand and he met me halfway, curling his fingers around mine.

I promise I won’t leave you behind.

Username: Kallen_Langely
Team Number: Team 1
Submission: Easy (Sincere Version) – B2ST

**Please do not distribute, reproduce, or plagiarize. Thank you!**

A Beautiful World

“I’m going out!” Yang Yoseob happily declared, pulling on a jacket and slipping his shoes over his feet. Without waiting for a response, he quickly left the apartment and noisily shut the door behind him. In the kitchen, Yoseob’s two roommates were sitting at the dining table, poking at their breakfast. After glancing at the calendar on the refrigerator that indicated it was June 25, 2011, Hyunseung turned to his soggy cereal and asked aloud,

“It’s that day, huh?”

Doojoon took a bite of his toast before quietly replying,

“It’s always that day.”

*    *    *    *

In another apartment complex twenty minutes away from his own, Yoseob skipped up the stairs, humming an arbitrary tune to himself. Once he reached the fourth floor, he strode down the hallway to apartment D16 and knocked on the door lightly. Soon after, the door opened and there appeared a girl around Yoseob’s age with bright, smiling eyes. Playfully, she asked politely,

“Can I help you?”

Yoseob laughed and played along, replying in a professional tone, “Yes, I’m here to see Park Miteum.”

“For what reason?” Miteum inquired, tilting her head slightly. Yoseob straightened his posture, but the grin never left his face as he answered,

“To go on a date!”

After his response, the two laughed, and the hallway rang with sound. Miteum then walked out of her apartment, closing and locking the door, then looped an arm through Yoseob’s, exclaiming, “Let’s go then!”

Ten minutes later, the couple found themselves walking through the streets of Seoul. Spotting a café, Yoseob looked at Miteum and asked if she wanted to eat there, and after a moment of thought, she nodded. Inside the café, they went to the counter to place their orders. After scanning the menu above them, Yoseob turned to Miteum and asked,

“What would you like?”

Miteum tapped her bottom lip as she tried to decide what she wanted. The worker at the counter curiously looked at Yoseob, hesitantly asking, “Sir..?”

Yoseob glanced at the worker, gave him a small smile, and replied with a short, “Just a moment.” He looked back to Miteum and asked if she had made a choice, and she nodded, answering that she wanted the strawberry shortcake. After relaying the order to the worker, Yoseob paid and got the dish; then he walked with Miteum to find a place to sit. They decided to sit at a table by the window, since Miteum enjoyed the mellow sunlight that only radiated as such in the afternoon. Yoseob picked up a piece of the cake with his fork and held it in front of Miteum’s face and cooed, “Say ‘ah!'”

Miteum shyly glanced around and whispered, “Yoseob, people are looking…”

Yoseob spotted two high school girls looking at them, talking to each other in hushed voices and covering their mouths. Pouting, Yoseob turned back to Miteum and asked dejectedly, “What? I can’t feed my girlfriend in public? Is that too much to ask for?”

His said girlfriend kept avoiding eye contact, but Yoseob only persisted in trying to feed her. Finally, after about five minutes, Miteum gave in to her boyfriend’s aegyo and let Yoseob do as he pleased. Happily feeding her, Yoseob noticed that more and more people began to stare at them–but he didn’t mind. They could envy the close relationship they shared all they wanted–Yoseob didn’t care. Once the cake was finished, the couple left the café and continued strolling down the sidewalk. All the while, Yoseob chatted with Miteum, and sometimes he would burst out in laughter at his own jokes. Passerby gave them odd looks and whispered to each other, but Yoseob still didn’t care–he just loved being with his girlfriend. They walked all the way to the Hankang River and onto the bridge over it. Holding Miteum’s hand, Yoseob stopped and turned to lean against the railing, gazing up at the sky.

“It’s beautiful,” he murmured under his breath, and out of the corner of his eye, he could see Miteum nod in agreement. The two stayed that way for a while, just admiring the many hues of orange and pink that adorned the sky around the setting sun. Street lamps flickered on, shining their pale yellow light on the sidewalks, and cicadas started buzzing and humming. A slight breeze passed by, rustling the thin branches of tall trees around the river and creating sharp ripples in the water below.

After a while, Yoseob whispered, still looking up at the sky, “It’s so beautiful. I wonder why so many people jump off this bridge.”

Glancing at her boyfriend, Miteum gazed down at the rushing water beneath them and answered, “They probably jump because, after seeing such beauty around them, they realize how ugly their own life is. But once they jump, they realize too late that they, too, can make their world just as beautiful.”

Through his peripheral vision, Yoseob noticed a bouquet of rotting flowers by the riverside, tilted his head in curiosity, and asked Miteum, “Hey, do you see that over there?”

“Yeah. What about it?”

“Wanna go check it out?”

“Sure,” Miteum replied, and Yoseob led her off the bridge and down to the path beside the river. Cautiously, they approached the bouquet and realized that there was a short stone structure behind it. Stopping a couple feet away from it, Yoseob asked, “What do you think it is?”

“Looks like a memorial,” Miteum shortly answered.

Letting go of Miteum’s hand, Yoseob went closer to the bouquet and realized that the stone structure was a tombstone. He turned around and was going to tell Miteum that she was right, but she wasn’t there. Frantically looking around, Yoseob searched for a sign of her and called out her name numerous times, but Miteum was nowhere to be found. He kept spinning around in every direction, hoping he’d catch even a glimpse of his girlfriend, but it was all in vain. His throat stinging from all the yelling, Yoseob felt tears forming in his eyes, and his head started to throb in pain. Losing his balance, Yoseob fell to his knees and held his head tightly, trying to releive the pain. He shut his eyes, and the world turned completely dark. All he could feel were the tears that slowly fell down his cheeks; all he could hear was the rushing water of the river in front of him. For a fleeting moment, Yoseob thought he heard Miteum’s voice and opened his eyes. But once he did so, he saw in front of him the memorial and the rotting flowers. He read the words engraved on the stone, but it only brought more tears.

Park Miteum
1990-2007
May she forever rest in peace.

Username: Yui.
Team Number: Team 1
Submission: Park Yoochun- 너를 위한 빈자리

Note: I had to write something for this song, and it has to have Yoochun as the main, and this is SuYin! <3 Quote about the meaning of Saranghae credited here.

If it isn’t love, then that’s good…

Park Yoochun watched Jang Ri In appear before him in a wedding dress. She walked towards his direction, but then turned to Yoochun’s right. She gave the man beside Yoochun a kiss on the cheek before greeting Yoochun in front of her. The man beamed at the beautiful woman in front of him.

Yoochun nodded at the couple, acknowledging Kim Junsu to take care of her. He was sure that she would end up being happier with Junsu than to be with him. Yoochun smiled at the two as they took their places to take wedding photos.

He is the best man.

Kim Junsu is his best friend.

Jang Ri In is going to be Kim Junsu’s wife.

Yoochun remembered the first time he met Ri In was when Junsu introduced the two of them. He could clearly remember how Junsu was telling Ri In how important he was—Yoochun had to be the best man for them. Yoocun couldn’t help, but to smile and agree as Junsu wishes. However, after spending a day with Ri In on wedding preparations he couldn’t help, but to feel slightly strange around her.

He noticed he was beginning to notice the curves around her body and those lips that looked so lusciously plump. He felt hunger and thirst when he saw her, wanting to wrap his arms around her and kiss her. However, he knew that he could not do that. It might be a feeling that would soon past by, he thought.

Sometimes, he couldn’t help, but to notice Ri In being so close to him when they would be talking. One time, they were discussing over the location of where the wedding to take place and when the timing for who to arrive when—he found her body angled towards him and her elbow touching his elbow. Not only that, sometimes she would give Yoochun a pat or place her hands on top of his when she spoke.

Could it have been Yoochun’s imagination of even thinking or believing that maybe she liked him for once?

Yoochun’s heart fluttered when he thought he saw Ri In looked his direction as they were posing for the last wedding photo. He felt guiltier about his feelings, knowing that his best friend Kim Junsun knew nothing of his innocent crush.

Tomorrow, she’s going to be someone else’s woman.

“Yoochun ah,” she said to him. “Do you know what saranghae means?”

“I love you?”

“If you take it literally, sa means to die, rang means together, and hae means to do something. It really means let’s die together, or live together until we die.”

“So you’re going to live until you die with Junsu, right?”

“Yes.”