[no recommended song for this one but i suggest to just go with something slow and calming; some of jeongguk's covers would do]

And Forever, It Will Be You

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"a part of my soul
loved you from the
very start
what if we were from
the same stars?"

┗━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━┛

it is a bright summer's day. he can see the golden sand, with the sapphire sky set behind it. he see his friends in the distance, beckoning at him. he smiles and takes in a gush of fresh, warm air.

why isn't he dead yet? the dead don't wake up so easily, right? and yet, it feels like he had just woken up from a very long sleep. he didn't feel hot or cold, happy nor sad.

nevertheless, the world is quiet and he feels peaceful, as if a great weight has been relieved from his shoulders. somewhere in the distance, a bird sings a bright melody.

he remembers the ups and downs he's been with these guys. brothers, yet all not of the same flesh and blood. he would go around the world with these guys, hearing the birds there that sounded exactly the same. the would exhaust themselves, cry together, laugh together.

but it was so beautiful.

whenever they were tired, they would lay down together, all cuddled up in his room while telling each other about their day. and by the start of the night, jeongguk has always felt loved and cared for.

"—gguki, come on buddy, hang on for us plea—"

they were inseparable. he smiles even wider when he remembers standing on the stage with the people who loves him surrounding him, shouting his name, wrapping him in their comfort.

he misses the feeling of having that certain kind of adrenaline washing through his veins. he misses the way his body would move to the rhythm of the beat, as if it had a mind and soul of its own.

"—make way, move!—"

he misses standing by his friends' side, seeing them look to him and say "you did well".

"—SOMEONE CALL A MEDIC!—"

but those memories are getting dimmer and dimmer with every passing second, and he can almost, almost, hear the pounding of his heart in his ears. blinding light flashed before his eyes, and in a second his brothers are gone, and he isn't standing on a beach anymore.

voices are ringing in his head, fading in and out as if his mind is struggling to decipher the words spoken. then, as if the haze in his mind has began to clear out, the words slowly become clearer. he can hear his voice, echoing in a large room. then he's hearing cheers and shouts of his name coming from a crowd.

he doesn't realise when he had closed his eyes, but when he opens them again, jeongguk finds himself standing back on the billboard stage in america, holding the award in his hands with eyes all glued to him. they're giving him wide smiles. some clapping, some cheering.

he couldn't deny that it was one of the happiest moments of his life; getting recognised for what he loved to do, being showered with unending love, and showering them equally back.

just before he can register more to the scene, he takes a blink, and all of a sudden he's standing in the middle of an empty park. he glances around him, seeing no other soul in sight, and for a moment it seems like the world had ended and he is the last man standing. it's awfully silent, too silent for him to get comfortable.

that is when he sees her. haru, standing in front of him with a smile on her face. her glassy eyes pierce into his. they seem to say "i'm glad you're here"

jeongguk reaches a hand out to reach for her, to feel her, to hold her. but instead, he feels his soul begin to fade away when she shakes her head slowly, the smile not disappearing from her face.

that prompts jeongguk to move, to step closer to her. but his feet are stuck to the ground, rebelling against his instructions. he feels helpless and useless. as if what he wanted was right there but he couldn't even do anything to take it.

haru's lips part to say something, it repeats in his head like a mantra after. "not now"

not now? jeongguk wants to scream, to cry, to curse at the universe for everything that has happened to him now. there is a knot in his throat, threatening to tighten if he attempts to mutter even a word.

completely, helpless.

and then the world goes dark.

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"you are the cause of my
euphoria"

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when he can finally see again, he is greeted by warm light blazing on his skin. he feels the grass beneath his feet, and he tries to move them. unlike before, his feet are obedient, and by natural instinct, he looks up and around to see if he is still alone.

for a split second, he thinks he is. all he can see is the green grass and a large tree standing in the middle of the large field. the bright blue skies are filled with clouds.

reality downs on him; he's dying.

this must be heaven, jeongguk thinks. but then he hesitates. no way, i don't think i would've made it to heaven. i've made too many mistakes.

suddenly, he sees a figure cloaked in black from head to toe in a distance. his face is conceiled under his hood, and he has no shadow. he's holding a large sharp tool in his hand. it takes jeongguk not a second more to realise who he is.

death.

jeongguk clears his throat awkwardly, finding it way too inappropriate to be comfortable after coming in contact with a grim reaper.

"i guess, you're going to decide my fate?" as soon as the words leave his lips, he begins to regret them. how does this kind of thing even work?

"you shouldn't move so much," a voice beams in his head, calm and cool. "i'm afraid that your soul is a bit unstable, it's going to worsen your condition."

a thousand questions begin to flood into jeongguk's mind while he glanced at death in confusion. "what's going on? why am i not dead yet?"

death comes closer, his head lowered as his hands caressed his scythe. jeongguk is almost tempted to move back, just a little bit of fear creeping into his system as death stops in front of him. but he forces himself to be brave and hold his ground. after all, this being in front of him has his fate at the end of his fingertips.

"you should be dead," death replies. "but you're not. i am intrigued since you're the first one to end up here after you are supposed to have already died. you should either be directed to heaven or to hell, but instead you are here."

jeongguk wets his lips, taking another proper look at his surroundings. "and where exactly is... here?"

"somewhere between life and death, earth and the afterlife," death says nonchalantly. "i have to admit that i am a bit impressed. your body is gone, but your soul is still roaming freely. i don't often get souls that are this unwilling to leave yet. you are resisting me."

jeongguk swallows, his thoughts running around in circles. "how is that even possible? i thought you were the one in charge of this."

unexpectedly, death lets out a low chuckle. "human nature is fascinating. i can never understand," he turns around and tilts his head back up towards the skies, as if in deep thought. "does love really conquer all?"

jeongguk thinks that it's the end of the conversation, because for a long time, death stays silent in the same position. he's tempted to say something again, but stops himself when death finally speaks up.

"since there is nothing i can do with you now, i am offering you a proposal."

jeongguk blinks. "what proposal?"

"a second chance with her in another life."

the boy freezes, and all of a sudden he can feel his blood rushing through his veins. please, he thinks. i have to see her again.

"but there is a catch," death continues. "your soul isn't willing to go anywhere else but here. which means that in order to move on to another life, you're going to have to wait here."

"for how long?"

"just until she passes. but even then, i cannot be sure that she will be reborned right away. the light at the end of the path for you is very dim."

jeongguk considers his options. of course, there is nothing else that he could ever hold on to. if this chance was given to him, he wouldn't lose it for the world.

death chuckles, as if trying to provoke him. "so tell me, jeon jeongguk. does love really conquer all?"

he doesn't spare a second to waste. "i would suffer a hundred years and a thousand more if that's what it takes."

for a single life, waiting so long would mean torture on his part. but he would wait with anxiousness in his heart, with hope, with dreams, with thoughts of better days to come.

"very well then," death nods. "i wish you luck."

jeongguk convinces himself that he doesn't need it.

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"i believe that
your soul
and my soul
are very good old friends."

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"jeongguk."

the voice is soft at first. jeongguk turns in his bed, trying to find where he could be most comfortable. the voice seems to fade in and out as he falls deeper into sleep. just as he starts to go deeper into his sleep, he jumps again.

"it's me, haru. you have to wake up, jeongguk. please wake up."

"hello?" jeongguk shoots up, his eyes glancing around the empty room. nobody is around him, nor is there anybody in the room next to him. he is alone in his room, lights off. he looked to the left, out his window and looks around the fire escape of his penthouse. nobody is there either. it's pouring rain outside, he can see it.

he rubs his forehead and groans inwardly. he's been recalling the same dreams over and over for so many nights. and every time, he can't help but think that everything about it is so familiar.

her voice. her name.

but he never sees her face.

creeped out, but still tired, jeongguk lies back down again, his eyes drifting close in a slow and meticulous way. the lights around him are still dim from his tv flickering in the distance. he realises that he'd fallen asleep while working on some paperworks the night before. idiot, he thinks to himself.

years ago he would've thought that being a CEO is easy game; looks like he's regretting his life choices now.

however, he couldn't say that he made a mistake. his family went from living in the slums to tall country mansions not long after he began his own business in downtown seoul.

he remembers how hard life was as a kid. his parents would get beat up by gangsters in the alleyways just because they looked old and ragged. there were almost treated like pests then. they couldn't afford food sometimes, and it was always jeongguk's job to sneak behind a few hawkers stalls to steal barbequed meat or leftovers. he couldn't even attend a proper school because of several debts.

but for some reason, something kept through it. as if there was a calling. he didn't quite understand it, but it was there and he felt it.

he checks the clock on his nightstand. 9.52 AM and it's raining cats and dogs. he stands to get himself ready for a day at work when his phone lights up with a loud ting! and he's greeted by dozens of his friends wishing him happy birthdays.

right. he's turning 30 today. he smiles to himself, chucking his phone onto the bed before taking a quick bath and throwing on his regular working suit.

he's a 30 year old and something is still missing. he just hopes that the empty feeling in his heart would be able to be stuffed in the meantime.

and also, he could use some coffee.

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"and at last fate
like an overtried mother
who is sick of giving
gently hints to
unheeding children
brought down her hand
heavily upon them."

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the room is only starting to fill with the aroma of roasting coffee when i am flipping over the sign on the door-- "we're OPEN!"

i yawn quite a bit loudly as i stretch my arms wide; i had already spent a good 30 minutes mopping the floor and setting down the wooden chairs in the tiny café, which wasn't exactly ideal considering i only had a few hours of sleep and may or may not be recovering from a hangover. well, it wasn't my fault that my friends decided to take me to a beef place to have soju for my 28th birthday. i'm totally regretting the whole idea now.

behind the counter yawns an equally sleepless park jimin, his almond hair mussed up and sticking in all directions. "i regret everything," the older boy complains, dropping his head onto the counter.

"we could've gotten part-time work at a bar or a pub and meet pretty girls and sleep in on wednesday mornings – but nooo," he continues, waving his hand above his head. "my baby sister liiiikes the smell of coffee in the morning."

i grin at him against the spew of comments. he's always been one to whine, even at the littlest of things. i know this from 28 years of experience of living under the same roof with him.

"ah, quit it," i say, grabbing an apron from inside the counter and tying it around my waist. "at least this job pays for the drinks you keep buying for the girls at the bar."

"hey—"

"ah, again with this talk," a third person steps into view from the backroom.

"seokjin hyung," jimin nodded as a sign of greeting. "you're looking absolutely fascinating today. despite the weather."

"are you looking for a bonus? because you're not getting one, your sister is," the manager shuts him down with a smile. "it's raining so we'll be expecting more customers today," he says before walking off with a wave of a hand.

"oh, come on—" jimin starts to argue and trails behind seokjin as they migrate to the other side of the tiny cafe.

the bells above the door start to chime just as i'm done preparing the counter. i look up, plastering the brightest smile i can on my face. somehow, i'm always happiest when the first customer of the day steps into the cafe. it's like a sense of accomplishment.

and today, the first customer is a man dressed in a proper outfit, as if he's part of a huge business. i tilt my head to the side, catching a glimpse of a yellow porsche parked right in front of the cafe under the pouring rain. part of the man's dark locks are wet from the rain and he's pulling off his jacket with a frown on his face.

there's something familiar that catches my atttention. and it doesn't hit me until his eyes meet mine. they're gleaming, shining back at me like the stars in the night sky.

suddenly, i'm the daughter of a top company man who ran away from home after an engagement.

suddenly, i'm running through a forest out of a old house with jeongguk by my side. suddenly, i'm meeting his family for the first time.

suddenly, i'm holding him close in my arms as he whispers words of comfort and love in my ears, breathing his last.

suddenly, i remember all of jeongguk's promises, and when i meet his eyes again for the first time in exactly one-hundred and twenty five years, i know that jeongguk remembers it too.

he doesn't have to say it out loud for me to hear it. found you.

i smile warmly in response.

[here you go, your awaited alternate ending! i sincerely apologise if it didn't fit your expectations or what you had in mind. i always liked the concept of past and future lives and i thought that it would be really nice to add a little of it in here.

and for those who have made it this far, i love you all so much! we've come to the ending of almost home and it's been a long journey and worthwhile journey with all of you!

almost home ended officially with over 8k and i couldn't have written this until the end without you.]