21:45.

roma allowed a deep, yet delicate breath to exhale from her lips.

her skin felt worn and warm, sun-kissed by the radiance of the day and the heat of the humid air. lips stuttered as she felt the cool wind seep in through her limited layers of clothing. the sun had disappeared, leaving behind a few single traces of golden hues in the ebony sky.

it wasn't late; at least, not by her standards. in contrast to most nights, she felt particularly awake, piercing, darkened eyes having adjusted to the dim atmosphere of the evening.

senses aware, although relaxed to mirror the eased aura of the downtown area, her reposed attitude allowing her to appear un-phased by anything or anyone, simply enjoying the sensation of the wind fluttering her eyelashes and whispering past her pale skin.

her whole and calm being revelled in the previous but not forgotten memories of the night; laughter, happiness, joy. all these feelings she'd momentarily forgotten, her spirits elevated by the warmth of the climate and the exuberance of the people around her.

despite the lack of proper light, roma found her way in between the winding streets easily. the exposure of her bare skin felt chilled, all of a sudden, resulting in the quiver of her lip and the chattering of her teeth.

almost, as soon as she'd turned the corner, the warmth dissipated. roma sighed, slumping her body, recoiling in on herself. dusk had descended fully. the street lamps flickered, single spots of floodlight illuminating the ancient stones of the pavement on which she was treading carefully. distantly, the sound of laughter and foreign shouting reached her, encasing her in a surreal setting.

her headed direction appeared vague, and the momentary dimming of the lights proved it a difficult task to locate exactly where she was, but she recognised a few of the corner shops and tattered apartment buildings, her mind becoming acquainted with the whereabouts of her flat.

silence emanated as she stepped into the emptiness of the small, caged town square. unmoving, the church tower loomed up above. the spire looked as if it was touching the sky, the stars, pin-pointing a significant mark amidst the deep teal of outer space. footsteps echoed around the immobile scene before her, and she felt a shiver up her spine, a fleeting outburst of fright overcoming her senses.

but she breathed:

exhaling soft and deep breaths to calm any tense emotions within her.

you're fine, she told herself. breathe. just breathe.

anyway, a few minutes and she'd be home. the thought hurried her steps slightly.

she focused solely on calming her heartbeat; on calming the rapid breaths leaving her throat in quickened inhalations. roma was set on going home, having a shower to relieve her body from the heat of the day. the moon appeared pleasant and placid in the night sky, and provided a serene backdrop to the evening.

turning the corner, suddenly, her pulse quickened at the sight of an unfamiliar body lying, reposed, against the side of the pavement. she glanced sideways, both ways, checking her surroundings to see if anyone else was around.

breaths gasped from her mouth as she attempted to steady her heavy and shallow breathing. roma was frightened, but forced herself forward, nonetheless.

as she approached the body, she noted that they--rather, he--was breathing. he was alive. having assessed the severity of the situation, she calmed slightly, staring at the stars to offer herself a form of condolence.

roma bent down, analysing the boy.

locks of dark, brown hair masked the full characteristics of his face, although she ascertained that his eyes were shut tightly. one hand was resting across his chest, the defined features of his body somehow visible through his thin t-shirt. his seemingly lifeless body adorned a leather jacket, and his chest heaved up, down, up, down, slowing in its pace.

moments ago, she was tense, scared, unsure of how to handle a confrontation such as this. now, though, she felt relaxed, almost. bravely, she reached her own hand out to trace delicate fingers against the pulse in his neck, confirming that he was alive.

"hey," she whispered, tapping and shaking at him in attempt to wake his sleeping figure.

removing the strands of hair obscuring his forehead, she observed in awe as the moon shone an irradiant glow upon his profile, illuminating the numerous scrapes and scars littered upon his cheeks and around his crescent-shaped eyes. the prominence of his jaw and cheek-bones was more than stunning.

"hey, wake up," she muttered stupidly, shaking him more vigorously this time, voice louder and holding a sense of urgency. worry overwhelmed her, as he continued to remain motionless, heavily breathing through his nose.

the figure stirred somewhat; moving his head to the side, ever-so-slightly, and groaning under his breath. she stepped back, allowing room for this unknown person to wake themselves. laden murmuring and whispering erupted from within the boy as his eyes flicked open momentarily; as his arm reached upwards to rest over his forehead.

a groan escaped from his chapped lips.

instantly, he shot up, his breathing increasing within seconds, his chest rising upwards at an uneven pace. piercing, darkened eyes shot open, discerning the nearby buildings and surroundings. fright took over his features.

he yelped at the sight of her, shuffling backwards on his elbows, scuffing himself on the stoned pavement. rushed movements illustrated his fear of the situation.

"hey, woah. slow down," roma attempted, raising her hands.

the boy ceased his movements, although the depth of his sharp breathing continued as his eyes locked gaze with her own confused orbs.

silence, aside from her heart echoing in her ears.

"hey, um," she began, pausing to crouch down to his level, "sorry, i just thought you needed help or something."

she felt stupid, muttering her dumb comment, but it was late and she suddenly felt tired, and she wasn't sure what else to say to him. he looked at a loss for words, even though his eyes still indicated fright.

his chest calmed; his breathing evened.

the boy looked down at his hands. she noted how pale his skin was, how elegant the length of his fingers were. she also noticed how his limbs shook, but she couldn't tell whether the action was out of an unusual cold or out of trepidation.

he turned his hands both ways, deeply analysing every crease in his palms and every vein running a blue streak against his skin.

"i'm sorry," she repeated, void of emotion. curiosity clouded her speech.

eye contact singed her own. the darkness softened, and she almost felt like she saw something flash over the glassy surface, like a lightning streak juxtaposing the black pupil.

"help me up," was all he managed, voice shaking.

complying with his order, without thinking, she offered out her own hands, gasping at the contact of his skin to hers. the skin was warm: soft and fragile.

once he was standing, she felt overwhelmed by his visible height over her, and she observed his stance. the boy's dark brown hair was pushed backwards as he looked around him, seemingly puzzled by a certain aspect of the current ghost town.

"ah, fuck."

his voice was deep, resonating from within his throat. heart fluttering, she gulped down the arising lump. every element of his countenance seemed surreal, his skin practically glowing against the noir hue of the latter part of the evening.

"are you okay?" she asked.

yet another stupid question.

a pause from him, signalling his thought process.

"i thought that--" he started, voice flailing and trembling. "i, um, thought that--"

the pale-skinned boy stopped, scratching his head deep in thought, circling the area around him.

"did something happen?" roma spoke hesitantly, aware of his confused state, his emotion mirroring her own perplexed misunderstanding of what was going on.

the boy released the gasp he'd seemingly been holding in, shoulders slumping, tension emancipating from his being. features softened. his stance relaxed and he now appeared more interested in roma, looking her up and down.

"no. i don't think so, anyway," he replied, running his hand through his hair again. "at least, i'm not sure."

roma took this complex and obscure answer as it came, not over-analysing it too much. somehow, she got this underlying feeling that it wasn't appropriate to ask. or that, maybe, the boy didn't have a complete answer.

"i'm baekhyun," he introduced himself. a pale hand protruded from within the pocket of his leather jacket, aiming towards her. she met his with her own, surprised, once again, at the warmth resonating from him.

"i'm roma," she responded, feeling her nerves kicking in.

whoever he was--baekhyun--he was stunning. roma proved removing her sight from his entirety to be a difficult task. she focused on the strange aura of the situation, thinking about how weird this whole thing was.

who was he?

she needed to speak.

"do you live near here or something?"

"kind of."

another vague and unanswerable response.

roma fidgeted, shifting her weight from one foot to another. he was now staring at her, boring a searing hole into her vision. she had this strange urge to feel his skin again; feel every seam of heated contact.

she shook her head of thoughts.

"do you?"

his question took her off-guard. perhaps, she thought, it wasn't the cleverest of ideas to tell an unknown person where you live. in fact, she knew it wasn't.

"yeah, i, erm, just live down the road, actually," she replied quietly.

another pause. she took note of how less-aware he seemed now, a visible sheen of exhaustion clouding over his beautiful eyes. they shone; matching the pale sliver of moon hanging amidst the clouds.

"so," she started, "as long as you're okay now, i guess--i guess i'll head home."

roma gestured down the alleyway adjoining the cobbled street, indicating her apartment. she was tired, now. the alcohol from earlier reeled in her head, overwhelming her mind slightly. 

he'd been looking straight at her; analysing the way her mouth moved as she enunciated, and the way her lips trembled from the cold and from the tingle of fear.

"oh, okay," he replied, prolonging the short phrase.

smiling faintly in farewell, she swivelled and stepped forward, beginning to make her way home and to forget the strange event that had just occurred.

her head hurt.

a few seconds passed, and then she heard a resounding thud. one of the street lamps had switched off, somehow.

turning, she saw the boy sprawled on the pavement, heavily breathing once again, arms out of in front of him against the cool stones.

"what the--are you okay?" she frantically asked, rushing to him in order to help him up.

sparks from the diminished lamp landed on the floor, the bright orange specks dancing along the cobbles, contrasting to the now completely dark vicinity.

both of their heavy breaths could be heard.

"what just happened?"

roma was scared and confused and really tired and she didn't know whether this was a dream or whether this boy was real.

baekhyun looked like he had something to say, but that similar expression of exhaustion had flooded his features, and he looked just as nonplussed as roma felt.

what made her say this, she didn't know. maybe it was because he'd born those mesmerising eyes of his into her own, or the fact that he looked so helpless and lost, or that the numerous wounds inflicted upon him looked painful and she was sorry. but her mouth opened and she spoke.

she sighed.

"come with me," she beckoned, grabbing onto his hand.

a milli-second of hesitation.

he complied without question, and followed roma into the night.

//