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∆×∆×∆×∆×∆

❝Fly over the sea
Spread our wings of dreams
The weight of happiness
Can't be measured by anyone
No need to rush, you're doing fine
Just stay as you are
My journey starts with me.❞

-Seungkwan-

∆×∆×∆×∆×∆

Time passed by so quickly no one knew how things happened the way they did.

It's already been over five years.

From the day Eunbyul was gone, no one could contact her. However, they were no longer worried about her, as she had written them a letter of her apologies and explanations, they all went back to Korea with heavy hearts, only hoping for her to find happiness and peace where ever she was at.

Her letter wasn't long neither was it short, still, it had all the answers.

Her brother, Hajoon, though alive, has never been found. But Eunbyul didn't care, all she wanted to hear was that he's still breathing and happy. And she heard just that from Hajoon himself.

The woman who found her outside the mansion was Eunbyul's mother. Her father passed away due to gang violence and her mother wanted her to have all the riches her father left behind as her apologies, while the woman herself went missing, not wanting to her Eunbyul's refusal of the huge property she left her with.

Of course, Eunbyul wanted nothing with that money, she reported the police, did all she could, and was offered to keep some of the money. All of which she had done was with the help of her aunt, Lee Yaeun.

That was all she explained in her letter. She asked for forgiveness for her sudden decision of not wanting to return home with them and wished them success.

And success did come to them.

The 13 boys debuted under the name Seventeen, a name they made themselves with some ideas from the other girls. Their debut wasn't long after they returned to Korea.

On the flip side, the girls didn't get the chance to debut.

Hyerim became a vocal trainer at Pledis. Mihae opened her own coffee shop. Yeonha was a composer and lyricist at SM entertainment. As for Hana, she was a dance instructor and choreographer at 1Million Dance Studio.

Out of four of them, only two were dating: Mihae and Hana.

For Mihae, well, everyone expected her and Mingyu to date someday and they did. Hana and Chan, whose stage name was now Dino, were dating, and none of them expected that to happen to the "Tom and Jerry" pair.

Hyerim and Seungcheol remained "more than friends but not yet lovers". Wonwoo and Yeonha, on the other hand, were happy at where they were, continuously flirting with each other and annoying the hell out of the rest for not dating already.

The girls couldn't contact Eunbyul. One time they had a vacation, they went all the way to Auntie Yae's house, only to hear she moved and what's left was an old abandoned mansion. And so, they couldn't even see Eunbyul.

And, some broken hearts were healed, only some did. Joshua and Soonyoung somehow managed to get over Eunbyul and continued to love her as a dear friend. However, Jihoon never did...

His solo song, "What kind of future", was dedicated to Eunbyul. He just couldn't let her go.

He felt upset, disappointed, even angry, but at the same time, he wished her happiness, he wanted to let her go and let her do what she needed to.

Every day, guilt builds up inside him. He hates that he can't let her go, he hates that he won't stop loving her.

ווווו×

"One more time from the chorus please," Jihoon said to Mingyu who was in the recording booth.

Mingyu did just that and soon their recording session was done.

"Let's see... Only 3 songs left, not bad," Jihoon stretched after he flipped through his notes.

"Hyung, you sure you're not overworking yourself?" Mingyu took a long look at Jihoon's tired eyes and hunched back and asked, concerned for him.

"Nah, I'm fine," the typical lie was said. By then, Mingyu knew he wasn't fine, but knowing how stubborn he is, all Mingyu could do was to get him some snacks to munch on and soon left.

Jihoon was definitely overworking himself again. Having been through two all-nighters, Jihoon's tired to the bone. His eyes sometimes lost focus but he still forces himself to finish work.

"If she were here, she'd make me stop and take a walk with her," once again, his mind wanders to the thought of Eunbyul with a small chuckle leaving his lips.

"Indeed Jihoon, she would," Hyerim suddenly stepped in the room.

"Oh hey... You... heard me?"

"Sorry, I was at the door," Hyerim said apologetically, shrugging lightly and sitting on the sofa in Jihoon's studio, "I was going to give you the paperwork from the company."

Jihoon didn't spare one glance at the paper, then sighed heavily, "When will they understand that I won't work with that producer named Estelle?!"

"May I ask why you'd rather not working with them?" Hyerim frowned at the workaholic.

"Don't you already know?" Jihoon sighed, turning away.

"I do," Hyerim shrugged standing up, "You promised yourself to not work with any female producers other than Eunbyul, right?"

He said nothing, rather, he started reading his lyrics again.

Hyerim shook her head lightly, "Eunbyul's not going to be happy when she hears you're refusing every opportunities because of her."

"As if you can tell her."

He was right, she couldn't.

"But you should try working with them," Hyerim picked up the papers, "It says here they wrote many successful songs, 'Psycho' by RedVelvet, 'Chase me' by Dreamcatcher, 'Crossroad' by GFriend, and even 'Bye bye my blue' by Baek Yerin, didn't you just cover that song and posted it for your fans? Also, they have a really wide variety of styles when writing music, isn't that just your style too?"

"Your point?"

"The boys and Bumzu don't know this, do they? If they knew you were invited by them to collaborate on the next project, they'd for sure tell you to take the chance!" Hyerim was trying to persuade him, "And besides, don't you want to be more well-known? For yourself and for Seventeen as well?"

For his group's sate, he agreed, "Though, I'm not sure how well things will go."

"I'm sure it'll be spectacular. That's what Eunbyul always tell me whenever you made a new song," Hyerim smiled, and soon bid farewell to him.

In his heart, he hoped he wouldn't regret it as he went to talk to the company.

ווווו×

"Isn't this exciting? You're gonna work with a really great producer! You two might be an outstanding duo!" Chan beamed excitedly.

"And she's coming here? Today?" Joshua questioned, a bit surprised.

Jihoon nodded, "Her management team called me this morning and told me she'd come over at 3 instead of tomorrow because she had unexpected plans."

"At 3? In 20 minutes?" Jeonghan looked at the clock, also quite confused.

"Why does she want us to all be here though?" Mingyu asked, re-reading the email the producer sent.

"We'll find out the reason later, I guess," Minghao shrugged, then pointed at the door, smiling a little, "Look, the girls are here."

The four girls walked in, still chatting with each other about the puppy they saw on the way to Jihoon's studio, all of them being joyful and happy.

"Oh wow, Mingyu dyed his hair red?" Yeonha pointed out, teasing Mihae.

Mihae smiled, "I recommended that color, who knew it'd fit him so well!"

Before long, there was a call for Jihoon. His phone rang, the anonymous number appeared on the screen.

"Hello?" He answered, putting it on speaker.

"Hello, excuse me but I am on my way to your studio," the soft and somewhat familiar replied, "Is everyone there as I asked?"

"Um, yes," Jihoon furrowed his brows, thinking about her nostalgic voice, "Would you want me to come down and bring you here?"

"No, it's alright, please give me a minute, I'm on my way." And she hung up, before anyone could ask any questions.

Hyerim placed her finger under her chin, "Please tell me I'm not the only one who finds her voice incredibly familiar."

"I know, it's on the tip of my tongue! I just can't seem to recognise it!" Vernon exclaimed, frustrated as everyone else in the room.

Yeonha shrugged, "I swear that voice... it sounded just like Eun..."

Before Yeonha could finish what she was about to say, there was a knock on the door. Everyone anxiously waited as Jihoon came to open it.

And there she was.

All eyes were on her, shocked and surprised.

It was as if she wasn't real and everyone was hallucinating. Those that were sitting or laying down on the couch immediately stood up subconsciously.

Her smile was still the same, her face, her figure, only her hair was lightly curled and dyed a beautiful shade of blue. As she scanned the room, looking at everyone, she couldn't stop her tears from escaping her eyes.

Jihoon froze at the spot, he'd never expected to see her again, especially on that day. He never thought of the chance of Estelle being the one he yearned for so long.

"I-Is... Is it really you, Eunbyul...?" Seungcheol stuttered, and was the only one brave enough to speak up.

"Who else would I be?" She said with tears rolling down, "It's me, Lee Eunbyul."

It was then that the girls started breaking down in tears, running up to her and showering her with hugs and love.

As for the boys, some smiled in relief, some couldn't hold back their tears either, some still in disbelief and was astonished.

And Jihoon, he couldn't find the courage to even look at her.

"I THOUGHT YOU'D NEVER SEE US AGAIN!" Yeonha sobbed, grabbing Eunbyul by her shirt, as if she was about to beat her up.

"Why did you leave us for so long?!" Mihae broke down, completely unable to control her own limbs.

"I'm sorry..." was the only thing Eunbyul could mutter.

Hyerim and Hana couldn't even talk at this point.

"I swear I thought that I was daydreaming when you walked through that door," Chan gently hugged her.

"We all did! I even starting thinking about my sleeping schedule!" Jun exclaimed, hugging her tightly.

They all exchanged hugs, Eunbyul couldn't be happier to finally be able to hug and talk to them after all this time.

After all the tears were dried and they've all calmed down, Eunbyul was told to sit on the couch.

"Wow this is really comfortable!" She exclaimed cutely without realizing.

Hyerim smiled at her like a mother, "You're still the same, aren't you?"

"And you and Seungcheol are still being too shy, aren't you?"

Eunbyul's reply was shocking. Having left for 5 years without contacting anyone, how did she know about their relationship? Everyone wondered. Well, almost everyone...

"How did you...?" Seungcheol was in awe and couldn't even form the right words.

"You really thought I'd leave you forever and would never give a damn of what you do, huh?" Eunbyul giggled, "If you're wondering how I knew about how Mingyu confessed to Mihae after a concert, Chan and Hana first date was at the Han river, Hyerim and Seungcheol's relationship, and Wonwoo and Yeonha's flirtatious behaviours, Seventeen outstanding work process and everyone's activities," She smiled and looked at someone in particular, "a little birdy told me everything."

Soon, all eyes followed Eunbyul's and shock was all over their faces.

"Surprise?" Hana smiled, walking towards Eunbyul.

"Thanks for being my spy for 5 years," Eunbyul held Hana's hand tightly, "I'll treat you whenever you want."

Yeonha protested, "Let me get this straight... You've been contacting her the whole time and never said anything about it?" They all anxiously looked at the two girls.

"Sorry, she wouldn't let me tell you..." Hana looked apologetic like a child getting ready to be punished.

Jihoon, who was only listening, spoke up in the middle of silence, "Why...? You could've asked us directly. You could've just contacted us and we wouldn't have to worry about you so much!"

Eunbyul for the first time looked in Jihoon's eyes. They were sad and glistening, she knew he wanted to cry but tried so hard hiding his feelings.

"I couldn't," she then furtherly explained, "That Hwang Jiwoo threatened to sell out Auntie Yae by stealling her billion-dollar project and make her lose everything if we didn't do what he asked. And unfortunately, his lawyer was too convincing, we had to live under-pressure for over one year. That's why we sold the mansion. We tried to run away from him to not let him find out where we were. So I couldn't let you guys contact me, or you'll get envoled."

"You said one year, right? Then why did you disappear for another 4 years? And why was Hana the only one able to reach out to you?" Jihoon continued, his tears threatening to come out.

"It was a coincidence. She works at a dance studio, right?" Eunbyul gave him a reassuring smile, "That studio had a branch near my house in America and she happened to come there for a few days."

"Oh right! She did went to America for a week a few years ago!" Chan suddenly remembered.

"I met her on the way home. She was wailing so loudly that day," Eunbyul stopped to tease Hana for a second, "And I gave her my secret Twitter account and we kept in touch."

She stopped for a moment and soon continued, "I couldn't use my old accounts, Jiwoo could find us. To be even more sure, I changed my phone and my name. From Eunbyul to Hanbyul, and from Esther to Estelle."

Everyone exclaimed in understanding.

"So you're name is Hanbyul now?" Hyerim smiled a little, unfamiliar with her new name.

"By the law, yes. But you can all call me Eunbyul, I'm much more comfortable with 'Eunbyul', actually," she giggled as everyone agreed that they found her new name somewhat unfamiliar as well.

Jihoon, on the other hand, sat in silence. He couldn't blame her, yet he blamed himself for being so unhelpful and only added fuel to fire.

Before he could mutter his apologies, Eunbyul soon rushed to his side and gave him the warmest hug she could offer.

"I'm sorry, I know I should've said something before disappearing for so long like that... I hope you'll forgive me..." She whispered, loud enough for him and the rest to hear.

Jihoon broke down at this point, he shook his head in return and cried. It was unusual for him to cry in front of everyone, but it wasn't awkward. Rather, everyone was more than happy to see him finally showing how he feels instead of bottling up all his emotions like the past 5 years.

"I was so eager to meet you. But everything wasn't done until last week. For 2 years, I wrote songs and made my own brand out of them and took the name 'Estelle' as my pen-name. When I was finally free from Jiwoo, I almost immediately contacted Pledis to have a chance to meet and work with you again," Eunbyul said with tears, "You don't know how happy I was when you accepted! My manager even saw me crying while jumping on the couch."

Everyone silently laughed at her cuteness, still sad and somehow happy for the two of them to finally see each other again. They all knew how the two loved each other.

Jihoon calmed down after a while and replied with a smile, "I'm glad I accepted it," as he looked at Hyerim with gratitude.

"Now, how about we celebrate?! A trip to the boy's dorm?" Yeonha grinned.

"Let's go!!!"

ווווו×

"Hana didn't tell you that, did she?"

Laughter was in every corner of the dorm.

"Who knew you actually own 23 billion! I thought it was a joke for Carats!" Eunbyul couldn't stop laughing at Mingyu's reaction. He was standing on a stool, posing like Superman, face filled with pride before bursting out laughing.

Yes, they were all drunk. Too drunk.

On their way here, they bought countless bottles of soju, wine and beer. Even the cashier was concerned over the amount they bought.

Soonyoung and Jun were just a shot away from passing out. Hana was laying in Chan's lap giggling for the past 5 minutes at the ceiling, while the boy was poking her cheek and smiling like an idiot. Seungcheol's face was just red, redder than Jeonghan's wine spill on the white carpet. Hyerim and Yeonha were laying on the floor, having a staring competition. Seungkwan kept bickering at Vernon, who was wearing his socks on his hands, using them as puppets and talking to them. Minghao and Wonwoo started talking about astrology even though they knew nothing about it. Joshua was laying on the sofa with cheese in his hand for no reason. And Seokmin passed out in the bathroom but everyone was too lazy to go get him.

Chaotic was the perfect word to describe them.

Jihoon and Eunbyul, on the other hand, were drunk too, but still remained enough consciousness to notice it was almost 4.

"We should probably go to bed now, our manager is gonna spray us with cold water tomorrow if we don't wake up in time," Jihoon chuckled, "I'll go get Seokmin."

Seungcheol somehow managed to get some consciousness and stood up, "Go into your rooms. Girls, feel free to sleep anywhere you want, even if you have to kick the guys out of their rooms."

Hyerim, who had at least 10 bottles of God-knows-what, found the courage to stand up and cling to Seungcheol's arm, "I want to sleep with you!"

Eunbyul almost choked on her food when she heard.

Seungcheol naively smiled, "Let's go cuddle~"

Wonwoo rolled his eyes, "Guess I'm not staying in the same room with him tonight, then."

"Then sleep with me hereee," Yeonha smiled and successfully dragged him on to the floor with her.

Mihae and Mingyu pulled each other into his room as well. Although, they passed out as soon as they reached his bed.

"Oh gosh, they are all too bold," Eunbyul smiled to herself.

Everyone eventually went to their rooms. Eunbyul fetched some blankets and pillows for Yeonha and Wonwoo, placing them in place for the sleeping couple.

Jihoon returned, eyes droopy with two cups of lemonade in hands, "Drink this, it'll help with tomorrow's hangover."

"Thanks," Eunbyul smiled at the cup and the two went to the balcony.

Jihoon sighed, "I guess I can't sleep in me and Mingyu's room today," after a pause, he then asked, concerned, "you tired?"

"Surprisingly, no. I'm just... overjoyed that I get to see them again," she grinned, turning to Jihoon, "to see you again."

His attention was soon caught on her neck, "You... still keep that necklace?"

It was Jihoon's present on her birthday 5 years ago, the one shaped like a star, or a compass.

"No matter how far I am from you, this necklace will remind me that you'll be there for me, and when i lost my way, it'll lead me back home," Eunbyul smiled, fingers holding the jewelry, looking at him, "and you were right, it did lead me home. Here. With you, the boys, and of course, my girls."

His heart was beating uncontrollably. He gathered all his courage, gently held her hand, and looked in her eyes, "I'm just grateful you're still healthy and happy like this."

"You know," she smiled, turning her body towards him, "I'm still waiting for you."

Jihoon smiled, shrugging lightly, "Thought I was the only one."

The moon shined above the two, as if it was smiling at them.

That night, they shared their first kiss.

That night, they became official.

That night, those who they thought were asleep were crying happy tears as they all secretly witnessed from the bushes in the balcony.

•••

Something tells me, this isn't the ending for them. For Seventeen, for the girls, and for the new couple.

Yet, it was a new beginning.

A happier and less angsty story awaits them in the future.

In the end, it's a happy ending. Their happy ending.

- THE END -

•~•~•~•~•~•~•

•~•~•~•~•~•~•

a/n: what can i say... oh wow what a journey haha

it all started with a simple idea on the way home from school by a 14 year old girl and two years later here we are

rereading this was such an experience for me. it was like i was re-tracing my footsteps and learning things about myself that i never knew about.

i can't even express how grateful i am for such a small individual like me would receive love from so many. and please do remember I LOVE YOU GUYS TOO I CAN'T EXPRESS THAT ENOUGH! (*＾3＾)/～♡

today, august 7th 2020, one day before seungcheol's birthday, i introduce to you, the last chapter of "M U T E".

once again, thank you all for sticking to the end.

AND, (if I'm lucky enough lol) i will try to write some special additional chapters to this book.

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH! (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*.✧

-self-promoting time-

i hope you'll check this book out too 👉👈 i translated it to english from one of my vietnamese books. hope you'll like it as well ( ꈍᴗꈍ)