[COMPLETED] That Autumn | Wonwoo (short-story)

二

When I was in 3rd grade of junior high school, my left eye lost its vision. Meanwhile, the vision in my right eye deteriorated further. Nerve damage caused me to lose my sight. Since then, I've faced difficulties. In the same year, my parents divorced, leaving me to live with my sick father. My younger sibling stayed with my mother. I struggled in school, but I didn't want to burden my father. I sank deeper into despair. My self-confidence plummeted, and nobody wanted to be around me because I was deemed dumb and labeled as a mute child who couldn't speak up or have my own opinion. From then on, I chose to stay silent. They didn't know me, and vice versa.

No one ever saw me, no one cared. I just stayed silent alone in my small, and suffocating world.

But when times were tough, it's like I was thrown a lifeline. That's when Wonwoo entered my life.

In the fall, specifically in October. Everything started from this season, and this season became my favorite, the one I always eagerly awaited every year.

Time keeps passing by, I've lost count of how many times the seasons have changed. Lost count of how many hundreds of days since Wonwoo was there on my side. Since that day, my gaze was solely fixed on him. He pulled me out from the depths of despair. If that autumn hadn't arrived, would I have reached this point today?

"Do you see that?" Wonwoo pointed to a large tree. All its leaves had turned orange and reddish-brown. It seemed like the leaves would fall soon. I could only see their colors, the details weren't very clear, but Wonwoo was beside me to describe them.

We were on Nami Island. We had planned this trip for several months now. It was my first time visiting this place. As he said, it truly was beautiful.

"On that branch, there's a squirrel. It seems like it's hiding behind those leaves. Is it shy?" I grinned widely upon hearing that. "You're always full of surprises," I said. He chuckled in response.

"Are you not tired of explaining everything to me?" I asked.

"Tired of what? I want you to see the same things I do. It's not fun if I'm the only one seeing them," he expressed. I nodded in agreement.

"Then, what do you see now?" I asked.

"Now?"

"Yes, is there a raccoon or something similar?" I chuckled.

He smiled.

"I see... someone with a sweet smile next to me."

Those words made me feel a bit bashful, and I gently tapped Wonwoo's right arm, which was holding my left hand tightly. "What do you mean by that?"

"Sehee..."

"Yes?"

"Keep smiling like that. I won't forgive anything that makes you shed tears of sadness," he said firmly.

I gazed at him, feeling on the verge of tears. He was the one who rescued me. I couldn't fathom how someone like Wonwoo could appear just when I was shouting into the deafening silence. Did he hear it?

I allowed myself to sink into his embrace. No matter how cold the world around me was, with him, warmth truly enveloped my entire being.

Every autumn brings a new story to unfold by itself. I remember when we visited Haneul Park last autumn. We went to the park in the morning and captured many photos there—of the scenery, the flowers, and of us. I also recall the evening when we missed the last bus. We just laughed it off and decided to take a taxi. And every autumn, we've attended numerous festivals together, from art exhibitions to music performances. In every story, Wonwoo has always been the protagonist. He completes me, and he says that I complete his days too. Remembering all of this, I feel like crying again. But this time, it's tears of happiness igniting a flame within me.