Butterflies

Characters: Yurim, Yoochun, Jaejoong

Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance, Drama
Word Count: 4,529 words

She was busily admiring the butterflies – their multicoloured delicate

wings fluttering as they soar over the bed of the fragrant flowers, they
were flying so carelessly, momentarily stopping onto every flower bud, a
moment to enjoy its vibrancy; when she felt a pair of strong arms
encircling her small waist.

“Yurim-ah” A gentle voice called unto her.

“Hmm?”

“Do you like it?”

“Yes, thank you” She turned around and hugged him tightly.

“Thank you oppa”

“Glad you like it. I love you babe” He flashed a smile before stealing a kiss
from her lips, and instantly ran away to avoid her wild beating.

“Yah! Jaejoong oppa~ What was that for?” She yelled then ran after him.

They were such a perfect couple to many, but for themselves, they were
just madly in love with each other. Staring unto each other, their eyes
filled with love as if it’s only the two of them in the world. They were living
the time of their lives being in each other’s presence, neither wanting to
let go. Both of them were wishing if they could only stay like this forever,
fingers intertwined while walking in the vast field of flowers with the
butterflies surrounding them.

They were now lying comfortably at the hammock, enjoying the breeze.
Yurim was slightly cold, but the warmth of Jaejoong’s body being pressed
unto her was enough to make both of them warm, not feeling the cold
gushes of wind and only the warmth they give off to each other.

Yurim was slowly nodding off to sleep when she heard a soft humming
from Jaejoong. His voice was so gentle and heavenly. Enjoying his soothing
voice, Yurim snuggled closer to his chest and heard his heartbeat,
drumming in tune with his soft humming. His words became clearer and
she knew the song:

“Don’t Cry My Lover – Dong Bang Shin Ki”

My love, don’t cry. I don’t know if I should take you away with me.
You still hold on to so many memories.
I close my eyes for a moment, I still love you so.

I should give up, but I can’t let you go.

You taught me how to love. Now, how can I forget you?

Unknown to her, tears were falling silently from Jaejoong’s sad eyes.
Hearing him not continuing the song due to his sobbing, Yurim
immediately looked up at him and saw the tears that seem to continuously
stream down his cheeks.

“Why are you crying oppa?” Yurim worriedly asked while wiping away his
tears.

Jaejoong sat upright and held her hand.

“Promise me you’ll not cry” He gently squeezed her hand.

Yurim was trembling. For some reason, she was afraid, afraid that what
he’ll say will be something big and will greatly affect their relationship.

“Oppa, you’re scaring me” Her fingers were shaking as a cold mass of
wind just blew past them. She felt the shivering breeze and his touch was
now not enough to make her warm.

“Babe, just promise me you’ll accept what I’ll say” Jaejoong gently
squeezed her hand harder and placed an arm around her shoulders,
rubbing his hands on her bare arms to give her some warmth in the cold
night.

She was confused, at the same time scared, scared on what he was about
to say. Still puzzled over his words, she weakly nodded.

He sighed and took a deep breathe,

“I’m leaving”

It has been six months since Jaejoong left. During those times, Yurim was
extremely depressed; she was feeling the emptiness without him. She
would cry herself to sleep remembering the happy moments they would
spend together. She would cry whenever little things would bring her
flashbacks of their blissful memories. She was lonely, she became
vulnerable, and she was broken.

She did not bother to ask him where he would go, for whatever reason it
may be, he still left her, and she doesn’t know when he’ll come back. She
also did not bother to keep her promise to him. She had shed a lot of
tears, moreover, she had not accepted the fact that Jaejoong left her.
For those six months, Yurim tried hard to forget him. She worked hard to
keep her mind off of Jaejoong, but she did not fail to still go to the vast
field with all the butterflies, a place that she first saw because of him. She
would have the feeling of nostalgia, she would be sad reminiscing their
memories, but somehow, the place brings back her happiness, as if there
was still hope that he will be back and she will be with him again, no
matter how little that chance may be. But she badly needed help; she was
tormented, like shattered pieces of a fragile porcelain.

Yurim decided to take a stroll again at the butterfly field. She took the
time to acknowledge its beauty; it was indeed a majestic place. There
were a good number of varieties of flowers, displaying many vibrant
colours and a few different textures, each kind presenting its own charm.
It was spring, so all the flowers were on its full bloom, no wonder there are
many butterflies playing at the beautiful pasture.

Yurim never had the moment to appreciate the glorious landscape. It was
all memories of her and Jaejoong leisurely walking around the place with
their hands interlocked. She was thinking about him again, no matter how
hard she try, she still can’t seem to erase all memories of him.

Before she knew it, she was crying again in the middle of the field. The
butterflies even appear that they felt her depressed feeling; they stopped
fluttering around and rested their tired wings. She was sobbing hard when
she sensed a shadow over her. She looked up with her teary eyes to be
greeted by a charming smile.

“Are you okay?” His voice was so gentle and sounded very worried.

Yurim nodded silently as she wiped her tears, not wanting the stranger to
get into her business.

She looked up again to see a hand being offered unto her. She
questioningly faced him, he smiled.

“I’ll help you up” He explained.

She hesitantly took it and stood up. Still holding her hand, the stranger
introduced himself.

“My name is Park Yoochun” He gently shook her hand.

Wondering if she should introduce herself, she slowly replied,

“Kang Yurim” She whispered before hurrying to get out of the place. She
was running away from the guy when she heard him yell at her,

“I meant what I said, I’ll help you up!”

She smirked to herself, no one could help her.

Yurim woke up as she felt the rays of the sun carefully dancing on her skin
and giving her warmth. It was morning, another new day. Today was the
day she settled everything for herself to move on, to let go of everything
about Jaejoong. She has to do this, she was now determined. And for the
last time, she decided to roam around the butterfly meadow.

Heading there, tears were continuously flowing down her cheeks. It would
be hard to let go of him, all those memories, those times they spent
together, their special moments, but she has to do this. This is for the
good, she needed the growth and she needed to move on, even though it
may take some time, she will do it.

Reaching the beautiful pasture, Yurim sat on one corner and admired the
beauty of the place. She was still crying when she saw a fluttering vibrant
coloured butterfly being showed unto her. She looked up and saw the
figure of the stranger yesterday.

“Yoochun” She whispered.

Yoochun smiled and took the seat next to her. His back was comfortably
resting on the trunk of the tree with the butterfly still playing on his finger.

“Glad you remembered my name. Are you okay?”

She wiped her tears and weakly nodded.

“You want to talk about it?” Yoochun asked carefully.

She gave it a thought but eventually shook her head.

“Okay then, I’ll be the one to talk” He started.

“I just moved in yesterday. I was strolling around to familiarize myself with

the place when I happen to see you here crying. And just now, I saw you
crying again. If you want, I could help you”

His voice was so gentle and his words give her the feeling that she could
just trust him, but she shook that feeling away and laughed,

“I don’t need anyone’s help. I could do this on my own” Yurim coldly

replied and took her leave. She was running away from Yoochun again,
when all he wanted was to help her.

While running, her tears seem to be blocking the view and she
accidentally tripped. She cried harder as she examined her scraped knee,
there was so much pain, but no pain could be compared to the pain in her
heart.

Yoochun came towards her still crying figure.

“And I thought you said you didn’t need anyone’s help” He gently
reminded and stepped closer to see her distressed face.
“I don’t” She said coldly and tried to stand up but failed. Her scraped knee
was apparently bringing her discomfort that she failed to stand.

“Your wound is bleeding hard, it needs to be medicated” Then with his

strong arms supporting her back and underneath her knees, he carefully
lifted her up.

He carried her bridal style and continued walking. Surprised, Yurim

continued her protests to be placed down; she was wildly kicking her legs
and winced in pain as she felt the sharp pain on her knees. Yoochun
gripped harder onto her.

“Just stay still, I know you don’t want your wound to worsen” Yurim sighed
then reluctantly encircled her arms around his neck and kept her silence.

The sun was shining brightly and she noticed that it was nearing lunch
time. He took her to his house and gently placed her on the sofa.

“I’ll go get the medicine box” Yoochun hurriedly left to find the first aid kit.

Yurim grabbed the chance to take a glance at his place. There were boxes
in every corner of the house, and there were still a lot of things to be
organized. Even the sofa she was sitting at was still covered in a white
cloth.

Yoochun came back and softly looked at her bruise.

“It’s good that it won’t leave a scar” He commented then proceeded in

cleaning her bruise. Yurim cringed in pain as Yoochun was applying the
medication. He gently blew on it to lessen the discomfort she was feeling.
Finished, he carefully placed a bandage on her knee.

“Done” Yoochun announced then smiled.

While he was returning the medicine kit to a random box, Yurim meekly
whispered a ‘thanks’. She was somewhat embarrassed that she acted
coldly towards him.

Yoochun came back and offered her for lunch.

“No thanks, I better get going anyways” She replied and stood up to take
her leave. She was limping on her way to the door when Yoochun blocked
her way.

“I insist” He smiled and looked at her hopefully.

Realizing that all he wanted was just good intentions and that she was not
able to thank him properly yet, she eventually agreed. Yoochun grinned
triumphantly.

“Stay here, I’ll prepare kimbap” Yoochun then headed to the kitchen and
prepared the needed ingredients. She limped back to the sofa and sighed.
Having a new friend might help her move on, she thought.
“Food’s ready!” Yoochun announced from the kitchen.

Yurim made her way to the table and took the seat in front of him. She
looked at what Yoochun prepared, and saw the delectable pieces of
kimbap. Yoochun gently placed a piece on her plate as she grabbed a pair
of chopsticks before she cautiously took a bite. Yoochun looked up at her
expectantly as he waited for her judgement.

Tasting the kimbap, she was wowed. It was tasty and delicious. He
definitely knows how to prepare the food. Playing more with the taste, she
was unknowingly crying to herself. It tasted like Jaejoong’s kimbap!
Yoochun saw her tears and was panicking inside.

“Why? Is there something wrong with the kimbap?” He worriedly asked

her as he saw her tears that were streaming down.

Yurim was now crying hard as he recalled all about Jaejoong again. Just
when she decided to move on, she just had to remember him. Why can’t
she just seem to forget Jaejoong?

She was continuously sobbing when Yoochun came towards her and
hugged her. He was comfortingly patting her back and let her continue
crying.

“I’m sorry” Yoochun apologized and was now stroking her hair. She shook
her head.

“It’s not your fault” She meekly whispered.

“Don’t worry. I’m here for you” He gently whispered unto her.

Hearing his comforting words, Yurim just sobbed harder. She hugged onto
him tightly as if she was holding him for her dear life. She decided to just
let it all out. She was extremely depressed and was glad that Yoochun was
simply there, patting her back and keeps on telling her that he was just
there.

Calming down, Yurim broke the hug and wiped away her tears.

“Thank you” She weakly said as she was still wiping her wet cheeks.

“You’re welcome. And don’t worry, I’ll be here for you” Yoochun smiled.

“How sure am I that you’re really be there for me?” She looked up at him.

He thought hard before going into his room. She questioningly followed
him.

Yoochun faced her and showed her a big jar. Inside the jar was a cocoon, a
cocoon that was clearly showing a butterfly that was threatening to come
out soon. He smiled at her.
“I don’t even know how long I’ll be here for you. But one thing’s for sure,
I’ll be here for you until in this cocoon come out a beautiful butterfly. It
may be a short time, but I assure you that I’ll make that time valuable”
Yoochun explained.

Yurim smiled at his sincerity, she was very much thankful for his presence
and care. Before she knew it, she limped her way to him and hugged him,
chanting a thousand thank you-s.

It was three weeks then after Yoochun promised the he’ll be there for
Yurim. Up to now, he still kept his promise, and she could never be more
thankful. Everyone can see the huge change in her. Yurim came back to
her old self, if not, much better. She was smiling more and laughing more.
She became friendly again, and it was all thanks to Yoochun.

“Yurim-ah! Come, let’s go to the butterfly field” Yoochun invited her.

She stopped on her tracks, the butterfly meadow. She couldn’t, it would
only bring back her memories of Jaejoong. She was slowly moving on and
did not want anything related to him anymore. She just couldn’t let herself
feel the pain again.

But Yoochun was persistent; he kept on pushing her until they eventually
reached the place. Yoochun wowed at the view, there were more even
more butterflies today. He took a glance at Yurim and saw the tears in her
eyes that were nearing to fall. He panicked and quickly walked towards
her. Seeing Yoochun with his caring eyes, Yurim can’t take it anymore,
and she cried on his shoulder. He was shocked but he let her be, and
stroked her hair soothingly.

Calming down, Yoochun pulled her to the tree where they first met and let
her head lie on his lap. She gently closed her eyes to somehow relieve
some stress from her crying. Yoochun kept quiet and was now playing with
her hair, waiting for her to speak up.

“You know he was the first one to show me this place?” Yurim started as
Yoochun just nodded silently, letting her continue.

“We were so much in love, and he just left me like that” She achingly
laughed.

“I felt foolish; maybe I was just the one who was truly in love in our
relationship” She sighed as another set of tears flow down from her eyes.

“He was my first love, and my first heartbreak” Yurim finished. She took a
deep breathe and sat up straight, wiping away her tears. She smiled at
Yoochun.

“Thanks for listening. It means a lot to me” He nodded and then abruptly
stood up. She was surprised, but he came back with a butterfly on his
fingers. He smiled at her and gently placed it on her nose; she was
shocked but didn’t dare move as the butterfly’s wings were mesmerizing
her.

“You are now a butterfly” Yoochun smiled before pulling out the butterfly
from her face and gently letting it fly away. She was questioned and
doesn’t know what he meant, but just laughed it off as she saw Yoochun
trying hard to keep off the butterflies. He ran away with all the butterflies
following him closely. It was a funny sight.

They sighed together and tiredly sat on the sofa for they were now
finished designing Yoochun’s house. They just finished storing the boxes
and the house definitely looks like a house now. It was extremely was big
and it took a lot of time and effort to finish all the organizing. Exhausted,
Yurim went to get some drinks from the kitchen when she saw the jar with
the cocoon. It was moving.

She quickly placed it in front of Yoochun and they both watched the
butterfly struggling to get out. It was obvious that the butterfly was having
a hard time to escape the tight covering. After a few minutes of struggling,
the butterfly eventually came out and they gasped at its beauty. It was
colourful and its new wings were so vibrant and looked so delicate.

Yurim awed at its beauty but instantly grimaced. Yoochun saw her frown
and tilted her head to face him. She looked away.

“Why? What’s wrong?” Yoochun softly asked her.

“There come out the butterfly, you’ll leave me soon” Her eyes are now
flooded with tears. Yoochun softened and hugged her, she then cried on
his shoulder.

“I won’t leave you. I already promised myself to be with you… forever”

Yoochun broke the hug and wiped her tears carefully. She looked up at
him and stared at his eyes. Looking at him, Yurim saw his sincerity and
she felt assured that what he said was genuine, Yoochun smiled at her. His
smile instantly guaranteed Yurim that he would truly be with her; Yoochun
gained her trust and is never going to fail it.

“Thank you!!” Yurim exclaimed and buried herself onto his warm embrace.
She could never be more thankful to him; no words could express how
much gratitude she owed Yoochun.

“I love you” Yoochun whispered and kissed her forehead. Yurim smiled
upon feeling his kiss, and smiled wider as she heard those words from
him.

“I love you too, thank you” She looked up at him and Yoochun smiled. He
inched a little closer and they shared a sweet kiss.

They were in Yoochun’s car while he was driving to the airport. Yurim
noticed his anxiousness as he was continuously tapping his finger on the
steering wheel. She held his hand and gently massaged it, Yoochun
instantly calmed down as she was making circular motions with her thumb
over the back of his palm. For a year that they had been together, Yurim
already knew how to calm down.

“Relax” She gently reminded then smiled at him.

At the airport

Yurim was merely looking around the airport when she felt her hand that
was intertwined with Yoochun’s lost grasp. He saw him running towards a
man.

“Hyung! I miss you so much!” Yoochun exclaimed before hugging tightly

his hyung. He took his luggage and went back to Yurim, who still has her
eyes roaming around the airport.

“Yurim-ah, meet my hyung” She smiled before taking a look at Yoochun’s

good friend whom he regard as his brother. Her smile was turned into a
shocked expression. It was Jaejoong!

Jaejoong also saw her and was shocked, but immediately smiled as
Yoochun pulled him into his car. Yurim was walking slowly and her head
hung low as she just processed what she saw. Yoochun’s hyung and good
friend was Jaejoong, how could she handle this? She predicted that things
would be awkward with Jaejoong around.

Yoochun must have sensed that she was not following closely so he
walked towards her then held her waist and continued walking. Jaejoong
saw all of this and he felt a pang of jealousy hit him, so yes, he was still in
love with her.

They were in the car with Yoochun driving, Yurim sat on the passenger
seat, and Jaejoong was at the backseat. Yurim was lost in her thoughts
and was blankly looking outside the window. Yoochun kept on blabbering
to Jaejoong on how much he had missed him and the plans he had
prepared for all of them.

Yoochun took a glance at Yurim and saw her spacing out. He reached for
her hand and gently kissed it.

“We’ll be there soon, take a nap first” She nodded and arranged her seat.
Yoochun did not let go of her hand and continued driving. Before closing
her eyes, Yurim caught Jaejoong’s sad eyes looking at her through the
mirror, they exchanged glances, and Jaejoong first looked away.

They reached the house and Yoochun still have not felt the awkward
atmosphere between Yurim and Jaejoong. He kept on entertaining
Jaejoong by giving him a tour of the house, proudly declaring that Yurim
had helped him. Unknown to him, Jaejoong frowned at the fact, but
immediately smiled when Yoochun was happily inviting him for lunch.
They sat at the table and Yoochun offered everything at his plate.

“Hyung, try this. This one is really good, Yurim made this herself” Yoochun
pointed at Yurim.

Jaejoong caught her eyes and she awkwardly smiled. He also smiled but
she immediately looked down on her plate, not wanting to continue their
eye contact for long. He sighed. Things are not the same anymore,
everything had become really awkward for them, and he knew, nothing
could ever change that.

It was very early in the morning, and Yoochun planned out a picnic for the
three of them. He was very much excited about this, the two very most
important people in his life by his side. Still sleepy, he forced both of them
to walk to the butterfly field.

He had prepared a picnic blanket and let the three of them rest on the soft
cloth. Yurim was half-awake and she instantly fell asleep on Yoochun’s
shoulder. He laughed at her cuteness and just let her sleep. Jaejoong
became wide awake as he saw Yurim’s head comfortably resting on
Yoochun. He felt again the string of jealousy and his hand became into a
hard fist. Luckily, he was able to control himself, he realized, it was
Yoochun – he treats him as his brother, and also, it was his fault, he had
left her hurt, and Yoochun was the one who helped her.

Yurim was still asleep and her fingers were intertwined with Yoochun, he
let himself enjoy the soft breeze of the morning and sighed.

“I didn’t even know I would find her, she was broken and I always saw her
crying” Yoochun started their story to Jaejoong.

Jaejoong’s heart broke when he heard that Yoochun always saw Yurim
crying, he knew for himself, that he was the reason for those tears.

“She has a strong attitude and was very cold. I was determined to fix her
and bring her back to her old self. It was hard, but I managed to do it, I
gained her trust”

Jaejoong was curious on how Yoochun managed for her to trust him.
“How?”

Yoochun smiled. “Simple. I promised her I’ll be by her side forever, and up
till now, I kept my promise, she is such a butterfly. She is strong that she
helped herself out of the cocoon, she faced so much pain. Now, she
bloomed into this beautiful butterfly” He lovingly looked at her still
sleeping figure.

“I already promised myself that, before I even promised her, for I was
determined to be with her forever, she showed me how to love. My
butterfly” Yoochun explained.

Jaejoong could only sigh. He had lost to Yoochun; he had not even made
himself stay by her side forever, and he left her tormented and broken.
She was lucky to have Yoochun, Yurim was better off with him, to stay by
her side forever.

“Congratulations” Jaejoong greeted and patted his back, “She is lucky to

have you”

Yoochun smiled and shook his head, “I am lucky to have her”

Just then, a butterfly landed on Yurim’s nose. The tingling sensation woke
her up and saw the butterfly gently fluttering its wings before her eyes.
Yoochun caught it and let it flew away.

“My butterfly” Yoochun whispered to her before kissing her cheeks. She
instinctively looked at Jaejoong’s reaction and saw him with an
encouraging smile. She also smiled, and he knew that she had forgiven
him. Only, things wouldn’t be back to the way it was before, Jaejoong had
lost his chance, he had lost her.

They were walking to the boarding gate and Jaejoong was pulling his
luggage.

“Hyung, why are you going back so soon? Have you already found your
past love?” Yoochun continued on questioning Jaejoong’s early leave.
Yurim was behind them, following closely.

“I did, but I found her better off without me. She is much happy now. I
could only cause her pain and heartache, so I let her go” He smiled and
Yoochun nodded in understanding.

It was time for his flight and Jaejoong said his goodbyes. He hugged
Yoochun and promised to visit soon. He also hugged Yurim, and said his
goodbye.

“Goodbye, I love you. Be happy with Yoochun” Jaejoong whispered to her

before kissing her cheeks. She nodded and hugged him tight.

“Goodbye” He waved again before checking in.

Yurim was nearing to tears. Her metamorphosis was now over, she had
finally moved on. It was a hard journey, but she managed to walk through
it, with the help of Yoochun, she had her growth, she had grown to be a
beautiful butterfly. She was happy, and he was happy, everything already
fell onto pieces.

Yoochun held her hand and together, they went out of the airport.

Jaejoong was now on the plane, he contently sighed, Yurim was happy
now, she had finally had her growth, she had moved on. He had finally let
go of Yurim, only wanting her to live happily with Yoochun, even though it
wasn’t him, Yoochun was way better for her. Of course he was sad, he
remembered her warm and joyful smiles and how he used to do bring her
those. But he was happy for Yurim, and he smiled to himself, for he knew,
that no matter what ending for their love story is, there is still happiness.
Yurim was a butterfly that would always flutter in his heart.