You Wonderful You [[Hiatus]]

No More Dream

A beat of panic hit both their chests. They looked at the tree to find it's branches sparse with leaves, its bark losing color as it dried horribly. Juna felt tears welling in both their eyes as her double ran up to it and clung tightly to it. "What's wrong?! Why are you like this all of a sudden?"

The scene seemed to cut to a montage that played like a movie in her mind. Her double spent weeks caring for the tree. She even sang and read her leafy notes to it. It wasn't just her. The second tree even began to grow it's branches out to shield it's partner from any unfriendly deluge. Juna was relieved that she wasn't alone in caring for the suffering tree.

When she blinked, she returned to standing near her double. Her other self sat on the beige table that was now chipping. It's exposed skin underneath, black as ore. The young woman had laid out her collection of green leaves before her, reading each of them patiently for her sick protector. As she was reading, Juna could feel a foreboding weight on her chest. She looked overhead where new and darker clouds were rolling in. She looked back at her doppelganger, worried.

Just then, a sharp gust of wind hit them both. The gifted leaves dispersed faster than she could comprehend what had happened. One second they were in her sight. In an instant they were no more.

CRACK!

A hot flash of white light blinded them both. The earth beneath shook. Juna shielded her eyes. Her ears rang. When the ringing stopped she uncovered her eyes to find her double knelt down next to a pile of loose dirt where the tree used to be. One tree, one table. The world seemed unbalanced. Thunder rumbled in the skies. Her heart, though heavy with grief, felt empty. The surrounding trees pitied her, but she didn't mind them. Warm tears welled in her eyes. She turned away from the heartbreaking scene.

"I don't wanna see anymore." She squeezed her eyes shut. Everything turned to black again. But she welcomed it this time. It was the type of darkness she could actually manage to bear. And then she heard a voice. A voice she hadn't heard yet.

"Don't move, I'm almost done." It was a man's voice.

Juna opened her eyes with caution. Her eyes started at her feet where she saw footprints in the dirt. They led to a fully black table next to a lone tree whose color seemed to lack vibrancy under a persistent overcast sky. There she was again sitting atop the table, except she had company. Juna walked closer, knowing beforehand who it was. The man was only a couple of years younger than her. His attire always consisted of black, loose t-shirts and baggy jeans, his brown hair styled into a boyish mess. A white scar struck through his upper lip, making his already rough appearance less inviting.

The young man's intimidating eyes were focused behind her twin's ear. A tattoo pen secured in his steady hand. Juna rubbed the area behind her ear as both versions of her seemed to feel the sting of the needle. She watched as the pen neared the end of the fifth and last leaf of the simple yet elegant branch that ran along the curve behind her ear. Each had initials inscribed inside.

"Done."

"Finally." She relaxed but her back also felt tender. "So...what did you put on my back? I mean they were just dots but what does it mean?"

He restrained a smile as he avoided her eyes. "Don't worry about it."

Juna's copy rolled her eyes, "you could've at least put the top dot below my neckline. People might see it when I have my hair up."

"It'll just look like a beauty mark. Worry about your branch." The two sat in silence for much of the time. It wasn't a bad silence. It was peaceful.

Juna looked back at the mound of dirt where the tree was. Hoping by chance it'd come back. But it didn't. When she turned back the two characters before her were scribbling on the black table with various colors of chalk. The graffiti varied between words and doodles. They both spoke competitively as they were in a race to sketch the best looking wolf. His illustrations were always better since he was an artist—to a degree. He preferred her to call him a street artist. The many doodles added color to the aimless black of the table. It wasn't magic, but it was enough for the moment. The surrounding trees saw the two young spirits and whispered to each other. But the duo didn't mind them.

Sirens blared in her ears. The sketching couple looked at each other. "Go!" Her other self warned him.

The young man jumped to his feet. "I'll be back!" He called before disappearing into the surrounding trees that groaned in his presence.

When Juna looked back at her other self, she sat alone. Her hair and clothes drenched. The tattooed skin was healed and at least a year old. The chalk had washed away with the rains that knocked many of the withered branches of the remaining tree to the ground. Leaves fluttered down but they were brown and dead. Juna watched with pity.

"What's wrong with you?" Her double muttered to herself. As she watched her, Juna's eyes likewise stung with puffiness. Her face felt heavy and stone like, her skin cold as ice. But that was the extent of her feelings. Other than that she was completely numb. The surrounding trees shook their heads, stretching the empty void within her. Despite her earlier desire to leave this place, she didn't mind staying a while. Even if this dream version of her couldn't see her, Juna knew what she needed. So she stayed beside her.

A snap sounded behind her. She turned towards it. It was the tree. Moving. A branch seemed to grow towards her. Juna was confused as to why anything would interact with her who was simply an observer. As it neared, she saw that one of its leaves was not a typical leaf. It was white. She reached and plucked it from the branch. Not sure how to respond, she awkwardly bowed her thanks to the tree. When she looked at the piece of paper she saw that it was a train ticket. To Seoul.

"Seoul?"

Juna 's own voice surprised herself. "You can see me?"

Her other self took the ticket from her hand. "I guess you're right." The confusion intensified. The younger woman was interacting with her but couldn't hear what she was saying. "There's no reason to stay in this tiny neighborhood." It was as if she was having a one sided conversation. "Thank you," she said finally. Her voice was weak but nonetheless grateful...to whoever she was talking to.

Juna watched as the young woman pocketed the ticket and ventured away from her picnic table into the grassy border. The chorus of sounds she hadn't realized were around her stopped abruptly. The trees shook but she heard no wind. Birds flew overhead but their squawks were mute. The table, tree and dirt field were lost in a sea of luscious grass and other trees that gathered merrily.

Author's Note:

I'm gonna pause posting just because there's other stuff I gotta get done. So I'll upload the rest of what I have later. I just added these in a rush because I just remembered that I said I'd post this story...and didn't lol. Sorry about that. In other news, I got sick...again and still in the recovery process. I hope all is well for you!

<3