EPHEMERAL || BBH

The Village Entrance ❁

*.☽.*

If there was one thing that I had never imagined to happen to me, it would be this. Walking casually with a celebrity.

The first few minutes of the hike were quiet. I was normally shy around people and being with someone as famous as Byun Baekhyun was a whole new level.

I kept looking away careful that I wouldn't be gawking at him and trip myself along the way.

"How did you know this place?" I heard him ask, breaking the ice.

"My mom used to take me and my sister here when we were younger."

"Before you moved to Australia right?"

I nodded, amazed by the thought that he still remembered.

"This place used to be famous, a lot of people went here. I remembered greeting a lot of hikers along the way. It was what we considered an ultimate healing place..." I trailed off feeling nostalgic and a little bit sad about what the place had become. "It's way too different now."

"Too bad, I wasn't able to see how it was before." He replied.

"How about you?" I asked causing him to glance at me. "I mean, I don't understand what you're doing in this town. And of all places, the old hiking place."

"Well, a friend of mine used to live here. Before I got scouted by my agency a few years ago, we used to come up here a lot."

"So does your friend still live here?"

"Not anymore. He moved to the US. He works there now."

"And you still come here because?"

I heard him take a deep breath and I kind of got the feeling that I must be going overboard.

"I hope I am not prying too much. You don't have to answer that question." I told him defensively.

He chuckled.

"Can I ask you a favor?" He asked. "If you don't mind, of course."

"Y-yeah. What is it?"

"Will you please relax around me?" He said, smiling.

"Hah, that's not an easy one," I answered briefly.

"Ah, is it too much to ask?"

I sensed how much effort he was exerting to be friendly and make the situation comfortable between us so I smiled at him.

"I'll try my very best," I told him and I got a wide smile plastered on his face as a reply.

"So, I still come here because it's peaceful here. Away from the prying eyes of the public. I mean, I love what I do, it's just that you know, you gotta breathe and stay from all the frenzy from time to time. So, I always make sure to find my way up here when I am free."

"You must be very busy," I commented.

"Busy is a good thing for my profession." He said.
I just threw him an unsure look since I didn't quite know how to respond to his last statement.

***

We continued to hike until we reached the top spot. The sun would be setting soon and the sky was getting ready for it. Pink, orange, and yellow filled most parts of the sky.

It was indeed a perfect sunset afternoon.

"It's beautiful up here," I said as I inhaled the fresh air with my eyes closed. I concentrated on the sound being offered by my surroundings. The wind, the rustling of the leaves of the trees, and the birds.
I didn't hear any response from him so I opened my eyes and looked in his direction. Only to find out that he was looking at me.