Chapter IV

It took Changmin some time to realize that that annoying sound buzzing right next to his ear – it seemed – was not of a radio or music, but was coming from his cell phone. Which was actually ringing.

With a groan he opened his eyes to mere slits, enough to stretch his hand and not miss, and grabbed the god-damned piece of plastic, which was the source of Great Evil in his universe right now. Flipping it open, Changmin didn’t bother with any words, just mumbled in what he hoped was friendly tone.

“Changmin! Are you up yet?”

He should have known, that it would be Junsu. Suppressing the urge to shut his phone and pretend he had never picked it up, Changmin managed to croak out, “It depends.”

“Depends on what?” Junsu was baffled for a moment.

“What time is it?”

“Half past nine, sleepy head”, that earned Junsu a groan. Considering all the problems Changmin had with his sleep, to be able to get through the night without being woken up by the nightmare was thought of as a blessing. That’s why being disturbed from the precious sleep by his overly enthusiastic friend put Changmin in not one of his best moods.

“I’m gonna kill you. Why did you wake me up?”

“You won’t. I am your best friend. And you love me,” Junsu surely didn’t know when to quit.

“You are totally off my Christmas cards list,” Changmin tried to come up with more threats, but with his brain still fuzzy from sleep his imagination ran dry. That remark earned a laugh from Junsu though.

“Let it be so. But I am calling you to persuade you to go with me to that exhibition, I am sure I’ve already told you…”

Changmin groaned again.

“You told me about it thousands of times”, he felt so comfortable and warm under his blanket. “I am not going”, he said burrowing himself even deeper in his cocoon.

“But Changmin! You owe me here!” There was a pleading tone in Junsu’s voice. “You said you would try to make it on the weekend and I know that Sunday is your day-off…” – ‘My only day-off’, thought Changmin. – “so I am asking you as a good friend, please, come with me. It will be fun and it won’t take long and you will be back soon to your hermit life!”

“Fine, fine!” In frustration Changmin flung his covers off and sat up in bed. “I will go with you.”

“Great! I will be at your place in an hour!”

And that was the end of the conversation. Flipping his cell close, he threw it on the table in annoyance. He really liked Junsu, and he was a good friend, but sometimes he tended to be too single-minded.

Brushing his hair with his fingers, Changmin yawned and looked at the couch. The carefully folded beddings as well as the clutter of dishes coming from the kitchen signified that Kim had been up for some time. It little surprised him, for he had already learned that his mystical friend was an early-riser. Still feeling grumpy, he finally made himself crawl out of the bed. Putting the sheets and pillow in some resemblance of order, Changmin padded his way to the bathroom.

Upon his appearance in the kitchen Kim looked up from where he was laying the table and greeted him with a smile.

“Morning”, Changmin said, flopping onto his seat, crossing his arms on the table and laying his head on them. He heard Kim chuckle, as food was being placed before him.

“Coffee?”

“Mmm, yes, please.”

Changmin stayed in the same pose, until a steaming mug was placed before him. Only then he found strength in himself to sit up. Taking the mug he blew at the hot liquid inside, willing it cool quicker.

“So, what possessed you to get up so early, when you could obviously sleep in late?” Kim asked chewing on his toast.

Changmin groaned, “It’s all Junsu’s fault. His call woke me up,” He stabbed a fork into the omelet. “I really really hate him right now.”

Kim just chuckled. “So what did he want?” He asked after a pause.

“Oh, he wants me to go with him to some art exhibition. He’s been pestering me about it for month!” Changmin said over the mouthful of omelet.

“You don’t like art?” Kim seemed surprised.

“On the contrary. But I find it hard to appreciate the modern trends and the humble attempts at drawing by the amateurs.”

He chewed some more. And then a sudden thought came to him.

“Hey, would you like to come with us? You seem to be fond of art and I am sure you will be able to appreciate those paintings more than any of us.”

Kim looked both uncertain and eager, “Are you sure it would be okay?”

“Of course! Besides you’d meet my friend Junsu. He doesn’t bite, I assure you, he only pesters me on occasion.”

That earned him a smile, “I’d love to.”

They talked more about this and that, not in a hurry at all. Afterwards Kim was washing the dishes, per usual, and Changmin went to dress. They were both done, when Junsu rang the bell of the apartment.

It must be mentioned to Junsu’s credit, that he refrained from any commentary, when he was introduced to Kim as Changmin’s new roommate. Changmin himself couldn’t explain why he decided to keep the details of their meeting to himself, but he thought that he saw Kim give him a grateful look.

Junsu didn’t ask questions. On their way to the gallery only thing he was talking about was the event. When finding out that Kim was also interested in art, Junsu quickly engaged him in the dispute over the expressionism and cubism. Changmin watched them as they talked, feeling a bit left out. His knowledge in art was scarce and much depended on his taste. If he took the liking of some painter he would read books on him and his works. But if not, then no excessive knowledge was needed.

Kim appeared to have very profound knowledge in art. He was a bit shy to speak up his opinion at first, but gradually grew bolder and soon was speaking heatedly and throwing all those terms and names at his opponent. Changmin had never heard half of them. Judging by the look on Junsu’s face, he hadn’t either.

It was fascinating to see Kim so animated and alive. Changmin was startled by a sudden thought, that in fact it was the very first time he saw him like that. Most of the days he was quiet and unobtrusive, spoke rarely and with much less vigor. Surely it had been only few days since they had met, but Changmin had a feeling that Kim was quiet by the nature.

“You seem to know so much!” Junsu’s bright exclamation rose Changmin from his reveries. “Do have a degree in art? Or are you a painter yourself?” Suddenly Kim fell silent. With some uneasiness he shrugged and didn’t reply, keeping silence the rest of their way in spite of Junsu’s attempts to engage him in a conversation once again. Changmin noticed that his fingers unconsciously rubbed at the ring on his left hand.

It was obvious that some kind of memory was connected with that ring, for yet again it was the only thing out of his jewelry that Kim had decided to wear besides his trendy attire.

When they finally reached the gallery, it seemed that Junsu’s anticipation had reached its peak. He almost bounced, and Changmin couldn’t suppress his chuckle.

Equipping themselves with brochures and leaflets they finally entered the exhibition hall. Various paintings and sculpture items were hanging on the walls, standing on small platforms and hiding in the corners. Few people except for them were there examining the objects of art.

Cruising through the gallery they stopped before various paintings sharing their ideas and thoughts. Junsu was the most excited one, talking about this and that, comparing the styles and colours. The gallery was divided into different section each devoted to a separate artist. The exhibition proved to be more filled with ‘art’ than Changmin had feared. Although some sculptures looked far from what they tried to depict, some items did make an impression upon their viewers.

Between vague comments on this or that item and Junsu’s chattering Changmin’s attention was captured not by the art but by his new friend. Kim seemed engrossed in examining each piece of art with an absolute rapt expression on his face.

Kim couldn’t understand the feeling that threatened to burst in his chest. He felt light as if he was floating, almost giddy with strange feeling of happiness. He could compare himself to a man in the desert, overcome with terrible thirst, who had finally found water and now seemed unable to get enough of it.

With both Kim and Junsu spending so much time in front of every painting and sculpture it was taking much more time that they had originally thought and Changmin was getting tired. He could appreciate beauty when he saw it, but apart from ‘like’ and ‘dislike’ he could say little about an item.

Looking around he tried to decide what else they hadn’t seen. It turned out that they had only one section left, which immediately put the boy in much better mood.

“I think we haven’t seen this part yet,” he said intending to draw the other boys attention. The quicker they moved to the last section, the quicker they would be done and leave the gallery altogether. He heard them follow as he moved to stand before the painting.

If before this moment somebody had asked Changmin if he had liked the exhibition, his answered would have been neutral or even negative. Nothing special. Pretty, but not breathtaking. Skillfull but not a masterpiece.

But this one was perfect.

The sky overcast by the clouds, the sea glittering in the beams of the sun, the black silhouettes of dozens of yachts.

Changmin heard a soft gasp behind. Turning he saw Kim stare at the painting with wide-opened eyes, a slender hand covering his mouth in shock. But before the boy could ask him anything, Kim turned and fled from the gallery.

A brief glance at the painting’s title and only after a second of hesitation Changmin followed him. Ignoring the surprised cry from Junsu, he ran into the street, following Kim.

Rushing through the crowd, accidentally pushing people he was running as fast as he could. But Kim seemed to move faster and quite soon Changmin realized that he had lost the sight of him. Panting he stood in the middle of the moving crowd of people and desperately wished that he had been more attentive.

He wished that he could understand.

Park Yoochun

“The Horizon”

The Mediterranean , 2005.

to be continued