Seojun's breath hitched as he took in the scene before him. The Elias standing in the moonlit garden looked almost ethereal, his posture poised yet weighted with something unspoken. The distant melody from the fountain seemed to echo inside Seojun's chest, as if it were calling him to remember something just out of reach.
"Elias...?" Seojun's voice was barely above a whisper.
The man before him this version of Elias watched him with a gaze so deep, so knowing, that it sent a shiver through Seojun's spine. "You found me," he repeated, voice tinged with something that sounded like sorrow.
Seojun took a cautious step forward. "Where am I?"
A faint smile touched Elias's lips. "Not where. When."
Seojun's heart pounded. "This is a memory? Yours?"
Elias glanced around the garden before meeting Seojun's gaze again. "Ours."
The word sent a rush of warmth and confusion through Seojun. He didn't remember being here. He didn't remember this version of Elias. And yet, something deep within him stirred a feeling of belonging, as though he had been searching for this moment all his life.
The wind picked up, carrying the scent of blooming jasmine and the distant sound of a piano. Seojun's fingers twitched at his sides, instinctively aching to play.
"Come with me," Elias said softly, extending his hand.
Seojun hesitated, but something in him knew knew that if he followed, he would finally uncover the truth hidden in the music. Slowly, he reached out, his fingers brushing against Elias's palm.
The world shifted.
Suddenly, Seojun was inside a grand ballroom bathed in candlelight. A grand piano stood in the center, its polished surface gleaming under the chandeliers. Shadows of dancing figures moved gracefully, their laughter blending into the melody that filled the air.
And at the piano Seojun saw himself.
His past self played effortlessly, fingers gliding over the keys with an elegance he hadn't yet mastered in the present. Seated beside him was Elias, his expression open, filled with something raw and unguarded.
"I loved you even then," the present Elias murmured beside him, his voice barely audible above the music. "Even before you knew who I was."
Seojun turned, his heart pounding. "Who were we?"
Elias exhaled, his eyes shadowed with memories. "Two souls bound by music. But the song was never finished."
The notes rang out around them, golden threads weaving through the air like a story waiting to be told. Seojun felt his own heartbeat synchronize with the music, as though he were standing at the edge of something vast and unknown.
And for the first time, he wasn't afraid.
"Then let's finish it," Seojun whispered, stepping toward the piano, ready to uncover the truth hidden within the echoes of time.