* * *
When Beomhyeon stepped out, freshly changed, Jungseo handed him a bottle of water.
“How’s your body holding up?”
“I’m fine.”
“Have you been eating properly?”
At the next question, Beomhyeon fell silent.
He couldn’t recall the last time he’d eaten a proper meal.
“Are you sleeping at all?”
Again, Beomhyeon gave no answer.
Since the accident, his life had been in complete disarray.
Watching him remain tight-lipped, Jungseo let out a brief sigh.
“I hate to say this, but… we don’t know when our little one will wake up.”
“Hyung.”
“The living have to keep living. Looking at you right now, I wouldn’t even call you alive.”
Even Jungseo himself suffered from nightly insomnia and had grown noticeably thinner.
“If Jungin knew, he’d be heartbroken. If waiting gets too hard, you can consider the imprint removal surgery.”
“What are you saying? Imprint removal?”
At that, Beomhyeon’s tightly sealed lips twisted, and he raised his head with a frown.
“We’ve already discussed it among ourselves. We can’t let this burden you any longer. No matter what happens, we’ll take care of Jungin. You should live your life. We won’t hold it against you, Ki Beomhyeon. We’re grateful enough for everything you’ve done for Jungin until now.”
“No, I can’t.”
Beomhyeon shook his head firmly. How could he live in a world without Jungin?
“Jungin is still here. His warmth, his soft hair, his sweet pheromones—they’re all the same. How could I possibly let go?”
“Ki Beomhyeon…”
“Even if it kills me, I will never let go of Jungin.”
With bloodshot eyes gleaming ominously, Beomhyeon fixed his gaze on Jungseo.
“If Jungin is gone, then I’m as good as dead.”
Confronted with such unwavering resolve, Jungseo found himself at a loss for words.
Sighing deeply, he left the room, leaving Beomhyeon alone with Jungin.
Grasping Jungin’s unresponsive hand, Beomhyeon buried his face into it.
“Why do they keep telling me to forget you? It’s absurd, isn’t it? So wake up soon and scold them. Tell them to stop talking nonsense.”
Caressing Jungin’s soft cheek and pressing a kiss to his lips, Beomhyeon brushed back Jungin’s still-lovely hair.
“You’re beautiful. You’re so beautiful today, too, Jungin.”
Jungin’s thin fingers, too frail to wear a ring, now bore it as a necklace.
Watching Jungin, Beomhyeon recalled the words Jungin had said to him right before the accident, filled with guilt and apologies as though everything was his fault.
That pained expression haunted Beomhyeon’s dreams.
In those dreams, Jungin often appeared, sobbing as if frightened, and every time Beomhyeon tried to hold him, Jungin slipped away like a butterfly.
Even in reality, the fear that Jungin might leave his side gripped Beomhyeon, driving him to remain by his side every night.
Crawling onto the hospital bed as he did every evening, Beomhyeon cradled Jungin in his arms as though he were the most precious thing in the world.
“I love you.”
As long as Jungin was by his side, Beomhyeon could relive their memories and wait for eternity.
“I love you, Jungin.”
He whispered to his beloved and slowly closed his eyes.
“You bastard! I’ll kill you!”
“Ahhh! Stop it, dammit, stop!”
At dawn, screams erupted in the hallway.
A man clutching the iron bars to shield himself from the flailing hands cried out.
“Is anyone there? Open this door! I’m fine! Let me out of here!”
With his lips split, his face and body covered in bruises and bloodstains, the man pleaded as he banged on the door, dodging the strikes.
“Get me out of here! I can’t stay here! Please, let me go! I’m perfectly fine! You can’t lock up a sane man like this!”
The man’s cries went unheard as the elderly woman lunged at him again, screaming accusations.
“Get out of my grandson’s body, you wicked thing!”
“Dammit, I am Jungin! I’m your grandson!”
“Liar! You vile monster!”
Grabbing a nearby stick covered in thorns, the old woman approached the man, who shrank back against the wall, bound by chains that limited his movement.
“Please, don’t… That’ll hurt! Put it down!”
Despite his cries, the thorny branch lashed at his flesh.
“Shouldn’t you try to rest a little?”
“I’m fine.”
Even if he lay down, sleep wouldn’t come.
Reviewing the documents in his hands, Beomhyeon opened the window slightly to let in some fresh air.
Spring had come again, with cherry blossoms in full bloom.
He remembered confessing his feelings to Jungin under a large cherry tree, an event that felt like just yesterday, though time had long passed.
As he waited at a red light, watching students in uniforms reach for fluttering cherry blossom petals, Beomhyeon thought of Jungin.
Back then, Jungin had tried so hard to catch the falling cherry blossom petals, saying it would make his first love come true.
The memory of Jungin running around like a child, his large eyes sparkling with excitement, made Beomhyeon chuckle softly.
But the sweetness of that memory faded, and Beomhyeon was brought back to reality. His heart throbbed painfully.
No matter how happy a memory was, it was meaningless without someone to share it with.
Beomhyeon’s expression darkened sharply as he reached to close the window.
Just then, a gust of wind carried a single cherry blossom petal through the gap of the moving car window.
The petal brushed his cheek before settling gently onto his palm.
Looking down at the fragile petal trembling as if it might take flight again, Beomhyeon hurriedly enclosed it between his hands.
For some reason, he couldn’t bring himself to open his hands again.
By the time Beomhyeon came to his senses, he was already standing in front of Jungin’s hospital room.
Yes. Maybe he wanted to tell Jungin that spring had arrived.
Entering the room slowly, Beomhyeon pressed a gentle kiss to the lips of the deeply sleeping Jungin before sitting down beside him.
Jungin’s body, barely sustained by nutrition supplements for so long, had lost much of its flesh and muscle.
Beomhyeon felt like even his lightest touch might break the already frail frame.
Closing his eyes briefly against the tight ache in his chest, Beomhyeon forced a smile and placed the cherry blossom petal on Jungin’s palm.
“Jungin, do you know? It’s already spring outside.”
Tilting his head slightly, Beomhyeon gently clasped Jungin’s other hand and continued in a soft voice.
“This petal flew in out of nowhere and touched my cheek. It reminded me of last year when you kissed me.”
In truth, it was Beomhyeon who had kissed Jungin after confessing his feelings, but since Jungin had kept him waiting so long, he thought Jungin should let him get away with this much.
With a playful tone, Beomhyeon withdrew his lips and stared at the pink petal in Jungin’s palm.
“I even thought, ‘Did you send this petal to make me remember that day?’ But aren’t we too old for just a cheek kiss now? Hurry up and wake up so I can kiss you on the—”
As Beomhyeon laughed softly and turned his head, his eyes widened in shock.
He was staring into Jungin’s brown eyes—those eyes he had missed so desperately it drove him mad. Beomhyeon’s gaze trembled.
“…No way. You’re the one who… kissed… first…”
Jungin’s voice was weak, his words halting and slow.
Beomhyeon froze as if time had stopped.
Swallowing his tears, Jungin looked at Beomhyeon, whose face showed just how much he had suffered.
“I… missed you… Beomhyeon.”
Like a gift of April, like a petal brought by the wind, Jungin had awakened.
Overwhelmed by the rush of tears, Beomhyeon pulled Jungin into his arms, burying his face in Jungin’s small shoulder.
“I missed you too… so much, Jungin. So much.”
Fearing it might all be a dream, Beomhyeon lifted his head urgently.
But Jungin’s arms wrapped around his neck, and their lips met in a kiss.
As a sweet fragrance enveloped them, cherry blossom petals danced outside the window, carried by the breeze as if celebrating their reunion.
* * *
Ugh finally