The day was ordinary like any other. The birds were flying across the cloudless sky, and the warm sun was shining down on a grassy expanse, where two people were sitting hand in hand.
The first person was someone you'd assume to be a jerk, simply because when his face was expressionless, his mouth turned down at the corners and his eyes would appear cold. His voice was always calm, almost a whisper that you'd have to strain to hear. He had stylish clothes that every popular guy wore, which was a striped white and blue polo, blue jeans, and white Nikes. He had the typical style of hair that was carefully placed into a bronze coif on his head. Only for him, a stray hair fell into his right eye. His shirt was wrinkled, his shoes scuffed, and his cold expression hid a warmth in his heart that many got to see. So as typical as he appeared, he was anything but.
Now the second person, well, he was anything but typical from the jump. His voice was loud, hair long and messy, and his outfits were almost always the same things thrown together: a black Nirvana shirt, black jeans, a red leather coat, and green Chuck Taylors that had holes in the sides and barely stayed on his feet. His neck was a mess of necklaces, his hands displaying the same clumsy array of rings that were either too large or small, and none of the rings or necklaces truly matched. But this person, as rough as he looked, was kinder than most and wore his heart on his sleeve. No popularity to use as a mask, no "armour" to pretend, just complete and total bluntness.
Now, you might be thinking, what did these two ever have in common to end up in this meadow, holding hands as though they were one? Well, it started with a dream that slowly bled into reality, taking on life as each day, week, and month passed, until eventually, they found a way to connect.
And it wasn't easy at first. The first man, Steve, had been surrounded by chaos and things that existed only in nightmares for what had felt like an eternity. He grew up normal, I suppose, give or take some loneliness and abandonment issues from absent parents, and until he hit high school, no real friends to surround himself with. Steve always felt he had to hide his pain, felt it wasn't worth burdening others with, and so he tried to bury his true self beneath frivolous parties, fake smiles, and bullshit relationships. He knew he was privileged with a rich family, large house, and a future that was already planned out for him, so why question the way he looked at other boys? Why question the deep hollow feeling that threatened to swallow him whole? He had everything, so that's all that mattered.
The other boy, Killyun, was similar in some regard, but only in the fact that he also held in his pain. But the source of his ran deep as well, if not deeper, than most would assume. You see, he grew up in the cliché broken marriage. His father drank and disappeared, and his mother constantly ignored her troubles by simply acting like they never existed. Throughout his childhood, she would move them around, from his grandparents' house, to her boyfriend's house, and the cycle repeated for nearly twelve years. His mother would evolve from a simple mom trying to do her best, to a woman bitter and resentful towards her own family, especially her son. The rest of his trauma I won't go into, but Killyun sought to fill his own emotional void with relationships, alcohol, and denial. Like his parents before him, he made rash, irresponsible choices, but unlike his parents, he eventually learned to unlearn their patterns and grow into himself. That was when he started to dream.
In these dreams, Killyun would see himself in the show he watched with his friends, the show in which Steve had originated from, and he'd begin to imagine what life with Steve would look like. In some dreams, it would simply be the two of them together, walking in peace. In other dreams, it was the full tilt circus, and then some, where Steve and himself were forced to fight what felt like endless darkness. And in those darker dreams that weren't really dreams, Killyun and Steve still found eachother, however briefly, and Killyun felt himself falling in love. He fell for Steve's smile when he was happy, the way he still looked beautiful when crying in utter despair, and even the way his eyes held a cold fire when he was enraged. He listened to Steve ramble on about everything, from why he listened to Abba and Tears for Fears, to how he felt completely alone in the world when he was at home without any of his friends to keep him company. Killyun learned and held on, until he woke up back in his world, feeling emptier each time until he slept and returned to Steve.
Who, alternatively, at first questioned Killyun's appearances, dismissing them as simple dreams or hallucinations borne out of being home alone while his parents were away. He also questioned why he enjoyed seeing Killyun smile and hearing him laugh, and why when Killyun was sad or angry about something, he wanted to hold him and tell him it was all going to be alright because Steve was there and nothing could ever change that. And so Steve fell, too. He fell for the way Killyun's hair somehow looked perfect even when it was messy, and he fell for the easy smile Killyun wore no matter what his mood happened to be. He fell for his charming eyes, voice, and the theatrical way he carried himself. He listened to Killyun go on about his friends and family, both the triumphs and pitfalls, and how they all shaped him in some way to be the person he became. He listened to the love, the hate, the grief, the despair, the joy, and everything in between. Steve learned and held on, until Killyun would vanish back to an unknown world, and Steve felt emptier each time until Killyun returned.
They went on like this for some time, taking advantage of the moments they got to spend together, and rueing the time spent apart. However, both were unaware that it wasn't just a dream. It wasn't just a hallucination, or any simple explanation. You see, their interactions started causing bleeds between each respective world, causing events from both to pour into the other. It started slow and small, with time dilations, or meteorological anomalies. But as time went on, things continued to shift and warp together on a larger and larger scale, until on one fateful night, right at midnight, Killyun woke up from his dream.
Except he wasn't alone. No, instead he was still being held by Steve, still cuddled close under his blankets, the only thing being truly out of place being Steve's clothes on the floor, and his wood-panelled walls were now a flannel-patterned wallpaper only seen in Steve's room.
Both were naturally shocked, confused, disoriented, and cautious at first. Their lives, which had always remained separate at first, were now as joined together as the couple was. It took some time, conversations, arguments, and new arrangements to fully settle into their bizarre situation, but eventually they did. And so life went on.
Steve and Killyun found a way to move through their new life together, getting jobs and a new apartment, then getting married and settling down in their home. The years spent together were golden and filled with love and joy, and the couple moved in almost complete harmony. But their happily ever after that was supposed to last...didn't.
The day was ordinary like any other. The birds were flying across the cloudless sky, and the warm sun was shining down on a grassy expanse, where two people were sitting hand in hand.
You see, their worlds that had been conjoined were now pulling back apart. It had started with their home. Then their rings. Time itself seemed to be unwinding before them, everything slowly but surely returning to the way it was. The love that had joined them and their lives together was now being split in half, and both Steve and Killyun feared what would happen.
Would they stop loving eachother?
Would they never see eachother again?
Would they forget eachother?
Neither of them knew, but both had these thoughts running through their minds as they held on tightly to one another, waiting for the end. Neither spoke, but neither needed to, as they knew that they both loved eachother. They both knew they would try their damnedest not to forget or to act like it never happened. They would try to see eachother again, they would. They silently prayed and made promises to themselves and eachother, right as the ground shook.
The sun, which had shone brightly before as one singular source of light and warmth, split into two and started moving apart. The birds that had flown before now also duplicated, flying in opposite directions. The ground started moving and shifting, forcing Killyun and Steve apart quite literally. They looked eachother in the eyes, and the horror on both of their faces was identical. Then Steve started to vanish. He faded as though being erased by a pencil eraser. Right as he disappeared, so too did Killyun. It didn't hurt, and it almost felt like he was floating.
Then he woke up. Alone, and back in his bed as though from a dream. He looked around, dazed, and unaware that his memories were already clouded over. Not entirely erased, but still hazy as though it were only just a dream.
Throughout the rest of the day, he felt empty, like a part of him wasn't all there. It wasn't until later when he went to eat dinner and watch the show that introduced him to his lover that he noticed a ring down by his left foot. It wasn't one he had on his table, he knew that for certain. It was silver, with a large diamond being the only extravagant part of the ring. He put it on, astonished that it fit perfectly, unaware of it's true meaning. For a moment, though, his breath caught, and tears sprang to his eyes. But, without the memories he treasured, he wiped the tears away, and set the ring back down on the table. Now, unbeknownst to Killyun, even though he hadn't seen, heard, or felt anything out of the ordinary all day, Steve was watching him with tears in his eyes. He was currently sitting across from Killyun, painfully able to remember and unable to understand why he could or why he was even there. As he sat there, still watching his lover, for a moment, Killyun looked back up, and it was like he saw Steve right then and there. Steve could've leapt with joy or screamed out of pure relief. But the moment didn't even last a second before Killyun turned back to his tv, and Steve was disappointed, but also hopeful. He knew he didn't know much, but he knew was that he'd try anything he could to get back to Killyun, whatever it took.
Stranger things have happened after all.
The end.
