saccharine hymns spill from haewon's lips like a waterfall.
and lily watches. lily listens.
---
the sky is beautiful tonight, a tapestry of starlight and the darkened remnants of broken moon shards.
as haewon steps up to the stage, it's eerily quiet. she can see lily standing across from her.
the girl still sports a smile, despite the tangible tension in the air.
lily was haewon's sunshine, her star, her world, hers - she was drawn to lily, never seeming to want to leave.
not like she wanted to.
as the music plays and they start singing, haewon can barely focus.
her hands tremble and her mouth is dry. she can barely look at the other girl.
saccharine hymns, sweet as honey, spill from haewon's lips like a waterfall.
and lily watches. lily listens.
a familiar, yet random word comes into haewon's mind. hope. haewon had heard the word when she was small, yet didn't know what it was.
haewon racked her mind to remember what it meant as she sang rhymes not as poetic or beautiful as lily's, yet made the meaning clear: i love you, i love you, i love you.
the lyrics lily utters in her soft, soothing voice are crushing. maybe in another universe.
why not in this one? haewon is tempted to ask. but she knows. she knows why they can't be together.
she averts her gaze to the skies above once more.
a scene that she has grown accustomed to greets her eyes. the glimmer of dewdrops across the heavens, the twinkling of universe's choir, the blanket of melancholy that covers the night sky.
how claustrophobic.
the music draws to a close, the melodies fading away.
and crimson paints the stage floor.
haewon stares in horror.
no.
this isn't fair.
this isn't fair.
this isn't fair.
this is all your fault. the cynical voices seep slowly into the deepest crevices of her mind like venom. you left her to die. you never deserved her love.
her chest feels tight. she can't breathe.
no.
this is our story. i can't do this alone. i can't do this without you.
but as much as haewon tries to deny it, the truth stares her in the eye.
she'll have to face this cruel and unforgiving world without her - without lily.
if only i could've taken your place.
