MY GOLDEN BLOOD - JossGawin FanFiction

CHAPTER 18: DAY BREAK

The celebration of Tong's graduation had slowly begun to fade, the laughter and cheers of his friends becoming distant echoes.

As the night deepened, the once bustling campus grew quiet, leaving only the soft hum of the streetlamps and the rustling of leaves in the cool evening breeze.

Tong had said his goodbyes to his friends, feeling a sense of completion. The day had been full of congratulations and hugs, but his heart had carried an unspoken emptiness, a lingering ache he couldn't shake off.

He had never expected Mark to show up.

He didn't think anyone else would come for him, but when Mark arrived with white flowers in hand, a warmth he had long missed returned to him.

Now, as the night embraced them both, Mark and Tong sat together in the soft glow of Tong's apartment, the silence between them comfortable, if not filled with unspoken words.

"Thank you for coming," Tong whispered, his voice barely audible in the stillness. He leaned against Mark, his body heavy with exhaustion but his mind still racing.

Mark wrapped his arm around Tong's shoulder, pulling him closer.

"You didn't think I'd miss such an important day, did you?"

Tong chuckled softly, though the sound lacked its usual energy. "I wasn't sure. You have a habit of disappearing."

Mark didn't reply. He simply held Tong tighter, the weight of his absence pressing heavily on his mind.

He had been gone for so long, vanishing from Tong's life when things became too intense, too dangerous. But tonight, he couldn't stay away.

Not when Tong had achieved something so important. Not when Tong's presence had been the only thing pulling him back from the darkness of his own cursed existence.

They sat like that for a long while, the silence broken only by the occasional rustle of fabric as Tong shifted against Mark, slowly surrendering to the weariness that weighed down his limbs.

His eyes fluttered shut, his body relaxing into Mark's embrace.

"Stay with me," Tong murmured, his words slurred by the approach of sleep. "Just for tonight."

Mark's chest tightened at the request. He looked down at Tong's peaceful face, his breathing soft and steady, his features serene in the dim light.

There was a vulnerability in the way Tong had leaned on him, a quiet trust that made Mark's heart ache. For all the strength Tong had shown in the face of his trials, there was still a part of him that longed for comfort, for safety.

Mark brushed a strand of hair away from Tong's forehead, his fingers trembling slightly as they traced the contours of his face. Tong stirred in his sleep, curling into Mark's side as if seeking warmth.

Mark held him tighter.

He could feel the weight of his own immortality, the curse that kept him tethered to a life he had never asked for, pressing down on him.

Tong was human, fragile and fleeting, but Mark had fallen for him in spite of that—or perhaps because of it. Tong represented everything Mark had lost, everything he could never have. And yet, here they were, tangled in a fate neither of them could escape.

The moonlight filtered through the curtains, casting soft shadows across the room. Mark's eyes remained fixed on Tong, watching the rise and fall of his chest, the gentle flutter of his eyelids as he dreamed.

In those quiet moments, it felt like the world had shrunk to just the two of them—like nothing else mattered.

But deep down, Mark knew the truth.

He couldn't stay. No matter how much he wanted to, no matter how much he longed to hold Tong in his arms and protect him from the darkness that threatened to consume them both, he knew he had to leave.

The morning was approaching. And with it, the dangers that came with Mark's cursed existence.

As the first light of dawn began to creep across the horizon, Mark's grip on Tong loosened.

He leaned down, pressing a soft kiss to Tong's forehead, his lips lingering for a moment longer than they should have.

"I'm sorry," Mark whispered, his voice thick with emotion. "But I can't stay."

Tong stirred slightly in his sleep, his brow furrowing as if sensing Mark's absence, but he didn't wake.

Mark stood slowly, carefully untangling himself from Tong's embrace. He hesitated for a moment, his hand hovering over Tong's cheek, as if reluctant to let go. But he knew he had no choice.

With one last glance at Tong's sleeping form, Mark turned and slipped out of the apartment, disappearing into the fading night just as the first rays of sunlight began to break through the sky.

When Tong awoke, the apartment was empty once again.

And Mark was gone.