twelve hours » jaeseong

[one hour]

Jaeyoon broke the hug and glamoured his wings again, feeling for a moment like he was being crushed inside his body. Then the usual claustrophobia passed, replaced by the kind Inseong's tear stained face created. Jaeyoon reached out and gently wiped the other boy's cheek with his thumb.

"Please don't leave me," Inseong pleaded, and maybe it was the pain in his eyes or the cracking voice that finally broke Jaeyoon's heart. And as it broke, it released all of his love, which filled the room with a symphony of a million different shades of pink.

That was what made Jaeyoon sob for the first time in his entire life. It was a strange feeling, but it seemed to mend his heart with the burn of iodine.

"Inseong, I wasn't made to fall in love, do you understand that?"

Inseong nodded, fresh tears spilling down his cheeks once more. The prospect of a goodbye loomed over both of them like a hovering, dark cloud.

"But I fell in love with you and I'm so grateful that I did. I cannot thank you enough for showing me what that feels like. And in all my years of living, I have never felt such a complete happiness as I did with you. Thank you." Jaeyoon took a deep breath. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

And then the tears were flowing freely from both of them and Jaeyoon didn't understand why the most beautiful emotion in the world hurt so much.

Every tick of the clock tore his broken heart a little more.

"When that clock chimes one, I'll be gone forever."

Inseong sobbed.

"It's okay," Jaeyoon rushed to assure him, "I've been alive for so long that it's gotten weary. I'm just glad that you showed me what a real life means." But his words only made Inseong cry harder, and then they were hugging again, so tightly that Jaeyoon thought that even if his time did run out, he'd still be here.

They held each other that desperately. And Jaeyoon was choking on sobs and the noises Inseong was making weren't helping, either.

"I'm so sorry I wasn't better. I could've prevented all this if I had just done the mission from afar," Jaeyoon mumbled.

"No! Because then I wouldn't have met you and fallen in love with you and I wouldn't be able to remember this forever, even when I'm old and you're–you're gone. The moment I laid eyes on you, I knew I'd remember your face forever, you know. I knew it." Inseong laughed a little bit, a painful, breathy sound. "And now I'll be able to remember so much more about you."

Jaeyoon managed to smile weakly. Then he glanced at the clock again. The minutes were slipping by way too fast. Thirty left.

"I'm going to die soon, but Inseong, you made me feel so alive—" And because he couldn't bear to speak any longer, he laid a hand on Inseong's cheek, turned his face, and leaned in for a kiss.

His wings unintentionally arched as their lips touched, feathers rustling. The glamour fell away once more. He felt and saw explosions against his closed eyelids.

The kiss was desperate and sweet, trying to make up for years of love and life that they'd never be able to lay claim to. They pulled away and Jaeyoon looked at Inseong once before allowing a sad smile to break forth and kissing him again. Inseong's hands splayed against his back, roaming across his skin and feathers in a way that made all of his nerves dance with fire. Jaeyoon pushed his hands through Inseong's hair and broke the kiss, their foreheads touching.

"I'm going to miss you so much," Inseong whispered.

"Please don't."

"I won't stop loving you."

"Neither will I."

"Ten minutes," Inseong whispered. Jaeyoon closed his eyes tightly. Opened them. He pulled away a little bit to trace Inseong's facial features, ignoring how broken their gazes were. It all hurt too much. Inseong pulled Jaeyoon into a hug again, squeezing him painfully tight.

He couldn't breathe, but then again, he hadn't properly breathed for the last half hour.

"My love," he whispered. "My miracle, my everything."

"Please, please, please..."

Jaeyoon didn't know if Inseong was pleading with him or time or the gods, but he knew that it was in vain. The phrase amorini laid their dead to rest with kept repeating in his mind.

One minute. Their hands turned desperate, clutching at each other.

Thirty seconds. Jaeyoon pulled away to stare at Inseong's face, his lips, his cheeks, his tortured eyes.

He gazed at Inseong like he was memorizing all his features. And he was.

Because they had fallen in love too fast, breaking ancient laws of nature. And their love was desperate and doomed.

The clock's ticking filled their ears as their eyes filled with each other.

And despite everything, Jaeyoon felt happy.

Happy that he met Inseong.

Happy that he

finally

knew

what love felt

like.

a/n: whoops :)