Lukesse Oneshots~2018 Wattys

Petals

Hey. Soo this is gonna be a two, maybe three parter. Enjoy.

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Lukas laughed with a smile. Jesse beamed back at him. It was a normal day for the two. Hanging out together whenever they could, either outside enjoying the beautiful day they had been blessed with, or inside sipping hot cocoa and cuddling under blankets as they watched movies and played video games. It was their normal routine, one which they simply adored.

But, sometimes, their routine would be broken because Lukas fell sick.

Jesse never knew what it was, since Lukas never elaborated it to her, and she was fine with that. If he didn't want to tell, he didn't have to. But it made her concern for him grow, especially when his days of sickness grew more and more frequent with each passing month. Eventually, Jesse could no longer stand being in the dark and approached Lukas' house with some things in her backpack. A warm blanket, thermometer, ingredients for her homemade tea that helped almost any sickness, and a few books. She walked up to the front porch and gave the door a gentle knock before stepping back and waiting patiently.

She heard a rustle from inside and could just barely see a speck of blue peering at her from the eyehole of the door. "Lukas? Can I come in?" Jesse asked. Instead of a spoken answer from the blond, Jesse's phone dinged with a notification. She looked at it and saw a text from Lukas.

'No, I'm fine. Don't worry about me.'

Jesse looked back at the eye still peering at her through the eyehole. "Lukas, please, you acting like this is making me worry. Let me come in," she pleaded. Another ding.

'Please don't. Trust me, I'm fine.'

Jesse sighed. Feeling defeated, she turned around and started walking. She had almost reached her house just down the street when a thought struck her. It was crazy, but she needed to know what was going on. So she turned on her heel and ran back to Lukas' house, ducking behind the bushes which concealed the fence to his backyard. She opened the gate latch and crept in, closing the gate behind her, before making her way over to a single window that led to the basement. It was practically hidden by bushes and flowers, but Jesse knew where it was without needing to see it.

She carefully pushed against the window, opening it up from the outside. Lukas had always told her he kept it unlocked just in case, seen as it was nearly impossible to spot from outside anyway, and Jesse was using that knowledge to find out what was happening with Lukas. While it certainly wasn't the best option, it was all she had at the moment. Jesse slithered into the basement, carefully closing the window behind her, then making her way to the stairs up to the ground floor. Once she had ascended the stairs, an unusual sight greeted her.

Flower petals covering the ground.

She stepped forward before kneeling, grabbing a small petal and examining it. She had been to Lukas' house many times before, but she never saw any petals, let alone flowers. And as she looked around, Jesse noticed the floor was covered with the delicate things. Where could they have come from? Jesse dropped the petal and continued on, creeping carefully throughout the house. Everywhere she went, there were petals covering the floor. She stopped abruptly, her muscles tensed when she heard a sound coming from the cracked door of Lukas' bedroom.

It almost sounded like crying...

Jesse crept forward and looked inside the crack between the door and its frame. Lukas was sitting on his bed, holding a small flower in his hand. Tears streamed down his cheeks, his body shaking with violent sobs and gags. But just when Jesse thought she had been surprised enough, she saw something that took the cake.

Lukas was coughing up flowers and petals.

Jesse's hand went to cover her mouth as tears built up in her eyes. After all this time, Lukas was suffering from Hanahaki Disease? She looked at the ground, tears falling onto the petal-covered floor, her mind immediately realizing what was the cause of his sickness.

The Hanahaki Disease was a disease that was actually quite common. It comes from one-sided love. The only way people know they have the disease is when they cough up flowers and petals. There is only one way to remove the flowers, which is by a surgery which removes the flowers from one's lungs. Of course, this does not come without consequences, and the consequence is the feelings for the person dissipate, as if they never existed in the first place. It could sometimes be a cruel consequence, but one that was effective nonetheless.

And seeing her best friend like that made Jesse lose any thoughts of staying hidden, and she burst into the room, effectively scaring Lukas, before running up and hugging him tightly. The man hugged her back after a moment, managing to get over his shock. When they pulled away, Jesse gently held his hands in her own, tears falling from her sad, green eyes. "Why didn't you tell me?" she whispered. Lukas looked away from Jesse, scared to meet her gaze. "I-I didn't want you to worry about and pity me. I didn't expect for you to find out like this..." "....Who is it?"

Lukas took a deep, shaking breath.

"It's you, Jesse. I love you."

Jesse's eyes widened. After all this time, she was the cause of this? "I never wanted you to find out like this. I get you don't love me, but I couldn't care less as long as you're happy..." Lukas added in a haunted whisper. Jesse moved her hands to cup Lukas' cheeks. "As long as I'm happy? How can I when I'm the cause for all your suffering?! I don't deserve to have you in my life, let alone love me! I-I'm so sorry...." Jesse sobbed. Lukas pulled Jesse closer, allowing her to tightly hug him as she cried into his shirt. Lukas held Jesse tightly, pressing his lips to the top of her head in a comforting kiss. "Jess, please stop crying... I don't like it when you cry... Especially when you believe something is your fault when it's not..." Lukas said gently. Jesse looked up at Lukas, a few rogue tears falling down her cheeks.

"Lukas... Can't I do anything to help?" Jesse pleaded. "The only thing left is for me to get the surgery. If I don't, I could die," Lukas replied. Jesse's eyes widened at Lukas' confession. While she did not want her best friend to die, she didn't want his feelings for her to go. She knew at that moment she had to try. "Lukas, please don't go to the surgery. Can't we have a week? And in that week, maybe I could fall for you," Jesse pleaded. Lukas' eyes widened. "But, Jess, I can't ask you that! I don't want you to force yourself to love me for my sake!" Lukas exclaimed. Jesse gently took her hands in Lukas'.

"I'd rather that than you going to surgery. Besides, I wouldn't mind falling for you anyway."