DonKiss Drabbles (Donut Couple AU Stories)

First Anniversary Special

AN: DonKiss Drabbles is celebrating its First Anniversary today! Happy Halloween everyone, and Happy Birthday to Me! 👻 Dark Donny! TRIGGER WARNINGS ARE ALSO APPLIED.

First Anniversary Special: Halloween

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When he was still alive, everyone adored Donny Pangilinan. He was the youngest basketball player of the team, the most popular, the talk of all local newspapers. The new MVP of their city, bringing gold over gold trophies to his college at interschool competitions, even on inter-city championships. All good things- but he should have known better, because all good things must come to an end.

He gets a sudden leg injury that eventually breaks his basketball career and meticulously planned bright future. With nothing left of his career, this ultimately leads him to his depression. Donny threw away all his close friends and other relationships in order to seclude himself from society, opting to indefinitely stay on his own at the national athletes’ rehab center for his legs' improvement.

But he closed in even more on himself after discovering that he could never walk the same way again despite the grilling exercises. Always limping on his way to the bathroom, along the corridors, and everywhere else he wanted to go.

His only escape was the rooftop. He always felt free of his problems when he goes there, especially the thought that he could just as easily slip on the ledge and end his life, but he never does. He's not suicidal, he thinks, well up until that point when the whole center suddenly caught up on fire, stranding him all alone with no other escape but to jump. The irony is not lost on him. He'll die if he jumps, he'll die if he stays. He waits for the rescue that never comes. He had stayed panic-stricken, both ruined feet planted on that roof. And Donny left the living world a coward and afraid.

So maybe that's why in death, everyone is afraid of Donny Pangilinan. For in the afterlife, he had carried all his lost dreams, self-loathing, anger and regrets, altogether fueling his growing darkness. He doesn't want to be the one who gets scared, he wants to be the one who scares.

One good thing has come in death, his injury have not prevailed, he was free to walk the center’s corridors normally, again and again, in a limbo. His burned body parts could also be intentionally hidden or forcefully shown to his amusement. But he's still a ghost- a ghost that had already lost his purpose, yet still lingering, enduring his own personal hell of Nothing.

Because in truth, there really is no Heaven or Hell, there is only Nothing.

One evening however that all changed. As Donny was walking past his old private rooms, he hears a small whimper at the end of one of his corridors. He turns to it, irritated, knowing full well that the others know better than to venture on this wing. He had declared it for himself. It belongs to him, and he’s never been kind to those who dare come near.

Donny walks leisurely and checks each and every room. If they’re smart enough and escape as fast as they could, he won’t chase after them. He just wants to be alone. And it’s been a while since Donny's felt the urge to hurt something. It’s been a while since he’s felt anything, really.

Donny pushes the last door and it slowly creaks open. The faint light of the moon washes over the place through the broken windows. He stares at the mold covered walls, the rotting bed, the dirty floor tiles and the discarded equipment. And the wheelchair that is ruined and so old the blue leather seat had completely rusted and turned dark brown.

His eyes settled on the origin of the noise. It’s a girl. Human and very much alive. She seems small in the center of this room, even smaller with the tears leaking off her eyes. She made a startled jump upon his entrance, and looks at him straight in the eye. Donny watches her turn all her attention to him, standing slowly, wiping at her eyes which suddenly looked angry. Which he found really funny especially seeing how her hands are still visibly shaking at her sides.