wilted flower ─ changlix ✓

epilogue

changbin flipped the pancake into the air, mentally high fiving himself as it flipped perfectly in the air and landed back in the pan. he knew his boyfriend would appreciate it, and smiled at the thought.

looking at the clock, he let out a small gasp before hurriedly trying to put the pancake on the stack already piled on the plate. in the end he ended up just throwing it at the plate, decorating it with whipped cream and chocolate syrup and strawberries. basically everything he could get his hands on in an attempt to make it look pretty.

just as he predicted, he heard the door open and the familiar voice call out cheesily, "oh honey, i'm home!"

"welcome back," changbin called back, "i'm in the kitchen!"

"the kitchen? should i be worried?" the voice replied, sticking his head into the doorway. he had a heart shaped smile on his face, making his cheeks full and chubby. and decidedly... non freckled. "and would it kill you to use pet names from time to time?"

"apologies, my little quokka," changbin teased as his boyfriend, jisung, stared at the spread on the table. the mouth-watering pancakes lay untouched on the table, alongside a platter of fresh strawberries and other assortments of bright fruits. then  right in the middle, a creamy cheesecake.

"holy crap, changbinnie- cheesecake! you did all this for me? by yourself?" jisung laughed in disbelief, moving to quickly embrace changbin, "what's the occasion?"

changbin only grinned mischievously and gestured to the table, "you dig in, i'll be right back with something."

jisung didn't need to be told twice as he sat down at the table and helped himself to the array of food. changbin slipped out of the kitchen and moved to their shared bedroom. opening the drawer, he dug around until he found what he was looking for with a soft "aha!".

it was a simple gold ring, delicate and undecorated, but beautiful nonetheless. he knew that jisung would love it. after all, jisung always made sure that changbin knew he appreciated everything he did, no matter how small or insignificant. jisung reminded changbin of felix in that way.

changbin's paused as the thought of felix slipped into his mind once again. it had been around four years since the apocalypse, and four years since... well, he had been trying so hard to move on.

felix hadn't survived, although that had been expected. after the first symptom had showed up, it hadn't taken long for the hysteria to roll around.

when it did, felix had slowly began losing his mind. it hurt when there were times he would even look at changbin and not recognize him. the boy he turned into wasn't the same boy changbin had fallen in love with.

he had been in pain, changbin could see that. so he had had to get over his cowardice, his selfishness, and do the only thing felix had ever tried to ask of him.

it had been so painful. changbin had felt like giving up, after all, what was the point of living through the apocalypse, when felix wasn't there with him? but he had somehow forced himself to continue forward, reaching the bunker a few days later. grief causing him to move at a pace slower than he had anticipated.

that's where he met han jisung.

he would never say it out loud to him, because jisung would probably flaunt it in his face for the rest of their lives, but he'd been his savior. the boy had been in a similar situation, except he had been forced to lose his older brother. they had helped one another cope through everything. and slowly, through that, they had fallen for one another.

after that slow year, they got out of the bunker when they were on the edge of insanity. changbin found that neither his or felix's families had survived either. he had cried, sobbed. been in a darker place than he ever thought he could be, there was nothing left to physically remember felix. but jisung had guided him, helped him see that pinprick of light and walked alongside him as he tried to approach it. helped him realize that he didn't need something physical to remember him by because he'd always be a part of him.

sometimes changbin wondered what would have happened if felix had survived. would he have been giving him this ring instead? would they have even stayed together after the apocalypse?

perhaps they would have had more nights of sneaking into other people's backyards. more picnics in the woods. more cozy movie nights cuddled up with one another under the blankets. more hope. just... more.

"changbin?" jisung's voice cut through his thoughts, "are you okay?"

"yeah! i'm coming!"

he bit his lip and then let out a sigh. he knew part of him would always love and miss felix. miss his freckles, his teasing, his glittering eyes. but felix was his past. felix would always be part of him, a sunflower blooming in the depths of his heart.

however, he knew he loved jisung. jisung with his heart-shaped smile, his chubby cheeks, his contagious laugh.

jisung was a gift. someone he found when he thought he had lost everything. he was a part of the present...

...and hopefully, he'd be part of his future as well.

changbin snapped the ring case closed with a smile, adjusting his collar nervously as he stepped out of the room.

so this is where we'll leave changbin. perhaps his story will move forward with both love and sadness. but for now, we'll leave him with boyfriend, jisung...

"oh my god... yes! i will! yes yes, i love you so much changbin!"

... ah my bad, let me rephrase: his fiancé, jisung.

THE END

─ author's note 🌻

lMAO CHANGLIX WITH A TWIST Y'ALL. it was a double update because i didn't want to leave you hanging after that last chapter.

i know some people can't handle angst that well (ahem, me, ahem), so i want to apologize and give you a hug. i am a complete hypocrite ik but ily :)

i'm not going to lie when i say that i may have cried a little when writing these last two chapters aaAAaaaaA

─ love from melelel !