Staring up at the sky, the petit boy's teeth pierced his plump lips as his eyes narrowed. It was odd: the sun was its usual yellowish color, never blocked by any clouds and yet, everything else was a faded grey. Blond hair falling into forest green eyes, he let a nearly silent sigh escape him.

Another day had begun: and he still had yet to discover the wonders of the one single color he could not see. He oftentimes wondered if his world would ever be complete this way: if blues would bloom on the sky and sea once and fill everything with life. Green meant nothing to him those days: it was vibrant, yes, but in a way, already old, empty.

The boy had spent eighteen years already, waiting for something to change...

But it had yet to happen. Of course, he could not truly complain about such things: he could have been stuck not seeing the greens of forests or the browns of earth. Or maybe even the deep grey of the sky before thunder. It could have been worse.  

A shudder ran down his spine as a cool breeze wafted through the peaceful spring morning: it seeped through his clothes and clung to him as if it was a cold second skin, wet still from the morning dew.

With  hope slowly draining out of a faded grey heart, the boy started his journey to school once more. It was a nice day, fit to be the start of something new.

"Hey Lu!" a cheery voice greeted him just as one dainty foot was set on the wooden tiles of the large classroom his first class would be held in. Pink lips curled into a forced smile as he nodded towards the voice, raising a hand as well in a weak attempt to say hi .

"What's got you down lil' one?" his one and only friend asked as he bounced to his side, clearly way too happy at such an early hour. But he had always been that way, even when he had been little. Most children liked to sleep in but he viewed every single morning as a new adventure... and the sooner he woke up, the sooner he was able to go on one. Maybe his positive outlook on life was fuelled even more by the fact that he had found the one that colored his world at a very early age. The boy was a year or two older than him and definitely someone who was just as happy-go-lucky as he was. It was odd: many would have thought that they would both end up with someone who would cool them down a little, tie them to the ground a bit more.

But no and maybe that made them even more perfect: their brains worked so similarly that they could often guess what the other was thinking. The boy who went by the nickname Lu went to bed many times, praying for something like that, too: he wanted to find the person who would finally make him complete, too.

Sighing again as he headed to his desk, the not so young boy looked at his friend again once more. He wanted badly to just tell him how much he despised his life at the moment... but sometimes, actions spoke much louder than words... Or so he told himself every single morning as he gazed right into the mirror. That was what kept him going each day. Sometimes, he even mouthed the words to his little motto, imagining saying them out loud. Of course, no sound was ever capable of escaping his lips: his words had been stolen long, long ago.

"I bet you are going to find your soulmate today." his friend said with a small grin, hooking an arm around his shoulder. He said that every single day and sometimes, even he seemed like he wasn't sure about it. It was as if he too, was losing hope.

Some time passed in silence. People came into the class room and greeted the two softly, a girl even went to hug them both. She held onto Lu longer, their contact a bit awkward given their matching height. And yet that did not stop her from doing so... even if they were not that close. She never forgot to greet the boy, grinning at him each time their eyes met.

Maybe she was just lonely, too.

"I heard that we are getting a new teacher today," the more energetic of the two said as he lent down on his desk, grinning from ear to ear. Class was approaching fast and yet he looked pleased with himself, cat-like lips curling into his usual smile. As if he knew something great would truly happen this time.

He quickly grabbed his books and put them on his desk as the bell rang, voice shrill enough to scare some adventorus birds off the large tree that stood just a few meters from their school. It shook a bit from the sudden movement and the leaves fluttered, their dark green color standing out against the pale grey Lu could see everywhere else. He let out a soft sigh as he leant ahead, wondering what would happen if one moments, blue would finally appear on the palette of his sight. He sometimes wondered if he would even notice such a thing happening: after all, he was so used to this. Maybe his mind would opt to ignore the color instead of recognizing it for some weird, twisted reason. Maybe... maybe it had already happened?

Who knew, really.

"Class, stand up!" a deep voice rumbled, shaking the boy out of his thoughts. He fumbled to obey, almost knocking his small desk over as he stood up as quick as he could. One of his pens were not as lucky as his books as it fell down, landing on the floor with a tell-tale clanking sound. It was not loud and yet it alerted the teacher just enough: the next thing he knew, the shuffling of heavy boots came closer and closer. He dared not to raise his gaze, allowing it to focus on the a spot on the ground instead. He was already embarrassed enough that he had managed to make the teacher pay attention to himself the first minute the man had arrived and now, he would probably even have to explain his situation. His heart was throbbing in his throat as the sound grew louder and then, he saw someone - the teacher - finally stop, right in front of his desk. He flinched a bit, still keeping his eyes fixed on the floor.

"Maybe he won't notice me this way." he thought in a vain attempt to sooth himself. He took a deep breath, almost sure that he would be able to avoid danger when suddenly, a sharp pain shot up his arm. Something had hit him. Not hard enough to cause a bruise probably, but it still brought tears to his eyes.

"Student, look at me!" murmured the new teacher. The boy refused to, tiny hands going up to quickly wipe his tears away. He felt a weird pull in his chest as he shook his head, causing some of his classmates to chuckle lightly at his childish antics. They all knew just how he was not the one to do such things: he preferred to look down, down on the ground... As if it would open up and swallow him whole.

"What's your name?" the teacher tried again, voice somewhat softer this time. The boy shook his head again but his lips formed an 'oh'. Something deep down in his chest stirred: he suddenly desperately craved to be capable of shouting his own name.

"His name is Luhan, Sir!" his friend said, always there to save him when such issues arose."He.. he is mute, but I'm sure that the staff had explained everything to you already..."

"Oh, so it's him. Already causing trouble too, eh?" the teacher pondered but he did not press further: Luhan could hear him walk away. He let out a sigh of relief as he nearly fell back on his chair."And who are you, hm? I suppose you are not merely his microphone, are you?"

"The name's Byun Baekhyun, sir!" Baekhyun answered, voice somewhat jolly. He always talked like that to those he did not know, even when he was enraged. He was good at acting, after all.

The rest of class passed in almost complete silence: from the little episode, everyone could clearly see that the teacher was not the one they wanted to fool with. And yet, the girls swooned at his looks: he was apparently quite handsome.

Luhan could not know: he still had not gathered the courage to raise his gaze. He was a little unnerved by that as he was usually not this reluctant around people. Sure, he was incredibly shy and he preferred hiding instead of being in the spotlight but not looking at a teacher during a fourty-five minute class was a new record.

Baekhyun thought otherwise, of course. He was quite sure that the boy was just being his usual bashful self, the one that barely even noticed how much like a shy deer he truly was. He was like a little angel that had fallen straight to hell, too pure for this world in a way. But he did not see just how sweet, how precious he was. Despite being incredibly content with the one he called his, sometimes he wished that he had someone like innocent little Luhan all to himself.

Just as Luhan was about to gather his books and leave for his next class, he suddenly heard his name being called. He tensed up completely, but did not look there yet, swallowing hard as he wondered what gods he had upsetted with waking up that day.

"Could you come see me after your classes? I usually hold oral exams at the end of each semester and well.. I would like to talk to you about such."

Luhan nodded meekly, his eyes fixed on his hands. He hated being treated that way: as if he was special, as if he was... different. It was scary in a way. Sometimes even he felt like there was something unusual about himself.

"Come Lu or we'll be late from class!" Baekhyun grabbed his hands and tugged him out of the classroom, a grin on his lips."He seems so cold, huh? I bet he's gonna be a sweetie to you though. Everyone is."

It was a lie and they both knew it. Before he had learnt to shut people out, Luhan had been the target of quite a few schoolmates of his. It surely had been long enough for him to barely remember, but it did not mean that it had not happened. One scar that a particularly violent bully had given him still shone brightly on his chest: it was thin and had paled significantly, but it was there. All the boy could remember from that one day was how much being cut open hurt. He had no idea where the boy who was his age had gotten such a sharp knife - or had it been a pair of scissors he had? maybe a piece of glass? - but he knew that it had not been just a dream.

Luhan shuddered at the thought, his hand flying up to land on his clothed chest for a moment. He felt oddly exposed at the moment even though he was clad in his school's uniform which was truly all but revealing.

The next class passed in a blur. The boy kept on glancing out the window. The grey of his sky seemed to have gained an odd color, one he had not seen before. It was really pale, barely there, but it was still something he was not used. His hands itched: he wanted badly to write it down to Baekhyun. On the other hand, he was quite sure that his friend would only chuckle at him. It was most possibly his brain playing dirty