The moment Taekwoon's hands left his lips, after an aggressive coughing storm, the seconds his eyes couldn't leave the soft pale petal, with crimson blood staining, which slowly landed on the floor as delicately as nothing had happened, he knew, the time for him to stop himself from waiting for Hyuk had come.

.

"What? You can't make it tonight?" The familiar warm tone flowed into Taekwoon's ears through the phone like always, and he was trying to figure out if it did contained a mixture of worry and annoyance. Annoyance was the thing Taekwoon tried his best, even with his last breath, his last drop of blood, to avoid bringing to Hyuk.

"Yes, my work is piling up.." This wasn't the first time Taekwoon told him how busy and tiring his work was, but definitely the first time ever he declined spending a night of pleasure with Hyuk. As those words left his mouth, his tounge seemed to have this bitter taste, just like how twisted his mind was right then. His heart couldn't stop throbbing as if this was the last few seconds it was able to live on this earth, because Taekwoon didn't want Hyuk to mistake his words as an excuse to push the younger away. 

It was obviously the opposite. 

Taekwoon was head over heels for Hyuk, as nothing could beat those chances to be with Hyuk in being Taekwoon's happiness, or in making Taekwoon's day. So he tried his best, calming his voice, his whole body, to make it sound as sincere as possible. 

"Well, that leaves me no choice then. I will go straight to Jaehwan's house, just finish your work already. But remember not to drink too much coffee, okay? It always leaves this weird taste in your mouth whenever we make out, oh my friend is coming i'm hanging u-"

"O..kay... B-Bye Hyuk.."

Maybe he stared at his phone more than he should, quite a lot.

Guilty as he felt for this erring pang in his heart, he couldn't deny that it was obvious Hyuk would come to Jaehwan if he himself couldn't serve him.

Serve, yes.

Months ago when Hyuk offered him to be his buddy with that signature captivating shining smile, and the beautiful curves of his eyes that Taekwoon was secretly head over heels for, from afar for so long, he thought it was the greatest opportunity he could ever have. Because he simply thought no one could die from their heart mentally shattered by jealousy, stupidity and his pain of unrequited love. No one could. Of course he couldn't. His stoic face had been told to be able to endure any kind of pain in this world. Until he realized it wasn't the panic attack he had, whenever Hyuk went to other people, kissing other people, ing other people, that suffocated him. 

Never had flower petals been near hideous to Taekwoon, before Hyuk came to his life. Before love covered those beautiful things with his blood.

Hanahaki, that was what it was called. And Taekwoon chuckled silently, as he finally had something beautiful inside his body to show Hyuk with a sand of pride. This must be a joke, Taekwoon thought, trying to convince himself. He wasn't living in a fantasy world, where myths and fairytales existed, where biology didn't make sense to prevent flowers from blooming in his chest. There was no seed, no sunlight, no pure water. 

And reality hit him.

Those flowers were raised from his seed of greed for Hyuk to be his, and his only. They were natured in the darkness of his room whenever he turned off all the light and cried himself to sleep, after he saw Hyuk coming to Jaehwan's house, imagining all things they could have been doing. Those creatures were living off his blood, which kept him alive to sate Hyuk, to satisfy Hyuk, to give him all his love. 

It all made sense.

It made so much sense that it took all of Taekwoon's senses from him when he vomitted all those blood petals out, into the toilet, to hurt him until he choked with tears streaming down those puffy cheeks that Hyuk enjoyed violating. In the blur of his eyes, after the storm had faded, Taekwoon couldn't make out what kind of flower it was, to answer if there were thorns clawing in his throat, wanting to out all of his energy.

It just came once or twice a day, but he still couldn't hide it from Hongbin. The younger just sighed loudly into Taekwoon's hair, who was clutching to him with all of his left strength, sobbing, after explaining everything. 

"Is he worth it? Is he worth you losing your life?"

He didn't think this could take away his life, but still, Hyuk was everything to him. How everyone since his primary school days treated him, how his family left him after knowing he was gay, how the apartment was always cold and way too big, those were absolutely the opposite of how Hyuk's touch made him feel.

It was a rainy day when he forgot to bring his umbrella that Hyuk came, as bright as sunlight, offering him a drive home. He was a total stranger who was weirdly attractive and weirdly kind to Taekwoon, who happened to be a stranger with a cold face that everyone stayed away from, yet Taekwoon believed him as much as he belived in the cat he owned years ago. He found out Hyuk was working in his company too, just in a different department. And when they reached the apartment, after Hyuk smilingly asked for a treat and Taekwoon agreed, that was the moment the older's heart was entirely captured. No way out. No way out of the way Hyuk suddenly hugged Taekwoon from behind and flipped him to melt him away with his kiss, of the way electricity ran through him as Hyuk devoured him under his touch. Communicating with people had always been overwhelming to Taekwoon, let alone the pleasure, the attention and passion Hyuk gave him when Taekwoon became a mess, ed thoroughly into his own bed by the younger. Not being treated badly was too rare for Taekwoon that just when Hyuk complimented him playfully on how beautifully his back arched, he came, resulting in him sobbing from shame and pleasure, thinking how Hyuk would just leave right then and there. After the warmest embrace he had ever had, the fullest feelings he had ever felt. But what he didn't expect, was Hyuk just showering him with small kisses and praises, calling him names that were different. Adorable, cute, little kitten, good boy.. those words could overshadow all the ugly names people called Taekwoon in the past for a while, for as long as he was with Hyuk. Taekwoon asked Hongbin if being the older yet enjoying Hyuk's pat on his head was odd, and he only heard "it's just love, hyung."

.

It was lunch time, although Taekwoon had never had the gut to ask Hyuk to have his meal with him, today he felt different. Taking the elevator, Taekwoon was so lost in his thoughts of how to talk to Hyuk without being a burden and his imaginary of Hyuk's touch that Hongbin had to tell him to stop blushing already.

The petals never came during noon, and he thought eating food may also help pushing down the flows, so the idea of spending more time with Hyuk seemed great to him. Just that he had to wait until gaining enough confidence.

"How can you even endure that dude, Hyuk? He is scary as ! Don't you feel cold whenever you're near him?"

Hongbin stopped Taekwoon from walking further.

"Are you talking about Taekwoon?"

"Yeah! That dude, the giant one! I even heard you and him are friends, have you lost your mind or something?"

"I don't care what you think about him." The familiar warm voice to Taekwoon made the cloud go away. "But he is just a good ." And shoot right through his heart.

"What?"

"You know, he looks taciturn and like a living ghost to some people, but he is totally obidient on bed, and i totally enjoy turning that cold face into a red panting one, that's the only reason." Hongbing could feel the shivering clutch onto his suit from behind, along with a small, almost inaudible gasp and sob Taekwoon was trying hard to hide. "It's satisfying, like some kinds of achivements. I like challenges, don't you remem-" 

As he felt the petals were coming up slowly in his lungs, Hongbin's shirt was snatched away way too fast for him to realize anything.

"Are you Sanghyuk?" Failing to stop Hongbin from walking out from the block, Taekwoon had to watch he furiously stumping toward Hyuk and his co-worker. 

"Yes, and you are..?" Hyuk still looked as calm and handsome as normal, looking up at Hongbin from his chair.

"I'm Taekwoon's friend, and i wonder if you want to have lunch with us. Ah, there he is. Taekwoon, come out!"

Yet no one answered.

"Taekwoon?"

"Taekwoon! Where did you go?"

Without running away, Taekwoon could have seen how strange Hyuk's face was.