"S-Sehun...hold my hand."

"Wha-why?"

"I want this moment to last longer."

Sehun feels Zitao's fingers curl around his. The swaying building slowly comes to a stop and the chaos fades. All that remains is Zitao and his voice.

"Hey, remember? You used to hate me..."

Throughout his childhood, Sehun was convinced that he had a superpower. He never told anyone after he turned seven though, because he learned that people would write him off as being crazy and it would only get worse as he got older.

He didn’t want to get locked up in a mental asylum or wherever the government took special people.

What made him think he had a superpower was that he swore time would stop. Like literally. Everyone and everything would suddenly freeze and Sehun would...not. He'd be the only thing that could move in the world. Then everything would snap back into action. Everyone acted as if nothing had happened and would be confused if Sehun was suddenly in a different spot.

It just happened randomly but sometimes the frozen time worked to his advantage so he entertained the thought that he had something to do with it.

Sometimes it was only a moment; other times, it could last for a couple of minutes. In fact, the duration grew longer as he grew up as if he was getting better at controlling the ability.

Then, during his first exam of college, he realized that it actually had nothing to do with him.

It was a gen-ed class that he had not thought too much about. Which was a mistake because the exam apparently counted for a lot and it was actually ing hard. When there were around 5 more minutes left, he was still sweating over the same question he had been swearing at for the past 10 minutes. He was hypersensitive of the ticking clock. It resounded in his mind and crashed against his ribs with his heart.

And then-

It stopped.

Sehun looked up in shock to see that the clock had stopped. Time had ing stopped at just the right moment.

But before he could celebrate, he realized that someone was moving.

That someone was a sophomore student that was taking a freshmen class to brush up on credits. Sehun didn’t know much about him because neither of them went to class and they were clearly both paying for that fact now.

But what the ?

That guy wasn’t frozen?

“You’re not frozen?” the guy in question asked. Without waiting for Sehun’s reply or explanation (not that he was going to give one), he continued, “Well I can only keep this going for at most ten minutes, so use it wisely.” He paused and cocked his head, studying Sehun with sharp black eyes. “You won’t rat me out, right? I’m helping you out too, bro.”

Things were flying through Sehun’s mind at the speed of light.

This guy is the time controller?

The time thing actually has nothing to do with me?

This guy can stop time for ten minutes.

Holy , ten minutes!

Ten minutes to copy the answers for half the exam…

Sehun scrambled over to the top student of the class and cautiously lifted the exam from her fingers. Then he realized the other guy was looking at the professor’s copy.

“Are the answers there?” Sehun called out.

“No .”

Sehun stuffed the paper back to where it belonged and rushed over to the guy’s side.

The ten minutes flew by. Just as Sehun was scribbling down the last answer, the guy muttered, “I’m losing control. You better get to your seat.”

And Sehun did just that, without questioning the man at all.

The ticking of the clock, the scratches of pencils on paper, the annoying tapping of the professor’s feet…all the sounds marking the passage of time resumed. Everything went back to normal, except for Sehun’s heartbeat.

He had just majorly cheated on his first college exam.

He had just met someone who could actually control time.

Well, damn…

He wasn’t really sure how he should feel because honestly, how many people had experienced the same thing and could give him an example of the proper reaction? He wasn’t given the chance to fully process everything either.

As soon as he turned in the exam and walked out the room, a hand latched onto his arm. He was spun around and met with that guy.

“What do you want?” Sehun blurted out.

The other arches an eyebrow. “Aren’t you gonna thank me?”

Sehun blanched. “Well, yeah. Thanks. A lot,” he stuttered.

He received a smirk in reply.

“What…”

The smirk deepened. “Come on.”

And he was grabbed and dragged through the campus. While sprinting to keep up and prevent his arm from getting pulled out of its sockets, Sehun yelled, “What’s wrong with you? , I don’t even know your name!”

There wasn’t a reply until they reached the back of the Minority Studies Building (no one went there) and Sehun was shoved against the wall.

“To answer your questions,” the man started. His voice was husky and dark from the exertion—as dark as the shadows shrouding his face. “My name is Zitao and I don’t trust you so I need to make sure you won’t expose me.”

It sounded like a threat. Sehun shivered and stammered, “I won’t. We’re all in this together-”

He was shut up because lips smashed into his.

And then there was a click.

When the man—Zitao—pulled back, he was still smirking. Sehun had just had that smirk on his ing lips.

“What the ! You—”

“Do you think this is enough blackmail material?” Sehun stared in horror as Zitao checked his phone and showed the picture. “So don’t go telling people what I can do and what I just did, alright? You know what happens to abnormal people, right?”

Later—weeks later—Zitao had apologized for essentially assaulting and terrorizing Sehun for no reason. It was not until months later that Sehun stopped hating the man.

It took much longer for Sehun to get over his fear of being abnormal and to start falling for Zitao.

But by then, the war had started.

“Our relationship isn’t healthy,” Sehun mumbles. He can’t feel his legs anymore, which is a good thing. Better to be numb than in paralyzing pain.

“No,” Zitao agrees. His voice is still husky and beautiful but if Sehun thinks about it, it sounds more hoarse and tired than anything else.

He wants to turn or shift so he can see Zitao for one last time, but he really can’t move. All he can stare at is the precariously hanging building and hope that his life will flash past his eyes later. Then he’ll see Zitao’s mischievous eyes and lips curled into a smile.

“But I’m still glad you were dumb enough to follow me here.”

“You had that picture of me. I had to make sure you wouldn’t actually blackmail me, you .”

Zitao chuckles or coughs or something. “You’re still hung up on that?”

“Yeah.”

“Sorry.”

“I forgive you.” Sehun sighs. “I forgave you, a long time ago.”

Sehun didn’t know why the war started or how the special forces were formed, but Zitao was “strongly encouraged” to join by the government when they found out about his power and Sehun just wanted to be with him.

They ended up in the same unit. Though in different six-man teams, they worked together and Sehun saw Zitao often during training.

Zitao’s team consisted of: Yifan, flight; Luhan, telekinesis; Minseok, ice; Jongdae, electricity; and Yixing. Yixing had no true powers and was the healer of the group.

Sehun had a similar role but he had to admit that Yixing was much better at the job.

Sehun’s team consisted of: Junmyeon, water; Baekhyun, light; Chanyeol, fire; Kyungsoo, earth; and Jongin, teleportation.

The two teams trained together and fought together. They were supposed to save each other, kill for each other, die for each other.

But training was not the same as war and war changed people.

Yixing and Sehun realized early on that not everyone could be saved though everyone did everything they could to live.

When Baekhyun’s light dimmed, Chanyeol and Jongdae had broken down, shooting firelight and electric light into him. But Baekhyun’s body just got darker until it was burnt to crisp and Sehun had never felt more useless.

He didn’t like thinking about those things.

“Hey,” Zitao starts again. “Remember how Luhan was moving stuff around to piss Kyungsoo off but Jongin just got out of his wormhole and got hit in the balls? And Yifan-”

Sehun closes his eyes.

Sehun does remember but he doesn’t like thinking about these things because he doesn’t want to remember how Luhan was captured, tortured, and sent back in too many pieces to count.

And how he and Zitao were trying to save Kyungsoo and Jongin before they were ambushed.

And how they’re in this state now because Yifan defected.

Sehun really can’t blame Yifan. They’re all trying to live and the only way to do that is to kill others.

Sehun killed his enemies. Yifan first turned his teammates into enemies before killing them. So they aren’t too different.

But Sehun doesn’t want to think about that.

“Zitao,” he chokes out. “I wish we can go walk on the beach again.”

“If only we can teleport…” Zitao chuckles dryly.

Sehun stares at the smoky sky until tears prick at the corner of his eyes.

“Do you have any regrets?”

“Not kissing you more,” Zitao answers without missing a beat.

Sehun laughs. It hurts but he keeps going even as his broken ribs rattle and his ruptured lungs tremble. There won’t be many more chances for Zitao to make him laugh.

“W-why are you so annoying all the ing time?” he gasps.

In the silence, he imagines Zitao’s cocky but endearing smile--they way his lips curl, revealing the tooth crooked from when Sehun had accidentally punched him during a pillow fight.

“What about you?” Zitao murmurs.

“Meeting you.”

“Fair enough.”

Sehun doesn’t need to explain and he can’t--not really. It physically hurts too much.

But if he had never met this man, he won’t be hurting this much, right?

“I--I think I’m…”

“Are you tired?” Sehun whispers. The hand around his clenches weakly.

“Not really. A little.” There’s a sigh.

Sehun feels lips ghosting on his cheek but he’s not sure of anything anymore. Zitao’s voice fades in and out. The world blurs and sharpens. The building hanging above them wavers.

“I wish I can make this moment last longer.” Zitao’s voice is so thin it snakes into Sehun’s wounds and wraps around his heart. “I wish this moment can last forever.”

“You’ve done well,” Sehun chokes out. His throat is clogging up now. Maybe it’s the poison, maybe it's the blood, maybe it’s the tears.

“J--just a moment longer to...to say… I love you.”

Sehun opens his mouth. The three words gets stuck in his throat.

The building starts falling.