Key sat outside the clinic anxiously, his fingers entwined together and his head lowered. His eyes wandered anxiously across the freshly cleaned hospital floor, different sorts of negative thoughts filling his mind. He breathed out slowly, allowing himself to sink into the hard chair below him as he drowned himself in his personal world.
“Relax, Key. Just…relax.” He tried to soothe himself, yet no matter what he said, his mind wouldn’t calm down at all. Key steadied his breathing that had unexpectedly sped by taking a few deep breaths. Even with such actions, his heart was still beating at a fast rate.
“Key…there’s no need to be so anxious.” Jonghyun, who had been sitting beside him the whole time, patted him on the shoulder gently with a small smile. “Everything…will be just fine.”He comforted, though deep down inside both of them knew that whatever news the doctor’s going to bring would never be good.

Several nurses walked by, some whispering into each other’s ear as they pointed at the two men that were sitting so close to each other that it looked awkward. However, both Jonghyun and Key were used to it. Jonghyun sighed as Key lowered his head once more, trying to ignore the pointing fingers and the insulting word that were directed at the two of them. He could scarcely remember the last time someone had accepted him for who he was, and not shun him for his ual orientation.

The nurses soon scattered away, back to their work as another nurse stepped out the door.
“Mr. Kim Kibum?” She called out as she glanced down at her clipboard, her long delicate fingers pushing up her thick-rimmed glasses that seemed too big for her face.
“Let’s go.” Jonghyun heard his partner’s name being called and stood up, holding his hand out towards Key. However, Key only shook his head as he ignored the hand that had been held out for him.
“Jonghyun…you stay here.” He muttered, giving him a weak smile before he walked over to the room. “I don’t want you to worry about anything.” He said, his voice almost as quiet as a whisper.
“Key, wait!” Jonghyun called out and grabbed onto Key’s wrist. Key, who still had the smile hung on his face, just tugged his hand away and gave Jonghyun a reassuring nod before following the nurse into the room.

Witnessing Key walking into the room, Jonghyun breathed out heavily before slumping back onto the chair.
“You’ll be alright…” He muttered, his voice echoing softly in the empty corridor.

“Mr. Kim Kibum…” The doctor, who was in his 40’s with a balding issue, spun around in his chair with a report in his hand and breathed out slowly. “The test results have come out.” He muttered, flicking through the pages of the report. “May I ask for you to prepare yourself?” He said as he rested his hands on his lap.

Key nodded slowly at the doctor’s words.
“Before I tell you the results, may I ask…Who was that man outside waiting for you? Perhaps he was your brother…?” The doctor asked. “Please do pardon my rudeness. I need to make sure that others now about your condition too.”
“No…it’s fine.” Key gave him a polite smile. “He’s my partner.” Key explained.

Almost immediately after his sentence dropped, the doctor backed away like he had just been exposed to a vermin of some sort. Key could only smile wryly at his reaction – it wasn’t like he hasn’t seen that type of reaction before. He’s experienced worse.

“By partner…you mean…” The doctor began to say before his sentence reached a pause.
“Yes.” Key nodded as he shifted in his seat. “That is what I meant.”

The doctor cleared his throat as he adjusted his seat and picked up the report he had accidentally dropped before.
“I apologize. Now, back to the results.” He said as he flicked to the last page on the clipboard. “You have been diagnosed with COPD…also known as Chronic Obstructive pulmonary disease.” The doctor announced.

Key blinked twice before glancing blankly at the doctor, confusion sweeping across his mind.
“I-I’m…sorry?” He stammered.

“I know this is hard to accept all of a sudden, but this is what the test results have shown. I remember that you have been experiencing breathing difficulties…correct?” The doctor said as he tossed the clipboard onto the table beside him.

Key nodded slowly, his mind unable to dissolve the doctor’s words instantly.
“You may be wondering why you have this disease even though you don’t smoke.” The doctor assumed. “I’m afraid that this main cause of this disease was the genetics. Did you parents smoke?” He questioned.
“My father…” Key murmured. “He was quite a heavy smoker…”
“Then he may be the cause of this.”
“B-but…I…” Key stuttered, not being able to form a proper sentence with the condition that he was in. “Is there…a cure for this disease?” Key asked slowly.

The doctor glanced at him coldly before shaking his head.
“I’m afraid there is no cure for this particular disease. However, you may try with other hospitals.” He finished as he stood up.
“Excuse me? Other hospitals? Is there some kind of reason that is prohibiting me from receiving treatment here?” Key asked, a tint of astonishment in his voice as the doctor’s word finally dissolved in his mind.
“I’m sorry, but I don’t think that the staff here would like to treat homouals.” The doctor emphasized on the final word of the sentence as he shot another cold look at Key. “Perhaps other facilities will be willing to treat unnatural human beings like you.” And with that, he walked out the room, slamming the door shut after him.

Key sat in his chair, dumbfounded at the doctor’s words.

Trouble breathing…

No cure…

Homouals…?
Key could feel tears in his eyes, his vision being clouded by them as he clenched his fists together and gritted his teeth.
“Why…?” He whispered. “Why…can’t people just accept us for who we are?” He hissed to himself.
“Key!” A faint knock was heard from the other side of the door. “Are you okay?” Jonghyun’s voice flowed in.

Key hastily wiped the tears away from his face as he stood up and turned around.
“I’m fine…” Key reassured, his eyes widening once he heard how hoarse his voice was as he wrapped his hand around the doorknob and swung the door open. Jonghyun’s worried image immediately fell into his sight before arms were wrapped around waist, his entire body being pulled into a tight embrace.
“I was worried when I saw the doctor walking out…” Jonghyun breathed out in relief, his hand entangling with locks of Key’s hair as he rested his chin against Key’s shoulder.
“I said I’m fine…” Key smiled, his voice sounding almost like a chuckle he patted Jonghyun on the back reassuringly. “See? There’s nothing wrong.” He pulled back from the embrace and gave his partner a smile.
“What did the doctor say?” Jonghyun asked.

Key’s body jolted at Jonghyun’s question. He had hesitated to whether tell his lover or not. Of course, by all means, he would want to avoid hurting him at all costs, or allowing him to do something stupid. However, if he did tell Jonghyun, he would start worrying, and things will eventually get worse.

Lying may be a sinful thing to do, and people often categorize it under ‘betrayal’…but in this case, lying is allowed, and can even be considered under ‘caring’…Key thought as he smiled weakly at Jonghyun.
“He said it was just a cold, but it was more focused on my lungs this time. I guess that virus really did hit me pretty bad.” Key lied smoothly after much hesitation.
Jonghyun grinned.
“That’s good then…” He said as he picked up Key’s hand and held it, dragging him out of the room as they began walking out of the hospital. “I was just hoping that everything will be okay.” Another smiled bloomed on his face as he tightened his grip around Key’s hand, his eyes wandering off into a distance as they walked out of the hospital.

“Say…Jonghyun.” Key suddenly called out as they were walking down an empty street, their fingers still tangled together as they walked side by side.
“Hmm?” Jonghyun replied with a normal sound.

Key breathed in deeply, before sighing as he made up his mind.
“I'll fulfill one of your wishes, Jonghyun. Just say it. I'll do...anything.” Key slowly pulled his hand away from Jonghyun’s and turned to face him with a serious face.
“Key? Is something wrong?” Jonghyun glanced at him, confusion in his eyes as his head cocked slightly to the side. “Why are saying these things all of a sudden?” He questioned, placing his hands on Key’s shoulder.

“Don’t worry about the details.” Key gave him a small smile, sadness mixed in between as he shook his head. “I just…feel unproductive these days. Maybe if you request something, I can find something to do.” Key lied again, almost certain that Jonghyun would believe him immediately.

And he did.

With those words, Jonghyun embraced Key again, his lips just beside Key’s ear as they parted gradually.
“Then…paint me my world, will you?” He whispered softly.

“Now…I won’t be leaving this room unless I need to, okay?” Key pointed out, his fingers curled around the edge of the door as he peeked at Jonghyun, who was also staring back at him.
“Key, why can’t you forget about what I said? Why are you treating like a big deal?” Jonghyun asked, begging Key the final time for him to stop such a stupid action. Was he going to lock himself in there until he really ‘paints’ my world? Jonghyun asked himself. He glanced over Key’s shoulder – paint buckets of all colors and packages of paintbrushes were spread across the floor, several buckets of water were sitting beside them. In the middle of the room was one chair. That was it. How was Key going to survive with no food, no water, and only paint?
“But why are you doing this for me all of sudden? Are yousure that nothing is the matter?” Jonghyun studies Key’s expression, but still found nothing.
“I’m sorry Jonghyun.” Key apologized, though no apology could be heard in his monotone voice. “I’m afraid that I shouldn’t be seeing you for a while.”
“Why?” Jonghyun called out, his voice almost a whisper as his volume decreased drastically. His lips were quivering – or, his entire body was shaking. He bit down on his lower lip, his hands tightening into fists as he looked at Key with those chocolate brown eyes of his. “Why…are you being so selfish? Don’t you care about me anymore?” Jonghyun finally managed to speak, though his voice sounded more like a pitiful plead for attention than anything else.
“No…I still love you like I always did.” Key’s fingers trailed up to Jonghyun’s forehead and brushed away the locks of hair that covered his vision delicately. “I just…want you to be happy.” He breathed out, a sense of mysteriousness in his words. “I’ll paint your world with our memories.” Somehow, his sentence came out like a promise unintentionally.
“Then, can I at least…come in to check on you?” Jonghyun glanced at Key, the dark spheres in his eyes almost gluing onto Key’s vision as he waited for approval.

However, Key only shook his head. And with a brief smile, he shut the door.

From the other side, Jonghyun could hear a key being inserted into the door knob before being turned. And with that, they were separated. Jonghyun felt his knees giving away as his body crumbled to the floor, his hands almost clawing at the door as he gritted his teeth together, his vision already clouding with the tears that were b around his eyes.
“Key…why?” He repeated to himself, his voice broken as tears dripped onto the cold wooden floor beneath him. “Why…?”

Key leaned against the door, his right hand covering his eyes before his left hand joined it. He covered his face, his body slowly sliding down against the door before he touched the ground.
“I’m sorry, Jonghyun…” He whispered quietly, but not loud enough for the person on the other side of the door to hear. “I really am…but this is all I can do for you now. So please…forgive me.” Key cried out softly.

Jonghyun walked over to the living room, marking off the lonely calendar that hung on the wall lifelessly. He had been keeping track of the days that Key would leave the room, and the days that Key would confine himself in there.

With a swift move, he marked off another day. His eyes moved around the calendar, studying it before a loud sigh escaped from his mouth.
“Am I missing something?” Jonghyun walked over to the couch and sank into his, his run-down body almost compatible with the seat under him. “Is he hiding something from me?” He interrogated himself before a mocking smile bloomed on his face.

He glanced at the calendar once more.

Out of seventeen days, Key has only gone out of the room three times - probably to stock up on several necessities. Two of them being in the middle of the night, and the remaining day in noon. Jonghyun could immediately tell that Key was trying to avoid him at all costs, but what he didn’t know was that he would always sit by the door to the room that Key was in and wait. Once, Key had walked out the room, and he had prepared to leave to retrieve something, until his eyes collided with Jonghyun. Almost like a natural instinct, he rushed over to the door, took the key that was attached to his necklace and hurryingly locked the door before he scurried off. But even under that small moment, Jonghyun could see how much Key has changed. His originally round face had sunk in, his jaw line became defined as his entire body looked worn-out. There was one thing that Jonghyun was certain about over all the uncertainties.

Key had changed.

Whether it be physically, emotionally or mentally, he wasn’t the Key that he had known before.

Jonghyun shook the thought off his mind and stood up, wandering off before he was outside Key’s room once again subconsciously.
“Key? Is everything alright in there?” He asked, knocking on the door swiftly. “Do you need anything?”

However, only silence replied to his questions.

Jonghyun frowned as he knocked once more, this time a bit louder than before as he called out once more.
“Key? Are you in there?”

Still, no reply.

By now, Jonghyun was already worried as he tried twisting the door knob, but the door wouldn’t even budge. His free hand banged against the door loudly, hoping that someone would come out and tell him that everything was okay.

At last, he heard a faint movement from the other side of the door.
“Key!” Jonghyun called out in relief. “What happened?”
Yet, the reply he heard wasn’t something he was expecting.
“Leave.” Key’s voice ordered coldly. Even under the monotone voice, Jonghyun could hear the distress and fatigue that covered it.
“You don’t have to force yourself.” Jonghyun spoke fast; worried that Key would ignore him again. “Just please…forget about my stupid wish and come out…” He begged.
“Didn’t you hear me?” Key raised his voice from the other said. “I said leave!” He practically shouted.

Jonghyun’s body jolted as he heard the obvious raise in Key’s volume. Hurt covered his eyes, though no one was there to see it or comfort him. Silence covered the hallway as Jonghyun stood there, still as a statue with almost no movement.

Finally, he spoke.
“I’m sorry, Key…I was just…” He apologized, his forehead resting against the door.

However, Key didn’t reply.

Instead, Jonghyun could hear loud wheezing from the room.
“Key! I know there is something wrong with you! Come out, now!” Jonghyun shouted as he immediately detected that something was wrong.
“J-Jonghyun…” Key called out weakly. “F-forget…about it...haa…ngh…a-ack…and just…l-leave!” Key commanded once more through his gasps for air as he clutched onto his chest, beads of cold sweat trickling down his forehead. Immediately after, he began wheezing and coughing again, this time even louder than before.
“You expect me to leave at a time like this?!” Jonghyun roared in disbelief. “Whatever! I’m coming in!” Jonghyun yelled before taking a few steps backwards, preparing to knock the door open.

Before he could, a note slipped out from the gap just beneath the door. Jonghyun walked over and picked it up, examining it. On it, Key wrote a message messily, his letters almost scrawled over the page.

Jonghyun,

Please stop caring about me. You will understand what I am doing once I finish my job – fulfilling your wish. In the mean time, no matter what happens, don’t even try to barge through this door or enter this room. If you do, I cannot promise that you will ever see me again.

Please, just ignore me, and leave me alone.

Despite all that, please do not think negatively.

I still love you.

~Key.

The hands that were holding the paper shivered, before the note was crumbled and tossed aside.
“Fine!” Jonghyun yelled as he smashed his fist onto the picture that hung on the wall, the frame instantly shattering into a million pieces and cutting his hand, blood dripping down and staining the floor below him. “Do what you want! I don’t care anymore!” Jonghyun yelled angrily before slamming the door to the corridor shut.

Key sobbed as he heard the loud noise, the paintbrush that was in his hand dropped to the floor as the paint stained the wood below him. There was no power left in his legs, and he realized that when his body was on the floor. He didn’t care whether the paint was dirtying his clothes, the water was tainting his skin or the dust was attaching to his hair or not.
“Why can’t you understand…?” He cried, his shaking hand reaching over to the paintbrush and picking it up again before he dabbed it into the paint bucket once more. “All I ever wanted was for you to be happy…isn’t this what I’m aiming for?” He spoke quietly to himself, several intervals cutting off his sentence as he gasped for air. “Then why…Jonghyun…do you sound so melancholic? Why does it feel like I’m hurting you?”

A few more days passed, and each and every one of those days, Jonghyun had been intoxicating himself with alcohol. Empty cans of beer and wine bottles were scattered across the living room, the undeniable smell of alcohol filled the room. Jonghyun gulped down another can of beer before crushing it and tossing the empty can aside without looking.

He breathed out heavily again as he leaned back into his worn down chair.

“That reminds me…” Jonghyun suddenly blurted out once his eyes met the calendar that hung on the wall by itself. “I haven’t checked up on him in a couple of days.” He mumbled as he got up, his head already spinning due to the high intake of alcohol. “No…wait…I said that I…haha…didn’t care anymore. I-It’s not like he…mnh…cared about me…a-anyway…” He chuckled darkly before he picked up a half-finished wine bottle from the table and took a swig. “B-but…I should…yell a-at him…again…ha…hahaha…” Jonghyun laughed like a madman as he stumbled across the battlefield filled with cans before he swung the door to the hallway open and staggered towards Key’s room. Jonghyun lifted his hand and knocked on the door.
“Hey…I know you’re in there…just come out already…” He slurred, his words almost unclear as he hiccupped.

But, everything remained silent.

Frustrated, and obviously pissed off, Jonghyun muttered something unintelligible and kicked the door.
“I said come out!” He shouted before he felt something underneath his feet. He mumbled something unclearly before he bent down and picked it up.

It was a letter.

Jonghyun impatiently ripped the entire envelope open once he got tired of trying to open it the normal way. Before he could pull out what he assumed was a letter, something fell out onto the floor, a noticeable cling echoed in the air.

He glanced down.

The necklace that Key had originally wore shone lifelessly under the dim light of the hallway. Jonghyun picked it up and studied it.
“This key…” He muttered before his mind cleared up slightly. “Isn’t it…for this room?” He stuck the necklace into his pocket and pulled out the letter that remained in the envelope, a bad feeling immediately covering his entire mind. He noticed that there was more than one sheet of paper in the envelope – three, to be exact. He unfolded the papers and began to read.

Jonghyun,

First off, I hope that this letter will answer all those questions that have been left unanswered.

Don’t even try to go find me before fully examining the room. Even if you do find me, once I find out that you didn’t even take a second glance at the room, I will promptly ignore you.

I am not going to ask you to forgive me for what I have done. I am not going to ask you to give me a second chance. And I am not going to ask you…to love me only.

You may have been wondering why I have chosen to ignore you and confine myself in that room. I’m also guessing that you have made all these silly assumptions, correct?
Remember what I said to you at the hospital, and what you replied with?

At that time, I realized something.

This is probably the only thing that you’ve ever wanted me to do in our entire relationship. It must be hard, trying to get the society to accept us, right? However, I do thank you for trying.

I have to admit, I have been lying to ever since we left the hospital.

It wasn’t just a cold – I was diagnosed with COPD, and the doctor said that there is currently no cure for it. Well…he said it in a harsher way, but that doesn’t really concern me either way.

So, I’ve been ‘painting your world’. I have thought of it as the only way to make you happy.

I’m sure you are wondering what your ‘world’ looks like in my eyes. I’ve given you the key to this room – the necklace was the first present that you gave me, do you remember?

Immediately, Jonghyun dug through his pocket and pulled out the necklace stuck the key into the lock and turned it.

*Click*

Much to his appreciation, the door was unlocked.
He took several deep breaths before he pushed the door open, his hand still clutching onto the letter.

As the door slowly opened, creaking as it did, the originally mysterious room was revealed, all and only for Jonghyun to see.

Jonghyun’s eyes widened as the ‘new’ world in front him was brought to life.
“Is this…w-what Key thinks…my world is?” Jonghyun stuttered as he took a step into the room.

The sunlight shone dimly, the rays being blocked by the dancing, wavy curtains, though some managed to escape and shine onto the floor.

But that wasn’t what Jonghyun was concerned about.

He had expected a canvas or two, with pictures on it that probably resembled either Key or something else.

Except, it was far beyond what he had imagined.

There was no canvas.

To be exact, the walls to the room were the canvases itself.

The walls were painted, leaving behind no trail of the original wall, into one beautiful scenery. Despite the window, which was in the centre of the middle wall, the scenery that Key had managed to paint still felt complete. In fact, it even felt like it was in the correct place, amongst the artwork that it had intruded into.

The scenery was a park that was painted beautifully. And somehow, it looked very familiar to Jonghyun.

Then he realized.

It was the park that they had gone to on their very first date.

Jonghyun staggered over to the very left of the room, starting from the beginning of the painting.

Before he began to examine the picture, a line of words painted in red over the blue surface caught his eye.

Read the letter.

Immediately, Jonghyun glanced at the letter and continued reading.

So, here we are Jonghyun.

This…is what I believe your world is.

You might not understand the true meaning behind what I have painted, so I suppose I should explain to you.

Let’s start off from the beginning of the picture.

Jonghyun looked up from the letter, his fingers gently scraping across the blue paint that he had assumed washed over the wall first, resembling the sky.

The blue sky.

The color that people think different of. Personally, to me, it represents peacefulness and calm. However, sadness and coldness is mixed in between. Does this not resemble the people in our society? All I ever wanted was for people to accept you and me both for who we are, but instead, we get the color blue in return – coldness and sadness. However, I am fine with that now. I’ve realized that there is no way for everyone to accept us. At least we have each other, Jonghyun.

The paragraph ended there as Jonghyun bit down on his lower lip at Key’s words.

It was true.

It was hard being unaccepted.

It was hard being despised and ignored.

However, it was even harder for them to endure it with a smile.

Jonghyun shook his head – attempting to shake the negative thoughts away with that action – before he moved on to the next color that he saw. His eyes collided with the grass that was painted swiftly with a light shade of green, before a darker shade was painted over it.

Again, he began to read the letter.

Green…like grass.

There isn’t really much that I can say about this section. It’s the most restful color out of all the other ones. To me – and probably to others too – it’s the color that symbolizes life. I’m going to keep this simple, Jonghyun.

Never give up, no matter what happens. Live your life. Be like grass, even. Fight back, even when you are destroyed at times.

By now, Jonghyun was already trying to fight back his tears. He hastily wiped them away from his eyes and moved on slowly.

The next two things that fell into his eyes were the sun and the clouds that drifted over them, painted with yellow delicately before a cloud of white covered parts of it. It hung on the blue sky, clearly showing a contrast. Perhaps their meanings are contrasted too. Jonghyun thought to himself.

The yellow sun and the snow white clouds.

Let’s start off with yellow. To be honest, it reminds me of you, in some way. The cheerful sunny yellow seeks attention, do you not agree? Apparently, it makes people lose their temper.

Now that really reminds me of you.

Who is the one that seeks attention almost every now and then?
Who is the one that loses their temper once they fail to acquire it?

Who is the one…that I can never take my eyes of, for the sole reason that their feelings is just too overpowering?
That’s right, Jonghyun.

It’s you.

Jonghyun chuckled slightly at Key’s description for him, almost forgetting about the paragraph before that had almost brought him to tears. Then he moved onto the description for white.

The color of the clouds – white.

Basically, it symbolizes innocence and purity. It was probably described us best before we were tainted with this sin amongst other’s eyes.

However, I like it.

As long as you are there for me, I won’t even notice what other’s have to say about us.

Jonghyun moved on, following the path that was painted across the room and onto the other wall.

Trees were painted – apple trees to be exact – on either side of the window.

Apples of crimson red.

I guess you can also call them the forbidden fruit.

The one that we tasted, and got hooked onto.

Our relationship, basically.

There’s no need for me to explain this section in detail. Almost everyone knows what red stands for.

Love.

However, bear in mind that it also means anger and fury…something that I may have seen once in a while before.

That was all the colors that were on the second wall.

Finally, Jonghyun moved to the last wall and he flipped to the last page of the letter. The scene was basically repeated – alike the first wall – yet painted with extra detail.

The flowers that were scattered across the grassy ground caught his eyes.

He glanced at the last paragraph of the letter.

Purple,

To be honest, I doubt there are even purple flowers that look like the ones that I’ve painted. That probably explains why the color itself can be considered ‘artificial’.

Fake. Artificial. False.

This color basically represents the world that we live in. Full of lies, hatred, and a bunch of other negative things. One of them being the lack of acceptance. We are all human, we all have desires, and we all have to live.

Then why discriminate?

I have to admit, it is rare to find someone that doesn’t wear a mask anymore. Almost everyone in the society covers themselves with a mask – for what apparent reason, I am not sure of…It may be to cover their true self that they hate deep down, or to avoid getting hurt.

Either way, I don’t think it’s right.

So, with this final color…I beg you, Jonghyun.

Don’t turn into one of those people.

Avoid the mask that is hiding deep inside you, preparing to take over you once you lose your consciousness.

Be who you are, and show everyone that you are proud of it.

That was the last sentence that was printed neatly on the paper. Jonghyun sighed as he leaned his back the painted wall, all sorts of thoughts filling his mind.
“Key…I never knew…” Jonghyun breathed out as the hand that held the letter suddenly clutched down, wrinkling the paper. He noticed something on the bottom right corner of the second wall as he walked over for a closer look.

There was a line of words painted in a darker shade of green on the grass.

Your world should be like this, Jonghyun. Even without me.
“What?” Jonghyun’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Without…him?” His fingers grazed over the dried painted words. “Why…? I thought you wanted to make me happy…didn’t you, Key?” Jonghyun whispered quietly, covering his eyes with his free hand. “Then where have you gone?” He questioned the empty room that his lover once remained in.

Suddenly, the remaining paintbrushes and paint buckets fell into his sight as the hand that covered his sight left. Jonghyun gazed around the walls, scanning his eyes as if he was looking for something.

Then, it struck him.
“Why is there no…black?” He murmured before he stood up and walked over to the centre of the room, picking up the only brush that hadn’t been used. He picked up the bucket of black paint and walked over to the first wall and slowly dabbed the paintbrush into the bucket, the excessive paint dripping off back into the carpet before he gradually began to paint something.

Moments later, Jonghyun was painting on the last wall.

When he was finished, he gently set the paintbrush down, a smile blooming on his face.

Jonghyun had painted a shadow of two people on every wall – a shadow of the two of them holding hands and walking down the path.
“Key…” Jonghyun called out softly with a smile. “Black represents sadness, loneliness and emptiness, which is what I will feel without you here. However…now to me, it means mystery.” He said as his eyelids closed over his eyes slowly. “I love you – no matter where you are, or what has happened to you.” He muttered, though he knew that no one was there to listen to him. Even so, he still wanted to say it.

He walked over to the middle of the room and sat down on the chair, leaning against the back of the chair as the smile remained on his face. He felt like sighing, but he knew that even if he did that, nothing would happen.
“Aw…I miss you already.” Jonghyun pouted as he covered his face with his hands, trying to hide the tears that were already b and trickling down his cheeks. “Key…” Jonghyun called out weakly as the tears invaded his vision.
What is it? He heard a familiar voice just behind him.

The smile returned to his face.
“Am I hearing things now…?” He muttered as he wiped away the tear streak marks from his cheek.

Didn’t you call my name, Jonghyun? What is it?The voice flowed into his ear again. This time, it didn’t sound fake.

Almost immediately, Jonghyun turned around, only to see Key standing there with a small smile.
“K-Key…you…w-why?” Jonghyun couldn’t form a proper sentence as he reached out a trembling hand to make sure that the person in front of him wasn’t an illusion.

The person in front of him held out his hand too, their fingers touching before Jonghyun’s eyes widened.
“Key!” He shouted as he reached out and pulled Key into a tight embrace. “I thought…I thought you left…” He buried his face into Key’s shoulder and mumbled.
“I planned too.” Key replied shortly as he patted Jonghyun on the back, returning the hug. “But…that wouldn’t make you happy.” Key pulled back from the almost-bear-hug and flashed Jonghyun a toothy smile. “I feel as if I shouldn’t run away from what has been decided already. Instead, I’ll finish living the rest of my life with you.”

Jonghyun just shook his head and wrapped his arms around Key once more, like he wasn’t seeking for any more words.
“You painted over my artwork?” Key asked as the shadows of the two people holding hands fell into his sight.

Jonghyun nodded swiftly, yet didn’t make a sound.

“Say…Jonghyun. Is this what you expected for your world to look like?” Key asked as he rested his head against Jonghyun’s shoulder.

Jonghyun shook his head.
“My world will never even exist without you.” He whispered gently, finally speaking.

Key only smiled wryly, yet a tint of gentleness was mixed in with his smile.
“Even if there is no cure for the disease, I’ll still live life to its fullest. I’ll be strong.” Key promised as he entangled his fingers with Jonghyun’s.
“Please…don’t scare me like that anymore. Don’t leave me without telling me.” Jonghyun breathed out.
“So…I can leave if I tell you?” Key asked playfully.
“Key…”
“But…did you like what I’ve painted?”
“I loved it. However, I still can’t believe that you actually did what I asked.” Jonghyun grinned. Key smiled, his eyelids gently closing over his eyes as the smile of his face widened.
“Of course, Jonghyun. What else can I do to make you happy?” He whispered.

Word Count: 5,870.

Probably the longest I've written so far for an oneshot. Nevertheless, I'm still quite pleased at the outcome. I found out so much when researching for several parts of this fanfic, and I feel like my writing style has changed - again. I tried avoiding the 'I'm-dying-so-I'm-leaving" ending...hope it worked in this situation, haha. As I mentioned before, this doesn't focus a lot of characterization. One of the things I hate the most is character profiles, so don't even think about seeing those anywhere. If I had included either character profiles, or made the personalities more...noticable, I thought that it would ruin the balance of the story.

Well, I do hope you enjoyed it. I may be making some minor tweaks in the last few hours before the contest ends. ^ ^
Thanks for reading :)
Hwaiting!
~Kuroba
Edit: Regarding to my previous oneshot, I'll be updating 'Contract to My Heart' first instead of my oneshot (hopefully!)