Sungmin was a young college student, and someone who deserved nothing but happiness. He didn’t get the best grades, but his grades were decent. He wasn’t perfect, but he was talented and held great promise. He was young, and had a bright future ahead of him. His boyfriend, Kyuhyun, was nothing less of his perfect match. The other boy was so handsome; though his personality was snarky and sarcastic, sometimes even evil, the younger boy never did anything wrong to Sungmin. Kyuhyun even went as far as to treat the older boy as if he were gold, and nothing less than that. The young couple went to the same college, and were practically inseparable. Sungmin’s life was seemingly perfect, so the last thing he expected was to be dealt an awful fate.

            He had been getting nose bleeds frequently as of late, getting sick over nothing, becoming frail and dizzy at random times. So, without Kyuhyun’s knowledge, as he didn’t want the younger to worry about him, he went to the hospital to see what was wrong. After receiving multiple tests, Sungmin was nervously awaiting the results. And, when the doctor walked into the room with a very grim expression, his worry only grew, and upon hearing the doctor’s diagnosis, he had a right to have been worried.

            So, here he sat in his bedroom in his small apartment, staring blankly at the wall. He felt blood seeping from his nose, and when he felt it drip down his face, his eyes slid to where the crimson drop had fallen onto his white sheets. He watched as the fabric absorbed the red liquid, and another drop soon followed. Sungmin had been diagnosed with Leukemia, and he found out he was in the final stage of the disease. His eyes filled with tears as he watched the crimson liquid continue to drip from his nose and onto his white sheets; this wasn’t fair. He was so young, he had the perfect relationship, the perfect life, and he didn’t want to give any of this up, not now.

            He was scared. Sungmin was scared to die, scared to give up all of his dreams, and most of all, he was scared of leaving Kyuhyun. The younger boy was bound to be devastated if he knew that Sungmin was going to die. They had promised each other to get married someday, grow old with one another, to never leave each other’s side…he didn’t want to break that promise. He already came to the conclusion that no matter what, Kyuhyun couldn’t know about his diagnosis; the only people that knew were his family, and he intended to keep it that way. Sungmin was only given 60 days to live, so it shouldn’t be too hard to keep it from Kyuhyun. But, his heart broke as he slowly wiped his nose with a handkerchief, realizing what he had to do to protect Kyuhyun from suffering the same heartbreak as his family; Sungmin had to break up with him beforehand, even if he had no reason.

            Kyuhyun knew Sungmin wasn’t feeling well, but he didn’t know what exactly was wrong. He had become worried when Sungmin hadn’t come to any of his classes that day, and was now on his way to the older boy’s apartment to make sure he was all right. Kyuhyun had a nervous feeling in his stomach as he walked up the metal stairs towards Sungmin’s apartment; the other boy had told him that it was just the flu, but Kyuhyun felt like it was something much more.

            “Sungminnie?” Kyuhyun called out as he opened the apartment door, looking around the living room worriedly, “Minnie where are you?”

            “Bedroom,” he heard a weak voice call back, and the nervous clenching in his stomach only grew; something was definitely wrong.

            Striding over to the bedroom door, he opened the barely cracked open door and looked in. His worried filled gaze fell upon a pale figure sitting up in bed, and he let out a shaky breath as he entered the room entirely. Sungmin was sitting in bed, the humidifier on as he sat up and stared blankly at the wall in front of him. His black hair was tossled and he seemed to be so frail, something Kyuhyun wasn’t used to seeing. Sungmin had his knees pulled up to his chest as he stared off, and Kyuhyun could see him biting his lip, something Sungmin only did when he was nervous or afraid.

            “Minnie…” Kyuhyun murmured worriedly slowly walking over to the other’s side, “What’s wrong? Are you feeling okay?”

            Sungmin never turned his gaze to look at Kyuhyun, he merely slowly shook his head as he continued to stare at the wall blankly, and he weakly whispered, “No…”

            Kyuhyun’s gaze grew even more worried as he looked at his smaller lover; something was horribly wrong, and it hurt him not to know what it was.

            “I’ll go make some tea for you, okay?” Kyuhyun murmured, lightly running his fingers through the other’s messy hair, “It’ll help make you feel better.”

            He saw something flash in Sungmin’s eyes, but he wasn’t sure what it was. Sungmin just slowly nodded, continuing to chew on his lower lip. Kyuhyun continued to look at the other worriedly, before leaning over and softly kissing the other’s cheek. He then turned and walked out of the room, sparing one last worried glance towards Sungmin; something was definitely wrong, and he was beyond worried about what it was.

            After Kyuhyun departed from his bedroom to make the tea, Sungmin sniffled lightly, bringing a hand up to his soft cheek where Kyuhyun had kissed him. He loved Kyuhyun, more than absolutely anything, and it was killing him that he was never going to feel those soft lips again after today. He already decided he was going to end their relationship today, but he was beyond nervous; he wasn’t sure if he was strong enough to break Kyuhyun’s heart like this, but he knew he had to. The younger male was going to be heartbroken one way or another, and Sungmin much preferred doing it this way rather than on his deathbed.

            “Here,” Kyuhyun murmured, slowly handing the glass cup filled with tea to Sungmin, smiling at the older boy lovingly, “It’s hot, so don’t spill. Hopefully it tastes okay.”

            Sungmin gnawed on his now raw lower lip, taking the cup into his hands as well, looking at Kyuhyun thankfully, but not for long. It killed him to look at the younger boy he loved, especially with knowing what he was about to say.

            Kyuhyun furrowed his eyebrows as he saw Sungmin staring down at the tea, his eyes were unfocused as he was deep in thought. Sungmin’s current behavior was borderline bizarre, and it was making Kyuhyun almost panic with what was wrong with his lover.

            “Kyuhyun…”

            Looking at the other questioningly, Kyuhyun asked softly, “What, Minnie?”

            Letting out a sigh, Sungmin didn’t lift his gaze at all while he spoke in a voice shaking from anxiety, “Let’s…let’s break up.”

            “What?” Kyuhyun breathed, his eyes widening as he felt his heart wretch immediately; that was the last thing he expected Sungmin to ever say to him, “Why, Min? Did I do something?”

            “N-no,” Sungmin whispered, closing his eyes to fight his own tears; each word hurt him to say, and it hurt even more to hear the pain in Kyuhyun’s voice, “I just…don’t love you anymore.”

            “That’s a lie, Minnie,” Kyuhyun spoke, his own voice starting to shake as tears welled in his eyes, his heartbreaking more and more by the second, “That’s a lie and you know it.”

            “Kyuhyun, please don’t make this even harder than it is,” Sungmin whispered, his eyes still closed as his body began to visibly shake; this added stress was causing his already weak body to hurt, and as he sniffled he was worried his nose would start bleeding any moment, “Please just…accept it.”

            “The love of my life breaks up with me and you want me to just accept it?” Kyuhyun snapped, standing up in his chair abruptly and looking at Sungmin with tear filled eyes, “Give me an actual reason then, Sungmin. Why would you want to break up with me now, when yesterday we just had a conversation about how much we loved each other?”

            “I-I lied,” Sungmin choked out, his heart shattering with each word and hearing Kyuhyun’s pained voice, “I just…don’t love you anymore. So please…just get out.”

            Kyuhyun looked at the other with wide, shocked eyes; his heart in his chest felt like it had been stabbed a million times over. But, he still couldn’t believe it; Sungmin wouldn’t even look at him while he spoke, that had to mean something. At least…he hoped it did.

            “S-Sungmin,” Kyuhyun whispered, looking at the other as tears stung at his eyes, “Please…tell me you’re joking.”

            He sounded desperate, he knew he did, but he didn’t care. Sungmin was all he needed in his life, and he wasn’t going to just give the other boy up; not without a fight. So, he stared at the other, mentally begging for a response from the smaller, but he swallowed a lump in his throat as Sungmin merely said nothing; the older was merely clenching his eyes shut and biting his lip. Sungmin’s body was shaking, but he still said nothing, which scared Kyuhyun beyond belief; this couldn’t be happening, not now. Not when he already had so much put into this relationship; they couldn’t just leave each other after two years of being together.

            “Minnie,” he tried again, his voice shaking more, “Please-“

            “Just get out!” Sungmin screamed, throwing the glass cup of tea in his hand at the wall.

            As the glass cup shattered against the wall, so did both of the boys’ hearts. Kyuhyun stared at Sungmin wide eyed, shocked at the other’s actions, while Sungmin was glaring at his bed spread and shaking visibly; this was much harder than he thought it would be, especially when trying to not cry.

            “Fine,” Kyuhyun said in a voice shaking with both sadness and irritation, “If that’s what you want, then fine. Just know that no one will treat you better than I did, and I’ll still be here waiting for you.”

            Sungmin almost let out a sob as Kyuhyun abruptly turned away, exiting the bedroom; before he walked out completely, he looked back at Sungmin before scoffing and shaking his head. He didn’t understand why this was happening, but now he was angry at the other; he hadn’t even given him a proper reason to end their relationship, and that was irritating beyond belief. This had just come out of nowhere, and he knew there had to be a reason behind it. And, as he slammed Sungmin’s apartment door shut behind him and walked away towards the stairs, tears falling freely from his eyes, Kyuhyun made a promise to himself; he swore he was going to find out what was wrong, and he was going to get Sungmin back.

            As soon as Sungmin heard his apartment door slam shut, he immediately collapsed onto his side upon his bed, his body shaking from violent sobs, his heart breaking completely. He had done it, he had ended his relationship with the boy he loved more than anything, and it hurt more than he even predicted it would.

            “I’m so sorry, Kyuhyunnie,” Sungmin sobbed out, clutching at his blankets desperately, “I just don’t want you to suffer through this with me…It’s best that you hate me now, so you won’t be hurt when I’m gone.”

            When life is full of misery, what do we need most?

            Kyuhyun was sitting in his room in his large house, holding a picture of him and Sungmin in his hands. Teardrops were falling onto the glass of the frame as he cried, staring at the picture full of nothing but happy memories. It had been two days since Sungmin had left him, and he knew everything now; Sungmin’s mother had called him and told him everything, begging Kyuhyun to take good care of her son in his final days. He didn’t tell her that Sungmin had broken up with him, because he knew now that Sungmin didn’t want to. He knew his smaller lover very well, and he knew Sungmin was the type to take care of others before himself; it broke his heart to know that Sungmin had ended things to spare Kyuhyun from the hurt of losing him instead of wanting to spend his final days with him.

            But, it was then as he cried over the picture of the two of them together, that Kyuhyun knew what he had to do. Sungmin was going to die, and nothing could prevent that at this point, but Kyuhyun could at least make Sungmin happy. He decided that if he couldn’t spare Sungmin the pain of dying, then he was at least going to give Sungmin happy memories to depart with, and make the smaller smile more than he ever had.

            Hastily, Kyuhyun wiped the tears from his eyes as he carefully sat the picture back down beside his bed. Smiling lightly at it, he then abruptly stood up and grabbed his coat; he knew what he had to do to make Sungmin happy, and he was going to start now, after all, he only had 57 days left.

            Love and happiness. Those are the things we all wish for…

            Sungmin was lying in his bed, his pale skin almost as white as his sheets as he laid there. His eyes were staring blankly at the wall before him; now that Kyuhyun wasn’t a part of his life anymore, he was more than willing to die. His body was sore, and his stomach felt sick. He was too weak to get out of bed to make himself food, so he merely laid there, wasting away.

            Then, however, his eyebrows furrowed as he heard his apartment door opening and closing quietly; he had no idea who would be here to visit him, especially now during school hours. He slowly rolled over on to his back, and slowly brought himself up to sit up on his elbows. Sungmin looked to his doorway just in time to see it open slowly, and his eyes widened slightly as he saw none other than Kyuhyun entering his bedroom.

            “Kyuhyun…” Sungmin hoarsely spoke up, before clearing his throat and furrowing his eyebrows at the younger male, “Why are you here?”

            Kyuhyun merely smiled lightly at the other, making Sungmin all the more confused as he watched Kyuhyun stroll over to the side of his bed, the younger’s hands behind his back. Carefully, Kyuhyun sat down beside the other, staring into his eyes as his smile became sad.

            “Minnie…I know everything,” Kyuhyun murmured, making Sungmin’s eyes widen, “I know what’s wrong with you, your mom called me and told me…why didn’t you tell me before?”

            Sungmin lowered his gaze to the bed spread, tears welling in his eyes as he whispered out shakily, “I didn’t want you to worry…And I didn’t want to hurt you…”

            “So breaking up with me like that was supposed to not hurt me?” Kyuhyun almost laughed out, looking at the other with a raised eyebrow, “Explain that logic to me, Min.”

            “Shut up,” Sungmin said, subconsciously pouting, “It seemed to be the only way…I thought it would be better for you to hate me, so when I died, you…you wouldn’t be hurt.”

            “Minnie,” Kyuhyun murmured softly, his eyes softening on the other, “I could never hate you. I love you, more than you know. And even now, I love you. That’s why I’m doing this.”

            Looking up at the younger questioningly, Sungmin asked quietly, “Doing what?”

            Kyuhyun smiled softly before scooting a little closer to Sungmin, his hands still behind his back as he looked straight into Sungmin’s eyes, “Minnie…I love you, more than anything. I didn’t lie when I said before that I wanted to spend my life with you, and that still stands even now,” Kyuhyun felt tears welling in his eyes as he saw tears fall from Sungmin’s own eyes, but their gazes never faltered from each other as he continued, “And, even though I know you don’t have long…I want to make the rest of your life the happiest I can…I don’t want you to leave, but if you must, then I want you to do it with the best memories still fresh on your mind. So,” Kyuhyun sniffled, feeling a tear sliding down his cheek as he slowly brought his hands out from behind his back; a tea cup was in his hand as he slowly handed it to Sungmin, the other looking at him weirdly before looking down and gasping as he saw what was in the tea cup, while Kyuhyun continued in a shaky voice, “I was wondering, if we could start with those memories now. Would you be willing to spend the rest of your life with me…and marry me?”

            A sob escaped Sungmin’s lips as he stared down at the beautiful ring placed inside the empty teacup. Shakily, Sungmin nodded, tears leaking from his eyes as his heart beat frantically in his chest; never in his life, had be felt this happy. He had wanted this more than anything, but he had thought he would never be able to experience this with the man he loved more than anything. And, now that he was, it was the best feeling in the entire world.

            Kyuhyun smiled lovingly at Sungmin, tears falling from his own eyes as he shakily reached over and carefully took the teacup from Sungmin’s pale hands. Reaching in to the cup and taking out the ring he had bought only mere hours before, he gently set down the cup on the side of the bed and took Sungmin’s hand in his own. Sungmin sobbed even more as Kyuhyun slid the ring onto his ring finger, and smiled up at Sungmin’s tear stained face.

            As soon as the ring was slid onto his finger, Sungmin threw himself forward into Kyuhyun’s chest, clinging on to the other’s shirt as he cried tears of happiness. Kyuhyun sniffled and smiled down at the other, wrapping his arms around the other’s shaking form gently, treating the other as if he were made of glass.

            “Thank you, Kyu,” Sungmin sobbed, “Thank you so much.”

            Kyuhyun merely smiled still, using one of his hands to tilt Sungmin’s head upward so they were facing each other. Then, he leaned down and tenderly claimed the other’s pale lips with his own, basking in the mere feeling of the other’s lips against his. As he slowly pulled away, he smiled down as their watery gazes met, and he murmured sincerely, “No Minnie, thank you.”

            Cherish each beautiful memory, because they could never happen again…

            “It’s beautiful, Kyu,” Sungmin murmured, his head resting against Kyuhyun’s shoulder as they sat on the beach, looking out over the water as the sun was setting.

            Kyuhyun merely smiled lightly, turning his head and tenderly kissing the top of the other’s head, “So are you.”

            “Kyu, that was painfully corny,” Sungmin responded, a small smile playing on his lips.

            “And yet you smiled anyway,” Kyuhyun said with a triumphant smirk, and Sungmin laughed weakly.

            “Only to humor you.”

            “Still, you smiled,” Kyuhyun said with a soft smile of his own, looking at Sungmin as the other lifted his head from his shoulder and looked at him, “I want to make sure you smile all the time, no matter what.”

            “I love you, Kyu,” Sungmin murmured, though tears were welling in his eyes as he stared at the other, “I really do. I’m going to miss this…”

            “Shh, Min,” Kyuhyun murmured, leaning forward and pecking the other’s lips softly, “Don’t talk about that. Happy memories, remember? Don’t think about the end, just think about what’s happening now.”

            “But all of my memories with you are happy,” Sungmin said with a small laugh, wiping the tears from his eyes.

            “Now you’re the one being corny,” Kyuhyun said with a light laugh, lifting his hand to wipe Sungmin’s other tears from his cheeks, “That’s my job.”

            “Don’t you tell me when I can and can not be corny,” Sungmin said with a genuine smile, taking the other’s hand in his own and entwining their fingers, “If you can do it then so can I.”

            Kyuhyun chuckled, looking at the other with eyes full of love, “Yes, dear. Whatever you say.”

            Don’t be afraid of what the future holds, just cherish what’s happening now…

            Soon, as the days went on, and they both spent every day together, Sungmin grew too weak to even leave his bed. But, even then, Kyuhyun did what he could to make the other happy. They would lie in Sungmin’s bed and watch the other’s favorite movies. He would bring Sungmin small, meaningful gifts everyday, and he would wipe away every tear the other would cry. He would take the other to each and every doctor appointment, and hold his hand through it all. Kyuhyun would feed the other whatever food he could buy that day, and he would even help the other wipe up whatever blood would come leaking from his nose. Every night, he would sleep beside Sungmin’s weak form, a protective arm wrapped around the other’s waist; a way of merely ensuring that the older was still there and alive with him, because he knew the time for him to disappear was coming soon.

            It hurt Kyuhyun more and more each day, to see the man he loved more than anything slowly withering away like this, and each day he would curse about how unfair it was. Sungmin was such a beautiful person, inside and out, and he was the last person that would deserve to be diagnosed with Leukemia. As each day passed, he could see Sungmin growing paler and paler, his body growing sickeningly thin no matter how much he ate, and his once pink lips were almost pure white. But, the one thing that Kyuhyun made sure always remained, was the constant shine of happiness in Sungmin’s eyes. No matter how bad Sungmin felt physically, Kyuhyun did everything in his power to make that shine in the other’s eyes stay, because he wanted Sungmin to be happy for as long as he lived.

            The days went on and on, and Kyuhyun came to despise how short the days seemed. And now, it was the 58^thday since Sungmin had been diagnosed, and the sick male couldn’t even move from his bed; as a matter of fact, breathing even seemed to be a difficult task. Kyuhyun was terrified, but he didn’t want to let the other know it; he had a feeling that Sungmin wasn’t even going to make it for another two days, but he didn’t want to admit it openly. So, here he sat, loyally beside Sungmin’s pale form, gently running his fingertips through Sungmin’s dark hair as he smiled lovingly down at the other. Sungmin was staring up at him, and even though he looked entirely dead already, his eyes held that shine that gave Kyuhyun strength and happiness of his own.

            Gently, Kyuhyun leaned down and tenderly kissed the other’s pale and chapped lips, before pulling away slowly and looking at Sungmin with a love filled gaze, “I love you, Minnie.”

            A weak smile managed to turn up at Sungmin’s lips, and Sungmin’s eyes glittered as he hoarsely murmured, “I love you too, Kyu.”

            Tears welled in Kyuhyun’s eyes as he stared down at the other; his fears becoming all too real when the other’s breathing was even more labored. Shakily, he murmured out, “Minnie…You still have two days…please, pull through…I can’t lose you now.”

            “K-Kyu…” Sungmin murmured, swallowing audibly, feeling his already weak body slowly giving up; he knew it was going to be over soon, probably in only mere minutes, so he had to let the other know his last thoughts, just incase he never got the chance to do it again, “Kyu, thank you so much…These passed few weeks, have been so wonderful. I’ve never been so happy as I was when I was with you. You’re so perfect…and I hope someone else will be able to see that and make you just as happy…”

            “Minnie,” Kyuhyun choked out, trying to suppress his sobs as he looked at the other with tear filled eyes, “Please, don’t do this to me…not now. Two more days, Sungmin. Give me two more days.”

            Sungmin continued, acting as if he didn’t hear the other as tears of his own welled in his eyes, “I love you, Cho Kyuhyun…and I’m so glad my last days were with you, and I’m thankful that my last memories are happy like this…”

            “I love you too, Minnie,” Kyuhyun sobbed, his tears falling from his eyes as he brushed the other’s tears away from his cheeks, “Please be happy…”

            “I am. I’m so happy…” Sungmin murmured, smiling weakly as his eyes slowly fluttered shut, feeling his body completely give in; his heart rate weakening, he felt his life slipping away, but he managed to whisper out before completely fading away, “Because my last minute was with you…”

            Kyuhyun’s eyes widened as he saw Sungmin’s form go limp, and the other’s breathing completely stop. Panicking, Kyuhyun started shaking the other’s form desperately, his tears falling even faster, “Minnie? Minnie, please open your eyes…”

            No response came as Sungmin’s life had passed on, and Kyuhyun let out sobs as he gently lifted Sungmin’s limp form and held on to the other desperately. Noisy sobs and cries erupted from his throat as he clutched on to the other’s lifeless form, burying his head into the other’s shoulder as he continued to sob.

            He couldn’t believe it, he refused to believe it; even as he held on to Sungmin’s lifeless form, he didn’t want to give up. Sungmin was his everything, and his everything was now gone.

            “I love you, Lee Sungmin,” Kyuhyun sobbed to Sungmin’s pale, lifeless form as he continued to clutch on to the other desperately, “And thank you…for letting me be with you. Until the very end.”

            Life is beautiful, no matter how short it can be. All that matters is that you treat it preciously, and you are grateful for the good memories you are given. 

------------------------------------------------------------

A/N: Comments will be answered after I'm done with these :] but they're always appreciated~