His solo album was a bigger success than he could have imagined. He was more than pleased when they chose the song he wrote as the first single.  And as fate would have it, he was scheduled for his first live performance the week that YS was due to be discharged.                                                                                                       

*************************************  

Ryeowook fussed over him as he waited backstage. The others were waiting in the front row seats to watch him perform. He appreciated their loyalty to him more than he could ever express. As the time for his performance drew near, Heechul came and took Ryeowook out to join the others. 

As he stood in the wings of the stage, he looked out over the audience, wishing that all but one of the seats were empty. He had not told the other about the song he had written and he was extremely nervous. 

The stage lights dimmed and he took his place center stage. He had foregone his stylist’s suggestion of a simple suit and opted for a slightly more edgy look.  Dressed all in skin hugging black with slightly more make-up than usual, and his hair close to its natural black, he felt invincible. He was glad that Ryeowook and Heechul had convinced him to make the song a rock ballad rather than your typical sweet song. It gave a depth to the words and to his feelings that may have otherwise gone unheard. 

The spotlight shone on him as the band behind him began to play. He kept his eyes closed until he sang his first note.

When I think of you

I only hear the words I never said

Relying on the looks

That passed between us

And the touches that

Came by chance

We stood together

Yet apart

Waiting for fate

Or maybe it was destiny

We almost left it much too late

But still

I left the words I wished to say

Unspoken

What I want to say

The next time we meet

Is that you changed me

In ways I still don’t understand

I live in your smile

And die in your touch

This love that overwhelms me

It stops my heart and leaves

Me breathless

I drown in your gaze

Hardly daring to believe

This love is mine

There is not enough time

In this life or the next

For all the words

I want to speak

But what I want to say

The next time we meet

Is that I love you.

As the last notes died away the rush of blood in his ears was overtaken by the applause from the audience. He came to the front of the stage to bow.  When he began to stand upright he glanced into the front row at his brothers and looked straight into the eyes he had been waiting so long to see again. He couldn’t help the grin that spread like wildfire across his face. The answering smile was all he needed to see to know that his words had been heard and understood.

Much later, when all was quiet and they stood outside where it had all begun two years earlier, he was finally able to say everything he had hidden in his heart, and he started with “I love you.”

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A/N It's over! I feel kind of sad, and kind of like this was a fail of a last chapter. But here it is anyway. I could worry over it for months and still not be happy.  Thank you to all the subscribers and commenters. I hope I redeemed Kyuhyun for some of you. He had to learn how to express himself properly, which is not an easy thing to do sometimes. I didn't consciously make him shy. I guess I was thinking of my own life experiences, In high school all my friends were really smart nerdy guys. They were snarky and evil and never had girlfriends because they were socially inept. It took the guy I liked 3 yrs(of an obviously mutual attraction) to confess, by which time it was too late.  So I guess I was somewhat thinking of these people when i wrote him being shy/hesitant about expressing himself.  And in general, I see Yesung as having a very strong personality even with his confidence issues. I see him as quiet rather than shy. But I like to read shy! Yesung, so it all works out in the end.

I have a new story processing through my brain. It will be Kyusung centric again, but probably not slash.  It's going to be an homage to Alice in Wonderland(which is my most favorite thing ever). And it will be dark(but will probably end light because I like fluff.  So hopefully I will see some of you again. Thanks for reading, it means much more to me than you can imagine.