The smoke finally cleared under the dark blue sky that tried to blanket over the chaos that occurred. It tried to cover the scene so the Gods wouldn’t see. The stars chattered amongst themselves with their dazzling rays of light, trying to ignore the fire that attempted to reach them with its blazing glory. The sadistic cackles can still be heard from the drowned flames, as they were engraved in each person’s mind and souls.

And then there he stood, with God’s eyes.

He could probably be considered as a God himself. He knew far too much to be classified as human, he thought. The fire was only part of his prediction. He knew everything, including the time he would vanish from the world.

The faint smoke still had the ability to clog up his lungs. A sickening taste lingered in his mouth. Horrid, it was, yet he found everything somewhat exciting.

Alarming shouts emerged from the odd pieces of wood and bricks that resembled the once glorified mansion. It didn’t matter anymore, of course. It was nothing more than a pile of unwanted thrash. He was, however, intrigued over the person that came out from the thrash; the person that was lying on the stretcher. He had never been so interested in someone before. Perhaps it was the sheer fact that the unconscious boy on the stretcher had the ability to lead him to his grave that sparked his interest.

His vision was fixed on the boy until he was submitted into the white vehicle. ‘Oh Sehun’, he recalled; the boy that would cause him unimaginable agony and despair.

Time was ticking, though. He had no time to deal with the measly, unconscious boy. He had more important things to do, such as his star gazing routine.

He shook his head as he went to the hills on the other side of town. He rested his body on the velvet grass with scent as pure as emeralds, soothing his erratic heart. His vision of the stars began to blur as the shapes blundered clumsily into each other. He was tired and the noises were deafening for him. It was like he was haunted but countless ghouls. Sadly, they weren’t ghouls; they were rackets from the minds of the humans nearby.

One voice, however, seemed to overshadow the rest.

‘I want to die.’

He couldn’t recognise whether it was his inner voice, or if it was someone else’s thought; he simply couldn’t tell. It had been twenty-two years and he still wasn’t used to it.

In the distance, the city illuminated amongst the darkness. That was where he home was, yet it still felt so foreign to him. A sadistic chuckle rolled off his tongue when he realised that he never really had a ‘home’. The neighbouring thoughts were too loud for him to feel comfortable in that pathetic excuse for a house.

It was regrettable, he thought. To leave when he’d barely gained anything, to lose when he never even played the game. He hated that feeling, despised it to its utmost core. It wasn’t fair that he had to live like that. The stars appeared brighter than usual, perhaps to console his distorted heart, or perhaps to torment him further as they all knew what his future held.

-

Sehun woke up to the soft clanging of metallic sounds and was greeted by a pungent waft that made it difficult for him to remain asleep. Every inch of his body stung when he tried to move. The blinding whiteness was an eyesore. White drapes dangled over the shiny windows. White paint plastered neatly onto the walls that embraced the spacious room. White tiles were embedded onto the floor with the odd piece of dirt tainting the pureness of it.

Regardless of the brightness of the room, there will always be a place for the shadows. In this room, the shadow took form of a young looking human boy, with divine features that was too explicit for his eyes.

Sehun jolted when the boy began to approach him with his unreadable gaze. He had the aura of a prince. It was so overwhelming that Sehun wanted to hide from the magnificent figure before him. If only he could move.

A staring contest commenced without a warning, yet it was loud enough for both of them to hear. Sehun swallowed dryly.

“You have a piece of grime on your face. Just there.” He pointed out as he rubbed his own cheek bone, acting as the stranger’s mirror. The stranger appeared alarmed. Perhaps it was slightly rude of Sehun to mention it without any proper greetings first.

“Do you ever think?”

Sehun was astounded. “Of course I don’t think,” he said sarcastically, accompanied with his dramatic movements and expressions. “If I would just take one second to think about things, I wouldn’t be talking to a stranger like you, would I?” He was offended; it was so blatantly obvious that one doesn’t need to be a mind reader to know it.

The problem was, he was a mind reader, but he couldn’t read his.

“I—I can’t hear you.”

“Are you playing with me now?! How much louder do I need to speak?!”

The boy had his mouth opened, ready to answer, yet nothing could be heard. He closes it again, which confused Sehun even more.

“Who are you, anyway?”

“Luhan.”

“And what are you doing here, may I ask? You’re not some kind of reporter, are you? Because for the nth time, I don’t know what happened!” Sehun then noticed a painful glint under those perfectly curled lashes, and below it were two whirlpool of loneliness; they were reaching out to him.

The boy named Luhan shook his head slowly, and dreadfully. It was such a small movement, yet somehow it made Sehun feel exposed.

“It was your attempt to die.”

It was as if he was pushed off the edge of a cliff, plunging towards the never ending journey. His lips parched open, but words seemed to glitch in his throat.

“W-well, t-that’s new.” Sehun managed to say.

“It’s the truth.”

“What do you want from me?”

“I want to learn more about you.” Sehun shot him an incredulous look which remained unnoticed under Luhan’s vision. “It’s quite normal, I assure you.”

“You’re creepy.”

“Too bad, because you’ll be living with me for a while. For someone who has no house, no relatives and no friends, I don’t think you have much choice but to live with someone creepy like myself.”

***

Sehun quietly followed Luhan into his apartment. Once the door opened, a sharp, gush of wind rushed towards them, sending shivers down Sehun’s spine. The house was a black hole, every inch of happiness they had.

Reluctantly, Sehun stepped into the house. He glanced around. It looked rather normal, but it didn’t feel normal. There was no warmth, no colours, and no life. It was dead, he concluded. A sofa and coffee table was laid out neatly on the side, but there was no television. The fireplace was situated adjacent to the sofa, yet no clock was displayed above the mantelpiece.

“W-where’s the clock?”

“There isn’t one.” Luhan sighed as he made himself comfortable on the settee. “I don’t need to keep track of time. It’s all in here.” He pointed to his head, giving it a light tap.

“Oh, well, where’s the toilet?” Sehun bit his lower lip. Uncertainty was about to devour him if he stayed with Luhan any longer. The more time they spent together, the more afraid he grew.

“First door on the right.”

Sehun glanced at the endless corridor on his left. A little rat was gnawing on his heart, he could feel it. Insanity was getting to him; they were only an inch apart. Solitude suffocated him. He was excited at first, if he was honest with himself. He thought it would be a stepping stone to lead him away from his misery; yet living with someone like Luhan was not something he had in mind.

He finally managed to hide himself in the toilet, and more things surprised him; there was no mirror. The bathroom was surprisingly clean, but awfully bland. It was like the hospital room he was in; everything was white. He began to question the habitability of the place.

When he finally joined Luhan in the living room, he stood awkwardly in front of him.

“You’re not going to sit down?” It was the first time for Luhan to ask a question that he was actually curious about.

The younger one hesitated. He took a step closer, but then returned to his original spot like a piece of metal being pulling by magnet.

“Why don’t you have a mirror?”

The answer was simple. The mirror would end up being shattered every time Luhan entered the bathroom. Unlike others who see a reflection, he sees a monster. A monster he created in himself.

“I don’t enjoy looking at myself.”

“Why? If I had your face, I would probably stare at the mirror all day.”

“Flattered.” He smiled.

Suddenly, Sehun’s stomach roared and Luhan exploded with fits of laughter. The younger one had his head down in embarrassment, hiding the vibrant red from Luhan’s eyes. The elder tried to restrain his laugh, but tiny giggles still managed to escape his lips.

Red; the first colour the house witnessed.

“Come on, follow me.” Luhan instructed and the other followed obediently to the kitchen.

The kitchen was rather spacious considering it only needed to cater for one person. The lighting was oddly dim, and the temperature was unpleasantly cold. It was all too plain for Sehun’s liking. Just as Luhan was taking out a pot from the cupboard, Sehun also opened a random cupboard, just to discover it was empty.

“Do you really live here? You don’t have much.”

“And what is your definition of ‘live’, may I ask?” Luhan smirked as he the hob.

“You sleep and eat here.”

“I live in many places, then.” He finally placed the ramen into the boiling water. “I live from under the bridge to the hilltop on the other side of town.”

“Why?”

“I never felt comfortable in one place.” He shrugged. Sehun pouted at the short answers he kept receiving. They weren’t enough for a proper conversation to develop, and Luhan seemed too focused with his cooking. “It’s ready.”

Sehun blinked puzzlingly until he noticed the two bowls of ramen on the countertop. He took his bowl and placed it on the dining table. Luhan did the same, sitting opposite him. While the younger one was eating, the elder just gaped at him.

“Hyung, why aren’t you eating?”

“You’ve asked me a lot today, let me do the asking now.” He would be lying if he said he wasn’t fascinated by the boy. It was the first time his world had been so quiet, yet also the first that it has been so loud. Sehun bit his lips, waiting for the questions. “What do you think of me?”

“Hyung is very handsome, but—“ Sehun placed his chopsticks down to stare directly into his eyes. “You’re worse than me.”

“What?”

“You have issues, very bad ones. It’s like there are invisible chains locked around your wrists. You’re like a prisoner of this world. That’s what I think.”

“Funny. Coming from someone who tried to die.”

Luhan finally took a bite of his soggy noodles. Disgusting, he thought, but he didn’t mind it. Nothing seemed to matter. He’d lost the will to care, after all.

“I didn’t try to die.”

Startled; Luhan was genuinely startled for the first time. He had never been wrong before, not once.

“You can see it as me trying to commit suicide, but the way I see, is very different. It was my way of trying to live.”

“What an absurd theory.”

“Nothing makes sense when you’re on drugs. It could’ve been worse. At least I was saved in the end.” Sehun let out an empty chortle before resuming to his bowl of noodles. “At least I never harmed anybody physically. At least I still have a chance to change. I keep telling myself that.”

The elder’s heart turned sour. “I thought you were under depression.”

“I am,” he replied blatantly, staring at his food with solemn eyelids. “But I’m trying really hard to change. Negativity comes to me once in a while, but I’ll try no matter what. I know it’s wrong, I’ve been told that so many times. When I’m a bit more ‘awake’, I see the things that I unconsciously did and it hurts people and it hurts me, too. It’s like a never ending cycle.”

“Tell me more.” It was more of a command than a plea, but Luhan never tried knowing people before. It was all very foreign to him. “About yourself, I mean.”

Nevertheless, Sehun complied and told him his story.

“I inherited a massive fortune at the age of sixteen, after the death of my parents. You probably know, my father was a politician. I took drugs and I couldn’t stop and started doing all crazy things, just to make myself a little happier. It continued that way until a dream one night, probably even a hallucination, I couldn’t tell. My mum was crying and I cried with her. When I woke up, I woke up on a hospital bed…with no one by my side. I pushed everyone away during those years. They were too afraid to help me, and I don’t blame them.

“When I went home, I looked at the piles of unopened letters. I read them one by one. They were all from my friends, giving me supportive messages. So I decided to change myself, and I won’t look for anyone until I was back to normal. But you know how it is, once you fall into a hole, it takes an awful long time to get back up. More often than not, you fall back down into the pit.”

Another chortle followed his story, a broken one, a tired one; one which was screaming and painting the walls with black. It was funny, so funny that Luhan almost laughed, but he couldn’t. Sehun claimed that he had bigger issues, but he probably suffered more. At least with Luhan, he never had to experience the pain of losing something, because he never had anything to begin with.

Then he thought again, long and hard; which hurt more? To lose something you loved, or never had the chance to love at all?

He couldn’t tell.

***

The beaming sunlight seeped through the window, shining directly on the boy who slept on the sofa because he refused to go to sleep the previous night. All he remembered were light laughter and odd phrases of ‘I’m a monster, really,’ and ‘monsters, humans; they’re the same. They’re just a name,’ and the most unforgettable of all: ‘I shall call you Lulu hyung.’

The gentle morning breeze tickled his skin, slowly waking the boy. He rubbed his eyes like a little boy. An eye managed to pop open to learn that the window was open. A perfectly, defined contour etched across his face beautifully, so beautiful that one would think it was designed for a purpose.

Sehun was ecstatic to spend another day with his new friend. It had been so long since he had a friend around, and it was a brilliant chance for him to be sociable again. Just when he was about to venture in his new home, the doorbell rang, causing him to almost jump. He hesitated. It rang again.

“Lulu hyung?” he called, hoping that he was in the house.

When there was no answer, Sehun finally took courage to open the door, revealing a boy, (or man, he couldn’t tell), around his age with a simple black leather jacket over a white t-shirt, complimented with bleak jeans. The stranger looked confused as he tilted his head to the side and double-checked the number plate.

“Luhan didn’t sell his house by any chance, right?”

Sehun blinked. He shook his head once he regained his composure.

“Well, this is new; in a nice way.” He smiled. “I’m Zhang Yixing. Pleased to meet you. Is that oddball in there?” He tried to peek over Sehun’s tall figure.

“W-well, no, but please d-do come in.” He stepped aside, allowing him to enter.

“I’m sorry to disturb you so early in the morning. I didn’t think anyone apart from Luhan would be here. You see, it’s not like him to have guests around.” Yixing walked around and found a sticky note on the coffee table. “He says he’s out and that breakfast is on the dining table. This is definitely new.” He chuckled in amusement.

“Y-you said…Y-you said he never had guests over, but aren’t you a guest?”

“Me? Well, you could say that. I’m more of a, how shall I put this?” He scratched the edge of his ear as he pondered upon the question.

“Rent payer.”

Both their heads snapped towards the entrance of the door where Luhan could be seen with a bagful of groceries. Yixing huffed childishly.

“Come on, it must be more than that. If I’m the rent payer, then I should be kicking both of you out, now!”

Luhan rolled his eyes as he placed the bag down in the kitchen. “No, you’re not my babysitter. I’m too old to be a ‘baby’. Please find a replacement.”

“Oh! You read my mind again.”

“What brought you over, my friend?” Luhan sighed. Asking questions were a nuisance to him, because he already knew the answers. Sadly, they were obligatory for conversations with those who weren’t telepathic.

“A game of chess.”

It was all nonsense; Yixing wouldn’t stand a chance of winning.

“Sehun, go eat breakfast. We’ll be upstairs playing chess. Please don’t disturb us, okay?”

The younger one nodded obediently despite being clueless to everything. The other two walked upstairs to Luhan’s room and pulled out the chess board.

A small grin appeared from the corner of Yixing’s lips. The room was exactly the same from how he remembered it. Black curtains loomed over the windows, protecting the area from the burning sunlight. From the ceiling to the floorboard - it was all black.

“Don’t you get tired of black?”

“It’s a comforting colour.”

-

The room was eerily silent. No words were shared between them once the game begun. Then again, no words were necessary.

Luhan stared at the chessboard before him in an uninterested manner. He took a glance at his opponent who was just startled by his move. The results were satisfying, he thought. His foot tapped against the table leg, allowing the vibrations to echo hauntingly as he waited patiently for Yixing’s move. He examined the battlefield that took form of a black and white grid, with various chess pieces being prepared to be put to their full potential. His heart raced majestically as he analysed the formation.

Yixing smiled to himself. It was extremely rare to see Luhan with his satisfied look.  It was only in a good game of chess would he ever see that expression.

‘Why do you enjoy playing chess so much?’  It was Yixing’s inner voice, and a smirk crawled onto Luhan’s face.

“It’s simple, really. Chess is merely a game, and so is life. There are rules in life which can be learnt by a simple game of chess.”

Yixing gently pushed his bishop diagonally by three squares.

‘Don’t you ever wonder?’  And then there was a devious cackle. ‘If it’s actually you who’s reading my mind or if it’s me who’s invading your mind?’

Luhan moved his queen without any hesitations and left him with no answer. The game continued in silence until the elder noticed something suspicious. Yixing wasn’t using the strategy he intended to. His eyes dilated when he noticed the formation of the chess pieces. It appeared as if they were equally matched; however, both players now know that it was not the case. One person was dominating; controlling the game, and this time, it was Yixing.

It was a deceiving game – just like how life was filled with lies.

Luhan moved his bishop, so he wouldn’t risk it being destroyed by Yixing’s queen. Yixing grinned at his careless error, clearly amused. It was blatantly obvious that he was unable to foresee the greater good by killing his pawn first. He underestimated the pawn that had already reached the other side of the board.

“It’s unlike you to be so shallow,” said Yixing. His fingertip caressed the white pawn, pushing it just one square ahead. “I change my pawn to a rook. Checkmate.”

A sneer escaped Luhan’s lips before he shifted his knight. Yixing finally moved his queen to her rightful position.

“Stalemate; let’s leave it at that, shall we? It was fun.” Yixing laughed.

“I didn’t think you’d be able to trick me like that.” He sighed.

“You don’t know a lot of things.”

“Go ahead, ask whatever you want to ask then, mind invader.”

Suddenly all smiles slithered away into the darkness.

‘What were you thinking?’

“For the first time, I wasn’t.” It sounded empty, that distorted cackle that leaked out, yet Yixing was able to trace that fine line of contentment lingering his hollow voice.

‘It’s nice, but not when you’re about to die.’

“It’s okay. Whatever it is, I’ll accept it. I just want to have a little bit of fun. And you know that the future can’t be changed for me.”

Yixing shuddered. He wanted to vomit. Knowing the future wasn’t that terrifying, it was the inability of changing it that got to him. It was such a revolting fact. It was a silent rule, those that know the future can’t change it.

All of a sudden, a rattling clatter resounded from downstairs and they both ran down to see what the commotion was about.

Rubik’s cubes covered the floor, mosaicking its original brown shade.

“I-I’m really sorry, Lulu hyung! I was curious, so I—“

“Lulu hyung?” Yixing giggled, amused. In return, Luhan shot him a quick glare before diverting his attention back to the timid youngster.

“It’s okay,” he said as he began to pick his precious treasures up one by one.

“Sorry.” Guilt consumed the boy before them. Sehun hung his head down apologetically as he focused on tidying the mess he caused.

“Here.” Sehun looked up to see Luhan handing him a Rubik’s cube, the classic version. “A present.”

His fingers embraced the cold surface of the toy. “Thank you?”

After Luhan tidied up the mess, Yixing gestured for him to join him in the kitchen.

“Doesn’t it hurt?”

Luhan’s stoic expression ironically painted all his emotions on that tiny face of his.

“It does,” he spoke in a mere whisper. “It hurts, and it hurts a damn lot, because I actually like this kid.”

“Are you ing mad?!” Yixing bellowed, loud enough for Sehun to hear in the living room. Luhan only laughed; that repetitive empty laugh which Yixing was sick and tired of. Life really was a joke to him.

“That’s why you call me oddball.”

***

The bundle of vivid reds, blues, oranges, yellows, whites and greens, spun round and round. Sehun glared at the object, boring holes on every square visible in his vision. He couldn’t understand the logic behind the toy and he couldn’t understand why Luhan would enjoy it so much either.

“Still playing with it?” His Lulu hyung came and sat beside him. Sehun nodded as he finally placed the cube down. “Is there something you want to do?”

Sehun’s eyes rolled from left to right and back again. He nodded. Luhan waited patiently, thinking he would tell him. The youngster’s grin confounded him.

“Well? Aren’t you going to tell me?”

“Yixing hyung said you’re a mind reader.”

For the first time, he felt embarrassed for not being able to know everything.

“Sadly, I can’t read yours. Now tell me!”

His grin grew wider as he leaned closer to the elder, face gleaming in bright yellow. “Hyung told me that too.”

A long string of profanities crashed into Luhan’s mental picture of his friend. “And you believe everything he says?”

Sehun shrugged. “He seems to be right.”

Thump. Thump.

Luhan noticed the proximity between them. It was slightly too close for comfort; that was what his mind thought, but his heart seemed to think otherwise. It pumped harder and faster, pushing the blood cells to the surface of his skin.

“I want to fly a kite.”

Author's note: And so, I decided to split the story into 2 parts. I'm updating it now, because I've suddenly gained a lot of subscribers and I feel guilty for not updating. I found so many errors in this part when I was proof reading, and I would proof read some more...but I really wanted to publish this for you guys. I hope you guys aren't disappointed with this :(

In regards to the next part, it would probably not be posted until after 21st (because that's when my exams end.) and the second part...it's not suitable for readers with a weak heart. It's dark, probably darker than anything I've written before. So...you've been warned. 

I'm so surprised with the subscribers and votes *.*!!! 

I love you guys~~

//ShadowYin