"...but Uncle, I don't want to go to bed. The sun's not even down yet."

"I know little one, but I am sworn to follow your mother's orders. You know how scary she gets when she's mad, right?"

The little boy nodded vigorously with the memory of his mother's wrath fresh on his rebellious mind.

"But I wanted to see the ghosts."

"Ghosts? What ghosts?"

"The ones daddy told me about. He saw them when he was just a little older than me. He saw them by the lake. He said every night when the sun was setting he would see two figures dancing down by the lake. He was too scared to go check it out. But I'm not scared. I'm brave!"

"I'm sure you are very brave, but you still must go to bed.  However, if you will sit very quietly, I will tell you a story."

"Is it about the ghosts? Are they scary? Are they all deformed and ugly and are their eyeballs hanging out?"

The older man laughed. "Actually, it's not really a ghost story, it's more like a love story. Most ghost stories are also love stories, you know. Women waiting for their men who were lost at sea, mothers who lost their children, lovers who were scorned. But this story may tell the story of your ghosts, you'll just have to listen to it to find out."

"Okay, but only because I don't want to go to bed yet."

"Very well then, just listen,"

*

It was early fall and the smell of damp invaded his nose as he pushed the back door open. Kris had said it had been a while since anyone had used the house as his family was too busy for vacations, so it was Kai's for as long as he needed. It wasn't the first time he owed Kris a huge favor, and he suspected it wouldn't be the last. His editor was kinder to him than his own flesh and blood.

He tentatively flicked at the switch just next to the door. He had called and had all the utilities turned back on earlier in the week, so he was relieved to see it had been done. You never knew in these small villages how promptly things would be done. The house was more than he could have asked for. It was an old house, but all the modern amenities had been discretely tucked into the corners. It would suit him perfectly. He quickly found the master bedroom on the second floor and deposited his bag near the bed. The room had a rosy glow to it and he walked to the window, hoping the beauty of the sunset would ease the slight ache still in his heart. The wide window had a perfect view of the lake and the sunset. He was surprised when he saw the outline of a person on the shore line. At first he thought they were simply walking along the edge, but as he watched he realized they were actually dancing. Whoever it was down there certainly knew what they were doing. He watched until the sun was gone, and the shadow had disappeared into the night. He knew right then what his next book would be about.

The dancer appeared every night at sunset. Kai had moved a desk into the room so he could sit and write as he looked out over the lake. He was so taken with his story he never thought to go down to the lake himself and meet they mystery dancer. He spent three weeks holed up in the bedroom, emerging only for food and bathroom breaks. By the end of the third week he had a rough draft ready to send off.

To celebrate he decided to finally visit the lake, so he took a chair and a cooler full of beer and water down to the dock early in the morning. He was very surprised when around noon he was joined by a young man with a basket.

"Hello," the young man said shyly. "You must be the one living in the Wu house."

Kai stood up to properly introduce himself. The young man was about his height, with a quiet smile. There was something familiar about him, but he couldn't yet place where he knew him from.

Extending a hand, Kai said, "Yes, that would be me. I'm Kai."

"Sehun," the other man replied while firmly shaking Kai's hand.

"Wait a minute, are you Oh Sehun?" Kai finally realized who he was speaking to. He had grown a little taller since the last time he had seen him in person and had dyed his hair blonde, but it was definitely Oh Sehun.

"You know me?"

Kai blushed and rubbed a hand nervously across the back of his neck. "We've never spoken, but we attended the same master class once."

"You're a dancer, too?"

"I was. I guess I still am. Except I went the idol route. Unfortunately my leader was a nut case and we had to disband after the first year. Now I am a writer. I guess this is where you disappeared to, then."

Sehun nods. "I tried staying with my parents after my injury, but it was too much. As soon as my ankle healed enough to drive, I came here. The people in the village are mostly older, so they leave me alone for the most part and I help them when they need it."

"Is that you who dances every night?"

"Yes, that is me. I didn't know anyone could see me."

"Yeah, my bedroom window looks out over the lake. I could just see your outline, though. That's why I didn't know it was you. I'm glad to know that you are able to dance again."

Sehun smiled a little sadly and something in Kai's stomach flipped. "It feels good to dance again. I was just cleared to start again last month," Sehun said. "I brought some food, if you'd like to share with me."

"That sounds good."

So the two young men sat together all afternoon trading stories about their lives, about their passion for dance. Soon it was time for the sun to go down. Kai started gathering his things to leave Sehun alone to dance.

"You don't have to leave," said Sehun. "You can watch from here if you want."

"I'd like that."

The blush on Sehun's face is lost in colors of the sunset, but he removes his shoes and walks to the shore line. Kai turns his chair away from the setting sun and watches Sehun walk away. He was struck by the way Sehun walked in an almost graceless and loose-limbed manner, like a teenager fresh from a sudden growth spurt. He hears a voice float towards him, "I haven't properly warmed up, so don't expect anything spectacular." Kai just laughed in response.

As the sky turns fiery Sehun begins to dance. It is a bit wild and unfettered, a strange mix of ballet and modern dance and Kai wishes he could hear the music he is dancing to. It's strange at first to be able to see his dancer up close. He feels a bit like an intruder as he watches Sehun's face change from an impassive indifference to exultation. The sun has made Sehun's pale skin glow and his blonde hair shines.

Kai realizes he has been holding his breath. This new friend he has made is magnificent, he thinks to himself. He is so beautiful that the ache of sorrow in Kai's heart faded and was replaced with something new, but not less painful.

When the sun was gone, Sehun collapsed onto the shore and laughed. Kai walked to him and sat next to him.

"That was beautiful."

Sehun looked at him with a smile, a few giggles still escaping. "Thank you. I had almost forgotten what it was like to dance for an audience. Thank you."

Neither of them really wanted to leave. They had both been lonely for longer than they cared to remember. So as the night grew longer and colder, they subconsciously moved closer and closer to one another until their hips and legs were touching and Kai put his arm around Sehun's shoulder when he saw him shiver.  Sehun lay his head on Kai's shoulder and they watched the stars.

They began to spend their days together, not always at the lake, but sometimes at one or the other's house. Kai finally told Sehun how he had been kicked out of his previous apartment by his ex-boyfriend and with nowhere to go and a broken heart Kris had offered up his home. Sehun told Kai how he had been thinking of giving up dance until the night Kai watched him, and then he realized how much he missed the stage. Sehun had a studio in his house where they would dance together, but Kai always just sat and watched Sehun dance on the shore of the lake.

If asked, neither one of them would know what caused the change. Maybe it was the cold of the approaching winter that made them want warmth, maybe the tension between them had finally reached it's tipping point. No one really knows, but one night Sehun reached out a hand to Kai and led him to the shore and they danced together. There is no music but the song in their hearts, but they dance as though they have always been together, there is no hesitation in any of their movements. And as the last of the daylight slips below the horizon, Kai finds Sehun in his arms. They regard each other for a moment until Kai places his hand on Sehun's face, brushing his cheek with his thumb and they lean towards one another and kiss.

From that moment on, they are inseparable. Kai's book is published and he must return to the city, so Sehun accompanies him and returns to the world of dance. In his first performance there is a duet performed. No one knows who the mystery guest is, they both wear masks and little else, but the critics dub them Yin and Yang for the dancer in the white pants has skin that glows like marble in the lights while the man in black has skin that is sun kissed and warm. Sehun's body is long and lean and a perfect contrast to the slightly heavier and more muscular build of his partner. The dance world goes crazy over them until it is eventually revealed that Kai is the mystery partner.  Kai continues to write, but they always dance one number as a duet in Sehun's performances.

And every chance they get they return to the lake and dance together on the shore. There is never any music played but the music of their hearts which leads them in perfect rhythm.

*

"So, did they like die in an accident or something? And their ghosts found their way back to where they fell in love? That's so beautiful."

The man laughed at his little friend. "No, nothing so tragic happened. Their life was not perfect, no life is, but it was a close to perfect as a life could get."

"What lies are you telling this poor boy now," a new voice said.

"Uncle Sehun, Uncle Jongin was telling me about the ghosts that dance at the lake. He used your name, too. It was cool."

"Well, if your Uncle is done with his story telling then you need to get to bed. I have no intentions of incurring the wrath of your mother. Go to sleep."

"Yes, Uncle." The two men give their great nephew a hug and a good night kiss and he is nearly asleep as they shut the door behind them.

Without a word their hands join and their feet follow a well worn path until they are standing at the edge of a lake and without music they dance in the light of the setting sun.