The streets of downtown Apgujeong were quiet, as the sun was slowly setting on the horizon and small, family owned shops lining the sidewalks were closing up for the night. Luhan walked side by side with Sehun, a welcoming, warm breeze matting their locks of hair. Sehun had his hand in Luhan’s, in front of them so no one would notice. Not everyone was welcome to their lifestyle yet.

Taking in a deep breath of air, Sehun exhaled heavily, a smile growing on his usually annoyed looking features. His gaze was set over a few shops, the occasional car whizzing by on their way home. The two boys weren’t on their way home. In fact, they truly had nowhere to go but home. Neither boy wanted to leave each other, though.

Luhan promised he would deal with his mother’s nagging about curfew later.

Sehun finally broke the comfortable silence by squeezing Luhan’s hand gently, only a little more pressure added. Luhan looked up right into the younger boy’s dark orbs. “Let’s never separate, okay?”

Surprised at the sudden question, more a statement, Luhan felt his cheeks go pink as the breeze nipped at his face. Sehun was telling him to never leave. Thrilled with this conversation, Luhan grinned and gripped Sehun’s hand a little tighter. “Never. We’ll be together forever.”

“Forever,” Sehun repeated softly, leaning forward and kissing in between Luhan’s eyebrows. The pink glowed off of his features; Luhan had never been able to get his blushing under control. It was a curse, especially with someone as observant as his lover.

Lover. He adored the way it sounded, how it rolled off of his tongue when he talked about Sehun to anyone that would listen. And, most of all, he enjoyed being able to say that he would have one.

Forever.

~*~

The thought of forever had long since gone away.

In its place was the cold hard reality every lifetime faced.

Luhan’s breathing was labored as he fought to keep it under control. He was terrified, not only of getting caught, but for his life. The closet he was hiding in was eerily silent as he cowered against his hanging shirts, a pair of dress shoes digging into his back through his thin t-shirt.

“Luhan!”

The shout of his name made Luhan flinch, his whole body now trembling with fear. He just wished this was all over, that it was back to the way it was. Before Sehun graduated high school and hung out with the very wrong crowd. Before he found alcohol.

Before he became the monster Luhan was afraid of coming home.

This was almost a nightly thing. Sometimes, it was different; there were days where Sehun would only talk to him poorly, demanding food or calling him useless. He could handle those. Most nights it was this; the thrashing, the destruction, the screaming, and, more importantly, the hits. That was why Luhan was hiding. He couldn’t withstand another hand print stinging on his face.

Luhan hoped for the nights where Sehun was too drunk to even keep his eyes open.

Despite everything that had started months ago, Luhan tried to remember all of the happy times the two shared, before anything like this was thought of. They had spent so much time together. Six years, to be exact, and in that timespan were many memories. Even though there were many to pick from, Luhan only remembered a few in vast detail.

Anything from their first meeting to the day that Sehun got down on a knee and asked him to be there for the rest of his life. It was there.

Luhan hadn’t forgotten any of it.

~*~

Luhan took a seat towards the front of the bus, slowly sinking into the uncomfortable fabric and scooting next to the window. He fiddled with the straps on the backpack in his lap, not breaking his gaze from the view of the outside as the school bus slowly edged along, picking students up at every block.

It was the middle of his second semester, eleventh grade. He was the new kid that couldn’t speak Korean, the one that everyone had to pick on at least once in their lives to carry on. He hated school, but he knew he had to do well to make his mother happy.

As the seats filled up, no one took the empty row one right next to him. He didn’t take any offense to it, though. He had no friends. It was that simple. He went to school, studied, ate lunch alone outside, studied some more, and went home. Friends were a waste of time, merely a distraction.

The last stop before school neared, and almost every seat was full. As the bus pulled up to a small house, a lower classmen rushed out the doors, his uniform disgruntled and papers popping out of his backpack. The sight made Luhan physically sick; if anyone strived to be organized at Jungdae High, it was him.

The thing that confused him, though, was the fact that his hair was a bright blonde, almost bleached. Everyone else on the bus, including him, had the jet black hair they were born with. The boy jumped up the stairs leading to the bus, and Luhan finally got a look at him.

His lips were pulled into a tight line, his jaw firm and his eyebrows furrowed. He must have seen not many seats open, so he reluctantly sunk in next to Luhan, letting out an annoyed sigh and fixing his uniform’s tie.

Luhan gawked. The beautiful boy was sitting next to him? He didn’t know what to do, if he should say anything or just be quiet and pretend like the boy wasn’t sitting there. He had seen him so many times before, but never took more than an accidental glance. Despite his not so good Korean skills, Luhan opened his mouth to stutter out a, “A-Annyeonghaseyo.” Immediately, he felt so stupid. His accent was too heavy for this language.

Startled, the boy’s head perked up, his gaze pouring into Luhan and making him tremble with nervousness. His stare was melting, but in a good way. He seemed shocked, almost… relieved that he had spoken. “Annyeonghaseyo,” he softly replied back, only to turn back to fixing his messy backpack.

Trying to push away the nerves—Luhan hadn’t talked to anyone besides bullies since he had been here—he tried to remember how to put the words together to question the boy about his hair. “Your… hair…” he trailed off, unsure of how to put it any other way. The boy stared at him thoughtfully, waiting for him to finish. “Color?”

The boy seemed to be piecing it together in his mind, finally getting it. “Oh, why is it this color?”

Luhan understood better than he spoke. He quickly nodded, already feeling so much more undereducated than the boy sitting next to him. He was starting to wish he never opened his mouth in the first place. The boy slightly smiled, running a hand through his bleached locks. “I don’t really know. Something different, and my little brother said I’d get paid if I did it, so that kind of sent me over.”

With a smile, Luhan nodded, figuring that was a good reason. He turned back to look out the window, but the boy wasn’t done talking yet. “You don’t speak Korean very well, do you?”

Discouraged, he nodded, looking down at the hands in his lap. He jumped when a hand landed on his shoulder softly, the boy laughing at his reaction. “It’s okay if you can’t. I’ll help you out. Where are you from?”

“China.” He had repeated that word so many times that it was engraved in his head.

To his amusement, the boy’s eyes lit up. “Ooh, I’ve always wanted to visit there one day. I think it’d be fun,” he wondered, his gaze still locked on Luhan. He felt his cheeks heat up, embarrassed at the kind of attention he was receiving.

“This place… prettier,” Luhan assured him. “China is kind of dirty.”

The boy laughed. “I like you. What’s your name?”

At the sound of the word “like”, Luhan’s cheeks grew a darker shade of pink. “Luhan,” he replied.

“Nice to meet you, Luhan. My name is Sehun, tenth grader and your new friend,” he explained with a smile, and nothing made Luhan happier than having someone call themselves his friend.

~*~

A crash and the sounds of bits of glass shattering snapped Luhan out of the beautiful memory and back into the real world. By the sound of it, it was the vase of flowers his mother had given him as a cute surprise gift two weeks ago. He loved to take care of them; it was his own piece of his mother.

And now his mother was probably wilting on the floor among pieces of broken glass.

His breath hitched in his throat as he recognized the sounds of footsteps approaching their bedroom. He made himself as quiet as possible, not moving a muscle, though he would probably open the door anyway. The door to the bedroom was burst open, and Luhan held his breath, his cheeks puffing out for storage.

A switch clicked as light appeared under the crack of the closet door. He could recognize the sound of Sehun’s ratty sneakers on the hardwood floors. The door to the master bathroom was opened and checked, and then came… the closet.

Luhan was finally able to breathe, though his heart was ramming against the inside of his chest. Sehun appeared above him, a growl in his voice and an angry expression permanently etched in his features. Luhan could tell what was coming.

Sehun let out a slur, his voice far beyond normal talking. “What the hell are you doing in here?”

~*~

Luhan held the piece of paper tightly in his hands, trying to work his way through his school. Sehun had written instructions to meet him in a room after school and where to go. He wasn’t sure what was going to happen, but it had been three weeks since he had met Sehun, and they were already best friends.

The hallways were deserted, leaving Luhan to roam freely as he got closer to the destination. Different rooms lined the halls until he got to 214, the room he was looking for. Reluctantly, he twisted the knob and pushed open the door, peeking his head in to make sure he was right.

Sure enough, he easily identified Sehun’s cream colored hair. Luhan opened the door completely, trying to walk in quietly. This time around, he noticed Sehun standing in front of a mirror, and he was… dancing? Amazed, Luhan watched as Sehun smoothly moved his body to the beat of the music playing. Luhan would’ve never thought he could dance like the way he did.

When the song ended, Sehun didn’t even have to look at Luhan. “If you’re going to watch, might as well not stand in the doorway the whole time.”

Embarrassed that he was caught, Luhan quickly tried to piece together his apology. Sehun had helped him a lot on how to fill in his sentences and not make them so choppy. He was reaching the point of fluent in just three weeks. “I’m sorry, y-you were just so amazing and I—“

“Aren’t you sweet,” Sehun cooed thoughtfully, urging Luhan to come closer with the look in his eyes. Obeying with the silent order, Luhan walked over and Sehun embraced him, wrapping his arms around him in a friendly way. Luhan was in love with how gentle Sehun was with him, so caring.

“Did you like it?” Sehun asked as he pulled away. Luhan nodded quickly, looking around the room. It looked like an abandoned studio, hardwood floors and mirrors at every wall. There was a radio that had a plug in for iPods, and a few couches, but there was nothing else.

“What did this place use to be?” Luhan asked, completely curious.

“Oh, this used to be some kind of class, I think. But the funding probably got the class’s head chopped off. My friend Jongin and I come down here sometimes, just to dance. Do you dance?” Sehun asked, gazing at him for an honest answer. Luhan never considered dancing as a hobby.

“No,” Luhan answered honestly.

“You might be good. Want me to teach you how to dance that song? It’s called “Run and Gun”, and it’s really cool. But you might get hot, so you can take your blazer and stuff off if you need to,” Sehun explained, eager to teach the older boy his dance.

Feeling awkward, Luhan obediently took everything off until he was just in his undershirt, his slacks and his sneakers. Sehun smiled at him, before his eyes widened, bewildering Luhan. “Oh, I almost forgot. Wait here. I want to give you something.”

Butterflies filled Luhan’s stomach as Sehun disappeared behind a couch, pulling something out and quickly hiding it behind his back. Anxious, Luhan was all but bouncing on his heels. Sehun finally got within inches before he pulled out a batch of cream colored flowers.

Luhan grinned at the gift. Sehun smiled at his reaction. “I wanted to get you flowers, because you said you like flowers at one time, but I didn’t know what kind. I just got you some that have the same color as my hair,” he admitted sheepishly. “But they smell good.”

He handed them over, and Luhan gladly gripped them gently, leaning forward and sticking his nose into the freshly cut flowers. They smelled thickly of French vanilla, making his nostrils fall in love. Gaining the power to take his head out of his gift, Luhan sighed. “They’re beautiful. Thank you, Sehun.”

“No problem. Now let’s learn this song, ne?”

Giggling, Luhan carefully put his flowers on top of his removed clothing, joining Sehun in front of the mirror to learn the dance steps from him.

~*~

Luhan couldn’t speak. His voice was caught deep in his throat, and it felt like he wasn’t even breathing anymore. Annoyed at the lack of response, Sehun grabbed him by the armpits, dragging him roughly out of the closet and pushing him against the neighboring wall.

The first hit was thrown.

Luhan had become used to Sehun’s hand. He would always go into work with a scarf, long sleeves, or some kind of bandages over his eye, saying he had rashes or had surgery on his eye. In reality, bruises covered his tender skin from all the times Sehun had put his hands on him in horrible ways.

Slowly, as he was smacked around, Luhan became numb, only staring blankly at Sehun as he slurred out curse words and called him dirty names with every punch or slap.

It was a sad lifestyle, but it was Luhan’s sad lifestyle.

~*~

The day Luhan had been waiting for for years had finally come. His high school graduation. He patiently waited in line as names were called and diplomas were given. Despite everything he had gone through at the beginning of his life here, his best friend, Sehun, had got him on the right track. He was graduating with honors, but so were most of the students.

He recognized his best friend in the crowd, sitting with his mother and the two holding a conversation. He looked lovely in a baby blue button up shirt and khakis, most likely from the uniform. He had dyed his hair again, this time to a chocolate brown, gelling it up in the front. Luhan thought it was the hottest thing, but he would never say it aloud.

“Xi Luhan.” At the sound of his name, Luhan quickly made his way up the steps, being careful not to trip over the long gown. Besides the usual clap from everyone, Sehun and his mother stood up, cheering loudly. Luhan stole a glance at Sehun, who grinned as he clapped.

Nervous, his trembling fingers grabbed the diploma. He shook hands with the principal before stepping off, going back into the crowd as another name was called. He had done it. He was finished with school.

When everything was over, he found his mother and Sehun. His mother hugged and kissed him, telling him she was so proud of him. The pink in his cheeks brightened, but noticed Sehun standing there, waiting for his turn. He sighed, not wanting to turn his mother way, but having to. “Umma, why don’t you go wait in the car? Sehun and I will be a minute, and then we can go eat.”

Nodding at the plan, his mother disappeared—but not without another kiss—leaving the two alone. Sehun grinned, pulling Luhan into a tight hug. “I’m proud of you, Luhan. I knew you would do great.”

“Thanks,” Luhan whispered. Luhan buried his head in the button up, feeling Sehun’s heartbeat through the thin fabric of his shirt. Sehun laughed and pulled away, grabbing something quickly behind him. Confused, Luhan watched as Sehun pulled out a pair of cream colored flowers, the same kind as a year ago in the dance studio.

Luhan grinned. “I love these kind.”

“I know,” Sehun sighed with content, smiling at Luhan as he grabbed them and sniffed the French vanilla profusely. But, quickly, as soon as Luhan looked up, his lips were captured in a warm, loving kiss from his best friend. He wrapped his hands around his waist, the flowers still in one of them, melting and moving together with his soft lips. Luhan had never been kissed before, but he had never felt so amazing in his life.

Finally pulling away, Sehun was grinning wildly. “Come on, let’s go eat.” He wrapped his arm around Luhan’s waist as they walked out, Luhan not even caring to remove his gown. He was on Cloud Nine, and there was no way he was coming down now.

~*~

Sehun continued to push Luhan around the room, kicking him and punching him like he was a rag doll with no feelings. He had had enough. The final straw had been months ago. No one could treat him like this and still deserve respect.

“Stop!” Luhan screamed, finally fighting back. It was obviously enough, because mixed with the exhaustion of hitting and the alcohol, Sehun easily was pushed away, falling back into the wall. His expressions grew darker, and he tried to charge, but Luhan was too quick, shoving him back into the wall, now seething with anger.

This wasn’t love.

It had stopped being love months ago.

So why was he still here?

“Oh Sehun, I’m leaving!” Luhan screamed. He had wanted to do this long before this moment, but never had the chance to say it. With Sehun against the wall, looking at him with half-lidded, shocked eyes, it seemed like the right time to say it out. “You’ve treated me like for too damn long!” He was crying now, tears soaking his cheeks and his heart thumping in his chest.

Sehun gawked. “You’re what?”

“I’m leaving,” Luhan repeated slowly, growling as well. He was beyond done, and he had extended the deadline for too long now.

“You can’t leave!” Sehun cried, suddenly in a whole new, more angry attitude.

Luhan laughed snarkily. “Watch me.”

~*~

Luhan looked around the newly furnished house he was proud to call his own. Sehun was at his side, his arm wrapped around his waist. “Beautiful, isn’t it?”

“Yeah,” Luhan sighed. “Is this the house you want to grow old together in?”

Sehun laughed. “Yeah, this is the one.”

Before Sehun had graduated, they had sealed something more than a friendship with another kiss, and as soon as both boys were released from high school, they had purchased a house together, now trying to find stable jobs that didn’t need college diplomas. Neither wanted to go to college.

Life was too short for more school.

Sehun pulled him closer, and Luhan buried his head in his chest, the musky scent of his cologne filling up his nostrils. Sehun set his chin on top of Luhan’s head, leaning down to kiss him through his hair. “I love you,” Sehun whispered, holding him closely.

“I love you too,” Luhan sighed in content. He reached up and their lips connected, mouths moving together in synchronized harmony. It was always a pleasure to Luhan to kiss him.

This was the man he would spend forever with.

Any day now, Luhan knew his lover was going to propose. He didn’t know how, or why, but he knew what his answer was going to be, no matter what: yes. Forever.

That was their promise to each other.

Forever.

~*~

Luhan roughly pulled a suitcase out of the closet, starting to shove clothes and other things he couldn’t leave behind into the tight space. Sehun just watched, and instead of angry like before, he was now sobbing. “Please don’t leave, I’ll chang—“

“Don’t bother,” Luhan snapped, cutting him off. “You told me that the first time you hit me. That it was a mistake. That it will never happen again. Well, it did. Too many times. I hope you’re happy with what you’ve done, Oh Sehun, because I’m not coming back.”

Sehun was frozen. Tears were still streaming down Luhan’s cheeks. He had no idea where this was coming from; probably how long he put up with Sehun’s alcohol abuse. It had made him scared to go home and be there when Sehun put his hand to his face and neck.

Forever was gone.

A substance had pulled them apart.

Luhan shoved everything into a suitcase and his old school backpack, running around while Sehun tried to stop him. Annoyed with how close he was, Luhan turned around to snap at him, only to find lips on his. They weren’t the same ones he kissed when they first built this house, though. They were different. Chapped. Tasting like the inside of a beer bottle.

Pushing him away, Luhan screamed at him to stop, until finally, he did.

~*~

“I knew from the day that I met you on that bus that we would be close, but never like this. I’ve never felt this way about anyone else but you. Like we promised before, I want to spend forever with you. Xi Luhan, will you marry me?”

The two were on the roof of their house, finding the view relaxing, when Sehun suddenly made them stand up. It was hard for him to bend over because of the roof’s slant, but he managed to keep his balance as he popped the question with a big speech before it.

Luhan gasped. He had always imagined how it would go, but now that it was here, in such an inconspicuous place, he was shocked and didn’t quite know what to say. But the answer finally came out. “Y-Yes!”

With a big grin, Sehun snuck the ring onto Luhan’s lengthy finger, the sun setting with its horizontal glow behind them. A kiss was shared, and they embraced. Luhan had never felt happier in his life.

He was getting married to the man he planned to spend forever with.

This was a big step in the very right direction.

~*~

It took ten minutes of Sehun’s barking and sobbing for him not to go, but finally, Luhan found nothing else of use to pack. Noticing the ring on his hand, he quickly slipped it off, handing it to Sehun, who looked appalled at the object in his hand. “You can have that back. Save it for someone who likes being hit.”

“Please, Luhan, I’ll change. I promise,” Sehun spewed, but Luhan wasn’t going to believe him that easy. Tears drying on his cheeks, he approached the front door of the house they designed together, pulling it open roughly and stepping out of the house that held horrible memories inside.

Everything had gone down south as soon as Sehun had given him the engagement ring.

Sehun followed him out, looking the most regretful and sorrowful that he had in a while. Luhan opened the trunk to his car, shoving his belongings in to fit and slamming the door shut. Sehun still stood there, just watching everything unfold. Annoyed by his presence, Luhan stared at him. “What?”

He didn’t seem to have any words. “I’m sorry…”

“You can be sorry, but I’ll never forgive you for what you’ve done to me,” Luhan snarled, opening the door to his car and getting in quickly, only to escape from the pain in the standing right by him.

The car was ignited to life, and Luhan buckled his seatbelt, but as he was shutting it, Sehun caught it, his fingers coiling around the door. He was snarling, mad beyond belief now, but Luhan was no longer scared. He was so close to being able to escape.

“What happened to forever?” he shouted, though there was no need for it over the smooth rumbling of the car’s engine. Luhan laughed at how stupid he was. He couldn’t bring up the promise that had been throw out so long ago, along with their relationship, right as Luhan is about to leave for good.

“Forever ended when I stopped loving you for what you did to me. You hit me every day, Sehun. We used to be so happy, I could trust you with everything. But now… well, erase me from your memories, because I’m not coming back,” Luhan fought back, Sehun looking angrier than ever before seen.

Luhan ripped the door out of his grasp and quickly drove away, leaving Sehun behind in the dirt coming from his tires. Though Sehun’s eyes were now ablaze, he couldn’t find the will to care. He was free from the suffocating grasp of his ex-fiancée, to do what he wanted.

He was no longer trapped with the smell of cigarette smoke and fresh alcohol, or those blazing eyes as he raised his hand to hit Luhan.

No more abuse.

No more fear.

No more Oh Sehun.

~*~

“Let’s never separate, okay?”

“Never. We’ll be together forever.”

“Forever.”

~*~

A/N: I probably should've named this Forever... but *shrug*

I hope to win the Writing Contest with this! Hope you enjoyed! Thanks for reading! :D