“Myungsoo?”

“Yes?”

“We’re stardust.”

“What’s stardust?”

“Us.”

“Sungjong?”

“Yes?”

“I have stardust in my eyes, don’t I?”

“We both do.”

“Sungyeol?”

“...Yes?”

“I have stardust in my eyes again, right?”

“I’m Sungjong, Myungsoo...

 Myungsoo tilted his head and furrowed his eyebrows and shook his head lightly. Us?

“What us?”

Myungsoo watched as Sungjong looked at him with a partially empty look, but the majority of his features held some sort of twisted amusement that made Myungsoo shiver.

“This,” Myungsoo felt Sungjong move his arm slowly, he watched it curl over his own one and realised that his hand was occupying the warmth of the younger’s, “is us.”

(There was a quiet whisper of ‘help me’ from the younger boy.)

Myungsoo felt a sense of nostalgia wash over him as a small kiss made its way to his cheek. A whisper of a name made the younger boy stop in his tracks and retreat.

 Myungsoo didn’t say anything more but looked down to the dark grass beneath them. He hadn’t meant to say that, it was just all too familiar.

They were all too similar but they were all too different.

“Sungjong?” Sungjong lifted his head to look at Myungsoo in the eyes and even though that twisted smile left his lips, Sungjong looked at Myungsoo with this sort of sarcastic look.

“Yes, Myungsoo?” The way he sounded each syllable of the boys name sounded almost teasing, as if he held something over him.

Something felt off for Myungsoo and he just couldn’t figure out what.

“What’s stardust?”

Once again, the answer never changed.

“It’s us, Myungsoo, we’re stardust.” Sungjong’s tone changed significantly, he was gentler, calmer but the look only intensified, as if he was laughing at his own misery.

“There is no us...”

“Exactly.”

And eventually Sungjong let the sounds he managed to choke back, out, he threw his head back and laughed, tears flowing down his cheeks.

Through strained giggles Sungjong looked at Myungsoo and spoke, “That’s why we’re stardust...”

(There was a quiet whisper of ‘...we’re too naive’ from the younger boy.)

That night when Myungsoo was by himself in his room, he found the meaning of stardust.

Tears fell down from his cheek in waterfalls.

Something was still amiss.

*~*~*~*                                                                                                                                    

This time Myungsoo understood Sungjong—partially.

“Sungjong, is—is something going on?”

Sungjong kept that cynical smile on his face.

“Yes.”

Myungsoo knew that he wasn’t going to elaborate.

“I’m here you know.” Suddenly all dark amusement in Sungjong’s eyes vanished and he stared at Myungsoo with hard eyes and Myungsoo only just realised how cold his hands really were.

(There was a quiet whisper of ‘who am I?’ from the younger boy.)

“What’s my name?”

“S-Sungye—Sungjong. Lee Sung...”

Myungsoo felt lost—torn, and he had no idea why.

“Myungsoo, who’s my brother?”

Myungsoo suddenly realised he knew the answer. It was easy.

He answered quickly, to which the other boy smiled at him gently.

“Myungsoo,” the beautiful boy tugged on his arm gently, to which Myungsoo answered with a sing-song of the pretty boy’s name, “why do you have Stardust in your eyes?”

His eyes widened suddenly, he never really thought of that. Just the thought of it fit perfectly for some reason.

“I—I don’t know...”

(There was a quiet whisper of ‘I know why’ from the younger boy.)

“I know why I have stardust in my eyes...”

Myungsoo knew he wasn’t going to elaborate.

“Myungsoo?”

“Yes?”

“Say my name.”

For some reason, this time it was easier. The other boy laughed and Myungsoo joined in, a large smile occupying his face.

He repeated the name happily, each syllable feeling complete on his tongue and each time the world left his mouth a tear fell from the said boy.

Something was still amiss... but it was absolutely perfect.

(There was a quiet whisper of ‘that’s not my name,’ from the younger boy.)

*~*~*~*

Myungsoo felt his eyes widen and his mouth drop.

“Y-you’re joking right?”

(There was a quiet whisper of ‘Yes.’ from the younger boy.)

“No, I’m sorry, Myungsoo. I’m Sungjong. Lee Sungjong!”

The amusement from every previous day had complete disappeared, leaving not a trace on his pretty face.

“No! NO! You’re Lee—Lee Sungjo—Sungyeol!”

“Open your eyes, Myungsoo, look at me.” and so Myungsoo did and when he saw Sungjong he broke down.

“No, no, no. I-I love you.”

(There was a quiet whisper of ‘I love you too’ from the younger boy.)

“Myungsoo, who do you love?”

Myungsoo already knew, he loved... he loved—

“Sungyeol...”

(There was a quiet whisper of ‘wrong answer’ from the younger boy.)

“Do you remember what happened to Sungyeol?”

And Myungsoo started to feel faint—because his mind began to remember.

“He’s dead, isn’t he?”

“Yeah, he is.”

And tears fell from both of their eyes.

Everything was wrong.

*~*~*~*

“Myungsoo?”

“Yes, Sungjong?”

Myungsoo tilted his head as Sungjong put his palm over the hand on his cheek. He lifted it off and held it in his hands.

A smile washed over his mouth and it was more melancholic than twisted.

“I love you.”

Myungsoo flinched and quickly snatched his hand out of the brother of his dead lovers hold. “I-I’m sorry about all I’ve done, Sungjong, but I—I can’t love you like I loved Sungyeol.”

“Then love me differently.”

“I—I can’t love you, at all.”

“Ye—Yes, you can, Myungsoo, please believe me.”

“Forget about me, Sungjong.”

“Why!”

“Because, Jongie-ah, we’re stardust—we have stardust in our eyes.”

He watched as the smile and tears fell from Sungjong’s eyes.  It was strange to see Sungjong cry without a smile.

“Let’s stop being stardust then, let’s be real.”

“But we’re not. We’re just illusions—we’re just stardust. Let’s wash the stardust from our eyes, Sungjong, let’s forget.”

Sungjong let the smile occupy his face once again and Myungsoo just watched as it morphed back into its twisted fate, once more.

“The tears washed out the stars from my eyes a long, long time ago, Myungsoo.”

“Then why are you still crying?”

“Because something else got caught in my eyes.”

Myungsoo tilted his head slightly but once again, he knew Sungjong wasn’t going to elaborate so instead he replied.

“It’s okay, Jongie, we’ll forget each other and you’ll carry on and fall in love with someone else and wash all traces of stardust from your soul.”

“But stardust is beautiful.”

“Not as beautiful as love.”

*~*~*~*~*

There was a quiet whisper of ‘Myungsoo-ah, you still have stardust in your eyes!’  from the younger boy.