“I’ll be back, so wait for me.”

            Daehyun sat quietly and patiently with his arms wrapped around his folded knees and his chin rested on top.  He leaned tiredly against the window pane, staring at the falling snowflakes through the glass as they lazily drifted onto the wintery-white blanket that covered the ground below.  He couldn’t wait to see Jongup.  The latter was supposed to return today after all.  Daehyun had kept the house just as nice and tidy as it had been when Jongup had left in an attempt to keep his mind off of the male’s absence.  But now that Jongup was finally coming home, Daehyun couldn’t stop his heartbeat from accelerating.  He had missed the male so much during the three days he had been gone (although Jongup had initially said he’d be gone for two).  The elder male had even grown the courage to allow his best friend Youngjae to dye his hair, in anticipation of Jongup’s arrival.  Although three days would had gone by quickly for anyone else, Daehyun struggled through each hour, and for several different, complicated reasons.

            The male runs a hand through his soft, misty-gray locks.  The color was a deep contrast to his natural hair color; he wasn’t sure if Jongup would like it.  But Youngjae had insisted, no matter how much Daehyun had demanded a lighter brown instead.  A snowflake landed on the windowpane suddenly, and Daehyun watched it closely with observant eyes.  It was then that he broke into a bitter smile.  What exactly was he doing?

            A knock was then heard at the front door, causing the male to jolt in surprise.  At that moment, a rush of anxiety flooded Daehyun’s system, as he stumbled to get up. “Coming!” he announced as he stopped by to check that the thermostat was still keeping their house warm before taking a glance at himself in the bathroom mirror and rushing toward the door.  He was nervous when he finally made eye contact with Jongup, who was standing majestically in front of him, eyes bright and smiling at him.  Daehyun had fallen deeply in love with the younger’s brown orbs throughout the years; they only helped to enhance Jongup’s innocent angel appearance.  A dry chuckle threatened to erupt from Daehyun’s lips as he processed these thoughts.

            “I’m home,” Jongup grinned at him, evoking extreme joy in the elder.

            It amazed him how sincere Jongup always acted toward him.  Daehyun felt special in so many different ways.  He gladly welcomed the younger male, who placed his bag on the floor and immediately stepped forward to embrace him.  Daehyun sighed in contentment as he was finally able to feel the other’s warmth once again.  He would do anything to stay within this comforting embrace forever.

            “I’ll get started on dinner,” Daehyun insisted, although the younger still hadn’t let go of him.

            “A little longer,” Jongup whispered, and Daehyun could only smile bitterly before nodding into the younger male’s shoulder.

            They stayed like that for a while until Jongup finally decided to let him go, only after planting a gentle kiss of “I’ve missed you” on the elder’s cheek.  Daehyun’s face flushed at the action, and he wasted no time in rushing to the kitchen like a fanatic schoolgirl.

            As he retrieved the ingredients from the refrigerator, Daehyun couldn’t stop the bitter smile from appearing on his face.  Bitter, so bitter.  Jongup had said nothing about his change in hair color.  It was as if he had never dyed it to begin with.  Or maybe he had noticed but had chosen not to say much of it.  Daehyun didn’t know; he couldn’t read the younger’s mind.  He couldn’t understand Jongup’s motives.  But Daehyun knew enough of the truth to not want to know any more of it.  The truth was bitter and he hated it.  But he loved Jongup so much that he couldn’t do anything to protect himself from the trouble that he was in—from the pain that he felt.

            Daehyun was impressed at himself; he was a pretty good actor after all.  The male was able to love Jongup and express that love through his everyday actions, while never showing any signs of the immense weight on his shoulders or of the trouble in his mind.  Daehyun’s heart was heavy and it burdened him.  His affection toward the younger was truly genuine; however, he knew a relationship like theirs would not last.  But Daehyun couldn’t bring himself to care enough.  He couldn’t wake up to reality, for he was like a frog in boiling water, waiting for the disaster to happen.

            The elder wasn’t aware of his sorrow until a tear had rolled down his cheek and into the frying pan.  The hiss of the pan as the tear evaporated caused him to stop sobbing immediately; the male reached across the counter, grabbed a paper towel, and wiped his face clean of tear stains.  There would be no evidence. He began frying two steaks that he had purchased earlier during the day at the local grocery store.  Jongup liked meat after all.

            The steaks were then set on the dinner table, along with silverware and napkins.  Daehyun took his time tidying up the kitchen before heading to their shared bedroom.  He heard the water running in the bathroom and assumed that Jongup was taking a shower.  Still wanting to notify the younger that dinner was ready, Daehyun raised his hand to knock on the door, only to have his fingers halt millimeters away from the wood as he heard the faint ringing of Jongup’s phone on the bathroom counter.  The water almost immediately stopped running and Daehyun suddenly found himself trembling as Jongup’s voice responded to the call.  Three sentences were all he needed to confirm his fears.

            “He’s clingy, but I’ll leave and come to you soon.  Give me some time.  I love you.”

            Fake.  Everything was fake.  The bitter truth that he desperately wanted to escape from was in fact a reality.  Daehyun swallowed hard as his strength left him and his body collapsed onto the hardwood floor below.  His eyes became red and swollen, his lips began to tremble, and no matter how much he tried to suppress his sobs, his shallow breathing could not be missed.  Daehyun was hurt.  His heavy heart had become too much for him to handle.  Why had he been trying so hard for so long when the outcome was so obvious?  Why had he clutched on so tightly to that ounce of false hope?  He blamed himself for being so stupid and oblivious.

            Daehyun’s cries must have been louder than he had thought, for the door had suddenly opened, revealing Jongup with damp brown hair and a towel wrapped around his waist.  His gaze shifted down to the fragile body below him.

            “You… heard all that, didn’t you…?”