Part One

Kris is hardly ever surprised by anything. When Suho and Sehun announce that they’re dating, he’s not surprised. When Jongdae comes clean about his little secret, well, Kris isn’t shocked to know he was hiding something. When Tao comes to him after dinner and asks to steal him away, he smiles and says he’s been waiting to hear that. Being able to sense other people’s emotions is second nature to Kris, something he hardly ever needed to control on his home planet. He keeps it under control now, because it’s not polite to go around invading people’s privacy like that. But he can’t control it all the time, sometimes some emotions are too strong to block out. And yes, lying or concealing a truth isn’t an emotion, but Kris can sense the emotions that go with those things and he’s learned what they mean. He can also sense what emotion belongs to which member of the house—Sehun’s love is different from Baekhyun’s, Kyungsoo’s sadness distinct from Jongdae’s, and so on.

Tao’s emotions are on a whole other level. Kris knew from the moment he met Tao that they were meant to be together. Tao’s emotions, no matter what they are, feel like home. Kris’ people believe in love forever, and in love at first meeting. That’s what it was for him and Tao—love at first meeting. Tao felt it too, though it confused him, why he felt so drawn to this person he’d only just met. Kris went out of his way to make Tao feel comfortable. It was so hard for him not to cry every time he looked at Tao, because he just knew that Tao was the one. But he couldn’t force that on Tao, it had to be his choice. Kris underestimated Tao. He probably could have told Tao the truth from the beginning, and he would have taken it in stride. After only two weeks of knowing each other, Tao asked Kris to go for a walk with him, and they had an open, honest conversation. Tao said he knew Kris was different, he could feel it, he wanted to know if Kris felt the same way. They had their first kiss that very day, though they didn’t progress beyond that for a few months.

In the beginning Kris was obsessed with Tao’s mortality. On his planet people live for a long time, hundreds of Earth years. There was no way Kris could allow his Tao, his soulmate, his beloved, to suffer an early death. Tao deserved more than that, he deserved to see his own world, and the other worlds of the universe. Kris knew he would need to take Tao back to his world, have him fixed up so he could live a long life. He told himself over and over that he would do it for Tao, that it was what was best for him. In truth, he didn’t plan to give Tao a choice. If he went willingly, that was one thing. But Kris planned for the worst.

The truth was that Kris was scared to lose Tao too quickly. He was afraid of living his life in bliss for too few years, and being forced to live the remainder of his life alone, fully aware of how happy he and Tao had been. Earth had a saying, that it was better to have loved and lost than not loved at all. It was the opposite on Kris’ planet—rather not love at all than have love for a short while, and then lose it.

Kris admitted all of this to Tao eventually. He apologized many times for being selfish and thinking only of himself while simultaneously pleading with Tao to understand why he felt this way. Kris didn’t say it, but he had been terrified of finding love on Earth. He didn’t know if even love at first meeting could survive the cultural differences.

But once again, he underestimated Tao.

“I know you’re scared,” Tao had said, holding Kris’ hands gently. “But I am too. I know what you want, and…I’ll be honest, it does scare me. I don’t like hospitals, or surgery. But I think I can be brave.”

“I would stay with you,” Kris said. “For as long as they let me, I’d stay by your side. And you would be safe, I wouldn’t ask this of you if I thought you would be in danger.”

Tao had smiled. “I know,” he said. “That’s why I’m willing to do it. Not yet,” he added, “Not for a while yet. But someday I will. Maybe when we retire, you can take me home with you and we can talk to the doctors.”

Kris had started crying. He hugged Tao tightly and sobbed on his shoulder, because he was so happy and so grateful, and so ashamed.

“Love is about a lot of things,” Tao said. “Compromise, understanding, and sacrifice. You sacrifice a lot to be with me, some of it you did before you even met me. You came here, you didn’t know I’d be here but I count it as a sacrifice. I’m willing to do this one thing, so that I can be with you for a long time.”

Kris had been so happy, because he knew what it took for Tao to say all of that. And he knew how lucky he was to find someone like Tao. He was lucky, and he was so grateful. But if he was honest, he wasn’t really surprised. That was who Tao was.

What surprises Kris is getting a call from the Agency one morning. Could he please come to the main office, alone? Of course, Kris responds. He’s confused and a little worried, but he goes anyway. The main office is a few miles away, he gets picked up and driven in an ordinary car, lead to an office by a single guard. He waits patiently, not too worried. He realizes why he’s been called a second before the door opens and in walks…

“Mom.”

Kris stands and runs to her. She catches him easily, though he’s a head taller than her. she’s always been stronger than she looked, and prepared to hold and catch him. Kris hugs her close, basking in the feeling of her love. He missed it so much, he missed her so much.

“Oh, my baby.”

He hugs her even tighter. “Mom, I missed you so much.”

“I missed you too, love.” Oh, how he missed her voice, and his own native language.

Kris leans back and kisses her cheek. He can’t stop smiling, he’s so happy to see her. “How did you get here?” He looks around. “Is dad with you?”

He can feel her mood change—she’s trying to hide it, which only makes it more obvious. He freezes and stops smiling, dread crawling down his spine. There’s no reason he can think of for his mother to be here, alone besides. Now that he thinks about it, this can’t be a good thing. And it isn’t.

“Mom, what happened?”

She’s trying not to cry. “Darling, you need to come home for a little while. It’s already been cleared with the Agency, it’s been arranged.”

This isn’t good. “Mom, why?”

She starts to cry. “It’s your dad.”

Kris has been taken by surprise, and he doesn’t like it one bit. The ride home is silent. His mom is back at the Agency, he’s going to the apartment to pack and say goodbye for now. He doesn’t really care about packing, he needs Tao.

Unbeknownst to Kris, Tao has been pacing the whole time, swearing up and down that this wasn’t good. When Kris gets back, Tao runs to him. He can see that Kris has been crying, that he’s sad and he’s furious too.

“Yifan, what’s happened?”

Kris doesn’t know who else is listening, he doesn’t particularly care either. “My dad is dying.”

Tao’s jaw drops. “Oh my god…oh my god, how? I thought…”

“I know,” Kris says hollowly. “I thought he was young, the same age as my mom. But I have been misled. They lied to me.” He chokes back a sob. “He’s old. He was…he was on the Council of Ancients!” Kris turns around and punches a wall. He leaves a fist shaped hole. “Gods damnit!” He slumps to the floor and starts to cry, again.

He feels Tao’s hands on his shoulders. “Are you going home?”

Kris nods. “I just…I have to say goodbye to you. I don’t know when I’ll be back.” He sobs again. “I don’t know my own father and now it’s too late, he’s dying…if I had known I would have…I would have done things differently…”

Tao comforts him as best he can. He helps Kris pack, tells him to take all the time he needs. Kris tries to explain things to him, but he’s not sure he does a good job. But Tao just looks at him with so much love and understanding that Kris doesn’t feel like he needs to explain. Tao kisses him slowly, deeply.

“I’ll be here if you need me.”

Kris nods and tries not to cry. “I won’t be gone for too long, I promise.”

“So, what’s the Council of Ancients?” Sehun asks

Tao rubs his forehead and sighs heavily. The rest of the team is gathered at the table. It’s been less than 48 hours since Kris left, and his head is killing him and he hasn’t slept well. “On Kris’ planet everyone lives a long time, but some live longer than others, because they eat well and don’t stress or whatever. So once you live past a certain age, you get invited to join the Council of Ancients, all these old people, men and women. If you accept, you get tested, then it gets put to a vote by the people. The council doesn’t really rule, they advise. They know a lot, they’re wise and respected, so they give advice. It’s up to the people to listen or not. From what I understand, the planet is very inclusive. Everyone votes on everything, but the Council’s opinion is very valued. They argue both sides of a point, the people decide which side wins. To be on the Council, you have to give up your old life, can’t contact family or friends. I guess Kris’ dad was on the Council, met his mom, gave that up and had a family. He might have been single his whole life, some people are.”

“Wow,” Jongdae says. “Poor Kris, he really had no idea?”

Tao shakes his head. “He’s upset, and pissed off.”

“Yeah, we got that,” Suho says, glancing at the hole in the wall.

Tao slumps in his seat. “I get the feeling that if he’d known how little time his dad had, he wouldn’t have joined the Agency at all.”

Suho is on him in an instant. “It can’t be changed. All you can do is offer your support, that’s all anyone can do. Just give him some time, and give yourself time, too. We’re all here for both of you.”

Tao nods and shrugs Suho’s hands off his shoulders. “I’m going back to bed.”

He doesn’t sleep. He sits on the bed and hugs Kris’ pillow to his chest, nose buried in the fabric. He can’t imagine how difficult this is for Kris. It’s all happened so suddenly, he truly didn’t see it coming. And it’s hard for Tao, too. One minute Kris was there, then he was gone, and Tao doesn’t fully understand what’s going to happen, or what is happening. He wishes he could do more, that he knew more about the situation. He feels so useless.

Kris sends an email on the fourth day. It’s dated the previous day, but it takes a while for the message to come through from another galaxy. The message is laced with anger and frustration.

I don’t know what to do. On one hand, I’m so mad at both of them that I can hardly look at them, but on the other I don’t want my father to die without knowing that I love him. And I do love him, I love him so very much. But I’m so angry with him. I know I’ll forgive him in time but I don’t have time.

For now, dad’s instructed the doctors to do whatever they can to prolong his life. As it happens there’s an experienced doctor who left to work on another planet, but she was on her way home when my dad was admitted. It’s even further away than Earth and since she already left there was no time to arrange for emergency transport, so it’ll be a few more days before she arrives. I’ll try to keep you posted, I don’t know how long it will take for this message to arrive.

Tao’s not used to sleeping alone, the bed feels too big without Kris next to him. He wakes up from fitful sleep expecting to see Kris there, but he’s not. they’ve known each other for two years, and in that time Kris has become like another limb. It’s like Tao woke up one morning and suddenly his right arm was gone, and he doesn’t know how to function without it.

“It’s because it was so sudden,” Suho tells him. “I have no doubt that if Kris had gone home for a social visit, and had planned it for several weeks, it wouldn’t feel quite like this. It happened very fast, you weren’t prepared for it, and the fact that he’s upset only made it worse.”

“I don’t like this,” Tao says. “I feel like I miss him too much.”

“You also don’t know when he’ll be back,” Suho adds reluctantly. “That also makes it harder.”

Tao hides his face in Kris’ pillow. It’s starting to lose it’s scent. He washed his own hair with Kris’ shampoo the other night and almost cried in the shower.

“I hate sleeping alone,” Tao whimpers. “I slept alone for most of my life, but after only two years with Kris suddenly I can’t do it.”

Suho tugs Tao against his chest and pats his back. “You can stay with me and Sehun, if you want. Our bed is big enough.”

Tao ends up taking Suho up on that offer. It helps, and he wakes up in the morning with his head clearer than it has been all week. He knows what he wants to do, but he’s going to need some help. He’s alone in Sehun and Suho’s room, and he runs out yelling for Suho. He finds the leader in the kitchen, halfway out of his seat.

“What’s wrong?” Suho asks.

“Nothing,” Tao says. “I need your help, I want to go see Kris.”

Travel to another planet isn’t easy. Since it’s not an absolute emergency, the Agency can’t use their super-secret automatic transportation system. Tao doesn’t even know what exactly that thing is, only that it’s off-limits unless it’s life or death, or you’re super important. And Tao is not that important, so he has to deal with a transportation process lasting a few days. That is, if he can get a visa. Well, not a “visa,” since that’s not really an interplanetary concept, but he does need permission to go to Kris’ home planet, both from the other planet and from Earth. He gets interviewed by several Agency people, asked in twenty different ways why he wants to go, when he and Kris met, what their relationship is. He wanted it to be a surprise for Kris, but it seems like that’s not going to happen.

When Tao goes for one interview, there’s a big screen with Kris’ face on it—it’s a video conference. Tao almost breaks down right then and there, he yells Kris’ name and runs to the screen. Kris gets teary eyed too, reaching out as though he could touch Tao’s face through the screen.

“I miss you so much,” Kris says, his voice all wrong through the crappy speakers.

“I miss you too,” Tao says, “How’s your dad?”

“The doctor just got here, she’s examining him as we speak. I don’t know what’s going to happen. Tao, are you coming here?”

Tao gulps. “I want to.”

Kris starts to cry. “You…you don’t have to.”

Tao has a brief moment where it feels like his heart is going to break. “If I do come, will you be glad to see me?”

Kris nods. “Of course I would. But I don’t want you to, to push yourself for this. Space travel isn’t easy.”

“You would do it for me,” Tao says. “I’m going to do this for you. I should have offered from the start, but I knew you needed time with your family. Now I want to be there for you, to help you through whatever happens next.”

He forgets that there are Agency people watching. He steps closer to the screen. Kris looks exhausted, and scared, and so young. It’s easy for Tao to forget how young they both are.

“I love you so much,” Tao says.

Kris covers his mouth as he sobs. “I love you too,” he says after a moment, then he starts crying even harder.

When the video conference ends, the Agency people give Tao a long look.

“Come back tomorrow morning at 8 AM,” one says after a while. “We’ll get you ready for transport.”

Tao gets a physical and emotional examination, then he gets a lecture on all the things he’s Not Supposed To Do when going to another planet. He’s given a list of things to pack and not to pack, and then finally they explain what’s going to happen.

“We’ll place you on a spacecraft designed to take you where you need to be in around 48 hours. That kind of travel takes a toll on you physically. You won’t be awake for it. You’ll be wearing a gas mask, which will give you oxygen laced with a sedative. Your spacecraft will land in a port around the planet, and you’ll be greeted by the welcome committee.  They’ll give you something to wear, it will look like a Bluetooth set found here, and it will allow you to hear everything that’s said to you in the language of your choice, it will also translate everything you say. The people in the dock will take you down to the planet, and bring you to Kris. You’ll tell them when you want to leave.”

Tao’s head is spinning by the end of the day. He goes home for one night, and he’s expected back the next morning. It’s very sudden, again, but at least he has one night with the team.

Kyungsoo makes Tao’s favorite dinner and they all stay in to watch a movie, Tao’s choice. He makes Sehun choose instead.

“I’m not dying, and I’m not leaving,” He says crossly. “Stop acting like it.”

But he doesn’t want to leave on a sour note and he quickly apologizes. But he gets his point across and the others stop treating him so differently. They all get up in the morning to say goodbye to him.

At the Agency, Tao is taken to a car with tinted windows, he can barely see through them, but he figures that’s the point. They drive for hours and end up in an isolated stretch of beach, with a large steel building set into the rocky shore. Tao is lead in and taken to a bathroom. The staff give him a set of scrubs and tell him to shower and get changed, they’ll wash put the clothes he’s wearing aside so he can change when he gets to the port.

It hits Tao as he’s getting dressed that he’s going to another planet. He freezes and falls to the floor, dazed. When he was a child he didn’t believe in life on other planets, or at least he didn’t think he’d ever see it. Now he’s going to another planet. When he finally comes out of the bathroom the staff all have knowing looks on their faces.

“First time traveling out of this world?” One woman asks.

Tao nods. He feels faintly nauseous.

“This travel is totally safe,” the woman says, “Been done thousands of times, nobody’s ever been hurt.”

They show Tao his shuttle, big but still smaller than he expected. The inside is a computer, which will take him where he needs to go, and a bed with safety straps. The staff squeeze in with him and start to strap him down to the bed, explaining that this will keep him from knocking against the walls in zero gravity. He listens as best he can, but his heart is racing. He’s starting to wonder if he really thought this through.

The same staff member from before puts the mask over his head and settles it against his nose and mouth. “Is it comfortable?”

Tao nods.

The woman smiles at him gently and pats his arm. “Nervous?”

He nods again.

“You’ll be fine. We’re going to turn on the gas and stay with you until you fall asleep, and when you wake up you’ll be on another planet.”

‘And I’ll see Kris,’ Tao thinks, and that thought calms him down enough where he can smile.

“There you go, that’s the spirit,” the woman says. She holds up a button. “Here we go. Now, I’ll count backwards from ten and you’ll start to feel tired.

“Ten, nine, eight…”

Instantly, his vision begins to blur and his body feels heavy. Wow, that hit him fast. Tao inhales deeply and feels his eyes start to close.

“Seven, six…”

He thinks about Kris, about how wonderful it will be to fall asleep next to him again.

“Five, four, three…”

He doesn’t hear two, or one.

Tao hears voices. He recognizes the language, he knows it’s…it’s…his head feels foggy. He groans and tries to sit up, but he’s being held back…

Ah, the restraints. Are they still on? Wait, is he still hurtling through deep space? But the voices…

He opens his eyes and blinks a few times to clear his vision. Someone stands over him and smiles. He feels the restraints fall away. The person opens their mouth and says something that sounds like a song. Tao remembers where he is, and he sits up quickly—too quickly, he nearly falls over. The person catches him, helps him to his feet. There are a lot of people, all wearing scrubs similar to Tao’s own. Something is pressed into Tao’s hand, and he glances down at it. It’s long and thin, curved slightly. The person takes it back and puts the device in Tao’s ear.

“Can you understand me?”

Tao gasps sharply—oh right, that’s the translator.

“Yes,” he says, drawing out the word. “I can…can you…me?”

“We can understand you,” the person says. Tao tries to take in their appearance. Half the person’s face is metallic, and they don’t have any hair. He remembers Kris saying that some people of his planet were genderless, that there was a word for them, a way to address them, but he can’t remember what it is.

“I’m sorry,” he slurs, “I don’t remember what to say.”

The person smiles at him. “It’s alright, don’t worry about it. How do you feel?”

Tao’s legs are barely holding him up, he leans heavily on the person holding him, and a second one—a man—joins on his other side. “I’m tired.”

“Yes, that can happen,” the man says. “You’ll feel better soon. Come along, we’ll get you down to the mainland.”

It takes two people to help Tao get dressed and then he’s half carried, half dragged to another spacecraft, larger than the one he was first in. He sees his bag being loaded inside, then his head lolls to the side and he closes his eyes. When he opens them again, the spacecraft has begun to descend to the planet. Tao’s feeling much more alert by then, and he eagerly looks out the small window. The planet is beautiful, and so different from Earth! The water is blue, but the land is purple and red. He remembers Kris telling him that green was rare on his world, that trees were naturally red and the dirt was purple, colored with the same element that was used to make the organs and limbs that his people had added to their bodies. It was only after it was refined that it turned silver.

The lower the spacecraft gets, the more excited Tao becomes. He sees mountains, and shores with pink sand. He realizes that the mountains he’s seeing are actually buildings—thousands of them, all with peaked roofs and made of what looks like glass. He begins to see shapes of vehicles, all of them round, and of varying sizes.

The spacecraft lands smoothly on one of the shores. When Tao stands he finds that his legs are much more steady, and he can disembark without assistance. It’s fairly warm, and there’s a hot breeze. Tao wonders if it’s summer. He can’t remember if Kris ever said anything about seasons. There are only a few people nearby, all of whom seem to work for the docking station, since their focus is all on the spacecraft. Even so, he feels like he needs another pair of eyes to see everything.

The person from before guides Tao to one of the round vehicles he saw. It’s a lot like a car in that it has a lot of windows, but Tao thinks that the engine—or whatever makes it run—is concealed in the floor. The seats and structure of the vehicle are all white, and the steering mechanism is not a wheel but a joystick. The ride is short, and Tao spends the whole time staring out the windows. He wishes Kris was with him, so he could ask questions. He doesn’t really want to ask this person, he’s afraid of sounding ignorant, or pushy.

They stop at one of the largest cluster of buildings Tao has seen, and he knows right away that this is the hospital. He gulps and his mood spirals down. He jumps when he feels a hand on his shoulder and turns to face his companion.

“My apologies, I didn’t mean to startle you.”

Tao wonders if the translator makes the language sound formal, or if he’s really being spoken to in such a way. “It’s alright,” he says quickly. “I was just lost in thought.”

His guide smiles at him. “I wasn’t trying to pry, but your mood took a very sudden turn. Are you feeling well?”

Tao flushes, he completely forgot that his mood could be sensed by everyone around him here. “I’m okay, I’m sorry I surprised you, I just…I’m worried for my boyfriend.”

“I see. Then let’s not keep you two apart for much longer!”

They both get out of the vehicle and Tao picks up his bag, then stops. “If I may ask, what’s your name?”

The person’s smile widens. “You may call me Ay-ui.”

Tao frowns and hesitantly repeats the syllables. Ay-ui looks delighted.

“You’re very good, have you been learning our language?”

Tao blushes and nods. “Yes, I’ve been trying. I don’t know how good I am.”

Ay-ui puts a hand on Tao’s shoulder and starts to lead him into the hospital. “You will get better in time. It’s clear that you’re willing to learn, and that’s the important thing.”

The hospital looks remarkably like the ones on Earth, but it smells different. It lacks the harsh scent of cleaning supplies, and the people here don’t look so rushed or distressed, but maybe this isn’t the trauma section.

Ay-ui leads Tao to a desk and hands a woman dressed in purple scrubs a piece of paper. The woman smiles and nods before opening a drawer and taking out a translator similar to the one Tao is wearing.

“We’ve been expecting you,” the woman says. “Please follow me, I’ll take you to Yifan.”

It’s a shock to hear Kris called by his other name, but Tao knows it’s still just a translation of what his name is in his native language. He starts to follow the woman (a nurse?) and realizes that Ay-ui isn’t following. When he looks over his shoulder, Ay-ui is nowhere to be found. He feels his heart stutter to a halt and then speed up, and he hurries after the nurse.

“Yifan doesn’t know that you’re here,” she explains as Tao jogs next to her—she has very long legs. “He knows you’re coming, but he didn’t know when. He’s in one of the family rooms at the moment.”

“Do you know if his dad is alright?” Tao asks.

“He is alive,” the nurse replies. “For now, that is all we know.”

That sets Tao on edge. Is she not giving him a straight answer on purpose, or was it the translator messing things up?

The nurse takes Tao to an elevator, up to the fifth floor, and then down a long corridor lined with small rooms, each holding a few seats. Several rooms are occupied by families, some of whom look cheerful, some of whom look tired and upset. Halfway down the hall, the nurse comes to a stop and opens a door.

“You have a visitor,” she says, and then steps aside so Tao can take her place.

Tao’s breath catches in his throat. It’s been over a week since he last saw Kris, and for a second it feels like he’s dreaming. He can see when Kris meets his eyes, that he’s having the same feeling.

Kris gets to his feet slowly. “T-Tao…you…” He walks closer. Tao steps into the room, his heart racing. He wonders if he’s about to be pushed away, if Kris doesn’t want him here.  

Kris stands in front of him. “You’re here…” he breathes. He reaches out and hesitantly touches Tao’s cheek. Tao smiles and takes his hand, and Kris lunges forward and hugs him tightly. “You’re here!” He says again, “You’re actually here, oh gods, Tao you’re here!” He pulls back, and there are tears in his eyes. “I can’t believe it,” he gasps, hands on Tao’s cheeks. “Am I dreaming? When did you get here?”

“Just now,” Tao says. “I wanted to surprise you.”

“Well, you did,” Kris laughs, and he hugs Tao again. “Oh gods, I missed you so much. You have no idea—no, you do have an idea, what am I saying? But I really missed you. I wish I had taken you with me from the start but I wasn’t thinking, I would have asked you to come, I should have…” his grip tightens even more.

Tao rubs Kris’ back soothingly. “I’m here now. And I missed you, too.” It feels so good to be back with Kris, to hug him again and be hugged by him! Tao inhales deeply through his nose—Kris smells exactly like he remembered, the pillow hasn’t done justice.

The next time they lean back Tao realizes that they aren’t alone. There’s another man in the room, very young looking, and he’s watching the pair of them with a fond look on his face. He meets Tao’s eyes and smiles.

“Hi, Tao. Yifan has told me so much about you.”

Kris jumps. “Oh, right, I’m sorry—Tao, this is Kevin.” He grins at the young man. “Believe it or not, he’s my nephew.”

Wow. “Nephew?” Tao repeats. He looks back and forth between the two of them. “But…he looks like he’s your age!”

They both laugh. “I know,” Kris says, “Believe it or not, he’s a year younger than me. But I’ll tell you more about that later, right now I’m just so happy to see you again!” And he hugs Tao once more, squeezing him tightly.

Kevin approaches and tap’s Kris’ shoulder. “You should take Tao out of here,” he says, “Go somewhere you can talk. I’ll let you know if anything happens.”

Kris looks a little unsure. “I…yes, you’re right, I should do that.” He smiles at Tao and for the first time, it looks strained. “Here, let me take your bag and we can go.”

Tao shakes his head. “I can carry by bag, it’s fine.”

Kris allows him that and leads the way out of the hospital. The walk in silence, holding each other’s hands. When they get outside Kris takes Tao to another vehicle and hold the door open for him.

“Oh,” Tao says, “Is this yours?”

Kris nods. “Yes, I borrowed it for the duration of my stay.” His smile turns genuine. “What do you think of it, by the way?”

“It’s so cool,” Tao gushes. “And I saw the planet on my way down, it’s absolutely beautiful. I couldn’t believe how amazing it was. And oh my gosh, Yifan, I can’t even begin to…I was so focused on coming here that I didn’t even realize until the last minute that I was going to another planet and I was just so…so amazed, really.”

They get in the vehicle and Kris leans over, cradling Tao’s face in his hands. “Were you scared?”

Tao feels like he could melt, hearing the concern in Kris’ voice. “I was for a little while. But I’m so glad I decided to come here.”

“So am I,” Kris says. He leans forward and Tao closes his eyes, sighing as Kris kisses him. Oh, he missed this.

They’re panting when they pull back, and they go back almost immediately. Tao into Kris’ mouth and leans closer, pressing against Kris’ body as much as he can in the car. Kris moans and curls his fingers into Tao’s hair, tilting his head for a deeper kiss. They next time they pull back Tao is wondering if he can climb over the seat and into Kris’ lap, but remembers that they’re in public.

“Oh,” he gasps, “Should we not have…I mean, anyone could…”

Kris’ eyes are glued to Tao’s mouth. “It’s okay, nobody is paying attention,” he says. “But I should probably get us somewhere more private.” He brushes his thumb against Tao’s lips. “How would you feel about seeing where I grew up?”

Tao nods. “That would be fine with me.”

They drive for about half an hour, Kris only needs one hand to steer and he holds tightly to Tao’s hand with the other. Tao tells Kris about the last few days, getting permission to travel and how it felt to actually climb into the spacecraft.

“You’re so brave,” Kris says. “It isn’t easy to go to a whole different world.”

“But I’m glad I did,” Tao says.

Kris smiles at him and lifts his hand to kiss it. “I’m glad you did, too.”

The houses look very similar to the ones on Earth, aside from the fact they all have severely peaked roofs. He stares at them for a while before he speaks again.

“I thought the planet was covered in mountains, at first.”

Kris laughs. “Yes, it does look that way, doesn’t it? It’s because we get a lot of snow in the fall and winter, and the design keeps the snow from piling too much weight on the structure.”

“Wow,” Tao says, “Is it really cold in the fall?”

“Oh yes,” Kris tell him, “In fact winter is just ending now, it won’t go much above this on a hot day.”

“Wow,” Tao says again, “I’m going to say that a lot today but I just…I can’t believe I’m on a whole different planet! This is incredible!”

“I felt the same way when I first got to Earth,” Kris says. “And I know you must have so many questions, and I have so much I should tell you, but right now I really…I want to have you to myself.” The vehicle has stopped moving, Tao didn’t even notice. Kris stares at him intently. “I promise I’ll explain everything, but I’ve had a week from hell and I missed you so much…would you be mad if I asked you to wait?”

Tao shakes his head, “No, of course I wouldn’t.”

Kris suddenly gets out of the vehicle and comes around to open Tao’s door. He all but carries Tao and his bag into the house, and Tao gets a brief glance at the inside before Kris is pulling him in for another kiss, pressing him up against the wall and shoving his hands under Tao’s shirt. Tao closes his eyes and revels in the moment. Kris normally moves a lot more slowly than this, but Tao has been on the receiving end on his more intense kisses as well. He never gets tired of them.

Tao gently pushes Kris back after a few minutes and his knees nearly give out when Kris whimpers and tries to lean back in. Tao shushes him and takes his hands. “We’re still in the doorway.”

Kris is breathing heavily. “Right,” He says. He gestures behind himself. “My room is in the back. Do you want to go?”

Tao nods. “Yes, I would like that.”

The house is really similar to the houses on Earth in layout, and unlike houses on Earth where the floors are sometimes wood, the entire floor is covered in a thick carpet and even the walls seem to be textured. Kris’ room is about the same size as the room he and Tao share on Earth, though the bed is smaller. Tao is shocked to see that the room still has very personal touches, like awards and scattered pens and papers on the desk, things that didn’t get there in the last week. The room looks as though someone’s been living in it this whole time.

“Is anyone else here?” Tao asks.

“No,” Kris answers, “It’s just us.”

Tao exhales in relief and gasps when Kris lifts him up and then lays him out on the bed. He swings one leg over Tao’s hips and leans down to kiss him again. Tao arches up with a moan and winds his fingers into Kris’ hair. Kris kisses across his jaw, down his neck, and yanks his shirt aside to nip at his collarbone.

“What do you want?” Tao asks breathlessly.

Kris nuzzles against Tao’s neck. “I don’t know. I’m just so glad to see you…I’m so happy that you’re here. I missed you so much.” Tao can hear how strained his voice is.

“Yifan, are you crying?”

“No,” comes a very tearful-sounding reply. “Not yet.”

Tao carefully maneuvers Kris so their positions are flipped. He can see the tears in his boyfriend’s eyes, and they break his heart.

“We can just talk,” Tao says.

Kris shakes his head. “No, I don’t…I don’t want to think about it. I’ve been thinking about it for days, I don’t know how much longer I can do this.”

Tao gently kisses Kris, all across his cheeks and nose, until he feels like Kris has calmed down a little. “I’m here now,” he says. “I’ll help you get through this any way you need me to.”

Kris’ voice shakes when he speaks. “I just want a few minutes where I don’t have to think about anything.”

Tao leans back to pull off his shirt. Kris lays his hand on the button of Tao’s jeans.

“Are you okay with this?” Tao asks. “Is this what you want?”

Kris nods slowly. “Yes, if it’s alright with you.”

Tao stands up and starts to his jeans. “It’s more than alright with me.”

(Some of you already pointed this out but yeah) Remember a hundred years ago when I said I was going to torture Taoris? This still isn't it. 

(I'm not sure if that's good news or bad news.)

Part two out sometime tomorrow probably. I just didn't want to put it all up at once because it's long and it's a school night. GO DO YOUR HOMEWORK YOU HOOLIGANS