Hastily packing his belongings- by carelessly shoving them into his shabby bag, Sehun felt a soft tap on his shoulder followed by an “are you fine with it?”

Letting out a soft sigh from his perfectly structured thin lips, Sehun shoved the last piece of his belongings into the awaiting little space left in his bag before turning on his heels to head out of the classroom. Grabbing the doorknob, Sehun tilted his head to the back and flSehuned his dear friend an assuring smile.

“I’m fine with it now. And I’m forever fine with it.”

A gruesome plane crash had taken away Sehun’s father from their family five years ago. Sehun was a growing boy at the tender age of eleven. It was sad that he no longer have a man to be called father. And it broke his heart more to watch his mother’s grief over the love of her life. Months afterwards, Mr. Kim came into the picture. He made his mother happy. And he made Sehun happy too.

After two years of great hospitality and warm company, Mr. Kim opted for a marriage and Sehun knew more than anything else that his mother was happy over the idea of having someone to take care of them again. And Sehun was fine with it.

Apparently, Mr. Kim had a son from his previous failed marriage. His son is a few months older than Sehun. The idea of having a brother made him excited and raring for a whole new experience. Sehun was sure that the marriage was a blessing from God. He knew that the marriage would last and they would be happy again. Three years after the marriage, the whole family were still together. Sehun’s mother was very pleased with his stepfather and stepbrother companies. She was content with their life.

But Sehun wasn’t.

His stepbrother, Kai, is deadly captivating that it hurts.

The brat always has his way with their mother. At first, Sehun just shrugged it off considering the fact that Kai had been growing up in his previous nineteen years of life without the proper love of is past mother. Everything was fine for Sehun at first until he realised that Kai really hates the idea of sharing their mother’s attention. And that was when he knew that turning a blind eye over this matter will just resulting in his misery.

Even so, Sehun failed to turn the favour into his side and the odds were totally against him. He tried everything he could to gain their mother’s attention but it was all futile. Kai Kim is a tough hindrance. Their mother was too enchanted by  Kai’s charm- seeing is him as the best son figure till she forgot to put Sehun into sleep every nights like she used to, she stopped asking him about his days and problems, and there were no longer I love you exchanged between the two. After three years of spending his nights accompanied by the faint sound of fan’s spinning and small whispers of I miss you, Sehun chose to stop. As he walked through his puberty, Sehun just don’t care anymore.

He began to isolate himself.

While the others were busy rejoicing themselves in those harmonious moments at their dining table, Sehun was sprawled on his bed, headphone on, fingers busy moving to the outline sketches of his drawing. Sehun loves sketching. It reminded him of his deceased father. Back when he was in kindergarten, his father used to praise his drawings a lot. He always bragged to his father about how his teachers saw him as an art genius, one who was born gifted when it comes to drawing and sketching. And his father was more than happy to know that his only son had found something in life that he enjoys doing, plus is ultimately good at it.

So, Sehun draws. And he never stopped drawing even after his father’s death. His room is full of finished and unfinished sketches. His mother used to scold him a lot, saying that he will never get himself a girlfriend with his room looking ship-wreck. But that was in the past. Sehun used to laugh at himself for sitting patiently on his bed, leg crossed and eyes fixed to the wooden door of his room, waiting for his mother to barge in and starts hitting him with any random pillow while scolding him to no end.

When Sehun thought that he couldn’t care less anymore, his family proved him wrong.

“Where are you going?”

Sehun found himself asking when he was was on his way to his room, feet climbing up the stairs when he saw his mother pulling a few luggages from the master bedroom. Looking up to her son, she tilted her head a bit before muttering a small “Hawaii”.

Sehun felt his feet stopped moving. He slowly turned his head to glance at his mother. “Tonight?” it was audible but his mother totally heard it and he knew it when she heaved out a sigh.

Sehun was wondering if that sigh was supposed to mean something.

The woman in her late thirties approached her son.

“Sehun, you will be fine. You are my big boy. You can take care of yourself. Plus, don’t you tell us that you would like to have the house for yourself for a while since you need some time alone?” his mother was caressing his hair by then. And Sehun never felt this close to her during those past three years. But Sehun was beyond frustrated. He was confused as well. And he was never good at hiding it when he just cannot control himself from asking “what do you mean?”

The delicate fingers that were caressing his hair were soon put into halt. His mother frowned, hand retracted back to her side as she raised her brow.

“Kai told us that you decided to stay behind instead of joining this vacation trip. He said that you wanted to be alone so that you could clear your head over whatever dilemma you were having.”

Sehun was furious.

And he was off-limit when he heard the faint sound of Kai’s footsteps behind him. Turning his head around, Sehun shot his stepbrother a death glare and Kai swear, if looks could kill, he would be dead by then. DSehuning his way to his room, Sehun took out a key from his drawer. His mother was at his door by then, asking him why was her son looking so furious but Sehun ignored her completely. As he walked out of his room, legs carrying him out of the house, he just couldn’t stop thinking.

Why did his happened? Why did Kai lie? Why did is mother trusted Kai when it was obvious that Kai hated Sehun? Why his mother didn’t come to him when she knew that something was bothering him? Why did things changed between them?

Why?

Flopping onto the seat of his motorbike, Sehun slid in the key and started the engine. He could hear his mother shouting in the house. As his mother’s shouts were getting louder and nearer, Sehun sped off.

It was dark and Sehun had nowhere in mind to go.

Screw that.

He doesn’t even know where he was going. He just wanted to get away from there. Get away from his mother. Get way from Kai. Get away from a place he used to call home.

There were no roadside lamps. Even the moonlight refused to emits its beauty on Sehun’s ugliest day. The lamp from his motorbike wasn’t that bright and to make things worse, the weather wasn’t any help. It was raining heavily.

As the dark sky continued shedding its tears violently on Sehun, he cannot help himself from breaking out anymore. When he thought that he got no more tear to shed for his miserable life, the worst one came out in a gush. His tears flew out from that pair of beautiful hazel orbs like a flawless stream, so pure and flowing nicely without hesitation. There was nothing that held him back. That night, he learnt to let go. He was furious, sad, lonely and cold. Nothing could be worst than this, or so he thought, because when he turned around to a corner, he was blinded by such bright light. As he came in crash with that thing, Sehun felt a wave of excruciating pain in his every limb. The pain began to subside and Sehun could no longer feel his broken bones as his consciousness slowly slipping out of him together with his sight.

*********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

The melodious sound of birds chirping hits Sehun’s eardrums in the loveliest way. Sehun felt his lips forming a small smile. He likes it. He likes how the birds greet him morning with such harmonious melody. He would surely put it on replay if he could. It made him feel like the earth is a beautiful place to be on, as if there could never be anything wrong on it. Gradually, Sehun cracked open an eye. He cringed a bit at the intruding ray from that big ball of energy. Was the sun always this bright?

“Thank goodness you are finally awake.”

Startled, Sehun turned his head to the side only to cringe at the massive impact of pain surging through his body. He cringed as he could feel all his broken bones, those deep cuts and bruises as if he just got ran over by a truck.

“You got ran over by a truck two weeks ago.” No wonder.

Wait.

“Two weeks ago?” Sehun forced himself to ask despite the pains were begging him to stay still. Two weeks?  Was he sleeping all the time? Or was he in comatose? Whatever it was, Sehun wanted to know. He needed to know.

“Two weeks ago, you got yourself into a crash with a truck. You must have fallen down from the cliff into the wood. The villagers found you and brought you here. You were lucky to survive. You were sleeping up till now and it’s a relief that you have woken up but-” she placed her long fingers on Sehun’s bandaged right eye, something that he didn’t realised before. He couldn’t feel any pain there so what could have been the problem?

“Until we found you a donor, your right eye is currently blind.”

Sehun couldn’t find his strength to argue. He was tired of thinking that nothing could be any worse that whatever suffering he was having. He could be dead by tomorrow morning. End of story.

“By the way, we can’t find your ID or anything as refeLuhance to your identity. So, we couldn’t put your profile in our record.” She was holding a file, probably his medication report. Sehun took his moment to look at the lovely figure in front of him. She was wearing a light pink outfit that perfectly matched her milky white skin. Cute small teeth nibbling on her bottom rosy lips as she taps her pen on the file with her delicate fingers.

Nurse indeed.

“Oh Sehun. Nineteen.”

She nodded her head slightly as she scribbled something on his report. Sehun turned to rest his head on the pillow, eyes closed as he inhaled deeply. He wanted to sleep again but the nurse seemed to against him.

“Can I have your family contact number? We need to call your family to inform them on your well being.” She was smiling and Sehun smiled back to her.

“I don’t have any family.”

***************************************************************************

“How much do I need to pay for the medication fee?” Sehun found himself admiring the whole room. It was safe to say that this hospital is the best one Sehun had ever been in to, everything in the room looks expensive and the hospital’s facilities were totally in their best condition.

“Every service provided here is free of charge. There is nothing for you to pay.”

Sehun turned his head towards the nurse, totally flabbergasted. She chuckled before taking her seat.

“This hospital was built by a very rich couple years ago. They built it for their son. My father was their doctor back then. When he told the couple that they are having a baby boy, the couple were on cloud nine. But, after seven months through pregnancy, the foetus was diagnosed with a rare disease. It was tragic. The father is a businessman while the mother is an actress. You could already imagine how busy the two’s lives are. They can’t afford to be with their sick baby all the time. So they left him under the hospitality’s of my father. And they decided that anybody who got treated here will not be charged. Consider it as their act of charity. But since this hospital is located deep inside the wood, not so many had been here.”

Sehun’s mind wandered to home. His parents never looked for him. He was not surprised though but he just couldn’t stopped thinking about the son of this massive hospital owners. Did his parents ever come to visit him? He had never seen any visitors around. Not just visitors. There wasn’t even any patient around beside him. If the boy is really here, where could he be?

***************************************************************************

Sehun was dead bored. He badly needed something to do. It was nigh time and there were nobody around. The nurse wasn’t there. Too bad there’s only a nurse and a doctor working for the hospital though Sehun never once saw him. So, he sneaked out of his room. With the help of is walking stick, Sehun managed to walk and peeked into a few rooms only to be disappointed upon finding them empty. He began to doubt the nurse. Is there really anybody else around beside him and her?

As Sehun was wandering along the hallway, his ears caught a faint sound of footsteps coming. Sehun turned around only to be greeted by darkness. His mind could be playing tricks on him or this hospital could be haunted. Eerie.

He let out a sigh before turning on is heel again. Then, he saw him. Big pair of doe eyes staring at him with such intensity. Small plump lips forming a coy smile and his bangs were hiding his forehead in the cutest way. He is probably shorter than Sehun with a slight difference. His figure is slim and slender. His blonde locks totally looked good on him together with that pearly white skin. His entire being screams cuteness and Sehun can’t help himself from comparing the boy to Disney Bambi.

The boy walked towards him and Sehun found himself petrified. Surely this boy is no ghost. Sehun knew who this boy is but he never imagined him to be looking like this. He imagined the boy to be skinny and limped. Face looking soulless and dead.

“Hey there.” Sehun blinked a tad too quick. Forget birds chirping. Sehun would rather have this boy voice on replay instead. Sehun knew that it was rude of him not to greet back but he doesn’t want it to be a boring hey there too. He wanted to sound cool and friendly. But the deer-like-boy beat him before he managed to utter a single word.

“What happened to your right eye?” the boy was looking at his right eye with full interest laced by curiosity. Sehun slowly rubbed the patch of bandage.

“I got into an accident. Something must have stabbed it. It’s currently blind. Well, at least until I found myself a donor.”

Sehun noticed how the boy cringed at the word stabbed. He found it cute somehow. “I am Sehun by the way.”

The boy smiled.

“Call me Luhan.”

********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Sehun hated the nurse.

She suddenly decided to show up after Luhan had introduced himself to Sehun. He was about to ask for Luhan’s room number but the latter had already ran away by then, probably feared of getting caught wandering around at night without supervision. To be honest, Sehun shouldn’t be wandering around either. He was dragged back to his room mercilessly once he was caught standing alone under the dim light at the hospital deserted hallway. It was night time again and Sehun can’t stop cursing the nurse. Lying on his bed, arms crossed over his chest and lips frowning, Sehun kept glaring at the locked door. He just wanted to grab any nearby glass and smashed it against the door’s face but the clicking sound of the doorknob stopped him.

“Hey Sehun.” A beaming Luhan appeared before his door. Sehun quickly rose from his sitting position as his gaze was fixed on the skipping boy. Luhan do not walk. He skips.

“You sure got your way here.” Sehun chuckled before continued “I’m not surprised though since you have been here since your birth. You must be the boy. The son of the couple who built this hospital. Am I right?”

Luhan faked a gasp. “Guess the nurse told you. What a big mouth.” He shrugged. Sehun nodded his head, one act that Luhan interpret as the word exactly. Luhan sat on the edge of the bed. His eyes were staring outside the window, deep into the darkness of the night sky. Luhan didn’t look like he wanted to initiate a conversation so Sehun gladly took the role.

“You don’t look so sick to me. Why are you hospitalised?”

 Luhan let out a sigh before answering. His chestnut orbs reflected sadness and sorrow.

“My body is not immune to sunlight. It cannot come in contact with the sun rays. That is why I’m here. Hidden from the world and the beautiful sun rays that can harm me. That is also why I am out of my room at nights only.” Luhan turned his head to Sehun and smiled. He wasn’t beaming. Just a fake smile to hide his sadness. A smile that told Sehun that Luhan had accepted is weakness.

A smile that told Sehun that Luhan is incurable.

They began spending time with each other every night. Sehun would wait on his bed and Luhan would come over for a game. They accompanied each other and Sehun learnt that Luhan is actually four years older than him. It was shocking but Sehun didn’t mind since Luhan treated him really well. Sehun wouldn’t mind to have Luhan as his brother. In fact, Sehun had always yearned for a brother like Luhan. Luhan is his brother.

A brother he never had.

***************************************************************************

“Have you ever gone to the beach?”

Sehun looked at Luhan as he raised his brow. “Of course I have been there. It’s pretty crowded in summer.” Sehun shrugged like it was nothing interesting but Luhan on the other hand had this dreamy look plastered on his face.

“I had always wanted to go to the beach. I only saw it on television shows and magazines before. It is beautiful and the sun looked so bright. I wanted to feel my bare foot on the sand, dip my feet into the sea water and build sandcastles under the blazing sun. That has always been my one and only dream.” He chuckled. Luhan might think that he sounded asinine but Sehun thought otherwise.

“Sure. Let’s go there when you are fully healed. I will take you to the beach with my motorbike. Wait. My motorbike is dead. Let’s just take the bus instead.”

Sehun flSehuned is million dollar smile. Luhan was stunned but it didn’t take long for him to erupt into a fit of laughter. He face palmed while laughing real hard. As his laughter subsides, he still kept that hand on his face. Sehun walked towards him. Luhan still refused to let go of his face, head lowered. It was silent for a moment.

Sehun patted Luhan’s fluffy blonde hair.

“You will get to see the beach. I promise.”

***************************************************************************

“You sure heal quickly. It’s only been a month or so.” The nurse was jotting something on his record file. Sehun can feel it. How his wounds and bruises seemed to fade and he can no longer feel pain for his fractures. His right eye wasn’t any better though.

“Normal people would take up to two or three months to heal but you only needed a month. Are you enjoying your time here?” She asked as she finished jotting. Sehun nodded his head enthusiastically. “I found a good friend here.” The nurse looked up to Sehun. She raised her brow, totally curious. “Friend you say?” There was a hint of confusion lacing her voice but Sehun was too busy smiling to himself to catch it. He was eager for night to fall.

He missed Luhan.

*********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

“You are recovering. I heard that you are getting discharge from this hospital next week.” There was a hint of sadness in is voice. Sehun nodded his head. He was told about it during his medical check up that morning. He would gradually have to leave this hospital.

He would have to leave Luhan.

“You know, I was wondering. Why aren’t your family visiting?”

Sehun froze. He had been happily spending his time with Luhan that he forgot about his family. Sehun didn’t want to go back. He wanted to be here with Luhan. His friend, his brother. His only family.

“I don’t have any family. They can call themselves my family for all I care but they are nothing like that. They are-” Sehun was stopped with a soft press of finger on his lips. Sehun looked up to meet Luhan’s eyes. And he noticed something.

Luhan looked broken.

“Sehun, they are your family. They are the people in your life who appreciate having you in theirs. The one who encourage you to improve in healthy and exciting ways, and who not only embrace you for who you are now but also embrace and push you to be the person you wanted to be. They are the people who accept you for who you are and cherish you to the fullest. They don’t have to say it to your face or be with you 24/7 to show that they care for you. They just do. They didn’t put you in a nice haven to live in, or in an extravagant home to grow up in but they give you a place here.” Luhan moved his finger to Sehun’s chest, the spot where he believed the heart lies. Sehun couldn’t find his voice to talk back. Luhan was teaching him the meaning of a family.

Luhan, who had been living a lonely life longer than Sehun.

Luhan, who was lacking parental love.

Luhan, who knew what it means to be family. 

“My parents aren’t always around. They are busy and I forced myself to learn that fact. But I always knew that I am number one in their hearts. Because they are family. Same with yours. Family stick by you through the worst and put up with you even when you are not your best. They support you and help pick you up. They don’t judge you and they do not turn their backs on you. They will fight tooth and nail with you through the darkness of life, be with you to pick you up when you fall, love you for who you are and are those who you can be yourself with forever and always. When the world has turned against you, family stick by your side and sees you through life mistakes. Sehun, when it comes to family, do not close you heart.”

**********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Sehun was sketching.

It had been for three hours straight. Sehun usually didn’t take that long to draw someone’s portrait but this is Luhan. Not just someone.

Another thirty minutes passed and Sehun let out a relieved sigh. It was done. Not to brag but Sehun was really impressed by his handwork. It totally looked like Luhan.

“What a cute little boy.” The nurse tilted her head and beamed. Sehun was grinning from ear to ear. Cute little boy means Luhan of course. Sehun was planning to give something to Luhan as a farewell present since this week shall be his last. Not that Sehun wouldn’t come back to visit but he wanted Luhan to have something to look at whenever he feels lonely. He wanted Luhan to have something that can remind him of Sehun. Since he was penniless, better do something he believed he was best at.

Sehun believed Luhan only deserved the best.

“May I know who that is?” the nurse was looking expectantly at him, demanding for an answer. Sehun was offended as well as hesitant. The nurse couldn’t recognise Luhan. Was his sketching that bad? He looked at the sketch judgingly.

Maybe he was being overconfident.

He cannot give this to Luhan. Luhan needed the best. He only deserves the best.

Carefully placing his sketching into the drawer, he peeked at it for the last time. He still got a week left. That’s plenty of time left for him. Sehun nodded to himself. He will make sure that Luhan gets the best portrait of his life.

As for the nurse, she never got the answer to her question.

********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

“Is that me?”

There stood Luhan, big innocent doe eyes boring hole into Sehun’s drawer. Screw his one week.

Sehun just got back from the pantry. Luhan was never that early so Sehun never expected to see Luhan froze in front of his drawer, eyes fixed on the little piece of treasure hibernating inside it. Sehun scratched his nape. “Well, you see Luhan, I can explain. It’s-”

Sehun couldn’t finished is sentence. Luhan’s hands were shaking violently when he reached for the sketch. He wanted to take it but he was being hesitant for some reason. Sehun didn’t know what was holding him back so he opted to voice out.

“Take it. It’s for you. I draw it for you.”

But Luhan never took it, he burst into tears instead. He grabbed a fistful of the shirt he was wearing and cried harder. He fell on his knees; face flushed and wet with ugly tears.

Luhan never cried.

Not even when he talked about his sickness.

Not even when he talked about his parents.

Not even when he talked about his undying dream.

But Luhan cried out everything he was holding tonight. Luhan wasn’t sad.

Luhan was badly broken.

Sehun was too busy joining the tears ceremony to figure out why nobody heard Luhan’s cries.

********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

A week had passed since Luhan saw that sketch. And it’s also been a week since Sehun last seen the older boy. Luhan never visited Sehun ever since that night. He never took the sketch either. It was Sehun’s last day and he badly wanted to meet Luhan before he took his leave.

Holding the sketching in his right hand, Sehun walked towards the receptionist desk. The nurse didn’t come to his room that morning. He needed to ask her Luhan’s room number. Plus, he needed to bid her goodbye and thank her for nursing him to health.

But there was nobody there.

Sehun looked around. Where could everybody be?

The sound of haste footsteps alerted Sehun. He looks to the direction of the sound. The nurse was climbing the stairs in a hasty pace.

“Excuse me!” he shouted to her. She stopped climbing the stairs and looked at Sehun. Panic was visible in her eyes.

“Sehun, I am badly sorry but I can’t help you right now. My father needed my help with his patient. His condition is currently critical.”

No. Please.

“Luhan?”

The panic quickly changed into confusion. “How did you-”

“Just answer me. Is it him? Luhan?”

And Sehun felt the piece of paper he was holding slipped from his hand as the nurse nodded her head.

**********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

“So you are saying that Luhan is your friend that visited you every night before?” she doesn’t have to turn her head to look to know that the latter was nodding his head. They were standing on front of a door. The door is totally different compared to the other doors Sehun had seen around. Very important person indeed.

“And the boy in your sketch?”

Sehun looked at her. Her back was facing him. She was holding the doorknob so tight that her knuckles turned white. Sehun knew that Luhan is just behind that door. He wanted to meet him. He wanted to know what is happening to Luhan. He wanted to know why Luhan never show up after that night.

After the nurse had told Sehun that Luhan is in his critical moments, he rushed to her and begged her let him meet Luhan. She was hesitant and first but Sehun was so determined. And he was damn stubborn as well.

They ran their way to his room and now they are here.

“The boy in the sketch is him. Luhan.”

The nurse looked at him. Sadness painted her whole face.

“Let’s meet him then.”

When the door was opened, Sehun didn’t expect it to be so spacious. The walls were pure white and it emits a calm sensation. The furniture’s were neatly placed and everything looked so elegant and extravagant. It was perfect except for the dying figure on the bed.

“That is Luhan.”

Lying on the bed was the saddest view of Sehun’s life.

His body was connected with various wires and machines. Sehun could see that he was having problems with breathing and the non-stop beeping sound of the machine scared him to death. A doctor was standing beside him, fingers busy with the colourful buttons on the machines.

Luhan’s body was fully bandaged.

“Why? What happened? Since when?” Sehun was stuttering. He can’t believe his eyes. Luhan was right in front of him. Fully bandaged like a mummy. The only part of his body that wasn’t covered with bandage was his eyes and lips.

Sehun strutted towards the bed with the nurse following him. His legs were shaky and his steps were hesitant.

“It’s been like this since his birth, Sehun.”

“Liar!”

The whole room fell into silence. The only sound that could be heard was Luhan’s suffocated breathing.

“You are lying. All of you are lying to me. He was fine when I first met him. He was also fine when the last time I met him. And it was just a week ago. Please stop. This is not funny.” Tears were threatening to fall from his eye. Sehun was tired of crying. He didn’t want to cry anymore. He didn’t want to lose anybody anymore.

He wanted this nightmare to end.

“Luhan was born with a very rare disease.” A voice spoke up. Sehun turned his head and locked eyes with the doctor. He took his time to look at the doctor’s feature. His face full of wrinkles here and there. He was wearing a casual outfit beneath his white coat. He was probably in his late fifties.

“I am his doctor. I used to serve for his parents but now I am in charge of nursing him. As you can see, Luhan is fully bandage for a reason.” It was silent for a moment before the doctor continued.

“Luhan was born without epidermis.”

Sehun felt a tear slipped from his left eye. He shook his head repeatedly. He kept chanting the word liar as if it’s some kind of a mantra. The world was betraying him again. This can’t be happening. Not to him and Luhan.

“Luhan was born without the outer layer of his skin. He can’t come in contact with sunlight or he will burn. He cannot move like any normal being and he was bandaged as an ultra protection. Luhan has no skin. He doesn’t have a face.”

“My body is not immune to sunlight. It cannot come in contact with the sun rays. That is why I’m here. Hidden from the world and the beautiful sun rays that can harm me. That is also why I came to your room at night.”

“Sehun.”

All heads swiftly turned towards the faint sound. Luhan was calling him. Luhan was breathing is name. Luhan was looking at him. Sehun walked to him as he reached out his hand to Luhan. “I’m here Luhan.” Sehun was whispering to him. Luhan is like a fragile glass now. Anything could hurt him and it scared Sehun that he found it’s hard to speak.

Luhan is an angel and heaven is taking him away from the world.

“Everything is going to be fine.” No it’s not.

“The doctor is going to save you.” Stop hurting yourself idiot.

“You are not going anywhere.” Liar. 

Luhan was shaking his head. He smiled to Sehun and Sehun hated Luhan for making him feel so hopeless in life. He wanted to do something for Luhan. He wanted to help Luhan like how Luhan helped him open up to his family again.

“Thank you.”

It was audible but Sehun never heard anything louder.

Luhan heaved out a low sigh before smiling a beautiful and enchanting smile that send all of those blooming roses to shame.

“I never walked to your room. It was my soul. A soul of a lonely boy who longed for love. You gave me what my parent can’t give me. I was happy.”  His voice was shaky but Sehun understands every single syllable. He was holding Luhan’s hand. Luhan is not leaving him. He won’t allow that.

“Stop talking. Let us take care of you. After this, we can go to the beach together.” Sehun didn’t cry. He didn’t need to. Luhan is here with him and he’s not going to leave Sehun. They promised and promises are meant to be kept.

“Let me-” Sehun was kneeling beside Luhan’s bed, both of his hands holding Luhan’s, afraid to let him go. “Yes?” Sehun swallowed the lump in his throat. Luhan’s eyelids were half-closed. He turned his head to lock eyes with Sehun.

“Let me be your donor.”

No.

“Let me be your right eye,”

Stop.

“Please let me”

 Luhan never stopped smiling. Even when Sehun cried as the beeping sound becomes louder and longer. Luhan’s eyes were closed and he was still smiling. Heaven had taken its angel away from the world.

The door suddenly burst open. A man and a woman appeared by the door. They were panting really hard.

They are too late unfortunately.

The women ran to the bed and started shaking Luhan’s body. She was screaming, begging her only son to wake up. The man slowly walked to his wife and hugged her. Both of them were crying, weeping over their son’s death. Sehun was disgusted with them. Luhan suffered and they didn’t do anything to ease his pain. As a result, Luhan became a wandering soul, searching for the love he never received; and he finally found it in Sehun since both of them experience the same tragic loneliness. They cherished and deeply care for each other.

 They were each other’s family.

Sehun wanted to shout at the weeping pair, tell them what an unworthy parents they were but instead, he looked up to the doctor and asked

“When can I start the transplant?”

*********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

The nurse was taking off Sehun’s bandage. It’s been a week since Luhan passed away. And it’s been a weak since Sehun got Luhan’s right eye transplanted to him.

“There. Finish.”

Sehun looked into the mirror. He can see with his right eye again. Thanks to Luhan. Slowly, he raised his hand to cup his right eye. Luhan’s eye.

It’s beautiful. Just like Luhan. Sehun found himself smiling again.

“By the way, you got visitors.”

Sehun looked at the nurse as if she just cracked a silly joke. She was grinning, thumbs showing to the direction of the door. Sehun turned his head to the door.

His family.

His mother quickly ran to him and hugged him. She was sobbing and Sehun really loved the idea of being hugged by his mother again after such a long time. But still, oxygen is mankind’s number one necessity.

“Mom, I-I can’t.. breath.”

His mother let go of him immediately. She was about to speak up but Kai beat her with a soft tap on her shoulder.

“The lady wanted to talk to you and Dad.” She nodded and went out of the room, not after kissing Sehun’s hair.

Silence engulfed the whole room. None of them talked. Sehun was fine with it but Kai thought otherwise.

“She really loves you.”

“I know.”

It was silent again but it was a comfortable silence. Sehun rose from his bed and walked towards his stepbrother. He raised his hand and patted the soft black lock on his brother’s head.

“I don’t hate you. You are my brother Kai. I love you.”

As Kai kept shedding his tears on Sehun’s shoulder for his past mistakes, Sehun kept nodding his head and smiled.  Kai is sorry and he forgives him. Luhan taught him that and he was grateful for it.

“Sehun, when it comes to family, do not close you heart.”

*********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

“I don’t get you. Why the beach?” the two brothers were sipping their coke while getting their skin tanned under the blazing sun. Sehun and Kai had been treating each other better ever since Sehun got discharged from the hospital. They share an unbreakable bond that would make anybody jealous. They told each other secrets and stuffs. Sehun told Kai everything that made him happy, furious, sad and confused and vice versa. Sehun told Kai everything.

Everything except for his story with Luhan.

“I had always wanted to go to the beach. I only saw it on television shows and magazines before. It is beautiful and the sun looked so bright. I wanted to feel my bare foot on the sand, dip my feet into the sea water and build sandcastles under the blazing sun. That has always been my one and only dream.”

“I wanted to feel my bare foot on the sand, dip my feet into the sea water and build sandcastles under the blazing sun.” Sehun sipped in his coke again.  Kai was looking at him with an unreadable expression on his handsome face. It took him a minute or two before he cracked into a fit of laughter.

“Seriously dude. That sounds gay.” They both erupt into laughter.  Kai was still laughing when Sehun’s laughter subsides. His gripped on the bottle tightens as he reminisce his promise to the angel that changed his life.

“You will get to see the beach. I promise.”

It’s been a year since Luhan left him. There’s never been any single second where Sehun didn’t thought of the older. He remembered everything that they have together and the beautiful promise he made with him. Looking down to the glass bottle he was holding, Sehun saw the reflection of his right eye.

Luhan’s eye.

Luhan, are you watching this with me?

When he tilted the bottle, he saw Luhan. He was smiling and Sehun smiled back. He is positive of it now.

Luhan is watching this with him