For the next couple of weeks, Mingyu began what he liked to call, OHEA. Operation Happily Ever After. The name was silly, and a little to the childish side, but he felt that it was fitting for what he had in mind. He wasn't going to name his project anything depressing, and it had an abbreviation that was easy to pronounce. As long as that was the case, Mingyu was fine with anything.

OHEA started with simple things.

Surprise visits to Wonwoo's room during the day.

Mingyu would pop in, a -eating grin on his face. He would spend just a minute -- or even an hour rambling on about things that everyone else would otherwise brush off. Although Wonwoo would mostly sit listening contentedly, sometimes he would have his own stories to tell. Those moments were so domestic that they should have been something that Mingyu would only keep in a corner of his mind. He found himself doing the opposite. Every hour would be spent waiting for a break where he could sneak off to Wonwoo, and every minute afterward would be spent thinking about what they would talk about the next day. On days when he was denied a visit, Mingyu would just have to wait.

Introducing Wonwoo to other people who were in the same boat as Seokmin.

There were plenty of other ex-patients who now worked in the immediate vicinity, and all of them still frequented the hospital to drop off things or to give their greetings. Mingyu took it upon himself to introduce Wonwoo to some of them. Minghao, the delivery boy. Seungcheol, the single father of two. Chan, the adopted orphan, and Junhui, the injured athlete. While some meetings had been awkward and others overly-exciting, Mingyu could tell that Wonwoo already adored the people he had been introduced to. At times, their hour of conversation would be filled with questions of when they would come again, and it would never take them long to show up.

Teaching Wonwoo new things.

Wonwoo had mentioned in one of their conversations that he had wished he knew more about the world, and Mingyu took it to heart. The very next day he came with books, pencils and journals, ready to teach Wonwoo anything from a new language to mundane facts. While at first Wonwoo denied the lessons, eventually he let into Mingyu's sweeping expressions and explanations, writing -- stupid -- notes, and drawing -- irrelevant -- graphics. Mingyu would about being a good student, and Wonwoo would, in turn, poke fun at Mingyu's teaching. The lessons would only take place on Wednesdays and Tuesdays, the days of the week where Mingyu was more free than usual. By the time they had a couple of classes in, Mingyu noticed that Wonwoo had only taken two lessons seriously. When he was taught what the word love was in latin, and when Wonwoo insistently asked a red-faced Mingyu about what the young female patients meant when they called Mingyu daddy.

Giving Wonwoo the little things.

There were moments where Mingyu thought Wonwoo's hospital room was too bare, and so he would bring in his favourite lamp or a mural he had hanging in his house. The doctors would instruct him to remove them immediately, of course, but he would bring in something new every other day. The only things Wonwoo was allowed to keep was a CD player and Mingyu's favourite album, Boys Be. Although most of the gifts Mingyu would give to Wonwoo would be taken away within a day, Wonwoo would thank him, and spend the whole day with it next to him.

OHEA became known to few, and the couple of people would always be following Mingyu around, asking him why. One of them, being Seokmin, and another, Wonwoo's nurse, Jeonghan.

He blamed it on his tendencies as a psychiatrist, finding a broken person, and wanting to fix them.

It seemed right enough to him, but the two were never satisfied, insisting that there was something else to it.

Mingyu never paid too much attention, instead, he focused on plans for a tomorrow with Wonwoo.

On a particularly sunny day in late June, Mingyu heard that Wonwoo was being let out of the hospital. He wasn't being discharged, but instead, it was like a couple of days for him to take a breather from the hospital.

Wonwoo's Doctor, Hong Jisoo, came to visit Mingyu in his office, clipboard pressed to his side.

It was unusual for someone to visit him if they weren't either a patient, his secretary, or his patient's Doctor. In reality, Wonwoo wasn't a patient, and so Jisoo should have had no reason to visit him. He just hoped that the news concerned another patient, otherwise, it would mean something was wrong with Wonwoo.

Jisoo came in without knocking, sliding open the door and moving in quickly to stand directly in front of Mingyu. There was a polite smile on his face -- as always, but he seemed serious.

Mingyu sat a bit straighter in the tense atmosphere, worrying his bottom lip between his teeth subconsciously.

"Sit down." Mingyu waved at the two chairs before him and Jisoo complied, folding himself into one of the plush chairs. It was comical seeing a doctor in one of his white seats.

Most of Mingyu's office was decorated with soft colours and carefully picked art, everything having to put into consideration the patient's mental health. For a doctor to be here seemed a little wrong.

"So? What's the problem?"

Jisoo didn't reply right away, instead tapping his pen against the clipboard he was holding, his eyes scanning it over once.

"You know Wonwoo's being let out for a day, right?"

So the news is about him.

"Yes, I heard it from Jeonghan yesterday."

Jisoo nodded, dropping the clipboard in his lap. Mingyu gave it a quick glance, finding Wonwoo's name and the words Health Report.

"I'm not sure if you know, but he's having a surgery soon. Probably in two weeks."

Mingyu's heart dropped into the pit of his stomach, and he suddenly felt disoriented. Worry was clouding his mind and he couldn't figure out what was wrong with him.

"Please tell me Wonwoo knows this?" Mingyu asked, wondering if Jisoo was here to tell him that he was the one that had to break it to him. There were times where the patient's mental health was unstable, and so they recruited Mingyu's help to let them down slowly, and in a manner that the patient could handle. He wasn't sure if he could do it for Wonwoo, because the one who would need consoling would be him.

"Don't worry, he knows this. That's why we scheduled a couple of days to let him out of the hospital."

Mingyu thought he should've felt relieved, but his concern only worsened.

"... So why are you here?"

"Everyone knows you've been visiting Wonwoo religiously."

Mingyu's skin turned a soft pink.

"And ever since, we've been seeing small changes, his condition has actually gotten better." Mingyu lightened a little at the good news and Jisoo continued. "Lessening stress is a great way to improve your health when you have cancer, but of course, it doesn't fix the problem."

"Jisoo, you're not answering my question."

"Just wait, Mingyu. For a psychologist, you don't have a lot of patience." Jisoo rolled his eyes, lifting up the clipboard again. He turned over a page and read something before he continued. "And so, I'm here because I need you to spend the couple of days that Wonwoo's out of the hospital with him."

Mingyu scooted to the edge of his seat, leaning against his desk. "What? Why?"

He was surprised. Not necessarily displeased, a little excited, but his emotions were being thrown from one side to the other, confusing him with what he actually wanted to do about the situation. He knew that he had a solution as to what was happening in his mind, but he couldn't find it to apply it to himself.

"Because Wonwoo's condition has gotten better, we want to keep it there until he gets his surgery. We'll also need you to do a mental checkup on him, so having you spend a couple of days is like killing two birds with one stone."

Mingyu leaned back again. He had to process the explanation Jisoo had just given him and ignored the inquiring stare of the Doctor sitting across from him.

It took Mingyu a while to reply with another question.

"Does Wonwoo know that I'll be doing this as part of my job, or is he still in the dark about this?"

"He wouldn't know. Just approach him as you have been the past month."

Mingyu nodded slowly, turning his head to stare out of his window.

Mingyu's mind tried to plan out what he would do, tried to line up the pros and cons, but instead, all he could do was stare. All he wanted to do was say yes. Say that, of course, he wanted to spend entire days with Wonwoo, and he was already imagining things that they could do together.

But he couldn't.

Because although something in him was bouncing in excitement, there was that small, dark voice that told him he was going down a path he would soon regret. He knew that there was a chance that he would be broken by the end, but he also knew there was a chance that he could be somewhere he had never been before. Mingyu never liked being hurt, the mere thought tempting him to back out.

An image of him showing Wonwoo the ocean crossed his mind and his positivity won over. Mingyu gave in easily to any pleasures.

"So? Are you going to do it?"

He made his choice, he knew it might hurt, but he was going to be positive.

"I'll do it."

Mingyu had his secretary clear his afternoons for the next week and while he had mountains of papers and files to go through, he finished everything before the end of the day. He hadn't had the chance to visit Wonwoo, but he assumed that didn't matter too much seeing how they would most likely be spending the upcoming days together.

The day went by fast, meeting patients, visiting homes, and filling out papers in between. Mingyu didn't even have a break for lunch and by the time he was packing up to leave, he was starving. Mingyu recalled needing more rice and beef for the dish he had intended to make that night. He tucked the reminder into the side of his mind as he left his office.

The sun was low on the horizon when he passed through the skywalk, pausing to admire the scene for the first time that day. The pink sunlight settled against leaves and petals, the light coming back in different shades of orange. The sight was so breathtaking, but what caught him wasn't the way the branches swayed or the vibrant flowers but the figure he saw sitting on a certain beige rock.

Mingyu smiled and began making his way down through the stairwell that used to scare him.

When he broke into the court, he snuck around the edges, trying his best to stay out of Wonwoo's line of sight. A mischievous grin was plastered to his face as he snuck up behind the rock, climbing up as silently as his coat would allow him. It was a wonder how Wonwoo didn't hear him coming.

"Found you!" Mingyu shouted, shoving Wonwoo a little harder than he had intended.

The shorter boy tumbled off the rock, barely capable of regaining his balance when he hit the ground. When he turned, Mingyu was sitting on his knees on top of the rock, his hands still placed before him.

Wonwoo looked quite annoyed.

"What if I had fallen off head first?" Wonwoo huffed as he stepped to lean over the rock. "Stupid Doctor." He grumbled.

Mingyu giggled, bending over slightly. "But you didn't! And you were totally surprised too."

A smile was beginning to tug at the edges of Wonwoo's lips.

"That's not the point, Mingyu." His voice was still slightly hostile, but it didn't bother Mingyu. In fact, he found it quite adorable.

"Aw come on, why are you being so uptight?" Mingyu asked, the question masked as a joke when in reality, he realized earlier that Wonwoo had been staring solemnly into space and he wanted to know what was wrong.

"Because a certain someone is incredibly late," Wonwoo said pointedly, staring purposefully into Mingyu's eyes.

"Who?"

Wonwoo chuckled. "Do you really not know or are you messing with me?"

Mingyu thought for a second, confused as to what Wonwoo was saying. He didn't know anyone Wonwoo might have been waiting for; he didn't even know why Wonwoo was waiting.

Mingyu gave him one more look before realization came to him.

He pointed a finger at himself. "Me? You were waiting for me?"

Wonwoo nodded without a word, his mouth bent upward in a smirk.

"Wait-why...?" Mingyu trailed off when he thought of his visit with Jisoo in the early morning. He didn't think he would start that very day.

"You're giving me a ride back. That's what Jeonghan said."

Wonwoo climbed back on to the rock, their two shadows now melding together against their rose-coloured surroundings. The sun was nearly gone, it's last rays inching deeper and deeper into the dark horizon.

Mingyu paid no mind to it, instead his eyes tracing the edges of Wonwoo's profile. The light emphasized every dark line in his eyes and every curve of his skin. Mingyu's hands itched to reach out and catch Wonwoo between his fingers. All of this felt so natural that he didn't realize the change stirring inside of him.

"Ah, is that so? Should we go then?" Mingyu asked, forcing his eyes away from his beautiful friend.

He looked at the sky as clouds began to lose their colour.

Wonwoo shook his head. "I just got on the rock. Let's stay a while."

And so they stayed.

Mingyu forgot about his hunger, and Wonwoo forgot about his little time for freedom.

They stayed until the sky was as dark as Wonwoo's eyes, and the only thing on their minds were each-other.



 

"Your place? Why?" Wonwoo asked from the passenger side, adjusting himself so he could sit comfortably.

The streets were bright despite the stygian sky above Seoul due to the cars zipping past them from left and right. Buildings were closing, but lights had not yet been turned off.

"Have you not heard my stomach for the past hours? I'M DYING."

"Not funny," Wonwoo said sharply, his head turning to look out of his window. He pressed the little button next to him and the glass slid down, allowing the rushing air to dip into the car.

Mingyu realized what he had said, and who he had said it to. He instantly felt guilty.

"I mean, I'm hungry. I'm dying of hunger-I haven't eaten all day. I need food. I-"

"Mingyu, I can't hear you over the wind, so stop."

Mingyu knew that he had been speaking loud enough for Wonwoo to hear, but he assumed that the conversation was finished.

He felt terrible, he hated himself for slipping up. Mingyu simply felt so comfortable with Wonwoo that he wasn't careful around him like he had been around other patients.

When he was with Wonwoo, he felt like he was discussing with a friend he had known his entire life, and words escaped from his lips before he could ever stop them. It had only been a month and already Wonwoo was one of Mingyu's favourite people.

"You don't have to say anything, anyway. It was just a joke." Wonwoo turned to smile at Mingyu. It was comforting rather than teasing or snarky.

Mingyu let out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding, he wanted to hit Wowoo but held back. "I thought you were actually hurt."

Wonwoo shook his head. "I don't think you realize the amount of jokes you make when you're around me. I'm used to them, and I'm glad you're used to them too." Wonwoo turned back to the window and stuck his hand out. "It sounds cliché, but it's refreshing to have someone be so natural around me."

Mingyu laughed. The comment made him strangely happy.

"Who would've known you're such a cliché person? Must be because of those romance novels you're always crying about."

Wonwoo whipped around, cheeks tinting pink.

"That was one time! It was a really sad book okay?"

Mingyu grinned at the memory.

About a week after he had promised Wonwoo a happy ending, Mingyu had come in after an appointment with a client and had found Wonwoo crying in his bed. At first, Mingyu nearly felt sick from worry and he had rushed over to sit on the bed next to Wonwoo. Of course, he thought something had gone wrong. Maybe bad news, or something was hurting.

Mingyu had pressed the alert button to call for Jeonghan before Wonwoo could stop him.

"Hey, what's the matter? Did something happen? Are you okay?" Mingyu had asked in a rush of words, placing his hands over Wonwoo's shoulders, pushing him up slowly so that he sat straight.

The book had fallen out of Wonwoo's hands then, tumbling into the space between them. He sniffled and held back a sob as he had reached for it.

Once it was back in the safety of his hands, Wonwoo shook his head, giving himself time to settle down his sobs before he spoke.

"I-It's the-" He hiccuped.

"The what?"

"The book."

Incredulity had come over Mingyu as he stared at the crying boy before him.

"Th-the book is so sad."

"The book?" Mingyu had asked, still not believing that someone had been crying so hard over pieces of paper and ink.

"It's not even the ending-" A gasp of air. "And it's already so-" Another hiccup. "Everything is already sad."

Mingyu nodded as if he understood, his lips pressed together tightly. In reality, he was baffled and wasn't quite sure if he wanted to know. He patted Wonwoo's back as he cried, and let him rant about whatever he wanted.

Jeonghan had run in not too long afterward and had left as soon as he saw the book in Wonwoo's hands.

If that wasn't an indication that it was something Wonwoo did regularly, Mingyu wasn't sure what was.

"Oh yes, one time," Mingyu said, returning to the present as he to his street.

"You know what? I hate you, Mingyu." Wonwoo grumbled.

The car filled with Mingyu's laughter as they ran down towards an underground parking lot and soon they were both unbuckling themselves from the car. Mingyu carried their things from the dark parking lot, through the elevators, all the way to his apartment.

His place belonged to a newer building, the design modern and the colours simple. Mingyu's apartment was spacious and while it showed off a charm that the rest of the building had portrayed, some random effects of his threw the image out the window.

Plants in spotted and striped pots were placed in any spot exposed to the windows, educational books abandoned in empty spaces between furniture, papers strewn across tables. Although it seemed like none of that should have fit, nothing seemed out of place. It looked clean even if things were forgotten here and there.

"So? You like it?" Mingyu asked as he placed their bags together on the couch. He shrugged out of his long jacket and draped it over their things.

Wonwoo ped his own jacket. "It's very you."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"That means it's weird."

"So I'm weird now?"

Mingyu rolled up his sleeves as he shuffled over to the kitchen. He opened cupboards and pulled out ingredients. Mingyu could feel Wonwoo watching him.

"You've been weird from the start."

"But that's not a bad thing, right?"

"Not sure."

Wonwoo's voice was closer to him now and so he turned around. Wonwoo sat at the island on a barstool, his jacket left on the couch over his own. Mingyu couldn't help but feel like they had done this before. Wonwoo's ease in Mingyu's house seemed so natural, it was like this was how they should have been living all along.

Mingyu smiled.

"Well, this weird guy is going to make you some food. What do you want?"

Wonwoo leaned onto the counter, shrugging. "I've been in the hospital for a while, I just want something delicious."

Mingyu thought for a second before he nodded. "Something delicious. I'm on it."

In no time, his hands were busy with measuring and mixing, fully aware that someone was watching his every move. He thought it would've been unnerving, but rather, he enjoyed Wonwoo's presence in his kitchen.

Mingyu finished the mixture fairly quickly and turned the stove top on, greasing a pan with a little bit of butter.

When Wonwoo realized what Mingyu was making, he shook his head lightly. "It's too late to eat something like this."

Mingyu shrugged him off. "You said something delicious, and so I'm just delivering."

The plate he had set out eventually piled up, and he finished the last touches as he sandwiched everything together. Mingyu finished it off by dusting icing sugar over the top. The white dust floated in the air, a small cloud flying around them in the kitchen's lights.

"One crepe cake, coming up!" Mingyu turned around and slid it dramatically over the island towards where Wonwoo was sitting. Wonwoo barely managed to stop it from slipping over the edge. The dust followed it, and Mingyu openly stared at Wonwoo's face behind the thin cloud. Their eyes held each-other's, the dust tasting sweet on their lips.

"You're fearless, you know that?"

"I think it's one of my charms."

Mingyu rummaged through one of his drawers and pulled out unused candles, placing a bright green one directly in the middle.

He lit the candle in a swift and ran to turn off the lights, stumbling back to his place in the shadows. Everything was dark save for the small flickering bulb of fire between them. It illuminated Wonwoo's face from a different angle, and Mingyu was given another opportunity to enjoy every accentuated trait on Wonwoo's face. He found that, recently, he knew more about Wonwoo's features than his own.

"Make a wish." Mingyu leaned forward, his breath tickling the flame.

"Why?"

"You deserve one."

Wonwoo smiled. A genuine smile that was brighter than the orange light of fire.

Mingyu thought he felt his heart melting like candle wax beneath a heat that burned too hot.

Wonwoo blew out the candle in a quick breath, the room becoming engulfed in darkness. Mingyu couldn't see, and in that split second where he was blinded by the change, he felt something push against his lips. His heart melted completely, a puddle of coloured wax rendered useless by the heat that had come too close.

He didn't know what happened, and what to believe.

His hand shot up, meeting his mouth. Whipped cream was smeared against it.

Mingyu's eyes adjusted to his surroundings and he saw Wonwoo's form leaned closer towards him.

Wonwoo lifted his finger, and in the darkness, Mingyu could just make out the shape of whipped cream piled on it.

"Taste good?"

Mingyu couldn't explain why he felt disappointed.

"Of course. I made it."

Wonwoo shrugged.

"It's okay at best."

"Fine, none for you," Mingyu said with fake casualness.

He left to turn on the lights with careful steps and Wonwoo laughed from his spot. Mingyu had to pause by the wall when the lights came back up, stopping to ask himself what he should believe had just happened.

He might have had his answer if only he saw Wonwoo whipped cream off of his own lips. 



 

The next week was spent with just the two of them.

Mingyu learned that Wonwoo's family lived out in Gyeongsang-Do, and he had been sent out to Seoul a little while after they learned that Wonwoo had a terminal illness. Mingyu had asked if he wanted to be taken down to his parents, but Wonwoo refused, saying that they were coming to him in a couple of days.

So they spent their days in Mingyu's house, or out in the city, doing anything and everything for as long as the hours of the day allowed them to. From shopping to walks in the park, Mingyu took Wonwoo wherever he wanted to go. He forgot all about his job as a doctor, and instead he gained new feelings that he couldn't really understand.

They bought the weirdest things and ate the most obscure of street foods.

They even went as far as buying matching shoes.

There were times when Wonwoo would get sick when he was eating, and only then would Mingyu go back to being a professional, bringing to mind his years of emergency training. It wouldn't last long and didn't happen often so their days were spent with blissful enjoyment.

Mingyu felt happier than ever when they had spent mornings in his living room brushing past each other to tend to his inordinate amount of plants. Wonwoo would ask what each one was called, and then he would give them their own names.

The cactus in the tin pot was named Daejung.

The aloe vera in the corner of the kitchen was named Eunji.

The red rose bush on his balcony was Hwanyun.

The English Ivy hanging above the window was called Iseul.

The new begonia that didn't have a place yet was given the name Minwoo.

There were too many for them to remember everything and so Mingyu had fetched old name tags that he often used around children. The edges of the sticker-name-tags were decorated with multiple animal mascots and they added a cute touch to the plants that shrouded Mingyu's place.

They spent their day writing names and attaching the tags to the pots, collecting the plants into one group on the floor so they could lean against each other to write the names. In total, Mingyu had seventeen of them, some of them of the same variety, and others were expensive, difficult to attain plants.

Mingyu would be especially careful with the rare ones, but Wonwoo was careful with each one, picking it up as if it were a child, and placing it down as if it were top-class china pottery. They chose the plants as they went, picking one up and scrawling its label over a sticker before tagging it. Mingyu would always have to ask Wonwoo for the names, unable to think of original ones himself. 

They wrote the begonia's name last, splitting the word in two so they would have written equal amounts.

Mingyu wrote the first block: 민.

Wonwoo wrote the last: 우.

Mingyu's messy handwriting especially stood out against Wonwoo's neat letters, and even though it looked strange, they both felt it was the best-looking one there.

It took them a while to return every plant to its place and so they decided, afterward, that they would stay in.

The day faded into a night with arbitrary conversations and relaxed bodies sprawled across a floor covered in evidence of a lazy day.

They did what they did best: talk. Talking until it was too dark for Mingyu to differentiate between his own hands and Wonwoo's, and until fingers were entwined innocently between them. Conversations went on for hours, and words never ceased to leave lips. They inched closer until the sides of their heads pressed against each other's and every sound could be felt through their two bodies.

Every day passed by with the same feelings, hearts approaching, smiles shared, and moments they wished would last forever.

As their week neared its end, hours became as fast as minutes, and minutes as fast as seconds.

Mingyu wanted time to stop for them whenever they laid together on the floor of his living room, but time had no mercy and soon it was the night before Wonwoo's return to the hospital.

They were sitting cross-legged this time, two steaming mugs of tea between them. They drank while Mingyu flipped through a photo book now filled with random photos they had taken over the course of seven days. There were pictures of places they had been, things they had seen, and pictures of each other. He flipped past photos of Wonwoo's family, photos of Mingyu's old patients and Wonwoo's new friends.

It was a small book, but every space was filled and it held more memories than anything Mingyu owned in his small place.

He stopped when he came upon the page with a photo of Seokmin and a pale-haired man.

"Why are we keeping a photo of him in here?" Mingyu asked, setting down his tea.

"We have a photo of everyone we met this week," Wonwoo replied simply. He blew over the top of his mug and held it closer to his body.

"We met Seokmin?"

Wonwoo rolled his eyes. "Yes. He was with his friend, Soonyoung. They were at the florists near the hospital, remember?"

Mingyu snapped his fingers when the memory came back to him. "Oh yeah! He tried getting us to buy crocuses, and he was pretty persistent about it too."

"He kept saying they were symbolic for cheerfulness." Wonwoo turned the page and it landed on a page of photos of trees. "Speaking of, all plants have meanings, don't they?"

Mingyu nodded. "They do, though I don't look into that stuff. I just enjoy the plants themselves."

"I wonder what a begonia means." Wonwoo put down his tea and flipped a couple of pages until he came to the photos of Minwoo.

Mingyu tried to think back, remembering he had read it when he had been searching it up before. He couldn't recall what it had said, but he thought it must have meant something cheerful if it had happened to give him so much happiness.

"I don't know, but all of those meanings can't be accurate anyway."

Wonwoo agreed. "Probably not." He closed the book and sighed, leaning back so he sat against the couch which Mingyu had been sleeping in for the past week. He had insisted that Wonwoo take the bed.

"Tomorrow's my last day of freedom," Wonwoo mumbled, barely loud enough for Mingyu to catch.

Just the thought caused Mingyu's mood to sour and he let out a sigh himself, crawling over so he could sit next to Wonwoo. Their cups of tea were left abandoned by the book.

They watched the steam curl into the air and disappear in silence, the only sound audible was their mingled breathing.

Mingyu wanted to say something, he wanted to talk endlessly like they had done so many times before but he was afraid he would turn the conversation into something too depressing for the last night of their one-week story. He could think of so many things to say, so many things to tell this man who he had unknowingly grown fond of. Still, he held back, wanting Wonwoo to be the one to steer the conversation this time so he wouldn't be able to ruin anything.

They were silent for a long time, the steam eventually fading from the cups. 

Once the last thin strands of faint mist left into the air, Mingyu heard Wonwoo speak up next to him.

"I'm not scared anymore." Wonwoo turned his head at the same time as Mingyu and they locked eyes, their noses a mere two inches apart. "Thanks to you... You've done so much for me, and I'm so grateful. You know that, right?"

Mingyu's mouth lifted in the softest of motions, his lips forming a muted smile. "I need to say thanks to you, too." Mingyu wasn't sure what he was saying, but the words came out easily as if he had planned them beforehand.

"For what?"

"For showing me a life I never imagined I would have the chance of living."

The more time passed, the more he began to understand what he was trying to convey. He was coming to comprehend what it was that his heart had been asking him for so long.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Wonwoo asked with a laugh.

"It means that I have something very important to tell you."

Wonwoo sat up straight so that he was no longer slumping against the couch. He turned so he faced Mingyu, and the latter could see the delighted look in Wonwoo's eyes.

"Tell me."

Mingyu knew exactly what he wanted, even though it had taken him a while to decipher the patterns of his beating heart, and the strange thoughts that took over his mind whenever it concerned Wonwoo.

He also knew that if he told Wonwoo now, he might be left alone and broken hearted by the end of next week. If he didn't confirm these emotions with reality, then his heart would be spared. He felt that if he never voiced his feelings, they wouldn't be real enough to harm him.

Mingyu tried telling himself to be positive, just like he had done so many times before, but, this time, his little spell didn't seem to be working.

For once, he wanted the chance to be horrifically selfish.

"When you come out of your surgery alive, I'll tell you."

Wonwoo's smile widened into a grin, much to Mingyu's surprise.

"Promise?"

Mingyu couldn't help but smile back despite the sinking feeling crowding every part of him.

"Of course."