Hoseok glanced in the mirror at himself as he finished tying the tie around his neck into a neat little knot. He had to pause for a moment to marvel at how well put-together he looked in this moment. It was a wonder to him that his dress shirt was unwrinkled and unstained, that his suit jacket matched his pants, and that his shoes were polished enough to be considered decent. Hoseok usually preferred more casual clothing, but today was a special occasion. It was his big day. It was Minhyuk's special day.

The gloomy light of a rainy day shone in through the window, catching the silver of his promise ring and causing it to glimmer dully. Hoseok couldn't help the smile that tugged at his lips as he lifted his hand to study the small piece of jewelry. Minhyuk had been so excited when Hoseok had presented them to the younger boy, and his boyfriend had immediately selected the gold version because, as he put it, "it's yellow like a sunflower." Hoseok had taken the silver for himself, preferring a more modest piece for himself. Inscripted inside each one were the words, "You are my sunshine."

Minhyuk's excited giggles still echoed in Hoseok's ears as he remembered the smile that overtook his boyfriend's face upon reading the words. The song was something of an inside joke between them, since Hoseok always called Minhyuk his personal sunshine. It was hard not to compare Minhyuk to the sun. He had a bubbly personality and was always ridiculously optimistic, no matter what life threw at him. Being sad whilst being around him was next to impossible.

A crack of thunder brought him back to reality momentarily, and he began to fuss with his messy brown locks. It wasn't an action that required a lot of thought, though, and his mind began to wander once more towards his fiancée. The couple had known each other from their first day of preschool, and ever since then they'd been inseparable. Through thick and thin, they'd stuck by each other.

It wasn't until the 7th grade that Hoseok had realized that he had a crush on Minhyuk, and to a preteen with anxiety it seemed like it was already too late. Minhyuk had just asked a girl to the school dance only a few days before, and just the thought of it made Hoseok feel both envious and hopeless. Unbeknownst to him, the girl was a close friend of Minhyuk's. The two had hatched the plan together, wanting to make Hoseok realize he liked Minhyuk and potentially bringing them together. Unfortunately, Hoseok took it to heart and ended up holing himself up in his room for days on end without speaking to anyone. It upset him far more than Minhyuk could ever imagine it would, and the younger boy eventually broke into Hoseok's room to cuddle with him as an apology. They were able to talk it out, and by the end of the night they ended up as a couple. Minhyuk and Hoseok had been together ever since, without so much as a single argument or separation.

His mother's voice pulled him from his reverie as she called for him from downstairs. "Seokkie, you don't want to be late! Minhyuk's waiting for us. We need to go!"
He took a deep breath and gave himself a final once-over in the mirror. Everything was in place; he looked perfect. With a small nod of approval, he turned and walked downstairs to where his mother was waiting. She smiled when she saw him, tucking a sunflower into his lapel. "There. His favorite."

Hoseok pulled her in for a tight hug, offering a loving smile. "Thank you for making sure I don't look like a slob for this, Mama. I don't want to disappoint Minhyukkie."
She wanted to hold her son for longer, but they were on a time limit. So, despite her desire to prolong the hug, she instead pulled away and shooed him towards the door. The car had already been started, giving it time to warm up. Hoseok held the door open for his mother first, and then climbed in himself. His hands were starting to shake from nerves. His mother reached over to hold one of his hands, squeezing it comfortingly. "Seokkie, you need to breathe. You're going to be fine."

Hoseok nodded to acknowledge that he heard her, but he doesn't say anything as they drive to the church. The parking lot was already full, and a few people in formal dress were milling about in the front lawn. As Hoseok exited the car to head into the building, several of them came over to greet him with smiles and words of encouragement. He returned their greetings, but right now his only goal was to get inside and find Minhyuk. As politely as he could, he excused himself from their attempts at conversation in favor of wiggling his way into the crowded building.

Once inside, it was as if everyone else vanished and Minhyuk was the only one Hoseok could see. He was by the altar, and to Hoseok the young man had never looked more beautiful. He was dressed in a pristine white suit, tailored specifically for their wedding, holding a bouquet of sunflowers. His dark hair had been combed for once, and a smile sat on his plush pink lips. Hoseok walked down the aisle to him, and with an adoring smile he gave Minhyuk a kiss on the cheek. "You look beautiful, Sunshine. I love you."
Minhyuk, however, could not answer. He was nothing but a body in a casket, a shell of the man that Hoseok had been in love with. Hoseok reached in to tuck Minhyuk's favorite plushie, a stuffed duck named Ducky, under his arm.

They had been in the midst of deciding on wedding cake flavors only three months prior when Minhyuk had received the call from his doctor that something was very, very wrong. A routine blood test, one meant only to check for cholesterol and the like, had turned up some very unwelcome news. Minhyuk had cancer, and it was so far advanced that the doctor hadn't even bothered to offer him any methods of treatment. It had started in his brain, the source of the headaches that Minhyuk consistently complained about, and had spread from his brain down into his other vital organs.

Rather than mope or be swallowed by self pity, Minhyuk went forward with his plans. This was still going to be a special day, whether it be a wedding or a funeral. He had helped Hoseok pick everything out, and had personally planned the fine details. Hoseok was struggling, feeling almost as if he were drowning, but for Minhyuk he pretended everything was okay. Perhaps this was the reason why he'd been hit so hard by the loss when he woke up one morning to find Minhyuk too still and cold in the bed beside him. Minhyuk had never showed any symptom of being sick or in pain, and to the very last day he seemed to be perfectly healthy. In fact, only a week before he'd been explaining to Hoseok that he thought that maybe the doctor was wrong and he was actually okay. It just wasn't meant to be.

Hoseok sighed softly and gave Minhyuk a few more kisses on the cheeks and forehead before putting one on his lips, but it felt wrong. He felt like stone. This wasn't his Minhyuk. This...thing was nothing more than an empty vessel. Minhyuk was gone. Hoseok in a breath as the tears started to well up involuntarily. His mother approached him and wrapped her arms gently around him from behind. "Let's go sit down, okay Seokkie?"

Hoseok nodded, taking a moment to slip off his promise ring and lay it in the casket with Minhyuk. "Yeah...after all, we shouldn't mourn. It is his special day."