The weekend comes rolling around quite quickly, Kris makes sure to not think about Sehun’s visit Incase Zitao is listening to his thoughts. It’s hard at first but eventually whenever a thought about Sehun comes up in his head he just thinks about Amazonian spiders and it usually keeps Tao out of his head. 

The buzzer rings and Zitao starts pummeling Kris with questions. He ignores all of them and just rings Sehun in, telling him the apartment number. 

He knows Sehun will remember it because it’s the same apartment he found his best friend hanging, dead from a chandelier. 

“Who’s coming over? Is it another date? Is it one of your weirdo friends? Is-“ 

“You’ll see.” Kris stands by the door, his heart beating rapidly. 

“Must be a date because your hands are shaking. You’re nervous from how much you love them!” Tao cheers, marching around Kris. It’s a good day for the ghost, Kris just hopes Zitao’s cheerful mood will last.

When Sehun knocks on the door, it’s like Tao can smell him. He glares at Kris “How could you bring him here?” He shouts, the chandelier is shaking.

“I think he’s the only person who can help you” he says remorsefully as he opens the door. 

Sehun steps in, looking painfully nervous, Kris notices how his eyes find the chandelier as soon as he walks in. Tao is no where to be seen.

“I thought you lived in the apartment over” his voice is small and Kris feels awful. 

“I’m sorry” he replies “do you want something to drink?” 

“Water please” Sehun murmurs, looking everywhere but the living room. 

Kris busies himself with putting ice in a glass, trying to figure out a way for Zitao to come out. 

“Why did you want me to come?” Sehun sounds uncharacteristically upset, which is understandable “If you want to hang out we could’ve gone somewhere else I’m really uncomfortable here” 

Kris fills Sehuns glass with filtered water and takes a deep breath “There’s someone I want you to meet” 

Sehun doesn’t say anything and Kris walks out to the living room “Get out here!” He shouts

He’s met with silence so he raises his voice “Get out here now!” 

Sehun stares at him worriedly, Kris starts to grow hysterical as he pleads for someone unknown to come out. 

“Please come out! He deserves to know why!” Kris screams, tears starting to flow angrily out of his eyes

“H-hyung it’s okay” Sehun stands up, to pat his coworker on the shoulder “Lets g-“

“No, you need to talk to him” Kris sighs.

“Talk to who?” Sehun asks

“To me.” A familiar voice chimes from behind Sehun. 

It’s a voice Sehun would recognize from a mile away, a voice he’s been yearning to hear for a long time. 

He turns around slowly, coming face to face with a person he’s been missing so much that it physically hurts. “T-Tao?” 

Zitao gives his friend a small smile “Hi Sehun” 

“How? W-what? You... You’re.. I don’t..” he doesn’t realize he’s crying, but the tears flow like a river. 

Tao doesn’t say anything while Sehun stares, flabbergasted. It’s when he reaches out to touch Tao that Sehun starts to get a grip. “You’re dead.” He sobs “what happened to you?” 

It seems like Tao can’t focus hard enough to keep his soul physical, his form is flickering and the room is freezing. Frost forming on the countertops. 

“You’re a ghost?” Sehun chokes out, his lips trembling 

Tao just nods “I’ve been here the whole time” 

“Why didn’t you call me?” Sehun cries

Tao laughs “I don’t have a phone” 

Kris sits down on a frozen chair, looking on in awe. The two converse like they’re just catching up, albeit Sehun is crying the whole time but after a while the conversation takes a frightful turn when Sehun looks into Tao’s eyes and asks the million dollar question. 

“Why did you do it?” 

Tao’s form looks solid for a minute, flickering between his present blond and lively look to the look he had when he died. His eyes glow green again and the chandelier is swinging wildly around. “I-don’t want to talk about it” he replies, trying to stay calm and not go crazy. 

“I deserve to know!” Sehun shouts “You just left me. We had a great day before that and then all of a sudden your parents are here and I can’t even go to your funeral” 

The temperature drops lower, Kris watches frost cover the ceiling. 

“I-don’t-want-to-“

“Tell me!” Sehun tries to shove Tao but just fumbles through nothing.

“It’s none of your business!” Tao screams, making glass shatter. The chandelier’s chords are becoming dangerously loose. 

“Yes it is!” 

Tao loses his cool ands it one of the most horrifying things Kris has ever seen. Thick blood bubbles out of the kitchen sink, hands clawing out of the dark red substance, Tao’s pale with purple bruises around his neck, his eyes solid black as he screams at Sehun “I DON’T WANT TO!” 

The wall starts to bulge with the imprint of faces trying to break through. “Tao stop!” Kris shrieks 

Tao turns towards him “Y-YOU! You started this!” 

Kris pales, shaking as Tao appears in front of him. “Tao you’re in pain” he squeaks 

The spirit does nothing but glare down at Kris from his elevated stance. Those dark eyes make Kris feel like his entire being is being away into a black hole. 

They stay like that for a while, Kris motionless in front of this terrifying visage of Zitao. What scares him the most is that it seems like the boy, once sweet, has been consumed by something sinister turning him into something much less human than a ghost. 

Sehun trips over his own feet as he tries to grab onto Tao, whose still untouchable. The ghost barely acknowledges him as he stares ferociously at Kris. 

“Zitao please” Sehun cries, trying once more to hold Tao. 

Tao focuses enough to become solid again, and he falls into Sehun’s embrace. “Hun I’m so tired” he whimpers

“It’s okay” Sehun chokes out, as the silence falls, Tao transforms into the young man he once was, thick black hair with a healthy tan, no rope marks on his neck. The blood dissolved into nothing and the walls are the same. 

After a moment just staying in Sehun’s arms Tao speaks up again “I couldn’t do what I wanted.” He admits “Mom and dad wanted another lawyer, I wanted to be free. Do whatever I want. Love whoever I want. Go wherever.” 

Sehun just nods and brushes Tao’s hair with his fingers. 

“I’m so sorry I’m so dumb” Tao laughs through his tears

“It’s okay Tao.” Sehun hugs him tighter “I was so mad at you but you where in pain and I didn’t realize.”

“No it’s not your fault I wouldn’t let you in. I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you and made you hurt” Tao closes his eyes, finally looking peaceful “I’m so sorry Sehun” 

The other male just smiles softly “It’s okay Tao, I forgive you” 

It happens slowly. The temperature rises back to normal, The broken glass on the floor fixes itself and the sun shines a bit brighter than it did an hour ago. Tao lets out a soft sigh, one that someone makes when they can finally lay down after a long day. 

And he starts to glow, bright like a star and warmer than a summer day. It smells like vanilla and honey, and the light grows and grows, gleaming so bright that Tao can’t be seen 

“I’ll miss you guys!” he calls, the light dissipates and just like that, Huang Zitao is gone.