Be My Princess
Golden Tears
When Kai wakes up, he’s sure he’s dead. There’s a gorgeous boy in front of him with large chocolate brown doe eyes and caramel hair. There’s no way he’s not in heaven. “Are you an angel?” he whispers, blinking his eyes to make sure the person in front of him isn’t an illusion.
The boy blushes. “Ah, I- I didn’t know what to do because I saw… I saw you in the water.” Kai notices that the boy’s hair is dripping with water. His clothes are damp, clinging to his thin frame. Kai’s heart hurts a little because this boy saved him, risking his own life, protected him.
“My name is Luhan.” Luhan helps Kai sit up and offers his hand. When Kai stares at it strangely, Luhan pulls it back, using it to fix his bangs. He laughs nervously.
Kai takes a look around. He’s in what seems to be Luhan’s house, sitting on Luhan’s bed. Kai stands up and bows deeply. Luhan backpedals a bit, tripping over his own feet as he is obviously surprised at Kai’s action. “I’m sorry,” the dark-haired boy says, a baritone voice echoing through the room.
Luhan is quiet for a second before he laughs. “What are you sorry for? You must be hungry. I’ll get you some food. Does drowning make you hungry?” Luhan’s voice fades as he walks away, probably off to the kitchen. Kai slowly sits himself down on the bed again, dazed. Luhan’s laughter echoes in his head, a beautiful sound that he swears he’ll never forget.
<><><>
It might not have been ‘love at first sight’, and it might not have been the most smooth or perfect meeting, but it’s only been a few hours and the two of them are inseparable.
“When does this sort of thing happen in real life?” Kai asks. His legs are crossed and he’s sitting on the floor of Luhan’s bedroom. A head of caramel hair pops out from under the covers and he sees a beautiful smile.
“When does what happen?” Luhan asks, sweeping his bangs into place with his right hand.
Kai chuckles. “Something like this.” He waves his hand, gesturing to everything that had happened. His life had suddenly become like a drama. “What is this crap? I feel like I’ve become superstitious.” Kai’s never believed in fate, but Luhan is beginning to convince him.
Luhan shrugs. “I don’t know. Right now?” He pulls the covers back over his head and disappears.
“What are you doing anyways?” To Kai, everything Luhan does is perfect, genius.
Giggles rise from under the covers. “I’m drawing with glow in the dark markers!” Kai rolls his eyes upon hearing Luhan’s answer but can’t keep himself from smiling. Kai continues to stare at the faint, distorted outline of Luhan buried under the bedsheets. Suddenly, a delicate wrist reaches out from and grabs Kai’s wrist, a pair of chocolate eyes gleaming before Kai is dragged under.
Kai blinks in attempt to focus his vision in the dark. He sees Luhan’s eyes, his face, and then he sees a paper with a bunch of glow in the dark scribbles. “You call this drawing?”
He can see Luhan stick out his tongue. “Bleh. You just don’t know good art when you see it.” Luhan continues scribbling with the markers. They talk about everything, and when they think they’ve run out of things to talk about they play games. They play a game where Luhan draws and Kai has to pretend he’s an art critic.
“What do you think?” Luhan asks proudly, displaying his new work of art.
Kai coughs in attempt to buy time. “That. Is quite a…” Luhan waits expectantly. “A… Duck. That is quite a duck.”
Luhan is silent. Then, finally, “If it were a duck, would it be a good one?”
“Yeah, totally!” Kai cringes at how over enthusiastic he sounds.
“Then yes! It’s totally a duck!” Luhan turns to him and now that Kai’s vision has adjusted to some extent, he can see that Luhan is wearing a proud smile. Luhan looks at his watch, and Kai notices that it’s also glow in the dark. “Ah! It’s kind of late now.”
Kai looks at the fluorescent numbers and sees that it’s four in the morning. “Um. Kind of late? Why didn’t you say anything?”
Luhan pouts. “Because I wasn’t paying attention.” Kai just smirks. Luhan reaches over and pokes Kai in the stomach. Kai has a sudden spasm and laughs, giving Luhan a definite advantage- he’s ticklish.
Then it’s an all-out tickle fight that ends only when Kai falls off of the bed, followed by Luhan who falls right on top of him. Kai grunts at the sudden weight on his body, but he grins at the warmth anyway.
“Can we go to sleep now? I’m tired.” Luhan sounds silly and maybe a bit childish but it’s so Luhan; Kai knows this even though they’ve only known each other for a short time.
The caramel-haired boy looks up with his doe eyes and blinks, and it takes all Kai has to remember to breathe and utter a ‘yes’ before another dazzling smile hits him and he feels like he’s going blind.
That doesn’t mean he minds though, because he really doesn’t.
They sleep until three in the afternoon and still feel tired, so after Luhan cooks them a quick meal of almost-burnt eggs they return to bed, limbs heavy and eyes half-lidded. Kai shivers a bit so Luhan drowsily stumbles over to his closet and pulls out a Donald Duck blanket, covering the two of them with it. Kai doesn’t think he’s ever really known happiness but right there, with his body tangled with Luhan’s under three layers of covers, he thinks he’s pretty happy.
<><><>
It’s been about a week now of days filled with warmth and happiness and giggles and Kai thinks that he could just die. Especially from the look on Sehun’s face when he sees Luhan by his side- jaw wide open, eyes big, so different from his normal poker face. Of course, that’s before he sees Kai pull Luhan closer, arm wrapped around the smaller boy’s shoulder protectively. The look on his face afterwards isn’t much different- all Sehun can do is stand there with his mouth in an ‘o’ shape.
Another week passes and Kai starts to worry about what he is to Luhan. “What am I to you?” he asks, hating himself for seeming so needy and obvious.
Luhan frowns. He brushes his bangs with his right hand and tilts his head. “What do you mean?”
“What are we?” Kai tries again, unsure and to be honest, nervous.
Luhan shrugs.
Kai’s heart falls a bit but he hasn’t completely lost hope yet- he tries yet again. “You know, in those movies and stories there’s a princess and a prince and the prince comes to propose and stuff like that. Love. Romance.” His cheeks heat up a bit but he sinks lower in his jacket, hiding the blush. OhdidIjustadmittowatchingchickflicksohmigosh-
“Hmm.” Luhan taps his chin, his gaze far away. Then, he snaps his stare directly into Kai’s eyes. He gets down on one knee and fumbles around in his pockets for a moment. “Then… Will you be my princess?” he asks while offering a chocolate lollipop.
“Do you carry that around with you all the time?” Kai asks, trying to distract himself from the fact that ohmigohinkLuhanjustaskedmeoutomgomgomg
“Yes. Which, by the way, is the word you should be saying right about…” Luhan trails off and waits.
Kai tries to keep his cool but in all honesty he thinks that he’s lost it from the moment he laid eyes on Luhan. “Yes,” he says awkwardly. He then clears his throat and repeats more confidently with a nod, “Yes.”
“…Now.” Luhan finally finishes his sentence with a grin. He seems to always be smiling, Kai notes, and he realizes that that is one of the things he loves about the caramel-haired boy.
Kai and Luhan hug, and Kai doesn’t even care about how people are staring and noticing now. It’s only because Luhan is beautiful and absolutely perfect, anyway.
<><><>
The days fly by, and Kai realizes that he has stopped keeping track of time. Why should he, when he has all the time in the world to spend with Luhan? During the day, he rushes through classes and then runs to Luhan’s dorm, whispering cheesy lines against Luhan’s lips.
“Kai,” Luhan says suddenly.
Kai turns his head slightly, eyes on Luhan who’s head is on his shoulder. “Mm?”
“Are you happy?” he asks.
Kai chuckles. “What do you mean, ‘am I happy’? What kind of a weird question is that?” He waits for Luhan to respond, to say something about his sudden weirdness but he doesn’t. Luhan is silent, and for the first time in a while Kai almost feels fear. “L-Luhan? What do you mean?” His voice is trembling a bit and he brings a hand up to touch Luhan’s forehead. Nonono, he’s not like Sehun, he’s not like-
Luhan looks up at Kai, his doe eyes twinkling. “I don’t know. You seemed sad before. You even jumped off a bridge. So are you happier now?”
Kai exhales, flicking Luhan on his forehead gently. “You seriously scared me there for a minute, you know?” Luhan murmurs a soft ‘sorry’ in response. “But yes, I’m happy.”
Luhan sighs. Kai looks to him again, surprised. “It’s just… I don’t know. If you’re happy, you might not even need me anymore.”
“Don’t say that…” Kai’s voice drops down to 40 decibels and he isn’t even sure if Luhan can hear him but somehow he knows he can. He runs his fingers through the silk that is Luhan’s hair.
Luhan blinks. “It’s true, though.”
Kai sighs, turning his whole body to face Luhan’s. Here he was, a previously suicidal boy now facing a delicate and sensitive being that was too perfect to be human. He cups Luhan’s cheeks gently and grins. “Then I’m pretty ing depressed.”
Luhan flinches from the use of the word- he’s never been a big fan of cursing- but then crushes Kai in a hug. Kai’s pretty sure Luhan will let this one slide.
<><><>
“It’s time to come back,” Yunho says. He’s staring intently at an apple, turning it around in his hand.
Luhan’s next to him in the supermarket, picking out strawberries in the next aisle. “What do you mean?”
“He’s perfectly happy and your job is done. I’ve got another depressed kid waiting. Xiumin, I think. That kid needs you. He’s been bullied,” Yunho says while running his fingers over the smooth green skin of the apple.
Luhan shakes his head. “But-“
Suddenly Yunho’s right in front of Luhan. “You’re in love with him, aren’t you?” he asks flatly. Luhan’s eyes grow wide. Love had a bad meaning for Yunho- he had been in love, once. With a human named Jaejoong.
“I-“ Luhan starts.
“Believe me. I’ve been through the same phase. You’ll get over it.” Yunho turns away from Luhan and crushes the apple with his hand. It turns to a pale silver dust, seeming to dissolve in the air.
Luhan shakes his head, his mind suddenly numb. “I can’t-“
“And why not?” Yunho whirls around again to face him.
“Because he’s perfect!” Luhan cries. The supermarket is fairly busy and noisy, but a few people turn anyway. Yunho glances at them and they turn around, forgetting what they had seen immediately.
Yunho turns away again. He picks up another apple, holding it for a few seconds, and then crushes it as well. “Then he doesn’t need you.”
<><><>
When Luhan gets back home, it’s noon. He locks his door and slides down, his back against it. Yunho’s words seem to finally sink in, and tears find their way out of Luhan’s brown eyes, trickling down his cheeks and leaving behind a trail of gold dust.
Hours pass and finally, it’s time for Kai to come running to his dorm and shouting the ‘secret password’ they had made up the night before. It’s their routine, something that Luhan has come to realize has to end.
“PICKLENUGGETS!” Kai shouts. Silence. “PICKLENUGGETS!” he sings.
Silence.
Kai can hear sniffling on the other side of the door. After a few seconds, the door opens. Luhan looks all cried out, his eyes puffy and red. Even so, he’s still beautiful.
“Hey,” Luhan says softly.
Kai drops his backpack and swiftly wraps his arms around Luhan. He feels Luhan burying his face in his shoulder. Kai his hair absentmindedly while thinking, “I’ll kill whoever made my angel cry.”
“What happened?”
The only response Kai gets is the tightening of Luhan’s arms around his waist. “Did that stupid tall kid Kris bully you? He’s always strutting around the place thinking he’s so cool when everyone knows he’s a softie for Lay-“
“I think,” Luhan interrupts. He hiccups and sniffles again. It’s a few minutes before he finishes his sentence. “I think we should take some time… to think.”
Kai backs up a few steps, eyes wide. “…What?” He doesn’t know what to think.
“I… just until I can get my mind straight, okay.” Luhan says firmly. It’s the first time that Kai’s seen Luhan be anything but gentle and sweet, and the sight of it is almost scary. “I promise I’ll come back. I just need time.”
“No…” Kai starts to back up farther. It’s Sehun all over again, isn’t it? He can’t break his eyes from Luhan. Then Luhan’s gaze hardens and Kai freezes, his breath taken away by Luhan’s sudden change.
Kai thinks he sees those eyes soften for a moment. “Kai.” Kai blinks. “I love you.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Aaaand here's another chapter.
I'm sorry for hurting your eyes with this but my oneshot just HAD to eat so many words and now it's like FOOOOF.
Comments