Sehun sits atop a rolling hill with his gangly legs spread loosely and his slender arms tucked by his side. His tousled black hair sweeps over his eyes. His fingers press lightly against the soft brown earth. He taps the heels of his worn shoes together in rhythm with the songs of birds only he can hear. He lifts his face up toward the heavens, toward the deep azure skies and the sun of molten gold. The wind picks up pace gently. With dances of love, the zephyr caresses his round face, stealing kisses of his rose-tinted cheeks, his smooth unblemished forehead and his sharp, narrow chin. He smiles.

              He laughs in delight and reaches out to the wind. His arms rise higher and higher, stretching out in a long straight line. His fingers grasping out to a force no one could ever possess, his face moulded into an expression of unadulterated joy and his eyes lit up with the fires of passion. He feels the force picking up, the wind swirling faster and faster until all sensation blurs into a buzz of pleasant nothingness. His arms ache and he brings them down sadly. Today, yet again, the wind wouldn’t take him for its own.

              His sharp eyes catch the motion of a sudden nimble shadow flitting past in haste. He gazes in vague curiosity as a head peeps out from behind the trunk of a vast cedar tree; a head of sandy, feathery hair, deep brown eyes and delicately pink lips. Sehun gazes on as the pink lips part and slowly whisper words in a voice more beautiful than Sehun has ever heard before. “I’m Luhan.”

             Sehun is in no haste to give up his own identity. He stares unflinchingly into Luhan’s hazel eyes almost searchingly. Luhan in his turn stares back unabashedly, his large doe-like eyes widening with each passing second. A minute later, Sehun makes up his mind. “Sehun,” he nods affably to the other, “My name is Sehun.” Luhan smiles at Sehun. Sehun refuses to smile back.

“What were you doing?” Luhan asks, after a minute or two of silence. “Why were you standing this way?” And he demonstrates, suddenly shooting his arms upwards, stretching his small frame as much as he can. A gush of wind rushes past him and his shirt shudders in the wind, revealing to Sehun skin that was paler than the palest moon he has ever set eyes on. Luhan twirls around and a volley of words tumble forth, “Were you trying to grow taller? You are quite tall, you know. Also, I’m not sure if it’ll be of any use since it’s obvious your growth period is over.”

           Sehun flinches as the merry words rush past his ear. He is not used to company, not human company at least. He turns away and mutters, “I wasn’t trying to grow taller.” And as he catches sight of Luhan’s expectant face he continues, “I was trying to call for the wind.” An expression of incredulity flits across Luhan’s face and Sehun sighs because he realises that no one would ever be able to understand him. “I was trying to be one with the wind.” He says softly and he knows that what he says would make no sense to Luhan. To his surprise, Luhan replies gently, “I see. You were trying to become the Child of the Wind. If that’s the case, then I perhaps would like to become the Child of the Trees so that you can sing me songs in your whispering tone and I can rustle my leaves along with your music.”

              His earnest tone touches Sehun and he roughly brushes his arm against the sudden tears pooling at the corner of his eyes – tears of happiness. He shuffles closer to Luhan and asks shyly, “Would you really rustle your leaves and play along with my music?” It’s a strange question, seemingly ridiculous as well. But Luhan somehow understands it perfectly. He nods vigorously, “Of course I would. We would both be the Children of Nature then, wouldn’t we?”

             The Children of Nature, the Child of the Wind. Sehun smiles as he mulls over the title given to him by Luhan and he admits to himself that he likes it. He suddenly takes Luhan’s hands and presses them to his own. He stares beseechingly into the shorter boy’s doe-like eyes and asks urgently, “Would you, would you be my friend too?” Luhan pulls his hands away from the Sehun’s for a split-second; in shock perhaps, or in surprise. Sehun notices the action in embarrassment and hastens to apologize, “I’m so sorry, I’ve never been very good at making friends. I just—” And just like that, without letting Sehun finish his fumbling speech, Luhan wraps his arms around him. One arm encircles Sehun’s lean torso, another lightly brushes past his neck, resting contentedly on his shoulder. Luhan brings his lips close to Sehun’s ears and whispers happily, “Of course I would be your friend. Of course I would.”

 ***

          Sehun lounges sleepily on the bed of grass while Luhan sits happily on a thick branch high up a tree. He swings his legs even as the branch sways precariously in the wind. Luhan seems far away to Sehun, like a tiny speck on an empty canvas. He shields his eyes from his glaring sun and calls out, “Come down, Luhan. You might fall, it’s dangerous.” In reply, he gets a peal of tinkling laughter and an invitation, “Why don’t you come up, Sehun? You’ll see that it isn’t dangerous at all.” Sehun sighs and looks up and down the length of the tree. He presses his palm against the rough trunk and gingerly lifts one foot up, trying to get a grip. He heaves himself onto a low branch and hears Luhan’s encouragement floating from above, “That’s it Sehun, you’ve got it!”

            A few broken branches and close shaves later, Sehun thinks he might have the hang of it. He huffs and puffs his way to Luhan and stops a branch or two below him. Luhan smiles and clambers down to him expertly. He gingerly tests a branch, resting his weight on it and when it doesn’t give way, he calls for Sehun to come sit beside him. And with no words at all, Luhan shows all the beauties of the world to Sehun and all the safety there is in trees. Sehun gazes at the white clouds floating by so close that one could almost reach out to them. He hears the sweet dulcet tones of the elusive birds wafting through the breeze. But most of all, he feels the strong winds encircle him, surround him and smother him in their passion. He feels alive.

And in that moment, he confesses, “I hear the Wind, Luhan. It’s calling out to me.”

Luhan looks at him for a second and murmurs, “That’s wonderful. To me, it’s the Trees that call out. I hear the Trees.”

         Sehun blinks rapidly then relaxes. And in that moment, he has never felt closer to Luhan. He rests his head on the other’s narrow shoulders unconsciously rubbing his smooth black hair against the crook of Luhan’s neck. Luhan smiles a little and places his palm on Sehun’s cheek, lightly it. The two of them sit still with their legs dangling high above the ground, intertwined for support. They remain that way until the sun sinks lower into the horizon, painting the azure skies with bold of vermilion, crimson and scarlet. They watch the sunset together, marvelling at its beauty and brilliance. They remain that way until the first glimpse of the moon, lightly brushing away the daring shades of red. They watch the moon together, marvelling at its purity and shine. And they remain that way until the first bout of Night cloaks everyone in a blanket of darkness. They watch the Night together, marvelling at its lethal beauty and utter power. They spend the night in the heart of the tree with none but each other and nature for company.

***

           Sehun comes to Luhan one evening with his hands grubby, his face dirty and his hand even more tousled than usual. There are no streaks of tears running down his face, yet from a solitary glance, Luhan knows that Sehun has been crying. He doesn’t enquire, instead he pulls Sehun close, resting his chin on Sehun’s matted hair. He waits for the story to spill out, to hear what it is that has forced Sehun to tears. But, a sudden silence envelopes them. Luhan doesn’t insist. He gently pats Sehun’s back and whispers soothing words of encouragement. Sehun smiles through his unshed tears.

Presently, Sehun gulps and mutters, “Why don’t people understand me?”

Luhan looks concernedly into Sehun’s grimy face and whispers, “I do understand you, Sehun.”

           Sehun gazes at Luhan fondly and asks wistfully, “Do you think it’s possible for us to live together? Alone? Away from everybody else? No one understands me like you do, Luhan, no one. So do you think it would ever be possible?”

         Luhan pauses and seriously considers Sehun’s earnest query. “What would we do with your family?” He muses. But even as Sehun watches, a sudden far-away look steals into his eyes and he murmurs, “It would be lovely though, to live with you, away from all the hardships of the world. To live with only the person who understood you; it would be wonderful.”

          “And we would have the swirling winds and the dancing trees for company. We could perhaps live atop a tree. That would be beautiful, wouldn’t it?” Sehun says happily.

          Luhan smiles, “It would, indeed.” And he deposits a small kiss on Sehun’s cheek. Years later, Sehun would still be able to describe the feeling; the little petals of his pink lips pressing ever so gently against his grubby cheek lightly conveying all those words that could never be spoken. Sehun’s eyes widen and he looks at Luhan in wonder. Luhan shoots him a tentative smile in return. And this time, Sehun makes sure he smiles back.

***

         “You haven’t tried calling for the wind in a while.” Luhan reminds Sehun softly as they lay in a bed of roses leisurely intertwining their limbs and pressing together their fingers. Sehun nods thoughtfully and sits up, brushing down his hair and smoothing over the creases in his shirt. “I should try soon or else I might be forgotten by the Wind.” Luhan instantly comprehends him and jumps up to his feet. “Try right now.” He urges as he pulls Sehun up. “I’ll ask the Trees to help you.” Sehun smiles and runs a little ahead, standing tall in a sea of swaying grass. Luhan strides along to the nearest tree and scales it. And they both stay perfectly still, each breath-taking in the heat of their own element.

             Sehun raises his arms and stretches them as far as he can. He feels the winds swirling around him become stronger and stronger. The tips of his fingers experience sudden electricity, a curious vitality. The winds smother him. And suddenly, Sehun thinks he might have done it. Sehun thinks that perhaps, there was a chance after all. That maybe, just maybe, he really was the Child of the Wind. The whirling winds pull at his clothes, his hair and his skin. But he experiences joy.

           But out of the blue, the winds die down. And all that’s left is the crumpled borders of Sehun’s clothes, his swollen red cheeks and his rumpled black hair. Sehun looks around blankly and drops to his knees. This failure, he thinks, after coming this close, failure seemed harsher than anything else. Luhan’s eyes well up with tears as he watches Sehun struggle with himself. He can see the anguish on Sehun’s face and he wishes to the heavens he could do something to make it better. He rushes down and through the greenery to Sehun. And without thinking, he lets instinct take over and he presses his own lips to Sehun’s. The Child of the Trees kisses the Child of the Wind.

         The first touch of the delicate skin is intoxicating. Sehun has never felt this fire, this strange feeling of utter and absolute happiness come over him. His hands lightly crawl up to Luhan’s cheeks and caress them. His thumb grazes past his sweet milky skin and his lips press further and further into Luhan’s almost as if he is trying to merge them into one. They kiss as lovers, as friends and as the Children of Nature.

          Suddenly, Sehun feels himself being dragged away from Luhan forcefully. A vice-like grip clutches his shoulders and a hard hand smothers his mouth. He looks back and sees his Father, his face livid with anger and his body shaking with rage. He pulls Sehun up by the collar of his shirt and brought a large rough hand towards him. Slap. And a second later, Sehun is cowering down in pain, his hand pressed tightly against his cheek now blemished with the palm of anger.

          “Please Sir, it was my fault, don’t do anything to him.” And Luhan’s pleas serve nothing more than to aggravate his anger.

         “No son of mine should ever be seen like this. I cannot tolerate it.” He roars and pummels a fist into Luhan’s delicate frame. A minute later, Luhan tastes blood in his mouth. “You best be glad you have no family, filthy boy. At least you spared them the trouble of having to commit suicide for you dirty deeds.”  And he spits forcefully into Luhan’s face.

***

           The next morning Luhan hears of it. Sehun is no more. He grits his teeth and walks resolutely to Sehun’s home. He is ushered into the presence of Mr. Oh and Luhan sees him for what he really is, a hypocrite and a murderer. “You killed my son!” Mr. Oh screams at him the second he spots him. “See what you reduced him to. You had him take his own life! You coerced him into drowning to atone for all the sins you compelled him to commit! You killer! You’re nothing but a murderer. You killed my child!” And Luhan takes in a deep breath to calm himself. But the screams continue, “I had warned him to stay away from you! I had told him you were nothing but trash, that you would only bring him trouble! But he told me, he dared to tell me some nonsense about you understanding him! About Winds and Trees! You had influenced him, hadn’t you? You killed my child! My only child!”

           And Luhan decides he can bear it no longer. He takes in a deep breath and softly says, “No Sir, you killed him. I knew your son better than you ever did and I know he would never take his own life. He would’ve fought; he would’ve come to me. We would’ve fought together and had a house where only the two of us lived, away from people like you who didn’t understand us. I know you killed him, Sir. I do. And Sir, for the record, he never was your child. He was, and is, the Child of the Winds. Good day to you, Sir.” And he walks away with his head held high.

***

            He crawls up a tree slowly, dispiritedly and seats himself on a thick branch. The tears which he had withheld for so long now freely flow down his smooth cheeks. He hiccups and splutters and cries for the man he had loved. He buries his face in hands and feels the warm tears rush past his fingers. He stays like that for a while. And then, slowly, he hears the music. He feels the rustling of the tree branches and soft fluttering of the leaves. But to him, now they aren’t singing vague songs. They are saying a name: Sehun.

             He stands up, supporting himself with his fingers and strains to hear the musical intonations of his lover’s name again. Sehun. Sehun. There’s no doubt. He weeps, he weeps for his lover, for the man who died to save another. And almost on cue, a light breeze flirts gently with him, lightly brushing past his sandy hair, his thin clothes and his exposed skin. The wind seems to call out his name and he knows, he knows that Sehun has become one with the Wind. That Sehun has finally achieved what he always wanted to. That Sehun is now truly the Child of the Wind.

            And Luhan lives atop trees for the rest of his life. Because that’s what they wanted, isn’t it? A home where only the two of them lived, alone, sheltered; where they would understand each other and live among the trees and winds.

             For they are, after all, the Children of Nature.

***

Honestly, I haven't a clue why I just have to kill off one or two of my characters in my oneshots. Damn, there's something twisted about me. Anyway, umm...thanks for reading, I guess? Any criticism is more than welcome. Thank you! ^^