"I don't want to go back." Taekwoon whispered against Wonsik's lips, eyes visibly watery in the moonlight.

Wonsik kissed him again once, twice. "I don't want you to go back." He pulled Taekwoon's bare body even more flush into his own.

Curling his fist into Wonsik's warm chest, Taekwoon leaned their foreheads together. His exhale was soft and shaky. "Everything will be different from tomorrow forward."

Though his heart was sinking, a smile forcefully pulled at Wonsik's lips. "Yeah." he replied, unsure. The feel of Taekwoon's soft skin under his rubbing thumb was enough to keep him level. "But it'll be alright."

He watched Taekwoon's eyes fall close with the struggle of trying to stay positive. "Do you think so . . ."

Lying wasn't something he was particularly good at, and to Taekwoon, he was even worse at it—but he didn't want to in the first place. If he asked something, he deserved to know what Wonsik truly thought.

"I'm not sure." he said slowly. Taekwoon wiggled downwards to tuck his head under his chin, but Wonsik was reluctant; he wanted to look at him for as long as they could. This night might very well be their last together.

Reassurances couldn't make it past his lips, much less form in his brain. He was so used to being able to comfort Taekwoon through all of his troubles that failing this badly knotted his insides painfully. He sighed steadily.

"But it doesn't matter." he continued. Taekwoon quickly pulled back with something akin to betrayal on his face. "Tomorrow, you will be crowned king, and your duty to the kingdom and your people is more important than me."

When Taekwoon jerked from his hold, he wasn't surprised. As good as he was at comforting him, he was just as good at making him upset. This was their reality though; Taekwoon was born to be king and Wonsik wasn't born to be apart of his life.

Somber, he watched Taekwoon climb out of the bed. The moonlight cast an ethereal glow along his pale skin, making it glimmer so beautifully as Wonsik always thought it did. He'd always known it would come to this, from the first day they met; he knew they would have to say goodbye. It came so much sooner than he feared and he felt like he was running on autopilot all the way through it.

Taekwoon slid his trembling hands from his bare shoulders to his cool arms, down to his hips, and shifted his weight onto one leg. Struggling to contain his emotions, he pulled his bottom lip into his mouth and sunk his teeth into it, squeezing his eyes closed. His fingernails dug into the skin of his hips to hold himself together.

He shook his head. "How can you say that?"

Wonsik's heart deflated more with the watery tone of his lover's voice. These were tough lives they had to live, tough roles they had to play, but regardless of their personal feelings, they had to go through with them. He sat up in the bed, soft blankets pooling around his lap.

"You know it's the truth." he murmured with a forlorn gaze at Taekwoon's back.

"But it's not!" Taekwoon snapped, whipping around. Wonsik flinched. He stepped forward to the bed until he was at its edge and threw his hands out. "This isn't what I want! No one's ever asked what I want." he hissed.

Wonsik opened his mouth to let his instinct reply, but he quickly closed it on second thought. There was no need for the argument to escalate. He dipped his head.

"Then . . . What do you want?"

The question drew Taekwoon up short. Silence fell in the chamber.

Long moments passed and then Wonsik peeked upwards.

Uncharacteristic of him, Taekwoon was wiping at the tears on his face. These feelings; he'd been holding them in for too long a time. Everyone around him told him what he needed to do and who he needed to be—and all of it had been fine . . . Until he met Wonsik.

He curled his fingers in and out of uncomfortable fists and opened his mouth.

"I . . . I want to runaway with you."

The words made Wonsik's heart flutter. Of course he wanted nothing more than to be with Taekwoon, but he wasn't allowed to be that selfish. Taekwoon was the rightful, sole heir to the throne and without him . . . What would be the future of the kingdom? What would happen if another took over and it all fell to ruins? He could never let that guilt crash onto Taekwoon's shoulders.

He crawled forward and grabbed Taekwoon's shaky hands into his own. They felt so much smaller than they were.

Taekwoon stubbornly kept his eyes trained to the disheveled bedsheets.

Wonsik inhaled deeply. "Taekwoon, I love you." He could feel him tense under his hold. "I love you so much that it hurts, and it would make me the happiest person alive to just . . . runaway with you—but I can't. I can't let you do this."

With Taekwoon's sniffles, tears burned at Wonsik's eyes too—but he refused to cry. He needed to be strong for Taekwoon, for his king-to-be.

"I can't accept this." Taekwoon whispered after a long moment, shoulders quaking. He jerked his head up to look at his love with earnest. "Even . . . Even if I am king, I . . . I will find a way. I will find a way for us to be together."

Truly, Wonsik couldn't believe his ears. He coughed a laugh of disbelief; but he should've known better . . . Taekwoon had always been stubborn. He dropped his head forward and his tears finally spilled over.

Taekwoon pulled his hands from Wonsik's hold and lifted his crying face. His own smile was sodden, but it felt better than giving in to crying like he so much wanted to. Wonsik blinked blearily at him before he leaned down to press their lips together. He could taste the salt of Wonsik's tears.

Wonsik clutched Taekwoon's hands in his own, ready to fall apart. He almost did when Taekwoon began to pull away.

"I will find a way." he said again, against Wonsik's lips. "I may not be able to abdicate the throne, but I won't give you up either."

And he sounded so resolute that Wonsik could do nothing but believe him. He wanted to—because who knew what tomorrow would bring?

i'm always condemning people for writing wontaek angst, but here i am, always writing wontaek angst. what kinda hypocrisy . . . meanwhile, if u guys haven't been watching Hakyeon's new dramas (Tunnel and Ms. Perfect) yall really need to. Tunnel is off to a gr8 start and Ms. Perfect is wild af. Hakyeon's character in Ms. Perfect is so cool! but he doesn't appear until a brief cameo in episode 7, and then again in 9. 10's out today! i'm excited to watch it~

as always, thanks for reading! ♡