Chapter Text
Till's last wish was to die peacefully, surrounded by clematis from ANAKT GARDEN. Byul and Yeong went to nearby areas to gather as many as they could, since breaking into ANAKT GARDEN was no longer an option after what happened with the 'witch.' Security tightened after the incident, and now rescuing those kids was impossible. Still, Byul and Yeong managed to bring all the flowers they could.
He had been extremely sick for days. He hated this feeling. He wasn't even that old. He was just 35 years old, but he was already feeling like a 55 year-old... He has been shot on the arm and leg, and while he seemed better some weeks ago, he started to get progressively worse, falling ill with fever...
He couldn’t stand thinking about how many people are living on the streets or being enslaved to the Segyeins... Dewey had told him to take it easy; he did all he could for years.
"You deserve a break, dude! Don't think about what you could've done, look at what you actually did!" That's what he had always said. Easier said than done, that's for sure. It wasn't until Eun-jeong had begged him to stay in bed, almost crying, that he listened.
And now, it was time.
All the "not-so-kids-anymore" gathered around him with tears in their eyes. Even Hyeon-jun was crying! The same boy who ducked his head down and sulked every time someone pointed out he was sad. He was stubbornly proud.
Till laid his hand on the bed and felt something soft. It was flowers. He tilted his head slightly to get a better look; they were red, almost like blood. He had studied the language of flowers and knew the meaning of these: red anemones, representing unfulfilled and tragic love, were often associated with the death of loved ones and protection. Just how Ivan was.
"Till...!" Soon-ja called out. "Please don't go yet! You promised me to take me to the beach!"
"We still have to go stargazing again!" Yeong cried out loudly, finally giving up his tough guy facade.
Eun-jeong gripped Till's sleeve harder, trying not to break down. She wanted to smile in his last moments. And so she did, she forced a painful smile at him. "Do you like the flowers?" Her voice was full of cracks.
Till nodded quietly and looked at them again with a smile. "Beautiful... They're beautiful. Thank you..."
Hyeon-jun sat by his side and carefully observed him. He was speechless. He was choosing his words very carefully. "I admire you", he finally said. "You're so incredibly strong... I'm... I'm really glad I got to meet you... You saved us, and saved many others..." He ducked his head down and sighed, then he scratched his head. Were those words enough? Did he want to say more? What are you supposed to say when someone's about to go and never come back?
Till had wished he found Mizi. Till wished he could maybe save Luka, too. He wished he could have saved more people. He wished he hugged Ivan before the Alien Stage competition.
He wished he had more time with him. To be by his side.
His eyes were nearly closed. His vision became blurry, the lights were forming stars, and the voices of his beloved children slowly faded away. The last thing he saw was Byul's eyes. Ivan's eyes.
I hope I see you again.
Everything went black.
Seconds felt like hours.
Then, he felt something hard on his neck.
Flowers?
He slowly opened his eyes and saw grass. His hand touched it lightly. It was rough and spiky; it was definitely fake grass.
"Huh...?" He muttered half asleep. His body did not feel heavy at all. His back didn't hurt; it just itched, probably from the hardness of the grass. He grunted uncomfortably as he looked up. A person wearing white.
Their body was close to his; he didn't recognize the clothes at first, so he tilted his head more and saw black hair. Thinking it was Soon-ja, he reached out with a sleepy smile to pat her hair, but when his eyes landed on their face, he saw a pair of black eyes very open, staring right into his soul. He jumped out and screamed.
"AHHHHH!!" he straightened his posture and crawled back until his back found a tree. He was surprised. A tree? Out of nowhere?
"Ugh..." A low growl came from the person who was lying down next to him. "Did I scare you again? This time it wasn't my intention, I swear... Haha..."
He paused. He recognized that voice. He couldn't bring himself to tear his eyes away from the figure that was stretching out.
"I... Ivan...?" He called out, practically whispering. Till was starting to sweat and breathe heavily. This must be a dream, right? A lucid one.
Ivan yawned and walked towards Till. He instinctively retracted, which made Ivan freeze and give him a confused look.
"Uh... Did I scare you that bad...?" He kneeled to check his expression. "Orrr... You had a nightmare? Was I in there?" He smiled, trying to brighten the mood, but Till wasn't having it. His heart was beating louder; Ivan could almost hear it. He read Till's expression carefully, expecting to receive a punch, a sulking face or an insult...
Till slowly reached out and touched Ivan's cheek. Ivan froze in place, and his entire body went rigid. Was Till preparing his face to punch him??? What?
He moved his fingers steadily as he studied his face. Ivan wasn't expecting to be caressed today! Nor ever! He was starting to feel a bit nervous. While his touch was nice, Till's gaze was alarming. "Till... Why are you touching me like that? Did I do something wrong that I'm not aware of?"
Till shook his head and continued to gaze into his face, especially his eyes. "Why, why you... Why are you... Here... Now...?"
"What do you mean? It's... nap time. Till, are you okay? You seem out of it. Did you really have a nightmare? You're pale. More than usual..." He smiled cockily, trying to play it cool, until the teal-haired boy stretched his other arm and pulled Ivan into a gentle embrace.
Silence.
Then a soft sob could be heard on Ivan's neck. Till crushed him into the hug, not wanting to let go. "Are you real? Are you here?" Ivan did not know what he should do in a situation like this. Till had come to him for comfort multiple times in the past, but not like this... Ivan patted his back smoothly and pulled him closer. While he loved the touch, it also felt strange. Till must really have had a horrible nightmare to act this way, asking if he was real or not.
"What happened?" the black-haired boy finally asked, not moving from his position. "What did you dream about?"
Till nuzzled his head against his friend, refusing to talk right now.
They stayed like that for one hour. Ivan was starting to get a bit stressed. He had a schedule planned and needed to go practice, but this was way more important, he thought. So he joked a bit about the situation, "You remind me of koalas. You know what they're, don't you? Koalas frequently hug tree trunks and humans, and they're also grey-ish."
Till made no comment, not even a whine could be heard. Then, Ivan felt how he moved gradually to meet his eyes. Till's sharp eyes were now bloodshot red from all the crying; he had bags under his eyes, and they were unfocused. His hands were still on his shoulders, "I had a dream where you died."
Ivan did not say anything. His eyes softened for a moment, and then he played it off again, returning to a 'content' demeanour. "Huh? Why would I die? Is it because of the competition? You really think I'm that bad at singing? I've been practicing so hard Till~... How rud--" "Don't die. Please."
Now it was hard to maintain his smile; it was quivering a bit. Ivan wanted to cry. What was all this about? He was so sure Till did not care about him. It must be something else, right? His head was thinking of a million possibilities and alternatives that exacerbated his insecurity further. Till grabbed his face and tilted it in his direction to have his full attention.
"I care about you."