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craby-bouquet · 5 years ago

Text

Don’t leave me

“It is good to love many things, for therein lies the true strength, and whosoever loves much performs much, and can accomplish much, and what is done in love is well done.” - Vincent Van Gogh

Kim Taehyung x Reader

Artist!AU, Thriller!AU, Fluff, Angst, Gore

11.8k words

A/N I labelled this as gore as well, but I tried to keep things as clean as I possible so it kind of doesn’t seem right?? This is the longest thing I’ve written so far, it took me quite some time but I had so much fun with it! On to the next thing I’m writing.

Thank you @/onlandswimming for your helping with this (cant tag u bc of the link thing bb)

Music. The music was loud, deafening. A piano piece, known by many, heard by everyone, but he didn’t know the title of it. It sounded like the piano tiles got smashed, like someone had decided the tiles would make for a great trampoline, and just started jumping on them, yet it was pretty. It calmed him, emptied his head. And that was all he wanted.

Red. The red was everywhere. Spattered on things, more things than he wanted it to spatter on, but he couldn't help it. It was more than he had ever imagined, more than he had intended it to be.

He leaned against the wall, head thrown back, hands tangled in his hair. The tears fell on the newspapers on the ground, thinned the red, made it flow all over. It had all gone wrong.

Only a glance at the newspaper of that morning was enough to make you sigh. It seemed that ever since you started living in this town, crime had gotten worse and worse. It was ridiculous. Another missing person, and the person that went missing last week was found back. Murdered.

You took a bite of your apple as you read the article on your walk to work. The dead person was found in a park. They hadn’t included pictures, thankfully, because the sight had been horrible. The kids that found the body were getting all the help they needed to get over what they saw. Weird enough the body had been all cleaned up. no stained blood on their clothes nor on the body parts that were still in tact for the most part. As if the person that did this was human enough to at least make them look good for their funeral. Well, besides the wounds the victim had. This was the fifth person that had gone missing, and was found back all ripped up weeks later, in six months. And now someone else had gone missing. A woman in her thirties. She had last been seen three days ago by her husband. Police said to keep calm and that there was no reason to suspect this disappearance had anything to do with the other five. But for some reason you, and a lot of other people, thought differently about that. If this wasn’t connected with the others, it would be too coincidental. And we all know coincidence doesn’t exist.

A lot of people in town were terrified, staying inside as much as they could, making sure their children would as well. People talked about it on the streets, but only very silently, whispering almost, afraid the killer would happen to walk by and hear them. In stores people were discussing it, in subways, in restaurants even in the farmacy and in waiting rooms. It was everywhere, even people that lived under a rock should know by now.

And it was terrifying. There were no witnesses, no fingerprints, nothing to point to whom the killer might be. It seemed like a perfect crime every single time. The police claimed they would find whoever did this, that they would avenge the victims in name of their families and that they would make sure everyone could feel safe again. But after six months and five, now six, perfect crimes, no one was sure what to believe anymore. No one trusted anyone anymore, everyone could be guilty. So could they really trust the police?

You had promised yourself that this whole thing wouldn't get to you. All that these kind of murderers wanted was for people to be scared. All they wanted was for everyone to live in constant fear, it was like that would make them feel powerful, like they ruled a part of the world. You had promised yourself not to be afraid. You weren’t going to let some stupid criminal rule your life. Sure, you had taken some precautions. You weren’t going out alone at night anymore, not that you did before all of this, the dark streets had always frightened you a little bit. You weren’t going with strangers anymore, would talk as little as you could with them, pretending to always be in a hurry. Little things. But it wasn’t that you were getting yourself new locks and closed every window and didn’t talk to anyone and take days off to stay inside just because you were afraid you were next. No. That’s what you heard other people say and you sure as hell weren’t going to go crazy like that.

You threw the core of the apple, together with the newspaper, in the trashcan in the lobby as you walked into the building.

“Good morning.” Someone who walked by greeted you. You greeted them back before stepping into the elevator and making your way up. You mentally prepared yourself for everyone that would be talking about what they read in the newspapers that morning, a thing you didn’t really want to talk about. This was going to be a long day.

Leaving work you always walked through the park. You avoided it on your way to work because it was a detour and you wanted to be in time, but on your way home it calmed you down. The light breeze in the air, the birds, the sound of the wind blowing through the leaves of the trees. In that moment everything seemed almost perfect. Not to mention how happy you were that, after a long time of winter, flowers were blooming again, children were playing outside. It was strangely quiet these days though, mothers didn’t want their children to play outside anymore, not without guidance that is. Imagine them finding the next body, or getting kidnapped themselves.

On a bench only a few meters away from you sat a guy. He was… stunning. His face looked as if it had been sculpted by the hands of God himself. His eyes sparkled as he looked up at the sky, the evening sun that shined through the leaves reflecting in them. His hair had been dyed what once had been red, but the red had faded with time, the dark brown of his own hair had started to grow back at the roots. The expression he wore was tired yet so soft and gentle, he seemed fascinated by whatever he saw. Beside him sat an adorable golden retriever dog with a sparkling collar, its gaze was directed at you.

The guy bend over to pat the dog, a sweet smile forming on his lips. The dog licked his owner's face, who laughed. The sight made you smile. The guy and his dog sat there the next day as well, the guy rubbing the dog his head as it lay on his lap. You smiled once again when the guy gave the dog a soft kiss on its head. A warm feeling boiled up in the pit of your stomach. When, even the day after, the guy and the dog were still there, you decided to walk up to them.

“Hi,” you greeted carefully.

The guy lowered his gaze from the leaves above to you, and his eyes widened. He suddenly seemed to get a little nervous, stroking his hand through his hair and clearing his throat: “Hello.”

You smiled “I saw you sit here yesterday as well and I just wanted to tell you you have a cute dog.”

The guy didn't look away from your eyes “Yes.. He-he's very pretty.”

“Can I pet him?”

“Oh, yes. Sure, go ahead. He's very sweet.”

So you sat down on the bench at the opposite side of the dog and started patting him. He looked up at you and started wagging his tail. You chuckled.

“It's actually not my dog, it's my friend's dog: Holly. I'm taking care of him while he's away.” the guy said while he sat up straight, eyes still locked on you.

“That's very nice of you.”

The sparkle in his eyes got brighter as you looked into his eyes, the warm feeling in the pit of your stomach returned. You looked away, back at the dog, but you felt the guy's eyes still on your face.

After a short while of silence he cleared his throat “Would you like to get coffee with me?”

You looked up at him again and smirked at how flustered he looked “Like a date?”

He smirked back at you “Only if you want it to be.”

“I'd like that.”

You had learned his name was Taehyung, he was a well known artist whom had people come from all over to come to his expositions. He had shown you some pictures of his paintings when you asked about them and even you could see he was talented. He made beautiful abstract like compositions on big canvases, he had developed his own style and clearly was proud of what he made, though a little flustered to show you at the same time. And he had all the right to be proud. You weren’t an art critic, not even close to it, but you already loved what he created.

Even though he asked you to get coffee with him, he didn’t like coffee at all. So he got himself tea instead. His laugh was the cutest thing you had ever seen, and you decided you wanted to see it as much as you possibly could. The way he treated Holly was adorable. He was so sweet and loving to him, like Holly was the most precious thing to walk this earth. Even the way he held his cup, his pinky under the cup, had you melting away. How his mouth seemed to turn into a rectangle as he smiled, how he liked his lips evey once in a while and how his eyes lit up whenever he talked about something he loved. Everything about him had you gone, it was clear you already really liked this guy.

He walked you home, talking about everything and nothing and bend forward when you leaned in to press a peck against his cheek. He smiled and waved goodbye as he walked away.

He sat on the bench the day after that as well, so you walked through the park together. And the day after that he sat there all dressed up, looking very nice. He asked you to dinner. The day after that you had agreed to go out as well. It was weekend and he told you he had made plans, turns out he took you to a theme park and had prepared a picnic afterwards. You invited him to stay over that night, but he politely declined. Not only did he want to wait a little longer, he also had a dog to take care of at home.

He was the perfect gentleman, a great person and absolutely amazing to date. You had never fallen this fast for anyone before, but you had really fallen hard for Taehyung. And fast forward a couple of weeks and the two of you were officially in a relationship. It was wonderful, some may even say perfect. You never imagined being in a relationship to be as much fun as it was.

Your mother loved him, after she met him she couldn’t stop talking about him. Even your father was fond of him.

After two months of dating Taehyung finally took you with him to his apartment. He never took anyone there because it was a big mess, and because it was his part of the world. A place where he could do whatever he wanted and feel completely free. You felt honored that he took you there with him.

He opened the door and threw the key on a shelf that he clearly put up himself “Welcome.” he said while bowing dramatically.

Holly came running towards the door, wiggling his tail excitedly. The two of you had walked him together many times before, and he had been at your place loads of times, but he was happy to see you each and every time. As if every time was the first time you met him.

Taehyung rubbed the back of his neck as he escorted you through the apartment, picking things up that were in the middle of the path and placing them to the side. It smelled like someone sprayed very nice perfume all over, but something told you he just had a very nice air freshener. Though his apartment was quite spacious, there was barely any room left to even walk. It was a big mess. Canvases laying all around, some painted on, some just plain white. Sketch books and loose papers that were drawn on laying everywhere, paint everywhere. Not just in their tubes, but splattered on the walls and ground as well. You had seen it on the paintings he had shown you before, red really was his favorite color. The apartment was exactly what you would expect a messy artist’s apartment to look like.

“Sorry for the mess, I wanted to clean up a little before picking you up but something came up and-”

You interrupted him by pressing your lips on his “It’s fine.”

He had ordered chinese food, and you ate at the counter of his kitchen. The only place in the house he had managed to clean before you came by. You talked about work, and asked him about his. He smiled proudly and told you he had just made sure he could give an exposition in three months.

“What? That’s great!” You exclaimed, a weird sense of pride flushing over you.

He chuckled “Yeah, I’m really looking forward to it. It’s gonna be so stressful though, everytime I have to take care of something like this I find out all over again how much work it is. I always manage to underestimate it.” He inspected a piece of chicken he held between his chopsticks, before putting it in his mouth “And I’m always afraid no one will show up.”

“I’ll be there for sure,” you said, swallowing a piece of the duck you were eating “and I’ll be bragging to everyone and their mom that my boyfriend is giving an exposition of his amazing art. So I’m sure that will get some attention.”

Taehyung laughed loudly “I usually just put up posters and stuff, but I guess just having a girlfriend is enough publicity.”

You shrugged “I have all the right to brag, that’s a fact. I don’t make the rules here.”

He poured himself some more cola to drink “I was just hoping you’d invite your parents. But if you want it invite the whole city it’s alright with me. I’m not complaining, you know?”

You chuckled and pointed with your chopsticks “You bet your ass I’ll invite everyone, watch me.”

He took a sip of the cola he just got himself “I believe you.”

You ate a little more, enjoying the silence, before you asked him a question you had wanted to ask him for a while.

“Will your parents come too?”

Though he had met your parents multiple times before, you had never met his. He never spoke about them and never even mentioned them once. You had been afraid to ask if something happened to them or something, but this seemed like a decent time to start about it.

He looked up at you briefly, before looking down again, clearly uncomfortable. He swallowed and sighed, looking everywhere but at you.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked.” You said as soon as you realized this clearly was a touchy subject.

He smiled, or at least tried to, before he locked his eyes on one of the few paintings that was actually hanging on the wall “It’s alright, don’t worry about it. I guess it’s natural for you to be curious about it.” He put down his chopsticks and sighed again “My parents… well. I’m really sorry for not telling you before but my mother died when I was younger and my dad died a few years ago.” He finally turned his eyes to you again “I guess I should have told you before but… It’s just kind of a painful subject.”

You suddenly felt so stupid for bringing it up the way you had done. So tactless of you “Oh my god, I’m so sorry…”

He smiled, but you could see the hurt behind his eyes “It’s alright, don’t worry about it. My mom died a very long time ago, I don’t even remember it, and my dad…” he looked at the painting hanging on the wall again “Well, my dad never really left me.” he slapped his hand on his chest at the height of his heart and grinned “Still with me.”

The newspaper. Yet another person had gone missing. They had found the last person who had gone missing back about two weeks ago, and now someone else had gone missing. And the thing was that you had met this person. From the picture in the papers you could see it was the waiter that served Taehyung and you the first time you went out for coffee.

You showed Taehyung the article when you saw him again in the park that evening “Another has gone missing.”

Taehyung looked at you and pushed the paper away “I know. I saw it this morning.”

You pushed the paper back in his face and pointed at the picture of the waiter “Don’t you recognize him?”

Taehyung looked away and sighed, but his eyes grew wide “Yes. I do. It’s the waiter that served us. He… was great. Deserves to live forever if you ask me.” his eyes turned hazy, as if he was thinking to himself, and he bit his lip. Holly howled softly.

He was great, yes, you agreed. But the living forever was a little extreme in your opinion. That would, however, be one hell of a tip.

You let yourself fall on the bench beside Taehyung “I just can’t believe it… You hear about these people going missing, but I didn’t know any of them so it didn’t seem… I don’t know, real? And now, this… It comes so close, you know?”

Taehyung swallowed, looked around, licked his lips and then smiled at you “How was work?”

You got from that that he didn’t want to talk about such a depressing topic. And you understood that. All these murders were… Crazy. How could anyone in their right mind do something like this to people?

“Work was alright. I got a new assignment.”

“Ooh, do tell me.”

You turned your head to him “Well… I haven’t read it yet. I literally just got it before we all left.” you laughed “But I’m pretty sure it has something to do with a children's book.”

You took and deep, exhausted breath. This entire week had been crazy. You had done so much for work, met up with Taehyung a lot and you had worked on your house. Cleaned up everything because your head couldn't process the mess it had been before that. It was safe to say you were tired and really happy it was weekend.

“Taehyung,” you started, while you turned your head at the leaves on the trees, “can I stay with you tonight? I’m so done with my own house.”

He stayed quiet for such a long time you thought he had left, but then he cleared his throat “I don’t think that’s a very good idea. I just started a new painting and so it’s smelly and one big mess… To be honest I was actually kind of hoping Holly could stay with you over the weekend.”

You turned your head to him again. He looked at Holly, petting his head “Why?”

“Well… Like I said, my house is a big mess and smells pretty funny and Holly is acting weird because of it.”

The look on his face was so serious, it almost scared you. You had never seen him like this, he usually was very bubbly and spontaneous. Seeing him so… weird and serious was strange. But he clearly cared about his friend’s dog a lot. Now that you thought about it… his friend had been on vacation for a quite a while now.

“Eh, sure. Of course he can stay with me.” you looked at your feet “Your friend has been gone for quite a long time now… is he alright?”

Taehyung once again stayed quiet for quite some time, really thinking his answer over. Maybe something really had gone wrong with his friend. Had he gotten sick?

“He has a home there. I don’t know when he’s coming back… I honestly don’t think he’ll ever come back.”

You frowned, anger boiled up inside you “And he just leaves his dog behind? That’s so mean.”

The weird look in Taehyung’s eyes disappear when he looked at you and he smiled “It’s alright, I’ve grown very attached to Holly… I don’t think I could ever give him back.”

You turned your gaze to Holly “Well I think it’s horrible. You don’t just leave your animals somewhere. You should love them like they’re your very own children. You wouldn’t just leave your children either, would you?”

Taehyung’s eyes switched to his feet really fast “My mom did.”

The anger left as fast as it had come. Why hadn’t you been more considerate? You honestly wanted to hit yourself so bad.

“Taehyung… I’m sorry.”

He shook his head and smiled at you again “Thank you that you want to keep Holly for the weekend.” he got up and handed you the dog leash “I’m afraid I have to go now, and I’m very sorry but I can’t meet up over the weekend either… Like I said, I just started a new painting and I need to finish it quickly.” He sighed and let out a sad sounding chuckle “It’s actually kind of stupid I started a new one right before the exposition. But I had a sudden burst of inspiration…”

You had to admit you were very sad he couldn’t meet up over the weekend, you had been looking forward to it so much, after your very busy week just laying in bed all day together, only getting up to eat… But you did understand. He was a busy man.

“That’s alright. Just make sure you finish it in time.” you stood up as well.

He bend over to kiss you, his soft lips pressed to yours. You wanted it to last forever. So sweet, so tender, with all the love in the world in it. But alas, it ended way too soon.

“If there’s anything I can do to help, please do tell me. Okay?”

He nodded, brushed your cheek with his hand, and walked away “I’ll see you on monday, my love. You have me all to yourself then, I promise”

You smiled and watched him as he walked away. You looked down at Holly after Taehyung had disappeared from view. He was sitting beside you right foot, his head turned to look up at you. Looking back at him creeped you out for some reason.

“Well Holly,” you started, his ears shot up by the sound of his name, “let's get you some food.”

You had no idea what Taehyung had meant by Holly acting weird. He seemed like a normal dog to you, nothing weird about him. He seemed even more normal than usual, more relaxed, more happy. But maybe he just was happy to be away from the mess in Taehyung’s house.

You had texted Taehyung a bunch of times but he hadn't texted you back at all. He hadn't even read your texts… But that was alright, he was busy and you knew that.

You felt really bad leaving Holly all alone on Monday as you left for work. You hadn't really discussed how you would get him back to Taehyung but you figured you'd just bring him back to his place after work. You couldn't wait to see Taehyung again, it was the only thing you could think about the entire day.

But as you walked home from work, there was Taehyung, on the bench in the park, looking up at the leaves of the trees. His hair dyed bright blue, the expression on his face strange, thoughtful but hurt. His blue hair made him look magical, like a fairy. And with the green of the trees and bushes behind him, his hair looked luminescent.

He smiled as you sat down beside him, but he didn’t look at you, he kept his face turned to the leaves above him.

“It’s a beautiful day.” He sighed.

You smiled at him, inspecting every little detail of his side profile “It really is, yeah.”

He sighed a second time before turning his head to you, planting a soft kiss on your forehead “It’s good to see you.”

You closed your eyes and used one of your hands to cup his face “I missed you.”

You felt his lips smile against your head. But he said nothing, just smiled.

The next couple of weeks passed quickly. You helped Taehyung to get stuff ready for the exposition that was in a few days. The hall where it was gonna happen looked very nice, it really felt like you walked in a museum.

You had been following the news closely, you felt really sad for the waiter. He had been polite and gentle. You couldn't imagine what his family had to be going through now that he had disappeared.

They found him back the Tuesday after he had gone missing. Dead.

No one had gone missing since then. Everyone was relieved that that was the case. This had been the longest time no one went missing since this whole missing person thing started. And you could feel it. The atmosphere of the city had changed, had gotten better, relieved, hopeful even. People were happy that this finally seemed to be over, but at the same time they were terrified. The fact that no one had gone missing yet meant that everyone could still be targeted. Which meant that no one was safe. But people were hopeful. Finally there was light at the end of the long tunnel.

Taehyung's newest painting looked wonderful. Like in every other painting you had seen from him, he had used red as his main color. You had asked him if red was his favorite, he had explained how red was amazing. It really made a statement, made you feel warm, yet scared you off. And yes, red really was his favorite color. And it was his thing, and all the red paintings together on the hall like they were now, looked really nice and clean.

Taehyung beamed with excitement beside you “It looks so nice. I really can't wait.”

You smiled and looked around a little “It really does look amazing.”

You felt him turn his head to face you, and with his hand on your chin he forced you to look up at him so he could press his lips against yours.

“Thank you for helping me set this all up. I couldn't have done this without you.” He whispered.

You pressed a kiss in his neck, smiling against his skin “You're welcome.”

When you had told Taehyung you would tell everyone about the exposition, you weren't kidding. You had told your family, a bunch of your friends and you had send an email to all of your colleagues. You really wanted people to come check it out, Taehyung deserved all the recognition he could get. And by that time you had no idea how well known he actually was.

You dressed up nicely, did your hair and makeup, and even changed the case of your phone to something that looked a little more classy before you left for the actual event. Nerves boiled up in your stomach. You were first picking up your parents from the train station and then you'd drive to where the exposition would be. Your parents seemed really happy, proud even, that Taehyung could present his art like this. They loved that you found someone so right for you, someone who truly seemed to love you. It then dawned on you that, even though you had been dating for months now, neither one of you had actually said those three words to the other. It had you thinking it over the entire drive there.

The place was crowded. Really packed with people. You had expected people to come but you had never imagined this many. Outside was a ridiculously long line, people talking, looking excited. You were really glad with the V.I.P. tickets you and your parents had. You cut the line and could get in without any trouble.

Your parents told you they were going to look around by themselves so you could go off and find Taehyung. You found him standing in front of the painting he always referred to as the one that changed his life. It was this painting where he started developing the style he made his own. Using loads of reds, big and bold striped and painting really abstract. You saw an old man on a scooter, while Taehyung swore he saw a nice landscape with a big tree in the middle of it. And the great thing was that it didn't matter what it was, it really was whatever you would see and that's what Taehyung had told you was the whole purpose of him creating it in the first place.

Seeing him there, looking up at the big canvas, he looked like he was in his own little world. Like he was trying to get inspired by his own painting, it made you think about what your parents had said in the car. About the love thing. Did you love him? You sure were in love, but were you really at a point where you could call it love?

He seemed to snap out of a dream and turned his head to you, a tired but big smile appeared as soon as his eyes found yours. You smiled back and walked a little bit closer.

“Hi.” he greeted you, wrapping an arm around your waist.

“Sir, I'm just trying to enjoy the exposition. No point in getting all handy here.” you said in a high pitched tone, playfully trying to get out of his grip.

He smiled and a low growl escaped from deep down his throat “Miss, you are aware this exposition is to showcase art, right?” he whispered, the deep sound of his voice making butterflies rise everywhere in your stomach.

You nodded stifly.

“Then why aren't you on the walls yet? The greatest masterpiece of all. I'm just trying to keep you from getting away.”

You couldn't help but blush, chuckling at his words “Maybe they should put you up there then.”

He let go and looked at you with a played disappointed face “Don't steal my pick up line miss, that's rude.”

Both of you laughed.

“Let's go view the exposition.” He said.

You nodded “Make sure to avoid my parents though, they're more proud than ever. I'm afraid that, if they get the chance to talk to you, you'll never get away.”

You were right. As soon as your parents spotted you and Taehyung they run up to you like wild hyenas, and they talked with Taehyung for about half an hour before I could finally pry him away from them.

“So,” you started, almost hanging on to Taehyung's arm, “where's your latest painting? Let's go see how people like that one.”

You heard Taehyung chuckle “Good idea.”

The hall was filled with people, and all of them were smiling or nodding impressed at the artworks on the walls. So far you hadn't heard anyone say anything negative, only positive things. Well, except that one woman who told her friend that she thought it was all a little too red. But that was Taehyung's style.

There were standing a bunch of people around the painting, some inspecting it in every detail, others just glancing over it as they walked by. Since a picture of Taehyung hung above the entrance, people looked at him as soon as he came close to them. Some complimented him, other just smiled and nodded.

But there was one guy who's eyes hadn't left Taehyung ever since he came into view. He was wearing a suit of which the colors seemed to clash with themselves, and he had a very strange mustache that was long and curled up with hair gel. As soon as some people had walked away, he walked towards you two. He was grinning as he offered Taehyung a hand shake.

“Mister Kim, right?” He asked, his voice had a very nagging sound, but he smiled charmingly.

Taehyung smiled politely “That's me.”

The guy bowed his head in greeting “It’s nice to meet you, I’m Jean Pierre.”

Taehyung chuckled “I know.”

Mister Pierre’s eyes widened a little “Of course you do. Anyway, I was looking at this wonderful piece you created here and I must say: Bravo. You really did a great job on it.”

You looked up at Taehyung, he was beaming proudly “Thank you sir, that means a lot.”

“Oh, please, call me Jean.” mister Pierre walked closer to Taehyung, whom had let go of your hand, and linked arms with him. They slowly walked away together. You let out a chuckle in disbelieve, and watched them as they walked away.

You saw Taehyung again after the exposition. He was waiting outside for you to come out. You were in awe of how good he looked in that suit, like a prince.

It was cold outside, the wind hurt your bare skin. Winter was coming.

Taehyung smiled and took off his jacket so he could give it to you “I’m sorry for leaving you.”

You slipped on the jacket and smiled up at him “No worries, it was alright. Art critics are important.”

He kissed you softly “Thank you for understanding. Are you bringing your parents back to the train station?”

You nodded “Yep. Sadly they don’t have more time to spend.”

Taehyung leaned forward, his lips touching your earlobe “How about, you bring your parents to the station and then come over to my house. I have great news, and I need to make up for leaving you all by yourself.”

His deep voice gave you goosebumps, butterflies fluttered through your stomach and you nodded.

You did just that, brought your parents to the train station and drove directly to Taehyung from there. As you opened the door, with the key he had given you a couple of weeks ago, Holly came running towards you excitedly. You patted his head and greeted him.

In the other room you heard Taehyung gasp, it sounded like you just ran into something you weren't supposed to see "You're already here?"

You raised an eyebrow and started walking towards the door to the living room "Yeah…"

He sighed disappointedly "I wasn't finished yet…"

The living room was all cleaned up, which seemed like a miracle. Normally there were paintings and other art things covering everything, but now it even seemed like he vacuumed. The only thing littering the ground were rose petals, tons of them, and you wouldn't necessarily call that littering. And a bunch of candles were lit. Taehyung was standing in the kitchen, leaned against the little wall that separated the two rooms from each other, observing you with wonder in his eyes. The same look he wore when he looked up to the leaves in the trees.

"You look… positively gorgeous." he whispered breathlessly "Had I told you that yet?" his eyes scanned your body, seemed to take in every little detail there was.

You let the jacket, he had given you before, slide off your shoulders "You look very handsome yourself."

He laughed and walked closer, resting his hands on your hips "Did you wear red just to make me go crazy?"

The dress you were wearing was, indeed, red. It was a very simple yet elegant and pretty dress, reaching to right above your knees, being held up by two spaghetti straps. And it looked gorgeous on you.

You shrugged "So what if I did?"

He laughed, throwing his head back "You do things to me I can't even explain."

You planted a soft and tender kiss in his neck, he gasped and his grip on your hips got stronger. You grinned devilishly.

He smiled a boxy smile as one hand let loose of your hip and cupped the back of your head instead. He pulled your hair very gently so your head leaned back and he could kiss your lips. You reached for his hair, tangling your fingers in it. For a while you stood there, making out. You got to a point where you were pressed against the wall, his dress shirt unbuttoned, before he carried you to the bed. The rose petals he laid down lead your way, the bed filled with them, candles romantically lit.

His hands were everywhere, your hands were everywhere. Your dress, forgotten, somewhere on the ground. His trousers thrown beside it. And he had his way with you, like he always had. Whenever you laid in his arms you were his and his alone, no one else seemed to exist. Only the two of you, entangled with each other, and the world seemed to be all yours.

And in your moment of pure bliss, you knew you loved him.

You were drawing circles and other little figure over his bare chest with your index finger. His arm as wrapped around you, his thumb stroking your arms. He had his eyes closed and you could swear he was an angel. He must have been. No human could look as enchanting as he did.

You chuckled at that thought, making his eyes shoot open.

"What?" he smiled as soon as he saw you pressing your face to his side.

"Nothing." you murmured.

He made a sound that indicated he didn't really believe you, making you chuckle even more.

He pinched your side playfully.

"Don't do that!" you laughed, pinching him back "You know I'm ticklish there."

He laughed and bend his mouth to your ear "That's payback."

You childishly stuck out your tongue.

"Anyway," you began, looking up at him, "you made up for leaving me all by myself, like you said you would do. But at the exposition you also told me you had great news…"

His face lit up and he grinned "Right, I forgot."

He pulled you on top of him, your face very close to his. He looked as excited as a little kid talking about what presents he got for his birthday. Gosh he did things to your heart.

"So, do you remember that Jean Pierre dude?"

You nodded, of course you remembered the guy with the weird mustache, who practically stole Taehyung from you at the exposition. Taehyung's smile widened "Okay, well. He's this important art critic from France or whatever, and, anyway, he wants to do a story on me in his magazine. And he says he's gonna talk with some people so that maybe some of my art can hang in a museum somewhere in France."

You leaned on your elbows and pushed yourself up so you could look him in the eyes, you mouth hanging open "Really? Oh my! That's amazing Taehyung!"

Imagine that, your boyfriend's art hanging in a museum? That would be so great. It would open so many opportunities for him.

He laughed "I know right! I'm so proud."

"You have all the right to be! That really is wonderful!" you have him a small kiss "I'm super proud of you as well."

Both of you turned to your sides, looking each other in the eyes.

"I have a meeting with him on Tuesday. We'll discuss the museum thing and he will interview me and stuff. It's going to be great." He grinned "Gosh, he was so nice."

You smiled at your boyfriend in pure adoration "You'll have to tell me how that went after I come home from work."

"I will for sure..." he sighed, his eyes started to close slowly. He pulled you closer to him, wrapping both his arms around you "But that is then. Let's sleep now."

You nodded, head buried in his chest once again. You were tired, today had been very busy and tiring, but it had been good. Great even.

You slowly felt yourself falling asleep, the last thing you remembered Taehyung say was: "Thank you for today." Very softly, merely a whisper. But you were sure that's what he said right before you fell asleep happily.

The next day, sunday, there was another day of exposition. Nothing too interesting happened there this time. You had to go home early since you had work the day after again, so you kissed Taehyung goodbye and left.

Monday you walked Holly after coming back from work, and went home by yourself. Taehyung was busy bringing back all his artwork, you didn’t see him. Tuesday morning, you send him a message wishing him good luck for the interview. But he didn’t text back. When you walked home from work, he wasn’t on the park bench.

It was wednesday when you saw him again. You walked out of the building you worked in and there he was, standing right in front of it. He smiled a charming, yet nervous smile. You smiled back. Seeing him again after so many days felt like coming home. You wrapped your arms around him, he kissed your cheek.

"Let's go eat something, I'm starving."

You went to the little cafe on the corner of the street, say down, and both ordered what you wanted.

"Did you get all your paintings back safely?" you asked.

He nodded "We did, yeah. And remember that Jean Pierre guy? Well, he came around and started helping us get everything away." he beamed and stared off to space for a little before talking again, "He's so great."

You smiled, it seemed kind of strange that he would suddenly show up and help. But you were sure he had his reason. And Taehyung seemed to think it wasn't out of ordinary, so it must have been alright.

"That is great." You agreed, as you took a sip of the coffee you had ordered "About that Jean Pierre, how did your interview go yesterday?"

Taehyung's eyes lit up "It was amazing. He asked me all kinds of questions, like where I get my inspiration from and stuff. And he bought me lunch and even dinner. He had a laptop on which he wrote whenever I answered, and he carried this funny looking notebook in which he took notes. It was great."

You laughed “I’m glad you had fun.”

Taehyung took a bite of what he had ordered and nodded “I did. And he said he would finish the article this week and immediately send it in as soon as it’s finished.”

“That’s great!” you took another sip of your coffee “What about the ‘hanging your paintings in a museum’ thing?”

“Oh, he’s skyping with some people in France tonight and he’ll discuss it then or something. And if they’re interested they’ll contact me directly. So we’ll see.”

You nodded to show you understood. His reaction was kind of strange to you. One would think he would be more excited about the museum then about the interview. Maybe the interview just gave him more recognition and was that all he wanted.

You finished your food and drinks and walked to his place, talking about random little things, holding hands. When he opened the door to his apartment, Holly didn’t come running to the door like usually. He was still on his cushion, which was very unusual for him.

“Is something wrong with Holly?” you asked Taehyung, as you patted Holly’s head.

Taehyung walked to the kitchen to get you two some drinks “Oh, yeah. I noticed something off about him as well, so I took him to the vet today.” he put to glasses on the kitchen counter and stood still for a few seconds, clearly upset “He… He’s very sick. I wanted to tell you sooner but we hadn’t seen each other in a while and I didn’t want to ruin the moment.”

You walked over to Taehyung and wrapped your arms around his waist “It’s okay, don’t worry. How are you handling it?”

He placed his hand over yours gently “I’m… doing alright, I guess. It’s just very difficult to see someone you love die.”

You nodded, realizing this must bring back memories of his mother dying. She had been sick as well, tied to her bed for a while. He had slowly seen the life drip out of her. This thing with Holly would surely bring back those awful memories of his youth.

“How long does he have left?”

Taehyung shrugged “The doctor’s said it could be today, but it could also be a few weeks. They didn’t really give an end date.”

You bit your lip “That must be frustrating.”

He nodded his head before taking a deep breath and turning around so he could hug you back. He buried his head in your neck and sighed.

“Thank you. For being here for me.”

Weird enough, you smiled. Seeing the circumstances that seemed very out of place, but you couldn’t help it. Was this where you were supposed to tell him you loved him?

But before you could decide that he pulled back, looking you in your eyes as he stroked a stray hair behind your ear and kissed you on your head. He then turned around and continued getting you both drinks. You figured you should change the subject.

“Do you have any inspiration for a new painting?”

He let out a chuckle, it didn’t sound very convincing “I thought of something, but I got a brand new idea just today.”

You leaned on the little wall dividing the living room and the kitchen “Ooh… Wanna tell me about it?”

He handed you your drink with a grin on his face “Nope.” he made the ‘P’ pop “You’ll see it when it’s finished.”

You sighed and looked at him with your best puppy eyes “Do you never share your ideas? Not even with me?”

He laughed at you and quickly kissed your lips before walking over to the couch “I never tell anyone. I think that brings bad luck.”

You frowned and sat down beside him “Alright, well, I’m looking forward to the end product.”

The next weekend Taehyung texted you he was going to be busy. You figured he was going to get started on the painting, so you let him be and didn't contact him at all knowing he probably wouldn't respond anyway.

On Monday he was waiting for you on the park bench, looking up at the remaining leaves. The look on his face told you something was wrong, and you knew exactly what that was. Without saying anything you sat down beside him, following his gaze so you were both looking up at the sky. Autumn had made the leaves fall to the ground, it was cold outside. But today the sky was blue.

You didn't talk for awhile, until he started talking. Still looking up, not turning his head.

"He's gone." the words sounded soft, broken. The little crack in his voice broke your heart.

You turned so you could embrace him, not too sure what to say. But that was fine, you knew it was. He didn't cry, neither of you did. Just looked up at the last leaves falling off the trees.

The next couple of weeks were weird. Taehyung seemed to be fine most of the time, but sometimes stared off into space, face turning sad for a moment before returning to his usual self.

You didn't go to his house the first week, Taehyung said the paint was still drying and it smelled bad. But the first time you got to his apartment again was strange, it felt empty without Holly there. Even after three weeks you hadn’t gotten used to him not greeting you at the door anymore, or laying down beside you on Taehyung’s bed.

Mister Pierre had told Taehyung that the interview he had done for the magazine in France, was going to get published real soon and that he made sure a bunch of copies would be send to Taehyung. Taehyung was really excited about it, couldn’t stop talking about it. That was very nice though, it kept both your minds from thinking about Holly. The museum thing he didn’t know yet. Jean Pierre had said they, the people from the museum, were busy discussing the matter but just weren't ready to decide yet.

You thought that was ridiculous: one look at any of Taehyung’s paintings was enough for anyone to decide whether they wanted to showcase it or not. And, in your opinion, everyone would want it. And if they wouldn’t for some reason, they’d be crazy.

Taehyung didn’t seem to care much about it though. Sure, he thought it would be an honor if they would showcase it there, but he just didn’t care too much about that. He loved the publicity in the magazine more. Because loads of people could read about him now and get interested and look him up. And if you looked at it in that way, you agreed with him, but you still really hoped they’d buy some of his art to showcase it.

But that hope vanished when you read the newspaper on your way to work on a wednesday morning.

“Famous art critic from France, disappears?”

That had to be him, it couldn’t be anyone else. Had Jean Pierre really fallen victim to the relentless killer?

“Mister Jean Pierre had come all the way from France, to look at art from local artists. But what was supposed to be a fun trip turned into a nightmare last Monday. The art critic had been spotted in a cafe with one of the artists he was working with at that moment, witnesses saw him walk to his hotel alone after that. The personnel of the hotel he was staying at however, said that he never arrived there.”

You turned your head away from the paper in front of you. The poor man, he had come all this way for a nice trip, and this happens to him of all people. How horrible.

Your mind shot to Taehyung, he was staying at a little house on a beach somewhere that belonged to a friend of him. He had left yesterday morning, only to return on Sunday. You wondered if this news had reached him yet. You doubted whether he could handle this news right after Holly’s death.

Jean Pierre had been so nice to Taehyung, Taehyung had really liked him. Man, this sucked. Not that it would have sucked any less, had it been someone you didn’t know. It just sucked that this whole thing happened. Who on earth would do something like this at all? Everyone was terrified. What if they were next? What if one of their loved ones was next?

And that made you wonder. Your parents didn’t live here, and all the disappearances happened in your town, so you weren’t too worried about them. But what about Taehyung? What if he was the next victim? What would you do then?

You frowned to yourself and decided that it was about time you told Taehyung how you felt about him. That you loved him. So as soon as he would come back you would try to find the best moment to tell him. Because, if there was one thing you knew for sure, it was that if Taehyung happened to be the next victim, you would definitely regret it if you had never once told him that you loved him.

That next week was weird for everyone. Whenever a person was taken, everyone seemed to be a little more quiet, a little more careful. No one knew how the purpotrayer decided who would be the next victim, so no one wanted to stand out just in case they’d be picked. You couldn’t judge them for it, you knew you did the same.

It was a thing that made you wonder: how did the killer decide who would be a victim? None of the victims seemed to have a real, clear connection, according to the police. So why did he pick them? Just randomly? Or maybe because they had said something to him? No one knew, and that’s probably what made it even scarier.

But you knew that, after a week, everyone would forget to be invisible, or maybe they just stopped caring. It always went like that.

Jean Pierre his body was found on saturday morning. He sat against a tree, his face turned to look at the pond filled with ducks. He was dressed nicely, wearing a nice suit, the newspaper even said his mustache was curled up the way it always was. Once again the relentless killer had made sure the body was funeral ready, which everyone always thought was weird.

Sunday evening Taehyung texted you he was home. He said he was tired and he would pick you up from work tomorrow. Something about his texts felt strange, but you didn’t pay much attention to it. Lately everything had been weird, and after Holly’s death, and now mister Pierre’s, you imagined Taehyung wasn’t feeling to well. Even though he told you he was doing alright when you asked him about it.

And there he was on Monday, waiting for you on the same bench as always, looking up at the branches of the trees. The blue of his hair had fainted into a light green a while back, and he had liked it so much he bought mint green dye soon after. Apparently he had dyed his hair somewhere in the last week.

As soon as he noticed you walk towards him he stood up and walked towards you, taking you in his arms as soon as they could reach you.

“I’m sorry.” He whispered with a broken voice.

You wrapped your arms around his waist “What? What are you sorry for?”

“Everything.”

You had no clue what he meant, but just decided to ignore it. He had had a rough month, you were sure he was just tired of everything. So you smiled, and tangled your fingers in his hair.

“It’s alright, Taehyung.”

He sighed a shaky sigh, and it seemed like he was never going to let go of you. You wouldn’t mind that, you wanted to drown in him, never let go, love him forever. And wanted to tell him that, but he let go of you before you got the chance.

“Let’s get something to eat.” he said before kissing your nose and taking your hand to guide you out of the park that got more and more depressing as time passed and bodies were found.

Taehyung turned back into himself as you ate something, his cheerful personality returned and he laughed his way through everything. He acted kind of weirdly when you asked him about his week at the beach house, not really talking about it at all and seeming to avoid the subject as a whole. Which was kind of strange considering you had thought it would be something he would want to talk about all the time. The only thing you got out of him about it was the fact that he did some painting. Which was quite obvious to you: the whole reason he went was to paint. But you just decided to let it rest, you figured he’d talk to you about it when he would feel like it and you were not going to push him to tell you anything.

“So… did you hear about that Jean Pierre yet?” you decided to ask. You realized it might be a painful topic for him to talk about but figured that, if he didn’t know about his death yet, Taehyung should at least be notified about it in some way. And in that case maybe you were the best person he could hear it from.

He nodded and looked down “Yeah, I did.”

You weren’t too sure what to say next. So you just took a sip of your drink.

“But I know that the article about me was posted yesterday, so I expect some copies of the magazine to come my way soon.” he smiled.

You forced a smile back and nodded “That’s good. What about the museum thing?”

Taehyung took a bite from his food and shrugged “I don’t know. But, to be quite honest, I don’t really care about it. Most of my pieces mean too much to me, I could never sell them.”

“You could have made a lot of money with it though.”

“That’s true, yes. But there are things money can’t buy.”

You nodded to show you agreed. And you did, he was right. Things like love and friendship weren’t for sale and couldn’t be bought from you. But it’s not like you can have those kinds of connections with objects, right?

He smiled the boxy smile you loved so dearly “I probably wouldn’t have sold any of them in the first place.”

That made you giggle “Well at least you didn’t miss a great opportunity then. Not that that makes Jean Pierre’s death less devastating, of course. Who would have thought, him of all people.”

Taehyung merely shrugged.

“Don’t you think it’s sad?”

He nodded “Of course it kind of is. But I like to think he stays with us forever.”

You had to think about that sentence a little before you realized what it was that he meant exactly “Yeah, I guess you might be right. He was pretty famous, wasn’t he? So I guess people will remember him for a very long time.”

Taehyung insisted on going to your apartment that night, which you disagreed on. You really wanted to see the painting he made in the week he was gone. He promised you would get to see it soon enough. But coming back to his apartment after being gone for a while really made him realize what a mess it was and how badly he had to clean up, At least that’s what he told you. But he seemed kind of weird about it, like he was keeping something from you. But, once again, you decided to just ignore that.

You had missed him, missed his touch, and you really didn’t care where you would go, as long as you would be with him.

The next day he promised he would clean up. And as you got to his apartment after a long day at work, it really did seem more clean. But it smelled kind of strange.

He poured you two a glass of wine.

“So,” you started, “Where is your new masterpiece?”

He laughed and stood up “I wouldn’t really call it a masterpiece but I’ll get it for you.”

He kissed your forehead, put down his glass on the little table and walked into a different room. Only to return holding a pretty large canvas. You could now only see the back of it, and straightened your back right before he turned it around dramatically. You gasped at the sight of it.

It was as gorgeous as ever. Really well put together and just as abstract as any of his others. It was really pretty. Yet you couldn’t really see any of the influences the beach should have had on Taehyung. But whatever, it was a great artwork.

“It’s gorgeous, Tae.” You told him breathlessly.

He put it down on the ground and sat beside you so you could both look at it “Thank you.”

You tried to look at some of the details that made this piece so outstanding, see what you saw in this abstract piece of art. Your eyes found two curls, right across from each other. Where the two lines met up seemed to be something that looked like a mouth.

“Wait, did you paint… mister Pierre?”

Taehyung laughed kind of awkwardly and looked away, trying to act normal “What? No. What would give you that idea?”

You inspected the painting a little more. Yes, above the two curly lines was something that looked like a nose, eyes painted close to them.

“Well, for starters, his mustache.”

“I really liked Jean Pierre’s mustache, it was so funny.”

“So it is mister Pierre?”

He took a sip from his wine “Honey, it’s abstract art. It is whatever you want it to be, whatever you see. Maybe you see Jean Pierre because he’s what’s on your mind right now.”

You frowned. That kind of made sense.

“Anyway, let’s talk about something else right now. How’s your wine?” he smiled.

You couldn’t help but smile back “It’s delicious, exactly right for my taste.”

“Great, that is exactly what I wanted to hear. Because I bought a bunch of these this weekend and I really hoped we could drink it all together.” he pulled you in his arms and smiled against the back of your head.

You laughed “Tonight?”

“Well, not necessarily, no. But if you want to, we could get super waisted and have some hard core drunk action. If you know what I mean.” he chuckled.

You turned your head slightly “Ooh, I didn’t know you were into that kind of stuff.”

He took your chin in his hand and helped you turn your body to his with his other. The look in his eyes was kind of erotic, yet really calmed you down and made you feel safe. The little smirk playing on his lips made your insides burn.

“There’s so much that you don’t know about me.”

He kissed you, and you completely forgot about the wine.

You made out for quite some time, his hand had found its way to your bra and yours was scratching lightly over his back, before your lips got off of each other again. You were the one who pulled back. The relaxed atmosphere surrounding the two of you right now seemed like the perfect ambiance to say those three little words you had been dying to tell him.

He, on the other hand, saw you pulling back as an invitation to start exploring your neck.

You chuckled and suppressed a moan as you started talking "Taehyung I… I need to tell you something."

"So tell me." He whispered in your neck, giving you goosebumps all over. He flipped you over so he was on top of you, pressing you softly against the couch, pressing soft and wet kisses down your belly, his hand everywhere.

Your breathing got unsteady "Taehyung I…"

He started kissing up again, unbuttoning your blouse the further he went up, his hands finding their way below you bra before his mouth did. You moaned in the middle of your sentence.

You pulled his hair, making him groan deep and low.

"I love you."

Everything stopped. He stopped moving, he stopped kissing, he stopped feeling. He stopped everything he did, and got up high enough to look you in your eyes. Where you expected to see love and happiness, you saw fear, sadness and confusion. You frowned when tears started streaming down his face.

His arms reached up, to the little table your wine glass was on. You heard glass break, liquid flow. You felt pain, and then nothing. The world went black. And Taehyung, him whom you loved so much, disappeared.

Music. The music was loud, deafening. A piano piece, not like the pieces he usually listened to while painting. Normally he listened to messy and harsh piano pieces. But this one was the opposite, perhaps his favorite one of all.

Red. The red was everywhere. Spattered on things, more things than he wanted it to spatter on, but he couldn't help it. It was more than he had ever imagined, more than he had intended it to be. Since, this time it was you he was working with, he just couldn't keep his hands steady.

Tears were streaming down his face as he looked at your body just laying there on the floor. Why did it have to come to this? Why did you have to tell him?

It all started when his mom got sick, he was young. So young. He was sure that, had it been an ordinary day at school or with a friend, he would have long forgotten it. But this day was burned into his memory. So vivid, that he could revisit it at any given moment in time and relive it exactly the way it had gone.

As he saw the life slip out of his mother's body he knew that she was gone. Really gone. People kept telling him she was still here, in his heart, probably looking down at him from heaven. But he had never seen her since.

That's when he realized that, when people die, they're gone. Really gone.

It was then, that he started painting. Always his mother. Her face, her outfits, the smell of her perfume. It got more abstract with each painting, but he always drew her. Hoping that, someday, she wouldn't be as gone as she was at that time.

And then his dad fell ill, very ill. He panicked. Even though it was a couple of years after the death of his mom, seeing his father tied to his bed brought back all those memories. He couldn't lose his father too.

Something within him snapped, and before he knew it he had a pillow pressed against his father's face. His father was wired to so many things, doctors had stabbed and punctured him in so many ways that it wasn't difficult to find some place where he could drain some blood.

And then he just started painting.

His father never left him. His father was right there, in the room. His father would live forever. Unlike his mother, his father never left him. Taehyung went on, living his life, knowing he saved his father's life. His father was declared dead, yes, but Taehyung knew better. Taehyung knew his dad couldn't die, his dad lived on as a piece of art, as a part of his son's paintings. The paintings he had loved so dearly.

Taehyung started looking at people differently from then on. Everyone he met, suddenly had an expiration date. Even all the nice and amazing people he met would eventually all die, even people who deserved to live forever.

The world needed a hero, and Taehyung knew that was him.

So he decided that the people he thought should live forever, truly would live forever. And since then, he had been painting with their blood. They would live on as art, who wouldn't want that? What a perfect way to live.

The first one was the doctor, that helped his father and had been so nice to the both of them. Then, a bartender whom had been willing to listen to his stories. An old man that had given him advice on life, a man at the ice cream shop who gave him his ice cream for free. A guy with a dog named Holly, who had rescued him from the shelter. A lawyer he bumped into, who didn't get angry at him for it and had a super nice talk with him.

And then he met you.

You completely threw him off guard, with your nice smile and sparkling eyes. He had wanted to paint you after the first time he met you, but he was too curious, too excited. You did something to him he just couldn't describe, made him feel a thing he couldn't place.

He painted the waiter of your first date, whom had been so nice to you. Not necessarily to Taehyung himself, but to you. It was different, he had never painted anyone whom had been nice to someone else.

And then he just… stopped. He completely stopped painting anyone. He just forgot about it, because of you. He was too busy with you and what he felt for you to do anything anymore. The thought hadn't even crossed his mind.

Until Jean Pierre. He was so nice to Taehyung, showed him interest, really was a diamond in society. Someone who deserved to live forever.

Taehyung had wanted to paint the him much sooner, but then Holly got sick. He couldn't just let Holly die, he had been such a great and amazing dog. A dog whom he wanted to keep with him forever. It was the first animal he painted.

But since he already made up an excuse to not contact anyone when he was painting Holly, he needed a different one to paint Jean Pierre. The first thing the came to mind was leaving town, and you bought it. He never actually left town, just locked himself in his apartment.

And now you. You telling him that you loved him, brought up the panic of death. Even you would eventually die, and if there was anyone who deserved to live forever it was you.

He didn’t mean too, for the first time in his live he had found someone he wanted to share the rest of his life with, he had decided to paint you as you got older. Not now. But those three little words brought so much pain and panic forth from within him, and the same thing that snapped back when his father was sick, snapped as you said those words. He knew you weren’t sick, but you could have died at any given moment. He could have lost you the next day, or somewhere next week. Death was always around everyone, waiting to strike. And after those three little words, that feeling they described, he could never imagined losing you.

But you were the hardest one he ever painted. For the first time, he actually felt like he had killed someone, not given them life. He had killed you.

So he decided this would be his greatest artwork ever, less abstract, more you. Everyone had to see he drew inspiration from you and you alone. Everyone had to see what he felt for you. A much more realistic portrait, painted while his tears streamed down his face and blocked his vision. You were the hardest one he had ever painted.

He fell onto his knees, screaming, crying, as he finished. He looked at you, bend over you, stroking your hair out of you face, planting a soft kiss on your forehead.

"I love you, too."

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