Monochrome Part 2
Title: Monochrome
Author: samdek95
Genre: Roma Read more... nce
Rating: PG
Summary: In Which Jongin has a final year project to do, and Sehun is a coffee worker who volunteers to be the centre of Jongin's story (in more than one way)
“Look, about last night. I am so sorry, I don’t know what came over me, but it was wrong. I mean, I have a boyfriend. I don’t want to give you the wrong idea, let’s just focus on the project for today and forget about what happened yesterday.” Jongin rambled when he knocked on Sehun’s door the next morning.
“What are you even talking about?” Sehun smiled, winking. Jongin smiled back with appreciation before letting himself in.
“So I have been thinking about questions that I need to include in the questionnaire. I thought about having things like current income with approximate values and number of siblings and such, is there anything you think I can add?”
“Hmm, how about whether they are single, in a relationship, married?” Jongin nodded writing it down on his laptop as Sehun continued to copy another one of his paintings in black and white.
“I just finished this painting, Jongin hyung, what do you think?” Sehun asked after a couple of hours.
“Sehun ah, this is amazing. Do you mind if I can take a picture of this so I can add this into my dissertation? It will give me the opportunity to write about your perspective of Greyscale.” Sehun nodded and handed his camera over to the older male. “If you just email the pictures to me, then I can add it in. Oh and before I forget, Luhan hyung is having a leaving party before he goes to China. He wants you to go because he noticed that we have been spending lots of time together. There will be alcohol, but don’t worry, I won’t be drinking. I will look after you and you can always leave early.”
“Sure, it will be nice meeting your friends anyway.”
“Great, I will pick you up on Thursday at seven. I have to go now, Luhan wants to go to the cinema tonight. Apparently there is a reshowing of Back to the Future and he wants to see it.” Jongin stood up and put his laptop in his bag.
“Alright, I will see you then.” Sehun smiled, waving to Jongin before walking back to his artwork. He finally had the courage to apply to study art. He had the belief that he could achieve so much even with having lost the colour in his vision.
Sehun was having a panic. It was precisely 6.30pm and he had no idea what to wear. Jongin was going to be at his house in thirty minutes and at this moment in time, it seemed as if he was going to be going to the party in just a pair of boxers. Did he have to wear a suit? Or could he get away with just wearing casual clothing? He could go smart casual, wearing a pair of jeans and a shirt. Yes, that could work. Sehun rushed to his closet, pulling out a pair of skinny jeans to which he assumed was navy in colour and a shirt. He put on the clothes and stared at his reflection in the mirror before putting his thumbs up in approval.
The doorbell rang, and Sehun gulped and walked to the door. He let out a sigh of relief when he saw Jongin standing at the door with jeans and a t-shirt. “Are you ready?” Sehun nodded and closed the door behind him, following the older man to the car.
The drive didn’t take too long, probably ten minutes before approaching a large house. Sehun could already hear the music coming from the building as he followed Jongin to the front door. The older male opened the door and showed him to the living room where everyone was stood up in a small circle, chatting. “Guys, this is Sehun, he has been helping me with my project over the past few weeks. Luhan hyung wanted me to bring him along.”
“I guess it is time to get the party started!” One of the men shouts, turning up the volume and handing a bottle of alcohol to Sehun. He accepted the drink and took a sip from it. He found it quite hard to join in any of the conversations and found himself standing on the side of the room most of the night.
He felt a hand grab his arm and he lets himself get pulled by the unknown person to one of the smaller bedrooms. “You don’t know me, but I am Luhan, Jongin’s boyfriend.” Sehun stared at the male. If he could describe Luhan in one word, he would have used the word beautiful. Luhan had a large doe-like eyes and light, curly hair. Any person would die to have his looks. He knew it was a big deal since Sehun could only see in black and white now. ”I am happy that you are willing to help him in his final year project, I mean, he can’t stop talking about how well his project is going. I really am happy, but I am also very concerned. I am worried about what you are doing with Jongin. Are you seducing him? He doesn’t stop talking about you either.”
“Luhan hyung, I am honestly not seducing Jongin. I only want to help him with his project. I felt awful because I spilt coffee the first time I met him and it got all over his work and so I offered to help him. There is nothing going on between us, I promise.” Sehun explained, pulling his arm back slightly from Luhan’s grip.
“Alright, if you say so, but even though I will be gone in another country doesn’t mean you can pounce on him, alright?” Luhan snarled before walking away towards the living room. Sehun breathed heavily, regaining his composure before stepping out of the room and walking to the front door. He had had enough and was ready to go home.
“Hey, Sehun ah, where are you going?” Sehun turned to see Jongin smiling at him with a clear liquid in his hand.
“I am going home, I am feeling a bit tired and I think I want to finish my painting tomorrow.” Sehun opened the door, letting the cold air hit his skin.
“I can take you home, Sehun ah, the party is getting a little bit boring anyway. I think they are getting to the stage where they are getting a bit too drunk and I don’t particularly want to be there to look after them if they chunder.” Jongin laughed, walking behind Sehun.
“Jongin hyung, I think you should stay. You are the person who is studying medicine so you should be the one looking after them. Am I not correct?”
Jongin sighed with a sarcastic disapproving look. “Fine! I will stay, but call me when you get home so that I know that you are safe. I will see you again some other time, alright?” Sehun nodded before walking down the driveway, finally letting the tears that he was holding fall down his cheeks silently.
Sehun had been working on his painting for around three hours when his phone went off. “Jongin hyung? What’s up? Why are you calling?”
“H-he has gone. He has left me behind to go to China.” Sehun could hear Jongin sobbing across the phone.
“Are you still at the airport? Gimpo International Airport? If you are, then I will come to find you because you are definitely not in the position to drive yourself back to Seoul.”
“Y-yes I am.” Sehun stood up and left his apartment without a second hesitance, walking to the bus stop to take it to the airport. It was an agonising one hour before Sehun arrived at the airport. He ran to the waiting area where he knew Jongin would be waiting for him.
“Jongin hyung! Are you alright? I was so worried!” Sehun cried, rushing to the older male and enveloping him in a hug.
“Yes, I think I am fine. I think I have dried myself out of tears. I am actually feeling rather tired. It is weird how tiring crying makes you.”
“You can’t drive in this condition home! We can take the bus and collect your car back from the airport tomorrow.”
Jongin shook his head. “I can’t do that, parking here is extortionately expensive and I would cry if I saw my bank account. We can just sit at a café for a little while and let me gain some energy from drinking coffee.” Sehun nodded, walking towards a nearby café which was located at the front of the airport. “I am really sorry for making you come all the way here. I guess it was just a huge shock to the system to think that Luhan hyung has finally gone. I really didn’t think he would leave me so easily. Thinking about it, he should be arriving in Beijing soon. I told him to call me when he arrives and the flight is about one hour thirty minutes.”
Jongin’s phone rang and he answered the phone immediately. “Luhan hyung. I miss you so much already. Have you arrived? Good. I feel so much better after talking to you. Call me again when you get home, alright? Don’t worry about me, I was a bit upset at first, but I am feeling better now. Sehun is with me to keep me company. We are going to do some work together on my project. Well we are thinking about going through some of the questionnaire results that we have already collected. I also want to make sure his health hasn’t changed since last time. Alright, well we will Skype tonight. I want to see your face again because I miss you so much. I love you, hyung. Bye.”
Jongin smiled as he ended the call. “I think I feel better now, shall we drive you home now?” Sehun nodded.
“Jongin hyung, why did you lie to Luhan ssi? Why did you tell him that we were going to be working on your project?” Sehun asked when they got into the car and drove off towards the centre of Seoul.
“Luhan hyung told me off for talking about you before he left, so I have to be very careful with my words. I don’t see the problem with hanging out with you, you are my friend after all.” Sehun shrugged, letting silence take over the rest of the journey.
It had been two weeks since Luhan left Seoul to go back to China and Jongin was getting more and more concerned. The day his boyfriend left, they Skyped, but since then, they hadn’t spoken to each other since. Jongin had tried to contact the older male: calling his mobile phone (which rang through to voicemail every single time) and waiting for him to go online on Skype (which never seemed to happen).
It was in the evening that Jongin received a text from Luhan, requesting to speak to him on Skype in five minutes. Jongin hurriedly typed a response saying that it was fine by him.
When Luhan’s face appeared once the call had connected, Jongin smiled brightly at the older male. “Luhan hyung! I missed you so much! Why haven’t you called me?”
Luhan sighed. Jongin noticed the bags under the older male’s eyes and also the interesting new hair colour. “I’m sorry, Jongin ah. I have been really busy in trying to enrol. I just haven’t had the time. Tonight is pretty much the first time I have been free since arriving here. How is it for you back in Seoul?”
“Well it is alright, I am finding it hard without you. But I am coping, and I am trying to cook more complex meals other than instant noodles. How about you in China?”
“Well it is nice to be back home where everyone is speaking my mother tongue. But that isn’t why I wanted to call you right now. I have something really serious I need to talk to you about, and I am worried with how you will respond. The truth is, I think we should end our relationship.”
Jongin paused as he tried to take the information in, tears started invading his vision. “What? Is it something I have done wrong? I can change. Please don’t do this to me, I need you!”
“You haven’t done anything wrong. I have done the most awful things and in all honesty, I have been thinking about breaking up with you for a while. Long story short, I cheated on you. I didn’t tell you because I still loved you. And then when you started spending more and more time with Sehun and didn’t leave any time for me, I started cheating on you with more people. Coming back to China has been the best decision in my life really. I have met someone, and I really think I love him. We just sort of clicked. I know it is wrong for me to break up with you to chase after someone else, but I just think that we have lost the spark in our relationship.”
Jongin was lost for words. He could feel his eyes prickling as he tried to hold his tears from falling in front of the person he loved. “Hyung… please don’t do this to me. Please say that this is just a nightmare and tell me to wake up.”
“Jongin ah. It is the truth. I don’t want to lie and ruin your life further. You deserve to be happy too and I am holding not just you, but myself back too. I am so sorry for having to tell it to you in these circumstances.”
“You did it on purpose! You left the country so that when you told me, you wouldn’t have to feel guilty.”
“I still want to be friends with you, Jongin ah.”
Jongin could see the sorrow in Luhan’s eyes, but he couldn’t bring himself to continue to look at the older man in the eyes. “You know that isn’t possible. We ruined four years of friendship by starting the relationship in the first place. I can’t believe that you cheated on me after five years since we first started dating. I trusted you.”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“Goodbye, Luhan ssi. Goodbye.” Jongin pressed the end call button, letting the tears finally fall down his cheeks. He stood up and left the house. It was raining, but he walked in an aimless direction along with the flow of traffic. He didn’t know what to think. How could Luhan have cheated on him and let Jongin continue to live life oblivious to it? And then tell him in a different country where he couldn’t go and approach the older male.
He walked around the city for around an hour before knocking on a door and revealing a shocked Sehun in his pyjamas. “Jongin hyung, what are you doing here at eleven at night? Wait, are you wet? Are you crying? Come in, I will lend you some clothes so you can have a shower.” Sehun pulled the crying male into his apartment and towards the bedroom to find some clothes. “Here, I think these will fit you. They are just some thin clothes, but I assumed you wouldn’t want to sleep in anything too thick.” Jongin nodded and headed towards the door without saying a single word.
Jongin exited the bathroom twenty minutes later in Sehun’s clothes. “I am sorry about my spontaneous appearance. I guess the news shocked me and I wasn’t sure how to process it. You were the first person that came into mind to get comfort from.”
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. It is getting late anyway, you can use the bed and I will just sleep on the sofa.”
“No, I want to tell you know. If I tell you, I think I will finally be able to over it and continue with life.” Sehun nodded, urging Jongin to join him on the sofa. “Luhan… he broke up with me. He said that he cheated on me and that he isn’t sure that he loves me anymore. It really hurt. I still love him so much.” Jongin explained as he cried. Sehun wrapped his arms around the younger male in comfort and whispered soft words of reassurance. “I knew a long distance relationship would be difficult, but I didn’t think he would have cheated on me.”
Sehun sighed, helping the older male stand up and they walked to the bedroom. Jongin got into the bed and lay down. “Don’t leave me yet.”
“I won’t.” Sehun smiled, grabbing Jongin’s hand and sat on the floor. He watched as Jongin fell asleep, his own eyes feeling heavy in the process. He woke up the next morning, in the same position, Jongin’s hand still holding his hand tightly.
When Sehun received a phone call from Jongin a week later, he ran to the older male’s house. “Jongin hyung? Are you okay? What is wrong? Tell me, hyung!”
“I- I can’t see. The colours. They have all gone!” Jongin cried, refusing to look up from his position. Sehun understood what Jongin was going through; the same thoughts that he experienced when it first happened to him, but worse. Jongin had been working so hard for many years trying to become a doctor and all of that could go to waste if he didn’t get it back soon.
“Jongin, it is okay. We can get through it. You have been so focussed on your work, but try to think of it as a positive thing and use it as part of your experiment. We don’t need to tell your lecturers yet. And if you get your sight back, you can talk about your experience of Greyscale in your assignment. Please don’t be sad.” Sehun suggested, walking over to the older male and hugging him tightly.
“There is no point. I don’t even know the cause of it. My life hasn’t changed at all and all of a sudden, I can’t see colours.” Jongin mumbled into Sehun’s shoulder, refusing to open his eyes.
“That isn’t true. Please don’t talk about it like that. You broke up with Luhan a week ago. Maybe it could be something to do with that?”
“There isn’t any point. The lecturers will find out. I have examinations in just over a month and they will catch me out. I don’t know how I will tell my parents about it. They funded my fees. All the money will have all gone to waste.”
“Jongin hyung, please stop talking so negatively. I know how you feel and I will help you get it back. Just please let me try.” Jongin looked up and stared at the younger male before nodding. Sehun felt his heart ache at the tear stains that he could see on Jongin’s cheeks. “Hyung, you said you have never drank alcohol before. So I am going to take you out clubbing.”
The building was underground, the walls were dark in colour (probably black). Jongin had difficulty adjusting to the contrast of greys that he could see. He could just about see Sehun’s outline in front of him as he followed the younger male to the bar. “Here drink this.” Sehun smiled, handing a drink over to the questioning male.
“What is it?” Jongin shouted over the music as he smelt the liquid, his face scrunching up.
“Vodka and coke. I wasn’t sure what you should have for your first time drinking alcohol, but I thought you should try vodka and dilute it slightly. It is nice, don’t worry!” Jongin lifted the drink to his lips, tasting the liquid slightly before pulling back in disgust, disliking the burning sensation in his throat. But then it tasted rather sweet. He gulped more liquid down before placing the glass heavily against the counter. “Don’t drink it too much. It is your first time so you don’t know your limits yet.”
Jongin nodded, his surroundings already starting to become a bit hazy. “I would like to order two vodka and cokes please.” Jongin got out his wallet and paid the barman before handing a drink over to Sehun. “Here. Cheers.” They hit their glasses together and finished their drinks before Sehun pulled the older male to the dance floor.
Sehun laughed as he watched the medical student try out many different styles of dance moves - ranging from serious popping to playful jumping.
More drinks kept coming, and soon, both males were having trouble processing their slightly compromising position: Jongin’s arms were wrapped tightly around Sehun’s waist, the younger males head was resting against Jongin’s shoulder. They swayed to the music, even though the music was much more upbeat to how they were making it appear to be.
The night continued, and Sehun and Jongin continued to dance, only focussing their attention on each other. The music slowed down slightly and they swayed in time to the music. Sehun lifted his head to face Jongin’s, seeing the older male’s eyes glitter in happiness despite losing his ability to see colour just earlier that morning. He leant forward slightly, his lips touching lightly against Jongin’s. His eyes widen in shock before pulling back, only to have the same pair of lips landing on his once again, soft but firm, as they moved together in synchronisation. Sehun’s eyes fluttered shut, his heart beating rapidly as he let Jongin take control in this moment. At this point, Sehun wished he had a camera to remember this moment forever but decided that it would be worth more, being treasured in his brain.
“Let’s go home now.” Jongin whispered into his ears before pulling the younger male out of the club and letting their fingers interlock as they walked along the dimly lit roads to the direction of the nearest house, Sehun’s.
They entered through the doors clumsily, towards the bedroom. “I am sorry for only having a single bed.” Sehun slurred as he took of his top and got underneath the covers.
“That is okay, we can just cuddle more.” Jongin took off his top and joined Sehun in bed, eager to kiss the younger male again. He pulled Sehun closer, taking in the warmth and kissing the back of the younger male’s nape causing soft moans to resonate from his throat. Sehun turned around to face the older male and hugged him, letting their legs entangle as he placed his lips against Jongin’s.
Hands roamed against each other’s bare skin as Jongin’s tongue pushed lightly against Sehun’s lips, which opened with ease, allowing Jongin to feel around Sehun’s mouth. “We should go to bed now.” Jongin whispered once their mouths detached. He was slightly breathless and found the younger male’s plump lips extremely enticing but he knew that he shouldn’t continue further, especially in his current state of mind. He pulled the younger male closer and let sleep envelop him.
Sehun had a huge headache the next morning. He opened his eyes slowly, mentally noting down that he was in his bedroom with some unknown person. It was a huge relief when he turned around to see Jongin’s face sleeping peacefully and not some stranger. He unravelled himself out of the older male’s grasp and searched for a t-shirt to cover his bare body before walking to the kitchen to prepare some breakfast for the two of them.
To be honest, he was slightly concerned by the lack of memories he had of the previous night. He would have to ask Jongin what happened.
Whilst Sehun was cutting up some meat to add into his congee a pair of arms wrapped around his waist making him jump slightly. “Jongin! Don’t do that when I am holding a knife.”
“I’m sorry, you just weren’t there when I woke up so I was worried about where you were.” Jongin sighed, leaning his head against the back of Sehun’s nape placing a firm kiss on his neck causing the younger male to shudder from the sensation.
Sehun struggled out of Jongin’s embrace and continued to cut up the meat before adding it into the pan. “Jongin hyung, how much do you remember from last night? I don’t remember a lot and I am slightly worried because we both didn’t have tops on whilst in bed.”
“We didn’t have sex if that is what you are concerned about. To be honest, I really don’t remember much. My head aches so badly and I am having trouble fixing pieces of memory together. This is why I chose not to drink before last night.” Sehun walked to the table, holding the two bowls of congee that he had cooked, where two glasses of water was placed with a pill next to each of them.
“Here, have a paracetamol, it will ease the pain.” Sehun handed one of the glasses and a painkiller to the older male who accepted them. “So how much do you remember?”
“Well I remember you giving me a drink. Vodka and coke I think. And then we were dancing. I think we kissed to.” The younger male almost choked on his food, his cheeks heating up.
“W-we what?!”
“We kissed. We were both drunk you know. But it make me think. Is it possible for me to like you, even though I only broke up with my previous boyfriend of five years a week ago?” Sehun couldn’t understand how Jongin could say it so easily without feeling embarrassed. He could feel his whole body heating up with embarrassment.
“N-no! That is impossible. I read somewhere that it takes about half of the time you dated to get over that person.” Sehun stuttered, focussing all his attention on his meal.
The rest of the meal was in silence and Jongin stood up. “I heard the mobile funfair is coming to Seoul next week. Do you want to come? We can go together.” Sehun nodded and smiled. “Alright, well I will come round at five to pick you up. I will see you then.”
Sehun was nervous. Was this a date? Or were they going to go as friends? He didn’t know what to wear. He had settled with a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, because they would be going out onto rides. He sighed in relief when Jongin was stood wearing similar clothes as him before grabbing his hand to walk to the nearby park where the funfair was being held.
It was all bright lights and many rides. There were a range of rides from a carousel to huge ones where the riders were flipped over. “Is there anything you want to go on?” Jongin asked, interlocking his fingers with Sehun’s. The younger male nodded, pointing at the bumper cars in the distance. Jongin pulled him along, paying the appropriate amount of money to the attendant before entering the arena, Jongin choosing a car different to Sehun.
The bell rang, and the cars started moving. Jongin drove forward in the direction of Sehun, hitting the car lightly causing the younger male’s car to jump back. Sehun burst out laughing, accelerating towards the other vehicles. The bell rang once again, signalling that the round had finished. Jongin got out of his car first, walking over to the younger male’s car to help him out.
Jongin pulled the younger male towards the carousel stepping in to one of the horses that two people could ride on. Sehun sat on the front and Jongin got on behind, wrapping his arms around the younger male. “I have to hold on to something, don’t I?” Jongin reasoned. The carousel began spinning causing cheers from the younger children. Jongin tightened his grip around the younger male making Sehun slap his arm lightly, complaining that he was struggling to breathe.
When the ride finished, Sehun went off to look at the carnival games, pointing at the large teddy bear that he had taken an interest in. The game was about throwing a basketball into the hoop at the top. Jongin paid for three goes and handed a ball to the younger male.
“I don’t really know how to do it.” Sehun blushed. Jongin placed his arms alongside Sehun’s and held the ball up in front of him.
“When you are ready, you just extend your arms and let go of the ball. Hwaiting!” Sehun tried it, releasing the ball with too little force causing the ball to fly off in a different direction. The younger male accepted another ball, trying again but missing the hoop by a little bit. He handed the final ball to Jongin, urging him to win the prize for him.
As Jongin held the ball above his head, he saw a blinding flash coming from Sehun’s camera. Jongin threw the ball up, hitting the back board before falling into the hoop. He was handed a bear, which he gave to Sehun, causing the younger male to squeal in happiness and hug the older man tightly. “You know, I feel as if I should be taking pictures now too since I can no longer see colours.” Jongin laughed, grabbing the camera from Sehun’s grip and took a picture of the younger male hugging the prize he had won for him.
The final ride they went on was the Ferris wheel. The queue wasn’t too long and the got on together, along with the teddy bear that Jongin had won for him. They stopped at the top, admiring the view of the lights of Seoul at night. “Did you enjoy today?” Jongin asked, his arm wrapped around the younger male’s waist. Sehun nodded, smiling at back.
“I did, thank you for bringing me out. It has been such a nice day.” Jongin leaned forwards, pressing his lips lightly against Sehun’s. His eyes opened wide, and he was certain that he could see colour just for a brief moment before letting his eyes close as he succumbed into the kiss.
“Are you sure?” Sehun was at Jongin’s apartment the day after they went to the carnival together.
“I am completely sure. I saw the colour of the teddy bear. It is a coffee brown sort of colour. I don’t know how it happened, it happens so quickly though.” Sehun explained, pointed at the teddy bear which laid at the corner of the living room.
“When did it happen?” Jongin wrote down what Sehun had said into his dissertation. Trying to work out what the cause was and why it only happened for a short period of time.
Sehun felt his cheeks heating up. “Wh-when we kissed. On the Ferris wheel. It happened really quickly and then I closed my eyes so it didn’t last long either.”
“Hmm, seems a bit coincidental. I lost my sight not long after breaking up with Luhan and you gain yours briefly when we kissed. Let’s have a look at the questionnaires to see if there is any correlation with any of the questions we asked.” Jongin reached over to his bag and pulled out all of the sheets of completed questionnaires.
He typed all of the results into a spreadsheet on his laptop. Several charts appeared on the screen and he pointed out a small correlation with the people affected.
“Do you think that could be it?” Jongin asked when he looked at the results. Sehun shrugged. “It could be anything to be honest. I am still certain that Greyscale isn’t a disease or an infection but just something to do with the mind.”
“It probably is to be honest. I mean, we have both been feeling just as healthy since getting it so it probably is the case. Oh, by the way, Jongin, I bought some hair dye. I wanted to dye my hair any colour so that when and if I can see colours again, I want to be surprised by it.” Sehun reached over to his bag, producing the box and handed it over to Jongin.
Jongin inspected the box reading the colour off the box. “Are you sure? What happens if you don’t like the colour? Pink is an incredibly bright colour after all.”
“I won’t be able to see the colour for a while. Pink will fade after some time surely? Plus, I am kind of getting bored of the colour it is right now.”
“I like the colour though, it suits you.”
“That is beside the point, you can only see it in a range of greys. Please Jongin, please can you help me dye it.” Sehun pleaded, using his aegyo to try to persuade the older male.
“Alright.” Jongin sighed, much to Sehun’s delight. They stood up, walking towards the bathroom with the hair dye in hand.
Jongin turned up rather out of the blue on a sunny evening. Sehun was sat at his easel in loose clothes as he continued to work on his paintings. “We are going out Sehun ah, so get changed.”
Sehun stood up, smiling, and exited the room changing into some casual clothes. He wondered what Jongin was possibly planning. Maybe he needed to do another test on him and needed Sehun to go to the hospital to do them. “Where are we going?” Sehun asked when he walked back into the living room.
“It’s a surprise.” Sehun could see Jongin’s eyes sparkle before accepting Jongin’s extended hand. It was a quiet walk to the destination. It wasn’t the hospital. It was the Han River. “I wasn’t sure where to take you, but I thought it would be pretty here. I also packed a little picnic so we can eat that as well. Do you like it?”
Sehun stared out to the open. In the distance, he could see the other side of Seoul. “I love it.” Sehun took out his camera, taking a picture of the distance before turning around and clicking the shutter at Jongin. “Sorry, I just don’t want to forget this moment.”
Jongin smiled, ushering the younger male to the blanket he had laid on the grass. Sehun followed, sitting on the mat and accepted the sandwich that Jongin had made. “Honestly, I am so nervous right now. I invited you because I wanted to tell you that I really like you. No, I am certain that my feelings aren’t the sort that friends would have. This is my confession to you, Oh Sehun.”
Sehun stared at Jongin with an unreadable expression. “I… I don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t need to tell me anything now. Just being here and seeing your face has made my day. Just at least think about i-.” A pair of lips landed on his, halting his sentence. It was soft and Jongin could feel the emotion portrayed by it. Sehun pulled back, feeling slightly out of breath by the kiss.
“Jongin hyung, I really like you too. Don’t be silly for thinking that I didn’t like you back. Let’s just take it slowly, alright?” Jongin nodded, pulling the younger male into another kiss.
“Shall we go back home? We can watch a film or something.” Sehun nodded, accepting Jongin’s hand and they walked hand in hand towards Jongin’s apartment. They walked in silence, not knowing what to say now that they had become more than just friends. “What do you want to watch? I am sure I can find it on Netflix or something.”
“Surprise me.” Sehun smiled, sitting down on the sofa. Jongin joined him not too much later, putting his arm around the younger male’s shoulder. Sehun leaned over, resting his head on Jongin’s shoulder. “I think I like this new arrangement.”
Jongin placed a kiss on the top of Sehun’s head. “I still can’t believe you accepted me so quickly. I thought you would have been all against it.”
“Sometimes, we have to follow our heart before our head. I am currently thinking that this is all wrong because you only just broke up with Luhan, but my heart is telling me that this is the way it should be.” Sehun turned his attention to the film. Frozen. He had seen the film a couple of times already, but it felt different watching it in black and white. He would have to get used to watching films in those colours though.
“I like how at the end, instead of it being a true loves kiss that breaks Anna’s frozen heart, Anna showed unconditional love and sacrificed herself to save her sister. I just makes me think about the different types of love that exists.” Sehun says at the end of the film, his eyes feeling rather heavy.
“There are so many different types of love. It feels really good when you know that someone is there for you to support you, to love you.” Jongin stands up, helping Sehun up in the process. He led the younger male to the bedroom and handed him some light clothes that Sehun could sleep in.
“Don’t look as I get changed, Jongin hyung.”
Jongin laughed and turned away. “You can use the bathroom if you would prefer that. I need to get changed anyway, I promise I won’t peep. There is a spare toothbrush in the bathroom as well so you can use that.”
Sehun nodded and left the room, returning not too long later dressed in Jongin’s clothes looking (in Jongin’s opinion) really very sexy. Jongin exited his bedroom and walked to the bathroom where he brushed his teeth. A smile lit on his face as he remembered the day’s events and how lucky he felt to finally be able to say that Sehun was his boyfriend.
He walked back into his bedroom to find Sehun already in bed, sitting upright a smile lighting up on his face when he saw the older male enter. “We can sleep in a double bed instead of a single one unlike last time.” Jongin laughed, joining the younger male in bed.
He couldn’t help but notice the way Sehun’s body fit against his in a perfect way and he knew that he would be feeling rather tight in the lower regions when morning came. “I love you, Sehun ah. I really do.” Jongin whispered, placing a kiss on the younger male’s forehead.
“I know you do. I love you too.” Sehun replied and they let sleep envelop them, a smile on both of their faces.
“Jongin hyung, wake up.” Jongin moaned, it was far too early for him to be opening his eyes. “Seriously, please wake up.”
“What?” Jongin sat up, rubbing his eyes and turned to face the younger male next to him.
“Colours.”
“Kim Jongin, you can now go in and collect your final project results. The professor wanted to speak to you, which is why you are the last person to collect them.” Jongin stood up and walked through mahogany door, his heart beating rapidly as he entered the room.
It had been two months since he handed in his final year dissertation and three months since he got the colour back in his vision. He was still shocked that he could see colours again, it was so soon after he got Greyscale. But he was also really thankful because it meant that he would be able to continue studying his dream subject.
“Ah, Jongin ssi. Here is your project back.” The lecturer handed the wad of sheets with Jongin’s work.
“98%? Are you sure I deserve such a high mark?” Jongin stared at the front of the booklet. In red ink was the percentage given plus a ‘congratulations’ written on it.
“Ah, that is what I wanted to talk to you about. I really liked your work. Of course, you followed the obvious rules of getting a case study and doing a questionnaire for people to fill in. But what we found superb about your work is that you gave your opinion on what you think the cause of Greyscale. Sure, we don’t know if it is correct or not; but we found that your findings make sense. And of course it would be difficult for most researchers to find anything out about it as they are all in working relationships. You on the other hand experienced it so it helped back up your findings. Sure, I am a bit disappointed you didn’t tell us straight away that you had it, but you have outdone yourself and everyone. I am asking for your permission to send your work off to some of the leading researchers in the States for them to have a look at it. You will get the opportunity to visit them and see if you can help further with the research.”
“Well, certainly. I want to help society by as much means as possible.”
“That is great. I will send them your work and give them your contact details so that you can arrange a date and time to travel over. You may go now.” Jongin bowed deeply, thanking the professor before leaving the room. He picked up his phone and called the number at the top of his phonebook.
“How did you do, Jongin hyung?”
“I did really well, Sehun ah. The professor was really impressed. I actually have a surprise for you.”
“Oh tell me in a minute, hang on… Okay, turn around.” Jongin turned around to see Sehun standing there before running towards him and enveloping the younger male in a hug. A hand made its way to Sehun’s light pink hair, brushing through it lightly. It turned out that both Jongin and Sehun really liked the younger male’s dyed hair colour, and Jongin insisted that he should keep it the same colour the day they both restored the colour of their sight. “What was it that you wanted to tell me?”
“We are going to the United States, Sehun ah. We are going to see your parents.”
Extract one
I wrote a questionnaire and handed it out to 68 people over the age of seventeen and noted down that the majority of the people who had Greyscale was single (with only a one person in a broken relationship and another person in a marriage that wasn’t working out). This made me consider that love could play a cause of Greyscale as I discovered that it is not a disease or an infection. This is due to my findings of my test subject having the same health both before and after contracting Greyscale.
My opinion of Greyscale is that it is in everyone and that is untreatable, except by one thing: love. From the day we are born, we feel Storage (affection and family love) to our parents and siblings. I propose that the day you turn seventeen, this kind of love isn’t strong enough to fight off Greyscale so there has to be some other type of love which can keep us from continuing to see colour. This type of love is Eros (romance). This type of love is one of the strongest (other than Agape which is unconditional).
Extract two
Having experienced Greyscale myself, it was a huge shock to the system. I contracted it when I was twenty one, so four years after I turned seventeen. I couldn’t work out what the cause of it was. My life hadn’t changed too much other than the fact that I had just come out of a relationship. I met Oh Sehun a few weeks prior to that, and he agreed to be my case study for my project. Never did I expect him to become the colour of my life. We fell in love not too long after my break up, and pretty much the day after we confessed our own feelings, we could both see colours. I can now confidently say that I, Kim Jongin, will forever love Oh Sehun; the colour and light to my grey world.
Author: samdek95
Genre: Roma Read more... nce
Rating: PG
Summary: In Which Jongin has a final year project to do, and Sehun is a coffee worker who volunteers to be the centre of Jongin's story (in more than one way)
“Look, about last night. I am so sorry, I don’t know what came over me, but it was wrong. I mean, I have a boyfriend. I don’t want to give you the wrong idea, let’s just focus on the project for today and forget about what happened yesterday.” Jongin rambled when he knocked on Sehun’s door the next morning.
“What are you even talking about?” Sehun smiled, winking. Jongin smiled back with appreciation before letting himself in.
“So I have been thinking about questions that I need to include in the questionnaire. I thought about having things like current income with approximate values and number of siblings and such, is there anything you think I can add?”
“Hmm, how about whether they are single, in a relationship, married?” Jongin nodded writing it down on his laptop as Sehun continued to copy another one of his paintings in black and white.
“I just finished this painting, Jongin hyung, what do you think?” Sehun asked after a couple of hours.
“Sehun ah, this is amazing. Do you mind if I can take a picture of this so I can add this into my dissertation? It will give me the opportunity to write about your perspective of Greyscale.” Sehun nodded and handed his camera over to the older male. “If you just email the pictures to me, then I can add it in. Oh and before I forget, Luhan hyung is having a leaving party before he goes to China. He wants you to go because he noticed that we have been spending lots of time together. There will be alcohol, but don’t worry, I won’t be drinking. I will look after you and you can always leave early.”
“Sure, it will be nice meeting your friends anyway.”
“Great, I will pick you up on Thursday at seven. I have to go now, Luhan wants to go to the cinema tonight. Apparently there is a reshowing of Back to the Future and he wants to see it.” Jongin stood up and put his laptop in his bag.
“Alright, I will see you then.” Sehun smiled, waving to Jongin before walking back to his artwork. He finally had the courage to apply to study art. He had the belief that he could achieve so much even with having lost the colour in his vision.
Sehun was having a panic. It was precisely 6.30pm and he had no idea what to wear. Jongin was going to be at his house in thirty minutes and at this moment in time, it seemed as if he was going to be going to the party in just a pair of boxers. Did he have to wear a suit? Or could he get away with just wearing casual clothing? He could go smart casual, wearing a pair of jeans and a shirt. Yes, that could work. Sehun rushed to his closet, pulling out a pair of skinny jeans to which he assumed was navy in colour and a shirt. He put on the clothes and stared at his reflection in the mirror before putting his thumbs up in approval.
The doorbell rang, and Sehun gulped and walked to the door. He let out a sigh of relief when he saw Jongin standing at the door with jeans and a t-shirt. “Are you ready?” Sehun nodded and closed the door behind him, following the older man to the car.
The drive didn’t take too long, probably ten minutes before approaching a large house. Sehun could already hear the music coming from the building as he followed Jongin to the front door. The older male opened the door and showed him to the living room where everyone was stood up in a small circle, chatting. “Guys, this is Sehun, he has been helping me with my project over the past few weeks. Luhan hyung wanted me to bring him along.”
“I guess it is time to get the party started!” One of the men shouts, turning up the volume and handing a bottle of alcohol to Sehun. He accepted the drink and took a sip from it. He found it quite hard to join in any of the conversations and found himself standing on the side of the room most of the night.
He felt a hand grab his arm and he lets himself get pulled by the unknown person to one of the smaller bedrooms. “You don’t know me, but I am Luhan, Jongin’s boyfriend.” Sehun stared at the male. If he could describe Luhan in one word, he would have used the word beautiful. Luhan had a large doe-like eyes and light, curly hair. Any person would die to have his looks. He knew it was a big deal since Sehun could only see in black and white now. ”I am happy that you are willing to help him in his final year project, I mean, he can’t stop talking about how well his project is going. I really am happy, but I am also very concerned. I am worried about what you are doing with Jongin. Are you seducing him? He doesn’t stop talking about you either.”
“Luhan hyung, I am honestly not seducing Jongin. I only want to help him with his project. I felt awful because I spilt coffee the first time I met him and it got all over his work and so I offered to help him. There is nothing going on between us, I promise.” Sehun explained, pulling his arm back slightly from Luhan’s grip.
“Alright, if you say so, but even though I will be gone in another country doesn’t mean you can pounce on him, alright?” Luhan snarled before walking away towards the living room. Sehun breathed heavily, regaining his composure before stepping out of the room and walking to the front door. He had had enough and was ready to go home.
“Hey, Sehun ah, where are you going?” Sehun turned to see Jongin smiling at him with a clear liquid in his hand.
“I am going home, I am feeling a bit tired and I think I want to finish my painting tomorrow.” Sehun opened the door, letting the cold air hit his skin.
“I can take you home, Sehun ah, the party is getting a little bit boring anyway. I think they are getting to the stage where they are getting a bit too drunk and I don’t particularly want to be there to look after them if they chunder.” Jongin laughed, walking behind Sehun.
“Jongin hyung, I think you should stay. You are the person who is studying medicine so you should be the one looking after them. Am I not correct?”
Jongin sighed with a sarcastic disapproving look. “Fine! I will stay, but call me when you get home so that I know that you are safe. I will see you again some other time, alright?” Sehun nodded before walking down the driveway, finally letting the tears that he was holding fall down his cheeks silently.
Sehun had been working on his painting for around three hours when his phone went off. “Jongin hyung? What’s up? Why are you calling?”
“H-he has gone. He has left me behind to go to China.” Sehun could hear Jongin sobbing across the phone.
“Are you still at the airport? Gimpo International Airport? If you are, then I will come to find you because you are definitely not in the position to drive yourself back to Seoul.”
“Y-yes I am.” Sehun stood up and left his apartment without a second hesitance, walking to the bus stop to take it to the airport. It was an agonising one hour before Sehun arrived at the airport. He ran to the waiting area where he knew Jongin would be waiting for him.
“Jongin hyung! Are you alright? I was so worried!” Sehun cried, rushing to the older male and enveloping him in a hug.
“Yes, I think I am fine. I think I have dried myself out of tears. I am actually feeling rather tired. It is weird how tiring crying makes you.”
“You can’t drive in this condition home! We can take the bus and collect your car back from the airport tomorrow.”
Jongin shook his head. “I can’t do that, parking here is extortionately expensive and I would cry if I saw my bank account. We can just sit at a café for a little while and let me gain some energy from drinking coffee.” Sehun nodded, walking towards a nearby café which was located at the front of the airport. “I am really sorry for making you come all the way here. I guess it was just a huge shock to the system to think that Luhan hyung has finally gone. I really didn’t think he would leave me so easily. Thinking about it, he should be arriving in Beijing soon. I told him to call me when he arrives and the flight is about one hour thirty minutes.”
Jongin’s phone rang and he answered the phone immediately. “Luhan hyung. I miss you so much already. Have you arrived? Good. I feel so much better after talking to you. Call me again when you get home, alright? Don’t worry about me, I was a bit upset at first, but I am feeling better now. Sehun is with me to keep me company. We are going to do some work together on my project. Well we are thinking about going through some of the questionnaire results that we have already collected. I also want to make sure his health hasn’t changed since last time. Alright, well we will Skype tonight. I want to see your face again because I miss you so much. I love you, hyung. Bye.”
Jongin smiled as he ended the call. “I think I feel better now, shall we drive you home now?” Sehun nodded.
“Jongin hyung, why did you lie to Luhan ssi? Why did you tell him that we were going to be working on your project?” Sehun asked when they got into the car and drove off towards the centre of Seoul.
“Luhan hyung told me off for talking about you before he left, so I have to be very careful with my words. I don’t see the problem with hanging out with you, you are my friend after all.” Sehun shrugged, letting silence take over the rest of the journey.
It had been two weeks since Luhan left Seoul to go back to China and Jongin was getting more and more concerned. The day his boyfriend left, they Skyped, but since then, they hadn’t spoken to each other since. Jongin had tried to contact the older male: calling his mobile phone (which rang through to voicemail every single time) and waiting for him to go online on Skype (which never seemed to happen).
It was in the evening that Jongin received a text from Luhan, requesting to speak to him on Skype in five minutes. Jongin hurriedly typed a response saying that it was fine by him.
When Luhan’s face appeared once the call had connected, Jongin smiled brightly at the older male. “Luhan hyung! I missed you so much! Why haven’t you called me?”
Luhan sighed. Jongin noticed the bags under the older male’s eyes and also the interesting new hair colour. “I’m sorry, Jongin ah. I have been really busy in trying to enrol. I just haven’t had the time. Tonight is pretty much the first time I have been free since arriving here. How is it for you back in Seoul?”
“Well it is alright, I am finding it hard without you. But I am coping, and I am trying to cook more complex meals other than instant noodles. How about you in China?”
“Well it is nice to be back home where everyone is speaking my mother tongue. But that isn’t why I wanted to call you right now. I have something really serious I need to talk to you about, and I am worried with how you will respond. The truth is, I think we should end our relationship.”
Jongin paused as he tried to take the information in, tears started invading his vision. “What? Is it something I have done wrong? I can change. Please don’t do this to me, I need you!”
“You haven’t done anything wrong. I have done the most awful things and in all honesty, I have been thinking about breaking up with you for a while. Long story short, I cheated on you. I didn’t tell you because I still loved you. And then when you started spending more and more time with Sehun and didn’t leave any time for me, I started cheating on you with more people. Coming back to China has been the best decision in my life really. I have met someone, and I really think I love him. We just sort of clicked. I know it is wrong for me to break up with you to chase after someone else, but I just think that we have lost the spark in our relationship.”
Jongin was lost for words. He could feel his eyes prickling as he tried to hold his tears from falling in front of the person he loved. “Hyung… please don’t do this to me. Please say that this is just a nightmare and tell me to wake up.”
“Jongin ah. It is the truth. I don’t want to lie and ruin your life further. You deserve to be happy too and I am holding not just you, but myself back too. I am so sorry for having to tell it to you in these circumstances.”
“You did it on purpose! You left the country so that when you told me, you wouldn’t have to feel guilty.”
“I still want to be friends with you, Jongin ah.”
Jongin could see the sorrow in Luhan’s eyes, but he couldn’t bring himself to continue to look at the older man in the eyes. “You know that isn’t possible. We ruined four years of friendship by starting the relationship in the first place. I can’t believe that you cheated on me after five years since we first started dating. I trusted you.”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“Goodbye, Luhan ssi. Goodbye.” Jongin pressed the end call button, letting the tears finally fall down his cheeks. He stood up and left the house. It was raining, but he walked in an aimless direction along with the flow of traffic. He didn’t know what to think. How could Luhan have cheated on him and let Jongin continue to live life oblivious to it? And then tell him in a different country where he couldn’t go and approach the older male.
He walked around the city for around an hour before knocking on a door and revealing a shocked Sehun in his pyjamas. “Jongin hyung, what are you doing here at eleven at night? Wait, are you wet? Are you crying? Come in, I will lend you some clothes so you can have a shower.” Sehun pulled the crying male into his apartment and towards the bedroom to find some clothes. “Here, I think these will fit you. They are just some thin clothes, but I assumed you wouldn’t want to sleep in anything too thick.” Jongin nodded and headed towards the door without saying a single word.
Jongin exited the bathroom twenty minutes later in Sehun’s clothes. “I am sorry about my spontaneous appearance. I guess the news shocked me and I wasn’t sure how to process it. You were the first person that came into mind to get comfort from.”
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. It is getting late anyway, you can use the bed and I will just sleep on the sofa.”
“No, I want to tell you know. If I tell you, I think I will finally be able to over it and continue with life.” Sehun nodded, urging Jongin to join him on the sofa. “Luhan… he broke up with me. He said that he cheated on me and that he isn’t sure that he loves me anymore. It really hurt. I still love him so much.” Jongin explained as he cried. Sehun wrapped his arms around the younger male in comfort and whispered soft words of reassurance. “I knew a long distance relationship would be difficult, but I didn’t think he would have cheated on me.”
Sehun sighed, helping the older male stand up and they walked to the bedroom. Jongin got into the bed and lay down. “Don’t leave me yet.”
“I won’t.” Sehun smiled, grabbing Jongin’s hand and sat on the floor. He watched as Jongin fell asleep, his own eyes feeling heavy in the process. He woke up the next morning, in the same position, Jongin’s hand still holding his hand tightly.
When Sehun received a phone call from Jongin a week later, he ran to the older male’s house. “Jongin hyung? Are you okay? What is wrong? Tell me, hyung!”
“I- I can’t see. The colours. They have all gone!” Jongin cried, refusing to look up from his position. Sehun understood what Jongin was going through; the same thoughts that he experienced when it first happened to him, but worse. Jongin had been working so hard for many years trying to become a doctor and all of that could go to waste if he didn’t get it back soon.
“Jongin, it is okay. We can get through it. You have been so focussed on your work, but try to think of it as a positive thing and use it as part of your experiment. We don’t need to tell your lecturers yet. And if you get your sight back, you can talk about your experience of Greyscale in your assignment. Please don’t be sad.” Sehun suggested, walking over to the older male and hugging him tightly.
“There is no point. I don’t even know the cause of it. My life hasn’t changed at all and all of a sudden, I can’t see colours.” Jongin mumbled into Sehun’s shoulder, refusing to open his eyes.
“That isn’t true. Please don’t talk about it like that. You broke up with Luhan a week ago. Maybe it could be something to do with that?”
“There isn’t any point. The lecturers will find out. I have examinations in just over a month and they will catch me out. I don’t know how I will tell my parents about it. They funded my fees. All the money will have all gone to waste.”
“Jongin hyung, please stop talking so negatively. I know how you feel and I will help you get it back. Just please let me try.” Jongin looked up and stared at the younger male before nodding. Sehun felt his heart ache at the tear stains that he could see on Jongin’s cheeks. “Hyung, you said you have never drank alcohol before. So I am going to take you out clubbing.”
The building was underground, the walls were dark in colour (probably black). Jongin had difficulty adjusting to the contrast of greys that he could see. He could just about see Sehun’s outline in front of him as he followed the younger male to the bar. “Here drink this.” Sehun smiled, handing a drink over to the questioning male.
“What is it?” Jongin shouted over the music as he smelt the liquid, his face scrunching up.
“Vodka and coke. I wasn’t sure what you should have for your first time drinking alcohol, but I thought you should try vodka and dilute it slightly. It is nice, don’t worry!” Jongin lifted the drink to his lips, tasting the liquid slightly before pulling back in disgust, disliking the burning sensation in his throat. But then it tasted rather sweet. He gulped more liquid down before placing the glass heavily against the counter. “Don’t drink it too much. It is your first time so you don’t know your limits yet.”
Jongin nodded, his surroundings already starting to become a bit hazy. “I would like to order two vodka and cokes please.” Jongin got out his wallet and paid the barman before handing a drink over to Sehun. “Here. Cheers.” They hit their glasses together and finished their drinks before Sehun pulled the older male to the dance floor.
Sehun laughed as he watched the medical student try out many different styles of dance moves - ranging from serious popping to playful jumping.
More drinks kept coming, and soon, both males were having trouble processing their slightly compromising position: Jongin’s arms were wrapped tightly around Sehun’s waist, the younger males head was resting against Jongin’s shoulder. They swayed to the music, even though the music was much more upbeat to how they were making it appear to be.
The night continued, and Sehun and Jongin continued to dance, only focussing their attention on each other. The music slowed down slightly and they swayed in time to the music. Sehun lifted his head to face Jongin’s, seeing the older male’s eyes glitter in happiness despite losing his ability to see colour just earlier that morning. He leant forward slightly, his lips touching lightly against Jongin’s. His eyes widen in shock before pulling back, only to have the same pair of lips landing on his once again, soft but firm, as they moved together in synchronisation. Sehun’s eyes fluttered shut, his heart beating rapidly as he let Jongin take control in this moment. At this point, Sehun wished he had a camera to remember this moment forever but decided that it would be worth more, being treasured in his brain.
“Let’s go home now.” Jongin whispered into his ears before pulling the younger male out of the club and letting their fingers interlock as they walked along the dimly lit roads to the direction of the nearest house, Sehun’s.
They entered through the doors clumsily, towards the bedroom. “I am sorry for only having a single bed.” Sehun slurred as he took of his top and got underneath the covers.
“That is okay, we can just cuddle more.” Jongin took off his top and joined Sehun in bed, eager to kiss the younger male again. He pulled Sehun closer, taking in the warmth and kissing the back of the younger male’s nape causing soft moans to resonate from his throat. Sehun turned around to face the older male and hugged him, letting their legs entangle as he placed his lips against Jongin’s.
Hands roamed against each other’s bare skin as Jongin’s tongue pushed lightly against Sehun’s lips, which opened with ease, allowing Jongin to feel around Sehun’s mouth. “We should go to bed now.” Jongin whispered once their mouths detached. He was slightly breathless and found the younger male’s plump lips extremely enticing but he knew that he shouldn’t continue further, especially in his current state of mind. He pulled the younger male closer and let sleep envelop him.
Sehun had a huge headache the next morning. He opened his eyes slowly, mentally noting down that he was in his bedroom with some unknown person. It was a huge relief when he turned around to see Jongin’s face sleeping peacefully and not some stranger. He unravelled himself out of the older male’s grasp and searched for a t-shirt to cover his bare body before walking to the kitchen to prepare some breakfast for the two of them.
To be honest, he was slightly concerned by the lack of memories he had of the previous night. He would have to ask Jongin what happened.
Whilst Sehun was cutting up some meat to add into his congee a pair of arms wrapped around his waist making him jump slightly. “Jongin! Don’t do that when I am holding a knife.”
“I’m sorry, you just weren’t there when I woke up so I was worried about where you were.” Jongin sighed, leaning his head against the back of Sehun’s nape placing a firm kiss on his neck causing the younger male to shudder from the sensation.
Sehun struggled out of Jongin’s embrace and continued to cut up the meat before adding it into the pan. “Jongin hyung, how much do you remember from last night? I don’t remember a lot and I am slightly worried because we both didn’t have tops on whilst in bed.”
“We didn’t have sex if that is what you are concerned about. To be honest, I really don’t remember much. My head aches so badly and I am having trouble fixing pieces of memory together. This is why I chose not to drink before last night.” Sehun walked to the table, holding the two bowls of congee that he had cooked, where two glasses of water was placed with a pill next to each of them.
“Here, have a paracetamol, it will ease the pain.” Sehun handed one of the glasses and a painkiller to the older male who accepted them. “So how much do you remember?”
“Well I remember you giving me a drink. Vodka and coke I think. And then we were dancing. I think we kissed to.” The younger male almost choked on his food, his cheeks heating up.
“W-we what?!”
“We kissed. We were both drunk you know. But it make me think. Is it possible for me to like you, even though I only broke up with my previous boyfriend of five years a week ago?” Sehun couldn’t understand how Jongin could say it so easily without feeling embarrassed. He could feel his whole body heating up with embarrassment.
“N-no! That is impossible. I read somewhere that it takes about half of the time you dated to get over that person.” Sehun stuttered, focussing all his attention on his meal.
The rest of the meal was in silence and Jongin stood up. “I heard the mobile funfair is coming to Seoul next week. Do you want to come? We can go together.” Sehun nodded and smiled. “Alright, well I will come round at five to pick you up. I will see you then.”
Sehun was nervous. Was this a date? Or were they going to go as friends? He didn’t know what to wear. He had settled with a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, because they would be going out onto rides. He sighed in relief when Jongin was stood wearing similar clothes as him before grabbing his hand to walk to the nearby park where the funfair was being held.
It was all bright lights and many rides. There were a range of rides from a carousel to huge ones where the riders were flipped over. “Is there anything you want to go on?” Jongin asked, interlocking his fingers with Sehun’s. The younger male nodded, pointing at the bumper cars in the distance. Jongin pulled him along, paying the appropriate amount of money to the attendant before entering the arena, Jongin choosing a car different to Sehun.
The bell rang, and the cars started moving. Jongin drove forward in the direction of Sehun, hitting the car lightly causing the younger male’s car to jump back. Sehun burst out laughing, accelerating towards the other vehicles. The bell rang once again, signalling that the round had finished. Jongin got out of his car first, walking over to the younger male’s car to help him out.
Jongin pulled the younger male towards the carousel stepping in to one of the horses that two people could ride on. Sehun sat on the front and Jongin got on behind, wrapping his arms around the younger male. “I have to hold on to something, don’t I?” Jongin reasoned. The carousel began spinning causing cheers from the younger children. Jongin tightened his grip around the younger male making Sehun slap his arm lightly, complaining that he was struggling to breathe.
When the ride finished, Sehun went off to look at the carnival games, pointing at the large teddy bear that he had taken an interest in. The game was about throwing a basketball into the hoop at the top. Jongin paid for three goes and handed a ball to the younger male.
“I don’t really know how to do it.” Sehun blushed. Jongin placed his arms alongside Sehun’s and held the ball up in front of him.
“When you are ready, you just extend your arms and let go of the ball. Hwaiting!” Sehun tried it, releasing the ball with too little force causing the ball to fly off in a different direction. The younger male accepted another ball, trying again but missing the hoop by a little bit. He handed the final ball to Jongin, urging him to win the prize for him.
As Jongin held the ball above his head, he saw a blinding flash coming from Sehun’s camera. Jongin threw the ball up, hitting the back board before falling into the hoop. He was handed a bear, which he gave to Sehun, causing the younger male to squeal in happiness and hug the older man tightly. “You know, I feel as if I should be taking pictures now too since I can no longer see colours.” Jongin laughed, grabbing the camera from Sehun’s grip and took a picture of the younger male hugging the prize he had won for him.
The final ride they went on was the Ferris wheel. The queue wasn’t too long and the got on together, along with the teddy bear that Jongin had won for him. They stopped at the top, admiring the view of the lights of Seoul at night. “Did you enjoy today?” Jongin asked, his arm wrapped around the younger male’s waist. Sehun nodded, smiling at back.
“I did, thank you for bringing me out. It has been such a nice day.” Jongin leaned forwards, pressing his lips lightly against Sehun’s. His eyes opened wide, and he was certain that he could see colour just for a brief moment before letting his eyes close as he succumbed into the kiss.
“Are you sure?” Sehun was at Jongin’s apartment the day after they went to the carnival together.
“I am completely sure. I saw the colour of the teddy bear. It is a coffee brown sort of colour. I don’t know how it happened, it happens so quickly though.” Sehun explained, pointed at the teddy bear which laid at the corner of the living room.
“When did it happen?” Jongin wrote down what Sehun had said into his dissertation. Trying to work out what the cause was and why it only happened for a short period of time.
Sehun felt his cheeks heating up. “Wh-when we kissed. On the Ferris wheel. It happened really quickly and then I closed my eyes so it didn’t last long either.”
“Hmm, seems a bit coincidental. I lost my sight not long after breaking up with Luhan and you gain yours briefly when we kissed. Let’s have a look at the questionnaires to see if there is any correlation with any of the questions we asked.” Jongin reached over to his bag and pulled out all of the sheets of completed questionnaires.
He typed all of the results into a spreadsheet on his laptop. Several charts appeared on the screen and he pointed out a small correlation with the people affected.
“Do you think that could be it?” Jongin asked when he looked at the results. Sehun shrugged. “It could be anything to be honest. I am still certain that Greyscale isn’t a disease or an infection but just something to do with the mind.”
“It probably is to be honest. I mean, we have both been feeling just as healthy since getting it so it probably is the case. Oh, by the way, Jongin, I bought some hair dye. I wanted to dye my hair any colour so that when and if I can see colours again, I want to be surprised by it.” Sehun reached over to his bag, producing the box and handed it over to Jongin.
Jongin inspected the box reading the colour off the box. “Are you sure? What happens if you don’t like the colour? Pink is an incredibly bright colour after all.”
“I won’t be able to see the colour for a while. Pink will fade after some time surely? Plus, I am kind of getting bored of the colour it is right now.”
“I like the colour though, it suits you.”
“That is beside the point, you can only see it in a range of greys. Please Jongin, please can you help me dye it.” Sehun pleaded, using his aegyo to try to persuade the older male.
“Alright.” Jongin sighed, much to Sehun’s delight. They stood up, walking towards the bathroom with the hair dye in hand.
Jongin turned up rather out of the blue on a sunny evening. Sehun was sat at his easel in loose clothes as he continued to work on his paintings. “We are going out Sehun ah, so get changed.”
Sehun stood up, smiling, and exited the room changing into some casual clothes. He wondered what Jongin was possibly planning. Maybe he needed to do another test on him and needed Sehun to go to the hospital to do them. “Where are we going?” Sehun asked when he walked back into the living room.
“It’s a surprise.” Sehun could see Jongin’s eyes sparkle before accepting Jongin’s extended hand. It was a quiet walk to the destination. It wasn’t the hospital. It was the Han River. “I wasn’t sure where to take you, but I thought it would be pretty here. I also packed a little picnic so we can eat that as well. Do you like it?”
Sehun stared out to the open. In the distance, he could see the other side of Seoul. “I love it.” Sehun took out his camera, taking a picture of the distance before turning around and clicking the shutter at Jongin. “Sorry, I just don’t want to forget this moment.”
Jongin smiled, ushering the younger male to the blanket he had laid on the grass. Sehun followed, sitting on the mat and accepted the sandwich that Jongin had made. “Honestly, I am so nervous right now. I invited you because I wanted to tell you that I really like you. No, I am certain that my feelings aren’t the sort that friends would have. This is my confession to you, Oh Sehun.”
Sehun stared at Jongin with an unreadable expression. “I… I don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t need to tell me anything now. Just being here and seeing your face has made my day. Just at least think about i-.” A pair of lips landed on his, halting his sentence. It was soft and Jongin could feel the emotion portrayed by it. Sehun pulled back, feeling slightly out of breath by the kiss.
“Jongin hyung, I really like you too. Don’t be silly for thinking that I didn’t like you back. Let’s just take it slowly, alright?” Jongin nodded, pulling the younger male into another kiss.
“Shall we go back home? We can watch a film or something.” Sehun nodded, accepting Jongin’s hand and they walked hand in hand towards Jongin’s apartment. They walked in silence, not knowing what to say now that they had become more than just friends. “What do you want to watch? I am sure I can find it on Netflix or something.”
“Surprise me.” Sehun smiled, sitting down on the sofa. Jongin joined him not too much later, putting his arm around the younger male’s shoulder. Sehun leaned over, resting his head on Jongin’s shoulder. “I think I like this new arrangement.”
Jongin placed a kiss on the top of Sehun’s head. “I still can’t believe you accepted me so quickly. I thought you would have been all against it.”
“Sometimes, we have to follow our heart before our head. I am currently thinking that this is all wrong because you only just broke up with Luhan, but my heart is telling me that this is the way it should be.” Sehun turned his attention to the film. Frozen. He had seen the film a couple of times already, but it felt different watching it in black and white. He would have to get used to watching films in those colours though.
“I like how at the end, instead of it being a true loves kiss that breaks Anna’s frozen heart, Anna showed unconditional love and sacrificed herself to save her sister. I just makes me think about the different types of love that exists.” Sehun says at the end of the film, his eyes feeling rather heavy.
“There are so many different types of love. It feels really good when you know that someone is there for you to support you, to love you.” Jongin stands up, helping Sehun up in the process. He led the younger male to the bedroom and handed him some light clothes that Sehun could sleep in.
“Don’t look as I get changed, Jongin hyung.”
Jongin laughed and turned away. “You can use the bathroom if you would prefer that. I need to get changed anyway, I promise I won’t peep. There is a spare toothbrush in the bathroom as well so you can use that.”
Sehun nodded and left the room, returning not too long later dressed in Jongin’s clothes looking (in Jongin’s opinion) really very sexy. Jongin exited his bedroom and walked to the bathroom where he brushed his teeth. A smile lit on his face as he remembered the day’s events and how lucky he felt to finally be able to say that Sehun was his boyfriend.
He walked back into his bedroom to find Sehun already in bed, sitting upright a smile lighting up on his face when he saw the older male enter. “We can sleep in a double bed instead of a single one unlike last time.” Jongin laughed, joining the younger male in bed.
He couldn’t help but notice the way Sehun’s body fit against his in a perfect way and he knew that he would be feeling rather tight in the lower regions when morning came. “I love you, Sehun ah. I really do.” Jongin whispered, placing a kiss on the younger male’s forehead.
“I know you do. I love you too.” Sehun replied and they let sleep envelop them, a smile on both of their faces.
“Jongin hyung, wake up.” Jongin moaned, it was far too early for him to be opening his eyes. “Seriously, please wake up.”
“What?” Jongin sat up, rubbing his eyes and turned to face the younger male next to him.
“Colours.”
“Kim Jongin, you can now go in and collect your final project results. The professor wanted to speak to you, which is why you are the last person to collect them.” Jongin stood up and walked through mahogany door, his heart beating rapidly as he entered the room.
It had been two months since he handed in his final year dissertation and three months since he got the colour back in his vision. He was still shocked that he could see colours again, it was so soon after he got Greyscale. But he was also really thankful because it meant that he would be able to continue studying his dream subject.
“Ah, Jongin ssi. Here is your project back.” The lecturer handed the wad of sheets with Jongin’s work.
“98%? Are you sure I deserve such a high mark?” Jongin stared at the front of the booklet. In red ink was the percentage given plus a ‘congratulations’ written on it.
“Ah, that is what I wanted to talk to you about. I really liked your work. Of course, you followed the obvious rules of getting a case study and doing a questionnaire for people to fill in. But what we found superb about your work is that you gave your opinion on what you think the cause of Greyscale. Sure, we don’t know if it is correct or not; but we found that your findings make sense. And of course it would be difficult for most researchers to find anything out about it as they are all in working relationships. You on the other hand experienced it so it helped back up your findings. Sure, I am a bit disappointed you didn’t tell us straight away that you had it, but you have outdone yourself and everyone. I am asking for your permission to send your work off to some of the leading researchers in the States for them to have a look at it. You will get the opportunity to visit them and see if you can help further with the research.”
“Well, certainly. I want to help society by as much means as possible.”
“That is great. I will send them your work and give them your contact details so that you can arrange a date and time to travel over. You may go now.” Jongin bowed deeply, thanking the professor before leaving the room. He picked up his phone and called the number at the top of his phonebook.
“How did you do, Jongin hyung?”
“I did really well, Sehun ah. The professor was really impressed. I actually have a surprise for you.”
“Oh tell me in a minute, hang on… Okay, turn around.” Jongin turned around to see Sehun standing there before running towards him and enveloping the younger male in a hug. A hand made its way to Sehun’s light pink hair, brushing through it lightly. It turned out that both Jongin and Sehun really liked the younger male’s dyed hair colour, and Jongin insisted that he should keep it the same colour the day they both restored the colour of their sight. “What was it that you wanted to tell me?”
“We are going to the United States, Sehun ah. We are going to see your parents.”
Extract one
I wrote a questionnaire and handed it out to 68 people over the age of seventeen and noted down that the majority of the people who had Greyscale was single (with only a one person in a broken relationship and another person in a marriage that wasn’t working out). This made me consider that love could play a cause of Greyscale as I discovered that it is not a disease or an infection. This is due to my findings of my test subject having the same health both before and after contracting Greyscale.
My opinion of Greyscale is that it is in everyone and that is untreatable, except by one thing: love. From the day we are born, we feel Storage (affection and family love) to our parents and siblings. I propose that the day you turn seventeen, this kind of love isn’t strong enough to fight off Greyscale so there has to be some other type of love which can keep us from continuing to see colour. This type of love is Eros (romance). This type of love is one of the strongest (other than Agape which is unconditional).
Extract two
Having experienced Greyscale myself, it was a huge shock to the system. I contracted it when I was twenty one, so four years after I turned seventeen. I couldn’t work out what the cause of it was. My life hadn’t changed too much other than the fact that I had just come out of a relationship. I met Oh Sehun a few weeks prior to that, and he agreed to be my case study for my project. Never did I expect him to become the colour of my life. We fell in love not too long after my break up, and pretty much the day after we confessed our own feelings, we could both see colours. I can now confidently say that I, Kim Jongin, will forever love Oh Sehun; the colour and light to my grey world.