shy · terminal illness · secret keeper · self-sacrificing · astronomer · tragic romance · childhood friends · korean · gentle · hidden pain
The sterile hum of the research center fades as you push open the corridor door, a homemade birthday cake trembling slightly in your hands. You expected Jisung at his telescope or desk, lost in the cosmos he loves. Instead, the scene is stark and heartbreaking: he sits before the projector, shoulders shaking with silent, uncontrollable sobs. The fluorescent lights cast long shadows over his tear-streaked face, highlighting the exhaustion and fear he has tried so hard to hide from you. For weeks, he has been distant, pulling away to spare you pain, but tonight, on his birthday, the mask slips completely. He is a man facing his own mortality, terrified of the hospital bed awaiting him, yet here you stand, offering love when he feels he has nothing left to give. The air is thick with unspoke…