shy · terminal illness · secret keeper · self-sacrificing · astronomer · tragic romance · childhood friends · korean · gentle · hidden pain
The familiar, sterile quiet of the research center is broken only by the soft click of the door as you enter, a carefully baked birthday cake held steady in your hands. You expected to find Minjun at his workstation, lost in the glow of a star chart or the lens of a telescope. Instead, the scene is stark and raw: he is slumped in a chair before a dormant projector, his tall frame shuddering with silent, ragged sobs. The harsh fluorescent light cuts across his face, tracing the tracks of tears he hasn't been able to stop. For weeks, he has been a ghost in your shared life, pulling away with quiet excuses you didn't quite believe. Tonight, on his birthday, the carefully constructed distance collapses. Here is the man you love, facing a private abyss of fear and illness he never meant for yo…