Chapter 190

four

Dane blinked rapidly, over and over. What am I looking at right now? He couldn’t believe it. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out, only gasps. Dane licked his parched lips a few times and asked in a breathless voice.

“How… why?”

A fit of coughing followed. He coughed, and something hot flowed out of his mouth again. Ah, right. Dane recalled. When death approaches, you sometimes see ridiculous illusions. Even thinking that, he was surprised that the person who came to him at the end wasn’t her, but this man.

“Pretty boy.”

As usual, he chuckled and muttered.

“Why are you here?”

There’s no reason for this man to be here. So this isn’t real. This damn illusion will disappear soon.

Haa, haa. Heavy breaths escaped his lips. In his blurry vision, he saw Grayson raise his hand. His long fingers touched the cheek of the man leaning against the wall. Dane flinched in surprise as the large hand gently cupped one side of his face.

Warm. His eyes slowly widened at the unbelievable warmth. In his wide-open vision, he saw the man’s face, which was looking at him and breaking into a smile.

“You.”

A quiet, calm voice was heard. Grayson stroked Dane’s cheek with his thumb.

“I knew you’d be all alone like this.”

Dane couldn’t say anything. He just stared blankly at him. Grayson smiled at him.

“See, I was right.”

It was nonsense. He couldn’t believe what he saw or heard. Is this real? Really?

“How, how.”

He tried to say something belatedly, but another fit of coughing escaped. Grayson waited patiently for his body, shaking like a seizure, to calm down. Haa, haa, Dane, who had barely stopped coughing, asked between gasping breaths.

“How did you get here?”

How did you know I was here?

Grayson answered nonchalantly to the question hidden in the question.

“I turned on the TV because I heard there was another terrorist attack, and you came on right away.”

Soon he added lightly, as if joking.

“I told you, you’re a celebrity.”

‘The hero who saved a village is jumping in again to save citizens this time…’

Grayson, who imitated the reporter’s excited voice, frowned playfully.

“So I rushed over, and of course, you were throwing yourself into saving people again.”

He smiled briefly with a grimace, as if he couldn’t help it. Dane kept shaking his head like a dog because his vision kept blurring. Grayson’s voice continued.

“I asked her where she last saw you.”

When he barely focused, he could finally see Grayson’s face.

“I’m glad I wasn’t too late.”

He looked genuinely relieved. Only then did Dane realize that Grayson’s face was covered in soot, his clothes were burned and crumpled, and a long tear in his arm was covered in clotted blood. He could see at a glance what dangers this man had braved to get to where he was.

“Why…”

A voice as shaky as his lips flowed out. Dane couldn’t bring himself to continue, but barely squeezed out the words.

“Why did you come all the way here? Are you crazy?”

It was hard to even shout, and a hissing sound was mixed in with his breathing. Grayson, however, showed no change in expression at Dane’s harsh words. As if he had already expected it.

“I told you.”

He smiled faintly.

“I knew you’d be left alone like this.”

Dane couldn’t say anything and just stared at him. Nothing comes to mind. What am I supposed to say? To this man who is smiling at me now, what words, how?

Why.

Dane’s face slowly contorted. He couldn’t understand at all. Why does this man keep coming back to me like this? I pushed him away so many times, so many times.

Why does he always come back to me like this?

“Don’t,”

Dane muttered in a trembling voice.

“It’s not worth it.”

Grayson stopped moving for the first time at the struggling voice. The smile had disappeared from his face as he looked at him. Looking at him with desolate eyes, Grayson opened his mouth.

“How can you say that?”

The voice that flowed out as if lamenting trembled faintly. Holding Dane’s arm, he said with a face distorted as if he was about to cry.

“How can it not be worth it when it’s your life?”

Seeing his truly hurt expression, he felt like his heart was collapsing. His heart felt like it was soaked in water. He didn’t know what this unfamiliar sensation was that was throbbing and heavily hitting his chest. Dane wanted to shake his head, but he couldn’t move at all. Something seemed to be blocking his throat. Something other than his heavy breathing.

He doesn’t know what to call that lump. But he seems to know one thing for sure.

This man will continue to come to me like this every time.

So that I’m not left alone.

At that moment, something collapsed inside Dane. Ha, an absurd laugh escaped.

“…I lost.”

He muttered in a low voice. He didn’t know if what was coming out of his distorted mouth was a laugh or a cry. Dane was still at a loss and continued to ramble.

“I lost, damn it.”

Grayson tilted his head. He didn’t seem to understand what Dane was saying at all. Even his dazed expression, ah.

How lovely.

Dane raised his weak hand and grabbed his head. He doesn’t seem to have the strength to pull him, but he comes along well. This horny puppy, Dane thought and closed his eyes. The mouth that touched Grayson’s lips was smiling pleasantly.

There was a smell of blood in the mixed saliva. It was probably the blood he had shed. It didn’t matter. This tongue, this mouth, these lips that he tasted after a long time.

It was so sweet.

He bit his lower lip gently and stopped kissing. At a distance close enough for their breaths to touch, Dane whispered.

“Okay, let’s do it. Let’s see how far we can go.”

Grayson smiled.

“What are you talking about?”

He didn’t understand what Dane was saying at all, but he smiled along, whether it was because he liked kissing or because he liked that Dane was smiling. Dane was so dumbfounded by that fact that he let out another silly laugh.

Haa, haa, he opened his mouth, gasping for breath. He put words on his tongue that he had never said in his life, and that he thought he would never say in the future. Feeling like his pounding heart was about to burst.

“I love you, you idiot.”

Thump, something somewhere in the building collapsed again. Maybe it was the sound of Grayson’s heart falling. Grayson looked at Dane with eyes so wide that he wondered if a person’s eyes could get that big. Dane was breathless, but he had stopped breathing altogether.

“…What.”

Grayson barely managed to speak. He kept moving his lips and finally made a sound.

“What, what, what did you say? What did you just say?”

Soon after, both ears perked up back and forth. He soon became excited and shouted wildly.

“You, you love me? Really? Really, really?”

Dane smiled, feeling a strange feeling every time he saw him. He felt like his eyes were getting hot for some reason. He was definitely feeling good, but why? He suddenly wanted to cry.

“I love you, Grayson Miller.”

Dane said again. Every time he said this word, it felt like fireworks were exploding inside his chest. He vaguely thought that it was such a good feeling. He thought he knew why Grayson had said this word so often.

Ah.

It gradually became difficult to breathe.

Is this the end?

“Dane?”

Grayson’s voice became urgent. Dane felt his body tilting to the floor and muttered.

“Sorry, I can’t do it anymore.”

Grayson quickly grabbed him. Leaning his face on his shoulder, Dane gasped for breath. Is he really going to die now?

I realized it too late.

He regretted it, but it was too late. Gurgling, gurgling, Dane whispered, making a sound of air leaking every time he breathed.

“All I can give you is this body.”

Gurgling, gurgling, his own breathing sounded particularly loud. Dane barely moved his lips.

“I’ll give you everything… everything.”

I’m sorry.

His consciousness faded on its own. Grayson, who had been looking down at him, slowly hugged Dane’s body. He felt a warm warmth all over his body. Grayson hugged him with all his might and whispered.

“Now, you’re mine.”

Another explosion was heard. It wasn’t long after that the building began to collapse.