The rain-heavy clouds cast the world in shadow, their dark grey obscuring the blue of the endless sky.

Mikey turned his face up, as small drops of water fell on his skin.

He closed his eyes.

The sound of the balcony door sliding open behind him brought him out of his trance, and he felt arms snake around his waist.

“You’ll get sick if you stay out here.”

Izana’s voice was smooth in his ears, soft, even though he knew there was a hardness in his eyes. He didn’t need to meet them to know.

He felt Izana’s fingertips trace the black ink on the side of his neck.

The reason for his anger was right there, permanently etched into his skin. An eternal reminder that he was never going to be quite what Izana wanted.

He’d been calm in the face of Izana’s anger, in his demands to get it removed. He’d refused. It had been a long time since he’d refused Izana.

Izana’s rage had been restrained at first, just like the clouds holding on to the heavy rain just a few moments longer. Until it had all come pouring down, drowning him in his rage and sorrow.

The fading bruises formed a necklace around his throat, scratches that had failed to make the black less stark against his skin slowly healing alongside the fresh ink.

The rain was steady. Each drop that met his skin was a kiss, a promise. A promise that even though it seemed like the rain would never end, eventually, the sun would push its rays through the clouds, illuminating the world once more.

He wasn’t so sure if his own life would hold any sunlight again. Not when the people around him kept on dying.

Mikey turned around in Izana’s arms, blinking the rain from his eyelashes.

Izana’s eyes were as cold as the raindrops dripping down his face, though they softened as their eyes met. He felt the touch of Izana’s fingertips dance along his skin, no doubt tracing the bold lines of his tattoo again.

Hands cradled his face, a kiss was pressed to his lips, cold from the rain.

“Don’t do anything else like this, okay? I need you.” Izana said, and Mikey knew he wasn’t just talking about the tattoo. He was talking about how his heart had stopped beating for a few too-long seconds after Izana’s hands left their marks around his neck.

Mikey’s eyes turned back to the sky, Izana’s words left unanswered.

That was a promise he knew he couldn’t make. Not when it wasn’t entirely his to keep in the first place.

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