A/N: This whole telling a story using a song thing seems to be a habit of mine, but it just seems to flow for me. I had intended for this story to be based on "I'll Always Love You" by Whitney Houston, but it had a mind of its own and took a completely different direction. It still has some elements of the song towards the end, and if you listen to it while reading, it makes it much better. I'm open to any requests for the whole story-song concept, so email me if you have a song you want me to work on. I promise to deliver within a week. . . So here goes. FYI, this is a one shot with a Harry/Severus pairing.

Only You

The rising sun illuminated the pale skin of his lover, highlighting and shadowing the hills and valleys of his lithe body. Harry sighed and snuggled up closer to Severus' body. Severus instinctively scooted closer to the source of warmth and threw an arm over Harry's body as if to keep him pinned to the bed. Harry smiled; even in his sleep, Severus was always trying to keep him under wraps. His smile quickly faded when he thought about what was going to happen later as he slid out of Severus' death grip to get dressed and finish packing his few possessions. Pretty soon, it was going to be as if he had never been there, but wasn't that the way he wanted it?

He sat down to reminisce after he finished sending all of his things to Ron's house. It had all happened so soon. A few days ago, Severus received a letter from Ying Xue Chen, a Chinese witch, and the world's most renowned Potions Master. She foresaw her death quickly approaching, and therefore decided to take a magical heir and teach that person all that she knew. When the news reached the rest of the world, every Potions Master worth his cauldron began increasing their research and churning out newer and more inventive potions in the hope of attracting her attention. Severus heard about the opportunity, but he quickly disregarded it. Even if he did get the position, he couldn't ask Harry to uproot his whole life, leave all his friends behind, and move with him to a strange land so Severus could study potions.

Imagine his surprise when a majestic crane flew into his flat with a letter from Chen. She requested that he join her im her labs within a month's time. He didn't need to tell Harry the good news, it was evident all over his face. Harry tried to be happy, really he did, but he couldn't imagine Severus leaving him. And so he turned down the position, sending his apologies to Chen, and promising to stay with Harry.

But they both knew that Severus wasn't happy. He tried to hide it, but he failed miserably. And so, once again, Harry was going to become a martyr and sacrifice his happiness for the sake of someone else's. Hey, by this point, he was used to putting others first.

He slid back into the bed next his lover and relished in the warmth radiating off of him. Only God knew when he would get to enjoy it again, so he planned to appreciate every second he had left. He inhaled deeply and reveled in the spicy scent of sandalwood that was pure Severus before steeling himself for the inevitable. "Honey," he whispered, shaking Severus lightly. "Wake up, we gotta talk."

Severus stretched, his muscles rippling beneath his skin. Harry had to bite his lip hard to avoid running his tongue along the smooth chest. That was why they never got anything done, sex always got in the way. Eventually, Severus opened his eyes and blinked lazily. "Kiss me first, and then we'll talk."

Harry complied immediately, lazily running his tongue along Severus' bottom lip when he pulled back. "Sit up. I have something to tell you."

Severus sat up, instantly attentive. "What is it?" he asked briskly.

Harry gulped. "Now, hear me out, please. Don't interrupt me, please." Severus nodded again. "Ok, so you know that I know that you want to go to China and study under this lady and you're only staying because of me." There he got the hard part out. "I know that if I stay, I'll only be in your way, since you're turning down an amazing opportunity for my sake. So I'll go, but I still know that I'll be thinking of you with every step that I take. I'll always love you, you must remember that.

"I'll be taking all the memories we made together, the good and the bad. No matter how hard I try to fight it, this is the end, my love. This is goodbye, but please, please don't cry. We both know that I'm not what you need right now. You need someone who could support you unconditionally. But I'll always love you, my darling.

"I hope you find what you're looking for. I hope life is good to you, and I hope you get all you've ever dreamed of. I wish you joy and happiness in all your endeavors, but most of all, I hope you find love.

"You must remember that it's only ever been you, and it will only be you. But I have to let you go. I just have to! I'll always love you, my angel, my heart. Forever and ever, Severus. It can't be now. Do you understand that? Maybe in the future, when everything's said and done, but not now.

"But whatever you do, don't forget this one thing. I will forever and ever always love you. Only you, my darling."

Severus's face fell and he opened his mouth as if to say something, but Harry silenced him by placing a finger on his lip. "No. This time, trust me to know what's best for you. And it's not me. Goodbye, my love."

He kissed Severus one more time before sliding out of the bed. Unable to help himself, he turned to look at his lover once more and his heart broke. The look of desolation on his face was almost too much to bear and every part of Harry demanded that he go comfort the frail man. Hanging his head in shame, he turned away. If he looked any longer, his resolve would fail and all his careful planning would be in vain.

With one more sad smile to keep the tears from falling, he walked out of the door and at the same time, walked out of Severus' life.

He didn't even realize the tears had escaped until they hit the pavement beneath him.

"I'll always love you, Severus. You, and only you. I can only hope that it'll be enough to get me through this."