"Deidara!" shouted Tobi as he sprinted toward the body that lay motionless in the snow.

The sky was dark and sprinkled with stars.

Snow was falling, melting at the touch of frost and flesh.

The snow was scarlet where Deidara lay. When Tobi approached him, he forced a small, bloody smile. "Hey," he said quietly, meeting Tobi's gaze as he gently laid his cloak over him. He kneeled beside him and pushed his mask aside, revealing his face. "Hey," replied Tobi, stroking Deidara's hair. He smiled at him.

"How are you?"

"I could be wors-" He was cut short with a cough. Blood dripped down his chin.

Tobi's eyes widened. "Deidara!"

"I'm fine. Really, I'm fine." Another cough.

Tobi felt his heart shatter. It killed him to see the person who was so precious to him suffer so much.

Slip between his fingers.

Disappear.

Deidara reminded him of the snow. What was so beautiful, young and pure one moment was gone the next.

Fleeting beauty. . . That's what he had said. Nothing beautiful lasts forever.

His eyes began to water. "Deidara, why did it have to come to this? Why?!"

Time seemed to stop. The Earth held its breath.

Deidara smiled weakly as his eyes slowly closed.

"No!" shouted Tobi as he bit back tears. His lip began to bleed. Finally, he surrendered, and tears came falling freely from his glassy eyes. "Don't go, Dei. Don't go..." He was sobbing now. "Don't go!"

"Oh God, Dei. Oh, God..."

"It's ok, everything's going to be fine. I promise."

Tobi gazed at the sky, blinking back tears. Deidara had eyes that no star could outshine. He was so beautiful; eyes sparkling, blonde hair strewn so gently in the snow. It was magical, yet he was aware of the painful truth.

This will not last forever. Nothing beautiful ever does.

"Tobi?"

"Yeah?"

"Will you hold my hand so we never have to leave each other?"

"Yes. Always."

Deidara slowly placed his hand in Tobi's. He looked at him with eyelashes laced with snow.

"Tobi?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

"I love you, too. So much," He began to sob again. "Oh, God. So much. . ."

"No, no, no, it's okay. Shh. . ." said Deidara, almost inaudibly. His voice was nothing but a whisper.

He's fading.

Tobi leaned towards Deidara and their lips met softly in a gentle kiss. His breath grew quieter.

Tobi felt sick.

Deidara opened his eyes. "T-Tobi?"

He sounded so young.

"Yeah?"

"See you on the other side..." And the world was silent.

Obito Uchiha had been robbed of his joy, his love, the light of his life. His Deidara.

He let his heart bleed

And bleed, and bleed until the very last drop so that the world would know how empty it would be without Deidara's laughter, smile, and big, beautiful blue eyes.

"Goodbye, Deidara" he whispered softly before he collapsed, sobbing, onto his cold, lifeless body.