Title: 24
Series: Tales of Vesperia
Rating: T
Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of Vesperia and I don't own 24 by Jem.
Warnings: Character death, language, boy love
Characters: Yuri and Flynn
Pairings: Yuri x Flynn
Summary: Flynn only has 24 hours to live and he wants to spend it with Yuri. High school AU
A/N: I love this song; it's very moving. I definitely recommend listening to 24 by Jem while reading this.
"Flynn. I'm so sorry."
Flynn had known for a long time that he was not in the best of health. No, he had been dieing since he was born. The doctors told him to not expect to live to the age of 20. At age 18 and still in high school, Flynn had not expected to have to say goodbye to life so soon. He felt his throat close up as he looked into the kind, sympathetic eyes of his doctor. The young man searched desperately, but it was useless. Flynn bowed his head, feeling the tears pricking at his eyes. He closed them and tried to remain relaxed.
"Tomorrow is your last day, Flynn. Make the most of it, please."
He had a hard time sleeping that night.
In 24 hours
They'll be laying flowers
The next day was a Sunday and luckily Flynn didn't have anything to do for the student council. That was just as well, really. He leaned against the doorframe of his room, not sure as to what he wanted. Stay in the room or go out and make the most of his last day? The decision was out of his hands when his cell phone rang.
"Yo, Flynn! I'm at the park, waitin' for ya," his best friend, Yuri, spoke coolly to the blond. Flynn smiled sadly, unable to stomach staying in the room if it meant that he couldn't see Yuri one last time. He nodded to himself before promising to meet him in half an hour. They hung up, but the young man continued to lean against the door for a few minutes, composing himself. Flynn didn't want to worry Yuri, not yet. He would wait to break the news.
~*
After meeting the black-haired teen at the park, the two talked for an hour or so. They had been sitting on the swing set, one that held many memories of their shared childhood. Flynn smiled. The park had been where they had first met and had been a meeting place for them for many years.
After the chat, Yuri led the blond away from the park. He wouldn't say where they were going, but Flynn couldn't bring himself to really mind. The blond just wanted to make Yuri happy before he left this world. It was the least he could do after the years of friendship they had shared.
"I guarantee you'll like it," he told Flynn secretively, winking. The blond rolled his eyes, smiling, but made no comment.
In 18 hours
They'll be laying flowers
Flynn gasped as they stopped in front of the gate to the local amusement park. He shot his best friend a curious look, but Yuri's response was to drag the blond to the line for people with tickets. Yuri gave the man two tickets and they walked inside, Flynn absently clutching the map of the park. His black-haired friend gave him an "I-told-you-so" look before dragging him off to the first ride, which happened to be a roller coaster.
After hitting all of the roller coasters, the two went on the more tame rides, minus the merry-go-round. It was an unspoken agreement that they would not go anywhere near that ride. Every now and then Yuri would buy food and drink for the both of them, much to Flynn's gratitude. He hadn't brought along much in the way of money, much to his embarrassment. They continued to speak of an odd assortment of things, shying away from any topic that would spark an argument between them. Although, Flynn honestly wasn't able to dredge up anything remotely close to anger that day.
13 hours
They'll be laying flowers
Not willing to do any repeats of rides, Flynn decided that they would have a mini contest between them. They hit some of the games stationed all over the park, but unfortunately they were tied in their wins and losses. The prizes the two had won they gave away to the children since they were not competing for the stuffed animal.
Flynn was ready to leave, but Yuri wasn't. There was apparently one last thing he wanted to go to before they left. That last place happened to be the Ferris wheel.
I can't believe
How much I've wasted my time
"Really, Yuri? This sounds cheesy coming from you," the blond teen commented playfully. Yuri shrugged as they entered the car, sitting across from each other. It was slow and silent as they were carted to the top. Eventually, they stopped at the very top, waiting for the last car to fill up.
It was amazing, the view. Flynn's eyes lit up as he leaned to get a closer look outside of the window. The setting sun against the tops of the city buildings made things look dark, but it was a sleepy, docile darkness. Lights of many colors were seen, some blurring because of the motion they were in. It was both nostalgic and energizing to see for the blond.
"Amazing!" Flynn breathed, his ocean eyes glittering. There was a pause before his friend replied.
"Yeah, amazing," Yuri commented softly. A blush threatened to show itself upon Flynn's cheeks, feeling as though the other teen wasn't talking about the scenery. He fought the rush of blood as he glanced over to the dark-haired teen. Yuri was in shadow, however, and Flynn was unsure as to what his friend was really feeling. The blond tilted his head and looked back out to the horizon, chalking it down to his imagination.
After the first revolution, the teen made his move. Flynn had only heard Yuri shift and, on instinct, turned to see if there was anything the matter. He was surprised to find his friend's face close to his own, their lips only a breath away from each other. There was only a second of hesitation before the distance was closed. The kiss was chaste and carried more emotion than words. It didn't take long for Flynn to respond to it.
When they broke apart, all Flynn could think was how much of a fool he had been. How could he have wasted so much time without telling Yuri what he had been feeling?
"I love you, Yuri," the blond whispered.
"I love you, too, Flynn."
In just 8 hours
They'll be laying flowers
Flynn wasn't feeling good as they left the amusement park, his fingers intertwined with Yuri's. They stood in front of the blond's house, hesitating. After a moment, Flynn smiled and lead his dark-haired boyfriend inside. He wanted to spend more time with Yuri, especially since he could feel that his time was almost up. The two sat on the couch, sometimes speaking in soft tones to each other, and at other times kissing softly.
After a couple of hours, the blond was shaking and coughing horribly. Yuri was worried and asked if he should call a doctor, but Flynn had smiled up at him and shook his head. No, he was beyond the help of a doctor. The end was fast approaching, but Flynn wasn't scared. He was prepared to face this.
"Yuri…." Flynn whispered, his head against the other teen's shoulder. Yuri glanced down at the blond in concern. There was a smile that graced Flynn's lips, albeit a sad one. He closed his ocean eyes, almost choking on his own words. "No regrets. Okay?"
Yuri just nodded, fully understanding now what Flynn had been unable to say all day long. The blond smiled, one that was brighter than any smile the dark-haired teen had seen Flynn give.
It was the last one he would ever see.
Just 1 hour
They'll be laying flowers
On my life, it's over tonight.
I'm not messing,
No, I need your blessing
And your promise to live free.
Please do it for me.