Notes: I'm sold with this ship. Help I can't—all I think about is THEM! I find it hard, though, to write Apostasia because the amount of negativity he possesses;;;;;

Chapter 2: Sight

It was around the time Elsword was supposed to come in to see Ain, but, he didn't appear. Ain did as he was told and waited. Minutes turned into hours.

Nothing.

Ain had an instinctive body clock. It knew the precise time Elsword arrived, when he left, when it was night, and when it was morning. Right now, it was three in the morning.

'Again...Have I been abandoned by you too?' Ain thought. It was only a matter of time. Ain knew it. '...Nothing matters anymore...' If nothing mattered to him...why did tears still soak his bandages? Ain attempted to get up but his muscles were too weak. After much struggling, he toppled onto the cold cheap white tile floor. Dirt, grime, dust bunnies, and clumps of trash marked and littered the room. Ain's limbs were tangled and he couldn't move. He laid there for a long time.

-/-

The door burst open.

"AIN!" Elsword yelled as he made for him. A nurse gripped his wrist, stopping him.

"...Sir, visiting hours aren't til- " The nurse said but was cut off.

"Fuck off!" Elsword pushed her off and slammed the door in her face. He rushed over to Ain. "Ain...I'm so sorry I couldn't come on time. I'm sorry for leaving you alone." He hoisted Ain up back on the bed with care. "...Ain...If you're mad...you have every right to be. I'm sorry..."

It was so cold up to the point Elsword held him. "...So you didn't abandon me..." Ain said. It was quiet for a while. Ain then felt his bangs being pushed up and back. Elsword had clipped his bangs up so that they weren't covering his face. He felt Elsword's warm hands cup his face then travel to the back of his head. "...What are you doing...?

"...I don't care what these stupid doctors say anymore." Elsword undid the bandages around Ain's eyes. They fell and slipped onto Ain's lap. He then wiped the thin crust that formed under off of Ain's face and eyelids.

Ain still had his eyes closed but he saw the faint orange glow of the inside of his eyelids. '...Orange...?' He thought of the color. That was what the color was called, right? Slow, he opened his eyes. And, as he saw what was in front of him, tears streaked down his face. A burst of color exploded in his vision. Even though the room itself was plain, it bewildered Ain. But, the vibrant colors that stood out the most were that of Elsword who gazed at him with passionate crimson eyes. The colors flared off of him from his deep red hair, fair skin dotted with large purple bruises, and loose white clothes stained with dirt and blood. "...Beautiful..." The word slipped out of Ain's mouth out of impulse. It was a strange feeling to feel and see something when he had been in nothing for so long.

Elsword blushed, panicked, but then regained composure. "...How are you feeling? Does it hurt?" He brushed some hair away from Ain's face. He wasn't sure what he was expecting to see when he took off Ain's bandages. But, he was glad that it wasn't bad. "...Your eyes, they're pretty." Elsword smiled. The sickness had turned Ain's eyes into a deeper green color than before. They were like a dark cool forest one could get lost in.

"...It hurts...a little...I haven't seen in a long time...the light..." The blinds on the side window let a soft yellow-orange light filter through. They made blaring bars on the bed and on Elsword. "...You look...different."

"Mmm...it has been a while, after all." Elsword held onto Ain's hand remembering how it all came to be.

-/-/

It felt like such a long time ago when the two were playing in the yard of Ain's house. Elsword was a young boy who had wandered into the area from the vast forest.

When Ain saw him, instead of chasing him away or wondering who he was, he told him to come over. "Isn't this neat? Ishmael made them," Ain said as he pointed at pretty artworks that lined the ground to be dried. They were intricate designs and patterns all painted in a deep oceanic blue.

"Who's Ishmael?" Elsword asked. He pointed to one of the paintings. It looked like a sad person being hugged by someone else. Well, they were just random lines but to Elsword, it looked like that. "I like this one."

Ain grinned. "Ishmael is my caretaker." Ain pointed to a different painting. "I like this one. It looks like a happy person looking at you to me."

"Really?"

They conversed and played until the sun was setting. Elsword stared back into the deep forest. "...I should go home...but I'm lost," he said.

"We should get you home as soon as possible!" Ain exclaimed as he stood up.

"...Mmm...it's okay...I don't need to be back fast. I'm by myself..."

Ain looked at him with sad eyes. "...You're...alone?"

"...Mmm..." Elsword gazed down at the grass.

"...Why don't you stay with us?"

"...Is that okay? I just met you...you don't even know my name nor do I know yours."

"I'm Ain." He flashed him a smile, his lime green eyes sparkling.

"...Elsword."

Ain held out his hand. The sunset colors shone with brilliance on his face and silver hair. "Come, let's wait for Ishmael to tell her." Elsword glanced back at the forest then at Ain. He then took hold of the soft outstretched hand.

From then on, Elsword stayed with Ain and they had such fond memories together. One day, however, Ishmael disappeared. They waited and waited for her to come back. But she never did. Ain became devastated.

"...She abandoned us...she's not coming back...what did I do wrong? Does she hate me? Ishmael..." Ain would mumble many times throughout the day. He started to smile less, have dark circle under his eyes, be anxious, and keep to himself in the dark. Sometimes he would get angry. He got so angry that he tore his favorite painting that Ishmael had made. It was at this time the illness began but was unknown.

Elsword tried to comfort him by hugging him. Seeing Ain like this tore his heart. He knew a similar feeling of abandonment as he did. He remembered his father leaving for the millitary with his sister soon after. They said they would come back, but when? It wasn't good to give false hope. So instead, Elsword said, "...I'll never abandon you. I'm sorry...this happened, Ain." And Ain would just weep.

After some time, a strange person came by claiming that they would take care of them. They hid their face behind a dark mask and was always wearing a dark blue hood with a creepy light blue eye pattern on the front. They never learned this person's name.

"I don't trust you! Stay away from Ain!" Elsword spat, shielding Ain away from the strange person.

"...You have no choice. I'll always be watching..." The person stated. They couldn't object and since they were young, they weren't sure what to do but to follow.

Whenever Elsword was asleep or not present, the person would abuse and torture Ain. When Elsword saw the bruises and blood and asked about it, Ain would always lie to him. The person wasn't home often and all they did was just deteriorate Ain. Elsword knew something was wrong...so he pretended to be asleep and witnessed what happened. He jumped the person but was thrown to the side. The person then ran out of the house.

"Why didn't you tell me?!" Elsword shouted at Ain. But Ain didn't answer. Elsword came over to him and discovered that he had a terrible fever and looked so sick. "Ain!" He carried Ain on his back and ran to find a hospital.

Since then, Ain had been bedridden and his condition worsened. Elsword never failed to visit every day. But Ain was broken beyond repair...

-/-

Elsword was quiet for a moment, ruminating. After some thought, he resolved himself and made a decision. He got up and pulled up the blinds. The bright light made Ain want to turn away but he didn't. Elsword ripped open the window and a gush of wind blew through his hair. A faint smell of plants wafted into the room. Elsword turned to Ain and smiled. The orange glow of the sunrise illuminated his profile making him seem radiant. "...We're getting out of here, Ain." He held out his hand for Ain to take. "Will you come with me?"

Ain felt something tiny stir in his heart. He nodded as he placed his hand in Elsword's. His actions were automatic and filled with complete trust. Elsword pulled him up and sat him on the window sill.

"When I tell you to come, come. I'll catch you." Elsword jumped down and landed on the outside ground. It was a good thing Ain's room wasn't high up. "Come now, Ain." Ain slipped off from the window sill and fell with his long hair streaming behind him and into Elsword's arms who twirled him around before setting him on the ground. "There we go. Can you get on my back okay?" Ain's legs wobbled as he stabled himself on Elsword. Elsword bent down and Ain wrapped his arms around Elsword's shoulders. "Let's go." He brought him over towards his shiny red sport touring motorcycle. "Look at my sweet ride." He placed Ain on the motorcycle and put a cool red helmet on him. He himself got on without a helmet. "Hold on to me, okay?" Ain hugged Elsword tight from behind. Elsword started the engine and they zipped off. A car was just leaving from the parking lot. The striped toll barrier rose and was starting to lower but Elsword did a sharp lean and zoomed on by under and pass the car. Behind them were angry shouts of people but Elsword just laughed; A genuine laugh that he hadn't laughed for a long time.

Notes: Don't ride without helmets kids!

I was thinking...am I really ready to release this yet. Am I really? I've reread and edited these two chapters a few times x.x I hope it's been okay so far;;