IMAGINE TELLING YOUR LOVER LI SHANG THAT YOU'RE TERMINALLY ILL.

Warnings: angst, the reader is dying

When you first heard that your illness could never be healed and you'll die from it eventually, you were devastated - not because you were afraid of death, but because your lover, Li Shang, had lost so much and now he was going to lose you too. But you just had to swallow the news and tell him - he deserved to know now, and not when you were on your deathbed. You'd still have time, just not that much of it.

So when you approached the man you had loved for all these years - your heart wanted to pull you back, it wanted to remind you that you would break his heart by telling that you'd die. That you'd leave him. Just like his father did. He wasn't angry at this father, but you could see he thought about it every once in a while - how he didn't have a chance of saying goodbye. With you, he would have a chance - and that was a thought that kept you going.

The spring was beautiful. Cherry blossoms bloomed all around you, and it reminded you of the day you had met Shang. It had been under a cherry tree, all those years ago when you were just two teenagers, crushing at each other almost immediately. The memory made you smile. It had been so many years since that moment.

"Shang?" you breathed, and he smiled at you, standing up from the bench. You just stared at him with a sad smile.

"What is it, my love? What did the doctor say?" he asked, but you could see a glimpse of worry flashing in his eyes. You swallowed - part of you wanted to lie, to not to torture Shang more with bad news. But you knew that by not telling, you could torture him even more. It wouldn't be right to do it for your lover. He had been there for all these years, standing right beside you after all your storms, and you had helped him through his storms.

And now he was going to lose you.

"Shang..." you whispered, and you felt a tear making it's way to your eye. I'm dying. Say it. You tried to get those words out, but you couldn't, which got Shang looking even more worried.

"Y/N?" his voice was uncharacteristic now, you could hear how he already knew what you were saying. He was a strong man - but even the strongest tree can break under pressure. And you saw the realization hit him, and you could see hope drifting away from his eyes. "No..."

Your lower lip trembled, and you reached forward, but Shang retreated before you could touch him. "I'm sorry Shang... I'm-"

"Don't say it." his voice shook, and he brought his shaking hand to his face. "Not you, please, it can't be you..."