Don't Leave | Solo Leveling

they said, in my heart and in my head (tell me why this has to end)

The tunnel that connects another dimension to our world is called "The Gate." It serves as a bridge between the human realm and the mysterious and dangerous residences of monsters known as "dungeons." Those who venture into these treacherous dungeons to hunt monsters are known as "hunters." What was once the stuff of stories and legends had become the new reality.

This story follows two such hunters.

Sung Jinwoo.

[Last Name] [Name].

Both of them are hunters who love each other, but one struggles to get through the most basic dungeons. Sung Jinwoo, known as the "World's Weakest Hunter," is an E-Rank Hunter. [Last Name] [Name], a C-Rank Hunter, is known as "The One Who Settled for Less."

[Name] was often reduced to a single aspect: loving Jinwoo despite the world's judgment. Everyone told [Name] they could do better, find someone with more power, more money, someone better than what Jinwoo could offer. Yet, [Name] always denied this, saying that their heart yearned only for Jinwoo. They had been with him for years and could never imagine their life without him. They wished people would mind their own business. It should be up to [Name] to decide who they could love. They could see how much this had effect Jinwoo, which made it their duty to make it known to Jinwoo that he is loved.

For Jinwoo, he felt helpless as he could only listen to the whispers questioning how [Name] could stay with him. Sometimes even he had felt it. This happens when he is going through a rough day, which is more frequent than what he likes to admit. Some days he wondered how long [Name] was going to stay with him. Was he even worth their love? Was his love even enough?

He would finally know when he and [Name] found themselves in the hardest dungeon that had been hidden within a D-Rank dungeon.

The "Double Lair."

The dungeon was eerily silent, broken only by the distant, ominous clanking of statues moving towards them. Jinwoo stared deeply into [Name]'s eyes, feeling as if he was being torn apart as tears began to fall from their eyes. He couldn't help but feel like this is his fault for convincing them to agree with him in going into the dungeon. He didn't only just kill himself but the love of his life too.

His hand quivered as he brought it up to place on their cheek, ignoring the looming threat of the statues. In these final moments, all he wanted was to be with them.

As soon as his hand made contact with their cheek, [Name]'s eyes softened, swirling with so many emotions—love, despair, regret. Sometimes Jinwoo saw these emotions on their face during dungeons and couldn't help but feel like he was holding them back. Is it wrong that he is so, so happy to have them with him in their final moments together? Is he so cruel to let [Name] die with him? The answer is yes. It may be wrong in others eyes, but those people aren't the ones dying, are they? Jinwoo knew if [Name] never existed he would be dying alone, and that is the scariest thing that he could face.

"I-I love you, [Last Name] [Name]," Jinwoo told them, his voice filled with so much love that it made them stop crying. It finally settled in that this was going to be the last time he would see them. He didn't quite believe in heaven, but right now he hoped, no, prayed it existed if it meant he could spend eternity with [Name]. It felt like the universe was cruelly laughing at them, cutting their love short.

"Jinwoo..." [Name] whispered, placing their hand over his, leaning into his touch and smiling lovingly at him. Jinwoo felt the corners of his mouth perk up as he smiled back at them.

They blinked, ignoring the statues coming closer. All they could do was focus on Jinwoo. They didn't want his last moments with them to be filled with tears. They couldn't do that to him. "I love you too..." they spoke softly, intertwining their hands with his. Their other hand grabbed his, fingers locking.