FrieAme AU where Friede's a paediatrician and Amethio's a terminally ill inpatient. Friede's in charge of Amethio's care and keeps telling himself not to get attached but oops Friede gets attached. So does Amethio. Contains main character death, obviously!

Thanks to my good friend for always contributing great ideas! <3

I just love the idea of Ame getting to spend the last week or so of his life at home after being stuck in the hospital for ages... Ame wouldn't be entirely aware he's at home, but he can tell something's different about his surroundings...
[Me] Gibe asks Frie if he'd be willing to stay with them and look after Ame until his passing -- Frie, of course, agrees (Gibe offers to pay Frie extra but Frie turns him down)
[Me] Frie spends most of his time at Ame's bedside talking to him. Reassuring him he's still there. Telling Ame stories about himself
[Me] Frie only takes breaks to sleep, and during those times, Spi watches over Ame
[Me] However, one morning, after Frie warns Gibe and Spi that Ame's probably almost gone the previous evening, Frie goes to Ame's room as usual and knocks on the door... and it's Gibe who answers
[Me] According to Gibe, Spi told him he doesn't feel comfortable being alone with Ame for long periods of time, and he's only being doing it because he thought it's what Ame would want. But he's at his limit, especially now that Ame's not responding or reacting to anything
[Me] Frie feels bad because he was the one who suggested Spi sat in with Ame -- but Gibe says Spi doesn't regret doing it, he just wants to give his brother some privacy
"[Me] Frie: And... are you alright with monitoring him, Sir?
Gibe: Truthfully, no. I do not wish to see him in such a state. While I understand that it is one's natural progression towards death, all I can think about as I watch him waste away is how I wish I could end things for him swiftly and peacefully. Simply so that he does not have to suffer any longer"
"[Me] Frie: ...I don't disagree with you, Sir, but there's nothing to suggest that Amethio is suffering at all. His vitals indicate that he's relaxed and comfortable, and--
Gibe: I do not mean physically.
Gibe: Surely, if he is cognitive at all, he is aware of what's awaiting him. Or, at the very least, that he's unable to move or communicate"
[Me] Gibe: You yourself informed us that he will most likely be able to hear us talking to him, and to some extent, understand what we say to him. If that is indeed the case, is it not incredibly cruel to leave him in this uncertain limbo between life and death? If he is to die regardless, then there's no need to keep dragging it out
[Me] Frie: Okay. First of all, yeah, he's most likely listening to people when they talk. Including us. Right now. And you're... essentially saying you want him to die? I know it's none of my business, but I sincerely hope you haven't said such things to him directly
"[Me] Gibe: You misunderstand, Doctor. I do not wish for my son to die. I wish for him to rest peacefully. He has already suffered enough, has he not?
Frie: ...That's not--
Gibe: I was under the impression that you would think the same, given how deeply you've bonded with him. But it seems I was mistaken."
"[Me] Gibe: You told us we should prepare to say our farewells by the end of today, did you not? By my observations, Doctor, you are the one who needs to prepare the most
Gibe: After all, you will be parting with him, too. I think, out of everyone, he would be the most disappointed if you did not properly acknowledge that his life was at an end"
[Me] With that, Gibe gives a nod and leaves Frie standing in front of Ame's room, dumbfounded
"[Me] Ultimately, Frie does agree with Gibe. More than anything, he too wants Ame to be at peace. But there's nothing he or Gibe or anyone else can do about that.

Frie's fully aware. He's researched the laws, even. Frie knows there aren't any loopholes he could easily exploit, nor does he want to risk such things, anyway"
"[Me] But what surprises Frie the most is hearing that Gibe has the same dilemma that Frie often has with his patients towards the ends of their lives.

Perhaps Gibe isn't as heartless as Frie initially assumed. If he was, he wouldn't sit with his son overnight. Nor would he even think to bring an end to his son's life in order to end any potential suffering"
"[Me] And Gibe was right:

Frie needs to prepare himself, too. Ame's most likely going to be gone within the next 48 hours. Less than that, by now. And Frie's... Frie's not ready to say goodbye.

He'll never be ready. He never wants to say goodbye."
"[Me] So that day, he spends his time telling Ame all the things he wanted to say. He talks about everything he would've wanted them to do together in the future.

The entire time, he's holding Ame's hands gently in his own, caressing them. Frie has no idea if Ame's registering being touched, but he hopes he is.

The entire time, Frie's crying"
[Me] That evening, Frie finally runs out of things to say to Ame. He makes himself as presentable as he can before he asks Hamber to call Gibe and Spi -- Frie doesn't want to be around them while they say their goodbyes
"[Me] He passes them on his way to the room he's staying in.

Spi already looks like a mess. Gibe... is clearly blocking out his emotions, which worries Frie a little"
[Me] They don't say anything to each other
[Me] Frie wakes up in the middle of the night after going to sleep early. He's too worried about Ame to fall back asleep, so he decides to check on Ame in his room
"[Me] Frie's about to knock on the door, but he can hear Gibe's voice on the other side. Not wanting to interrupt, Frie stands there and listens

Gibe: --for taking care of you. I can tell he means a lot to you. Perhaps in ways nobody else does. Perhaps you've wondered if I would resent you if I knew. But if I did, I would simply be a hypocrite"
"[Me] Gibe: Those things are beyond one's control, regardless. I know that far too well.
Gibe: Did your heart ever ache, knowing you it would never come to fruition? Did you, too, wallow in anguish over feeling such intense emotions for a person who would never feel the same about you?
Gibe: Or were you simply happy to be with him?"
[Me] Frie realises Gibe's talking about him and it makes him feel incredibly awkward, so he forces himself to stop listening. His own involvement aside, Gibe seems to be saying some very personal things to Ame, and it's not Frie's place to hear them
[Me] A couple of minutes later, a while after Gibe falls silent, Frie does knock on the door and enter Ame's room
[Me] Gibe looks... the only way Frie can describe it is "broken"
"[Me] Gibe gets up and leaves, only to pause when he's in front of Frie

Gibe: I said too much yesterday
Frie: W- Um, no, I don't think you did. I was... making a few assumptions myself, so...
Frie: We're on the same page, Sir. I care about your son, and it's clear that you do, too
Gibe: ...
Frie: Good night, Sir

Gibe nods and leaves"
[Me] Frie, selfishly, wants to be the last person by Ame's side. He wants his voice to be the last that Ame hears
[Me] Frie watches Ame's lowering heartrate on the monitor next to the bed. It's obvious to him that he's almost gone
[Me] Frie first gives Ame a gentle kiss. He's been sneaking them in every now and again, but he hasn't kissed him for a couple of days.
"[Me] He then brings himself close to Ame's ear and whispers, in the most loving voice he can muster,

""I love you, Amethio. Thank you for everything you've given to me. I'll always treasure you and your existence. Take it easy now, yeah? I... I'll never forget you, and I'll keep on loving you the rest of my life"""
[Me] Frie then manages to murmur a very shaky "goodbye" between sobs, hoping that Ame can hear him... Hoping that Ame is aware of Frie's love for him, even in his final moments...
"[Me] Not too long after that (a few hours, Idk how it works tbh) Ame passes away. Frie holds his hands until the end.

He wants to hug Ame, too, but he knows that's pushing it. But in his mind, they're in a tender embrace as Ame departs"
[Me] Or something along those lines at least (I really need to actually write this AU)
[Me] Also I think even if Ame's death wasn't... smooth or peaceful or whatever else, Frie would never tell Gibe & Spi that. He wouldn't want to confirm Gibe's worries that Ame was suffering right at the end (Frie can't tell, of course, but maybe the death takes longer to happen than he expected or Ame seems a bit distressed etc)
"[Redacted] Oh this is all so damn good... Ame is loved...

Also I forgot but did he write a letter for Frie? Since he wrote one for Gibe.."
[Me] I can't remember if I clarified but I feel like he would, yeah! It's maybe not as long and meandering as his letter to Gibe (maybe he wrote Frie's letter first as a test and his mind was a bit clearer then, Idk) but I think he'd talk about all the things he liked about Frie... The little observations...
"[Me] Maybe he mentions the things he wanted to do with Frie... Going and visiting some of the places Frie would tell him about. Meeting some of Frie's friends.

Actually getting married. Like, for real. Starting a family (""I don't know how it'd work, but you're a doctor, you'd be the one to figure it out"").

Being happy together."
"[Me] Ame doesn't seem like the type to directly say ""I love you"" to Frie in a letter to me, but he says it in other ways. He would thank Frie for always being there for him and taking care of him etc, telling Frie that he's glad they could meet and that Frie made the last months of his life somewhat bearable

But he wouldn't say ""I love you"""
[Me] Or maybe he doesn't initially after finishing the letter, but then he sits on it for a few days and realises that oh. He probably should say it definitively. So that nobody gets the wrong idea if someone other than Frie were to look at it
[Me] So he tacks on a quick "PS You know this already, but you really do mean a lot to me. I love you" to the end of the letter, feels extremely embarrassed about it, and promptly folds the letter back up and puts it away
[Redacted] Oh the idea that Ame was properly looking at Frie and notices a lot of things about him and his mannerisms is adorable...
[Redacted] And he admits to being sappy and wishing for a happy future together, how cute is he
[Me] A lot of Ame's observations about Frie are lowkey roasting him, like, "Why is your taste in ties so atrocious? Also, there were multiple times you wore odd socks to work, and I think I noticed one of them inside-out once"
[Me] But it's because Ame loves him that he even noticed those things...
"[Redacted] Honestly I love the idea that they both notice little things about each other, it's so cute.

And I feel like in this context, Ame never paid this much attention to another person... and he feels he wanted to know more about him and his tastes."
[Me] Yes, that's what I was going for! Ame usually doesn't like being around people and tends to ignore them for the most part, but he ends up finding Frie fascinating because he's never met someone like Frie before...
[Me] And, well, Frie's the first person to pay attention to him, so y'know
[Redacted] It's really adorable! Boy is feeling love!
[Me] He is~
[Me] Gibe reading the letter Ame wrote to Frie a few months after Ame's death (Frie wanted Gibe to read it I guess Idk man) : To think you had such good observation skills and you wasted them on observing a single man
[Me] (He's not mad, just mildly disappointed)
[Me] Ame spends a lot of his time thinking of Frie just to take his mind off reality... Frie is his escape...
[Redacted] Aww but your son was in love! Don't be so harsh on those feelings of only looking at your love!
[Me] He's just jealous
[Me] (That Ame could think of it that way haha, Gibe was too much of a pessimist to be like that)
[Redacted] Aww Ame might remind him of the pure fleeting love he could have felt in the past...
[Me] I'm a sucker for Ame being more similar to Gibe than he realises... Ame was so adamant he'd never turn out like his shitty cheating father and he didn't, but then he goes and experiences love in the same way that Gibe did (kinda, haha)
[Me] I like to think that Gibe knew Ame had feelings for Frie after watching them interact, but he didn't know just how much Ame loved Frie until after he read Ame's letter
"[Redacted] Yeah! He is similar to Gibe but at least he isn't ruining his family with his love!

And the idea that Gibe knew Ame loved Frie is so cute."
[Redacted] He pays attention to his son...
"[Me] Gibe admitting to Frie that he knew Ame liked him and Frie's shocked

Frie: How'd you know?!
Gibe: He was being extremely obvious. Besides, if he disliked you at all, he would have complained to me about you and requested a different doctor. I never once received any complaints regarding you. That's how I could tell
Frie: O...Oh..."
[Redacted] If you paid this much attention to your son, you should have shown that a bit more earlier!
[Me] Gibe: But why though
[Me] (He'd realise he should've paid attention to Ame more but hdjgsk)
[Redacted] Old man, don't make us explain everything to you-
"[Me] Gibe has some... outdated views on being a dad (that and he's not good with people anyway lol)

Ame's letter makes him regret being so distant : )"
[Redacted] Yeah he should live with some regrets after ruining everything tbh (and maybe he can be a better dad to Spi...)
[Me] Spi would feel a bit guilty I think haha ("I don't want Amethio to be jealous of me...")
[Redacted] Maybe if Ame knew (though he wouldn't know at this point), he'd perhaps be... a bit happy that his dad changed? Even though he still hurt them, like he wouldn't want Spi to be on bad terms with Gibe forever...
[Me] He would be, yeah! He'd want Gibe to be nicer to Spi for sure. Spi just wishes Ame got to experience Gibe being a better father for himself (Maybe Frie tells Spi this to ease Spi's concerns)
[Redacted] Damnit Gibe, you're still making Spi sad even after everything-
[Me] Gibe stop being a piece of shit for 5 seconds challenge (impossible)
[Redacted] He is trying at least <3
[Me] True!