Flufftober 2025: 17 making or buying a costume @flufftober
Whumptober 2025: alt “Hold my hand.” @whumptober
Cozytober 2025: 25 trick or treating
Sicktember 2025: 15 this is the worst headache of my life; alt1 gentle back rub; alt2 warm bath; alt4 lullaby; alt5 “I love you.” @sicktember
No one’s POV.:
When Minho slipped on his shoes to leave for his individual schedule that morning, he was surprised to find Jisung’s shoes still by the front door where he had taken them off the night before, which was odd, considering he would’ve had to leave for his schedule earlier than Minho. Worried his dongsaeng might have overslept, the elder made his way to the rapper’s bedroom and gently knocked on the door. Jisung’s voice was still thick with sleep when he called Minho in and the dancer was close to rushing him out of bed to get ready, when the younger admitted: “I talked to Chan last night, hyung. I’m not going in today. My head hurts like hell.” – “Oh dear. Do you need anything before I leave”, Minho sighed as he rubbed Jisung’s back. The other defeatedly shook his head, claiming: “I already took some painkillers about two hours ago and I’ll probably just sleep all day.” Though he hated leaving his dongsaeng on his own when he was unwell, Minho didn’t really have a choice, so he brought the rapper some water and a sports drink to replenish his electrolytes in case they were the reason for his pain before heading out to his schedule.
Jisung appreciated the thought but he knew that neither the pills nor the sports drink would help his headache in the slightest and maybe he deserved that. After all the strict talking-to’s from Chan, he knew that he was supposed to listen to his body and his needs and that neglecting to do so would naturally would have consequences. Damn, did it have consequences.
His headspace had been a constant companion for him for the fast four years and he often mused whether he really needed it still or if he had managed his mental health well enough by now but days like this proved that he was far from leaving this safe space behind. Even if he felt like he had everything handled, the stress still took its toll on him and if he didn’t regress regularly, it would always lead to a massive headache. The only one knowing of his predicament was Chan though Jisung was pretty sure Minho at least suspected something. Especially now that it was only the two of them sharing an apartment. Knowing Jisung could handle himself perfectly fine while regressed, Chan had no concerns leaving him home by himself. They had dealt with such situations time and time again and the Aussie knew that things would be fine if he simply arrange for the younger to get some privacy and the chance to slip into his headspace for a couple of hours.
No sooner than Minho had closed the front door behind him, Jisung shuffled out of bed and pulled out the small box he kept at the bottom of his closet. Considering how long it had been since he had last slipped and how desperately his body craved the safety it brought, it should’ve been easy for him to get into his headspace but for some reason, it wasn’t. Not even the pacifier Jisung had popped between his lips was enough to soothe him into his headspace, the headache steadily getting worse. With tears streaming down his cheeks, Jisung curled up on his bed and opened his pinterest mood boards. He thought that maybe looking at all the softness would help but instead he was confronted with carved pumpkins, cute and only moderately scary costumes, reminding him that Halloween was approaching fast and that him trick or treating like some of the littles online posted about.
Unable to slip, Jisung had curled up into a sobbing ball of misery, too occupied with pitying himself to notice the front door click. He startled when the mattress dipped beside him. “Ji”, Minho sighed worriedly, rubbing his dongsaeng’s back. Scrubbing at his eyes, the rapper choked out: “This is the worst headache of my life, hyung.” Minho felt his forehead, relieved to find it mostly normal, maybe a little heated from the emotional distress but not feverish. “Try to relax, love. Being tense and getting worked up will only make the pain worse”, the dancer shushed as he continued to gently rub Jisung’s back. If only he knew, Jisung thought bitterly, relaxing would only work if he managed to slip but that opportunity was gone now that the older was home.
“Come on, I’ll run you a nice warm bath and you’ll try to calm down”, Minho decided as he got to his feet. Taking a shaky breath, Jisung mumbled: “Can I get lots of bubbles, hyung?” – “Of course, love”, the older chuckled, “My squirrel baby gets all the bubbles.” And with that Jisung was gone. Staring up at Minho with wide eyes, the little pouted: “Weawwy? Even if Jiji makes mess with bubbwes?” – “Messes can be cleaned”, Minho shrugged, offering the younger a hand, “What do you wanna wear after your bath, Ji?”
Minho had noticed the pacifier on Jisung’s nightstand but he couldn’t say he was all that shocked. He was no complete stranger to littlespace and had had his suspicions about his friend but didn’t want to pressure him into opening up. What did shock him though was just how precious little Jiji actually was. Since Jisung made no move to get up, Minho smiled: “Hold my hand. We can pick out something really cozy and then hyung will run you a warm bath. Obviously with lots of bubbles.” – “Can- Can Jiji have chu sweatew?”, Jisung hummed as he clutched Minho’s hand. “Sure”, Minho chuckled, “What else do you wanna wear? Sweatpants and fuzzy socks?” – “Mhm.” – “So, what has my baby squirrel been up to while I’ve been gone”, Minho asked as he started to fill the tub. Sitting on the closed toilet lid, Jisung pouted: “I wooked at stuff onwine buts it onwy made me sads.” – “Now, why’s that, love”, the dancer frowned as he turned to his dongsaeng.
The only reply Minho got was a soft sniffle, so he decided not to push it and instead encouraged Jisung to get into the tub. The bubble bath did cheer the little up some and eventually the boy felt ready to open up, breathing: “Why Jiji have be famous? Jus’ wanna be smol and dress up and go twick ow tweatin’.” – “That was what made you sad online?”, Minho cooed, relieved that it wasn’t hateful comments this time. The younger nodded slightly as he played with his bubbles. Tapping his chin, Minho mused: “We can do that, you know? If you want, we can dress you up as a little ghost after your bath and go trick or treating.” – “Buh- buh Ji have nuh costume”, Jisung pouted as he watched Minho get up. The dancer smiled and promised: “You enjoy your bath and hyung will make you a costume in the meantime, yeah?”
Calling Chan to explain the situation, Minho rummaged through their linen closet and pulled out some old sheets. They had long since seen their best days, so he didn’t feel too bad about cutting them up to make a costume for little Jiji. Though Chan was surprised, he was also glad that Minho was finally in on the secret too and they decided to organize a little something. Unbeknownst to Jisung, more members of the group knew about age regression and littlespace, so it was easy for Chan to bring up the topic. Hyunjin was ecstatic when Changbin informed him about a little playdate with Felix and the two dancers rushed to dress up for the evening. Felix and Seungmin made good use of the opportunity to bake monster cookies, while Changbin dropped Huynjin off at his their dongsaeng’s dorm so he could go buy some more treats while Seungmin watched the two littles. Chan and Jeongin picked up a bunch of candy too, so each of their dorms, would be equipped to hand out some treats once their littles knocked at the door.
Jisung could barely believe his eyes when he spotted the sheet and a little pumpkin shaped basket on his bed. “As soon as your hair is all dry, we can dress you up and go trick or treating”, Minho smiled, motioning to the little’s costume, “We will pick up two other littles on the way though. I hope you don’t mind. Hyunjinnie and Lixxie couldn’t resist dressing up for Halloween either.” – “They- they be smol wike Jiji?”, Jisung gasped, looking at the dancer stunned. Minho nodded and hummed: “I hope you can make some little friends, so you don’t have to hide anymore, love. We care about you so much, baby. Let’s get this costume on you and make this the best Halloween of your life, yeah?”
Minho gently rubbed Jisung’s hair dry and applied some moisturizer before covering the little’s face with white makeup. The boy’s headache was long forgotten after finally managing to regress and he was now buzzing with excitement. The news about Hyunjin and Felix being littles just like him had taken him by surprise but in a good way. He’d finally have someone, who was able to relate to his struggles, and he couldn’t wait to show off his costume Minho had made for him. Clutching his candy basket in one hand and Minho’s hand in the other, Jisung waddled along and mused what the others might have dressed up as.
When Seungmin opened the door for his friends, Minho and Jisung were greeted by a tall skeleton and a cute, fluffy werewolf. How Felix wasn’t completely sweaty under his layers for fake fur was a miracle to all of them but they doubted the Aussie would remove any of them even if he was. “Jiji, come have cookie wif us”, Lixxie squealed when he realized who was hiding under the large white sheet. Looking up at Minho for confirmation, Jisung let go of his hyung’s hand and shyly followed Lixxie to the kitchen. Glancing over his shoulder, Seungmin called: “Remember, only one, Lixxie. You still wanna go trick-or-treating later.” – “Otay”, the Aussie called back as he handed the rapper a cookie. “Wixxie make da bestest cookies”, Hyunjin informed, snatching a cookie from the tray despite having already tried one earlier. Well, Changbin wasn’t there to scold him, was he?
“How’re you coping, hyung?”, Seungmin hummed, studying Minho as he watched the trio. Shrugging, Minho admitted: “It sure is a lot but they’re adorable.” – “And you really didn’t suspect a thing?” – “I mean, I did suspect something like that but I didn’t know and Ji never mentioned anything”, the older muttered, “How long have you known?” – “Not long, only a couple od months”, Seungmin smiled, “But I think it would’ve only been a matter of time till Lixxie came out to the rest of the group, so it surely would’ve become a topic soon anyway.” Minho gave a noncommittal hum. He couldn’t help but feel like he had let Jisung down by not making him feel comfortable enough around him to talk about his headspace.
Those doubts soon dissipated though as they got ready to head out to tour the other dorms. It was already dark out and Jisung insisted on holding onto Minho’s hand the entire time, occasionally even hiding behind the dancer’s back when his fellow littles knocked at a door. Minho felt like he might’ve almost gone deaf when Chan opened the door with a scary demonic mask covering his face, causing the littles to scream in terror. In a way, the night seemed to bring the members closer than they had anticipated. It was new but at the same time, it was home.
By the time, Minho took Jisung back to their shared apartment, it was far past the little’s usual bedtime when in his headspace. Yawning softly, the rapper trudged along to the bathroom, where Minho removed his makeup for him and got him dressed in comfortable PJs. “Chu sing fow me?”, Jisung asked hesitantly as the older carried him to his room. Getting the boy settled on his bed, Minho smiled: “Of course, bub, what lullaby do you want?” The rapper pointed at Minho to choose for him and sleepily curled up into the other’s side, mumbling: “I wuv chu.”
Flufftober 2025: 16 pillows, plushies, piles of blankets @flufftober
Whumptober 2025: alt “oh. Oh.” @whumptober
AI-less Whumptober 2025: alt 3 nonhuman pet whumpee; alt 9 “This is not how I wanted you to find out.” @ailesswhumptober
Cozytober 2025: 13 pulled into the safety of a warm blanket; alt 1 furry new best friend
Sicktember 2025: 7 “There’s a frog in my throat.” @sicktember
No one’s POV.:
“Once again from the second verse”, Chan’s voice came over the speakers, his eyes not leaving the computer screen in front of him while Seungmin took a sip of water and braced himself. The vocalist had been recording for hours, but for some reason, he just couldn’t seem to get it right. He knew he wasn’t just being his perfectionist-self, Chan would always tell him if he was but today, the leader too didn’t seem satisfied with his dongsaeng’s singing. The music started once again but when it was time for him to sing, Seungmin remained silent. Turning away from the mic, he cleared his throat and reached for his water bottle with a trembling hand. Voice choking up, he forced out: “Sorry, there’s a frog in my throat.” – “Alright, let’s take ten”, Chan announced, “You’ve been going without a break for over an hour already.”
With a huff of frustration, Seungmin shouldered open the recording booth door and made his way over to the studio couch. Tiredly plopping into his seat, he lifted the water bottle to his lips once again but lowered it when a scratchy cough forced itself up his throat. “Are you feeling alright”, Chan asked softly as he turned his chair to face the younger. Seungmin nodded and massaged his throat, admitting: “No idea where this is coming from.” – “I mean, you have been singing for hours, so…”, the Aussie hummed. Taking a seat next to Seungmin, Jisung handed him a lozenge and smiled: “You sure do have stamina.” – “This feels nice”, Seungmin sighed as the menthol flavor coated his tongue and numbed his strained throat a little.
“Do you want me to get you some tea from downstairs?”, Changbin offered as he watched Seungmin relax into Jisung’s side. The younger shook his head. He didn’t want the break to end up any longer than it absolutely had to be because he hated inconveniencing anyone, especially at work. Clearing his throat, he smiled: “Let’s get this done, hyungs. I got this.” – “Are you sure? You can rest a little more, you know?”, Chan frowned but the younger was insistent. Though Seungmin himself wasn’t the slightest bit satisfied with the way it had turned out, 3racha eventually sent him home, completely ignoring his protest to give him another attempt.
He was still upset and frustrated when he returned to the apartment he shared with Felix. The dancer was already home, slightly confused by the attitude with which his dormmate dumped his backpack by the door. By the time Seungmin arrived home, his throat was undeniably on fire. His head had started to hurt too on the way home, but neither of those things bothered him as much as the thought of his mediocre performance on their new album. “Hey, everything alright?”, Felix worried, catching the other before he could disappear to his room. Forcing a smile, Seungmin nodded: “Just a frog in my throat and a shitty recording session. Hyungs wouldn’t let me re-do it though.” – “Want a hug or be left alone?”, Felix asked, knowing not to push the younger when he was upset with himself. Biting his lip, Seungmin muttered: “Option two for now. I’ll be in my room.” While the vocalist disappeared to his room, texted Chan to get the leader’s account of what had happened.
As soon as Seungmin made it to his room, he shut the door and leant his back against it, running a hand through his hair as he allowed his puppy-ears to pop out of his scalp. It had cost him quite a bit of self-control to keep them hidden for so long when he already wasn’t feeling well but he couldn’t have his group finding out. Him being a hybrid was his best-kept secret and a successful one at that. He doubted he’d ever have made it as an idol if anyone knew that he wasn’t fully human. Days like this were hard though. Making his puppy-like features disappear gave him a headache on a good day and god knows, today was anything but a good day. Seungmin was pretty sure he was running a fever by the way chill ran down his spine. Him feeling cold was a rare occurrence and always cause for concern. Sluggishly dressing in very loose sweatpants, that’d also allow room for his tail, he plopped onto his bed and contemplated his options.
Seungmin feared Felix would see his puppy ears if he left his room again to take some medicine, so instead he just got under his blanket to take a nap and hope he’d wake up feeling better. It didn’t seem likely but his options were limited. What he hadn’t considered though, was that the chills wracking his frame would make it completely impossible to fall asleep as his fever rose steadily. Not knowing what else he could do to feel warmer, Seungmin decided to shift into his puppy-form. Maybe having fur would help and if it didn’t, he was at least small enough to completely bury himself under his pillows and blankets.
Chan had mentioned that he was worried about Seungmin because not only had he had a frog in his throat during recording, his voice had also started to sound nasally the longer he kept going, almost as if he was developing a stuffy nose. It concerned Felix enough to decide he would go check on his dormmate despite the younger announcing that he wanted to be left alone. When he knocked on Seungmin’s bedroom door though, he got no reply, so he quietly opened the door and peeked inside. There was no sign of Seungmin to be seen but Felix heard some soft congested snores coming from the pile of blankets on his bed, which seemed to confirm his suspicions because the younger never snored. Taking a seat on the edge of the bed, Felix carefully pulled back the blanket to feel the other’s forehead but froze.
Seungmin whined softly at the blanket being removed cracking one eye open. He was looking right at Felix shocked face. “Oh. Oh”, Felix mumbled when he recognized the plushie the little puppy had snuggled up with. It was Seungmin’s worn childhood teddy bear. That plushie was sacred to Seungmin and he’d never let anyone touch it even less would he let a pet get close to it for the fear of it being damaged, which could only mean that puppy…. Rushing to shift back to his human-form as fast as possible, Seungmin was startled enough to forget about his ears and tail. He sat up, hugging his teddy bear tightly as he stammered: “This is not how I wanted you to find out.” – “Find out what exactly”, Felix whispered, brows furrowed, “I don’t think I understand what I saw.” – “I’m a hybrid”, Seungmin sighed, pulling the blanket up to his shoulders. It didn’t cover him nearly as well, now that he was taller again.
“How- How long have you’ve been and what does that mean?”, Felix frowned as he tried to make sense of the situation. Clearing his throat against the lump forming there, the younger breathed: “I was born like this. I’m not entirely human, Lix. My body changes on occasion. I can make myself look completely human, just like I can make myself look like a puppy but I’m also capable of everything in between.” – “Do any of the members know?”, Felix asked softly. Seungmin shook his head and bit his lip. “Your secret is safe with me”, the Aussie promised, “Why I actually came here though: Are you okay?”
Tears spilled from Seungmin’s eyes, contradicting the laugh he forced. He shook his head the slightest bit and tensed when he found himself pulled into a tight hug. A cold hand cupped his flushed, tears-streaked cheeks before Felix announced lowly: “That’s quite the fever you’re running. Did you already take medicine?” Another shake of the head. “Hiding my ears gives me a headache and I didn’t want you to see me like this”, Seungmin whispered as he buried his face against Felix’ neck. “Got it”, the Aussie hummed, “Let me go fetch you something for the pain and fever though. I’ll be right back.” The younger whined when Felix pulled away, his body heat vanishing along with him. Immediately freezing again, Seungmin hugged himself and tried not to overthink what the unplanned revelation might result in.
“Here, take this. Do you want me to make some tea?”, Felix offered as he handed the other a pill and a glass of water. Shaking his head, Seungmin mumbled: “Can I- Would you be very disturbed if I- if I shifted back into my puppy-form? It makes the chills more bearable.” – “Oh. Of course, I don’t mind”, Felix hummed, taken aback by the other’s hesitation, “Do you want me to throw your blanket in the dryer for a few minutes? We could bundle you up nice and warm in there.” Seungmin stared at the Aussie with wide eyes. How could he act as if it was the most normal thing on earth?! A warm blanket did sound nice but…. How was this the first thing on Felix’ mind after learning about hybrids? It took a moment for Seungmin to find his voice but when he did, he admitted: “It does sound kinda nice, actually.”
Seungmin soon came to learn that didn’t just sound nice but that it did feel incredible. Being pulled into the safety of a warm blanket when he felt so shaken up and cold. It was the first time any of the members touched this body of him but he couldn’t say he didn’t like it. Felix had bundled him up tightly and for once, Seungmin managed to get a break from the chills. Sure, his head still pounded and it would take a while for the medicine to kick in but it wasn’t all that bad since he didn’t have to deal with it alone anymore. The gentle head pats and Felix’s soft fingers scratching behind his ears did soothe the pain a little or at least distracted him enough to handle it better.
Felix had immediately grown more protective of his new furry best friend and refused to let the younger out of his sight. With the trembling blanket bundle clutched to his chest, he made his way to the kitchen and turned on the kettle to fill a hot water bottle. “What do you think, Minnie? Some nice hot chicken noodle soup for dinner? My mom used to make it a lot when I was sick as a child and chicken is always great”, Felix hummed, “Let’s fix your little cocoon first though. I gotta unwrap you for just a second, so you can have the hot water bottle.”
With Seungmin nice and cozy on the couch, Felix started cooking and strongly believed the other had fallen asleep now that the chills had finally tapered off. He was wrong though and a sharp yip startled him. Rushing back to the living room, Felix crouched next to the couch and hummed: “What’s wrong, Minnie? Do you need anything?” Scanning the items with his eyes, he listed what they had. “Pillows, blankets, hot water bottle, …”, he muttered as he tapped his lips before gasping, “I forgot your teddy bear. I’m so sorry. Hang on.” Seungmin watched him disappear, already growing nervous. It was weird how he, strong and independent Seungmin had grown so attached so fast, just because his friend had handled learning about his secret so well.
“There we go”, Felix smiled as he tucked the teddy under Seungmin’s blanket, “Is that better, love?” The puppy nudged his hand in confirmation, tiredly closing his eyes. Scratching his ears, Felix chuckled: “Sleep well, Minnie. I’ll be in the kitchen to get your soup ready. I can hear you in case you need anything.”
Flufftober 2025: 12 blizzard or heatwave @flufftober
Whumptober 2025: alt viral @whumptober
Cozytober 2025: 1 Socks still warm from the dryer; 10 a pile of pillows and the softest blankets; 16 sharing headphones while curled up together
Sicktember 2025: 3 why are you so sweaty; 16 misery loves company; 17 infection @sicktember
No one’s POV.:
Chan had been struck down by some sort of infection a couple of days ago. There had been little warning, the fever coming on in only a matter of hours before he was rendered completely out of commission. For most of the first few days, the leader was drifting in and out of consciousness, unaware of his surroundings most of the time. Occasionally, he wondered how the bottle of water kept refilling itself each time he had gulped it all down but as long as the magic worked, he wouldn’t complain. Chan had enough other observations to complain about anyway. The pounding headache definitely was one of them. The burning pain in his muscles and joints another. He couldn’t say that he was feeling lonely because he hadn’t seen any of the other members for days, having decided to quarantine himself in his room.
Jeongin mostly respected Chan’s wish to avoid contact, not approaching the leader when he heard him shuffling to the bathroom. He was surely impressed how the older managed to make it without fainting because there was no way he wasn’t incredibly dizzy with how high his fever spiked. Chan never noticed but every once in a while, the maknae would sneak into his room to replace the empty water bottles and check the elder’s temperature with their forehead thermometer. Of course, he always wore a mask when he checked on his hyung, knowing how upset Chan would be if he got the youngest sick. With how adamant Chan was about staying isolated, Jeongin surely was surprised when his phone dinged with an incoming video call.
“Hey Channie-hyung. How do you feel?”, thee maknae smiled, propping his phone up against his knees. Fumbling with his phone for moment, Chan winced at the bright screen and muttered: “I’m okay, tiny bit bored though.” His voice sounded just slightly hoarse, so Jeongin hoped he was staring to improve. Especially if he could complain about being bored. “So, what you wanna do?”, the younger chuckled, “Did you take your medicine?” – “Mhm, I dunno if I’m up for much. The headache’s bearable for now, though I think the fever’s still high. ‘s so freaking cold. Feel like I’m in a blizzard”, Chan sniffled, pulling the blanket all the way up to his chin. Biting his lip, Jeongin tutted: “I could bring you another blanket or maybe some hot tea? Other question though. Please tell me you did eat something lately while I was at work?” – “Um, manager-nim dropped of a bunch of snacks when I first called in sick, so I got some crackers, trail mix and a few bananas”, Chan mumbled as he glanced towards his desk.
After a beat of silence, Jeongin rolled his eyes and frowned: “Congratulations, almost didn’t notice how you avoided all of my questions, hyung. So?” – “I mean. I really have no appetite at all but I did have some of the crackers and a banana”, Chan stammered, avoiding looking at his phone. “Mhm, I see, when?” – “Over the last few daayyys?” – “HYUNG!”, Jeongin gasped, immediately feeling guilty when Chan flinched at his raised voice, “Have you ever considered that your body potentially needs nutrients if you wanna recover? I’ll bring you some tea and rice and you will eat right now or so help me, I’ll call Minho-hyung.” – “Okay, I will, jus’- please. Don’t call Minho”, Chan pouted as he rubbed his nose into his blanket. Tapping his chin, Jeongin smiled mischievously: “On second thought, why don’t I text the group chat?” – “Don’t you dare! I’ll eat”, Chan pleaded.
Putting on his mask, Jeongin approached Chan’s room with a small tray carrying a bowl of plain rice, an empty cup and a thermos filled with tea. Chan too was wearing his mask when the younger joined him but what was visible of his face looked ghostly pale almost as if the color had been washed out. His hands trembled when he accepted the tray and placed it at the foot of his bed. “Why are you so sweaty?”, Chan sniffled, motioning to the damp spots decorating the front of Jeongin’s shirt. The fabric clung uncomfortably to the maknae’s chest but he wasn’t entirely sure why. Shrugging, the younger hummed: “You mentioned a blizzard but actually, it feels like we’re having a heatwave in here. Already thought about checking the thermostat but I may or may not have been too lazy.”
A high-pitched beep startled him almost as much as Chan’s quick reflexes, suddenly aiming the thermometer at his dongsaeng’s forehead. “Too lazy or too sick? How long have you had that fever?”, Chan asked strictly as he threw the thermometer onto his duvet. Shaking his head, Jeongin muttered: “What? I don’t have a fever.” – “Well, the thermometer says otherwise”, Chan argued, raising an eyebrow, “How are you feeling?” – “I dunno. A little tired but I didn’t sleep well last night”, Jeongin hummed, confused. “Define ‘a little tired’”, the leader requested as he took a seat on the edge of his bed. Plopping into Chan’s desk chair, the maknae shrugged: “Sore, not really feeling like doing anything and my head hurts. I dunno, and really hot but I think the heating’s wonky.”
“Come here, baby bread”, Chan sighed, patting the space next to him on the bed, “Misery loves company, huh? No point to keep wearing masks ‘cause that’s exactly how it started for me.” – “What are we gonna do now? I don’t even feel bad, really”, Jeongin pouted as he plopped down next to the leader. Gently ruffling the maknae’s hair, Chan smiled: “I’m glad you’re not feeling too bad yet but it comes on pretty fast, so I wouldn’t count on it staying that way. We’re just going to take it easy with lots of naps and the occasional dose of medication. Did you eat yet? If you take something right away, you might not end up feeling all that miserable.” – “Yeah, I ate… unlike someone”, Jeongin pointed out, motioning to the tray at the foot of the bed. Running a hand through his messy bed hair, Chan hummed: “In that case, this is yours and that’s mine.” He handed the younger a pill and the still sealed water bottle from the nightstand before pouring himself some tea and picking up the bowl of rice. “I’ll call manager-nim when I’m done, so he can clear your schedule too”, Chan announced as he watched his dongsaeng chase down the medication with a few sips of water.
Jeongin sleepily curled up against Chan’s side, while the elder forced down his rice at a painstakingly slow pace. As he had promised, the leader cleared his dongsaeng’s schedule immediately after. Their manager wasn’t all that surprised, already having seen it coming days ago. With the pair sharing an apartment, the risk was a given. When Chan put down the phone, he could feel Jeongin shudder next to him before cuddling closer. “Are you cold?”, the eldest frowned, “Why didn’t you say anything?” Jeongin only shrugged, weakly shuffling closer when Chan held up the corner of his blanket. Neatly tucked into Chan’s side, the maknae rested his head on his hyung’s chest and sniffled: “This is awful. Wasn’t this bad earlier. Wha’s happenin’, hyung.” – “I know, bud. It takes you out really fast. Try taking a nap, hm?”, Chan shushed, gently petting his dongsaeng’s hair.
It didn’t take long for Chan to fall into a light slumber too. Until quietly suppressed sobs pulled him from his daze. “Hey, buddy”, he whispered, propping himself up on his elbow to look at Jeongin, “What’s wrong?” Barely able to keep his chest from hitching, the younger forced out: “My knees hurt so bad. Make it stop, hyung. Please.” He shivered hard, covering his face so Chan wouldn’t see the tears. “I know”, the older hummed, heart breaking, “How cold do you feel?” – “Blizzard is accurate”, Jeongin sniffled, scrubbing at his face.
Sitting up, Chan slipped out from under the covers and tucked them up to the maknae’s chin. He gently dried the boy’s tears with his thumbs and whispered: “Icepacks soothe the pain a little but they make the chills a lot worse, so it’s your call. Do you want me to get you some?” Jeongin looked conflicted, so Chan muttered: “Hang on, I got an idea.” Listening to his hyung rummaging around the apartment, Jeongin almost drifted back off to sleep, the steady rumble of their dryer surprisingly soothing despite his headache. He had completely lost his sense of time when a gentle hand on his flushed cheek lured him awake “Let’s get properly comfy, yeah?”, Chan smiled as he helped Jeongin over to his desk chair. The leader had brought quite some stuff and sluggishly rearranged his bed while the younger put on the warm socks he had brought. Chan had thrown their softest blankets into the dryer, along with a thick pair of socks for Jeongin, and now fluffed up the pillows, adding a few from their couch and Jeongin’s room to create a comfortable pile.
Holding up one of the warmed blankets, Chan smiled as Jeongin crawled underneath it, accepted the two icepacks and placed them on his knees. He shivered slightly but Chan was quick to get into bed next to him and cover them both with the warmed blankets. Not able to move much to avoid the icepacks falling off, Jeongin simply dropped his head onto Chan’s shoulder and relaxed when the leader held him in a side-hug. Clearing his throat, Chan rasped: “Is it helping a little?” Jeongin gave a tiny nod and wrapped his arms around Chan’s bicep. If he couldn’t hug his hyung properly, he’d just have to hold onto his arm. “Mmh, cozy”, the maknae mumbled, eyes closed. Resting his chin on his dongsaeng’s head, Chan chuckled: “That’s what I was going for. You wanna listen to some music? Might be a nice distraction….” – “Please”, Jeongin yawned but made no move to let Chan get up again.
“Could I borrow my arm for a moment, please?”, Chan laughed quietly, turning his head to the side when it triggered a cough, “You get it back. I promise.” Though Jeongin pouted, he unwrapped himself from his hyung’s arm and let the older grab his phone and earphones. He sleepily accepted one of the earpieces and put it in, quickly reattaching himself to Chan’s arm while the leader struggled to fix the blanket around them with only one arm after it had slipped down to Jeongin’s waist. Putting on a calm playlist, Chan closed his eyes. He would never wish this misery on anyone but at the same time, he was relieved that he didn’t have to endure it all on his own. Jeongin had already fallen asleep with his head on Chan’s shoulder before the first song had ended but the leader didn’t mind. The more Jeongin slept, the less he’d have to consciously endure the pain.
Chan too was close to drifting off when his phone buzzed, their friends asking how they were holding up. Apparently, their manager had just broken the news that they were dealing with two sickies now. Minho even offered to stop by with soup for the two of them but Chan told him not to. It was already bad enough with one of their dorms struck down sick, with something so obviously contagious. They agreed that a manager would leave some pre-cooked meals in front of their door later that day, so contact would be as limited as possible. To soothe the members worries, Chan snapped a selfie of them both curled up together under their softest blankets, captioning it: ‘Warm bread'
Sicktember 2025: 10 red eyes; 23 overdoing it; 26 slow recovery time @sicktember
No one’s POV.:
Hyunjin knew that the flu was serious. The rational part of his brain knew, at least. Still after being sidelined for almost two weeks, he couldn’t wait to get back to work. Sure, he still felt weak and sore, two weeks of just lying around, not moving further than between couch and bed did that to anyone but overall, he felt better. His fever had broken three days ago and the pounding headache had vanished along with it. The lingering cough was to be expected, so Hyunjin didn’t mind it too much. It was mainly annoying, not shredding his throat anymore like it had a week ago and while his friends kept shooting him worried glances whenever his breath caught in his throat, Hyunjin brushed them off. He was fine now.
Changbin had strongly objected his friend returning to work already and was glad that Chan had his back on that too but their dongsaeng was an adult and he didn’t have a fever anymore, so there was little they could do to stop Hyunjin and the company from having him return. While all of Stray Kids knew that the flu would result in a slow recovery time, only Changbin knew how affected Hyunjin still was. He may have been able to hide it while at work but Changbin witnessed the nightly coughing fits echoing through their shared apartment that kept both of them up for most of the night.
Though Minho masked it quickly, Changbin caught the frown when the dancer noticed Hyunjin’s red eyes. “Don’t you think a full evening of dancing is a bit to early?”, Felix hummed, pointing out what his hyungs were thinking, “You only just got over your fever a couple days ago and honestly, you still look sick.” Ruffling the Aussie’s hair, Hyunjin smiled: “I feel fine and maybe just getting my blood pumping again is just what I need to look like myself again. Besides my individual schedules today have been chill and I haven’t strained myself at all, so I got some energy to spare.” Minho and Changbin exchanged a look at that, the rapper discreetly shaking his head. “He barely slept, please keep an eye on him, hyung”, Changbin whispered for only Minho to hear. The second oldest giving a faint nod, trying to disperse his friend’s worries because he knew the rapper wouldn’t be able to focus on his work if he worried about Huynjin.
Everything seemed to go well for the first hour or so, mainly because Minho and Felix made sure to ease into their practice session gently, taking longer to warm up and stretch properly. Still as soon as they started to increase the intensity, Hyunjin started to lose his breath immediately. “Sit!”, Minho ordered, hands on his dongsaeng’s shoulders as the younger coughed, the sounds still wet and painful. Plopping down next to Hyunjin, Felix handed the other his water bottle, a worried pout on his lips. As he watched the older struggle to catch his breath enough, so he’d be able to take a sip, the Aussie mumbled: “You’re not ready to dance again yet, hyung.” – “Agreed, you’ll make yourself a whole lot worse if you start pushing yourself too early”, Minho noted, relieved that the cough finally tapered off once Hyunjin had managed to drink some water.
Draping the boy’s hoodie around his shoulders, Minho offered: “Do you want me to call Changbin to take you home? You will not continue to dance under my watch, so that’s that.” The tense crease on Felix forehead melted away at that announcement, the Aussie gently rubbing Hyunjin’s back. He could see the shock in his friend’s eyes but was grateful for Minho speaking a word of power. “I-I can continue”, Hyunjin argued though there was barely any fight left in his red eyes, “Jus’ -jus’ let me try again.” – “No!”, Minho and Felix denied in unison, the older already reaching for his phone.
Tears pricked at Hyunjin’s eyes as Minho disappeared to call Changbin. Draping an arm around his friend’s shoulders, Felix smiled: “A couple more days, yeah? You’ll be fine to dance again soon but if you push yourself too early, you’ll get sidelined much longer.” – “I-I know…. Jus’ it’s been so-so long already”, Hyunjin sniffled, voice wavering a little. Gently nudging the water bottle in his hand, Felix wordlessly encouraged the older to have some more water. It was impressive really how much he had sweat already, so the Aussie wouldn’t let hi leave before finishing the remainder of his water.
To Felix’ relief, Hyunjin quickly downed the rest before throwing the bottle in the general direction of his bag, huffing grumpily when he missed. Having been at the studio, only a couple floors away, it didn’t take Changbin long to get to the practice rooms. He chuckled softly when Hyunjin glared at him, knowing the younger wasn’t mad at him personally, merely frustrated with the situation. Hyunjin sluggishly slipped his hoodie over his head to cover his sweaty practice shirt before pushing himself off the ground. Collecting the empty water bottle, the dancer threw his belongings into his bag and slung it over his shoulder. Coughing into his sleeve, Hyunjin trudged over to Changbin and rasped: “’m sorry. No I-told-you-so please.” – “I wouldn’t dare”, the older hummed, holding the door open for his friend “Let’s get you home, huh?”
No sooner than the practice room door had closed behind them, Hyunjin burst into tears. Changbin wordlessly pulled him into his arms. “I don’t wanna go home”, Hyunjin sobbed, face buried in Changbin’s shoulder as he leant against the rapper’s chest. If the dancer wasn’t still coughing frequently and if it wasn’t already dark out, Changbin would’ve offered for them to take a walk but he didn’t want to take that risk. Running his hand through his hair in distress, Hyunjin muttered: “I’ve been at home for weeks. I’ll go mad if I’m stuck there any longer.” – “And I thought you liked our living arrangements”, Changbin pouted, earning himself an annoyed roll of the eye. “I do. You know what I mean”, the younger huffed.
“It’s too cold out to go for a walk but how about I take you for coffee? A date at a café sounds cozy, doesn’t it?”, Changbin hummed, fixing the strand of hair his dongsaeng had messed with, “I heard they have pumpkin spice latte again.” – “See, another thing I missed out on: the beginning of fall”, Hyunjin frowned. Shaking his head, Changbin denied: “You haven’t missed the beginning of fall and in case you haven’t listened: you won’t. I will make sure of that. Now come on. Put on your scarf, so we can go.” – “Won’t we get in trouble, hyung? You know, if I leave practice because I’m unwell and then I’m seen in public…”, the dancer worried as he pulled away to dig his scarf out of his bag. Changbin didn’t seem bothered though, shrugging: “Unwell is a spectrum. Just because you can’t go through an exerting multiple hour dance practice doesn’t mean you can’t get some fresh air.”
Hyunjin only realized how much the seasons had changed over the past two weeks when they left the company building and he was hit by a cold gust of wind. It tickled his throat and made him cough, forcing him to pull his scarf up higher. The walk to the café was short and Hyunjin was glad that while Chhangbin denied him a proper walk, he could have at least those few minutes of outdoor-time. He hadn’t expected the cold air to get to him like this though. It wasn’t only making him cough, his hands too had become icy cold and almost numb in no time and he rubbed them against each other to try and generate warmth but it was of little use.
Gently taking his dongsaeng’s trembling and stiff hand into his own, Changbin linked their fingers and slipped their hands into his pocket. Despite the wind, he could hear Hyunjin’s shuddering sigh of relief. “Almost there”, the rapper hummed and gave Hyunjin’s hand a gentle squeeze. True to his word, they only had to round another block before he shouldered open the door to the café and ushered his dongsaeng inside. They found a booth a little off to the side and Hyunjin plopped into his seat with a soft sniffle. He didn’t even bother removing his coat and scarf because while the heating instantly made his nose run, it didn’t warm his cold body nearly as quick.
“Gosh, your eyes look even more red now”, Changbin pointed out as he shrugged out of his coat and draped it over Hyunjin’s lap, “Tired?” – “I dunno. Winded, yes. The sleepy tired, nah. Don’t thi-hink I could- could sleep any-anytime soo-hoon”, the dancer mumbled as his breath hitched. Ducking his face into his scarf, he stifled a sneeze and blinked away itchy tears as he looked back up at Changbin. Dabbing at his nose, he muttered: “Sorry.” – “No need to apologize. What do you mean, winded but not sleepy?”, the older hummed. Their conversation was interrupted by a waitress coming to take their order but when she was gone, Hyunjin admitted: “I mean, I do feel exhausted and achy and all of those things. Yeah, I’m glad you and Minho-hyung made me take a break but on the other hand, I’m restless and overthinking and I have been sleeping so much lately, I just don’t think I can.” – “Ooh. Got it”, Changbin nodded, “That’s alright. I do enjoy our late night talks, so if you just wanna hang out tonight. That’s fine.”
“Hmm, this is good”, Hyunjin smiled as he lowered his cup. He knew he shouldn’t have any caffeine if he wanted a chance at sleep tonight but he had been craving this pumpkin spice latte and knowing Changbin would be there for one of their late night talks made him not fear a sleepless night all that much. Licking the foam off his lips, the rapper chuckled: “Tasty. Glad you’re finally enjoying yourself instead of overdoing it with work.” – “You know, it wasn’t only work and dancing, I missed”, Hyunjin admitted as he sipped his drink, “I missed all of you guys. Sure, I saw you occasionally but usually, I was already asleep by the time you came home. I don’t wanna be isolated anymore, I was so happy when the doctor said I could return to work.” – “And you think we didn’t miss you? Hell, you have no idea how much we missed you. Stray Kids isn’t Stray Kids without you. There were moments when it felt like during your hiatus, which was awful. That’s why we don’t want you to overdo it and wreck your health when you’re not ready for it. Imagine making yourself seriously sick and having to take a hiatus for health reasons. You wouldn’t be the only one losing your mind then”, Changbin muttered, turning his face as he took another sip, so Hyunjin wouldn’t see the vulnerability in his eyes at the admission.
They locked eyes when Hyunjin reached for Changbin’s hand across the table. “I’m sorry, I worried you. Thank you for taking me out despite me being grumpy earlier”, Hyunjin whispered, making the older smile. Changbin’s hand was warm against his own and so was his voice when he hummed: “Of course, I don’t want you feeling isolated or missing out on anything. We’ll take a cab back to the apartment though, right? I’m tired and it’s cold and your fingers are cold still.” – “That’s alright with me as long as I don’t have to go straight to bed when we get home”, Hyunjin agreed, secretly glad they wouldn’t have to spend much time outside again. He would’ve expected to warm up faster and easier but despite the hot drink and the coats still piled on him, he still felt chilled. Changbin nodded, reminding: “Already told you we could stay up and chat for as long as you need. Can’t have you laying awake, overthinking on your own. I’ll go pay and as soon as you finish your drink, I’ll call us a cab.”
Juneofdoom 2025: 18 “How long have you been like this?” @juneofdoom
No one’s POV.:
“I really think you should go home, Innie”, Seungmin hummed, guiding the younger to sit down at the desk of the studio. The pair had been practicing their lines for the upcoming album for barely an hour but Jeongin’s voice already sounded strained and he had started coughing frequently about ten minutes ago. Handing the maknae his water bottle, Seungmin frowned: “What’s going on? You seemed fine earlier?” – “I dunno”, Jeongin muttered, clearing his throat, “I did feel fine earlier. What is happening to me?” – “Hm, what exactly are you feeling?”, the older hummed, brushing the backs of his fingers against Jeongin’s forehead. Closing his eyes, the maknae breathed: “I feel really weak and shaky all of a sudden, my head hurts and I dunno why my throat is so meh.” – “You’re really warm and you sure you felt alright this morning”, Seungmin pushed, rubbing the other’s back when he started coughing again. With a defeated nod, Jeongin slumped back in his seat and rasped: “Honestly, I really wanna go home and lay down.”
Hearing this statement from their usually workaholic maknae was enough to ring the alarm bells for Seungmin and he quickly called a cab to take the younger back to his dorm. “Do you want me to text Chan-hyung and let him know?”, he offered but unsurprisingly, Jeongin shook his head and mumbled: “Don’t wanna worry hyung. Not with the approaching deadlines. What am I gonna do if my voice keeps fucking up? I won’t be able to record well.” – “That’s something we’ll figure out when the time comes”, Seungmin reminded, grabbing both of their backpacks, “Let’s focus on getting you home first and then we can think about the rest. I will have to text manager-nim though. If your fever keeps rising at this pace, he’ll have to make some changes to your schedule.”
“Hyung, the only illness coming on this fast would be the flu…”, Jeongin whispered as he collapsed into his seat, sluggishly fumbling with his seatbelt. Biting his lip, Seungmin nodded. The thought had already crossed his mind. That was also why he had decided to accompany the younger to the apartment he shared with Chan. If it was really the flu, Jeongin would be declining further and at a rapid pace. There was no way he could leave the younger to his own devices. Tapping around on his phone, Seungmin muttered: “I know, Innie. Manager-nim thinks so too. We’ll work something out, don’t worry about it. All you need to focus on, is resting and recovering well. Have you been taking your vitamins?” – “I-I think so? Might have forgotten once or twice with how busy we were but yeah”, the younger mumbled as he closed his eyes. The movement of the car making him dizzy.
By the time they arrived, Jeongin could barely keep himself on his feet, most of his weight being supported by Seungmin, who had slung the younger’s arm across his shoulders. “My head’s killing me”, Jeongin groaned slumping against the wall of the elevator as the doors closed with a much too loud ‘ding’. Luckily, the members visited each other so frequently, that they knew each other’s door codes, so that Seungmin could let them both in. Guiding the maknae to the couch, he hummed: “Let me take off your shoes and then I’ll help you to bed.” – “Please make it stop, hyung”, Jeongin whimpered, covering his face. It was hard to tell, whether the glossy look in his eyes were tears or his fever showing. Seungmin’s heart ached for his dongsaeng but there was little he could do, so he gently tugged the sneakers off the other’s feet and hoisted him up.
“Do you wanna change your clothes?”, Seungmin offered when they made it to Jeongin’s room. The maknae shook his head and breathed: “Jus’ bed. Sleep.” – “Alright, here. Lay down”, Seungmin cooed, easing the younger down on the edge of the mattress, “I really do think, I should call Chan-hyung though. Manager-nim probably already told him. Maybe that’s why your phone has been buzzing like that all the time.” With Jeongin too out of it to argue, Seungmin helped him lay down properly and dialed Chan’s number while he went to fetch some medicine. Unsurprisingly, the leader already knew the gist of what was happening and promised he’d come home as early as possible and finish editing at home, so he could keep an eye on their dongsaeng. Seungmin would have to return to the company building though because his schedules too had been altered in an attempt to accommodate Jeongin, so the maknae would be alone for a couple of hours.
To make sure, Jeongin would handle it alright, Seungmin made him take his medicine and adjusted the a/c in his bedroom, leaving the younger with a cold cloth on his forehead and his phone charging on the nightstand next to his water bottle. “Innie?”, he tried, “I need to go back but Chan-hyung will only be a couple more hours, yeah? Rest well.” Unsure whether Jeongin had heard him or was already too far into dreamland, Seungmin also wrote him a note and stuck it to his dongsaeng’s phone before leaving to get back to work.
To Chan’s surprise, the place was dark and quiet when he returned. He had expected Jeongin to be curled up on the couch, a comfort movie playing to distract himself from his misery but no, not a sound to be heard. Quietly kicking off his shoes, Chan left his laptop on the dining table and made his way to his dongsaeng’s room. The pitiful sounds Jeongin made in his sleep still surprised him though and he gently felt the boy’s forehead, wincing at the heat. He startled when the younger glanced up at him. “Hey, Innie”, the leader whispered, “How’re you feeling?” – “You’re home, hyung? How was your flight?”, Jeongin yawned, voice low and crackling with congestion. Furrowing his brows, Chan muttered: “Which flight? I was at the studio, love.” – “With Minho-hyung, right? He was gonna make dumplings.” – “I was with Changbin and Jisung today. When did he say that?”, the leader hummed, earning a tired shrug, “You’re a little out of it, huh? How long have you been like this?” – “Like wha’?”, Jeongin yawned, massaging his throat.
“Your temperature is through the roof. How are you feeling?”, Chan cooed worriedly. The water bottle still sat untouched on the nightstand. Handing it to Jeongin, Chan encouraged: “Here, drink something. Your brain is fried.” – “Like chicken?”, the maknae pouted but obediently finished half of his drink. Running his fingers through Jeongin’s hair, the leader smiled: “You still didn’t tell me how you feel.” – “You asked me…? Oh… I’m okay. Everything hurts though, head, throat, body, …”, Jeongin slurred, “The water is nice on my throat.” – “You can finish it, I’ll get you more if you need more”, Chan promised, “Are you hungry, Innie?” Shaking his head, the younger closed his eyes. “You could have another dose of medicine if we got something in your tummy”, the Aussie reasoned but Jeongin shook his head again.
Burying his face in his pillow, Jeongin tried to muffle the grating cough that tore up his throat but Chan could still hear how painful it had to be. The eldest nudged him with the water bottle and cooed: “Come on, maknae-yah. Finish your drink and then I’ll go find you some lozenges for your throat.” – “Can’t you just put me out of my misery, hyung?”, Jeongin choked out, scrubbing his face with a strained laugh. Had Chan not known the younger as long as he had, he might even have been fooled by the boy’s attempts at hiding his tears but he wasn’t. “Sorry, Innie, no can do”, the leader smiled as he wrapped his arm around Jeongin’s shoulders, “I’ll do my best to make it better though, yeah? We still have some leftover rice. You’re gonna eat that and then, we’ll get you medicated and all cozy on the couch with a movie to distract you while we wait for the medicine to kick in.”
“You didn’t mention the dizziness”, Chan commented, arms wrapped tightly around Jeongin’s waist to keep him from toppling over. Nails desperately digging into his hyung’s biceps, Jeongin whimpered: “I didn’t know. For fuck’s sake, I was fine this morning.” With relative ease, Chan picked the younger up and carried him to the couch, instructing: “Stay put. I’ll get some rice.” Shivering pathetically, Jeongin drew his knees up to his chest and pulled the quilt off the back of the couch to wrap it around his shoulders. He didn’t even realize he had started to cry until he felt Chan’s hands on his cheeks, brushing away the tears. “What’s wrong?”, the leader frowned, hands still cupping Jeongin’s fever-flushed cheeks, “Talk to me, Innie. How can I help?” – “I-I”, the maknae hiccupped, “I jus’ feel s-so bad.” His breath caught in his throat, sending him into a painful coughing fit.
“Hyung, the comeback”, Jeongin cried once he had caught his breath. Shaking his head, Chan sighed: “Don’t worry about the comeback for now, Innie. Hyungs will figure that out. All you need to do is take it easy and get better. Stressing out isn’t going to help with that.” – “But-“ – “No buts”, the Aussie denied, “We’ll do just fine. We’ve handled members getting sick shortly before or during comebacks. With how things have been going, we’re perfectly on time so far, so we can figure it out.” Covering his face with his sleeve, Jeongin sniffled: “Isn’t that hard when you gotta be here with me because I can’t even remember to drink some fucking water by myself?” – “Oh, your brain is starting to function again”, Chan chuckled, “So it was mainly dehydration. Thank goodness. Innie, first of all, you’re more important than work, secondly, I got my laptop and will catch up on work when you sleep and thirdly, the flu is no joke. I don’t blame you for being out of it but let’s see if we can bring that fever down a bit, so you can rest more comfortably.”
Though his appetite was none existent, Jeongin forced down a few bites of rice because he didn’t want to inconvenience Chan further. He obediently swallowed the pill the leader handed him and startled when he was pulled into a tight hug. “Stop overthinking”, Chan warned, resting his chin atop his dongsaeng’s head, “I can hear your mind racing from here. Everything will work out, I promise.” With a hoarse sigh, Jeongin relaxed into his hyung’s embrace and breathed: “I know and I trust you it will, I jus’ – I can’t help it.” – “Do you want me to make you some tea? Your throat sounds shredded”, the leader offered but Jeongin shook his head, mumbling: “Can you jus’ stay like this for a little? If it doesn’t delay your work too much.” – “Oh, it won’t. Don’t worry”, Chan beamed as he tightened his hold on the maknae, “I’ll gladly stay like this, however long you want me to.”
Things had been a little hectic in the Ateez coven lately. Especially since San and Wooyoung had returned home with a dragon egg, nobody knew where they had gotten it from. Knowing pair caring for a hatchling would inevitably end in disaster, Hongjoong had promptly confiscated the egg and entrusted it to Seonghwa. The eldest had his way with magical creatures, so Hongjoong wasn’t worried about the care it’d receive. San and Wooyoung weren’t please about the arrangement though and had decided to go on a strike. The timing was bad, the summer solstice approaching, so the entire coven was flooded with orders for spells, charms and potions.
Jongho had barely been out of the kitchen lately, trying to keep up with the high demand of potions. Usually, Seonghwa helped him with it but the eldest had his hands full, caring for their newly hatched pet, so the maknae tried to handle the brewing by himself. He’d manage, he was sure of it, as long as Seonghwa kept Haku out of the kitchen and from setting their house on fire, it’d be fine. Yunho and Mingi spent most of their days out in the woods, gathering ingredients their friends needed for their spells or potions, while making sure the perimeter was safe. Tensions often flared close to the summer solstice and the often worried the wolves in the east might forget about the lines of their territory but so far, they hadn’t encountered any.
Hongjoong was drowning in orders, despite Yeosang’s best efforts to help him out. Usually, San and Wooyoung handled enchanting objects that had been dropped off at their house, while Hongjoong and Yeosang focused on spells and charms but with the chaos duo still sulking especially now that Haku had hatched, the leader had to take over their duties. He wasn’t all that confident in his enchantments but it would have to do for the time being.
“Hyung, don’t you think you should take a break?”, Yeosang hummed, when Hongjoong shut his spell book with a thud only to reach for a different one. Pinching the bridge of his nose, the older sighed: “I can’t, Sang. I’m falling behind already.” – “You know performing magic without paying proper attention is dangerous, hyung. I can tell, you have a headache, so I doubt you’re able to focus and you’re already slurring your words a little”, Yeosang softly pointed out, “Go have some water and check on Seonghwa-hyung, hm? Last I heard, he wanted to teach Haku how to fly.” With a defeated nod, Hongjoong turned and shuffled out of the room, hoping to find Seonghwa in less of a mess than he himself was in.
Stepping out into the yard, the leader took a deep breath. His shoulders dropped as the deep pine-scent grounded him. It was surprisingly quiet out here, compared to the coven house, which was always chaotic and even more so during such stressful days. “You’re not gonna fall, I promise”, Hongjoong heard Seonghwa call, chuckling as he spotted the elder. Seonghwa had placed the dragon hatchling on a tree branch, so it could try to glide down to either the witch’s outstretched arms beneath or the soft moss, covering the forest floor. Walking up next to his hyung, Hongjoong smiled: “I see someone’s cautious of heights.” – “Oh, hi Joong”, Seonghwa laughed, startled, “Yeah but we’re working on it. How’re you holding up?” – “I’m okay”, the leader hummed, “Yeosang sent me to get some fresh air because he’s afraid I might get careless.” Nodding towards a tree stump, the older smiled: “Go sit, yeah? You look tired.”
Seonghwa eventually managed to coax Haku down, gently catching the little dragon and carrying it in his arms. Plopping down in the moss opposite Hongjoong, he hummed: “You’re running thin, Joong.” The leader saw no point in denying it because his hyung was great at reading auras and even if he wasn’t, they had known each other for enough centuries to give away the way they felt. “It’s my own fault though, isn’t it?”, Hongjoong smiled bitterly, “Sannie and Wooyoung are old enough to make their own decisions and deal with the consequences. I’m not sure I was right to interfere, so I can’t blame them for being upset. I feel mainly sorry for Yeosangie and Jongho-yah because their workload increased due to us two trying to take care of this mess.” Seoghwa patted Haku’s head and hummed: “It’s true, they are old enough to fix their own messes but I know they still seem like babies in our eyes and it’s hard to refrain from protecting them. I don’t think that they are able to see that your decision was for their own safety and that of the coven but I’m sure they’ll come around. As for Yeosang and Jongho, it’s not fair for them to feel the consequences but their stronger than you give them credit for. I know they can handle it.”
Their heads shot up at a crunching noise from between the trees. A moment later, Yunho stepped out behind the tree line, Mingi following close behind. “Hey hyungs, hey Haku”, Yunho smiled, “The house is still in one piece, good job.” – “From the outside”, Hongjoong muttered, dropping his head into his hands. Patting the leader’s shoulder, Seonghwa nodded his thanks and hummed: “I see, the two of you were successful?” – “Oh, yeah! We were!”, Mingi beamed, holding up his satchel, “You want a few wild black berries? You look like you need them.” Hongjoong accepted a handful of berries and gave his dongsaeng a tired smile. “Thanks, I’ll go back to work in a moment. If you happen to run into San and Wooyoung, tell them I’m sorry. They’re avoiding me, so I can’t tell them myself”, the leader sighed before popping a berry between his lips.
The sweet, yet slightly tart flavor of the snack refreshed Hongjoong and he soon returned to his work, despite Yeosang’s worried glances. With Haku perched on his shoulder, Seonghwa sauntered into the kitchen to check on Jongho, confident the hatchling was far to exhausted to cause a ruckus right now. Still, the maknae looked critical when he got company. “Everything going alright so far?”, the eldest hummed, earning a soft glare. Pointing his wooden spoon at his hyung, Jongho muttered: “Who do you take me for? Of course, it’s going alright.” – “Sorry”, Seonghwa laughed, as he reached for a kettle to boil some water before making his way over to their tea cabinet. “Everything alright?”, the maknae asked, much softer now as he watched the older pick out a couple of herbs, he recognized well enough. Giving his dongsaeng a small smile, Seonghwa whispered: “Hongjoong’s overworking himself. He doesn’t have much magic left and is still overusing it. I can see his aura dimming by the hour.”
Muttering something under his breath, Jongho reached for a small vial and handed it to Seonghwa. He was upset at San and Wooyoung for their childish antics but knew the last thing Seonghwa needed was for him to vent his frustration too. “I sadly can’t offer any power amplifying potion but I got some health potion left over from one of the orders if you wanna add that to his tea, hyung”, the maknae offered, handing the other the vial. Giving the younger a grateful smile, Seonghwa also added a spoonful of honey to mask the taste and hummed: “This should do. Thanks, Jong. Let’s see if we can keep him functional through these stressful days.”
“Why can’t you grow the fuck up”, Mingi spat, “I get that you’re not happy with hyung’s decision but seriously. The way it is right now, you’re taking it out on everyone.” – “It’s true”, Yunho sighed, soothingly resting his hand against Mingi’s back. San and Wooyoung made eye contact, not expecting their friend to be this mad at them because he hadn’t previously had any part in the argument. Furrowing his brows, San muttered: “How are we taking it out on everyone?” – “Are you dumb-“ – “Mingi-yah, shush”, Yunho warned, “Well, who do you think is brewing the potions on his own while Seonghwa-hyung takes care of the thing you two brought home? Who do you think is covering Hongjoong’s work while he covers both of yours? Mingi and I still get away mostly unscathed but we need to watch our friends fall apart unable to do much to prevent it, other than deliver a message from Hongjoong-hyung. He said, he’s sorry. Would’ve told you himself but you’re not really giving him a chance to. Did you know his magical aura has faded almost completely?”
Not wanting Mingi to say anything hurtful, Yunho dragged the younger back out again, hoping their words might have knocked some sense into their friends. While San and Wooyoung still contemplated, a shrill screech made their blood run cold.
Seonghwa had just delivered Hongjoong his tea, Haku still perched on his shoulder, when the leader suddenly crumpled tk the floor. The eldest had only barely managed to catch Hongjoong in time before he could hit his head, while Haku panickedly flapped his wings. Yeosang too was by his hyungs' side in an instant, gently touching his fingertips to the leader's temple. “There’s nothing left”, he informed Seonghwa as he brushed a strand of hair out of Hongjoong's face, “And he's burning up, hyung.” – “Can you help me get him to the couch?”, the older hummed, trying to keep the fear out of his voice. In a combined effort, Seonghwa and Yeosang moved Hongjoong to the couch and elevated his legs on a stack of pillows. Jongho brought a glass of water, having overheard the commotion.
When Wooyoung rushed to the living room, the first thing he heard was Haku's distressed cry, the little dragon climbing all over Hongjoong's chest. Gently tapping a finger to the leader's temple, Seonghwa funneled some of his own power into the other, who soon regained consciousness with a pained groan. “Stay down, Joong”, the eldest whispered, “You'll be okay, just rest for now.” – “Hyung, what happened?”, Wooyoung gasped, heart racing as he took in Hongjoong's ghostly pale complexion. Glaring at his dongsaeng, Seonghwa hissed: “Overused his magic obviously.” – “’m sorry”, the younger mumbled, glacing at San who had walked up behind him. “Is he going to be alright?”, San asked quietly, arm wrapped around Wooyoung’s waist for comfort. Seonghwa pinched the bridge of his nose but it was Hongjoong himself, who answered: “I’m fine, Sannie.” – “No, you not”, the younger denied, “and it’s our fault.”
Despite the climbing fever, Hongjoong slowly became more coherent, weakly apologizing. “Would you please stop, hyung?”, Wooyoung shushed as he took a seat on the edge of the couch, “If you’ll hear it, I am the one who’s sorry.” – “So am I”, San piped in, resting his hand on Wooyoung’s shoulder. Gently petting Haku as the dragon curled up on the leader’s tummy, Wooyoung hummed: “You were right in making Seonghwa-hyung care for him. I don’t know what we were thinking but we would be in way over our heads caring for him and he actually seems to be pretty well behaved.” – “Just a little scared of heights”, Hongjoong chuckled, closing his eyes. That made the others laugh too and Wooyoung added: “Thanks for taking such good care of Haku, Seonghwa-hyung.” – “And thanks to the rest of you for keeping this business running while we childishly abandoned our duties”, San sighed, glancing at the chaos of enchanted items on the work desk.
San and Wooyoung hurried to get to work, while Hongjoong and Haku rested on the couch. With the little dragon supervised, Seonghwa went to trade places with Jongho, so the maknae could finally take a break. Jongho took the opportunity to throw together a nourishing meal for Hongjoong, well aware that the older had been skipping his meals to keep up with the demands of his work but he wouldn’t be able to recover his magic if he didn’t take care of his body. “How’re you feeling, hyung”, Jongho whispered as he placed the plate on the coffee table. Blearily blinking up at his dongsaeng, Hongjoong mumbled: “Dizzy, everything hurts.” – “You didn’t even get to drink your tea. Hang on. Do you think you can sit up?”, the maknae hummed, coaxing Haku to move to Hongjoong’s lap instead, “Here, drink something.” – “Thank you, Jong”, the leader winced as he sat up. The tea seemed to soothe the headache a little and Jongho and Haku kept him company while he forced down some of the food.
When Yunho and Mingi returned from the forest, they were equally shocked and relieved because they hadn’t expected Hongjoong to burn himself out that fast but at least, San and Wooyoung had returned to their usual coven dynamics. “Just for a bit to bring down your fever”, Yunho shushed sympathetically when the cold cloth, he draped over Hongjoong’s forehead made the leader shiver. Brushing his thumb over the leader’s temple, Yunho muttered: “I don’t need my magic as much when I’m out foraging, I’ll share some with you if you accept it.” Though he hated taking from his dongsaengs, Hongjoong gave a small nod, relaxing as a wave of warmth flooded him, the headache receding. “It’s not enough for you to actually perform magic but you should feel less lousy, so you might be able to rest more peacefully”, Yunho explained as he removed his hand.
For the rest of the day, the coven house was surprisingly quiet only the soft muttering of spells and the occasional clinking of a pot being heard as the members worked while Hongjoong slept on the couch. It would be a while till he’d fully recover his magic but with Seonghwa’s potions and the power of the summer solstice, he’d be alright.
Well, it sounds to me like you need a little bit of TLC.
Fandom: Stray Kids
Sickie: Seungmin
Caregiver: mainly Felix
Prompts:
Feveruary 2025: 13 “I wouldn’t even trust you to boil tea in your current condition.”, 24 “Don’t you think you should stay home today?”, 28 “Well, it sounds to me like you need a little bit of TLC.”, alt 4 sneezing fit @feveruary
Fluffbingo: forehead kiss @flufftober
March whumpness 2025: 1 “I’m fine.” @marchwhumpness
No one’s POV.:
“Don’t you think you should stay home today?”, Felix hummed, voice even huskier than usual as he had just woken up. He dropped his spoon into the bowl of cereal and got up from the dining table to check on Seungmin, who had just shuffled out to the kitchen, dressed for a day of schedule. Shaking his head, the younger suppressed a sniffle and claimed: “I’m fine.” – “You probably don’t want to hear it but you don’t look fine”, Felix pointed out, taking Seungmin by surprise when he cupped his cheeks. The vocalist pulled away and shrugged: “Looks can be deceiving.” – “Yeah, but- You’re also running a fever”, the Aussie frowned, “Are you going to claim, your temperature can be deceiving?” – “Your hands were cold, so your perception was probably off”, Seungmin hummed, scanning the counter while discreetly running the cuff of his sleeve under his nose.
None of his options for breakfast looked appealing at all to Seungmin, probably because his throat ached, but he knew he’d need the energy to get through the day. Defeated, he opted for a fruit smoothie and winced at the sound of the blender. Gosh, why did his head feel like it’d split in half just because there was a normal everyday noise? “What’s first today?”, he yawned, barely able to avoid an embarrassing voice crack. Pulling out his phone, Felix scanned over their schedule and smiled: “Lucky you. Meeting in the morning, photoshoot around noon and then after lunch, we’ll have dance practice for the rest of the day.” Seungmin groaned. How was he lucky? There was no way he’d be able to focus during the meeting. He was indeed running a fever, so being cooked under the professional lighting would definitely make it worse. Not to mention dancing. That sounded like hell.
“What? The meeting is chill, you won’t have to do much but sit there. You can rest your voice during the photoshoot. Just smile and look pretty as you always do”, Felix chuckled, “You won’t be participating during dance practice anyway, so since it’s last for the day, you’ll get home early.” – “Why wouldn’t I participate?!”, Seungmin huffed, forcing down his smoothie. Giving the vocalist an incredulous look, Felix sighed: “You don’t really think that Chan will let you once he had a look at you?” The younger wanted to argue back but his nose had started to itch and he had to turn to the side, catching a throaty sneeze in the cuff of his sleeve. “Bless you, is your throat ok-“, Felix frowned but got cut off by a second, more forceful sneeze. “Ow”, Seungmin sniffled and massaged his throat. When he caught the Aussie’s look, he shot him a glare though, warning him not to mention it.
Despite not wanting to let on that he was feeling a bit under the weather, Seungmin still put on a scarf that didn’t exactly match with the rest of his outfit. At least it protected his throat and felt soft enough not to irritate his fever-sensitive skin. He had downed something for the headache after he finished his smoothie but so far, it hadn’t kicked in and he really prayed it would before the meeting. If only his nose would stop bothering him. “Did you bring tissues?”, Felix asked worriedly, watching the vocalist scrub at his face. Glaring at the Aussie with watering eyes, Seungmin groaned: “Of co-ourse. Do you- do you think I’m stu-huh hNXT-uh! H- hNXT heh- hNXT *sniff* Heh'ESHHuh!“ – “Bless!”, Felix laughed, “You should probably use one then. Stop stifling though. You’ll hurt your head.”
“You want to what?! No! Most definitely not. What were you thinking?”, Chan frowned closely scanning Seungmin. Even to Felix, who had seen the younger this morning, it was obvious that the trip to the company building had been draining already. Seeing Seungmin’s face fall, the leader added: “I really think you should’ve stayed home today. You don’t look well at all and dance practice is absolutely out of question.” – “But I’m fine, hyung”, Seungmin sighed, cursing his voice for ruining his argument by cracking. Chan shook his head: “You’re not. I can tell you’re running a fever just by looking at your eyes and you never sneeze like this unless you’re sick.” – “Like what?”, the younger pouted, scrubbing at his nose as he hoped it wouldn’t betray him. “In fits like you just did when you walked in”, Chan sighed, “Really, Seung, take it easy today.”
Seungmin didn’t intend to overdo it. He just wanted to participate like everyone else, nothing more but also nothing less. The meeting truly wasn’t so bad, if only his nose hadn’t been so incredibly itchy. It seemed Chan had a point, Seungmin found himself caught in multiple sneezing fits over the course of the meeting, which he of course stifled as to not disrupt the conversation. As Felix had predicted, by the end of the meeting, Seungmin had a splitting headache and his eyes watered from the built up congestion and pain. He couldn’t imagine the discomfort of standing under the flood lights and have his pictures taken.
Once the meeting was finally over, Seungmin reached for his water glass desperate to soothe his throat. Just when he was about to lift it to his lips, he was overcome by another sneeze. “Heh’ESH! Heh-Heh’ESHHuh! H-Heh'ESHHuh!” – “Bless you”, Jeongin laughed as he took the glass from Seungmin’s shaking hand. When the vocalist looked down, he realized what had the maknae so entertained. He had spilled most of his drink on his shirt and he couldn’t help but shudder when the moisture soaked through the fabric and touched his feverish skin. Jeongin’s smile immediately faltered when he noticed the tears of frustration springing to Seungmin’s eyes. Before he could comment on it though, Chan had already shrugged out of his hoodie and held it out to the second youngest, smiling: “Change into that, so you don’t get cold on the way home.” – “Thanks. Thought we’re having a photoshoot now”, Seungmin sniffled, rubbing his eyes. Clicking his tongue, the leader agreed: “The rest of us yeah, you’re going home though. Our stylists are great but I don’t think they’ll be able to conceal how poorly you feel. Seriously, I wouldn’t even trust you to boil tea in your current condition.”
Seungmin didn’t even have the energy to feel offended by Chan’s statement, secretly glad the eldest had made the decision for him because he could never make that decision himself without the guilt eating him up inside. “Try to get some rest and I’ll be home soon”, Felix informed. He was still banned from participating during dance practice but he had intended to at least watch. Holding back a cough, Seungmin forced out: “If you want to watch, you can do that. I can handle myself, Lix. You don’t need to leave early for me.” – “Well, it sounds to me like you need a little bit of TLC”, the Aussie chuckled, “If you need medicine or anything I should pick up on the way, text me. I really don’t mind.” – “I’ll give you your hoodie back once I washed it ‘cause it’ll probably get some snot on it”, Seungmin rasped, making Chan laugh. Petting the vocalist’s head, Chan hummed: “Don’t worry, it’s fine. Just focus on getting home and resting, so you get better soon.” The younger nodded obediently and hoisted his bag over his shoulder. He had already turned to leave when Felix called after him: “And Min, stop stifling your sneezes!”
When Seungmin got back to the dorm, he regretted not having listened to Felix earlier. The headache had gotten so much worse and if the congestion was truly to blame for that, he might actually give into the desire to take a hot bath. Sniffling thickly, he shuffled to his room and grabbed some warm pajamas before filling the tub. Maybe a few drops of eucalyptus oil would clear him up, so it was a good thing Felix always kept a small bottle in their bathroom cabinet. Wasn’t it also supposed to help with muscle aches? Hopefully. Seungmin felt painfully stiff and sore after sitting in that meeting for so long and the car ride hadn’t helped with that. Yet, he reminded himself that as much as he wanted to relax, he mustn’t fall asleep in the bath.
Falling asleep in the tub soon became impossible anyway, as Seungmin had to realize. The strong scent of the bath oil had him trapped in repeated sneezing fits that drained him of what little energy he had left but also frequently startled him awake again. The hot water must have raised his temperature because by the time he couldn’t stand the tingling in his sinuses anymore, his muscles had seemingly turned into dough. Getting out and draining the tub took unspeakable effort and Seungmin weakly sat down on the fuzzy rug, towel wrapped tightly around his shivering form. Despite having prepared his pajamas, he only managed to throw on his bath gown before laying down on the rug and closing his eyes.
Felix unlocked the door to their shared apartment as quietly as possible, so he wouldn’t wake Seungmin if he managed to take a nap. A small smile tugged at his lips when he recognized the scent wafting through the apartment. It seemed the vocalist did his best to take care of himself. What Felix hadn’t expected, was to find the other curled up on the bathroom floor, hair still damp. “Min, hey? What are you doing down here?”, the dancer hummed as he crouched next to Seungmin. Blearily blinking up at Felix, the younger breathed: “When did you get home? What time is it?” – “I just got home and it’s five pm now. You didn’t faint, did you?”, the Aussie explained, helping the other sit up. “Fuck”, Seungmin rasped, rolling his shoulders, “No, was jus’ asleep.” Sleeping on the bathroom floor for close to three hours certainly hadn’t helped his sore muscles. “Let me help you to bed?”, Felix offered, holding out his hand.
After hoisting his dizzy dongsaeng to his feet and maneuvering him onto the closed toilet lid, Felix left and turned on the kettle. When he returned, Seungmin had changed into his pajamas and tried to walk back to his room himself. Noticing the younger sway, Felix wrapped an arm around his waist and accompanied him the rest of the way. Settling the vocalist on the edge of his bed, Felix sighed: “Did you have any medicine yet?” – “No, didn’t eat either. Jus’- jus’ wanted a bath”, Seungmin sniffled, pulling the collar of his pajama shirt over the lower half of his face, “Heh'ESHHuh! Heh-hh'ESHH *ugh* h-heh- *sniff* h’Eshuh!” – “Bless you!”, the dancer hummed sympathetically, “Your tea should be ready in a moment and I’ll go grab some other supplies too, yeah? Be right back.”
As promised, when Felix returned with a steaming cup of tea, he placed the bottle of fever reducers right next to it. Taking a seat on the edge of the mattress, he turned his attention to the fruit in his hands and smiled: “Before you take your meds, you should have something in your stomach. I figured you didn’t have too much of an appetite but you should still have some vitamin c.” Felix calmly peeled the tangerine and handed Seungmin the bite-sized bits. Though completely drained and not hungry in the slightest, Seungmin nibbled the few bites, Felix so fondly prepared for him and tiredly downed the pills with a few sips of tea. He hadn’t wanted the dancer to come home early because of him but now he was glad that he had. “Do you want to sleep some more, Min?”, Felix whispered and helped the other pull the blanket all the way up to his chin to help with the chills. Nodding, Seungmin mumbled: “Would you stay, Lix?” He wouldn’t openly admit it but some TLC might really be all he needed right now.
Feveruary 2025: 3 caught in the rain, 14 falling asleep in the wrong place, 15 guiding sickie back to bed, 20 lost voice/strep throat @feveruary
Fluffbingo: sleepy hug, “You’re the best.” @flufftober
No one’s POV.:
Should Vernon have known about the rain after it had already been pouring all week? Yeah, he probably should. Was the rain the last thing on his mind when he woke up late after forgetting to set an alarm? Most definitely. Knowing he wouldn’t be able to make it to practice on time, Vernon threw on some sweatpants and a t-shirt before grabbing his backpack and rushing out the door. He loved his group and how large their team was but that ultimately meant more people to let down by being late. If only he had had the same morning schedule as Jun, DK and Dino, they would’ve made sure he was up but they had wanted to grant him that extra hour of sleep that ended up being an extra two hours.
With the adrenaline soaring through his veins, Vernon didn’t feel the cold, only the rain in his eyes was a slight bother. He hadn’t wanted to wait for a cab, so now he was paying the prize for it, his clothes soon soaked through to the skin. Luckily, he was wearing black, so it wasn’t immediately apparent, just how soaked he was. Arriving to practice late was already more than embarrassing enough. To Vernon’s surprise, the scolding turned out relatively mild, though he couldn’t tell whether the members had pity on him because he looked like a drowned dog or whether they didn’t want to waste anymore valuable practice time on him.
Jumping straight into practice had some unexpected benefits. Vernon didn’t get the chance to feel cold in his wet clothes, immediately staring to run hot. At some point, he wasn’t sure if the moisture in his clothes were rain or sweat and honestly, it didn’t really matter either. Vernon wanted to make up for being late by giving it his all and going all out during practice, in hindsight probably exerting himself more than he should’ve.
“Please tell me you have some dry clothes to change into”, Seokmin frowned when practice was finally over. Vernon was far more drenched than any of them, so he knew it couldn’t all be sweat. Wiping his face on his towel, the younger groaned: “Fuck, I forgot. Only grabbed my bag and left.” – “Alright, we’ll find you something”, Seokmin sighed, digging through his bag. He only had a spare shirt but with so many members, chances were high someone else would be carrying something.
Jun had a pair of sweatpants in his locker and promised to grab them for Vernon, while Jeonghan offered his hoodie. Though he ended up looking a little funny, Vernon was glad to finally feel dry again. Being caught in the rain and exerting himself in wet clothes for four hours had taken quite a toll on his mood and to make matters worse, he felt completely off now, flashing hot and cold. “You good now?”, Seokmin asked as they prepared to head to a meeting. Not wanting to vent his sour mood at the older, Vernon nodded. It was his fault that his day had begun so shitty. If only he had set an alarm.
Seated between Wonwoo and Seokmin, Vernon easily let his thoughts drift away during the meeting. He was brought back to focus when Wonwoo nudged his arm and gently slid his water bottle closer. Getting the hint, Vernon took a few sips and shuddered. He was starting to feel a little chilled, despite having changed his clothes. The water had felt nice on his throat though, so he shot his hyung a small smile. He was so spaced out, that he didn’t even notice how they took a small break, startling when Wonwoo hummed: “Are you okay, Sollie? You’re so quiet.” – “Throat hurts”, the younger mumbled, resting his chin on his hands. Not even finding the energy to keep up appearances anymore.
Vernon closed his eyes as Wonwoo’s hand ran up and down his back. “Really not your day, huh?”, Seokmin chuckled softly but it soon turned into a frown, when Vernon cupped his sweater paws over his lips and muffled a painful sounding cough. Jeonghan looked up at the sound and shot Wonwoo a look, they both silently agreeing that their second youngest was most definitely coming down with something. Gently tugging the hood off of Vernon’s head, Wonwoo cupped the younger’s forehead and clicked his tongue: “You’re pretty warm. Think you’re running a fever?” – “I dunno, might still be from dancing”, Vernon mumbled, his voice undeniably hoarse, “Just having an off day, will probably be fine once I take a nap.” – “If you say so”, Seokmin hummed, not wanting to argue with their dongsaeng though he too had some concerns.
Before the meeting resumed, they had gotten Vernon some lozenges for his throat but he only seemed to grow sleepier and they couldn’t shake the feeling the he was starting to run a temperature. He had spent the rest of the day in a fog and looked down in confusion when he noticed that he was wearing a scarf all of a sudden. It looked a lot like Jihoon’s but why was it around his neck?
“He’s so out of it”, Jihoon commented as he returned to his seat next to Seungcheol. Following a harsh coughing fit from Vernon, he had gotten up to lend his obviously unwell dongsaeng his scarf but the younger seemed to be so far in his own world that he didn’t even blink when Jihoon wrapped the scarf around his neck. Seungcheol studied Vernon closely and sighed: “Glad he doesn’t have anymore schedule after this meeting but by the looks of it, I doubt he’ll be fit to work tomorrow. Whatever this is, he’s only just coming down with it.” – “Can you clear his schedule for tomorrow?” – “You can trust that I will try my very best”, the leader muttered, “You know it’s always a gamble.”
“Come on, Sollie. Time to go home”, Seokmin smiled as he picked up his dongsaeng’s bag. Vernon weakly pushed his chair back and got to his feet, holding onto the table for a moment. Linking their arms, Jun promised: “I’ll make you some nice soup once we’re home. You sound like you need it.” Vernon wondered how he could sound like he needed it when he hadn’t said a word in the past two hours. Doubling over with another harsh coughing fit was all the explanation he needed. Maybe he wasn’t as discrete in his suffering as he had convinced himself he was.
Gently easing the younger down on his bed, Jun instructed: “Change into something comfy and I’ll have some soup ready soon.” Vernon nodded obediently. Part of him was really craving a hot shower but the task seemed so strenuous, he wasn’t sure he’d manage. “Hey, you wanna have a movie night later? You look like you could use some maknae-time as a cheer up after such a bad day”, Chan smiled as he popped his head in. Looking up at his fellow makane-liner with glossy eyes, Vernon rasped: “My eyes and head hurt but if we watch something I already know, so I can just listen….” – “Sure, you can pick whatever you want and I’ll provide cuddles and snacks”, the younger giggled, “Come on, get ready for dinner.”
“Hyu-“, Vernon forced out, turning away coughing. When he turned back to Jun, tears dotted his lashes. He tried asking his question again but no sound would come out, so he pulled out his phone and typed: ‘Hyung, I think I need to call S.Coups-hyung. I have a fever.’ – “You only figured that out now?!”, the older gasped, “Sol, trust me, we’re all well aware and S.Coups-hyung knows too. He’s doing his best to clear your schedule.” Vernon looked so adorably confused, Jun couldn’t help but coo as he guided the younger to a chair at the dining table. “How?”, Vernon mouthed. Ruffling the younger’s hair, Jun chuckled: “You’re so out of it. You always get so spacey when you run a temperature. Today it was as if only your body was present.”
Soon Jun, Seokmin, Vernon and Chan were all gathered around the dining table, quietly eating dinner for the sake of Vernon’s headache. Seokmin had brought the younger a small writing pad for communication when he learned he had lost his voice from all the coughing. “Do you think he’ll be up for movie night, hyung?”, Chan asked softly as he helped Jun clear the table while Seokmin went to find some medicine for Vernon. Shrugging, Jun hummed: “He looks like he’s about to fall asleep with his head on the table but maybe he’ll appreciate the company?”
“Sollie, hey, wake up for me for a moment, yeah?”, Seokmin whispered, stroking the younger’s hair, “Swallow those, will you? They should help with the pain and fever.” Yawning, Vernon propped his head up and chased the pills down with a few sips of water. He almost went back to sleep, when Seokmin poked him again and smiled: “You can sleep but let’s at least get you back to bed first, hm?” Chan joined them right away, helping Seokmin manhandle him to his room. “Let me guess, you just wanna sleep?” Vernon desperately shook his head, though he could barely keep his eyes open. “Wait, I’ll get your writing pad”, the maknae promised, hurrying back to the table. When he handed it to his friend, the other clumsily scribbled ‘movie’.
‘Where he go?’, Vernon scribbled, pouting at Seokmin when Chan disappeared. He knew he wasn’t that great company right now but he figured the maknae would watch a movie with him anyway. Helping Vernon under the blanket, Seokmin shrugged. He had no idea what the younger was up to.
Not long after, Chan returned with his laptop, a steaming cup of tea and a bag of cough drops. “I promised you snacks, didn’t I? Sick-people snacks will have to do though”, Chan beamed as he placed the items on the nightstand. As soon as he took a seat on the bed, Vernon pulled him into a sleepy hug, breathing: “You’re the best.”
Feveruary 2025: 5 “Could you just hold me?”, alt 2 cool wash cloth @feveruary
Fluffbingo: hoodie @flufftober
March of pain 2025: 15 headache, 20 migraine @marchofpain
March of whump 2025: 3 “Don’t leave me.” @marchwhumpness
Angstpril 2025: 20 fear @chaos-company
No one’s POV.:
Beomgyu already knew it wouldn’t be his day, when the shrill ringing of his alarm pulled him from a restless slumber. He had already felt a little out of it but figured a good night’s rest would restore his energy. Maybe it would’ve. If only he had been able to sleep. For most of the night, he had lain awake, countless thoughts circling through his head. It had only been two hours before his alarm went off, that he finally managed to doze a little.
Sitting up in bed, Beomgyu switched off his alarm and rubbed his face. The movement made his head pound and he tried to massage away the pressure behind his temples but there was little use. He released a shaky breath before finding the strength to get to his feet and shuffle to the bathroom. The bright light above the mirror made his eyes sting and water, sending a jab of pain through his skull. “Hurry up, Gyu”, Taehyun muttered as he bumped into the other, “Driver will be here shortly. Did you turn off your alarm again?” Stumbling from the sudden impact, Beomgyu clutched onto the sink. How could he possibly be running late? With how badly he had slept, there was no way he could’ve missed an earlier alarm.
Beomgyu hastily went through his morning routine, ignoring his growing headache for the sake of making it to his schedule in time. Checking his phone, he winced at the brightness of the screen but confirmed that he was luckily enough to be scheduled for recording today. Small graces. There was no way he could power through dance practice today. Deciding that looks didn’t matter today, Beomgyu slipped on an oversized hoodie and pulled the hood over his head to try and shield his eyes. He didn’t know why but they were giving him a hard time, his vision spotty for now apparent reason than his lack of sleep.
“You ready to go?”, Soobin asked, already tying his shoes, “We can grab some breakfast for you on the way, ‘cause you’re kinda late.” The younger gave an unenthusiastic hum, fumbling to put on his shoes. It messed with his balance quite a bit and Soobin needed to steady him for a moment, so he wouldn’t fall over. Buckling his seatbelt, Yeonjun handed Beomgyu a thermos and smiled: “Coffee. Figured you might need a little boost.” – “You’re a lifesaver, hyung”, the younger muttered as he shakily lifted the thermos to his lips. Hopefully, the caffeine would ease his headache and get him functional before they’d arrive at the company building.
Beomgyu didn’t want to admit it but he had never had a headache that severe. It left him dizzy and he clung to Hueningkai as they made their way up to the recording studio. “Are you okay, hyung?”, the maknae asked when he felt Beomgyu’s grip on his arm tighten. The older hummed indecisively, too focused on placing one foot in front of the other to express himself. To be completely honest, he was a little scared. His eyes had started playing tricks on him, making him see weird flashed of light, where he was convinced shouldn’t be any.
Yeonjun and Soobin exchanged a look when they watched Beomgyu collapse onto the couch with a groan. Taking a seat next to the younger, Yeonjun hummed: “You alright, bud? You don’t look so hot.” Beomgyu pulled his hood lower to protect his eyes and winced: “Headache.” – “I see”, the eldest smiled sympathetically, “What about your eyes? You keep looking at the floor.” – “’s too bright. Makes me see splotchy”, Beomgyu mumbled as he rubbed at his eyes. Comfortingly rubbing his dongsaeng’s back, Yeonjun explained: “Soobin’s finding you something to eat and once you got something in your tummy, you can have a painkiller.” – “Thanks, hyung. Not sure I can eat right now though. My tummy’s meh”, Beomguy admitted, palming his middle. “You haven’t eaten anything yet, so that’s probably why your tummy feels weird”, Yeonjun smiled, “You’ll feel better once you had a bite.”
Beomgyu did in fact not feel better after eating. Yeonjun and Soobin had traded places when the leader returned with a sandwich for their dongsaeng. With a trembling hand, Beomgyu popped back the pill before pulling his hood over his face and resting his head on Soobin’s shoulder. “We arranged for you to record last, so there’ll be enough time for the painkiller to kick in”, the leader hummed, “Try to take a little nap if you’re able to.” Though Beomgyu appreciated to gesture, he just wanted to get the recording over with, so that he might be allowed to go ho earlier.
Half an hour later, Beomgyu was glad that he didn’t have to be in the recording booth right now. His headache had only gotten worse and the studio felt unbearably stuffy to him, so he couldn’t even imagine how uncomfortable the inside of the booth must be. He had his knees drawn up to his chest to try and get as much strain off of his stomach as possible but so far, it did little to help. Nausea licked at the back of his throat, his stomach doing somersaults while the slightest noise made his head thump. Soobin glanced down at the younger when he picked up on a soft whimper. “You okay?”, he whispered quietly, hand stroking Beomgyu’s head through his hood. Sniffling weakly, the younger breathed: “No.”
Beomgyu gripped onto Soobin’s arm as he tried to ride out the pain and nausea but only seemed to spiral. “You wanna get some fresh air? You look like you need a breather”, the leader cooed, wrapping his arm around his dongsaeng to help him up. The world tilted when Beomgyu found himself hoisted to his feet and he gagged into his mouth, barely able to swallow it back down but Soobin didn’t seem to notice as he walked him out of the studio. The leader had just closed the door behind them when his dongsaeng’s nails dug into his arm. When he turned to Beomgyu, what little he could see of the younger’s face, had turned ashy white, his knees buckling all of a sudden. With how suddenly the boy had gone down, all Soobin could do was slow his fall and ease him down gently.
Cradling his pounding head, Beomgyu leant to the side his meager breakfast and coffee spilling from his lips. Soobin grabbed his shoulders and steadied him as he retched again, almost knocking himself over. “Breathe, Gyu”, the leader shushed, trying to calm his dongsaeng who only became more worked up. The force of his heaves caused his vision to cup out for a few seconds and Beomgyu clung to Soobin arm as he sobbed. To say Beomgyu was terrified would’ve been an understatement. Never before had a headache left him this miserable and he barely hung onto consciousness as Soobin moved him away from the puddle of sick. Propping the younger up against the wall, Soobin whispered: “You’re okay. Looks like you’re having a migraine. I’ll go get you some water, ‘kay?” – “Don’t leave me”, Beomgyu whimpered, reaching for his hyung.
Not having the heart to leave his dongsaeng alone in this condition, Soobin texted Yeonjun to bring them some water and tissues. “What’s going on?”, the eldest frowned as he crouched in front of his friends. He knew Beomgyu had been feeling poorly but this seemed like quite the escalation. Accepting a tissue, Soobin dabbed at Beomgyu’s lips and sighed: “Migraine most likely. Gonna take Gyu home once he got a chance to catch his breath.” – “Aw, shit”, Yeonjun whispered, “Have some water, hm?” – “Can’t”, the younger whimpered as he buried his face in his sweater paws. The two sat with Beomgyu for a few minutes before he was shifted into Yeonjun’s arms, so Soobin could clear his schedules for the rest of the day.
“Alright, I got permission to take you home, Gyu”, Soobin smiled when he returned, both his and his dongsaeng’s bags slung over his shoulder. Reaching into his bag, he pulled out his sunglasses, handed them to Beomgyu and explained: “It’ll be brighter when we go outside, so you should protect your eyes. Do you think you can stand?” – “No, help?”, the younger sniffled, reaching out his hands. Gently putting the sunglasses on Beomgyu, Soobin took his hands and with Yeonjun’s help pulled the boy to his feet. The younger swayed on his feet and Soobin quickly wrapped a protective arm around him, guiding him down the hallway while Yeonjun went to find some cleaning supplies.
The way back to their dorm was an adventure too, Beomgyu spending most of it cradling his head as he tried to breathe through the nausea and pain. Soobin had given him a plastic bag but considering how badly throwing up hurt his head, Beomgyu fought the urge with all his might. Since he still felt awfully faint when they finally arrived, Soobin pulled him onto his back and carefully carried him up to the dorm. Getting his shoes off was a struggle but Beomgyu eventually found himself sprawled out on his bed, the thrash can pulled up close next to it. “Do you want me to make you some warm broth to settle your stomach?”, the leader asked as he took a seat next to Beomgyu. Voice muffled by his pillow, the younger slurred: “No, jus g’nna puke ‘gain.” – “Possibly”, Soobin agreed, gently running his fingers through his dongsaeng’s hair, “It’ll hurt less when there’s something in your tummy though.”
Beomgyu was already convinced his hyung had left him to succumb to his misery but the elder eventually returned with a cool washcloth, whispering: “Come on, let’s elevate your head a bit to ease the pressure. The cold cloth should make the pain more bearable.” – “Hyung, how do you do this all the time”, Beomgyu whimpered, almost turning to putty as Soobin rearranged his pillow and gently positioned his head, so he could drape the cool washcloth over his forehead. “I dunno, bud. It sucks but it’ll pass”, the leader cooed, stroking Beomgyu’s pale cheek, “Anything I can do to make you more comfortable?” – “Could you just hold me?”, the younger requested and who was Soobin to deny?
Feveruary 2025: 4 herbal remedy, 21 from better to worse @feveruary
Fluffbingo: “This was a bad idea.”, late night @flufftober
March of pain 2025: 6 insomnia, alt 5 side effects @marchofpain
March whumpness 2025: 8 exhaustion @marchwhumpness
Whumpril 2025: 7 restless @whumpril
Angstpril 2025: 12 insomnia, 29 inevitable, alt 2 unable to help @chaos-company
No one’s POV.:
Groaning in frustration, Jeongin pulled his pillow over his head. Despite this ungodly hour, his dormmate was awake, so Jeongin inevitably was too. He never told Chan but he could hear the leader pacing in his room every night when his insomnia got bad. If he knew, the Aussie would be mortified, feeling guilty that he robbed the maknae of his precious sleep, so Jeongin kept it to himself despite ending up almost as exhausted as Chan himself. Tonight, the boy was reaching his breaking point though.
“Don’t you think you should head to bed, hyung?”, the youngest yawned, gently resting his hand on Chan’s shoulder. Startled, Chan spun around, his tried eyes needing just a moment too long to focus on Jeongin. Calming his racing heart, the leader sighed: “What are you doing up, Innie?” – “Making sure you go to sleep”, Jeongin replied, hesitant to let the older know. Chan plopped down on the couch, frowning: “Yeah, good luck with that. If I could, I would be sleeping right now. You should sleep though.” – “Hyung, I can’t sleep either with you pacing like this”, the maknae admitted, “I know you’re restless but let’s try to settle down, yeah?” – “I kept you up, didn’t I?”, Chan pouted defeatedly. Patting the spot next to him, the Aussie sighed, “I’m sorry. Go back to bed, I’ll keep it down.”
Jeongin didn’t go back, much to Chan’s dismay. Shaking his head, the younger denied: “That would only be ignoring the problem. We gotta figure out how to put you to sleep, hyung.” He couldn’t bear feeling so helpless while watching Chan suffer. “Well, I tried pretty much all there is, from meditation to prescription medicine. Nothing has helped my insomnia so far”, the leader complained as he rubbed his eyes. Jeongin took his hands and softly pulled them away from his face, knowing the dark eyebags would only become more prominent if Chan kept rubbing.
Dropping his head back against the couch, Chan squeezed his eyes shut. They stung badly from how long he had been awake and the faint light from the hallway illuminating the living room made his headache worse. “My mom once gifted me that valerian root tea when I had trouble sleeping and it always makes me really drowsy. I could make a cup for you”, Jeongin offered, giving his hyung’s hand a gentle squeeze. By now, Chan was so exhausted, he’d try anything if there was even the slightest chance for him to get some shut eye though he neither had high expectations nor hope. He nodded slowly, even if it was just for Jeongin’s peace of mind, so the younger wouldn’t feel so helpless, he’d drink the tea.
Chan massaged his temples as he listened to Jeongin rummaging through the kitchen. He always hated these late nights wen he was at the mercy of his body and mind, never knowing whether he’d be lucky enough to be granted some sleep this time. “Just so you know, it tastes really bad”, Jeongin warned, stirring a spoonful of honey into the cup of steaming tea, “I added honey because it’s impossible to get it down without any additional sweetness but you can always add more.” Despite his exhaustion, Chan chuckled. His dongsaeng surely was dramatic at times.
Or so he though…. “Ugh, that’s nasty”, the leader frowned, shuddering as he lowered the cup after a single sip. Taking a seat next to the older, Jeongin laughed softly: “Told you. If you want, we can add more honey.” – “Nah, it’s okay. Just didn’t expect it to taste this bad”, Chan denied, lightly blowing on his tea. It wasn’t worse than some of the caffeine concoctions he had forced down in desperate situations when he needed to function despite not having had any sleep, so he could handle the taste, if it meant it would help.
Against all odds, Chan had to admit that he was getting drowsy after he had finished his tea. Still, he didn’t want to go back to his room, afraid the restlessness would overtake him once again, so neither did Jeongin. “Was that your stomach?”, the maknae asked with wide eyes when a loud gurgling noise cut through the silence. Awkwardly rubbing his stomach, Chan mumbled: “Yeah, the tea’s really sloshing around in there. I don’t know if I chugged it too quickly or what….” Jeongin guided his hyung’s head down on his shoulder and hummed: “Try to relax.”
Chan really seemed to get sleepy but before Jeongin could ask him whether he finally wanted to go to bed, the older winced: “My stomach’s not handling this all that well. I’ll go sit by the window for a bit.” Sluggishly getting to his feet, Chan protectively wrapped an arm around his middle and shuffled to the dining table. He pulled a chair up to the window and opened the window to let in some fresh air. The cool night air cleared his mind and also soothed his headache a little, though it had little effect on the nausea.
Grabbing the blanket from the back of the couch, Jeongin followed Chan and draped the blanket around his shoulders. If he was going to stay there by the open window, he shouldn’t catch a chill. “You okay, hyung?”, he whispered, carding his fingers through Chan’s curls. To exhausted to lie, the Aussie just shrugged. It was safer not to give a verbal reply right now anyway. ‘This was a bad idea’, he thought to himself. He drew his knees up to his chest and rested his chin on them, breaking into a sweat. His stomach still churned angrily and it took all his remaining self-control to swallow down the saliva that rapidly filled his mouth.
Jeongin jumped a little when the chair scraped across the floor from the urgency with which Chan got to his feet. The older knew he wouldn’t make it to the bathroom, so rushed to the kitchen sink. A burp brought up a small trickle of tea, which was all the warning he got before his stomach contracted and a large wave gushed from his lips. “It tastes even worse now”, he choked out when he felt Jeongin’s hand on his back before retching again. Chan shuddered and clutched the counter for support. This was disgusting. If he had really thought the tea had tasted bad going down, he had had no idea….
“You think you can handle some water, hyung”, Jeongin frowned, offering Chan a glass. The eldest weakly shook his head, merely rinsing his mouth with some water from his cupped hands. Bringing the chair Chan had been sitting on, Jeongin instructed: “Here, sit for a moment, hyung. How’re you feeling now?” – “Wrung out”, the Aussie rasped, shivering in his sweaty shirt. “I’m sorry, I made you sick, hyung”, Jeongin pouted as he picked up the blanket that had fallen from Chan’s shoulders earlier. Once again wrapping it around his hyung’s shoulders, he sighed: “Once your stomach calms down, you should really have some water before going to bed. Your headache’s only going to get worse if you get dehydrated.” – “How’d you-“ – “You’ve had your signature headache-crease on your forehead all day”, the maknae informed. “There’s no such thing as a signature headache-crease”, Chan argued, rubbing his forehead to smooth it. Nodding, Jeongin giggled: “Yup there is and you have one.”
He managed to coax Chan into sipping some water before guiding him back to the couch. Chan still refused to go to his room, reasoning that he felt pressured to fall asleep if he went there and if he felt pressured, he’d inevitably fail. Glancing at the couch, Jeongin was truly surprised how small Chan managed to look when he curled in on himself so tightly. He didn’t want to leave the eldest there by himself, not when he looked so vulnerable and not after making him this miserable in the first place, so he pulled up a chair next to the couch and started to pet his hyung’s hair.
Jeongin’s own eyes had started to droop shut as he sat in his chair, fingers tangled in Chan’s curl when a noise caught his attention. Glancing down at Chan in the dim light, the maknae realized his friend was snoring softly. A surprised laugh escaped Jeongin’s lips. He’d have to remind Chan that puking his guts up was the solution to his insomnia.
Fixing the blanket one last time, Jeongin curled up on the other couch and finally allowed himself to go to sleep too.
Feveruary 2025: 23 “You need a tissue?”, 24 “Don’t you think you should stay home today?” @feveruary
March of pain 2025: 1 cough, 26 infection @marchofpain
March whumpness 2025: 16 cold, 17 fever/sick @marchwhumpness
Whumpril 2025: 7 restless, 27 tossing and turning, alt 7 congestion @whumpril
No one’s POV.:
“You look like shit”, Heeseung greeted when Jake shuffled into the kitchen that morning. Rubbing his eyes, Jake groaned: “Hyung, if you think this is bad, you should see Jay.” – “Let me guess, he didn’t catch a break, did he?”, the eldest frowned, taking in the dark circles under Jake’s eyes. The Aussie shook his head. Jay had come down with a cold a couple of days ago and what had merely been an annoying tickle in his throat, soon turned into a persistent cough that kept him awake for most of the night. Sluggishly dumping some cereal into aa bowl, Jake yawned: “With how restlessly he’s been tossing and turning, I wouldn’t be surprised if he was running a fever. Could you check on him before we leave, hyung? I don’t think he should go to work today but your chances of convincing him are higher than mine.” – “Will do”, Heeseung smiled and ruffled his dongsaeng’s hair, “Thanks for telling me.”
Softly knocking on the bathroom door, the eldest called: “Can I come in, Jay-ah.” The door opened and Jay blearily looked at his only hyung, toothbrush in hand. “Don’t you think you should stay home today?”, Heeseung hummed, cupping his palm over Jay’s forehead, “Mhm, you’re running a fever and Jake told me you didn’t get much sleep. How’re you feeling?” Jay squeezed his eyes shut for a moment. Those were far too many words for his sleep-muddled brain to comprehend and he needed a second to focus. “’m just cold, hyung”, he sniffled, placing his toothbrush down on the sink before taking a seat on the edge of the bathtub. If they were to have a conversation, he really needed to sit. Raising an eyebrow, the older challenged: “Plus, sick and sleep-deprived. You look awful.” – “Geez, thanks”, Jay mumbled, voice cracking painfully. Lifting his towel to his face, he muffled a scratchy cough into the damp material and sighed: “What choice do I have? We got so much to do and it’s just a cold. Doesn’t matter that I’m not fully on top of my game.”
While Jay continued to get ready for the day, Heeseung approached Jungwon and hummed: “Wonnie, could you call manager-nim, please? Jay is sick and he shouldn’t work today but he feels like he has no choice, so maybe manager-nim has an idea.” – “Of course, I’ll give him a call”, the leader nodded, already pulling out his phone, “What do you want me to tell him is wrong with Jay-hyung?” – “His cold has gotten a lot worse, he’s feverish and barely got any sleep last night”, Heeseung explained, patting his dongsaeng’s shoulder, “Thank you, Wonnie.”
“Good morning, Jay-hyung”, Jungwon smiled as he returned to the living room, finding the older slumped on the couch, “I called manager-nim for you. Damn, you really look bad.” – “Thanks”, Jay muttered, his bitter laugh quickly turning into a cough. The leader winced as he heard the congestion rattling in Jay’s chest and informed: “Manager-nim said, he’d take you to a doctor after dropping the rest of us off at the company and that he wants you to wear a mask while we’re in the car because you probably have some sort of infection and he’s afraid of it being spread.” Nodding obediently, Jay pushed off the couch, ready to head to his room to get his mask. “Thank you for calling him, Wonnie”, the older rasped before he shuffled off.
Jay scrunched up his nose as he felt it leek behind his mask. He had been sniffling through most of the ride and felt he couldn’t do so again if he didn’t want to annoy his friends. With how badly his skin was stinging, he knew his nostrils would be chapped before the day was over. “You need a tissue, hyung?”, Sunoo offered quiet, holding out the travel pack, “Keep them.” Jay nodded his thanks and pulled out one of the tissues before slipping the travel pack into his pocket. As soon as the members got out of the car, he tugged his mask down and blew his nose, cringing at the thick gurgle. It had been a while since he had last been this congested and he couldn’t even remember when that had happened. Glancing over his shoulder, his manager frowned: “Jungwon-ah wasn’t kidding. You sound like you’re drowning, kid.” – “Feel it too”, Jay muttered as he fixed his mask and leant back in his seat. He closed his eyes in hopes of easing his headache a little and hoped they’d be there soon. The sooner he could get his doctor’s visit over with, the sooner he could go back to bed.
Collapsing back into his seat, Jay sighed. The trip hadn’t been rewarding at all because he already knew he had some respiratory infection before he had left the dorm and hearing that there was not much that he could do about it except for resting and staying hydrating, was nothing short of frustrating. At least, they stopped at a pharmacy, so Jay could stock up on tissues, nasal spray, cough syrup and vapor rub. He felt a little sorry for Jake, knowing he had kept his roommate up all night with his coughing. Still, the Aussie had to attend their schedule while he could go back to bed. Not wanting that to happen again, Jay also bought earplugs for Jake before finally heading back to the dorm.
As soon as they arrived, Jay thanked the manager for taking him and for clearing his schedule before trudging inside and dropping his bag on the kitchen counter. Starting the kettle, he checked his phone and found a text from Sunghoon, who let him know that he’d be coming home sooner than expected. The younger had been casted to participate in another drama and would be sent home to memorize his script. Jay probably wouldn’t admit it but he was grateful for that. A completely empty dorm always felt weird since he had become used to having the members around him at all times.
After preparing his tea and stirring in a generous spoonful of honey, Jay sliced an apple and nibbled it slowly. He had no appetite but he really wanted to take something for his headache and the vitamins surely wouldn’t hurt, right? “Hey, what did the doctor say?”, Sunghoon asked, startling Jay into dropping his apple slice. He hadn’t heard the younger get back, a testament to the feverish haze that still clouded his mind. Clearing his throat, Jay rasped: “I should rest and drink lots of fluids, nothing fancy.” – “So, you’ll live?”, Sunghoon chuckled, earning an amused snort. “Unfortunately, you won’t get rid of me that easily”, the older joked, “I’ll take some medicine and lay down for a nap once I finish this apple. Won’t distract you from your work.”
“Oh, right! Heeseung-hyung wanted me to ask if they should bring back some takeout soup for dinner when they get home later”, Sunghoon remembered before Jay could walk off. Though he really loved cooking, Jay could see himself find the energy or motivation to do so anytime soon, so he nodded: “That’d be great. How’s Jake doing? He’s gotta be so tired.” – “He’ll be fine, don’t worry. Yeah, he’s tried but he’s handling it well”, the younger promised, wanting to ease his friend’s guilt, “But you gotta be at least as tired and I don’t like that glossy look in your eyes. You should really try to get some sleep.” Giving Sunghoon a strained smile, Jay nodded and shuffled to his room.
Placing the tea on his nightstand, Jay changed into more comfortable clothes and smiled tiredly when he pulled out his warmest sweatpants. He knew his fever was still pretty high from the way his skin immediately pricked with goosebumps when he took off his shirt. Plopping down on the edge of his bed, he used his nasal spray and allowed himself to go to sleep.
Sleep didn’t come all that easy, his muscles too achy for him to get comfortable. For most of the afternoon, he kept tossing and turning, only managing a few minutes at a time before eventually waking up to a cold hand on his forehead. He blearily blinked up at Jake, who smiled sheepishly: “Sorry, I didn’t wanna wake you.” – “’s fine”, the older breathed, voice thick with sleep and congestion, “What time’s it?” – “Eight. We just got back”, the Aussie replied, “We got you soup, do you want me to heat it up for you?” – “Yes, please. I’ll be there in a minute”, Jay sniffled, sluggishly sitting up and running a hand over his face. It took a moment for him to get his bearings but he eventually rolled out of bed and padded to the common area.
“He’s alive!”, Sunoo cheered, patting the spot next to him. Placing the bowl on the table, Jake chuckled: “Looks more like the walking dead but hey, you’re up.” – “Mean”, Jay pouted as he sat down next to Sunoo, “Would anyone be up for movie night?” – “Sure am but are you?”, Heeseung questioned, giving his friend a scrutinizing look. Shrugging his shoulders, Jay mumbled: “I might fall asleep but I feel too restless to sleep right now and I don’t wanna be alone. Maybe some distraction is exactly what I need to sleep.”
After dinner, they all settled in the living room with Jungwon and Niki collecting all the blankets they could find. Jay hadn’t said it but they could see him shiver from time to time though he tried not to let on how miserably chilled he still felt. “There are your fluids”, Sunghoon winked, handing Jay a steaming cup of tea. Carrying some supplies, Heeseung asked: “I got some cough drops and a box of tissues, you need one?” The younger nodded slightly and accepted the tissue with a hoarse ‘thanks’. He tried to blow his nose but failed, the congestion clogging it completely. When the members were satisfied, they had gotten Jay set up with everything he might need, they could finally start the movie.
“Sorry, the later the evening- the later- the worse it gets”, Jay choked out between coughs, pressing his blanket to his face. Sunoo handed him his tea and Jake calmly rubbed his back, while Sunghoon hummed: “Didn’t you bring back cough syrup earlier?” When Jay nodded, he continued: “Stay put. Just tell me where you put it and I’ll get it for you.” – “Nightstand”, the other forced out, voice almost gone by now.
Hurrying back to the living room, Sunghoon passed Jake a little jar and measured out the cough syrup, announcing: “I also found the vapor rub. Figured it’d help you breathe a little easier.” Jay knocked back the medicine and took a sip of tea to wash away the taste. Heeseung passed him a cough drop to suck on while Jake opened the vapor rub and dipped his finger in. “Relax and try to breathe deeply”, the Aussie instructed softly as he slipped his hand under Jay’s shirt, gently spreading the ointment on his chest. Since it seemed to soothe his friend, Jake kept his hand on the other’s chest as they resumed their movie. Jake’s hand trailing in slow circles over his chest was Jay’s last conscious memory that night before sleep finally took him under.
Angstpril 2025: 6 Holding back tears, 13 hiding their pain, 26 accident, 27 giving everything they've got @angstpril
No one’s POV.:
Approaching another comeback, the group had been working incredibly hard. The dance-racha had barely been outside the practice room all week, perfecting the choreographies for 3racha’s new songs. They were on a tight schedule and with Felix’ back giving him troubles, it had been mainly up to Minho and Hyunjin to ensure they’d get everything done on time. Keeping in mind that they’d also have to teach the choreos to the rest of the group. With Hyunjin frequently being gone for individual schedules since he had struck another modeling deal, Minho had taken it upon himself to stay at the company building longer each night to compensate for his dongsaengs’ absence. When their other schedules were too tight and he couldn’t stay longer, he’d cut his breaks and occasionally skip his lunch for those extra thirty minutes.
Luckily, Hyunjin and Felix were fast learners and Minho had no problem bringing them up to speed with the steps he had added. That way, they could at least help him teach the other members because Minho had found his patience wearing thin lately and he doubted he’d be able to keep his calm. It was probably his lack of sleep lately that had left him on this emotional rollercoaster and that the members would probably understand if he told them how worn down he was from trying to take as much off his dongsaengs’ shoulders as possible but he wasn’t one to complain and he knew how guilty Hyunjin and Felix would feel. He’d have to suck it up and try not to make his tense nerves anyone else’s problem.
The had been practicing for most of the day already. ‘Like usual’, Minho thought bitterly. He loved dancing but doing it all day every day was still a bit over the top. Now however, the rest of the group joined them and they could present what they had come up with before teaching them the steps. Felix had been struggling with the steps himself, so Minho had once again skipped his lunch to help the Aussie get it right, which he now kind of regretted. His legs already felt crampy and he wished he could’ve sat down for a couple of minutes but their time was tight, so no break it was.
Minho’s mind felt slow when he walked up to the speakers to start the music, knowing the others were watching them. ‘Focus!’, he reprimanded himself, pinching his arm. He couldn’t afford to slack off now. The world still seemed off kilter when Minho got into position and the first beats rang out. That had happened a lot lately and he figured it was him running low on energy but he had gotten increasingly good at ignoring it lately.
Everything seemed to be going well and Felix nailed the sequence they had been working on till the very last minute, so Minho was glad they had taken the time to go over it instead of getting lunch. With every spin though, his vision blurred as if his eyes had gotten to slow to follow his body’s movement, while his left ankle felt stiff, leaving him unable to put as much energy into the jumps as he would’ve liked. Having been a dancer for so long, Minho should’ve known that what he was doing was a recipe for disaster and before they managed to get to the bridge, him and Felix collided, tripping over each other’s feet. A sharp pain shot up Minho’s leg and he gritted his teeth before turning to check on Felix. With tears trailing down his freckled cheeks, the Aussie struggled to his feet, one hand pressed firmly against his back.
“Gosh, Lix. I’m so sorry!”, Minho stammered as he forced himself up off the floor. The pain that shot through his ankle took him by surprise and nearly knocked him back down but the adrenaline kept him on his feet. Felix had been making so much improvement lately, it couldn’t all have been for nothing just because of Minho’s clumsiness.
The group had all but crowded around the youngest dancer who tried some gentle movements, harshly scrubbing away his tears. Holding back another wave of tears, Felix sniffled: “I-I’m okay.” The pain was still evident in his voice and after checking the younger over, Minho decided to not take any risks. “How about you sit the rest of the day out? You got all the steps down an hour ago, so no need to push yourself further”, Minho hummed, rubbing Felix’ shoulder, “I’m sorry, hyung should’ve been more careful.” Giving a defeated nod, Felix trudged off towards his bag to have some water and put on his sweater, so he wouldn’t catch a cold, Chan and Hyunjin following close behind to make sure the boy was alright. Minho instructed the rest to take a small break before excusing himself to the restroom to collect himself.
It had taken quite a bit of willpower not to limp in front of the members but once the door had closed behind him, Minho hobbled down the hallway to the restroom. Fulling down his sock with a wince, he bit his lip. Silent tears dripped from his chin. This wasn’t good. His ankle was already beginning to swell with a bruise forming on the outer side. Though it hurt badly when he tried to move it, Minho was glad that he still could, so he decided it couldn’t be broken. Hell, he had sprained his ankles dozens of times in the past. It was something that just came with being a dancer and trying more reckless stunts every time. With Felix out of commission for the rest of the day, they couldn’t afford him being hurt. He couldn’t just dump all the responsibility on Hyunjin, so after soaking some paper towels under cold water, Minho stuffed them into his sock and hopped to his locker.
Minho was glad he always kept a first aid kit in his locker and carefully removed his shoe and sock. If there was any more swelling around his ankle, he wouldn’t be able to wear his shoe anymore, so he bandaged it tightly before covering it with his sock and putting the shoe back on. It had to be laced very loosely but hey, he was still able to wear it. Determined not to let this slow him down, Minho wiped his tears and hobbled back to the practice room.
When he entered, Hyunjin tossed him an energy bar from his bag, informing: “You skipped lunch and looked out of it, so your blood sugar’s probably low. You should watch out for such things, hyung. We can’t afford anymore injuries due to your negligence.” Hanging his head in shame Minho nodded and tore into the energy bar. It barely tasted like anything, probably because his breath was a little wonky while he tried to hold back his tears. His ankle throbbed and putting any weight onto that foot felt like an impossible task but Minho pushed on. They had all danced injured before and it was his fault that him and Felix were injured in the first place.
Minho’s mind had shifted to autopilot at some point as he demonstrated the moves again and again. Hyunjin took over most of the teaching and Felix eventually started to pipe in some advice too after calming down and assuring his friends that his back pain was probably just flaring up and that he doubted he had seriously injured himself. Surprisingly, nobody seemed to have caught on to Minho’s struggle or if they did, they probably didn’t care. All they cared about was him being the reason somebody else got hurt. “Don’t skip your meals, Minho-yah”, Chan warned before they parted ways to got home to their individual dorms, “Today proved how dangerous that can be.” The dancer nodded defeatedly. All he had wanted was to help Felix learn the moves he had been struggling with.
Jisung sat quietly next to his during the ride home, figuring the older didn’t want to talk. Only when he glanced over at Minho, did he notice the silent tears glistening on his hyung’s cheeks. Wordlessly reaching over, Jisung took the other’s hand and linked their fingers. Minho would talk if he wanted to, so for now, silent support it was. The dancer stumbled when they got out of the car and Jisung worriedly caught him around the waist, frowning: “You okay, hyung? Is your blood sugar still low?” – “I’m okay”, Minho forced out, trying to shift his weight, “It’s just my ankle, I twisted it a little earlier.” – “Hyung! Why didn’t you say anything?!”, the rapper gasped, stepping closer so Minho could lean on his shoulder. Shrugging, the older winced: “It was my fault we got hurt and since we were already a dancer down, I couldn’t leave Hyunjinnie teach you all on his own. Don’t worry, I bandaged it earlier for stability and to reduce the swelling.”
“Take off your shoe. We gotta take a look at that”, Jisung announced after disposing Minho on the living room couch, “You shouldn’t have been dancing on it. Do you know how negligent that was, hyung?!” – “Please don’t use that word?”, the dancer groaned. Couldn’t they see that he was trying his hardest? While Minho slowly and carefully peeled himself out of his shoe and sock, Jisung gasped: “Hyung! That bandage is far to tight! What were you thinking?” – “It wasn’t so tight earlier”, Minho defended, swallowing hard when he saw how the bandage dug into his swollen and bruised ankle. He slumped back against the couch cushions defeated while Jisung carefully unwrapped his ankle and inspected the dark bruise, frowning: “Are you sure it’s not broken?” The dancer nodded. “Probably sprained, dancing just made the bruise worse”, he muttered, “Didn’t mean to neglect it but I felt so guilty for what happened with Lix. I couldn’t, I just couldn’t be injured too.”
Placing a pillow on the other side of the couch, Jisung instructed: “Elevate your leg and I’ll go fetch an icepack.” While his dongsaeng walked off to the kitchen, Minho stretched out on the couch, rubbing his face. How could he let something like this happen so close to a comeback? “Here, keep this on your ankle for the time being”, the rapper smiled, handing the older an icepack wrapped in a tea towel, “How about we order delivery for dinner? This mess happened because you weren’t eating well, so I want you to have something nutritious for dinner. Your body needs it to heal but you’re not getting up from this couch anytime soon and I’m not in the mood to cook, so….” – “Sounds great. I’m starving”, Minho hummed, tiredly running a hand through his sweaty hair. He’s still need to take a shower at some point but he really didn’t want to stand. Seemingly reading his mind, Jisung offered: “Want me to run you a bath?” – “After dinner? The icepack feels nice right now”, Minho breathed, closing his eyes. The rapper hummed in agreement, gently playing with his hyung’s hair to comfort him.
“You ordered pudding too?!”, Minho gasped, a bright smile spready on his lips. Mirroring the dancer, Jisung chuckled: “I wanted to cheer you up with a nice dessert because I know you were doing your best and I saw how hard you’ve been working lately. It just hurts my heart to see you neglect yourself for the rest of the group.” Maybe if he hadn’t been so tired, Minho’s eyes wouldn’t have gotten so teary or maybe they would’ve. With how quickly he dabbed at them, Jisung didn’t notice it either way. “I’d like to put some ointment on your ankle and bandage it properly after you washed up”, the rapper munched, worriedly scanning over the sizeable bruise. Bumping his shoulder, Minho pouted: “Are you telling me I did a bad job with the way I bandaged it?” – “Yeah, you did a terrible job”, Jisung teased, “With how tightly you wrapped it, you’re lucky you didn’t lose a foot.”
After devouring his pudding, Minho let his dongsaeng help him to the bathroom. He was surprised how much tension melted off his shoulders once he was submerged in the warm water, his foot resting on a towel at the edge of the tub. The heat had him grow sleepy and he was glad that he could go to bed soon. Like he had promised, Jisung gently spread ointment around his swollen ankle and dressed it with a fresh bandage, his touch careful and light. “Keep it elevated on this pillow while you sleep, hyung”, the rapper advised, helping the older get comfortable. Lips turning into a pout, Minho whined: “I don’t think I can sleep like this. That’s not even close to my normal sleeping position.” – “Well, don’t get hurt then if you’re so picky about your sleeping positions or don’t sleep”, Jisung remarked, earning a weak punch to the arm, “Just kidding. Cuddles would help, wouldn’t they?” – “Cuddles would help”, Minho agreed with a smile and opened his arms. Finally, he could get some sleep.
Feveruary 2025: 11 “you’re burning up”, alt 1 forced to work @feveruary
Fluffbingo: “It’s just so much.” @flufftober
March whumpness 2025: 6 alone, 8 exhaustion, 20 fainting, 29 collapsing at work @marchwhumpness
Whumpril 2025: 25 too weak to stand, alt 11 missed medication, alt 13 “Why won’t you believe me?” @whumpril
Angstpril 2025: 4 “I trusted you”, 8 ignored, 9 “I don’t want your apology”, alt 1 “did you even care?”, alt 3 collapse @angstpril
August of whump 2024: alt collapse @augustofwhump
No one’s POV.:
San sighed as he plopped down in the backseat of a taxi. The rest of the group had long since been able to go home for the day but he had been stuck at his solo schedule till late into the night. His entire body ached from the exhaustion, head throbbing. Knowing he’d feel far worse if he didn’t eat well to fuel his body, San opened the takeout bag and glanced at the kimbap in disgust. For some reason, it didn’t look the slightest bit appealing, which was weird considering how long he had gone without food. There simply hadn’t been enough time for him to eat, so perhaps the dull ache in the pit of his stomach was hunger pain. With a sigh, San sank his teeth into his late-night dinner, wanting to be done eating once he got back to his dorm, so he could collapse straight into bed.
Shortly before the car came to a halt, San suddenly flashed hot, the car’s interior seemingly closing in around him and he was glad when he could finally get out. His head spun for a moment and he had to brace himself against the trunk before the cool night air cleared his head, allowing him to stand up straight. Shakily making his way up to his dorm, San envied Seonghwa and Mingi for already being home. He stifled a soft burp against the back of his hand as he kicked off his shoes, wincing as the kimbap he had forced down sat heavy in his stomach. Eating so late never really worked well for him but it had never actually made him sick, so he figured he’d be fine if he just went to bed to sleep it off. Especially because he barely had any time left to sleep anyway.
Sleeping it off didn’t work for San though and only half an hour later, he found himself kneeling on the bathroom floor, knuckles turning white as he clutched the toilet seat. His throat burned as he brought up wave after wave of barely digested kimbap. San didn’t even try to stay quiet anymore at this point, partially hoping one of his dormmates would wake up and come to check on him. The dorm stayed quiet though, an eerie silence hanging over him as San sat back on his heels, only disrupted by his panting. Still trembling, he pulled off his shirt and cringed at how sweaty it had become in only a matter of minutes. A shudder ran down his back and he swallowed hard. When had it gotten so freaking cold? There were only a couple of hours left till his alarm would go off, so he should really get to bed but his legs had gotten all numb from kneeling there.
San stretched out his legs, trying to ignore the tingle as blood flooded through them again. Swallowing, he tried to ease the burn in his throat but it was to no avail. He couldn’t even get rid of the vile taste because the sink was so far away and his legs still felt like jelly, refusing to carry him. Defeatedly slumping back against the wall, San ran his hand over his sore abs. What had he done to deserve this misery? And how had both Seonghwa and Mingi managed to sleep through his ordeal? San knew he wasn’t a quiet puker by any means, but they were probably exhausted too. Still, he hated being alone when he was sick.
After what felt like ages, San finally managed to pull himself to his feet, though he was still a little wobbly. He had a few sips of water and rinsed his mouth with mouthwash before grabbing some painkillers for his headache. There was no way he could take them right now, not with how bubbly his stomach still was, but he would place them on his nightstand to swallow as soon as his stomach calmed down. Why did they have to split up dorms? He really didn’t want to sleep in a room all by himself right now but he also didn’t feel like he could go bother Seonghwa or Mingi, so he tiredly trudged back to his room and flopped down on his bed.
Morning came far too early for San’s liking though he counted it as a success that he hadn’t thrown up again that night. His stomach hadn’t really calmed down though, so he doubted he could handle eating breakfast today. When his eyes fell on the painkillers on his nightstand, he quickly shook two into his palm and swallowed them dry, wincing as they scraped his raw throat. Since he still felt a little chilled, he threw on an oversized sweater and made sure to wear loose pants, so they wouldn’t dig into his middle. Luckily, Mingi was already in the bathroom getting ready and San managed to catch Seonghwa alone in the kitchen.
“Good morning”, he rasped as he walked up behind the oldest and poured himself a glass of water. Seonghwa greeted him with a smile and took a sip of coffee. Carefully sipping his water to see if his stomach would tolerate it, San pouted: “Hyung, I don’t feel good. Can I stay home today?” – “Aish, Sannie”, the older chuckled, “I know you have a special dislike for that choreographer but come on. You gotta grow up. We can’t just fake sick whenever we dislike our schedule. Now, come on. Get ready or else we’ll run late.” San was stunned. His hyung didn’t believe him?! Shit, he had completely forgotten what schedule they had today. He couldn’t do this. Not today.
Though Seonghwa had brushed him off, the eldest seemed more amused than annoyed at San’s perceived attempt at skipping dance practice. The same wasn’t true for the rest of the group though. None of them really enjoyed working with this choreographer, so the atmosphere in the practice room was already tense to begin with. “Why won’t you believe me?”, San pouted after Hongjoong chewed him out for acting childishly. Rolling his eyes, the leader reminded: “I know you don’t wanna do this but we have no choice. He’s good at his work and we need him if we want our next comeback to be a success.” There was still another hour left till San could have another dose of medicine and knew he’d need it if he was forced to work. By now, he was convinced that he was also running a fever and when he went to check his bag, he realized that he had left the medicine on his nightstand at the dorm.
“Woo, you don’t happen to be carrying some painkillers?”, San whispered during one of their water breaks. Leaning back against the wall, Wooyoung ran his hand through his sweaty hair and sighed: “No, I don’t and seriously, Sannie. Taking medicine just to keep up an act isn’t good. It’s not healthy to swallow this stuff unnecessarily.” – “You have no idea how necessary it is”, the older muttered bitterly but Wooyoung didn’t hear him. Having missed his medication, San was feeling more miserable by the minute. He tried talking to Hongjoong again but the leader ignored him. Eyes burning with tears, San trudged back to his position and took a deep breath. His vision was already fuzzy around the edges and he feared that if he lost his breath, he might faint right there. He didn’t think he could handle being scolded for ruining another run-through although it wasn’t in his control.
By some sort of miracle, San made it through most of the song before the dizziness really hit but when it did, boy did it hit hard. It felt like someone pulled the rug from under his feet. Luckily, he didn’t stumble too much but he barely heard the last few beats over the ringing in his ears, tumbling to the floor the moment the music was cut. For a moment, he must’ve been unconscious because he didn’t even feel the impact of his body slamming into the ground but when he came to, all he was really aware of was pain.
A hoarse whimper escaped San’s limps as he clutched his head, the throbbing unbearable. His stomach cramped, making him subconsciously curl in on himself, which took a lot more effort than he had anticipated because his aching muscles strongly protested the movement. “Stay down”, Seonghwa instructed, a gentle hand on San’s shoulder keeping hi down, “Shit, you’re burning up.” – “Told you”, the younger breathed, weakly sitting up despite Seonghwa’s objections. The water San had sipped earlier sloshed nauseatingly in his stomach and he feared if he lay down flat, he wouldn’t stand a fair chance at keeping it down. Hongjoong’s heart raced as he requested the others give them space. How could he have ignored his dongsaeng when he so adamantly told him that he couldn’t keep going.
“Shit, Sannie, I’m so sorry”, Hongjoong mumbled as he knelt down next to the younger, offering him his water bottle. Weakly pushing it away, San whispered: “I don’t want your apology.” What he really wanted was to go home, to lay down in his bed and not on the practice room floor, to take the medicine he had forgotten, so he’d hopefully feel less shitty soon but he couldn’t voice that. Not with how heavy his tongue felt in his mouth, already struggling to swallow the saliva that filled his mouth at an alarming rate.
Before either Seonghwa or Hongjoong could react or even comprehend what was happening, San pulled the hem of his shirt up as his stomach lurched, the water he had forced himself to drink suddenly gushing from his lips. Though taken by surprise, Seonghwa gently patted his dongsaeng’s back when he choked on a cough. San shuddered with a retch, his stomach burning as it tried to bring up something that wasn’t there. Since he had skipped his breakfast that day and had already thrown up his dinner earlier, stomach acid and bile were all that was left and burned his already strained throat on the way up.
Holding the trashcan underneath San’s chin, Yunho hummed: “Try to take a deep breath.” He had traded places with Hongjoong because San looked so obviously uncomfortable with the leader’s presence, who now gathered the rest of the members and left the room with the choreographer in tow. Drawing a shaky breath, San broke into tears. Sobs wracked his frame while Seonghwa did his best to comfort him. “I know you probably don’t want to hear it right now but I’m really, truly sorry for not believing you”, the eldest whispered, carding his fingers through San’s hair to get it out of his face. Squeezing his eyes shut, the younger whimpered: “I trusted you, hyung.” – “I know you did, love”, Seonghwa sighed.
“Did you take any medicine?”, Yunho asked after helping the other removed his soiled shirt. Wiping his lips on a clean corner of his shirt, San shook his head and mumbled: “I took some this morning but missed the next dose. They’re on my nightstand, so I asked Woo but he didn’t have any.” – “I have some”, Seonghwa frowned, feeling San’s forehead again, “Do you think you could stomach them right now?” The younger shook his head again as another wave of tears washed over him. “I wanna go home”, San choked out, exhausted from the night he had had and the torturous dance practice that had taken the rest out of him, “I’m sorry, it’s just so much.” – “No, you’re the only one who doesn’t have anything to apologize for”, Yunho scolded, “And especially not for feeling upset and overwhelmed right now. Let’s get you cleaned up. You can borrow my hoodie, yeah?”
Yunho helped San clean himself up, while Seonghwa packed their bags. “Do you think you can stand?”, the eldest asked, offering him a hand. Shaking his head, San mumbled: “I-I feel like jelly.” – “It’s okay”, Yunho smiled, “We’ll help you but we should really get you home.” They soon came to realize that San hadn't been kidding. It took them both immense effort to hoist their dongsaeng to his feet and even more to keep him there. “Hyung, I don’t feel good”, San slurred, squeezing his eyes shut. He wasn’t sure if he was going to faint again but his vision was cloudy to say the least.
With San in their middle, Seonghwa and Yunho slowly shuffled to the door, hoping Hongjoong was already arranging a ride for them. In the hallway, they ran into Wooyoung, who paced anxiously in front of the door. When San and him made eye contact, the older breathed: “I really needed medicine.” – “I know, Sannie. I’m so sorry”, Wooyoung apologized, trying to hug his friend. Shaking his head, San muttered: “Did you even care?” The younger bit his lip, eye trained on the floor. Of course, he did care but he surely hadn’t acted like it, so he couldn’t blame San for being hurt. “We’re taking him home now, Woo. Do you know where Hongjoong is?”, Seonghwa asked calmly though he was slowly starting to sweat from how much strength it took to keep San on his feet.
They found Hongjoong at the front desk, chatting with their manager, who seemed stressed when they approached, frowning: “Hey. I heard you weren’t feeling well, San.” San shook his head, trying to stand up a little straighter between his hyungs but he was still unbearably dizzy and too weak to hold his own weight. “Do you want to go to the hospital to get checked, since you collapsed or would you want me to take you back to the dorm?”, the manager offered, closely studying San’s ghostly pale face. Drawing a shaky breath, San rasped: “I really just want my bed please.” – “That’s alright”, his manager agreed, “We’re already working on the schedule changes to make sure you’ll be off for the rest of the week to recover.”
“Sannie-“, Wooyoung called after him, guilty still eating him up. Turning his back on his friends, San sighed: “I don’t want your apologies, I trusted you.”
Jeongin had already felt a little off when he went to bed the previous night, so it really wasn’t all that surprising to him when he had trouble getting his bearings that morning. The night had been far too short and his alarm went off far too early for his liking, leaving him hazy as he got out of bed. Every muscle seemed to protest his movement but Jeongin didn’t have a choice but to get moving because there was no way, he’d risk being late for his schedule. Though the maknae had managed to get up on time, he didn’t find it in himself to return Chan’s cheerful ‘good morning’ with the same energy. The leader chuckled at Jeongin’s tired groan and handed him a cup of coffee.
It was moments like this that had Jeongin convince, Chan was actually a mind reader because he knew there was no way he’d be able to get through the day without filling up on caffeine first. The younger was glad that it was only to two of them sharing a dorm now because it was comfortably quiet while the two of them got ready. With the slowly developing headache behind his temples, Jeongin truly didn’t miss the noisy chaos of their early days, when eight people tried to get ready for the day at the same time.
Jeongin winced as he got into the van, rolling his shoulders to try and get comfortable because he knew they had a rather long ride ahead of them. The day would start off with an interview and he was kind of grateful about that because the questions were rarely ever directed towards him and all he’d have to do, was sit there and look pretty. He really didn’t see himself pushing through hours of grueling dance practice, while his muscles were already on fire. “Someone’s still asleep, huh?”, Chan smiled as he reached over and ruffled Jeongin’s hair. Frowning at the older, Jeongin yawned: “Why did the alarm have to go off so early? This is cruel, hyung!” The Aussie only laughed at that and waited for the car to come to a halt before unbuckling his seatbelt and getting out.
To their surprise, most of the members had already arrived at the venue and were getting their makeup done, while Chan and Jeongin were ushered to the changing room to put their stage outfits on. The maknae’s body ached and he sat down with a groan to untie his shoes. “What’s with the long face?”, Felix hummed as he zipped up his jacket, shooting his dongsaeng a worried look. Jeongin muttered something, faintly sounding like: “Tired an’ sore.” – “You okay, though?”, the dancer asked, “You’re looking kinda pale and the circles under your eyes are impressive.” – “Mhm, jus’ would’ve liked more sleep”, the younger yawned, slowly pealing himself out of his shirt.
He didn’t know how he did it but he had gotten himself dressed in his stage outfit and allowed himself to rest his eyes while the makeup artist worked on his face. Standing behind his chair, Felix gently kneaded Jeongin’s shoulders and winced in sympathy. The maknae’s shoulders were overly tense. No wonder he felt sore. “You want some more coffee?”, Chan offered, slowly getting worried because Jeongin was still so out of it. Cracking an eye open, the youngest mumbled: “Don’t think it’ll help much and I don’t wanna be too jittery during the interview. I’ll be fine, thanks.” – “Are you sure, you’re fine?”, the makeup artist asked softly, “Your face is a little warm. Not like, feverish or anything but still.” – “Yeah, yeah, the lights are warm. No need to worry ‘bout me, noona”, Jeongin insisted, forcing himself to put on a smile.
During the interview, Jeongin actually felt better. Probably because of the distraction and because he didn’t need to move his sore muscles too much. He wasn’t even really sure what was going on with him, not actually feeling sick but maybe a little rundown. They had been busy lately and he didn’t get all that much sleep, so maybe this was his body protesting. Either way, it wasn’t bad enough to make a big deal out of it. Jeongin would just try to get a little more sleep and it should be fine.
The interview passed in a blur and luckily, Jeongin and Seungmin had their vocal lesson afterwards. Before they parted ways with the other members, Changbin patted the maknae on the shoulder and asked: “Wanna head to the gym together after work, baby bread?” Giving the rapper a thin smile, Jeongin shook his head. “Sorry, hyung, but I’m sore as hell”, he informed, shoulders still tense despite Felix’ best efforts earlier. “No pain, no gain”, Changbin chuckled as he nudged the younger, “Just kidding. You don’t look so great.” – “Yeah, my head hurts”, Jeongin sighed, massaging his temples. He really needed an early bedtime. Scratching his neck, the older offered: “Want me to find you some painkillers before I go to the studio?” – “Um, actually that’d be great”, Jeongin mumbled, “Not sure I could focus on my lesson like this.”
Glad the maknae was medicated, Seungmin guided his only dongsaeng to their lesson. He had noted the other’s sluggish movements during dance practice the previous evening and he knew the rest of the group had as well, even though nobody called him out. It was odd, how readily Jeongin had accepted their support today. Whether it was Felix’ massage or Changbin’s medication, the youngest gladly took it, and Jeongin admitting to feeling low? That was almost unheard of. “Are you cold?”, Seungmin asked when he caught the other shuddering from the corner of his eye. Pulling his sleeves down to cover his hands, Jeongin shrugged: “A little maybe. No big deal.” – “Didn’t noona say you felt warm to the touch?”, the older worried reaching out to feel Jeongin’s forehead. The maknae avoided his touch and reminded: “She said I didn’t feel feverish and I always get a little chilled when I’m tired.”
Though Seungmin didn’t fully agree with that logic, he let it go and their lesson went pretty well despite the faint hint of tiredness in Jeongin’s voice. Afterwards, they had their individual schedules, with Seungmin heading to a photoshoot, while Jeongin was supposed to join the dance-racha to polish up some of the moves he hadn’t been able to nail during their last group practice session. He already dreaded having to move, his sore muscles only aching worse as the day progressed and he honestly just wanted to go to bed already.
Tiredly shuffling into the practice room, Jeongin dropped his back by the mirror and greeted his hyungs. Hyunjin jogged over to him and pulled him into a hug despite being sweaty all over. To his surprise, the maknae didn’t push him away. If anything, he melted into the embrace. “Hang on, I’m allowed to hug you?!”, Hyunjin gasped, tightening his arms around his dongsaeng. Swatting at the dancer’s arm, Jeongin whined: “Fuck off if you gotta be weird about it.” – “Noo, I like hugging you”, Hyunjin denied.
“Wait, Innie accepting love?! Are you sick baby bread?”, Minho frowned, only half teasing. To him, Jeongin’s cheeks looked flushed though he hadn’t even begun to dance yet. Sure, it could be embarrassment but it could also be a fever. Making his way over to check on the younger, Minho hummed: “I’d like to check your temperature before you start but since I’m already running hot, there’s no use in me feeling your forehead. Let’s go upstairs and talk to Chan-hyung first before we decide whether you’re fit to dance.” To his surprise, Jeongin didn’t fight him on the idea but truth be told, the maknae was too exhausted to put up a fight. Besides, Hyunjin’s hug just felt too nice to have him let go.
Like a lost puppy, Jeongin trudged after Minho and almost slammed into him because he didn’t notice how they arrived at the studio. “Oh, hey you two”, Chan smiled, “What’s up?” – “I think Innie might be running a fever but I can’t really judge that, so I’d like your ‘all clear’ before I let him dance”, Minho explained. Crossing his arms, Jeongin sighed: “Just because I enjoyed a hug.” – “He what?!”, Jisung gasped, making the youngest wince. Studying Jeongin closely, Changbin frowned: “Has the headache gotten any better?” – “Not really”, the younger shrugged, “I’m just really sore and a little cold. Hyunjin’s hug felt nice because he was warm.”
“I agreed, you do feel pretty warm to me and your eyes look glossy, so yeah, fever”, Chan confirmed, earning another sigh from Jeongin. The younger wasn’t even really disappointed because it meant he didn’t have to dance but having his symptoms confirmed made him feel them more clearly. He couldn’t lie to himself and gaslight himself into being fine anymore. Opening his arms for a hug, Chan hummed: “You wanna go back to the dorm or lay down here and go home with me later?” Leaning against the Aussie’s chest, Jeongin breathed: “Can I lay down here or would I disturb your work too much? I don’t wanna ask anyone for a ride home if I can just stick around till you go home anyway.” – “That’s fine, right?”, Chan agreed, Changbin and Jisung nodding along. With how exhausted Jeongin had been all day, it came as a surprise to no one when he dozed off as soon as the others had covered him with their coats to quell the chills.
By the time Chan shook him awake to go home, there was no denying it. Jeongin’s fever had spike and he was undoubtedly sick now. “Time to go home”, the leader informed softly, passing the younger his water bottle. ‘Mind reader’, Jeongin though as he lifted the bottled to his lips. His throat was parched and his head throbbed. How did Chan know? When Jeongin glanced around the studio, he realized that his friends had already packed up and were only waiting for him. Rushing to get up, the maknae’s head spun and Chan frowned: “Easy. Not gonna leave you here, don’t worry.” He linked their arms to keep Jeongin from toppling over and smiled: “Let’s get you home. You can shower first, while I make a light dinner.” – “Thanks”, the younger sniffled, rubbing his face. He wanted nothing more than to get ready for bed but if he ate a bite first, he could have another dose of medicine.
“By the way, I told manager-nim that you’d need tomorrow off to recover”, Chan stated as he ushered his dongsaeng into their shared apartment. Kicking off his shoes, Jeongin mumbled: “Thanks, hyung. I’ll go take a quick shower.” – “You can also take a long shower”, Chan laughed, “Might soothe you sore muscles.” While the maknae shuffled off in the direction of his room to grab fresh clothes, Chan headed to the kitchen and started some soup to let it simmer till the younger was ready to eat. He should’ve known something was up when they got up that morning. Jeongin wasn’t usually so listless, not even in the morning and Chan usually caught on to things like that, yet he had let himself be fooled by the ‘just tired’.
To make up for it, there was a steaming bowl of soup waiting for Jeongin when he shuffled to the kitchen. Next to it lay two pills and a glass of water. “Feeling more like yourself now?”, Chan asked as he took a seat opposite of his dongsaeng. Resting his chin on his hand, Jeongin yawned: “A little. Absolutely sleepy though.” – “Well, eat up so you can go to bed”, the leader chuckled, “I’ll try to be as quiet as possible when I get ready tomorrow. You should really sleep in and try to rest as much as possible. The others were a little unnerved today.” That earned him a small laugh and Jeongin smiled: “Didn’t think I could scare them this much by accepting a hug.”
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