Summary: The stomach bug had passed but Hongjoong still doesn’t feel great. Jongho takes care of him.
CW: mentions of emeto, mentions of fainting
Sickie: Hongjoong
Caretaker: Jongho
“Hyung, do you want me to heat up the porridge Wooyoungie-hyung made?”, Jongho asked, popping into the living room with a concerned face.
Hongjoong, pale and exhausted on the couch, shook his head. “No, thank you, Jjongie. I don’t want to eat.”
Jongho sighed and stepped closer, sitting on the low TV table across from Hongjoong. He loved little rebellions like that, ever since they didn’t live under Seonghwa’s terror regime of cleanliness and order anymore. “You should though. I know you still don’t feel great but you haven’t really eaten in days.”
“I know”, Hongjoong replied. “I just … I don’t feel like eating yet. I’m sorry. I know you are worried.”
It had been nearly a week since Hongjoong had come down with a bad case of the stomach flu. While the vomiting had passed four days ago, their captain very much wasn’t well yet. He still didn’t have an appetite and his hands were shaky. Most of his day was spent sleeping, restful, yes, but apparently not enough to bring him back onto track completely. And he was bored enough to be annoyed at everybody but not well enough to actually do more than lie around.
“Damn right I am”, Jongho said. “You haven’t yet eaten today. It’s nearly 3pm. This is not how you get better. You’re dehydrated, malnourished and have low blood sugar. You’ll just feel worse if you keep not eating.”
Hongjoong nodded, pulling his feet up onto the couch. “I still feel like throwing up just seeing food.”
“Yeah, but you haven’t puked in four days, hyung. It’s pretty safe to say the bug has passed. You’re just running on empty and that’s why you feel bad. You don’t even have to eat much, okay? I’ll make half the porridge, just add some extra sugar, and you eat as much as you can.”
“I … alright. Fine.”
⌛
Five minutes later Jongho sat beside Hongjoong on the couch, holding out a tablet packed with a half-full bowl of porridge, ginger tea and a glass of water. With shaking hands Hongjoong placed it onto his lap, balancing it carefully.
“I can’t believe my maknae is bossing me around”, he mumbled.
Jongho grinned. “I won’t tell ATINY as long as I get bragging rights to Seonghwa-hyung for the rest of my life.”
“You’re a menace.”
“You’re welcome. After all, I am taking care of your ass.” Jongho sounded way too pleased with himself.
“Oh, shut up.”
“It’s eat up”, Jongho shot back.
“Eat up, hyung.”
“Fine”, Jongho said, laughing. “If that gets you to eat, I guess I can call you hyung.”
“Now, say it cutely.”
“Eat, hyung.” Jongho’s voice was in that no-nonsense style he could so amazingly portray.
Hongjoong took a tentative bite. It was hot and slightly too sweet - the added sugar Jongho had threatened with - but it went down easier than he had thought. The past days his stomach had been in such tight knots he had barely even wanted to drink. But now it felt okay-ish.
His stomach didn’t immediately tie itself into knots like he had feared. Nor did the sharp cramping come back. Actually, it felt soothing. Gently warming him from the inside.
“Okay?”, Jongho asked.
“Okay”, Hongjoong echoed, eating another spoonful.
“You don’t have to eat up”, Jongho said, “just eat what you can.”
“Hm.”
⌛
For a while they sat in companionable silence, the only sound the clicking of the spoon against the bowl. Hongjoong’s hands stopped shaking so much. His stomach felt less angry, less annoyed with him. He actually felt close to human for a few minutes. He was too proud to admit that maybe Jongho had been right but he’d have to subtly thank him later when he was actually back at 100%. Maybe a really really nice vocal line plus high note?
Of course it was too good to be true. After a few more moments everything seemed to crash into Hongjoong again. His stomach felt weird, churning. His head swam. His fingers trembled so hard he nearly lost his grip on the bowl.
“Hyung?”, Jongho asked worriedly, grabbing the bowl and the spoon before they could be dropped. “What’s wrong? You’re really white.”
Hongjoong’s vision tunneled. Crossed. Faded into a slight blackness.
“I’m dizzy”, he mumbled. He could hear himself slurring.
Hongjoong could barely see Jongho through his fading vision, everything blurry. His head ached and his stomach felt seasick. The room suddenly felt far away, twisting from him like a fast moving and tilting camera in a music video. But he trusted his maknae. Vaguely, slightly detached, he felt Jongho push his upper body down flat onto the couch. Hongjoong could feel his eyes roll back at the motion and he gagged slightly. He didn’t quite hear what Jongho said but it sounded suspiciously like “Don’t you dare throw up!”. His head felt so so heavy.
Hongjoong did feel a bit better when he felt Jongho lift his legs onto the height of the couch and then higher into Jongho’s lap. A warm hand patted his ankle, the touch comforting. For a while, Hongjoong for the life of him couldn’t tell how long it was, he just floated. His head ached slightly and he didn’t feel like moving but it was comfortable enough.
⌛
He opened his eyes to find Jongho looking down at him with a worried frown. “You back with me, hyung?”
Hongjoong groaned and ran a hand over his face. “Yeah”, he mumbled. “I think so. Did I pass out?”
“No. You just weren’t really there.”
For a moment he only concentrated on Jongho’s touch, the vocalist still gently patting his ankle. It was actually pretty nice. Even if he normally wasn’t that big a fan of touch.
“What happened?”, he finally asked. “I didn’t eat for days and was fine and now I did eat and everything is off? The hell did you put into this porridge?”
Jongho laughed softly. “First of all: You nearly passed out three days ago before Seonghwa-hyung made you sit down. Second: You’ve had low blood sugar for days. Now it suddenly went up. That can affect the blood pressure and we know your body isn’t skilled in that area anyways.”
“Thanks for the reminder.”
“You’re welcome, hyung.” Jongho’s voice sounded a mix of teasing and relieved. “How about you just take a nap now? You’re due for one anyways. And you ate, so you will feel much better than earlier when you …”
“Due for a nap?”, Hongjoong interrupted him, his eyes nearly bugging out of his head. “I’m not a toddler!”
“You’re right. You’ve napped more than a toddler the past few days. You’re a baby. Baby-hyung.” Jongho now sounded suspiciously like he was having the time of his life.
“I’ll kill you.”
“I’m too cute.”
“I swear to God, one day ATINY will catch on that you aren’t truly maknae on top but rather an overgrown baby tyrannizing us and totally faking your personality for them.”
“Well, you are the ones getting tyrannized by your maknae so who is actually the loser?” Jongho was grinning now.
“I hate you so much right now”, Hongjoong growled, swallowing all the fondness that tried to slip into his tone.
“You love me.”
“That’s the problem.”
Hongjoong closed his eyes, exhausted but content, falling asleep to the rhythm of Jongho patting him.
Jongho had warned Hongjoong that their third roommate was sick. And the captain had known it wasn’t serious because Jongho hadn’t added, “Can you schedule a doctor visit?” like he’d done in the past when Wooyoung was really, truly ill. Instead, Jongho simply messaged: “Please bring me an extra pair of noise cancelling headphones, or I will commit a crime.”
Headphones in hand, Hongjoong locked the apartment door behind him, the sound of the TV echoing from the living room. After pulling off his shoes and hanging up his coat, the captain padded down the hall, turning quietly into the room. Jongho was sitting on the recliner, typing feverishly on his laptop, while Wooyoung was splayed on the couch like a dying Victorian child. He certainly looked sick: dull, glazed eyes, hair matted and mused, nose flushed an irritated, unhealthy red. The hoodie he wore had been stolen from Yunho, the pajama pants San’s, the fuzzy socks a gift from Seonghwa. The blanket Wooyoung had clutched to his chest was definitely one of Yeosang’s, and would require at least three deep clean washes is the amount of used tissued scattered around had anything to say about it.
“Take a picture, it’ll last longer,” Wooyoung snapped, eyes flashing from the TV screen to Hongjoong in a split second.
The captain smirked. “Didn’t realize you were with it enough to notice me.”
Wooyoung scoffed. “I am perishing, and you jest.” His voice cracked on the last word, prompting a nasty-sounding cough by some miracle caught in his sleeve.
Hongjoong turned his attention to Jongho, who he now noticed was masked up. “Jongho, can you confirm this? Is he actually perishing?”
“I’ve been doing some research, and I hate to tell you this, Woo, but I fear there’s no cure,” Jongho said with a grave shake of his head.
“No cure?” Wooyoung’s head tipped back to see the maknae, his brow furrowed. “For what?”
Jongho sighed. “The common cold.”
Wooyoung groaned dramatically, digging his face into the couch. “This isn’t a joke, Jongho.” He sniffled harshly before sneezing twice. “See? I’m dying.”
“And I’m burning that couch the minute you get off it,” Jongho replied simply.
Wooyoung whined wordlessly, flopping around a bit on the couch. Once he’d settled, he heaved a congested sigh and turned pleading eyes back on Hongjoong. “Hyuuuuunnnnggggg…”
“Whaaaaaatttt?” Hongjoong mimicked, coming to sit on the arm of Jongho’s chair. His fingers automatically started playing in the soft hair at the base of the maknae’s neck. “Use your words, Youngie.”
Wooyoung sniffled again, managing to deflate further into the couch. “You’re just gonna bully me like Jongho.” He pouted, playing with the string of Yunho’s hoodie. “You both take joy in my suffering.”
“Seriously, what’s with the old times speak?” Hongjoong laughed. “Is that a new symptom?”
“Beats me.” Jongho shrugged.
“Mean. I am surrounded by meanies. Heh-ETchu! Ha-ATsch!” Hongjoong couldn’t help but smile at his dongsaeng’s dramatics, rolling his eyes as Wooyoung snatched up a handful of tissues and blew his nose, muttering angrily to himself the whole time.
“What’s the prognosis, doc?” Jongho asked, peering up at Hongjoong out of the corners of his eyes. “Is this the end for our Wooyoungie?”
Hongjoong sighed. He shook his head. “I fear there’s no known cure.”
“For what?”
Hongjoong met Jongho’s gaze. “Whining.” The maknae barked out a laugh as Wooyoung resumed his aforementioned whining, immediately grabbing his phone to tattle on them to Seonghwa.
Sicktember Day 12: "You're not fine, you're throwing up."
Fandom: ATEEZ
Sickie: Yunho (stomach bug)
Caregiver(s): Jongho, with some Hongjoong
Word Count: 912
Jongho woke up to a sound he wasn't able to identify. He rolled over, hitting his phone screen. 7:30am. He sat up, frowning as his brain attempted to make sense to what he was hearing. That’s when it hit him: the distinct sound of gagging over the roar of the shower.
Jongho was up and outside the bathroom door in seconds.
“Hyung?!” Jongho knocked. The only response was another gag. The youngest member pushed open the door, crossed the room in two steps, and ripped back the curtain. Yunho was on his knees, at the mercy of his body, throwing up in the shower. “Oh, hyung,” Jongho muttered. He reached over and turned off the water.
“Nooo.” Yunho reached a hand up towards the tap before he was cut off with a violent cough that turned into more retching. Jongho knelt on the floor outside the shower, rubbing at Yunho’s spine as he coughed up another wave of sick.
“It’s okay,” the younger man soothed quietly.
After a second, unproductive cough, Yunho sat back on his heels, scrubbing at his face. “Water was helping.”
“Helping with what, exactly?”
“Cleaning…”
“That’s the last thing you should be worried about right now, hyung.” Jongho’s hand hadn’t left Yunho’s back, massaging up and down his spine. He felt the dancer’s body contract once, twice, before he was leaning over again, at the mercy of his stomach, but bringing up nothing.
“This sucks,” Yunho whined.
“I know, I know. How long have you…?”
“I don’t know. What time is it?”
Jongho consulted his watch. “7:36.”
“Then I’ve probably been here for about fifteen minutes.”
“Fifteen minutes?!”
Yunho waved his hand. “Not… not the throwing up part. I came to take a shower fifteen minutes ago, got sick maybe… God, I don’t even know.”
“Well, at least it wasn’t fifteen minutes cause that would be a problem.” Yunho smirked at that. He closed his eyes, appreciating the feeling of Jongho’s hand on his back. The cold air hitting his wet skin, though, was less welcome, sending shivers through his body. “We should get you out of the shower.”
“Okay.” Yunho didn’t move. Jongho squeezed his shoulder before standing up himself. He offered his hands out to the older man, carefully pulling Yunho to his feet. It was then that Jongho noticed that that dancer still had his boxers on. “Hyung, why were you wearing your underwear in the shower?”
Yunho shrugged. “In case I passed out.”
Jongho blinked at him. “So you knew you weren’t feeling good, and you got into the shower? The most dangerous place to slip and fall?”
Yunho shrugged again. “I thought the water would feel good.”
“Did it?”
Yunho nodded. “Until I threw up, it was heavenly.”
Jongho nodded, restraining himself from sighing as he helped Yunho out of the shower. He wrapped a towel around the older man’s shoulders. “Think you can make it to your room to change, or do you want me to go grab you clothes?”
“I can make it,” Yunho replied, curling deeper into his towel. “I actually feel a lot better. Puke and rally, right?”
“Sure, hyung.” Jongho rolled his eyes as soon as Yunho moved past him and through the doorway. He would see to it that there would be no rallying for Yunho; Jongho could feel his fever plain as day while they sat in the shower.
Still, there was work to be done. Jongho texted the group: no one use the upstairs shower for a bit. He then peeked under the sink to see what cleaning supplies were currently on hand. He didn’t find what he wanted, and resolved to simply turn the water back on and wash the shower out first, then go back with the disinfectant later.
Hongjoong appeared a moment later. “What happened?”
“Yunho threw up in the shower, so I want to clean it before anyone else uses it.”
“Is he okay?”
Jongho shrugged. “Definitely feverish. He should not be practicing today.”
Hongjoong nodded, pausing as Yunho rounded the corner from his room, dressed in his dance clothes.
“What the…?” Hongjoong shook his head. “Yunho, what are you doing?” Jongho peeked his head into the doorway.
Yunho shrugged. “We’re going to dance.”
“No. We’re going to dance. You’re going to bed,” Hongjoong relied.
“I’m fine.”
“You’re not fine, you’re throwing up,” Jongho insisted.
“No, I threw up. Past tense. I’m good now.”
“That’s not how it works, and you know that,” the leader explained, moving forward to place his hand against Yunho’s forehead. “You have a fever, bud. That means no practice for you.” Yunho whined, shoulders slumping forward. “I know, I get it, but you know the rules.”
“But I wanna dance,” Yunho said in reply, attempting to hit Hongjoong with his most convincing puppy eyes.
“And you’ll be able to dance a lot better sooner if you take today to rest your body,” the leader insisted, patting Yunho’s shoulder affectionately. “Besides, no one wants to see you puke in the middle of the practice room.”
Yunho gasped. “I would never!”
“Well let’s not tempt fate, shall we? Bed.” Hongjoong pointed towards the room, and Yunho shuffled off, all the fight leaving him. Hongjoong sighed. “In your professional opinion, Jongho, should he be left alone?”
“Probably not,” the youngest chuckled. “I don’t mind staying with him.”
“You’re the hero we need.” Hongjoong cuffed Jongho’s shoulder before walking away to notify their manager of Yunho’s upcoming absence.
Summary: Yunho is struggling to get through a grueling dance practice. He drops the moment it’s over.
CW: emeto, fainting
Sickie: Yunho
Caretakers: Hongjoong + Seonghwa + Mingi + Jongho
It was hot.
And loud.
And Yunho was exhausted.
None of these things usually bothered the dancer much. Dance practice was the definition of heat, music volume on max and some sort of exhaustion. Yunho didn’t have problems with that. He liked dancing and even, if not especially, dancing till he was exhausted and the mirrors fogged up.
They were on their sixth hour of that day’s practice and for once Yunho was glad he was not leading it. The choreographer-noona was nice, talented and she pushed the group in all the ways they needed. She saw every detail, every tiny mistake, from her position at the front of the room - unlike Yunho who would miss mistakes when dancing himself - and she didn’t hesitate to call them out on it.
“From the top”.
“Again.”
“Jongho-ssi, you need to be a bit to the left.”
“Hongjoong-ssi, a bit faster.”
“Seonghwa-ssi, don’t look so scared. If you time it right you won’t run into San-ssi.”
“Yunho-ssi, pick it up.”
⌛
It went like this for a long time and hours blurred together. It was hot. And loud. And Yunho was exhausted. His limbs felt like lead, unable to move right. Jumping was strenuous in a way he didn’t remember it being this morning.
At least he already had the dance down, remembering his every move with muscle memory, so he didn’t have to think about it.
“Hongjoong-ssi, you need to kneel down on three not on four.”
“Sorry, seonsaengnim”, Yunho heard his hyung apologize, “I’m a bit dizzy. I think I need to sit down for a moment.”
All attention snapped to their captain and the choreographer called out “take ten” the moment she spotted his complexion. Hongjoong indeed looked a bit pale and crouched down to the floor the moment she gave her okay. Yunho wiped the sweat from his brow and winced as droplets of the salty liquid dripped into his eyes, burning them, nevertheless.
Seonghwa and Wooyoung were already with Hongjoong, helping him sit down with his head between his knees while Yeosang ran to get some water and a sweet snack. Good. They didn’t need Hongjoong to faint during practice - again. Reassured that Hongjoong was in good hands and knowing not to overwhelm his embarrassed captain, decided to drink something himself.
But when he turned to walk to his bag, a sudden wave of dizziness washed over him, nearly bowling him over. Yunho lifted his hand to his head and took a deep breath. Why was this happening now? He had been just fine earlier when he was dancing. Why was walking an issue?
Slumping down by his bag, Yunho for the first time realized that he felt … off. He couldn’t describe it any other way. The tiredness he was feeling wasn’t post-work out exhaustion but just exhaustion. His head felt weird, heavy and light at the same time. An annoying ache was spreading down his neck and into his upper back.
He wanted to blame the fact that he had slept badly or not enough. But he had gone to bed at a reasonable time and he had even woken up a bit late that morning to Yeosang shaking his shoulder and telling him he had overslept his alarm. That normally didn’t happen to Yunho, he liked being punctual, but they all had weird one-offs. He had been tired then too, achy. A shower and a coffee later he had felt much better, so he hadn’t thought anything of it. Now everything was hitting him again.
It was only an hour left. He had endured six hours of it, one more would be no problem.
“You okay?”
The question startled Yunho badly enough that he nearly dropped his bottle he had been trying to fumble open for some time without success at this point. He hadn’t even realized he had taken it into his hands.
Mingi frowned down at him, holding his own - open - water bottle in his hand.
“Huh? Yeah, I’m fine. Just can’t get this stupid bottle open”, Yunho replied. What else was there to say?
Mingi laughed at that, a loud, joyous sound. But for some reason it annoyed Yunho to no end, scraping at his ear drums.
“Give it here, you big baby”, Mingi offered, grinning at him.
Yunho pouted. Mingi was the big baby, not him. But he couldn’t deny that he was thirsty, so he handed it to his best friend, who opened it without an issue.
“You sure, you’re okay?”, Mingi asked then, raising one worried eyebrow.
Yunho nodded. He was fine.
⌛
They continued practice soon after. Hongjoong was still sitting out, sipping on an apple juice and munching on a muffin somebody had found. You know that it happens sometimes, he had said, don’t worry, you know I just need to raise my blood sugar and rest a bit.
So they continued as seven. It was a bit more difficult now, the dance was made for eight and everything looked just a tiny bit off now. Maybe it was just Yunho, though. The earlier dizziness hadn’t vanished, in fact he now saw some members twice at times. It was confusing but Yunho was too tired to care. When he blinked everything returned to normal with his vision, so it was fine. A bit more annoying was the cold water that was sitting heavily in his stomach since he had drunk. It was a bit painful, a bit cramping and a bit nauseating.
But it happened sometimes. It wasn’t the first time a member would need to sit out after eating or drinking too close to doing their extreme sport. It had been a rule to sit down when that happened ever since Jongho had thrown up on San’s shoes years ago. It was just a normal part of idol life.
Just, if Yunho sat out now, with Hongjoong already on the sidelines, then the practice would make no sense anymore. With two members missing the choreography wouldn’t work.
So Yunho carried on.
Despite the heat.
Despite the pain in his neck and back.
Despite the fact that he could barely see what was happening due to the stinging sweat in his eyes.
Despite the deafening music that seemed so much louder than normally, threatening to burst his ear drums or split his head.
Despite the nausea and pain in his belly that were becoming worse with every move.
⌛
“Alright, good job everybody”, the choreographer called out.
“You did very well”, Hongjoong added, having joined them for the last few run-throughs. “Let’s go home for tonight.”
Wooyoung and San high fived each other and collapsed in an exhausted but happy pile on top of Yeosang, dragging their third down with them.
Seonghwa clapped Hongjoong on the back, asking one more time if he still felt faint, which the captain denied.
Jongho and Mingi were leaning on each other, panting but content.
Yunho’s knees buckled.
“Jong-”, he whispered, finding himself falling into the maknae’s direction. It hadn’t felt like his voice was very loud but apparently it was enough for the younger to hear him. It was a bit painful as he collided with Jongho’s shoulder, teeth rattling in his skull but at least he was lowered to the floor and didn’t bash his head in.
“Hyung”, Jongho called, his voice frantic, as he struggled to keep Yunho from falling even further. “Somebody help me!”
His face was swimming in Yunho’s blurred eyesight. Yunho felt his back connect with the cool floor, the contact not painful at all. Then Jongho’s fingers tapped annoyingly against Yunho’s cheek. Hongjoong’s face entered his vision and gentle fingers started carding through his hair. Yunho closed his eyes, the bright overhead light stabbing at his retinas.
Suddenly yelling started up and the tapping on his cheeks became more pronounced.
“Stop.” He wanted to protest loudly. It barely came out as a whisper.
“Don’t go to sleep, baby”, a familiar voice said. Right, Hongjoong-hyung. “Open your eyes for us, okay?”
“Too bright”, Yunho mumbled, turning his face towards the hand that was now caressing his cheek instead of tapping it. It was nice. Comforting.
“He’s slurring and light-sensitive.” Was that Seonghwa? “Did he hit his head?”
Yunho wanted to protest, because Jongho had caught him. But no sound but a small whine left his lips.
“No, I caught him. I mean, he collided with my shoulder a bit but it wasn’t that bad”, Jongho said. His voice came from further away than expected. Hadn’t he just been by Yunho’s side? Who else was there?
Yunho blinked open his eyes, realizing that somebody had dimmed the lights. Still hot tears fell down his cheeks into his hair. Blinking to clear his vision he found himself surrounded by Hongjoong, Seonghwa and Mingi, all with similar faces of worry on their faces.
“There you are, love”, Seonghwa said, smiling down at Yunho. It was his hands in Yunho’s hair. “How are you feeling?”
“Wha’ happ’n’?” The words were difficult to say, like lead was holding his tongue prisoner.
“We were hoping you could tell us”, Hongjoong replied lightly, but even in his confused state Yunho could hear the underlying worry. “You collapsed against Jongho after practice ended. Do you have any idea what happened?”
Yunho tried to remember what had happened. He hadn’t been feeling well, had he? Hot. Loud. Sweaty. Pained. Nauseous.
Oh, God, the nausea.
Now that he remembered, he felt the churning in his stomach and the sourness at the back of his throat.
“Don’ fe’ g’d”, he mumbled, swallowing.
The members discussed something over his head. Yunho was too tired to pay attention. So he just let his eyes slip shut. Now he wasn’t hot anymore but the shivering that was taking over his body covered in cold sweat wasn’t better. His head pounded. His neck felt stiff. Light and sound were exhausting. And he still was queasy.
Somebody started tapping his cheek again. Yunho groaned.
“Do you think you’re having a migraine?”, Mingi asked, a bit of hesitation in his voice. “You’re slurring. You seem to be in pain and you can’t tolerate sound and light well.”
… it made sense. A lot of sense.
Yunho hadn’t even spared a thought to what made him so miserable but a migraine? That would explain a lot. The pain. The nausea. The general feeling of bah.
“Yeah”, he mumbled. “Think so.”
Hongjoong hummed in sympathy, knowing from first hand experience how bad it could be. And nearly fainting after practice was probably pretty bad.
“Do you think you can make it home?”, Seonghwa then questioned.
That was the question, wasn’t it? Yunho had no idea.
Collapsing in a heap on the way would probably be very embarrassing but he, now that he first thought of it, wanted to be in a cold, dark room with a comfy bed and maybe Mingi cuddling him. It would not get better than that. But for that he also needed to get home. His thoughts were so fuzzy.
“Yeah”, he mumbled, hoping that it would work.
“Let’s sit up first and see how it goes”, Hongjoong suggested, “how does your stomach feel?”
Oh yeah, that was a good question. Not very good, at all, was the answer. As if his body decided to react to Hongjoong without him having a say, Yunho gagged.
There was a curse and then somebody shoved him into a sitting position. It was enough to also move his stomach up his throat.
“Oh, Yunho”, Mingi whispered as Yunho bent forward and warm sick fell from his lips, the sound of it hitting a bucket echoing back at him. His stomach rolled and his head pounded and then he threw up again. And again. And again.
His heartbeat was drumming in his head and Yunho grit his teeth in a moment of respite, hoping to fight the nauseating pain. Now that he had started vomiting he knew that the real migraine pain would hit soon. What had happened before was just a warning, a mild pain compared to what would come.
He groaned as more rancid throw up splattered into the bin, burning his throat, and he slumped forward even more. A blessedly-cool hand on his forehead stopped his descent head first into his own puke.
Then it was over. Somebody wiped the spit dangling from his lips away and a cold cloth washed away the sweat. Yunho was leaned back and he rested his head against the comforting shoulder of whoever sat behind him. Mingi?
The comforting rumble in the person’s chest clued him in as Mingi spoke. “Ready to go home?”
“Still feel sick”, Yunho muttered, only really realizing when he was speaking that indeed his stomach was still cramping unhappily. Maybe he really was out of it or maybe the nausea he felt was even more in his head and throat than in his stomach, uncomfortable nevertheless.
“We got the bucket here, don’t worry”, Hongjoong said.
“‘Kay.”
⌛
Yunho barely remembered the drive home. He was in a car with Mingi who was combing through his hair in a comfortable motion and Hongjoong was holding his hand, as far as he knew. A manager probably had been there too, because Seonghwa couldn’t drive and the others hadn’t been there. All Yunho could do was cling to the plastic of the bucket, comforted by knowing it was there.
Had he thrown up on the way home? Likely. He didn’t remember it though.
Now, he was in bed, buried under a layer of cool sheets. The room was dark. Mingi was a warm weight by his side. Hongjoong’s fingers were carding through his hair.
It would likely not get better until the migraine went away.
Yunho groaned, nauseously bent over the toilet in the dorm Hongjoong, Wooyoung and Jongho shared. He had been in there for at least an hour, if not more.
He kinda wished he had not drank so much the night before, rather not drank at all. His stomach had felt off back then and still he had tried to drink Jongho under the table. Jongho, of all people. Their maknae probably had the best alcohol tolerance out of all of them. What had he thought?
A burp and sour bile slithering up his throat stopped his further train of thought. Instead he moved his head from where he had rested it on the cool toilet seat over the water again, just in time for a mouthful of bile - puke? alcohol? bad decisions? - to spill into it.
Whatever it was, it hurt his throat a lot. No matter how disgusting it was, Yunho was too exhausted to flush. His head throbbed and he could feel the hot fever burning under his skin, making him hot and cold at the same time. The offending thermometer that had revealed his fate when he doubted he could feel that bad just from being hungover laid at his side.
While he was kinda glad that Jongho had dragged him to his apartment - his own dorm mate Yeosang was visiting his sister with Wooyoung, so Yunho would have been alone - he was still alone. He wasn’t sure if Hongjoong was even home and Jongho was surely deeply asleep in his own alcohol haze.
Oh God, what Yunho would have given to be asleep at the moment too.
Or have somebody stay with him. He felt tears prickle at his eyes, knowing he was overly tired and emotionally from the rather high fever.
Yunho must have drifted off even in his less than optimal sleeping position, as he woke up to laughter.
He blinked his eyes open, wiping away the crustiness with one hand, and winced at the light stabbing his retinas. Why had somebody turned on the lights?
“You really can’t hold your liquor, hyung”, Jongho teased, “why did you even try?”
The maknae sounded much too gleeful and too full of schadenfreude for this hour.
“I hate you”, Yunho moaned.
His stomach lurched and he only barely managed to turn his head over the toilet bowl before a bit of bile came up.
Even while he loved teasing his hyungs, Jongho was also responsible and kind. So Yunho wasn’t surprised to feel a hand on his back, rubbing gentle circles.
Coughing a bit, Yunho wiped his mouth and slumped backwards against the wall, squeezed in between the toilet and the sink cabinet.
“Jeez, how long have you been in here? You’re basically empty”, Jongho said, now a bit worried. Yunho shrugged. He didn’t know. He hadn’t gone to sleep after they had come home, trying to calm his churning stomach down before having to sprint to the bathroom nevertheless.
Jongho sighed, reached up to flush the toilet, washed his hands and then reached out to Yunho.
“No, don’t come closer”, Yunho protested. He didn’t want to get Jongho sick.
The maknae raised his eyebrows. “Dude, you’re hungover. The only way that is contagious is if the other person went drinking with you. And I don’t get hungover.”
“I’m not hungover either”, Yunho mumbled and then pouted, “I’m just sick.”
“Yeah, sure, you tell yourself that”, Jongho said with a laugh, clearly not believing him.
“Jongho”, Yunho replied, a bit annoyed and his patience running thin. He didn’t want to be mocked. “I am running a fever and I started throwing up before I even stopped being drunk. I’m not hungover, I already threw up all the alcohol before it could start.”
Jongho’s eyes widened nearly comically.
“I’m so sorry, hyung”, he apologized, stumbling a bit over his words. It was then that Yunho realized that Jongho, unlike himself, was still slightly drunk. “I didn’t know.”
“I’m sorry too, I shouldn’t have snapped”, Yunho replied, patting Jongho’s knee. “Why don’t you go back to bed and sleep it off?”
Yes, Yunho wanted company. But he wasn’t going to subject his maknae to this.
“Nope”, Jongho said, “I’m staying. I’ll help you.”
⌛
Even hours later Yunho was so nauseous. While he wanted Jongho to get some sleep, he wished the maknae hadn’t fallen asleep about an hour ago.
Jongho had turned out to be a perfect caretaker, silently rubbing his back and fetching him water if needed, even turning into a pillow. Now, however, he was sitting up against the closed shower door, head dropping down and snoring a bit. It couldn't be comfortable but Yunho didn’t have the strength to wake him.
Yunho’s stomach was so empty it was cramping with hunger but he knew he would just throw up again if he ate. He was also pretty sure his fever had risen since he last took his temperature.
Maybe he should take it again but the thought alone made him gag. His body jerked forwards but he couldn’t be bothered to move over the toilet. He was empty anyways. Spit and bile dangled from his lips, his throat seizing …
And then a sleepy Hongjoong walked in.
The leader jumped half a meter into the air in shock before exclaiming: “Jesus, Yunho, you scared me.” But to his credit, he rushed over to his sick dongsaeng without hesitation, coming to kneel in front of him.
Hongjoong tenderly stroked back Yunho’s sweaty hair and grabbed a few pieces of toilet paper to wipe the younger’s mouth.
“Morning, hyung”, Yunho mumbled, “welcome to the party.”
“It’s more of a pity party, hm?”, Hongjoong replied with a glance at Jongho. “How long have you been in here? Do you feel better? I guess, I can spare myself the told you so?”
“I’m not hungover”, Yunho repeated the words he had said to Jongho earlier, “I’m just sick. I’m running a fever and I started puking before I even had a chance to get hungover.”
“Oh, baby, I’m so sorry”, Hongjoong whispered, pulling Yunho into his arms. Yunho sighed, finally feeling content with hugging his hyung. “Do you want to go to bed?”
Yes. Above all, Yunho wanted to lie down. He nodded against Hongjoong’s shoulder and the captain ruffled his hair before pulling back.
“Can you get up?”
That was the question, wasn’t it? It was soon very clear that, no, Yunho could not get up. His legs had fallen asleep and were so shaky they couldn’t hold him up anyways, not even with Hongjoong supporting him. Their height and weight difference was too high.
“Maybe you should wake Jongho-yah”, Yunho muttered, resigned.
Hongjoong nodded. “He took care of you before?”
“Hmhm. And then the traitor fell asleep. He was kinda drunk so I can’t even blame him.”
Hongjoong laughed a bit and then rose to his feet to gently shake Jongho awake. “Hey baby, wake up. We need your help for a moment.”
Jongho nodded slowly, and let Hongjoong pull him to his feet. Once upright, his face suddenly turned a pale green and before either of the other two could react, he stumbled to the sink and instantly threw up.
Hongjoong cursed and raced after him, patting his back.
“You’re sick too?”, he asked worriedly.
Jongho washed out his mouth with the tap water and then shook his head. “I’m not sick, I’m just hungover.”
“Maybe you should just go to bed, Joong-hyung”, San suggested as Hongjoong yawned for the umpteenth time that evening. Hongjoong supposed that was fair, he really was tired.
Still it was their monthly super-important-very-obligatory-no-you-cannot-stay-late-at-the-studio-to-work-Hongjoong-hyung-movie-night as Wooyoung had titled it. Nobody had dared dispute it. Hongjoong wanted to be there, spend time with his members for once. He knew he spend too much time at the studio working on songs so it was nice to just relax with them.
The kids had spread out all over their furniture in the living room, leaving just a tiny space for their oldest hyung at the edge of the sofa. The moment Seonghwa had sat down, Mingi's head had landed in his lap. Typical. They were a bit more merciful to Hongjoong, glad to have him home and aware he wouldn’t like to be cuddled to death, so he was allowed to just curl up against Yunho’s side. The dancer had looked way too gleeful when Hongjoong had arrived, waving him over. From the way the others were pouting Hongjoong supposed Yunho had won some sort of game.
But he was glad for his current seat. Truth be told, Hongjoong had been happy to avoid the bee’s nest that was the other end of the couch where Wooyoung, San and Yeosang were lying together, limbs so tangled it was impossible to tell what belonged to who. For a moment Hongjoong wondered how in the world that could be comfortable (not that he ever wanted to find out), but that was when Yeosang shoved Wooyoung off of him so he would not get crushed.
For some time they all were focused on the movie and the popcorn for which Seonghwa had sacrificed a nice sitting space.
Well, most of them were. Hongjoong hadn’t really been paying attention from the beginning, eyes falling shut the moment he had sat down. He probably had fallen asleep at some point. As he looked up, the protagonist of the movie was blind and the whole world was in flames – Hongjoong didn’t know why but at this point he was afraid to ask. No need to get teased even more about his inability to stay awake to watch movies.
“You keep yawning and, knowing you, you have no idea what is happening anyways”, Wooyoung added, speaking around a handful of popcorn and grinning cheekily. Hongjoong growled at him but he didn’t argue against that. He knew better than trying to lie about something he had no idea about. Any question about the movie – including the title – would out him.
Maybe it was for the best if he went to sleep early or, well, earlier than normal. They had a free day on the weekend where they could spend more time together when Hongjoong was actually awake. It was perhaps the better choice for all involved.
So Hongjoong nodded and de-lodged himself from his comfy position half on Yunho to stretch.
“Good night, guys”, he said, interrupted again by a yawn again, and left to get ready. He quickly brushed his teeth and climbed up the ladder to his bunk. His energy was close to zero so he was glad he didn’t have to change clothes, already wearing pajamas from after his shower.
He closed his eyes and curled around his pillow, longing for dreamland.
⌛
Yet, sleep escaped him, no matter how tired he was. He turned around to find a more comfy situation, pausing in his movement as his stomach lightly cramped. Huh, weird. As soon as it had come it went, so he didn’t think much of it at first.
Then the nausea crashed over him and he had to swallow against the sudden, unexpected and very much unwelcome tightness in his throat. He tasted bile in his mouth, not unlike when he had heart-burn, and he swallowed again. What was going on? He had been fine all day but now from one second to the next he felt terrible.
His tiredness had given way to extreme exhaustion and he felt so, so sick. Moving any limb seemed like a herculean task and, no matter how much he tried to work through it, it didn’t matter. He couldn't find a position that was comfortable to lay in and where he might be able to sleep through this weird queasiness.
Hongjoong laid still for what seemed like hours, but it was unlikely considering that Seonghwa hadn’t come in to sleep yet. He kept palming his stomach in hopes of calming the storming sea inside down.
Unexpectedly his stomach gave another lurch and, clenching his jaw shut, he feared he would actually throw up then and there on his bed. Hongjoong held his breath and slowly the nausea subsided, leaving him with an awful taste in his mouth. This was not good. He fought against the tears wanting to escape his tightly shut eyes. He was so tired.
But instead of falling asleep as he so desperately wanted he realized that he needed to climb down the steps of his bunk bed and drag himself to the bathroom to hopefully avoid disaster. Well, Hongjoong wanted to avoid vomiting altogether but that possibility was becoming moot. So being in the bathroom was the second best choice. Probably. He really didn’t want to disturb the other members.
He activated his phone’s flashlight, for the first time noticing the headache assaulting his brain as the light seemed to literally stab his retinas. He took a deep breath and slowly, with the help of the railing of the bunk bed, he sat up. His stomach cramped again and he whimpered silently. Painfully, he took each step down the ladder, shaking from cold and nausea, socketed feet finally reaching the ground just as he started to fear he would fall from the dizziness.
Hongjoong walked down the dark hallway as quickly as possible. Quietness had to be sacrificed in place of quickness. Why did he and Seonghwa have to have the room farthest from the bathroom? Didn’t matter now.
He briefly spared a thought to how this would affect the group, not necessarily how they would worry but the dynamics for the next week. Sickness always was bad especially in their careers and in the close proximity of the dorms. Whenever one of them would fall sick it was guaranteed at least a few of them if not all would also fall victim to whatever viruses or bacteria crawled inside them.
He shuddered at the thought of anything crawling inside him, the image disgusting even when he wasn’t worried about throwing up in the middle of the hall. He used one hand to hold onto his stomach, the other to guide himself along the wall to keep himself upright, knees feeling extremely weak. He could only walk slightly bend over his churning stomach and focused on his feet, counting the steps to stay calm. Why couldn't he just have a good night’s sleep?
There were sounds coming from the living room - probably the others still watching the movie. For a moment he thought about calling out for help – not wanting to be alone. But he still held out hope that it was all a fluke though he knew it was less likely every second.
The decision was taken out of his hands as suddenly footsteps came in his direction and he, not really paying attention to anything but putting one foot in front of the next, nearly collided with someone. The person reached down to steady him and he blinked up at his gentle giant.
"Hongjoong-hyung, are you alright?", Yunho asked, concern clear in his voice, "you don't look so good?"
Hongjoong had no strength to argue and he didn't see a point in lying. If he truly threw up, he couldn't keep it a secret. He had once tried to dance after spending the whole night worshiping the porcelain god and it hadn't ended well. Seonghwa still held it above his head to threaten him into compliance when he was unreasonable. Yes, Hongjoong was confident in himself enough to know that he was unreasonable.
Christ, did he have a fever? His thoughts were all jumbled, though not nearly as much as his stomach.
"I don't feel so good", he mumbled in admittance, slightly leaning into Yunho's comforting touch. As he looked up he saw Yunho's eyes widen in shock for a moment - either at the fact that Hongjoong just admitted to being unwell or the fact that Hongjoong was unwell at all - but he couldn't care less about that. Why was the hallways swaying like a boat on the stormy sea?
"What's wrong?", the younger man asked, tender concern in his voice and he used the hand not steadying Hongjoong to take his hand and rub light circles on it. It felt so good to be comforted. Hongjoong sank even closer to his puppy.
"I'm really nauseous. I think I need to be in the bathroom for now", Hongjoong admitted and he heard Yunho suck in a deep breath yet his huge hands kept holding onto Hongjoong.
"Think you'll be sick?", Yunho asked, never stopping the comforting touch even though he risked being in the line of fire, "do you want me to get Seonghwa-hyung?"
Hongjoong shrugged in response to the first question and then nodded. Yes, yes above all he wanted his Seonghwa-hyung so badly it hurt. His hyung had the amazing capability to calm him down and make everything not as bad as it first felt. He wanted Seonghwa to hug him, rub his back and tell him everything would be fine even if he wasn’t. Seonghwa was a good hyung, always taking care and taking charge when needed. Hongjoong didn’t know what he would do without him. Crash and burn (out) probably.
Suddenly, Hongjoong's stomach lurched again and he gagged against the hand he had clamped over his mouth just in time. Yunho looked startled for half a second, then fell into his patented ‘I’m the oldest of the 99-line and taller than you so I am now taking care of you’-mode he had perfected over the past years.
"Come, hyung, let's get you to the bathroom", he urged and, wrapping an arm around Hongjoong's shoulder, pulled him to the appropriate location for what was about to happen without hesitation. Hongjoong stumbled along, leaning on Yunho and he swore the hallway really had never been so long. His legs constantly threatened to give way under him and his body was so exhausted he felt like collapsing in a pile right there where he stood. Yunho kept a hold on him all the time, firm but gentle, and wow… he really was a saint.
Once they reached the bathroom, Hongjoong pulled free from his dongsaeng and stumbled the few steps to the toilet hastily, pulling the seat up. He pushed his body upwards, so his head was resting on his hands, elbows on the toilet and nearly immediately he started gagging and retching, a wave of dinner painting the bowl light brown.
Over the wretched sounds his own body produced, he heard Yunho panickedly yell for their oldest hyung: "Seonghwa-hyung? Seonghwa-hyung? Hongjoong-hyung is throwing up!"
It took barely ten seconds for Seonghwa to burst into the bathroom, though to Hongjoong it felt like hours. "Joong-ah?", he asked, nearly making Hongjoong cry in relief at the comforting quality in his voice and the familiar nickname.
He was distracted by another wave of nausea and another round of gagging. A smaller hand than before touched his shoulder gently and another gently brushed his hair from his forehead, holding it back.
⌛
Seonghwa was worried. It was concerningly normal for their captain to stay late at the company to work on new songs. It took Eden-hyung to threaten him to ban him from the studios for a week and the reminder of the obligatory movie night to get Hongjoong home this time. Unsurprisingly, Hongjoong crashed hard. But all of their lives were hectic and falling asleep at the dinner table and during movies was not an unusual occasion (especially for Hongjoong, even new ATINYs knew that Hongjoong for the life of him couldn’t stay awake during movies), neither was not being hungry after strenuous dance practices. Therefore Seonghwa kept silent.
Now, while worried, he was glad that Hongjoong let himself be convinced to go to bed when San and Wooyoung suggested it. Normally he would have fought tooth and nail to stay – claiming that since he was home for once he wanted to bond with them.
Normally Seonghwa couldn’t deny him even though it always ended up with him carrying his captain to the bedroom because Hongjoong of course fell asleep. Normally it ended with them cuddling in Seonghwa’s lower bunk because - while all of them were taller than Hongjoong - the captain was still a grown man and the bunk bed was high.
"Is Hongjoong-hyung okay?", Jongho asked, concerned, when Hongjoong’s footsteps had faded and the door to their bedroom had fallen shut.
Jongho, Yunho and Mingi were looking expectantly at him, while WooSanSang were still arguing over how to lay comfortably. Wooyoung and San had somehow ended up on top of Yeosang again and Seonghwa was sure that Yeosang had no idea how that had happened but he was disgruntled by it nevertheless.
"I’m sure Hongjoong-ah will be fine. He's just really exhausted. After all he stayed late at the studio the past week", Seonghwa answered the question.
"I wish he wouldn't stay up all night", Yunho mumbled, leaning his head against Mingi's stomach. He had switched to sitting on the ground in front of the couch, needing the hard ground to help his sore muscles and probably feeling left out now that his cuddle partner had left him.
"Me too", Mingi whispered, "hyung works so hard for us. I wish he knew we don't just love him for his productive output. I want to take that burden off his shoulders."
Seonghwa ran a gentle hand through Mingi's hair, aware that even their trouble-triplets had finished squabbling and were waiting for an answer.
"He knows we love him", Seonghwa answered, ignoring the 'he just doesn't love himself enough' that his mind immediately threw at him. "He wants the best for us and he has his responsibilities as captain. He'll come to us when he really needs help."
Seonghwa didn't even believe in his last sentence so he wasn't surprised when Jongho snorted in disbelief but none of them had an answer on how to help their overworked leader.
With a sigh, Yunho grabbed the remote and started the movie again, normalcy returning to them as San accidentally kicked Mingi as he adjusted his position once again, which ended in a light and unserious debate.
⌛
Seonghwa was not prepared for Yunho yelling for him half an hour later when he had left to use the bathroom. The second the words “Hongjoong-hyung is throwing up” registered in his mind he jumped up and ran, nearly colliding with the doorframe. So something was wrong after all.
As soon as he entered the bathroom he found Yunho standing a few feet away from the captain, looking lost. Seonghwa ignored him for now and knelt down behind Hongjoong to hold back his sweaty hair and to hold him up by his shoulder. It broke Seonghwa’s heart watching Hongjoong go through the violent sickness.
Hongjoong’s whole body was wrecked by tremors and seized every time his stomach cramped. The wretched sound of vomiting echoed in the bowl, causing Seonghwa to shudder but he reminded himself that now matter how bad he was feeling Hongjoong was feeling worse. Hongjoong was gasping for breath in the few seconds of respite he was getting from expelling his stomach and Seonghwa remembered Hongjoong once telling him that for him it was the worst part – not being able to breathe.
“Sweetheart, did you eat something bad or do you think you’ve got the stomach flu? Lee Know mentioned it was going around at their dorms too”, Seonghwa asked gently when Hongjoong was given a break from his upset stomach. In the meantime the captain had slumped back more and more into his hyung so that Seonghwa was struggling to keep him upright from their awkward positions.
Hongjoong shrugged. He probably had no idea what was wrong, but Seonghwa sure as hell hoped that the sickness - whatever the cause - wouldn’t last long and that he wasn’t contagious. It would be a disaster if all of them got sick.
Seonghwa sighed and leaned over Hongjoong to flush down his stomach contents, before pulling Hongjoong close to his chest again, scooting back so that they were sitting against the bathtub. Yunho knelt down next to them, a glass of water in his hand.
“Try to drink something, hyung”, he encouraged and when Hongjoong made no move to hold the glass himself, tipped it against Hongjoong’s lips. Hongjoong swallowed a few sips but then he was barely able to push past Yunho to throw himself at the toilet again. He nearly made it too. But another gag overwhelmed him and the next moment the captain was choking, undigested food spilling from his lips onto the bathroom floor, his shirt and even the towel somebody had left on the floor in front of the shower.
For a moment the world seemed frozen as the three of them tried to process what had happened, but then Seonghwa woke from his stupor to pull Hongjoong the rest of the way. He took great care in kneeling down, not wanting to get even more of his own and Hongjoong’s clothes drenched in stomach contents. Gently, he smoothed back Hongjoong's sweaty hair and ran his other hand over the younger's back. Yunho, who was a pillar to lean on but had a weak stomach at times, left in order to keep his own stomach where it belonged.
Finally, after what felt like hours, Hongjoong seemed to be done for the moment, breathing unsteady and heaving, but no longer cut off by his rebelling body.
"Done?", Seonghwa asked and let Hongjoong lean against him. The captain closed his eyes and nodded. Seonghwa sighed and ran his hand through Hongjoong’s sweaty hair. The captain looked terrible, all pale and shaky.
"Let's get you cleaned up and back to bed", the older proposed, waiting for Hongjoong to nod before he helped the man stand up. With knees weak from illness, he nearly would have fallen if Seonghwa hadn't caught him against his chest. Seonghwa leaned over to flush the toilet again and then he was lost for a second.
It was obvious Hongjoong couldn't stand on his own but Seonghwa couldn't sit him down on the closed toilet lid in good conscience. He didn't think either of their stomach's were strong enough for staying close to the puddle of sick for much longer.
"Let's get you out of your clothes", he whispered and moved uncooperative limbs out of the pajamas when Hongjoong didn't make a move, too exhausted to help.
"How long have you felt bad?", Seonghwa asked, careful not to get them more dirty, and helped Hongjoong, who was resting his head against Seonghwa's shoulder, keep his balance. “Do you know what is making you so sick?”
"I dunno", Hongjoong muttered, "I was so tired but I couldn’t fall asleep and it got worse really fast." He sounded tired and exhausted, frustrated even. Seonghwa understood, he had been working for so long and now he couldn't even rest.
"Alright, let's get you into the shower, hm?", Seonghwa whispered, when Hongjoong was only left in his boxers. He wasn't going to venture any further in taking off his clothes, wanting to preserve at least some of Hongjoong’s dignity.
Hongjoong took a few shaky steps and then sank down onto the shower floor, not able to keep his body upright any longer. It was probably best that he was sitting, there was less chance of him getting dizzy and falling that way. Seonghwa reached up and handed him the shower head, hoping he was able to wash himself.
"Can you get yourself clean?", Seonghwa asked, crouching down in front of him, "I'll get you some clean clothes and clean up in here."
The other man nodded, looking so incredibly small curled up like that, that it broke Seonghwa's heart. Their infallible captain had fallen after all.
⌛
Satisfied that Hongjoong would not drown or collapse at the moment, he quickly left the bathroom, leaving the door open to be able to listen for any suspicious sounds. He walked by the living room to get to their shared room but was stopped by the younger members calling his name. He entered to find Mingi rubbing Yunho’s back, as the older one was sipping from a glass of water. Jongho looked on worriedly, while WooSanSang were missing.
He supposed Yunho had already told the what was going on, so Yeosang and San had taken Wooyoung to the room Yeosang shared with the maknaes where – Seonghwa knew from previous illnesses – cuddles, earphones and movies would wait for emetophobic Wooyoung. While the second maknae was in therapy for it they really couldn’t afford him to freak out now.
“How are you doing, Yunho-yah?”, Seonghwa asked worriedly.
“I’m okay, just needed a breather. Can we help you?”, Yunho replied, putting down the glass. Seonghwa decided to trust his judgment for now.
"Actually, yes. I need somebody to get Joong-ah clothes and someone to get some cleaning supplies. Then I can go back to check on him now, he’s just taking a shower but he is quite unsteady", Seonghwa said, not willing to decide who got which job.
“I’ll get the cleaning supplies”, Mingi suggested, “Yunho-hyung, why don’t you get Hongjoong-hyung some of your clothes? He loves wearing oversized things after all.”
Yunho nodded and they both got up.
“Do you want me to help too, hyung?”, Jongho asked, already getting up.
“If you want to, I sure could use an extra pair of hands.”
In the end it had been a good idea for Jongho to come with. Hongjoong was still in the same position in the shower, letting the warm water wash his body but making no effort on his own to get cleaned up. Jongho didn’t even look bothered by the smell as he entered the dirty bathroom and at once knelt down so that he was on eye level with Hongjoong.
“Hey, hyung”, he greeted softly, smiling a bit, “do you want to get out of the shower or do you want some help washing up?”
“Jongho-yah?”, Hongjoong mumbled and opened his eyes, “oh.”
He didn’t answer the maknae’s question, so Jongho took it in his own hands and chucked off his shirt so he could lean into the shower and not get his clothes wet. Gently he lathered Hongjoong’s hair in shampoo and even held his hand over Hongjoong’s forehead so that none of the suds would get in his eyes.
Hongjoong let him do as he pleased, so Seonghwa joined Mingi in cleaning up the floor, the younger one having just arrived. Yunho appeared in the doorway and placed fresh clothes on the counter before helping Jongho get Hongjoong upright and dry, the captain leaning on them. They quickly helped him slip on some of his own pajama pants and then huddled him in one of Yunho’s bathrobes for warmth.
Then suddenly Hongjoong, who had seemed on the verge of sleep, slapped his hand over his mouth, eyes widening. Jongho and Yunho rushed him over to the sink, where Hongjoong proceeded to get sick again. Jongho, who never had been squeamish at all, opened the tab to let the water wash away the sick, and when the sick didn’t properly flow away due to not quite being liquid, he reached down and pulled the plug out of the way. Jongho just calmly washed his hand when Hongjoong was done vomiting and was held up by Yunho, who looked a bit pale again.
“Better?”, Seonghwa asked, coming over as he and Mingi finished up cleaning.
Hongjoong shrugged, probably too tired to answer.
“Alright, let’s set you up with a bucket in our room?”, Seonghwa suggested and as Hongjoong consented, Yunho carried him to the bedroom where he was wrapped in Yunho’s shirt and in Seonghwa’s blankets. Yunho left the room to fetch a bucket and to check on Mingi and Jongho (who was still washing his hands).
“Think you’ll be sick again?”, Seonghwa asked even though he would have put a bucket next to the bed either way. Hongjoong nodded and reached up to him. Seonghwa smiled and slipped under the blankets with him, cuddling him. He knew they would be up soon enough with Hongjoong’s rebelling stomach showing no signs of stopping. While he doubted that Hongjoong would be able to sleep with how nauseous he still seemed, he wanted him to at least be able to rest his eyes.
“I’m sorry”, Hongjoong whispered after a moment.
“What for? Being sick? It happens, Joong-ah”, Seonghwa soothed, “were glad to help you when you need it. Eight makes one tea after all. Please just rest for now.”
Sleepily Hongjoong nodded, placing his head on Seonghwa’s chest.
⌛
Just as Seonghwa had predicted, Hongjoong was up multiple times that night, violently expelling his stomach contents. Their schedules were canceled the next day, Seonghwa too sleep deprived and too worried to work and Hongjoong barely able to move. A manager came by to check on them in the early afternoon, trying to get Hongjoong to take some medicine but he still couldn’t keep it down.
Yet in the evening Hongjoong started to feel better, still shaky and headachy but not as nauseous anymore. He was finally able to keep down some water for longer than a few minutes and even fell asleep, victim to his exhaustion. He slept through the night and the next morning, but felt marginally better when he woke.
He went into work the next morning, feeling completely restored.
