"Ugh, I'm exhausted." Xiumin said as he slumped on the couch after practice. Baekhyun yelled in delight as he jumped on top of him followed by Chen, followed by Chanyeol. 

"Ow! Idiots! Geroff me!" Xiumin tried to push the Beagle Line off him but just slumped back down with a groan. Suho sighed and, together with Lay, shoved the three boys off the oldest member. 

"I'll just shower and sleep." Xiumin grunted and staggered off to the bathroom. His head was pounding and he felt clammier than usual, must be overwork, he thought.

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Chen walked into their shared room with a towel around his waist and his hair dripping wet from his recent shower. He saw his boyfriend reading on the bed and went over to peck him on the lips. Xiumin scowled at him and Chen drew back pouting.

"Xiu, what's wrong?" Chen said, circling around Xiumin and pulling him into a back hug, kissing his cheek playfully. Xiumin's scowl deepened as he sighed dramatically.

"I just don't think being squashed by my boyfriend and his cronies is the best thing after practice." Chen pouted even more and nuzzled into his neck.

"Forgive me, Xiu, I didn't mean to." Chen attempted aegyo and Xiumin started laughing, turning around to hug his cute boyfriend. His eyelids suddenly felt heavy, his vision was getting fuzzy and the throbbing in his head was worse than ever.

Chen noticed that Xiumin's body temperature was rising rapidly and asked, "Xiu, you alright?" Xiumim groaned and Chen furrowed his eyebrows and drew back.

"Xiumin, Xiumin what's wrong? Xiumin!" Chen caught Xiumin as he slumped forward in a dead faint. Chen, panicking now, quickly laid his lover down and felt his now burning forhead. 

"Suho Hyung!" Chen yelled, startling just about the whole dormitory. Three seconds later, Suho came charging in, eyes wide with shock. He saw Xiumin lying motionless with Chen leaning over him protectively. The leader walked over and placed his hand on the unconscious boy's forehead and almost flinched at how hot it was.

"He's running a very high fever, Chen, I'm going to get him some medicine." Suho walked out with hurried footsteps and came back quickly holding pills and a glass of water, this time followed by Lay. Lay squeaked when he saw Xiumin covered in cold sweat and lying on the bed. 

"Suho, will he be alright?" He asked worriedly. Suho supported Xiumin as he gave the boy medication while trying not to choke him. He stood up and kissed Lay gently to comfort him. "He'll be fine, just needs to rest up. Look after him, Chen, I think he should stay in bed tomorrow." Chen nodded silently as the pair left the room. He lied down beside Xiumin and pulled him into a tight hug, tears b in his eyes as he saw how much discomfort Xiumin was in. Xiumin suddenly whined in his sleep, trembling slightly and Chen's heart ached even more. But he couldn't do anything while Xiumin was trapped in a nightmare except to pull him into an even tighter hug, singing softly while his cheek.

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It was a restless night for both of them, Xiumin kept crying out in his sleep paralysis and Chen would comfort him as best as he could until he quieted down. Chen was relieved when he felt Xiumin's forehead in the morning and found it much cooler than before. He yawned widely and cuddled Xiumin, thinking he would finally be able to get some sleep. To his delight, Xiumin turned and cuddled back, mumbling in his delirious dreams. Chen gripped him even tighter, willing him to wake up. Slowly, Chen fell asleep from the comfort of his boyfriend wrapped up in his arms.

Xiumin blinked his eyes slowly as he finally escaped the hellish dreams. He was still shaking from the last one in which he was running to nowhere while the floor around him crumbled. His breathing was still heavy and irregular as he took in his surroundings.

Suddenly Xiumin realised that Chen's face was inches away from his, his lashes fluttering as he slept. A wave of calm washed over Xiumin as he became aware of Chen's arms wrapped around his chest. Xiumin felt exhausted as he began to close his eyes again.

"You're awake," Chen suddenly mumbled, "How are you feeling?"

"Tired." Xiumin sighed as he buried his face in Chen's shoulder, listening to his rythmic breathing. Chen exhaled irritably as he adjusted his position so that Xiumin would be more comfortable by putting only one arm on his torso.

"Just sleep, you're excused from practice anyway." Xiumin hummed and felt himself drift off once again.

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"I'm glad you're okay, Xiumin. You gave us all a fright when you passed out like that." Xiumin blushed as EXO sat together in the living room that evening. Suho smiled as he saw Chen throw an arm around Xiumin. "You're lucky you have such a caring boyfriend, he stayed up all night to take care of you." Suho said as he gestured towards the dark circles under Chen's eyes. Xiumin felt a pang of guilt and kissed Chen in an attempt to thank him properly. Chen caught his face and kissed back, running a tongue across Xiumin's lower lip. Xiumin laughed and pulled back.

"There are children here, Chen, don't ruin their innocence." Chen pouted while Sehun, Tao and Kai protested that they were perfectly grown up. Xiumin laughed as he kissed Chen again. Thinking about how lucky he was to have him.

To have his other half.

This one's a bit shorter, sorry 'bout that. The fever dreaming actually came from my personal experience so yeah, in case you wondered. Anyway hope you're enjoying the stories so far, until the next chapter!