A/N: I read up and did a lot of research on AML to provide as much context as possible, but there is only so much I can do with information about a disease I'm not very knowledgeable about. I apologize for if I offend anyone due to any inaccuracies and overdramatization; it was not intended and feel free to correct my information on anything and I will gladly do my best to adjust and adapt my story to fit and make it as accurate as possible.

It took only a week for Woohyun to finally find some time in his hectic schedule to visit Sunggyu. His managers had their hands full with s who all had individual schedules, so he took the liberty of borrowing one of their cars and driving to the hospital (his excuse was a visit to his grandmother).

With his hood up, mask in place, and a basket of fresh fruits in his hands, Woohyun practically skipped as he made his way inside the hospital. After a few wrong turns, he finally found Sunggyu’s room. As he poised himself ready to knock, he hesitated.

Was this too much? Sunggyu probably thought their meeting was just a one-time thing. Would he find it weird that Woohyun was visiting again? And so soon too? Wait... was he even still in the hospital?!

Before he could contemplate any more of the answer, the door opened and out came Sunggyu’s sister.

“Oh, Woohyun-shii?” She looked startled to see him. “What are you doing here?”

Woohyun chuckled nervously as he bowed. “Um… Sunghee-shii, right? Um, I’m here to visit Sunggyu-shii, if that’s okay? Um… I brought fruit.”

He awkwardly raised the basket.

Sunghee’s eyes widened. “Is… Is there another filming? I don’t think Sunggyu is in any condition-.”

“Ah, no! I’m here on my own. Um… last time, I’m sure Sunggyu-shii seemed a little shy with all the cameras. So, I thought I’d stop by today and visit so we could actually talk. If that’s okay!” he added the last part quickly.

Sunghee bit her lip in contemplation. “Um… I’m not quite sure… Sunggyu…”

Woohyun’s heart stopped at her tone. It didn’t sound good. “Did… did something happen?”

She quickly shook her head. “Oh, no, nothing happened. Sunggyu just had chemo a few days ago and… well, he’s not really in the best of moods…” She looked up at Woohyun. “But, maybe seeing you will cheer him up! Just… um… don’t take anything he says, personally, okay? He’s always like this after a session.”

She stepped aside. “I’m just going to the cafeteria to grab some coffee. Would you like anything?”

Woohyun shook his head, saying he was fine. Sunghee then left and Woohyun was once again faced by the door.

So, Sunggyu just had chemo. Woohyun read a lot about AML in the last week to learn more about it, learn about the treatments possible for a long remission. All the medical terms made his head spin, and he read them like a champ, but he still felt like he knew very little.

Realizing that he was simply stalling himself for the inevitable, Woohyun took a deep breath and opened the door.

"Sunggyu-shii?" he called out.

The figure on the bed stirred before sitting up weakly, to look at who just entered. Sunggyu had dark circles under his eyes, there were more prominent bruises on his skin, and all of his hair was gone. Compared to the week before, he looked much frailer… weaker…

Woohyun must have stood there for quite some time, just staring, as Sunggyu stared back with an unreadable expression.

It wasn’t until Sunggyu spoke that Woohyun shook out of his daze.

“What are you doing here?” the older man spoke in a harsh tone.

Woohyun blinked, surprised. The Sunggyu of last week spoke softly and gently. This Sunggyu sounded angry and… cold. But, then he remembered what Sunghee said… to not take what Sunggyu said, personally.

“Um… I came to visit,” Woohyun said, coming closer to the bed. He raised the basket with a smile. “I brought fruit!”

He hoped that that would soften up his fan, but to his further surprise, Sunggyu only narrowed his already small eyes at him. The idol would have found that absolutely adorable if not for the seriousness of the elder’s expression.

“Please leave,” he said, curtly before turning around and tugging his blanket over his head.

Woohyun blinked, the request taking a few seconds to register in his mind.

Sunggyu… wanted him to leave? But… he was Woohyun’s number one fan! What number one fan wanted their favorite idol to leave when they were visiting?!

The younger felt strangely hurt and disappointed. He had been hoping he and Sunggyu could actually talk… not as idol and fan… but, as friends… he wanted to be friends with Sunggyu.

“Sunggyu-shii…” he started, not really sure what to say.

“Nam Woohyun-shii, p-please leave,” came the older’s reply. “Please… just leave!”

How could Woohyun deny him the plea?

So, with a heavy heart, the idol placed the basket of fruit on the bedside. “Um... I didn’t know what fruit you liked so I brought a bit of everything. There’s apples, oranges, grapes, and strawberries.”

There was no answer from the figure on the bed.

“Eat them well, okay? And get better. I’m going now.”

Still no response.

So, Woohyun ignored his disappointment and headed for the door. He hesitated before turning around again to look at Sunggyu, still under the sheets. “I’m… so sorry for bothering you today, Sunggyu-shii. Get well soon.”

And with that, he left the room.

++++++

He probably waited outside about fifteen to twenty minutes until Sunggyu’s sister arrived with a cup of coffee and a plastic bag of food. She didn’t look surprised to see him there and only sighed.

“What did he do?” she asked when she got closer.

Woohyun ran a hand through his hair. “He… um… told me to leave.”

Sunghee only nodded in understanding. “I’m sorry, he’s always like this after a treatment. He doesn’t like it when people see him so… weak. And he gets insecure about how he looks. I thought it would be different with you, but I guess I was wrong. Don’t take it too personally, Woohyun-shii. If you were balding and throwing up every 5 minutes, you wouldn’t want anyone to see you either.”

Ohhh… that made sense now. Woohyun suddenly felt stupid again.

“I… I’m sorry, I should have called ahead to see if it was okay for me to come,” he said, bowing to Sunghee.

She only smiled at him. “I appreciate it nonetheless, Woohyun-shii. It’s nice for someone to visit Gyu. He doesn’t have many friends here, most of them stayed in Jeonju and they rarely ever visit him. He gets lonely sometimes.”

Woohyun nodded in understanding. “Um… do you think I could come back when he’s feeling better?”

Sunghee pursed her lips in thought before nodding. “We’re actually heading home as soon as the Doctor says it’s okay, Sunggyu prefers to spend the rest of his recovery there instead of the hospital. I can give you our address and my phone number, if you want.”

At that, the idol had not moved faster than he did when he whipped out his phone to type in Sunghee’s number and address. Once he had it, he bowed to her in gratitude before taking his leave.

He really hoped that the next time he saw him, Sunggyu would be feeling better and not turn him away.

+++++++

Woohyun waited another two weeks to actually call Sunghee, and she delightedly told him that Sunggyu was feeling much better and less grumpy than he was the last time he visited. If he was free that Saturday, he was welcome to visit as she and her husband would be home.

After much persuasion and begging, Infinite was finally given a day off that exact same Saturday. All the members decided to go home and visit their families. Woohyun, too, made plans to visit his family, but he wanted to also take that chance to visit his number one fan. Although it disappointed his mother, he promised that he would give her a full day of his attention on his next day off. It was late afternoon when he took a cab this time, as it was also the managers’ day off.

The cab dropped him off at a simple looking home with a gate and a front garden filled with different kinds of plants and flowers. There was a doorbell next to the gate, so he pressed it, announcing his presence, and waited, one hand around a basket of fruit and his other hand clutching a gift bag. It took a while, but the door opened and a man he didn’t know came out.

“Can I help you?” he asked.

Woohyun removed his mask to smile and bow at the man. “Hello. I’m a friend of Sunggyu-shii. Sunghee-shii said I could visit him today.”

The man’s eyes widened. “Oh! You’re that Infinite guy! The one my wife’s brother is so hopelessly in love with!”

Woohyun blushed and stuttered, trying to come up with a response. The man laughed as he opened the gate to let him in.

“That was a joke, by the way,” he said.

The idol somehow felt a stab of disappointment.

“Or maybe not. Who knows?” The man continued to tease as he led Woohyun to the front door. “My name is Minkyu, I’m Sunghee’s husband and Gyu’s brother-in-law.”

They entered the home as Minkyu continued to babble on about his wife and his “very cute hamster brother-in-law.” Woohyun followed him obediently, his eyes scanning the house in interest.

It looked like a typical, modern Korean home. A simple living room with a sofa set and T.V., and there was even a piano in a corner. The walls were filled with photos of the couple, a few of Sunggyu, but it looked like the couple didn’t have any kids at the moment. Minkyu led him to the kitchen where Sunghee was already preparing dinner.

“Hello, Woohyun-shii!” she greeted from the counter, chopping onions.

Woohyun politely returned her greeting and presented his basket of fruit as a gift for the household. Then, he asked about Sunggyu.

“He’s in his room. Jagiya, do you mind taking him there?”

With a “thank you”, Woohyun once again followed Minkyu throughout the house. It was only one-story, but it was huge. To get to the bedrooms, they went down a hallway past a giant set of sliding doors that led out into the garden. The couple must really love gardening.

“Here we are.” Minkyu stopped outside a door and knocked. “Sunggyu-yah?”

A small voice responded from inside. Woohyun could hear some faint music come out of the room.

“You have a visitor! I’ll let him in, okay?”

Minkyu, then, pushed the door open and stepped aside for Woohyun to enter. The idol thanked the older man who immediately set off, probably back to the kitchen.

Sunggyu was sitting by the window, a small stereo on the dresser playing music. Woohyun recognized the song as one of Infinite’s. On the walls were posters of Infinite and Woohyun as well as of Nell.

Sunggyu turned his head around to see his visitor and his eyes widened when he saw Woohyun.

“W-Woohyun-shii? W-What are you doing here?”

Unlike the harsh tone of last time, this tone sounded more confused and a bit… happy.

Sunggyu was definitely more like himself, then.

Woohyun grinned. “I thought I’d stop by and visit and see how you’re doing. Before you ask, your noona gave me the address.”

“O-Oh…” Sunggyu looked down at his lap and blushed. “Um… I apologize for… my behavior last time. It was rude of me.”

Woohyun walked closer and gestured to the bed. “May I?”

“Oh, yes! Please. I’m sorry. I don’t have another chair here.”

Woohyun chuckled, dismissing the apology with a hand. “Don’t worry about it. And I understand, about last time. I should be the one apologizing, I should have called ahead, instead of just bursting in.” He smiled at Sunggyu. “Did you eat the fruit well?”

The other nodded, returning the smile and thanked him. Woohyun took this time to observe him. Compared to the last time, he looked much better. There was more color in his cheeks, the bruises were not as prominent as before. But his head was still bare. He was also wrapped up in a giant blanket.

Sunggyu must have noticed him staring and blushed as he turned his head away in embarrassment. “Um… sorry about my appearance… Um… this is kinda normal after a treatment…”

“Don’t be sorry, Sunggyu-shii, you look fine. Still cute.”

Sunggyu spluttered, his face turning into a darker shade of red. “W-What? I’m… I’m not! What are you t-talking about… W-Woohyun-shii… I’m n-not…”

It was endearing and so darn adorable that Woohyun wanted to pinch his cheeks. He had to restrain himself from doing so, not to scare the other. Instead, he chuckled and stood up from the bed to walk over to Sunggyu. He perched himself on the floor next to the younger’s chair and held out the gift bag.

“I brought you something,” he said.

“Y-You didn’t have to,” Sunggyu replied, but taking the bag anyway with a grateful smile.

Woohyun nervously watched as the older rummaged through the bag, pulling aside the tissue papers, and reached in to take out the object. It was a simple, black-knit beanie, with the Infinite logo embroidered on the front in white thread and Woohyun’s name in English at the back.

“Um… I thought maybe you could wear this when you’re outside and it’s too cold for your head… or even indoors! You can wear it indoors too! It’s really warm, well, the fans on the fansite said it was warm.”

Sunggyu stared at the beanie and Woohyun, for a second, believed that he had done wrong again. Did he offend his fan with his gift?

But, no, Sunggyu then put on the beanie over his head and adjusted it accordingly.

 “I love it,” he said, smiling at Woohyun. “And it’s warm. Thank you.”

With that, Woohyun felt himself relaxing.

For the rest of the afternoon, he and Sunggyu chatted about everything and nothing. The Infinite album continued to play in the background. Woohyun managed to persuade Sunggyu to drop the “shii” and the other agreed if the younger would call him “hyung.” They also exchanged numbers, so Sunggyu could let him know if it was okay to visit or not. Then, the idol stayed for dinner and by the time Minkyu kindly called a cab to take him back to the dorms, he was sure that he had gained a new friend in Sunggyu.

It made him tremendously happy and was whistling and singing all over the dorms. It annoyed the other members, but he didn’t care.

A/N: Apologies if this chapter was a bit boring. I'm hoping to pick up the pace with the next one!