Mingyu was sick. The flu was dangerous for little boys and girls, and he just had to get it from his classmates. Jihoon couldn't leave Mingyu at home by himself, so he took the day off too. Wonwoo wanted Jihoon to go to class since he struggles a little, but Jihoon didn't want anybody else to be with Mingyu, even if Mingyu wanted Wonwoo to babysit him. After much thinking, Wonwoo let Jihoon stay at home, since the school wasn't going to be nicer anyways.

Jihoon picked up the pouty baby in his arms and took him to the bathroom. "C-come on M-mingoo." Mingyu's symptoms weren't severe, but the poor boy was bogged down by shivers that wreaked his not-so-tiny body and all the cold sweat that came with him. Jihoon could only bath him as often as he could to keep Mingyu's discomfort on the down low. 

Mingyu whined at being moved, every jostle going straight to his dizzy head. "Hyyuuuunnnngggg.... don't move so fast...." he mumbled. With his sweaty face tucked under Jihoon's chin, he snuggled into his brother's warmth. Some coughs spat flecks of saliva on Jihoon's shirt, but he paid it no mind. Setting Mingyu on the toilet cover, he prepared a warm bubble bath. The steam should clear his little nose. 

The bubble bath did help him feel better, the steam did clear his nose but he was still frustrated. Mingyu wanted to play with his siblings, he wanted to play with Wonwoo hyung, he wanted to go to school but he couldn't do any of them because he was sick. Squeezing the rubber ducky repeatedly like he saw his Jihoonie hyung do sometimes, he tried to calm down and let his brother take care of him. Jihoon took care in washing his little brother, massaging his head, rubbing his back and keeping the water out of his dazzling eyes. "Just a-a little l-longer." He whispered, conscious of what loud noises do to a disoriented person. 

Patting Mingyu down with a fluffy towel, he dressed him in the softest pajamas before moving him back to the living room. Mingyu wasn't allowed to play with the others in the living room since he didn't want to spread germs, so while they were away at daycare he was left to his own devices there. Jihoon the TV just in case Mingyu didn't want to move around and left to prepare lunch. Mingyu, left alone, stared quietly at the TV, looking but not looking. He didn't want to sit still but he couldn't exactly move without making his head spin. Getting frustrated again, he whined under his breath and ripped at the blanket. "Jihoonie hyung~~~~" he called, "Can you help me to the play pen~?"

Hearing his little brother, he came rushing over. He moved Mingyu to the play pen where all the toys were kept and gave him a pat on the head. "Ah! Before you go, can I have some water?" Mingyu pouted with the question, but he didn't need to since Jihoon would have done it even if he didn't pull out his inner cutie.

"Jihoonie hyung, I can't reach the book up there. Help me please~!"

"I need to go to the toilet Jihoonie hyung."

"Hyyyyuuunnnggg I don't wanna eat porridgeeeee....."

"Jihoonie hyung play with meeeee......"

Mingyu was a social butterfly with a lot of siblings, he wasn't use to being left alone so he constantly called his Jihoonie hyung. And every single time, without fail, Jihoon would come rushing over. Once it was finally nap time before heading out to pick up the others, Jihoon could finally get a rest. You'd think he'd rest with all the rushing around he had to do for Mingyu, but once again he was working. For all the toys Mingyu may or may not have played with earlier, one by one, all of them were washed and dried. Even the little blanket that Mingyu always kept was thrown into the wash(he had to wiggle it out from under his arms). Once everything was spick and span, he went back to Mingyu's room to watch over him. Studying a little on the side, he hummed to fill the silence. Mingyu woke up often due to the discomfort in his throat, but Jihoon was always there to hum lullabies and his own songs, effectively putting him back to sleep. Humming Lean on Me, Wonwoo's solo, he brushed Mingyu's hair off his forehead before returning to his work.

Not long after, his phone vibrated in his pocket. Fumbling to pull it out, he stumbled into the hall to pick up the call.

"H-hello-o?"

"Hey Jihoonie, it's me Seungcheol."

"S-s-seungch-cheol h-hyung."

"Oh! How is Mingyu doing? Is he doing okay?"

"M-mingoo is s-sleepin-ing." He wasn't use to answering to people who were worried, since there wasn't anyone besides Wonwoo that worried for him and the kids before. "He's o-okay."

"That's good to hear. Say, if you don't mind, I'd like to pick up the kids for you. I'll go to your school and grab Wonwoo too.... I want to help you." Seungcheol was offering to pick up the kids so he didn't have to wake Mingyu up. He knew Wonwoo could pick up the kids just fine since they've been doing it together for a while now, but he wanted to get them himself for the sake of his own sanity. If he couldn't stick to his routine, he'd find himself lost.

"n-no h-hyung it's it's okay."

"No, Jihoon. I insist. Take good care of Mingyu, me and Wonwoo can take care of the others." The way Seungcheol put it, he couldn't argue. "I-I..." He wanted to stop Seungcheol but his panicking mind couldn't come up with coherent sentences at the moment. Since he didn't know what else to do, he ended the call and shoved the phone back in his pocket. Hearing Mingyu cough, he went back to Mingyu's side, checking up on him. "O-okay?" He asked. Mingyu coughed a little longer, his little hand covering his mouth. He shook his head, upset at being choked awake. "Oh, baby..." Jihoon was distressed that he couldn't help Mingyu more. He'd already taken his medicine earlier and Mingyu was too young to take the pain relievers they had on hand. He couldn't leave the boy to go to the corner store to get cough drops, so he had to wait until Wonwoo came back with them after school.

Jihoon couldn't stick to routine, his heart hurt for his little brother, his hands couldn't stop picking at the loose thread in his sleeve. Shaking his head, he focused more on Mingyu, doing everything to give him comfort. He continued to focus on just Mingyu until the others came home.