Sedated
The Howling - Part II: The Curse of the Full Moon
As he heard Joonmyun's footsteps shuffle out of the bathroom and through the bedroom to the door, jongin closed his eyes, breathing out slowly as his fingertips dances across his burning skin. He'd been through this before, every full moon since his 16th birthday, but this time... maybe it was because of Joonmyun, because of this whole stupid imprinting-bonded mate thing that everyone refused to explain to him.
He shifted slightly in the bath, eyes opening to stare at the ceiling as he arched his back and let out a soft sigh. He wasn't aware that he'd fallen asleep until Sunny's warm voice, and arms lifting him jostled him from a fitful slumber. He opened one eye slowly, glancing up at Changmin's features before he looked away to Sunny who was making the bed with fresh sheets for him.
"Hey, kiddo," she murmured, smiling faintly as she brushed her hand across her forehead and tied her hair up. "Come on, Changmin. Put him in bed."
Jongin made a soft noise in the back of his throat as he was lowered into the bed and covered in blankets. Sunny moved around the side of the bed, confusing him a little with her movement as she set up the IV with his sedatives and fluids that could help with the fever. Both she and CHangmin were starting to run a little hotter, he could tell by the way Changmin had shed off his jacket and shirt, and moved around in a wife beater, and Sunny was wearing a thin sun dress.
"...Hey, Jongin..." Sunny gently nudged his shoulder, drawing his attention back up to her face. "You'll be okay. Taemin will be here soon. Joonmyun's here. And the boys will be right outside."
She looked up to Joonmyun,a n smiled faintly. "The fridge in the corner is filled with food for when Jongin wakes up. It'll be either very early tomorrow morning, or any time after dawn... And remember, anything he says... it's not really him. It's Kai trying to get through. He won't hurt you though, he just..."
"Kai just wants to run free..." Jongin finished, his voice soft, raspy, as the sedatives started to take effect. "He wants to be free..."
His eyes fell on Joonmyun, and he watched him carefully before his eyes fluttered shut and he slipped into a deep sleep. Sunny looked over him again, checking his pulse and his breathing, before she nodded to Changmin and smiled at Joonmyun. "Don't worry. Everything will be fine. Yunho and Jaejoong will bring Taemin by in the next hour or so. Normally he's got an early bedtime, but... he's allowed tos tay up as late as he likes during the full moon."
She gently squeezed the human's shoulder, giving him a gentle look before she followed Changmin out of the room.
As Joonmyun sat with Jongin, rewetting the cloth with the quickly warming water and pressing it back to his frighteningly warm forehead, he split his attention between the boy and the door. He had expected for it to take a few minutes, because Sunny would need to gather supplies, but five, ten, fifteen minutes had passed before he'd heard any sort of noise from the other room, and by then, Jongin had fallen asleep.
To Joonmyun's surprise, Changmin was the one who entered the bathroom a good twenty minutes later, moving around him to lift Jongin out of the tub with ease. Only after they'd entered the other room did Joonmyun get up and follow, just in time to watch the older male place the feverish Jongin in a freshly made bed.
His eyes were trained on the boy until his name was said, and he glanced up at Sunny, then to Changmin before turning his attention back to Jongin. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught the girl's attempt at a smile before she spoke and Joonmyun nodded in reply. He was making mental notes -- food in the fridge, waking up sometime after dawn, and the sleep talking -- when Jongin stirred, finishing off Sunny's sentence.
There was something about the way Jongin spoke, almost as if Kai were already trying to reach through, longing to make some sort of an appearance, and it tugged achingly at Joonmyun's chest. He wished he could do more, but there was nothing he could do but watch as the boy faded into a drug induced sleep.
Joonmyun didn't even look up as Sunny told him that Taemin would be here soon, barely acknowledged her as she offered comfort before following Changmin out. It was only after the door had closed that the elder moved, shuffling around the edge of the bed and taking up a spot in the chair just next to Jongin. He pulled his knees to his chest, curling up in the large chair; all he could do now was make himself comfortable and wait for this to all blow over.
Coherency came and went in the form of pleasant, warm waves that washed over him, and every so often, when he resurfaced, Joonmyun was right there, right where he wanted him to be. After a few minutes, coherency finally left, and sleep claimed him, leaving him wrapped in a warm coccoon of heat, fever and the aches that would soon start.
Less than an hour after he'd fallen asleep, Taemin peeked into the room, Yunho and Jaejoong following him into the room with a basket of what appeared to be books and games that belonged to Taemin. The boy smiled at Joonmyun, though it faded a little bit when he saw Jongin asleep in the bed, blankets pulled up to his chin and IV hooked up to his arm.
"Hey... hyung," he murmured softly, greeting Joonmyun before he bowed his head in greeting and settled himself at the foot of Jongin's bed. "How long as he been asleep for?"
He watched Jongin carefully, before he drew both legs up to his chest, hugging them close as Yunho and Jaejoong set the basket down, as well as a stack of a few extra blankets, pillows and a mattress. Yunho let out a soft sigh, wiping his forehead as Jaejoong smiled sadly at Jongin andd Joonmyun.
"Don't worry, kiddo, Jongin will be okay..." Jae ruffled Taemin's hair before he nudged Yunho. "Come on, Yunnie. We have to go... get ready before the moon rises. Taeminnie, come lock it behind us. Joonmyun, watever you do... ddo not unlock this door, unless you hear one of us telling you that it's okay - either Yunho, Changmin, Sunny or myself. If you hear anyone else... do /not/ open the door. Do you understand?"
He gave the boy a serious look, before he followed Yunho back out the door and closed it behind them. As requested, Taemin climbed off the bed, all long limbs and teenage awkwardness, and made his way to the door before he slid all three bolts into place, as well as the lock near the top. Once he was done, he turned and shuffled back over to the bed before he climbed back up.
"...So... is there anything you... like, hyung?" he asked, eyes wide and bright as he watched Joonmyun.
A heavy silence filled the room, broken only by the sound of Jongin's slow breathing, a sound that brought little comfort to Joonmyun as he sat curled up in the chair, eyes glued to the sickly boy. Several times he nodded off, the lack of sleep catching up with him and threatening to take him under, but he wouldn't go, not until Taemin arrived.
The sound of a door opening brought Joonmyun out of a light doze, and panic took hold of him until he caught sight of Taemin; the elder's eyes were wide, breathing a bit heavy as he calmed his racing heart. It was only Jongin's family, and they wouldn't hurt him, because if they did, then they'd have Kai to answer to and Joonmyun was pretty sure that the bottled up wolf was dangerous.
He gave a small nod as a hello before settling back into the chair, watching Taemin and the other two for a moment, then returning his attention to Jongin. "It hasn't been long, maybe an hour." Then again, Joonmyun had nodded off and lost track of time, so for all he knew it could have been several hours, but he didn't know so he gave the best answer he could.
At the sound of Jaejoong's voice, Joonmyun looked up, expecting more instructions; he got them, and he nodded firmly, understanding every word and having every intention of following them perfectly. The two older boys left shortly after that, and Taemin followed soon after to lock the door as requested. Joonmyun, however, didn't move from his spot, remaining as he was even when Taemin came back.
Then, there was a hopeful attempt from the younger boy to make him feel more comfortable. "Listen, kid," Joonmyun murmured, glancing up at him. "I know what you're trying to do-" because Jongin did it a few days ago "-but I'd really just like to sit here, okay? You can play your games and watch TV or whatever, but I'm just not interested. Sorry." Joonmyun felt like he was being rude, snappy, but he wasn't going to pretend he was happy when he wasn't; he was too tired for that.
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