He looks at peace.

Donghae sat by his side, holding his hand, taking care not to touch the needles sticking out and pushing in. They had let him in only 10 minutes ago, after what felt like a year of waiting outside. Yesung was still in questioning, and the other members still hadn't arrived. But that didn't matter. It wasn't like they were going to come inside the room any time soon.

The doctors said he wasn't in a coma. He wasn't knocked out or unconscious for another reason. He was just sleeping. Donghae could wake him at any point, speak to him at any time. There was nothing holding him back.

Except that Hyukjae looked exhausted. If he was resting, he should continue.

Donghae mesmerized the pattern of his breathing. Every three breaths, his lips would slightly open. Every ten, his cheeks would hollow for just a moment. Occasions, his throat would make a noise, but only on occasion. His chest moved ever so slightly, rising and falling like a ticking metronome. 

Despite everything, he was still beautiful.

"Mr Lee?" A voice came from the door. Donghae turned, his hands never leaving Hyukjae's.

"He's sleeping."

"I mean you, I was told you wanted to hear the test results when they came back? I've got them here." Donghae froze. He was sure of it, Hyukjae would be fine. It wasn't as though he was hiding anything like cancer, or AIDS, or something of that kind. Yet in the hospital, surrounded by pastel greys and blues, only the worst thoughts could surface in his minds eye. The worst case scenario, as it were.

"Just say them quickly, and quietly, please. I don't want to wake him yet." Donghae looked back to Hyukjae, who remained un moved. He couldn't help but smile at his peacefulness. Only he look look so content with a IV drip next to him.

"I'll just read through, stop me if you have questions." Donghae nodded, his eyes not leaving the sleeping man. "Right, he's suffered a moderate concussion, from the fall you described I'd assume. It's likely he'll feel sick for the next few days, but that's all part of recovery. Nothing to worry about. That's the short term stuff, but it's the long term condition that needs to be dealt with more severely."

Donghae froze, his heart beating rapidly. "Long term?" No, there is no possible way. Not again, not to...

"Exhaustion." Donghae sighed a breath of relief, leaning over and kissing Hyukjae's hand. Not again. Not to him.

Still, this wasn't good either. How could it be.

"From what we can tell, he hasn't been getting enough sleep. And his muscles are overworked. There are some abnormalities in his hormone levels, and blood tests show some strange things too. It all points to exhaustion. Matching with the accounts that your friends gave us, and although this may be out of my position as a doctor, I also think he may have high anxiety. Not something that can be dealt with, not something a doctor would have figured out before, but I've seen countless like him. Overworked, exhausted, perfectionists until their last breath. Worriers, doubters, second-guessers - anxiety."

"He's always liked things to be perfect..." Donghae looked at Hyukjae, his eyes welling with tears. They had known he liked to live a certain way, they had known he perfected every last dance move, working for hours until he felt competent, then working for hours more, trying to feel perfect. He had seen it, the worry in his eyes, a thousand times. With his new position, and their new roles, he knew he was working three times as hard. Yet it never hit him.

"Look, I can't say anything officially. Anxiety is very common, with ongoing anxiety more common than one would expect. There's not much I can recommend, as I'm not a professional in this field. But I would say have someone to look after him, for the next month or so try to keep him in a...safe place, persay. I won't pretend I don't know who you all are, so I know this will be difficult, but just make sure he's not surrounded by exhaustive amounts of negativity."

"Fights?"

"Fights, conflicts, criticisms, anything of that sort. Until his normal body levels even out, until the exhaustion resides for the time being, he needs to be kept in a balanced state. And sleep, he needs sleep." The doctor pulled a copy of the report from his file and passed it to Donghae. "Had a look over this, I've made some recommendations. There's a few pills he'll need to take in the mornings, and he should try to refrain from moving around severely for a few days until the swelling in his head goes down. But most of the advice I just gave you, I can't prescribe. Just keep it in mind, Mr Lee."

Donghae looked at the report. There were words, numbers, squiggles and dots, but nothing made sense. All he knew what that his Hyukjae needed his help, to get better, to be calmer, to be restored to balance.

"Thank you, so much." Donghae stood up, shaking the Doctor's hand with his free one. Mutual smiles were exchanged, mutual bows and nods. And then silence.

Anxiety. Exhaustion. Balance.

The words spun around in his head. Everything seemed clearer now. Except for one thing.

How Hyukjae felt.

He looked at peace, content, happy in his rest.

But Donghae saw the pattern change. The breathing quickened, his fists clenched, his lips parted.

Time to wake up.

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a/n: apologies for the short chapter! anti-climatic, i know! i've planned out the next one, time for our eunhae to have some talks...things should get less angsty from here, we've climbed pain mountain and it's all a nice smooth ride...with a couple bumps! oh dear excuse my pathetic personal language, if i'm honest this was pretty hard to write considering the recent events. i know this is fiction, but gosh, a good scandal can kill inspritation! still, as long as all concerned parties are happy in the end, i'm happy to keep taking my creative liscence :) hope you are all enjoying this, thank you so much for sticking with me! your feedback is just amazing! have an amazing week!