Baekhyun blinked, mouth pressed into a thin line and eyes wide as he tried to collect his thoughts again that got scattered from a single flash of a camera. Chanyeol grinned sheepishly at him, big hands fumbling clumsily as he tried to turn off the camera's flash.

"Yah, Park Chanyeol. Did you just take my picture without even asking me?" Baekhyun was fine with pictures, but he was worried that he might have looked ugly in it, and he didn't want that.

"Sorry, it was supposed to be a stolen shot, but the flash was on and...ugh, this . But hey, you look pretty here." Chanyeol stuck his tongue out as he turned the display screen towards Baekhyun, who grimaced at the photo.

"That's horrible. Delete that now, Yeol."

"No way! You look cute here. Your eyes look so huge." Chanyeol stared at the picture, chuckling softly to himself as Baekhyun blushed.

"Come ooon, delete that. Ugh, I hate you, you giant." He huffed, and Chanyeol started laughing wildly, slapping his legs in the process.

"I'm so sorry that I'm such a giant, shorty." Chanyeol took his usual seat on the stool, pulling it closer to the bed as he continued fumbling with the camera in his hand, the tip of his tongue peeking out from between his lips.

Baekhyun threw a pillow at him, and laughed as it hit Chanyeol in the face. The taller boy threw it back, fixing his glasses with a pout and concentrating again on the camera. The blond boy caught the pillow with his arms, fluffing it up before putting back beside him. He looked at Chanyeol and his glasses, noting how adorable the boy looked with them. He leaned forward curiously, looking at the camera as well. He moved to the side of his bed, letting his legs dangle over the side as he sidled up closer to Chanyeol.

"Why are you so focused on that camera?" He asked, face uncomfortably near Chanyeol's that the latter, while blushing, almost shrieked in surprise when he felt Baekhyun's breath ghost over his face.

"Good God, why are you suddenly so close? Anyway, I, uhh, I just wanted to take pictures today. You know, for sentimental reasons." Chanyeol shrugged, finally succeeding in turning the god damned flash off.

"Oooh. I didn't know you were such a softie, Chanyeol." Baekhyun teased, grinning as he pulled his legs up and crossed them.

"You don't know that many things about me, and vice versa." Chanyeol reminded him, and Baekhyun sighed, making Chanyeol look at him.

"Well, I'd like to know more. You're a fun and interesting person, Yeol." Baekhyun smiled, reaching out and pinching Chanyeol's cheek.

Chanyeol felt his heart race at Baekhyun's words and smile, and he found himself nodding. What was Baekhyun doing to him, he didn't know. The blond raised an eyebrow at him, and his blush must have been really visible because Baekhyun suddenly started giggling. It would have been a cute moment had it not been ruined by a sudden coughing fit attacking the older boy.

He doubled over on the bed, hand slapping over his mouth as his body racked with coughs. Chanyeol threw his camera on the bed from the panic, rushing over to Baekhyun as he rubbed the boy's back to soothe the coughing. Nothing worked. Baekhyun was gasping, and it clicked in Chanyeol.

, he's having trouble breathing. , , , , Baekhyun, oh my God, he can't breathe.

He hurried to the head of the bed and pressed the button to call for a nurse, and he swore he almost destroyed the little thing in his hurry and panic. He went back to Baekhyun, sitting beside him and pulling him close, rubbing his back and trying to stay calm.

"Baek, you'll be okay." He whispered, and he felt Baekhyun nod his head slowly in the midst of his terrible coughing.

Soon, an onslaught of nurses and doctors came rushing into the room, ushering Chanyeol out. His mother was in the crowd, who sent him a 'don't worry' look. He obediently went out, sending a worried glance at the panicking crowd in the room, before he closed the door with a soft click, hands automatically going into his pants' pockets to stop them from trembling so much.

"Honey, wake up. Let's go home."

Chanyeol rubbed his stiff neck as he raised his head from his arms. He blinked sleepily, eyes focusing on his mom who was now out of her uniform, wearing a huge jersey shirt and a pair of faded jeans. Her bag was slung over her shoulder, one of her hands still placed on Chanyeol's shoulder.

"Mom?" Chanyeol said lamely, voice slurred and still sleepy.

"Yes, I'm your mother, you airhead. Now let's go home, okay?"

"...how's Baekhyun doing?" He quickly asked, finally remembering why he was sleeping in the cafeteria of the hospital.

He had been ushered out of the room as soon as the doctors came to check up on Baekhyun, who had suddenly gotten into a terrible coughing fit. Chanyeol had wandered around the hospital, not sure where to go when he somehow ended up in the sad looking cafeteria. He had  taken a seat on one of the corner tables, crossing his arms on the table and resting his head there. Due to his worry, he had fallen asleep.

Chanyeol's mom had a sad look on her face, but she was smiling as she sat down beside Chanyeol, hand patting his leg reassuringly. She was a mother, and mothers knew their children best. She knew what was going on with Chanyeol, and she was happy for him, but at the same time, really sad.

"You know I'm not one to sugar coat things, so I'll tell you now. He's in a bad condition. He needs a lot of rest." She said quietly, and the sleepiness finally left Chanyeol as the words sunk in.

He's in a bad condition.

"Mom...what's wrong with Baekhyun?" His voice was low and quiet, almost a whisper, and if they weren't alone in the middle of the night in the damn cafeteria, Hyeonjong wouldn't have caught her boy's words.

"I'm not supposed to tell you this because this is confidential but...I'm not really one to follow rules when it comes to my baby." She said sweetly, patting Chanyeol's cheek, making him look at her.

"Mom..." He pushed on, and Hyeonjong nodded her head.

"Baekhyunnie was a premature baby. According to his records, he was lucky to have survived this long, but due to that, he's a very unhealthy child. He's more prone to diseases and medical complications as compared to a normal teen. Three months ago, he caught the common cold. If it was any other child, say, you, it would have passed on just like a normal cold, but he's not perfectly healthy like I said. It escalated to a mild case of pneumonia, and his parents had him admitted here when he collapsed one day, coughing and burning with fever. He's technically fine now, but it's dangerous for him to get sick; his body's not strong enough." She said quickly, observing her son's face all-throughout her explanation.

Chanyeol's face was unreadable as he listened to his mother's words. He let each detail sink into his mind, and by the end of Hyeonjong's explanation, he found himself clenching his fists too hard that his palms were starting to hurt a little. He relaxed his fingers, and took a deep breath.

"Mom, will he be okay?" He asked, and Hyeonjong straightened up, fixing her bag.

"Of course, he will, Yeol. He just needs a little rest."

"Mom, will he be okay?" Chanyeol looked at Hyeonjong in the eyes, and the woman knew what her son meant.

She took a deep breath, standing up from her seat and pulling her son along. Chanyeol followed quietly, and they made their way to the parking lot. They slid into the car without saying anything, and as Hyeonjong started the engine, she reached out to rub her son's shoulder reassuringly, and he glanced at her with hopeful eyes.

"...please don't make me answer that, honey." She said quietly, and Chanyeol looked out of the window, staring at room 506's dark window sadly.