Skin. Woohyun’s skin was unbearingly soft and warm, as Sunggyu lightly grazed his fingers over the unconscious man’s cheek. It was night out, and moonlight shone through the window to illuminate the man’s face, which gave him look even more ethereal, his skin milky white and his hair dark and silky..

Sunggyu didn’t exactly know what time it was; there was no bedside clock and he didn’t really feel like checking his phone. All he knew was that it was late, and Infinite were fast asleep inside that hospital room. Although he had woken up with a slightly aching back, his senses felt much improved, and then he realized that Dongwoo had been right; that he really did need the rest. Woohyun’s condition was affecting all of Infinite, but that just highlighted how important each member really was.

The leader took his time in surveying his sleeping members. (They really are staying the night. He didn’t think that they would, but the fact that they did warmed his heart considerably.) Sungyeol was snoring at the far corner of the room, his head craned against the wall in an uncomfortable-looking position. Beside him was Myungsoo, in a deep slumber with his head lightly leaning on the tall man’s shoulder as a bit of drool hung from his mouth.

Dongwoo had taken Sunggyu’s position on the plastic chair, fast asleep, and Sunggyu knew from his own experience that the rapper would be sore the next day, while Hoya and Sungjong were curled up next to each other on a makeshift bed of sheets and pillows on the floor, next to where Sunggyu had been sleeping earlier.

It had always softened Sunggyu’s heart whenever s did things like this. For them to take their free time to visit not only Woohyun in his condition, but also Sunggyu who almost never left the man’s side, revealed a lot of things about Infinite and their closeness to one another.

They truly were a team, for when one member goes down the group helps him back up. When one member suffers, the entire group shares the pain, for one member of Infinite does not suffer alone, nor does he fight through a struggle all by himself, because Infinite will always be there for him, and him refers to any Infinite member, be it Woohyun, Dongwoo, Hoya, Sungyeol, Myungsoo, Sungjong….and even Sunggyu.

Dongwoo had done a very brave deed today, to take all of Infinite to the hospital to visit both Woohyun and the leader. And the members had even proved more admirable to the leader, when they all agreed to stay the night. No doubt that a full schedule was awaiting them all tomorrow, and the fact that they had opted for cold hospital floors instead of a warm bed at home, spoke volumes to the leader.

Sunggyu returned his eyes to Woohyun, examining every detail of his face. From the man’s defined jawline to his flawless skin to the light breathing from his slightly-open mouth through the oxygen mask, Woohyun looked just too perfect to die. Sunggyu knew that Woohyun was fighting for his life in that unconscious form right now, and Infinite was doing everything that they could to help him.

Thumb ghosting over the younger man’s hand, Sunggyu vaguely recalled the members’ messages to Woohyun’s coma-state earlier. It was a wild thought, that those in coma could hear the voices around them, but Sunggyu wasn’t going to dismiss it.

Infinite had done many things that night that made Sunggyu love and appreciate each and every member so damn much--from just visiting on their night off, to spending the night at the hospital, to their meaningful words for the main vocal.

Those words revealed a lot to Sunggyu that he didn’t know before, about his own members, about himself, and about the relationship that each member of Infinite shared with one another. Hoya and Woohyun were never very close, Sunggyu knew that much, but Hoya’s words that night had opened his eyes about how much Howon cherished their moments nevertheless.

The fact that he only discovered this right then,  made Sunggyu realize that for all this time, his leader-work and leader-duties and solo work have deterred him from paying closer attention and spending more quality time with s; he was always so tired, and now he was starting to regret a few things.

It was also only just a few hours ago that Sunggyu discovered the close relationship that Sungyeol had with Woohyun. He had never known, that Sungyeol looked up to the main vocalist like an older brother, a role model, and Sunggyu hated that he didn’t realize it until then. His extra work was eating up precious time, time that Infinite spent with each other and the leader missed out on. And regrettably, that lost precious time couldn’t be made up no matter how hard he tried.

And now, Woohyun’s life was on the line--a few days ago Geonam had come to the leader and said words that had troubled him deeply. The world of business was corrupt, and the definition of the word ‘K-Pop’ was business. Woohyun’s absence from his drama filming, variety shows, radio shows, and performances had equated to wasted time and wasted money. It was costing the company just too much money and too many excuses, to postpone or even cancel Woohyun’s presences in public showings. And not to mention the hospital bills, and then some.

Geonam had sadly warned,. that the company was going to give Woohyun a week. A week to wake up and recover. And if he didn’t, then there was no choice. Woohyun would return back to his family so that they could fund his medical bills, and Infinite will lose a member. It had been a difficult decision for the company to make, but in the this type of industry, life was inevitably all business, profit, and money and there was little that anyone else could do.

“Woohyun,” Sunggyu whispered, his voice cracking. He had never wished for many things, because he didn’t need many things. Nevertheless, Sunggyu prayed, and there was only one thing, one thing only, that he had to wish for right now.

“Wake up.” His right hand automatically found itself softly the younger man’s smooth cheek, before threading his through his silky hair, until coming down and shakily grasping his warm hand. “Please.”

In a fast thought, without holding back, and convinced that the members were fast asleep, Sunggyu took off the oxygen mask and pressed a kiss onto Woohyun’s chapped lips.

Woohyun tasted just so...Woohyun and then Sunggyu felt a thousand times worse. He missed him so damn much.

He could feel the soft breath of the younger’s exhale in the kiss, and he quickly pulled back and scanned the man’s face, as if expecting a reaction.

...No response.

Oh, how foolish Sunggyu felt right there in that moment. Did he think that maybe, with some magical fairy-tale kiss, that Woohyun would wake up? Did he honestly think that something magical would happen, just because he kissed him and he wanted to? Sunggyu felt like hitting himself in that moment; of course Woohyun’s wouldn’t wake up from a stupid kiss! I’m so stupid, Sunggyu thought bitterly, closing his eyes in indignant shame.

“You...” Sunggyu found himself saying in a forceful voice. “You bastard.”

Sunggyu had never stuck well with sadness, he was so damn tired of feeling sad, so he got angry instead. He had no idea where this was going, and at this point he wasn’t thinking before he acted--he’s been doing that for too long, and now he’s tired of it. The members are fast asleep, and he was convinced that Sungyeol’s snores would cover his words from the rest of the group from overhearing, so it was okay. It was okay to take out his frustration to  Woohyun right now, because no one is listening. He felt sad, angry, hopeless, and all things bitter, and Woohyun was the cause of it.

“Why are you such a bastard?” Sunggyu muttered darkly, and the lack of an answer ticked him off.

“I’d never think that things would be this way, because I thought that you’d be stronger than this.” The leader cursed frustratingly. His words weren’t exactly sweet, but he couldn’t find any other words, nor could he find it in himself to stop. “Why are you so damn weak that you can’t wake up?”

...No response.

Sunggyu decided that Woohyun’s peaceful face pissed him off.

“You can’t just go off like that and get into a coma,” the leader continued, scolding. “You can’t just leave Infinite like that. You thought that, by getting into an accident, that you can just ditch your responsibilities to this group? Huh?”

He couldn’twouldn’tcan’t stop at this point. “Are you that much of a sick bastard to leave the ones who care about you? You heard their words. Infinite needs you. Are you so cold-hearted to ing leave Dongwoo, and Hoya, and Sungyeol, and Myungsoo, and Sungjong?” And...me?

“I can’t put up with this anymore,” Sunggyu hissed. “You sicken me, Nam Woohyun, because here you are, sleeping like a baby, while the rest of the group is ing worrying about you.”

A feeling was slowly eating up his heart as Sunggyu was running out of scolding words to say, and Sunggyu was finding it increasingly hard to stay mad at the younger.

“I never wanted this to happen, and I never even thought that this would happen,” Sunggyu despaired, frowning. “I don’t want to live without you, damn, it, but that just makes me sound hopelessly in l-”

He stopped himself. He was not in love. He was not.

“I…” Sunggyu sighed, and then in that moment, all of his forced anger disappeared. All that was left….was sadness. And pain and hopelessness and fear and Sunggyu just wanted to cry. Trembling, he placed Woohyun’s warm hand over his chest.  “I miss you, you bastard.”

And maybe it was just instinct, or some twisted form of hope, or maybe he just needed a shoulder to cry on, that Sunggyu found himself pulling the unconscious man into a deep embrace. On Woohyun’s shoulder, Sunggyu shed tears that he’d been holding in for a long week, and he felt so ashamed of even doing so that he couldn’t let go. It was as if he was shielding himself from the world seeing just how terribly weak he was deep inside, despite his cold and sometimes angry exterior.

His senses were clouded by Woohyun’s everything right now, and it was becoming unbearable. Woohyun’s scent, Woohyun’s face, Woohyun’s touch--everything around him was so Woohyun that Sunggyu almost thought that Woohyun really was just sleeping, and that he would wake up in the morning just like everybody else.

“Woohyun,” Sunggyu mumbled.  Before he could stop himself from acting so romantically heartbroken, he pressed a kiss to Woohyun’s neck, right at his pulse point. “Wake up. Please.”

“Your family needs you.” He kissed the man’s nose, and then he swore that he was losing it.

“Infinite needs you,” A kiss on the forehead.

“And God damn it,” Sunggyu whispered under his breath, right against Woohyun’s lips before kissing him. “I need you.”

Woohyun’s eyes shot open.