Last update for the week!! Exams are still ongoing for me, in case you're wondering why. Probably be back around Friday or Saturday. Till then, enjoy!! ^_^

Welcome 2 new subbies!! :D

Thankyu marjorine for upvoting!! Neul saranghae~~ 

Eunhyuk’s POV

I peeked into the tank room. Hae was at the end. Carefully and quietly, I sneaked my way in to surprise him, much to the amusement of two or three people who saw me tiptoeing in.

“Hae baby, I missed you,” I said, gathering him in for a hug and a quick peck on the lips. He giggled and wriggled out of the hug.

“Tsk Hyukkie, behave, we’re at work now,” Hae stated. “People are watching.”

“So? It’s not like I care.”

“Well I do, Hyukkie.”

“Why would you care?”

“Why wouldn’t I care?”

“Ahem,” a soft voice interrupted us. “Sorry for interrupting, but I need to borrow Donghae for a while. Please excuse him…”

I turned to see Kibum smirking at me. Hae gave me an apologetic smile and followed Kibum towards the tanks. I waved goodbye to Hae until the last trace of him vanished. Then the smile on my face evaporated, immediately replaced with a frown as I walked towards my station.

**Flashback**

“What do you mean, Hae’s hypothermia has got something to do with the dolphins? Why are they even related in the first place?” I asked.

Teukie hyung shook his head. “It’s only a hunch. I hope I’m wrong though.”

“What is it?”

“Don’t you see the similarities between him and the dolphins? They freeze. They almost die. They come back to life.”

“That doesn’t prove anything. That’s how people react when they contract hypothermia, hyung. Maybe the dolphins got it.”

“Dolphins don’t get hypothermia, Hyuk.”

“I’ve seen one or two cases. Remember four years ago?”

“The chances are one out of a zillion. Besides, it’s not like the waters in this area are very cold. It’s not even winter yet. Plus, dolphins aren’t supposed to be in this area. How do you explain that?”

“Wait… Hyung, are you telling me that it’s not hypothermia? The dolphins – they are – wait, what? Huh?”

“I told you it’s just a hunch.”

“Hae… it wasn’t hypothermia? Then what was it?”

“Something similar to this dolphin condition. I think. That’s why I need to compare samples.”

“But hyung… How sure are you?”

“Hyuk, think about it. It’s not winter, it’s not even autumn yet. The weather is warm. Donghae didn’t go swimming in freezing waters, he didn’t get locked in the freezer, he did absolutely nothing that would drastically lower his body temperature. Unless you say the air-conditioning in the lab was too cold. But that wouldn’t make sense because everyone else was perfectly fine that day. It was just Donghae, and Donghae only.”

“So what you’re saying is–”

“Basically what I mean is, I believe he came into contact with an infected dolphin and somehow contracted the dolphin-hypothermia-syndrome from it. It wouldn’t be surprising, seeing as how much he actually loves dolphins in real life. Do you remember anything like that happening?”

I instantly remembered the one time we came across the ‘dead’ dolphin during our first date. Sheer horror masked my face as I clutched at Teukie hyung’s lab coat.

“He… he kissed it…”

“He kissed what?”

“The… the dolphin… it was… it was dead… and cold… Hae kissed the dolphin… and… and–”

“He kissed a dead dolphin?” I could see his eyes getting wider in realization. “Oh… I certainly hoped that I was wrong, but it certainly seems that way, don’t you think? Hyuk? Hyuk? Hyuk, are you alright? Earth to Hyuk, wake up!!”

He snapped his fingers in front of my face but I didn’t even flinch. I stared in front and clutched at my hair in frustration, slowly falling onto my knees.

“Hae… Why didn’t I even think of it? The link was there, and I was so stupid not to even realize it!! What if the bacteria mutated into something even worse? I wouldn’t be able to protect him!! Why didn’t I stop him? Why didn’t I examine that dolphin? Why couldn’t I even protect him? Why… why is this happening? To him, of all people? Why, why, why???” I screamed in frustration.

I instantly felt a pair of hands on my shoulders and looked up to see Teukie hyung staring at me. “Hyuk, I said this is just a hunch. It’s just a theory. Stop panicking, I might be wrong after all… Nothing’s gonna happen. It’