There is someone holding a gun to his forehead, the cold metal pressing against his skin. The back of his neck breaks out in a cold sweat and the hairs on his arms stand on end. He can't see the person, whose face is hidden by the darkness. He can see the man's hand, however, veins over white skin and tense fingers. Sehun closes his eyes and braces himself for that click that he knows is coming. He feels a breath against his cheek; the other man sighed. 

"Next time." The man whispers into Sehun's ear. The gun pulls away from his head and Sehun collapses onto the floor. The man's arm outstretches and he cups Sehun's chin with his hand. Sehun hears him chuckle and the hand disappears. 

When Sehun wakes up from the horrifying dream, he can't breathe. He clutches his neck and gasps for air. He tries to utter out a "help" but to no avail. He's alone. In the struggle to get some air into his lungs, he rolls off his bed and hits the floor with a thump, but the sound is too muffled by the blankets for anyone to hear, he thinks. He reaches his arm out to test if he can grab the box on his dresser. It's too high. Defeated, he lies on the ground, waiting to black out.

Tao awakens with a start. He sits up, alarmed, and looks around his room feeling disoriented. He had heard a muffled thud, like the last time he'd woken up to something. He wonders if Sehun is maybe downstairs again, avoiding breakfast. But one glance at his digital clock and he knows that's not true. It's much too early for anyone in the house to be up. He can tell there's something wrong. He walks stealthily to the door, pulls it open without a sound, and listens. As he does this, he makes mental notes.

The thudding sound has not repeated. There's a slight noise, like fabric against wood. There's an occasional cough. And it's coming from...across the hall.

The young master.

He runs across the hall and tears the door open, all the while yelling out in a whisper, "Sehun!" He hopes he has not woken up anyone else. His vision adjusts to the darkness quickly and he finds the boy in a heap of covers on the floor. He kneels beside him, eyes wide, and takes in the scene.

Eyes shut. Hands around neck. Choking, but not quite. Shallow breaths. Not moving.

"Sehun, can you hear me?" He shakes the boy's shoulders lightly. Sehun gives him the tiniest nod. Tao's heart starts to pound faster. He's running out of time. "Sehun, can you tell me what's wrong?"

He shakes his head no. Sehun can't speak. 

Tao tries to calm himself. In the most dire of situations, it would do him no good to panic. He looks at Sehun, who's slowly lifting his arm. He points to a box on his dresser. Tao grabs it without even thinking and begins rummaging through its contents. Pills, bandages, ointments...inhaler? He takes it and holds it in front of Sehun, who nods his head again, growing weaker by the second. 

Tao sits him up and helps him with the medicine. He doesn't know how to use it, so he lets Sehun do it instead. The younger boy uncaps the end and puts his mouth around the tube, presses the button and takes a shallow breath. He repeats this again. After the second time, he's already faring much better, taking loud gulps of oxygen, his hand over his chest to steady himself. The bodyguard stares at his young master, his mind clicking with the revelation. 

"Sir...I didn't know you had such fragile health."

Sehun coughs a couple times before responding. "Shut...up." His shoulders tremble and he coughs again. "Hand me...the...pills."

Without a word, Tao hands him the bottle. He's still trying to comprehend the fact that this cold creature of a man was this delicate. Sehun shakes out one pill and downs it without any water. Tao observes all this silently.

"Is there...something wrong with your health, sir?" He asks, trying not to sound teasing. The last thing he wants to do is get on Sehun's bad side yet again.

Sehun pats his chest a couple times after swallowing the pill. "I...don't have the best...condition, okay?" He shoots the words at him with his signature glare. Tao internally sighs, because no matter what, he can't seem to make Sehun accept anything he says, even when he verbally voices his concerns to him.

Tao doesn't say anything else. The young master's nerves were too easy to tread on. 

Surprisingly, Sehun is the one to break the silence. "Stop calling me 'sir'. 'Gets on my nerves."

What doesn't? Tao is tempted to ask, but he settles for a quiet nod. "Then what should I call you?"

"Just 'Sehun'. I have a name, you should use it." 

Tao nods again. He looks at the youn- no, Sehun- who hugs his knees and curls up into a ball, still calming himself from the episode. He looks so young and vulnerable in his loose white t-shirt and pajama pants, rocking back and forth a bit. He wonders if the boy has experienced this often in the past; he's acting just like a child. 

Sehun stays in that position for a few minutes, so when he's not looking, Tao puts back the medicine box on the dresser and sits down next to him. He waits for the other boy to relax from the tension and say something. Sehun goes completely still after another minute or so, and Tao shakes him lightly.

"Sehun? Are you okay now?" But Sehun doesn't move. It's only until Tao has to lift his head up that he realizes he'd fallen asleep. He chuckles, lifts the boy up, and carries him to the bed. And that's when Tao starts to wonder, what if it happens again?

I'd better stay with him, he thinks. Just in case...

Sehun is beyond startled when he wakes up to the peaceful, sleeping face of his so-called bodyguard. He practically falls off the bed trying to get away and he hits his arm when he lands on the ground. He groans, rubbing his sore muscles and slowly piecing together the events of the previous night.

He'd had another "attack". He hadn't been able to reach the medicine box. Everything after that was a little blurry, maybe from fatigue and shock. But he's feeling just fine now. Had Tao come into his room and helped him? That seems to him to be the case. He feels relief now knowing that he hadn't just come in out of his own accord.

Tao sits up suddenly and Sehun jumps a little. Sehun stands quickly and coughs awkwardly into his fist. He doesn't know what to say. Tao doesn't acknowledge the nervous energy emmitating from Sehun and instead, just runs his fingers through his hair and yawns.

"Good morning, Sehun. How are you feeling?" He asks him, much too casually for Sehun's comfort, looking at Sehun with those sharp eyes. He has bags under his eyes, Sehun notes, but he doesn't appear to be particularly tired. Maybe they're naturally like that?

"I'm fine." He feels stiff saying that.

Tao walks away. "That's good, sir." He exits the room to head to the bathroom, because, after all, they have to get ready for school.

Sehun blinks a few times. Did the bodyguard not have emotion? Reaction? He hadn't even given one implication that he'd had a single thought about the fact that he'd just slept with Sehun. He looks over his clothes and skin, checking for anything out of place or a bruise that hadn't been there before. Because that's what you do when you wake with someone in your bed that wasn't there before, right? Thankfully there's nothing and the thought strikes him that Tao doesn't seem to be the type to do something indecent.

He heads downstairs and, for the first time in a while, doesn't skip breakfast.

When Sehun sees Jongin that morning, he's rendered speechless. In part of his brain, somewhere in there, he's still processing.

Sehun isn't close to people. Except Jongin. He doesn't want something as troublesome as "friends" and he doesn't care much for affection. No one tries to approach his sheltered life either; they glorify him from afar. Some may call his way of life "lonely", but he's used to it. Everything was one after the other, predictable and simple. He would get by high school and college on his own, be insanely successful in the future, and nothing would get in his way. 

"Sehun-ah, are you okay?" Jongin waves a hand in front of his face. His best friend looks unnaturally fazed. They sit down at their desks in sync and Jongin waits for a reaction.

Sehun shakes his head and rubs his eyes. "I'm fine." He says in a low growl. It's the second time he's had to say that this morning, and he doesn't like to be asked in the first place. He's irritable, as always. Jongin sighs, because he's obviously not so.

"Did something happen?" He whispers. He wants to add "with Tao?" but the other boy is right there next to Sehun, staring at the board in the front of the class. And there's something about Tao that Jongin doesn't like. He hasn't done anything wrong, no, but it's a feeling in the back of his mind that he can't get rid of.

"Nothing." He puts on his uncaring expression and resumes the role of Oh Sehun, Ice Prince. Jongin sees the transition. His best friend was like a broken machine. Sometimes, he's perfectly on par with the world, acting like he always should and in character. And sometimes Jongin got to see the broken side. The side of him with a few loose screws, missing bolts, confused programming. A part of him that wasn't so mechanical, and a little more human. 

He hadn't meant to say it aloud though. "Sehun-ah, you have a few loose screws today..." He mutters quietly whilst pushing a loose strand of hair away from Sehun's eyes. Sehun looks up, eyebrow raised, more than a little confused because Jongin was usually a more than just sarcastic jerk that only occasionally showed heart.

"Wha-?" He's interrupted by the arrival of Mr. Kim, who thankfully follows Sehun's expectations of typical.

A few times during class, Sehun can feel Tao looking at him through peripheral vision. It makes him uncomfortable, but he manages to ignore it. 

When the bell rings, Jongin goes to Kyungsoo's classroom to eat lunch with him. He does this once a week -- been doing this for the past two years, ever since they started going out. Kyungsoo's a nice kid, Sehun admits, but they don't talk much. Kyungsoo is just too sweet for Sehun, which is probably why he hangs out with Jongin so much and also why Kyungsoo and Jongin go so well together. As they say, a person always wants the bad boy to act good for them. Kyungsoo brought out the lesser seen, compassionate side of Jongin. His passions, opinions, etc. Sehun could bring it out of him too, but only because they've known each other for so long.

He leans his elbow against the desk, rests his chin in his hand, and closes his eyes. At lunch, more often than not, he used the time to sleep. The window next to him is open, and a breeze blows by. The sounds of chatter from his classmates goes in one ear and out the other. He tunes out noise, smells, thoughts.

"Sehun." A voice wakes him from his peace. 

"What do you wa-" It's Tao, leaning towards him, sitting in Jongin's seat in front of him. Sehun stops himself and sits back in surprise.

Mindset. He needs to clear his mindset. This is Huang Zi Tao, his bodyguard. His job is to make sure Sehun is safe, which is why he's always around. Which is why he must stay close, to protect him from possible dangers. Sehun calms down. 

He clears his throat, instructing himself to act as he normally would. "Yes?"

"Do you ever eat?"

Sehun's a little taken aback by the question. It had sounded mocking, almost like a joke. "Or course I do. I wouldn't function if I didn't." 

Tao chuckles and pulls a small box out of his bag. The aroma of food makes Sehun perk up. A lunchbox? "Where'd you get that?" He's a little suspicious. 

"Your chef made it for me."

Sehun nods. That made sense. Sehun's wealthy life was a mix of things from the higher up side of life and the things he wanted to remain average. He has his butler, Wu Yi Fan, who answers to his beck and call when needed, but was not to interfere with his schedule. He has a driver, Jongin's father, who was to take him wherever he pleased, as long as he wasn't doing anything ridiculously stupid. He has a chef, who cooked the meals of the house unless Sehun wanted otherwise. And upon demand, he has a private tutor who visited him when there was time. 

Tao pulls out two pairs of chopsticks. Sehun looks with curiosity. "So why--?" Tao feeds him a piece of meat, not allowing him to finish. Would anyone let me finish my goddamn sentence just once today? He thinks to himself, annoyed.

He chews, swallows, and flies into a rage. "What the hell!? Don't do that in public!" Of course, he says all this in a hushed anger, not wanting to attract unwanted attention from his peers. 

Tao smirks. "So you want me to do that in private?"

"What? No!" Sehun almost stutters. 

The bodyguard laughs. "I'm supposed to take care of your health too." He feeds Sehun again, who grabs the chopsticks out of his hands before he gets a third chance. 

"Well, I can eat fine by myself, thank you very much." 

"Sure you can." 

There's a silence as they both eat from the same lunchbox. "So..." Sehun's dying to ask. "Why were you in my bed?" His voice gets quieter and quieter towards the end of the question.

"Your attack." Is all Tao says.

"What about it?"

"I was worried it'd happen again." 

So you had to sleep with me? Sehun wants to ask, feeling incredulous. But he just nods.

"Don't do that again." He orders him. He must have authority over his own bodyguard, right?

"What if it happens again?" Tao asks.

"Then...I'll just put the meds closer to me. Fend for myself."

He hears the other boy sigh. "Sehun, look at me."

He doesn't look.

"Sehun." 

Sehun raises his head the tiniest bit to stare into his dark eyes. 

"You can't do everything alone." There's a pause.

Sehun stands up, slams the metal chopsticks down, and glares at him. "I've done splendid with doing just that up until now, and I can keep doing it."

And he storms out of the classroom. 

Tao lets out a breath. He'd gotten off on the wrong foot again, apparently. He picks at the food before throwing it away. He knew he'd follow him to the ends of the Earth if he had to.

The rooftop is a lonely, seldom-visited place, specially privileged for people who had private access, like Sehun. His father wouldn't care if he goes on the rooftop. He probably wouldn't even ever find out. 

He leans against the railing, closes his eyes, and loosens his tie. He hates the fabric constricting his neck, the way it makes him feel like he's suffocating. His back is to the door, and he looks out over the world. There's advantages to having the school built on a hill; the view is spectacular.

He freezes in place. A moment of déjà vu washes over him. There's a circle of cold metal pressed the back of his head, the sound of a click. He's too astonished to even be scared. He hears a snicker and a hand stretches around his neck. The man's thumb his cheek.

There's been report of a danger to the family. The words float back into Sehun's mind. He'd been too careless. He hadn't thought it was a real threat. 

Is this it? "The End" for him? Surprisingly enough, he finds himself accepting it. If this is how he's to go out, then let it be.

He waits for the trigger to be pulled, for the sharp pain and the lights-out moment on his life. All he hears, instead, is the steady voice of Huang Zi Tao say, "Get the hell away from him." 

There's a crack!, and then that lights-out moment hits him. His last thought before falling unconscious is, He really does do his job well.

A/N [131124] Hello lovelies~ Don't you love a cliffhanger? Eheh~ Anyways, did you all watch the MAMAs? They were amazing, weren't they?
I always go by the motto that an author should always put a part of them into the story. So I try to do that with every chapter. I have woken up like that before, unable to breathe, and unable to call out loudly for help. Fortunately, I was always able to call out loudly enough and it was never this severe. It's a horrifying experience, and the reason for it may surprise some people since it's nothing major like a disease or the like. I won't reveal it since it lessens the effect of the story if it's "nothing", right? :) 
Wow, I got two upvotes oh gosh >w< Thank you so so so so much for the support! This is still a story in the making and i have this much already >u< it's amazing, to be honest.
Please comment and upvote, it'd really encourage me to update faster! And please tell me if there are any typos and I'll fix them right away! Thank you loves <3