Day One;

The results came back positive.

Lee Donghae had terminal cancer of the brain. In a single second, his life fell to pieces right before his eyes and there was nothing he could do to stop it. Of course, his mother and older brother pushed him to go for the offered chemotherapy, but Donghae refused. He wasn't brave enough or selfish enough to keep his family hoping for the impossible.

He was going to die in approximately a year's time. Why drag out his graciously long expectancy?

There were sufferers that weren't given even a month, so why should he try to push for more? The advice was for Donghae to stay in the hospital, to be kept under surveillance in the case of an emergency and he didn't disagree.

Day Five;

It had been two days since Donghae had been officially admitted into Mokpo Hospital. He already had a new friend. Kim Ryeowook, a bright and friendly boy, only a year younger than Donghae.

The poor kid had an aggressive dose of passive lung cancer, credited to his smoker parents.

Donghae worried for him, watching as Ryeowook coughed violently from his bed and cringing when a bright red splattered across the crisp white sheets. He slammed the nurse call button and in less then a moment two nurses were attending to his barely breathing friend.

Day Ten;

It was harder then he expected, living in the hospital with none of his friends around him. Donghae hadn't seen Ryeowook since he'd coughed up blood, which he supposed was to be expected. His little friend was weak, fragile and his immune system was in little pieces.

But he wouldn't deny that he missed him.

The hospital room felt empty without his friend in the opposite bed.

Day Twenty;

It didn't take long for Ryeowook's old bed to become occupied again.

This time, it was by a boy who sported horrific injuries. The nurse had told Donghae that the boy had been beaten and , before being dumped in front of the hospital. For the first three days the boy shared Donghae's room, he didn't speak a word to anyone.

Trauma, the nurse said.

On the fourth day, Donghae tried to get him to at least say hello. It took him seven hours, thirty-two minutes and twenty-seven seconds to finally get the boy to tell him his name.

Day Thirty;

Two weeks after Lee Sungmin was dumped on the hospital steps, beaten and molested, Donghae finally had a proper conversation with him.

He found out that the baby-faced boy sharing his room, was actually a 28-year-old man. He had a younger brother that helped run his family's café, while he himself was in the acting business.

Sungmin never told him what happened that day and Donghae was too scared to ask.

That evening, Donghae asked the nurse about Ryeowook, only to be told that he'd had another violent attack. Sungmin comforted Donghae, as the latter sobbed over his friend.

Ryeowook never made it through the night.

Day Thirty-Five;

Donghae's mother came to see him, finally getting time away from her Taco shop and driving the 25 minutes to the hospital.

She was devastated to hear about poor little Ryeowook, as Donghae had always spoken of him fondly over the phone. She was happy that Sungmin softened the blow somewhat, by being there when Donghae needed someone the most.

She watched sadly as Donghae clung to Sungmin like a child, still reeling from the sudden loss.

It broke her heart, to see her youngest son so broken.

Day Forty;

Sungmin was finally well enough to go home.

As much as Donghae felt the loneliness creeping up on him, he knew it was unfair to ask Sungmin to stay, when he didn't need to be.

Sungmin promised, as he packed the last of his things into a bag, that he'd visit as often as he could and that he'd never forget Donghae.

A final hug and Sungmin was gone.

Day Fifty;

A young Chinese girl was the next person to share Donghae's room. Her name was Amber Liu and she had food poisoning, so bad that she had to have her stomach pumped.

She was a very talkative girl, who delighted in teaching Donghae some Chinese and laughing when his eyes brightened, as he recognised a particular phrase.

Donghae wondered how long she would stay.

Day Fifty-Seven;

She gave him a brand new Chinese textbook, her phone number and a bright smile the day she left. She told him that if he didn't know anything, to give her a call and she'd help.

Donghae knew he had seen her departure coming, but it didn't make the pain any less.

Sungmin however, kept his promise and visited Donghae the day after she left. He apologised for not coming sooner, but his mother feared for his life these days and would rarely let him do anything.

Donghae had laughed at the exasperated look on Sungmin's face, when a lovely ahjumma had poked her head in and called him an insolent brat. 

"My mother," Sungmin had explained, gesturing to the space she had been just a moment before, "Can't get rid of her anymore, not even in my sleep. She checks on me twenty-four seven. Don't know how I'm meant to work anymore."

Donghae had smiled and patted his arm in sympathy.

Day Sixty;

A few days after Sungmin's visit, Donghae had his first major scare.

He was taking his nightly shower - he was a cancer patient, not a disabled man - and out.

Luckily for him, he didn't hit the wall hard enough to do any damage, but the thud of his body hitting the tiled floor was enough to alert the nurses stationed outside.

The test revealed his cancer was spreading and it was causing stress on different parts of his brain. The decision was made then and there.

Donghae was transferring out to the specialist ward in Seoul National Hospital.

Day Seventy-Four;

Exactly two weeks later, Donghae was airlifted to SNH, after a teary goodbye to Sungmin, his mother and his brother.

In all honesty, he didn't want to go.

But he was given no choice.

The helicopter ride was nothing short of exhilirating.

Donghae was allowed to sit up during the ride, taking in the scenery as the chopper flew over fields and lakes, heading North, until Donghae could finally see the buildings and Han River of Seoul.

The move from helicopter to hospital ward was swift, smooth and with little personnel involved.

Thw room was a pale blue, which suited Donghae just fine. It was so much better then the drab white Mokpo had.

Suddenly tired after the three hour flight, Donghae laid down on his new bed and went to sleep.

Day Eighty;

It wasn't long after Donghae arrived at Seoul National Hospital, that he was shocked by a visit from the person he least expected to see.

Lee Sungmin stood in the doorway of Donghae's hospital room, a bouquet of flowers in his left hand and a bright smile on his face.

Donghae couldn't help it; he teared up something horrid. Sungmin was all over him in a heartbeat, wiping away his tears and rocking him gently, shushing him quietly and nodding to a nurse who poked her head inside.

Sungmin said he felt wrong not visiting Donghae, so he was moving to the city to make sure he was never lonely.

Donghae couldn't have been happier.

Day Ninety;

He'd done a good job, or so Donghae had thought, of hiding the fact that his cancer was spreading.

Of course, brilliant schemes always come to an end and an unfortunate black out ended his.

It was the second time Donghae had suddenly out, only this time, there was no nurses in the immediate area and there were no other patients taking a stroll.

When he came to, Donghae was back in his bed, a worried Sungmin hovering over him and Donghae watched sadly, as his friend burst into tears.

Day Ninety-Eight;

Donghae had been astounded when he was told that it hadn't been Sungmin or nurses, that brought him back to his room, but another patient.

Now, he finally got to meet his saviour, as he was guided down numerous hallways, gulping harshly as he passed the Cardiovascular Ward sign.

His saviour was a heart patient, by the name of Lee Hyukjae.

Day One Hundred and Five;

Unlike Donghae, Hyukjae had been in and out of hospital his whole life, thanks to a hole in his heart that seemed to keep coming back, no matter how many times it was pieced together.

"Stress," Hyukjae had told him quietly, "That's the reason it keeps coming back."

Instantly, Donghae had felt guilty.

If even the slightest bit of stress endangered Hyukjae, imagine what carrying him had done.

Hyukjae had slapped Donghae's arm lightly, "I wouldn't have done it," he said, "If it was past my limits. You're not that heavy."

Donghae still felt awful all the same and promised to make it up to him.

"You really want to repay me?" Hyukjae had asked him and Donghae nodded immediately.

"Alright," the blonde paused, "Be my friend."

Day One Hundred and Nineteen;

​Two weeks after Hyukjae made his (ridiculous, Donghae thought) request, the two were inseparable.

Donghae learnt a lot of things about Lee Hyukjae.

He was 27, the same age as Donghae. His hair wasn't naturally blonde, his nickname was Eunhyuk, he had an older sister named Sora, he loved dancing (even though he couldn't participate in the sport), he loved animals and owned a pomeranian named Choco.

The list was practically endless.

Hyukjae had learnt quite a few things about Lee Donghae too.

He had an obsession with Nemo, he had two Bichon Frises named Bada and Meo, he too had a passion for dance, his father had passed away a few years ago, he got lonely easily, he missed his mother and his name meant East Sea.

Now that they'd started, they didn't want to stop.

So this was meant to be a oneshot, but it got so long, that I'm splitting it into three parts for easier reading :)

Enjoy~!

xoxo Raine