It was already dark when they got home. Seunghyun had been completely quiet for the last 20 minutes or so, focusing only on the road. Jiyong was thankful for him being careful and driving safely and all that, but he wondered why the sudden change in mood. He hoped he hadn't noticed how weird he had become after the shirtless incident, he had tried to hide it the best he could.

The moment the car stopped, Seunghyun excused himself, claiming to need to use the bathroom, but when he never returned to help him carry Soonie and the rest of the stuff from the car, Jiyong started to get pissed. Soonie in one arm, and the truckload of stuff that accompanied her in the other, he stormed through the door, ready to chew Seunghyun's ear off. However, the moment he saw Seunghyun, half collapsed on the sofa, completely drained of color except for this yellow-greenish hue, he forgot everything he was going to say. Hurriedly, he put Soonie down and threw the rest of the stuff on the floor, rushing over to him.

“Are you okay?” he asked worried, putting his hand against his forehead. It was boiling. He immediately went into crisis mode, running to the bathroom to get the first aid kit. He quickly found a thermometer, sticking it into Seunghyun's mouth despite his weak protest.

“40 degrees!!!” he gasped, a pang of panic shooting through his gut. “Come on, we need to go to the hospital.” he took his arm and put it over his shoulder, helping him to get up. He was heavy, barely able to carry any of the weight himself.

“No.. no hospital...” Seunghyun mumbled. “I jusss... need t... lie down...” he pointed to the bedroom.

Against his better judgment, Jiyong helped him get into bed, gingerly removing his shirt which was completely soaked in sweat. A worry knot started to form in Jiyong's stomach. This was not good.

“At least let me call your mom.” he pleaded.

“No! No... don' wannah... bothah... her.” Seunghyun shook his head with difficulty, his whole body shaking. Ah, that impossible stubborn mule. Annoyance replaced a part of the fear, allowing him to think more clearly.

He went to the living room to check on Soonie, and got a cold wet cloth to put on Seunghyun's forehead. Then called Youngbae, begging him to come take Soonie for the night. There was no way he could babysit two babies at a time. He wanted to be able to focus on Seunghyun, especially in case he suddenly had to rush him to the hospital. Sweet as Youngbae was, he agreed on the spot and came to pick Soonie up, bringing medicine for Seunghyun while at it.

“Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. You are a lifesaver!” he tried his best to smile through the worries, but he wasn't sure if he pulled it off.

“No sweat. Just take care of that idiot in there.” Youngbae giggled softly, giving him an uplifting wink. It actually made him feel a bit better. 

The moment the door closed, Jiyong went to the kitchen to prepare a bowl of ice water, a couple of small towels, a glass of water and the medicine. He carried the whole thing to the bedroom on a tray, only spilling a little. Wasting no time, he got to work. He wet one of the towels, his hands hurting a bit as the ice water sunk its cold claws into them. He wrung the towel and carefully washed Seunghyun's face and neck. So much sweat. The pillow was drenched already. He skillfully stuck his arm under Seunghyun's neck to support his head while he changed pillows. His mind wanted to take a moment to appreciate the fact that he had Seunghyun in his arms, but there was no time. He got the medicine ready and helped Seunghyun raise himself up enough to swallow.

“I don' feel so good.” Seunghyun's glazed over eyes tried to focus on him.

“I know, I'm sorry, I wish you'd let me take you to the hospital. You've got a really high fever.” Jiyong tried once more to convince him, but Seunghyun wouldn't have it.

“Mom always used to my back when I was feeling bad.” Seunghyun rolled on his side, groaning dramatically. Looking at Seunghyun's , Jiyong felt as his heart sped up. 'Stop it' he whispered to his heart, not at all happy with it. Here Seunghyun was, fighting for his life, and all it could do was get excited at the prospect of touching the masterpiece that was Seunghyun's back. It really was amazing though, like a drawing. Broad shoulders and bold lines, masculine to the core. When he didn't react, Seunghyun mumbled and groaned.

Jiyong tried to swallow. His throat was so dry, it was as if someone had poured sand down it. Holding his breath, he forced his hand to move. Move it did, but it was awkwardly slow, as if it was traversing an invisible force field that protected Seunghyun. The space between them grew smaller and smaller, until eventually there was none left. The moment Jiyong's index finger touched Seunghyun's skin, it was as if he had gotten electrocuted, sparks flying. Rather than jerking his hand away as was the normal response, he used the electricity to draw on Seunghyun's back, creating electric circles and shapes. Seunghyun got visible goose bumps on his arm, shivering. Was he too cold having his back exposed like that?, he wondered, using his other hand to pull the covers up higher, while still leaving space for him on which to draw.

His heart was pounding so heavily, he was worried Seunghyun would hear it. Without really meaning to, his finger started writing, completely on its own accord.

사

Jiyong gasped. What was he doing? Could Seunghyun feel what he was writing? There was no way, right? Or was there? His heart had a hissy fit, bouncing around his chest in a frenzy. He should just leave it there. 'Sa' could be the beginning of a thousand different words. But his finger didn't listen.

랑

Was he completely out of his mind?!? Stop it, stop it right now! Seunghyun was probably already asleep by now, he convinced himself, or at least too delirious to discern exactly what he was writing.

해

And then he traced a big heart over the middle of his back. It felt strangely freeing. It was like he had confessed, but without having to face the dire consequences it would have on their friendship. Seunghyun stirred. Oh no! Panic took hold of Jiyong, his heart trying to flee but getting stuck in his throat on its way out.

“I need a huuuug.” Seunghyun rolled over, pouting.

“What?” Jiyong whispered confused, looking guiltier than a bank robber caught red handed with a bag full of cash.

“Pleeeeease... I'm so siiiiick... I feel like crap....I need a hug to make it all better....” Seunghyun mumbled, getting hold of his hand and pulling it towards him without strength. He didn't look like he was in shock after finding out that his best friend was in love with him. Maybe he had no idea what he had written. Yeah, nobody had such a sensitive back that they were able to sense such details. His hand felt so warm. It didn't take long to convince him to give in and join Seunghyun in the bed. He crawled under the covers, putting his arm softly around Seunghyun, but Seunghyun wasn't hearing it. He drew him in as close as he could, and crushed him into his arms. He fit so well. He got an intense sense of belonging.

“What are you doing?” Jiyong started. Seunghyun's hands had found the hem of his T-shirt and very unsubtly started pulling it up.

“I saw it on TV, skin to skin is best for healing.” Seunghyun explained as he continued to pull his T-shirt off.

“What? No, I was watching the same thing, it was for keeping each other warm if you were trapped outside in the cold. Babo! I think the fever fried your brain.” he objected, but his shirt was already off. He tried to control his breathing as Seunghyun squeezed him into his arms once more, skin to skin, his every cell tingled. He couldn't help getting , sticking his out so Seunghyun wouldn't notice anything.

“Mmm, now I feel better.” Seunghyun murmured, before falling asleep.

Jiyong just lay there, in his arms. He had this strange sensation in his chest, as if Seunghyun had tied an imaginary rope around his insides and was using all his strength to pull him towards him, but no matter how close he got, it wasn't close enough. There was this empty space inside him, which was growing by the minute, desperately longing to be filled. He felt weirdly lonely. He wasn't sure what to do with himself. He listened to Seunghyun's labored breathing. Poor guy. He shouldn't have let him get so soaked in the rain.

Slowly, carefully, he slid out of Seunghyun's grasp. He wasted no time in putting his T-shirt back on. The fever had clearly fried Seunghyun's brain good. He just stood there for a while, looking at him. His sleeping beauty. After his eyes were done tracing every feature of his face, he started feeling awkward just standing there. What if he woke up and found him staring at him? He turned around and quickly exited the room.

After tidying the living room, he went to check on him. He still had a fever. He didn't like that at all, it should've gone down by now. Maybe the medicine needed more time to work. He fetched a fresh bowl of ice water and made a damp cloth to put on his forehead, hoping it would help, at least a little bit.

Not able to just sit still, he went to unpack the stuff from the picnic, checking on Seunghyun every quarter of an hour or so. Thankfully, the fever finally started to subside. Slowly but steadily. The constriction in his chest started to ease up, making him realize just how stressed and worried he had been.

In the wee hours of the morning, as he started to nod off in the chair he had placed beside the bed, Seunghyun came to.

“Mmmm... I need my hug-medicine...” he complained, reaching out for him. Too tired to fight back, he let him pull him into bed, where Seunghyun's bear paws took hold of him, with no intention of letting him escape. He checked his forehead to see if the fever had gone up again, messing with his mind, but it was actually cold.

“Hey! Your fever's gone!” he exclaimed in delight, trying to wriggle out of his arms.

“No, it's not.” Seunghyun objected, hugging him tighter, burrowing his face into his shoulder.

________________________________________________________

Note: 사랑해 means I love you in Korean