Dedicated to those who mess with my toothpaste

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“AHHH!”

Sungmin bolted from the kitchen to the bathroom, hovering in the doorway, “Kyuhyun? Oh my God!” 

He burst in and knelt on the tiled floor before the shower where Kyuhyun sat in a heap against the coffee-coloured tiles of the shower that took up half of the bathroom. The younger man was dressed in just his pyjama bottoms, glaring at the older man with one hand holding the back of his head. 

“What happened? Are you okay?” Sungmin questioned,

Without answering, Kyuhyun raised his free hand. In it, loosely held, was a half-empty tube of toothpaste.

“You were getting the toothpaste to brush your teeth?” Sungmin asked lightly, knowing his cheeks were slowly creeping with red,

Kyuhyun lowered the toothpaste as he bowed his head and closed his eyes, his hand still cupped against the back of his skull.

“Oh! I'll get you ice, just… just stay there and don’t you dare go to sleep!” Sungmin instructed as he scrambled to his feet and ran back to the kitchen. 

Grabbing a clean dishcloth, he wrapped a few cubes of ice in the linen and raced back to the bathroom. Instead of just handing over the make-shift icepack, he climbed into the shower beside Kyuhyun. Kneeling beside him, he gently pressed the ice to where Kyuhyun’s hand had been, nudging the limp fingers aside. 

Cringing at the cold and contact, Kyuhyun instinctively moved away, but Sungmin raised his free hand and held Kyuhyun’s head in place. Realizing he couldn’t pull away from the cold pain that was oddly soothing against his pounding head, he leaned into the warmth of Sungmin’s body. 

“I’m sorry,” Sungmin said quietly,

“I hate your toothpaste,” Kyuhyun muttered as he was practically leaning completely against Sungmin’s torso, his head against the other’s chest, 

“It’s technically your toothpaste,” Sungmin offered lightly,

“When it crosses into the shower, it’s your toothpaste and I hate it,” Kyuhyun stated bitterly,

“You can keep a second tube by the sink?” Sungmin suggested, 

“Or I can just keep it by the sink,” Kyuhyun retorted, “And you can brush your teeth by the sink like a normal person.”

“I’m sure there is a good percentage of the population who brush their teeth in the shower,” Sungmin replied as he took off the icepack to look at the younger man’s head. His free hand slid up from Kyuhyun’s jaw to his skull, gently probing through the soft dark hair to the wet and cold strands signifying where the ice had been placed. A small lump was there and he brushed it gently, 

“ARGH! DON’T TOUCH IT!” Kyuhyun cried as he tried to straighten,

Immediately, Sungmin held his head against his chest and replaced the ice, “Stop being a baby, I barely touched it,” 

“Something’s burning,” Kyuhyun murmured, 

“AH! I was baking a cake!” Sungmin jumped and ran out to turn off the oven and open its door to release the heat. “Ah! Kyuhyun!” He suddenly ran back into the bathroom,

“What now?” Kyuhyun asked,

“I didn’t mean to leave you,” Sungmin smiled sheepishly as he came back into the bathroom and moved to retake his place beside the younger man,

“Don’t mind me, it was just a bump on the head,” Kyuhyun waved him away, holding the icepack to his head himself, “Go make sure the kitchen doesn’t burn down.”

Sungmin squatted in the shower and brushed a kiss to Kyuhyun’s forehead, “Okay, but at least move out of the shower.” 

Kyuhyun grumbled as the older man helped him stand and hovered at his side as he slowly walked towards the living room and sat down on the couch, leaning his cheek against the back of the couch as he removed the ice for a few minutes. 

“No sleeping,” Sungmin instructed, as he stood behind the couch and gently searched for the lump again,

“ARGH STOP THAT!” Kyuhyun almost bolted from the couch, but a firm hand on his shoulder kept him in place,

“Just making sure you don’t sleep,” Sungmin teased lightly. He leaned down and pressed a kiss to his forehead again, “I am sorry.”

“I know,” Kyuhyun grumbled as he picked up the remote from beside him and the television, 

Sungmin’s fingers caressed the side of Kyuhyun’s face as he moved away and returned to the kitchen. 

“Sungmin!” Kyuhyun called out,

“What? Is it your head? Should we go to the hospital?” Sungmin cried, 

“No, no… Just wanted to tell you that I hate your toothpaste,” Kyuhyun replied,

“Oh, okay,” Sungmin said and then added, “I know you do.”

“But I love you,” Kyuhyun added, “I guess.”

“You were pretty sure before,” Sungmin teased from the kitchen,

“I love you a little bit less right now. Once the pain goes away I’ll love you at the normal level again,” Kyuhyun insisted, 

“It’s nice to know your love is conditional,” Sungmin mused as he busied himself in the burnt-smelling kitchen,

“Only when your toothpaste is involved,” Kyuhyun called back as he dutifully replaced the ice against his head.

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