He hangs his head low, staring at nothing and thinking of nothing. Just his being filled with blank space, a space once full of warm smiles and laughs, beautiful memories. Dulled by the cruel fate, Painful by the heavy sorrow and regret.

“Look down and all you’ll find is shadow. Look up and you will see the bright light, the vast sky and all of it’s colors. You’ll be rendered speechless of how small and insignificant you are. But you are part of the magnificent world, beautiful don’t you think?”

He looked up, his eyes caught sight of the author looking at him with a soft gaze and a smile almost as if trying to convey something to him.

“Are you chasing shadow, Hyukjae-shi?”

His lips curled up into a thin hollow smile, “aren’t we all?”

At his sincere answer the author’s face stilled and something flickering in those dark brown eyes, clouded into something darker and full of deep emotions. Hyukjae didn’t fail to notice the change, the always smiling and joking manner of the other have shifted into something else by the careless yet genuine words. And deep in his heart he knew, he saw it.

He had just seen the real face of Lee Donghae.

“Must I tell you how absurd your idea is?”

“But Kyuhyun, I’m fine already! I didn’t feel anything at all, no fever at all!” Donghae whined in his bed while tightly hugging Hyukjae’s left arm, whom standing by the bed.

“Still the fever took a lot of your energy Donghae, what you must do is rest now, your body is exhausted and you’re not supposed to make a plane trip. If you want to rest at home, please do so by all means, I won’t stop you. But to make a long trip right out of the bait? I don’t think so,” the doctor said sternly, an odd thing since the couple never saw him this serious.

“It’s just two hours of flying, is that not good? I’ll make sure he rest on the plane and right away after we arrive there,” this time it’s Hyukjae who’s trying to negotiate.

“Right! I’ll definitely take a good rest there!”

“You may think it’s not taking a lot of energy, but I’m sure by the time you two arrive there, Donghae would be spent. It’s just like a patient having surgery, they may not be moving much, heck most of them are put to sleep, yet despite they’re not moving at all, a lot of energy being drained by the surgery. In this case it’s your fever Donghae, you were sleeping most of the time but still, the fever taking a lot of energy out of you. When you must be doubling your resting time, you take half of it by doing a long trip, it will only exhaust you more,” Kyuhyun reasoned professionally like the doctor he is.

The spouses fell silent, looking down feeling disappointed and a bit ashamed, yet still they refuse to say anything, mind mulling over what they can do to not be separated again. Donghae tighten his hold on Hyukjae’s arm when the other sitting beside him on the bed.

“I don’t want to say this, but your condition is not at your best, right Donghae? I also didn’t want to make the both of you looking like a sour old gramps, like now, but Donghae’s pregnancy is quite unstable… Isn’t it better to be on the safe side? I know maybe Donghae will be strong enough to do the trip, but isn’t better to prevent any bad potentials from the trip?”

“But…” Donghae muttered slowly, almost hesitant, “if I’m away from Hyukjae now… I might fall into the same state again… The fever was out of my control, how can I be sure I won’t have it again when Hyukjae left me?”

Hearing that Hyukjae’s lips jutted up, feeling touched and trying his hardest not to grin massively, while the doctor narrowed his eyes to resist rolling his eyes at the nausea-inducing-cheesy scene.

“Well, as much I hate to admit it, you’re right…” Kyuhyun sighed deeply thinking about the dilemma. It was better for Donghae to rest yet it won’t be good if he experience another stress fever, in the end it’s better to let Donghae make the trip. But… The doctor still very reluctant to give his affirmation to the couple, because both choices have their own consequences.

“Kyuhyun… Can we, please?” Hyukjae pleaded with full aegyo much to Kyuhyun annoyance.

“Argh fine, I’ll cancel my seminar participation…” he finally yielding after being attacked by the two’s aegyos.

“Yes!” Donghae shouted in joy before he frowned deeply, “wait, what?”

“Seminar participation…?” Hyukjae inquired with a stupid face, because what that got to do with anything they’re discussing about?

“Actually today is my day off, I have a plane to catch this evening,” the doctor began to explain. “I have a seminar to attend tomorrow at Jeju, but seeing you two hardheaded people won’t listen to what I say, I think it’s better for me to accompany your trip instead. At least that way I can make sure Donghae would be okay.”

“Kyuhyun! You don’t have to do that! We don’t want to burden you!” Donghae exclaimed in panic knowing the doctor planning to cancel his plan merely to make sure he’s safe, guiltiness pounding in his heart.

“Nah, it’s fine, I think skipping a seminar once in a while is okay,” he smirked.

“Why would you go to such length for us…?” Donghae asked feeling so touched yet also guilty.

“Well, I told you I like the two of you, for me you stupid couple already felt like a friend…” he’s scratching his nape a bit awkwardly.

“You’re our best friend now!” Donghae jumped out the bed before punching the doctor’s shoulder in a friendly manner.

“Hey, safe your energy,” Kyuhyun protested immediately making Donghae to lay down in bed again.

Yet Hyukjae keep silent, deep frown on his face as if thinking hard, “Jeju you say?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Was it a seminar about disease prevention and to facilitate hyperbaric chamber at hospitals in coastal areas within tourist spot?”

Kyuhyun jerked up an eyebrow in surprise, “how did you know?”

Hyukjae instantly laughed loudly, “are you serious? Really? Dude, you live in Seoul why that seminar?”

“I was invited, but other than that I need it too because we get rotated to secluded areas sometimes and some of them are in coastal area. But how did you know?”

He continues to laugh happily, face so bright, “that’s one of the events I work on in this current project!”

“Really?!” Both Kyuhyun and Donghae are dumbfounded, “what a coincidence!” the doctor exclaimed in disbelief.

“Really! How small the world is…” he laughed again and Donghae knew this pattern.

“So? I bet there’s another thing you wanna tell us other than that, if not you won’t be laughing that much.”

“Ah, you see…” he chuckled, “I did say it’s my current project so-“

“No way!” Kyuhyun exclaimed, “don’t tell me your out of town job is going to Jeju?”

“What?!” Donghae shouted, energy saving be damned.

Hyukjae could only grin widely before giggling.

--

“Well good thing he don’t need to cancel attending that seminar,” Hyukjae exhales contently as he rested his head on the crook of Donghae’s neck when they’re both lying down on the hospital bed.

“I’m still not satisfied,” Donghae protested though his arms wrapping Hyukjae protectively.

“Why?”

“You didn’t tell me you went to Jeju and you didn’t bring me,” he pouted.

“Ah Hae, I told you I was afraid the trip would be tiring for you… And I don’t want to disappoint you so I didn’t tell you I was going to Jeju…”

Donghae still pouting, “yeah, but still… It’s Jeju… I want to eat that cake again.”

“Cake? What cake?” Hyukjae frowned before he suddenly remembered his husband excitement in their honeymoon before. “Ah, that cake,” he chuckled, “rather than the taste you were amused by it, weren’t you?”

“I can’t get enough of squirting that white custard, and the feels, how the cake felt in our hands Hyukjae, it’s almost so real. Too bad it was