Minseok woke up with a killing headache and a stuffed nose. He groaned, just to find himself starting to cough uncontrollably, as if he deserved punishment for trying to use his own voice.

The room was empty, but it didn't take long until a face popped out from the kitchen. It was Jongin, his face oddly covered with white powder.

"Dude, you sound like you're dying" he commented. Minseok looked at him tiredly.

"I feel pretty dead" he croaked back between the coughs. His sister appeared next to Jongin.

"Serves you right for going off into the ice cold night without a jacket for hours.." she muttered and shook her head, getting a glare from Minseok.

"Hey sis, why have you dipped Jongin's face in flour?" he asked, changing the subject. Jongin looked surprised and raised his hand to brush whatever was on his face off. Minsuh giggled.

"We're making pancakes, and well, Jongdae's here." she said, as if that was the whole explenation. Which it actually was, because Jongdae was messy in the kitchen (though he himself liked to call it being fun). Minseok could hear the familiar laugh from within the kitchen and he sighed. He wanted his kitchen clean today, but that looked like an impossibilty.

"Are everybody in there?" he asked curiously, and Minsuh shook her head.

"Luhan's in the shower, and Chanyeol took Baekhyun to the store to buy some syrup, since we're out of that. I didn't plan for them to go together but they insisted. Fun date" she laughed to herself and it would have been funny to her brother if his head wasn't exploding at the very moment.

"Tell them to buy painkillers" he muttered.

"I think we have painkillers though" Minsuh answered.

"Not enough of them" he complained, in reality unaware of how many painkillers they had left. He didn't care, because it felt like he needed at least a hundred of them. His sister rolled her eyes.

"Stop whining" she told him boringly and Minseok glared at her for the second time in five minutes.

"What about Kyungsoo?" he said, returning to the mission of finding out where everyone were.

"Asleep" Jongin pouted, obviously unhappy with the fact. Minseok wondered how close those two had gotten last night, and he was also worried about how Kyungsoo was going to act about it today, when he was sober. Probably, he was going to ignore Jongin alot, since that's just how he dealt with awkward situations or memories - he avoided them and everything that had to do with them. Minsoek felt bad for Jongin, but didn't mention it for now.

"Someone should wake him up" he said instead, and looked at the wall clock, shocked about the time. It was already half past one. He himself had been sleeping for twelve whole hours, Kyungsoo even longer.

"No one in the right state would ever wake a sleeping Kyungsoo" Jongdae yelled form inside the kitchen, and both Minsuh and Jongin agreed.

"Especially not when he's hung over" Jongin added and shivered at the thought. Minseok wondered if he had actual memories of waking a hung over Kyungsoo up, or if he was just imagining the traumatic experience. In any case they were all right - Kyungsoo had to be left alone until he woke up on his own, even if the clock ticked. Minseok sure as hell weren't going near his sleeping friend when his head already hurt this bad.

He attempted to stand up, failing twice before he finally was on two legs, wobbling a bit. Minsuh sighed and went to get some painkillers, Minseok hoped, and Jongin looked at him with a bit of pity in his eyes before he returned to the kitchen. Minseok followed him slowly and sat his down on one of the chairs. Jongdae smiled lightly at him while frying the pancakes.

"Hey, zombie" he joked even though Minseok wasn't at all amused by it. "I promise I'll clean all this up after breakfast by the way."

Minseok just nodded as a glass of water and two pills were set down on the table by his sister. He gulped it all down as fast as he could, not wanting an unneccessary second of the unbearable pain. The bright light coming from the window wasn't exactly helping, and he hid his face in his hands.

"Oh, you're up! Morning" he heard a soft voice say. He only grunted shortly for an answer, removing his hands to look at the person, even though he of course already knew who the voice belonged to. His heart sped up much more than he'd ever admit to, because the boy's hair was all damp and his thin body was dressed in Minseok's sweatpants. Thankfully the t-shirt was his own from yesterday though. He looked like people sometimes do after showers - so clean, so pure, so fresh. He looked like he'd smell really really good if Minseok completely lost control and smelled his neck.

"Woah, you don't look good" Luhan muttered before taking a seat on the other side of the table, waking Minseok up from his very forbidden thoughts.

"Thanks" he whispered sarcastically, not able or willing to speak any louder.

"You know what I mean." the younger boy said quickly, getting a short nod back. "Do you have fever?" he then proceeded to ask.

"Don't know, maybe. I guess forgetting my jacket wasn't the smartest thing to do." he shrugged. Luhan looked at him concerned, and it made him feel slightly uncomfortable. It was weird to see Luhan neutrally now, well almost neutrally. It was weird to not automatically hate everything he said or did just because it was him. It was weird to talk to him, to treat him like a new friend. And it was weird to feel so cared for by him.

"Those are my sweatpants." he commented curiously, extremely ashamed of the fact that uttering those simple words made his cheeks burn slightly. However, Luhan looked just as red as he answered.

"Yeah... Minsuh said I could borrow them for today. That's okay right?"

Minseok nodded, looking away and remaining quiet.

They just sat there awkwardly, Jongdae talking every now and then, until the front door opened brutally just as Minseok could finally feel his headache fade away a bit. Chanyeol and Baekhyun stumbled into the kitchen looking like they raced eachother to the apartment. Soon came the confirmation.

"I won!" Chanyeol beamed and Baekhyun huffed while fixing his hair.

"No fair, your legs are like double the length of mine."

"That is a huge exaggeration, plus it doesn't matter. We said first through the door."

"Yeah, well, we didn't say what door, and I came into the kitchen first, so therefore I win!" Baekhyun smirked back.

"In fact you both lose, since you're such dorks" Jongin muttered. "Now sit down and shut up, the pancakes are almost done."

Both Chanyeol and Baekhyun glared back, but obediently sat down.

"I still won though..." Chanyeol whispered stubbornly before turning to look at Minseok, probably distracted by the 'zombie' look. "You okay there?"

"Sick" was the simple reply and it came with the tiniest of smiles.

Soon the pancakes were on the table and everyone started eating like crazy, except Luhan, who probably still felt a bit uncomfortable in this house (it was strange how well Baekhyun had adapted), and Minseok, who didn't really have an appetite. They both ate slowly, slowly.

Suddenly, a small body made it's way into the room. Even though several of the others said their greetings, there was no answer. Kyungsoo only went to the fridge to get some juice out for himself, before standing by the counter to drink it.

"Do you want some food? We saved a few pancakes." Jongdae said.

"No, but painkillers would be nice" the sleepy boy replied dully. Minsuh got them out for him, muttering something about feeling like a nurse today.

"The hell is he doing here?" Kyungsoo muttered and nodded towards Luhan, who shifted uncomfortably in his seat and bit his lip. Minseok realized that Kyungsoo knew nothing. He might have seen Luhan at the party, but most of the time he was... busy. And then he slept and missed out on the whole thing.

"It's a long story, but he's a friend, alright?" Minsuh warned. Luhan got eyed suspiciously by Kyungsoo but nothing else happened. Minseok appreciated how his friends all stood up for him and his sister against Luhan, but for now he actually wanted peace, so when his small friend gave him a questioning look he nodded reassuringly. Kyungsoo seemed to let it all go for now.

The tension in the room was suddenly ten times thicker. Everyone nervously watched Kyungsoo avoid Jongin's awkward gaze as they both sported crimson red ears. Chanyeol was the one to break the tension.

"So do you guys want us all out or?" he asked, a question directed to the two siblings who lived in the apartment. They both shrugged simultaneously.

"Not exactly, stay as long as you want." Minsuh simply said. It didn't take long at all before Kyungsoo took the bait.

"Well I really have to go actually." he muttered with a plain voice. "See you guys" was the last thing he said and then he was out the door. The room was deadly quiet for a while until a weak whispery sound was heard.

"I screwed it all up, didn't I?" It was coming from Jongin, and Minseok turned his head to look at him. He could see so much worry and regret in his friend's eyes.

"You didn't screw it up, give him some time." Jongdae adviced. "You know how he is. He'll come around, just have patience." All the others agreed and Jongin nodded, still unsure.

"Okay then" he said quietly. Not long after, he too was out the door, and not much later, Jongdae also left the building. Chanyeol and Baekhyun decided to watch some tv in the living room, and Minsuh started to do the dishes.

"Should I help?" Luhan asked and Minseok rolled his eyes, having a moment of automatic annoyance towards the younger boy. He mentally slapped himself for doing so though, and then he mentally slapped himself for mentally slapping himself for being annoyed. He was so confused with himself. Minsuh shook her head no, claiming she was perfectly fine by herself. So Luhan turned to Minseok instead, and their eyes met for a tiny second, causing Minseok's heart to beat a little extra hard.

"How's that headache?" Luhan asked with a soft and concerned voice.

"Better." came the answer, short but friendly. Luhan smiled at that, and it made Minseok blush slightly as he looked down at the table.

"I can't believe you made him stop hating you." Minsuh commented from the sink, shaking her head at the beaming face of Luhan, who shrugged.

"I'm just too awesome, you know?" he answered and it made Minseok snort, which was a bad idea because then another cough attack began.

"Holy , are you okay?" Luhan asked, because his friend sounded like he might throw up from the terrible coughs. Since it didn't really look like the answer would be yes, Luhan walked around the table and alternately , alternately hit Minseok lightly on the back. Maybe it helped, or maybe the cough attack was just about to end, but however the sick boy could breath normally within a minute. Luhan stopped his handmotions, but his hand lay steadily, left on Minseok's back. "Maybe you should go back to bed, rest or something?" he proposed as Minseok drank a glass of water.

"That's so boring though" he whined.

"I could make you company?" Luhan said.

"In bed? Luhan, your ways of getting rid of boredom are a little ty, but sure, effective" Minsuh joked and laughed a little bit too loud at herself. None of the boys did so though, instead their faces got bright red and the atmosphere around them grew thicker. Luhan drew his hand back from Minseok's back, and cleared his throat.

"To clarify, I will not be in the bed, and I am not ty, thank you very much."

The idea of Luhan being beside him constantly came with a warning to Minseok. He wasn't sure that he would be able to actually rest if that boy was making him company. So he tried to prevent it.

"I need to rest." he protested weakly when Luhan actually followed him towards the bed room. The younger boy didn't take the wink at all.

"Yeah I know, that's why we're on our way to your bed. Duhh." came the sassy answer and Minseok groaned internally.

"I almost forgot about your y side" he commented.

"I'm not y! I just think your sentence was a bit unneccessary."

"Yeah well it wasn't. You just didn't understand. See, I need to rest, right? You think anyone can rest with you, the ultimate element of disturbance, in the same room?" Minseok asked, and realized he mightve been a little too harsh, but he didn't have the energy to care right now. Sure, it wasn't Luhan's fault that Minseok couldn't relax near him, but those were tiny details. He was sick and grumpy and being thoughtful was difficult.

Since he didn't get an answer he stopped in front of his bed room door and turned around. Luhan had stopped a few meters back. He didn't look hurt, but on the contrary, he didn't look like he felt anything.

"Why are you staring at me? Go rest" he said, emotionlessly. He was good at pretending like he wasn't hurt, but Minseok didn't quite buy it. He felt his headache trying to conquer the painkillers though, so he decided to deal with this later, and therefore he turned his back and walked into his room, closing the door.

He sighed deeply and crawled into bed, hoping to finally get some rest. But it was difficult, because suddenly thoughts were flying around in his head like there's a tornado in there. He couldn't stop thinking about his mistake, about how Luhan was feeling right now, how he shouldn't have been that harsh. Even if he tried desperately to get it out of his head he couldn't, and it annoyed him. That stupid boy was taking up Minseok's every thought lately, and he was mad at himself because he let it happen. He had work tomorrow, if he could feel better until then, and he had to focus! And to get better, right now he needed to sleep, or at least rest! Why couldn't he rest? After a long time of thinking he realized the main truth: he would probably be able to relax easier if Luhan was in there with him. It would be calmer because he'd know that Luhan was okay, and that it was okay to rest. And deep inside he knew that Luhan wouldn't be that bothersome. t was unfair of Minseok to make that assumption. So he decided he had to get Luhan in there.

He sat up and dried his eyes, that he hadn't realized were leaking, but he didn't look more to it, because he just assumed they were running from the sickness. He stood up, a little too fast and his head protested wildly, almost making him black out. But he didn't, luckily. He walked out the door, and at first he didn't see anything. It was way too bright for him. He blinked frustradedly, and searched the room with his eyes.

[Luhan's point of view]

Luhan's eyebrows were furrowed and he constantly growled to himself. Minseok's comment had hurt him slightly, but he refused to admit it, so he just turned angry instead. He was pissed, because in this moment, as in many other insecure moments, Luhan was sure that Minseok hated him strongly. It made him mad, since he knew that the sick boy had every right to feel that way. Luhan just didn't know how to fix it.

He was sitting on the floor in the small hallway that went between the front door and the door to Minseok's room, staring angrily at the door, as if it would crumble and fall under his glare. It didn't. But it did open a while later, and he quickly averted his gaze so the person wouldn't catch him staring. He knew the person was Minseok(who else would be coming out from that room), so he clenched his teeth and refused to look up. It wasn't until he heard a stumble very closeby that he, by reflex, turned his head that way. Minseok was walking towards him, but only barely. The small feet didn't really seem to bear the body, and he just looked like a total drunk. Luhan knew he was certainly not drunk, which made him worried, because Minseok had to really be sick if he was acting like this. Looking at the face of his friend, he knew how true that was. The skin was nearly grey and the eyes dull, but bloodshot. Llips dry and cracked. Luhan didn't understand how someone could get this much worse in only thirty minutes. He was completely sure Minseok hadn't been in there for a longer period of time, but the older boy looked like he just dressed up for halloween.

"Holy crap are you okay?!" Luhan almost yelled as he quickly stood up, gluing his worried eyes to Minseok, who didn't reply. Luhan grabbed his upper arms to support him from falling. He heard a cracked sound escaping Minseok's throat, but it was basically impossible to hear what he tried to say. So Luhan yelled for Minsuh, because he didn't know what else to do. The girl let out an audible gasp when she saw her brother.

"We need to get him to the hospital, right?" Luhan asked, unsure of how to handle the situation. Minsuh bit her lip, thinking about it, but then shook her head slowly.

"No, I think we can treat him here." she said. "Lay him in the sofa and get a bowl of ice water and a cloth."

Luhan obediently walked Minseok over to the sofa in the living room, laying him down carefully. He gave the boy a worried look before running to the kitchen to get the supplies. He's glad he knew this kitchen somewhat, and he was quickly finished. He walked back with the bowl and the cloth. He saw Minsuh taking a thermometer out of the sick boy's mouth. She frowned and showed the numbers to Luhan. They showed 40ºC (104ºF). Luhan widened his eyes because he remembered years ago he'd read that if the fever goes up to 40 it could possibly be fatal. His eyes started to water and he helplessly observed Minsuh dipping the cloth in the water and dab her brother's forehead and lips with it.

"Luhan, go get the stronger medication against fever. And water with a straw." she calmly ordered. The desperate boy wasn't late to follow, and he returned not even a minute later, hoping he brought the right pills. Minsuh made Minseok swallow two of them with some water. The sick boy groaned weakly but took it. "Keep drinking", his sister said. She wasn't satisfied until Minseok had finished the whole glass.

"He'll be okay, right?" Luhan asked, voice full of worry, angrily drying his tears away with the back of his hand. He was mad at himself for crying right now, when he should stay calm. Minsuh nodded, but it wasn't completely reassuring. She continued dabbing Minseok's face for a while, and Luhan realized the sick boy had gone unconscious.

"Could you take his shirt off?" Minsuh asked suddenly, and Luhan freezed.

"W-why?" he asked, unsure whether he should do it or not. The girl just rolled her eyes and did it herself, not having time for this. Luhan himself had no time to look away. He restrained himself from making any sound at the sight of Minseok's bare tummy and chest, at the sight of those obvious abs, the sight of those s sitting there like the icing on the cake, perfecting the already perfect image. Luhan's mouth turned dry and for a moment he forgot he was teary-eyed, he forgot Minseok was sick, he forgot he was on planet Earth, he forgot his name was Luhan. Everything he knew about was that chest, almost shining towards him in a holy light, almost calling for him to come closer, to touch it. It didn't exactly help when it got dabbed by the wet cloth, making small driplets of water stay on the assumably soft skin. Luhan had never been this attracted to something, or rather someone, in his whole life. He was mesmerized, hypnotized, by this revelation. And no one knows what he would have done if he had stayed like that for any longer of a time. But he eventually woke up from his senses and he was glad, to say the least, that he never did do anything, because it would have been so very inappropiate. Minsuh was already giving him a weird look and he felt his cheeks turning red, which made him clear his throat and speak up from awkwardness:

"Please treat him well, I have to go get some air."

[Back to Minseok]

It was dawn, the day was young.There was a field of flowers, organized after sorts and colours in a beautiful pattern. It's a gorgeous sight, and Minseok felt peaceful. Everything was just perfect.

Suddenly a deer walked out on the field, and he couldn't help but to stare at it in total wonder. He loved it instantly, simply because it was so astonishing. It's a stag, but a young such, prooved by the tiny antlers. Minseok realized how the stag began to crumble the field by walking all over it and even eating some of the flowers. He started to yell at the deer, forgetting it's beauty in an instance. He was angry and upset because this stag was destroying all of his peace, all of his order. The animal stared at the boy, eyes wide and confused, scared and hurt. And then it ran away, leaving Minseok alone with the mess. There was no order, and suddenly he wanted so bad to have the stag back with him, because even if he didn't have any other order in his life, he would have at least had that amazing beauty. But it was too late now. He had scared away the poor deer, and he started whispering "please, please, please" to himself again and again, his every thought filled with panicked regret. He wanted the deer back. His deer of dawn.

-

[EDITED!]