It was a gradual process, beginning with a few subtle signals no one paid a great deal of attention to.
But when the fever set in and Kyungsoo almost knocked the printer off the table at a sudden wave of dizziness, they forced him to go and see a doctor. It took both Jongin and Chanyeol to convince the glassy-eyed Northener but as soon as they'd left the office in order to do so, his complains stopped, as if he'd resigned himself to his fate. Even Chanyeol had a considerable amount of pity at the miserable sight. Kyungsoo was nothing but an empty shell, obviously not able to focus on anything but breathing while he pliantly let himself be dragged around. Chanyeol had told Jongin that he would accompany Kyungsoo but the dancer refused to stay behind. It was really nice how worried he was. Yes, Jongin was a nice person. Even worrying for someone as difficult as Kyungsoo.

Three hours later, Kyungsoo was comfortably lying on Chanyeol's sofa, buried in a generous amount of blankets and cushions and Chanyeol had no idea how any of this could have happened so fast.
He still padded around, gathering necessities like water and tissues, running on autopilot.
"Thanks." Kyungsoo rasped with half-lidded eyes, only vaguely following the movement of a glass being placed on the low table.
"It's nothing. The medicine and inhalation are due at six, but I'll remind you again later." Chanyeol gave back purposefully quiet.
"Jongin will return soon, with your clothes."
Kyungsoo only made a weak, hoarse sound while Chanyeol kept bustling around, aimlessly cleaning a few things to distract himself.
"Just... for one day..." he slurred under his breath and it hitched audibly when Chanyeol placed a cool face-cloth on his sweaty forehead.
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Just get better. Try to sleep for now." Chanyeol absently said, all-too aware of the fact that the boy suffering from a severe inflammation of his larynx was currently anything but receptive.
It was obvious that he needed supervision in this state and since Chanyeol lived that close to their workplace, they'd chosen his apartment. Well, Chanyeol wasn't unreasonable or selfish and the boy occupying his couch couldn't be called a nuisance. In fact, Kyungsoo was half-asleep before he was even done calling their boss to explain the situation. He was pretty lucky that their working place was so relaxed and allowed him to work from home for the time being. Unlike Kyungsoo, Chanyeol was mainly making calls and the likes, so that wouldn't be a problem. He threw a last look at the dozing boy and reached for his laptop, ready to settle into his bedroom when a weak voice spoke up.
"You can work here." he half-whispered, his eyes squinting at the rays of sunlight reaching him. Chanyeol dismissed him with a wave of his hand.
"Oh. It's alright, I have another room-"
"Please?" he added, his voice slightly cracking.
He halted in his movements and sighed soundlessly. He wasn't terribly keen on having Kyungsoo watch him work, even though the boy was barely conscious. He'd probably keep nagging and criticizing his methods as soon as he was able to. Still, Kyungsoo was sick and Chanyeol wasn't an and if he needed entertainment or company then fine, so be it.
With another suppressed sigh he fell into his chair, the laptop placed on the desk.
"Thanks." he heard Kyungsoo mumble and it was minutes later, when he was about to call JYP and assumed Kyungsoo to be asleep already, when his faint and croaky voice prove him wrong.
"I like your voice. It's soothing. Makes me believe."
Chanyeol shot a look over his shoulder but Kyungsoo had his eyes closed, looking unusually small and fragile in the plush blankets. It was probably the fever talking. Yes, definitely the fever. Kyungsoo wasn't the type to voice out compliments.
Besides, what did it even mean, it made him 'believe'? In what?
Chanyeol decided that it wasn't worth wasting too many thoughts on someone's fever-talk.
Still, for an unknown reason he felt uneasy, his fingers slightly shaking around the phone as uncomfortable warmth crept up his ears.

Kyungsoo was indeed easy to take care of.
He spent most of the day dozing and whenever he was conscious, he'd force himself to drink plenty of tea and inhale saline water, without Chanyeol having to remind him. For a long time, Jongin had been lurking around as well, sitting close to a sleeping Kyungsoo, fiddling with his tablet when it was more than obvious that he was just unwilling to leave. It was a little odd for all three of them to be in the same room though technically off work, in a way. Eventually Chanyeol was running out of work-related things to busy himself with and even though he liked Jongin, he was relieved when the flighty boy decided to leave in the afternoon, muttering something about being of more use at the office. This left Chanyeol with his quiet patient who didn't particularly ask for anything. He still made him a soup and watched the way his face scrunched up every time he had to swallow. It looked really painful and had him unconsciously mirror the expression which earned him a funny look from Kyungsoo.
"I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to make fun of you." Chanyeol quickly reassured him and the other only nodded, resting his vocal chords as prescribed.
The silence was killing him.
 Silence was one of the things Chanyeol really couldn't deal with but turning on some loud and aggressive rock music seemed like too much of a move. He usually avoided talking to Kyungsoo as it would more often than not be a severe mood killer but now that Kyungsoo couldn't talk back and it was so silent, Chanyeol found himself awkwardly talking, more to himself than Kyungsoo. 'I'll finish this and then I'll go take a shower,' he'd say and Kyungsoo would blink.
'I'll watch a movie after that, should I mute it for you?' he'd add and Kyungsoo would shake his head.
And while the refreshing hot water loosened his tense muscles, Chanyeol couldn't help but wonder. Wonder about how difficult it was to remember the reasons he disliked Kyungsoo in the first place when the latter was communicating without using words.

It should have felt odd. Unusual, maybe even wrong.
But for some reason it wasn't all that bad, waking up with the knowledge of not being alone in his own apartment. The sight of a sleepy Kyungsoo rubbing his eyes with his hair wildly sticking into every imaginable direction... it wasn't weird.
And maybe that made it weird.
Jongin came over around noon with a light meal for Kyungsoo and fast food for the other two and for the first time ever, they all sat around a table and ate together with Kyungsoo being perched up on the couch while Chanyeol and Jongin sat on the floor cross-legged. It wasn't the most comfortable atmosphere but their work served as a good source of small talk which involved Chanyeol and Jongin going over the progress they'd made. Unfortunately, Kyungsoo deemed himself fit enough to start nagging again. His coarse voice was barely audible as he relentlessly listed all the things they had yet to do and when Jongin reassured him that he'd taken over for Kyungsoo, said one looked terrified at the mere thought and went into a full-blown rant on why this was such a horrible idea.
"You don't know the system or methods I use-"
"There are separate versions only I have access to-"
"And the rounding settings, you always mess them up-"
"Kyungsoo, please. Stop talking. You should REST." Chanyeol firmly intervened, one hand unceremoniously pushing Kyungsoo back into a lying position to save Jongin from further embarrassment (a faint blush was already dusting his cheeks because he may or may not feel guilty, regarding the rounding settings); Kyungsoo's eyes widened at the gesture and he finally shut up, looking up at him like a startled rabbit.
"Give your vocal chords a break. One day is not enough to recover from a laryngitis. Have some faith in Jongin, he'll make it." he added and while Kyungsoo looked defiant, he obediently kept his mouth shut.

Neither Chanyeol nor Kyungsoo noticed the unhappy way Jongin was looking at them.

Kyungsoo didn't speak up for the rest of the day. Chanyeol worked, texted his friends, cleaned the kitchen and Kyungsoo napped on the couch. He wasn't sure how to read the atmosphere and for Chanyeol, that was a rare thing. One moment he felt slightly tense, bustling around under Kyungsoo's attentive eyes, the next everything appeared completely comfortable. Maybe something was gnawing at Kyungsoo? Chanyeol shrugged to himself as he scrubbed a pot. Well, knowing him he was probably thinking about work and internally cursing out Jongin or something.
Which the poor boy didn't deserve, obviously.
With these thoughts still in mind, Chanyeol returned to the living room with a fresh cup of chamomile tea for Kyungsoo. He received a silent but grateful nod and before he could settle at his desk on the far-end of the room, Kyungsoo had scooted a bit to the side, an almost hopeful gelam in his eyes? Chanyeol took him up on the offer even though he was mildly confused as he always was when dealing with Kyungsoo lately. Was he seeking company? It wasn't like he demanded any attention of him though he felt his eyes on him while he busily typed a blog article on his laptop.
He would have taken the quiet Northener to be someone to value alone-time and he'd definitely been short of that the last two days. Then again there remained the fact that Kyungsoo liked him. A tiny detail that he all-too easily forgot most of the time since with Kyungsoo, it was hard to tell.
His fingers swiftly moved over the keyboard as he wrote a bit about his recent scandal. Obviously he'd let out the part where someone blackmailed him (someone he hadn't seen ever since but he wasn't going to question that), but in turn he talked a bit about his musical activities back during his teenage years.
"You're lying."
Chanyeol almost jumped off the couch. He'd just managed to forget about Kyungsoo's presence.
His voice was still scratchy and he had to clear his throat after this short statement.
"What do you mean?"
The shorter one hovered a finger over an older article suggested at the side that was praising their team.
"About us. It's all a lie."
Chanyeol blinked and opened said article in another tab.
It was one of the most popular articles on his blog, the one where their team had went public for the first time.
"Well, I could hardly tell the truth, couldn't I?" Chanyeol shrugged though it did prick him quite a bit. A lie. He used to only write the truth, back then. Before this project. Kyungsoo was scooting a little closer, to the point that his messy hair was tickling Chanyeol's face as he skimmed the article. Then he sat back with a deep exhale.
Was that disappointment?

"You didn't lie about Jongin. You actually believe that."
His voice appeared mildly accusing and so Chanyeol re-read the article while the other busied himself with taking deep gulps of tea. His brows knitted in a mix of disapproval and confusion.
"I just wrote what I thought of Jongin that time. That he seemed like a thoughtful, smart person. I don't see anything wrong with that. Why do you dislike him this much anyway?" he asked, turning to face Kyungsoo who had a faint look of contempt on his face.
"What exactly makes you hate him so much?"
It wasn't Chanyeol's style, going full confrontation, but this had been irking him for awhile now.
Kyungsoo looked apprehensive, his eyes flitting between Chanyeol and his tea.
"Why do I have to like him?" he asked instead, stubborn despite his state. Come to think of it, his face was burning up again. Chanyeol absently put the back of his hand across his forehead which Kyungsoo took with a light twitch. Yes, definitely the fever.
"You don't have to like him. But I just don't see why you don't." Chanyeol called after him as he strode to the bathroom in order to get a fresh, cooling face-cloth.
"After all," he began, wordlessly gesturing Kyungsoo to lie down again so he could place the wet cloth, "Jongin has never done anything to upset you. He's been worried sick about you. Spent hours by your bedside."
"He did...?" Kyungsoo asked quietly and he could see him getting hazy from the fever.
"And yet you keep being harsh and unfriendly. Did you ever get the idea that praising him would be much more encouraging than your constant nagging?"
"Well-" Kyungsoo stammered, looking a little pained, "if he does something wrong, I'll tell him. If I think he's annoying, I'll tell him. That's the way I am. What's so terribly wrong about that?"
Chanyeol sighed in exasperation, slumping down beside the couch.
"Do you want people to treat you that way? It's not fun, you know. Does it hurt to be a little more friendly?"
"I don't care whether people treat me this way. You can do so. Aren't you doing it, right now?"
Chanyeol hesitated and Kyungsoo soundlessly laughed, causing him to cough a bit.
"No. Of course not. If you'd be honest, you'd be much more direct."
Before he had the chance to deny anything, Kyungsoo went on, his eyes now closed.
"You can be harsh. I can take it. But I can't put up an act. I can't. It's my biggest fear. Not being true to myself."
That hit home and Chanyeol shut up, trying to process this information and how it changed his view on the feverish boy.
"I'll never... ever... want to be ashamed of myself." he whispered, both hands clawing into the blanket at his sides.
"Jongin keeps bowing and bending to everyone's wishes." he added with obvious disapproval in his coarse voice.
"He's just trying to do the right thing." Chanyeol softly intervened before he could help it.
Kyungsoo opened his eyes and now he was sure that the pain reflected in the glassy orbs had nothing to do with his sickness.
"I'm trying, too. I'm trying. What do I have to do for you to like me?"
Chanyeol blinked with his lips slightly parted, for once completely out of words to say.
Kyungsoo only closed his eyes and after awhile Chanyeol silently got up, muttering a 'good night' before he went to sleep, the laptop lying on the table, completely forgotten.

Chanyeol was still silent the next day, when Jongin sauntered inside so they could all eat breakfast together. He was busy gathering the supplies from the kitchen but didn't actually see them, his head still filled to the brim with conflicting thoughts.
Why did he make it sound like he was so desperate to be liked by him? And the thing about his fear... Chanyeol couldn't help replaying every moment he could remember, trying to add this factor and see whether Kyungsoo's behavior made more sense now.
The glass of strawberry jam almost slipped his hand at a sudden movement out of the corner of his eye. It was Kyungsoo, looking a little better already. Chanyeol knew that he was probably looking like a deer caught in the headlights and the other stilled as well. For a moment, they just stared at each other before Kyungsoo broke the silence first.
"Don't stress yourself too much over what I said yesterday." he muttered, his gaze lowered as he grabbed the juice and a few glasses to joining Jongin at the table.
It may be silly but the revelation hit him across the face, now that he experienced it live.
Kyungsoo really was nothing but true to himself.
Jongin would have denied the words he'd said, Chanyeol would have blamed it on the fever. But Kyungsoo neither denied nor apologized. He'd meant what he said and stood to his words. And somehow... it amazed Chanyeol. Amazed the boy who was currently weighed down by other people's expectations and tried so desperately to please those around him. Kyungsoo knew that he himself was the top priority, the main lead of his own life. It was actually admirable and he didn't know whether he could do it.
"Can you hurry up, I'm hungry!" Jongin called from the living room and Chanyeol quickly gathered the food and settled at the table with them.
The air between him and Kyungsoo was still awkward though for an entirely different reason. Now he was able to see that the Northener was trying to give him his freedom, to keep his distance in order not to pressure him.
"Did you finish the calculations on sheet 6?" Kyungsoo asked Jongin instead who bit his lip and nodded. Chanyeol silently watched the exchange around a mouth full of toast.
Kyungsoo stared at the flighty boy imploringly.
"I'll go over them, anyway. To correct your mistakes. It'll probably take longer than doing it myself anyway. You shouldn't have bothered."
Jongin smiled weakly and before Chanyeol could intervene, he continued.
"You should watch me correct them. So you'll avoid making those mistakes in the future."
Jongin looked at him in surprise and unconsciously shared a quizzical look with Chanyeol.
Kyungsoo seemed nonchalant as he spread some honey on his slice of toast.
"I can't say I'm in the mood to tutor you but you can't stay clueless forever. You'll be less tired out once you got the system."
And Chanyeol saw it now. He saw and understood that Kyungsoo wasn't shy or reluctant to acknowledge other people's hard work. Still, he was making amends now, considering Chanyeol's words and trying to improve their tense relationship by simply working on the problem at hand.
His pale hands reached for the juice but before he could reach it, Chanyeol had snatched it away and instead filled his cup with tea, shooting him a meaningful look, complete with an amused smile.
No sour juice for your strained throat. The exchange went without words but the way Kyungsoo smiled, a small, silent smile kept at bay by a bite of his lips as he lowered his gaze to his toast... yes, it definitely made something flip inside Chanyeol's stomach.

Once again, neither of the two noticed the moody way Jongin was picking at his cereals while observing them.

Wohoo, another chapter. It's seriously killing me that I don't have as much time for this fic as I'd like to but here's another major step in their relationship (besides, the fear thing is playing into it slowly~)
I know it seems like this is going into a ChanSoo direction only but have some faith.
The tag says ot3 and no one shall be neglected in the long run!

Love,
Sugar-and-Salt ♡