Zhang Yixing was gone again.

Lately Baekhyun felt himself returning home more tired by each day. He was no longer the mood maker when the members gathered in the waiting rooms every show, preferring to curl up in a quiet corner, usually until Chanyeol or Luhan approached and offered their laps. In the many months Yixing was working in China, Baekhyun felt his body changing.

He found himself out of breath easily when they sang and danced. He developed a cough that wouldn't go away, no matter how much medicine he downed. He would be joking around with Sehun and Jongdae, and his chest would suddenly hurt so much he had to stop and bend over, clutching Chanyeol until the pain eased away.

He brushed it off for many months, until that one night. They returned from a radio show, taking turns to wash up and get ready for bed. Baekhyun was on his phone, leaning against Minseok, and the entire dorm was under a quiet, peaceful aura when the pain started. It was sharper, stronger than any of the episodes he had been through. For the first time, it scared the hell out of him.

Baekhyun grabbed at his chest and hit Minseok’s arm urgently with his other hand. He opened his mouth to tell him what was wrong, but only deep, hollow coughs erupted. They kept coming and he couldn't stop, he couldn't breathe, he was hurting, and he wanted to it to stop, please, please stop.

Minseok was shouting for everyone and he was patting his back, but all he could feel was the great pain inside him, all he could do was shut his eyes tight and stop his insides from spilling out with each cough. Baekhyun did not know how long it went on until he tasted the bittersweet fluid at the back of his throat. He bent over from where he was held in someone’s arms, and retched onto the wooden floor.

As sudden as it started, it stopped, and he collapsed back into a strong embrace, wheezing and panting with the little energy he had left.