It went from bad to worse.

Sehun started his physical therapy again. Luhan always came to join him after school. He skipped hanging out with friends to rush over to the hospital to take care of Sehun and support him. The routine was starting to become such, where Luhan would come in and tell Sehun stories about school and Sehun silently listening. However, a week after this all started, Luhan entered the room and was about to greet the younger when he started yelling.

Luhan was taken back at the sudden burst but the younger was thrashing around in the bed, screaming and sobbing at no one. The words he spewed out didn't make much sense but Luhan was worried all the same. He didn't know what to do but he was out the door and calling out for a nurse. One started rushing toward him and he led her inside. She seemed a little shocked to see a young boy pulling out the tubes connected to his body. Luhan felt helpless as he stood and watched the nurse take out a syringe and injected the calming drug into the small boy. In a matter of seconds, Sehun was lying on the bed looking lifeless.

The nurse patted Luhan on the head and told him that she was going to get a doctor and to call his parents. Luhan didn’t even turn to watch her leave. He just stood still and stared at Sehun. What just happened absolutely terrified him because Sehun was never a loud kid… And to suddenly scream? It sent shivers down Luhan's spine.

He didn’t know how long he sat there but he snapped out of his deep thoughts right when his mother burst into the room, her work uniform slightly messy from her sprint down the hallway from the elevator. She frantically looked between her son and her nephew, letting out a breath as she slowly sat down next to her son.

“What happened?” She asked breathlessly.

Luhan explained briefly and Mrs. Lu sighed. The doctor took that moment to enter the room with a small smile. Luhan had to explain what had happened again to the doctor. The taller, much older looking man nodded a little as he wrote something down on his clipboard even though he already heard from the nurse.

“I see. We’ll continue to monitor Mr. Oh’s condition closely and find out what is causing his distress as soon as we possibly can.”

~*~

Sudden memory flashbacks.

A few days of close monitoring was what led to that conclusion. The doctor explained that Sehun is getting sudden memory attacks about the crash and seeing (or feeling) everything that occurred in detail.

On one day in particular, Sehun was just sitting quietly as Luhan was reading a book to him (a book required for school but he might as well read it to Sehun. He was teaching the younger Chinese along the way). All of a sudden, Sehun just screamed and reached out blindly (literally). He called out for his parents and brother and that made Luhan concerned.

Luhan was currently petting Sehun’s hair as the younger lied motionlessly. Luhan knew he wasn’t asleep but just resting, as the doctor told him to. Due to the constant memory attacks, Sehun is progressing slower than when he was in Korea on his physical therapy, though the therapist reassured that Sehun would be fine. Luhan sighed as he ran his fingers through the soft locks and started to sing.

He sang a song about sadness, how a young boy faces through so much in his life, making him grow up much too quickly for his age. He sang a song about confidence, how that young boy becomes strong and ignores all the hateful words spat his way. He sang a song about loneliness, how the boy never felt a sense of home or family after a tragedy. He sang a song about recovery, how the young boy becomes a young man and starts to build a different life, one where he can be happy, where no worry can bring him down. He sang a song about new, how the young man shares his life with his soul mate, bringing upon a young boy and the story repeats.

The boy somewhat reminds Luhan of Sehun though Sehun is more vulnerable and younger. However, this song gives him hope, gives him some reassurance that Sehun can grow up and become successful and prove everyone wrong. His disability does not define him and Luhan wanted to see that happen. He wanted to see Sehun’s smile, his laugh, his bubbly personality again. He wanted to see Sehun become someone he wanted to be. He wanted to see so much. Luhan vowed to continue to watch over the younger boy and protect him so he can grow up like a normal child.

Luhan was brought back to reality when he felt a tug on his sleeve and he glances down at his cousin. Sehun was still in the same position but his fingers were playing with the hems of Luhan’s sleeve. Luhan smiled fondly and resumed running his fingers through the younger’s hair. He leaned in to place a small kiss on Sehun’s forehead. If people were to look in, they would wonder why a fourteen year old boy was acting so mature.

“I’ll protect you, Sehun. I already promised you that, but I cross my heart that I will do everything I can to help you.”

He didn’t know if he imagined it but Luhan thought he heard a small “okay” after he spoke.

~*~

Time.

It took time for Sehun to be able to walk again but he got there. Luhan burst into tears when Sehun was able to walk across the room by himself. Slowly, but still on his own. Months passed before he was able to enroll into school again. The Lu family eased into a routine where Luhan would walk from his middle school to Sehun's elementary school and pick the younger up after his mother dropped them both off before going to work. They would both walk home from school, Luhan occasionally filling the silence with questions and stories. Sehun was quiet but he would occasionally respond with a few selected words.

Sehun would not actually talk to anyone but Luhan, which worried the older that Sehun wasn't communicating with his classmates. Though Luhan was not doing well in that aspect either. He stopped going out with his friends to stay home and take care of his cousin. His friends were worried that Luhan was not making time for himself but Luhan assured them that he wanted to do this. He had to help Sehun feel comfortable again. He slowly stopped keeping in touch with them. They still talked at school but there was no more contact outside of the classroom.

Luhan was on his way to Sehun's elementary school one day. He was in a hurry since he left his class a little late from taking a little too long to clean the classroom. Luhan rushed down the street and sharply turned a corner. He crashed right into another person. Luhan fell backwards; the person he bumped into did as well.

“Ah, I'm so sorry!” Luhan quickly stood, grabbing his bag. He reached out to help the other person up.

“It's fine.” The stranger gratefully took Luhan's hand. That's when Luhan finally saw the other's face.

He had round cheeks that made him look quite young. His almond eyes were curved as the smile on his face made them crinkle a little. His hair was flat and swept to the side, the sun making it shine a chocolate brown color. Luhan couldn't help but stare for a moment because this stranger wore the same uniform as him and was very good looking. Very good looking. For a middle school student in a middle school student’s eyes, at least…

“You were in a hurry, right? You should get going.” The stranger said.

That's when Luhan's brain slapped him and Sehun passed through his mind.

“Right! Thank you! Sorry again!” Luhan took off running once more.

I never got his name...

Luhan shrugged it off and kept running. By the time he reached the elementary school, Luhan was red faced and breathing a little hard. He entered the school grounds and saw his little cousin sitting on the steps in front of the school, the teacher standing next to him. She gave Luhan a smile when he hurried over. He bowed down at a 90 degree angle, apologizing profusely for being late. The teacher reassured him that it was fine. However, as soon as Sehun heard his voice, the young boy shot up and stumbled over to the older, arms stretched out to find him. He wrapped his small arms around Luhan's waist, burying his face into Luhan's stomach. Luhan was surprised but smiled as he hugged the younger back.

“Thank you for watching over him when I wasn't here.” He thanked the teacher, who smiled and waved them off.

Luhan took Sehun's small hand in his and started making their way back home.

“I'm sorry that I was late, Sehunnie. I was cleaning the classroom.” Luhan apologized.

The young boy nodded but didn't say anything else.

Luhan took that as a cue that he was forgiven. He started to talk about his day and exaggerated some of the stories to make the younger smile (which he half successful). Luhan's mind slowly drifted back to the boy that he met earlier. Luhan glanced back at the road he ran from before he shook his head and continued in the opposite direction.

“Let's get some bubble tea, yeah? Don't tell auntie.”

Sehun nodded, a little more enthusiastically than he usually does.

Sehun finally got his bubble tea! hahaha I tried to make the ending a little happier since I already know that some of the later chapters won't be too happy. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed that! Can you guess who that other middle school student it? Hahaha He'll appear again in the next chapter!

I quickly edited this because I couldn't wait until tomorrow to post so I apologize for any mistakes! Thank you to everyone who subscribed/commented/upvoted! You guys rock! Until the next update! :-)