pairing: ChenLay
length: 2029 words

“Zhang Yixing?”

“Here!” Yixing looked up from the book he was reading as he sat in bed, several pillows tucked in between the headboard and his back.

A short, skinny man dressed in a long white coat stepped into the room, a clipboard in hand and a pen tucked behind his ear. “I am Dr. Kim Jongdae. I will be taking over your physical therapy from now on,” the man explained as he sat down in an empty rolling chair by Yixing’s bedside.

“What happened to Dr. Wu?”

“He was transferred to another hospital in Canada, so my colleagues and I will be handling his patients from now on.” Dr. Kim pushed up the thin, black-framed glasses sitting on his nose as he quickly looked over the papers containing Yixing’s treatment details. “You are here for a four-month program, correct?”

Yixing bobbed his head up and down. “I injured the muscles in my hamstrings and my lower back, and I tore my ACL while I was playing soccer.”

“Ah, yes. You play for the national team, if I remember correctly. The infamous foreigner who is quickly becoming one of the team’s star players,” Dr. Kim commented as he continued reading through Yixing’s files. “And Dr. Wu performed the surgery for the anterior cruciate ligament tear in your right knee about two weeks ago, correct?” Dr. Kim asked as he stood up to remove the thick white blankets that were covering Yixing’s lower body.

As the doctor inspected Yixing’s right knee, lightly pressing the skin around the injured area, the patient answered, “Yup, the surgery was two weeks ago. I only saw him once since then for a quick post-surgery check-up. Otherwise, it’s just been the nurses taking care of me the entire time.”

Dr. Kim nodded, scribbling almost unintelligible notes in his messy handwriting onto the papers attached to his clipboard before hiking up Yixing’s shorts to probe his thighs. “Let me know if it hurts,” he instructed as he pressed his fingertips against the thick, muscular limbs.

Yixing silently let the doctor conduct his examination until he felt a sharp pain shoot up his legs. “Ah, it’s getting a little painful now.”

“Noted.” Dr. Kim added several more sentences to his notes before pulling the thin fabric of Yixing’s shorts back down. “Now please flip onto your stomach.”

Yixing obeyed, trying to turn himself over as quickly as he could without adding more pain to his lower body. Dr. Kim firmly held onto Yixing’s toned arms as he aided the injured soccer player in flipping his body around. Once Yixing was successfully lying on his stomach, Dr. Kim lifted part of the patient’s shirt up to expose the well-developed lower half of his back. Yixing felt a cool breeze pass over his sensitive skin before feeling Dr. Kim’s smooth fingers dance all over his lower back muscles.

“Any pain here?”

Yixing was about to shake his head until he felt another shooting ache, this time in his back. “That actually kind of hurt,” he said, feeling somewhat embarrassed for not being able to handle the pain.

“I see.” Dr. Kim pulled down Yixing’s cotton shirt and helped the injured male return to his previous sitting position before taking his own seat next to Yixing’s bed. “We shall officially begin your treatment in three days. In the meantime, continue resting as you have been and try not to move your legs around too much while sleeping. Dr. Wu ordered a knee brace for you before he left and it should be arriving soon. Do you have any questions before I wrap up today’s appointment?” Dr. Kim inquired, folding his slender hands over the overturned clipboard on his lap.

There was only one question Yixing wanted an answer for. “Will my injuries…affect my ability to play soccer in the future?” he asked slowly, slightly apprehensive of voicing his dreaded concerns. His heart pounded loudly in his chest as he waited for the doctor to respond. Soccer was his life. He couldn’t imagine not being able to play anymore, just because he had stupidly dived for the ball while trying to fend off two opponents.

“As long as you strictly follow the recovery program we have created, you should be in tip-top condition in four months’ time,” Dr. Kim replied reassuringly, causing Yixing to let out the breath he had been unconsciously holding in relief. “Dr. Wu was one of our best surgeons, so your anterior cruciate ligament should heal just fine as long as we are careful while we regularly monitor your condition. I hope that extinguishes any worries you may have been harboring.”

“Oh yes, thank you so much!” Yixing gratefully shook the doctor’s hand, feeling so much lighter than he had been before when his fate was unknown.

“Good day to you, Mr. Zhang.” Dr. Kim smiled at the soccer player before dipping out of the stark white room to visit his next patient.

--

Yixing once again found himself lying face-down on his stomach as Dr. Kim massaged the tight knots in his lower back muscles. It had been one month since his physical therapy program began. Three times a week, Dr. Kim would walk into his room, roll up the long sleeves of his white coat, and wash his hands at the metal wall sink before helping Yixing strip off his shirt and pants, leaving the man in just his boxers. The doctor would then assist the injured patient into position before firmly pressing his hands against Yixing’s lower back to massage his sensitive body. After fifteen minutes of this wonderful back massage, Dr. Kim would then move onto Yixing’s thighs to help loosen the soccer player’s taut hamstring muscles.

These afternoons were probably Yixing’s favorite times of the week, comfortably laying on his hospital bed as Dr. Kim worked miracles on his sore muscles. It felt like heaven with those smooth but strong fingers rubbing into his skin as they deftly swirled around the tightened muscle areas. If he didn’t know any better, Yixing would’ve thought that Dr. Kim was a professional masseuse instead of an orthopedic physical therapist. He mentioned it today, causing the doctor to chuckle lightly.

“I have been doing this for many years, so I should hope that I am at least somewhat capable in giving these massages,” Dr. Kim answered, flashing Yixing a bright smile.

“Maybe you should consider being a masseuse once you retire from being a doctor,” Yixing suggested, sighing deeply in satisfaction as he felt his thigh muscles relax under Dr. Kim’s magical touch. “I’ll be your first customer.”

“Thank you for the compliment, Mr. Zhang. I shall consider that option for the future.”

--

“Careful.” Dr. Kim was watching Yixing attempt to walk in between two metal bars, holding onto them for dear life. “Now slowly move your right foot forward.”

Yixing carefully lifted his injured leg up before setting it down several inches ahead of where it had previously been.

“Good. Now the left one.”

Knowing that this leg wasn’t as injured as his right one, Yixing moved about more freely, causing a stabbing sensation to surround his left lower limb. He yelped loudly as he staggered against the metal bars, soon feeling two firm hands on his back supporting him.

“Do not rush. We still have several weeks left. You would not want to relapse and permanently damage your knees at this point,” Dr. Kim warned as he helped Yixing straighten himself up.

The patient gritted his teeth, frustrated at his clumsiness and carelessness. “I know.”

Dr. Kim noticed the grim expression on his patient’s face and laid a comforting hand on Yixing’s right shoulder. “One step at a time, Mr. Zhang. You will heal soon. I promise. Just take it one step at a time. Let us try again.”

So Yixing twisted his hands around the horizontal metal bars, getting a good grip, before gradually lifting up his right leg again to take another step forward. Dr. Kim was right. He couldn’t falter now. His career depended on him successfully completing this program. And Dr. Kim had been so accommodating and encouraging throughout the two and a half months of his treatment. It wouldn’t do to fail now.

--

Yixing stared at the soccer ball in front of him without a hint of emotion on his face. A small goal had been set up several yards away on the grassy field. The thin crisscrossed strings moved gently in the breeze.

Five minutes passed, then ten, then fifteen before Yixing finally took a deep breath where he stood. He slowly took several steps back, until he was about two feet away from the black-and-white patterned ball. Taking another deep breath, he pumped his legs up and down as he gradually accelerated into a run, heading straight for the ball. He winded up his right leg and gave the soccer ball a mighty kick, filled with the pent-up energy of these past four months.

It soared through the air in a beautiful arc, landing straight into the middle of the net.

Yixing’s eyes were wide open as he stared at the soccer ball, slowly rolling in the perimeter of the goal. He could do it. He could play soccer again. His legs and his back were finally healed. He was finally a healthy man once more.

Clapping noises broke the silence as Dr. Kim stood up from the bench he had been sitting at and observing from, hitting his hands together as he grinned widely. “That was a stunning kick, Mr. Zhang. I regret having never watched one of your games now.”

Yixing ran over to the doctor and engulfed the small male in a giant bear hug. “Thank you so much, Dr. Kim. I owe you so much for helping me get back on my feet.” There were tears in Yixing’s eyes as he tightly embraced the man who had helped him every step of the way towards fully recovering from his injuries. He didn’t know how he could ever repay his doctor back for his wisdom, his patience, and his kindness.

Dr. Kim had saved Yixing’s dream, thus saving his life. Because without his dream, Yixing was nothing.

--

“And it looks like Zhang Yixing is on fire today, folks. He has just scored his fifth goal of the game, making the score five-one in his team’s favor. Did you think he would come back this strong, Lu Han?”

“I am just as surprised as you are, Sehun. He came back one month ago from an injury that put him on hiatus for almost five months. But it seems like he’s as fit as ever. It’s like he never even left the scene in the first place.”

“With just five minutes left on the clock, I don’t know if the opposing team will be able to make up their four-point deficit. Yixing has been quite aggressive in keeping possession of the ball throughout this entire game, so unless they can quickly devise a strategy to successfully block him while consistently scoring in these last minutes, I believe we already know who will win today’s game.”

“Yixing is sure to be named MVP of this season if he continues this fantastic playing streak. After being a bench player for two years, Yixing is finally a starting player and this season could mark the turning point in his career as he becomes a force to be reckoned with on the field.”

Jongdae smiled as he listened to the commentators speak about the game he was watching live. Clutched in his hand was a small black and purple pennant with Yixing’s name and jersey number printed on both sides.

Yixing jogged across the field, wiping away the glistening sweat that was collecting on his forehead. As he passed the front row of the stands, he spotted a familiar face and eagerly waved while beaming brightly. The fans in the stands went wild when they saw his trademark dimpled smile, jumping up and down in their seats while screaming out his name.

Jongdae’s smile grew bigger as he waved his pennant and shouted, “Go get ‘em, Yixing!”

♈♈♈