Taemin's first surgery was scheduled for first thing tomorrow morning. He was nervous about it, Jongin knew he was, but Taemin did a great job of not showing it. Currently, Yifan had come to visit them and better explain to Taemin what the surgery involved. Jongin was sitting in the uncomfortable chair next to Taemin's hopsital bed as per usual, holding his hand as Yifan spoke.

"So, just to refresh your memory on the exact nature of your injury, I'll tell you again. There's no damage to the actual spinal cord, as far as we've observed, but the way the vertebrae are broken is putting pressure on your spinal cord, which is why you can't feel anything below the break. It appears that you have a couple herniated discs, so this surgery is going to fix everything. When you were first admitted, we were considering splitting this surgery up into at least two, but now that some time has gone by and the window for successful treatment has gotten measurably smaller, we're just having you undergo one large surgery. We can do it, of course, we've done it several times before, but it'll take a while. Twelve plus hours in the operating room, most likely." Yifan rubbed his hands together thoughtfully as he finished speaking.

Taemin gulped next to Jongin, and he squeezed the boy's hand reassuringly. 

"Okay. Thank you for explaining everything." Taemin's voice gave nothing away. Yifan nodded, turning towards the door. 

"I'll be going then, see you bright and early." 

"Yeah." Taemin half-smiled, but it faded the moment Yifan left the room.

"You'll be fine, Tae. The surgeon knows what they're doing." Jongin comforted his boyfriend.

"I know. It's still a little scary, though. It also that I can't eat anything from now on," Taemin chuckled, before appearing to remember something. "Will you be there?"

"Like, in the operating room?" Jongin asked.

"Yeah. Will you?"

Jongin looked at his feet.

"I don't think so," He looked back up at Taemin. "Not that I don't want to be, of course, but I don't think they'll let me." 

Taemin nodded. There was a knock from the doorway, and they both turned towards the sound. Jinki and two unfamiliar people were standing just outside the door.

"Hope we aren't interrupting anything." Jinki said as he walked into the room in front of the man and woman behind him.

"Mom, Dad, you're here," Taemin said, his face lighting up as he saw them. They went to stand by the other side of Taemin's bed, looking relieved to see their son.

"We're sorry we couldn't get here sooner, but we didn't have any cell service when we were out of the country. We came back to so many calls from your brother, it was terrifying," Taemin's mother told him as she looked her son over. "Are you doing okay, though? Feeling even a little better?"

"Yeah, mom. I'm fine. I have to get surgery tomorrow, though."

Taemin's mother's face darkened with worry at the mention of surgery, but before she could say anything, Taemin's father spoke up, saying,

"Well, we're glad to know you're going to be fine." He circled an arm around his wife's shoulders, squeezing her as he spoke.

"So how was your trip?" Taemin asked his parents, whose faces brightened at the mention of their trip.

As Taemin's parents responded, Jongin watched silently from the side of Taemin's bed. Jinki joined in the conversation, and as the family continued to catch up with each other, Jongin was beginning to think maybe he should leave them alone to talk, instead of awkwardly sitting around like he currently was. After a moment's decision, he quietly stood up and started to pull his hand away from Taemin's, as they'd forgotten to let go earlier. At the sensation of Jongin's hand leaving his, Taemin turned to him, remembering that he was still there.

"Oh!" He exclaimed. "I completely forgot, I'm so sorry. Jongin, these are my parents. Mom, Dad, this is Jongin, my boyfriend." 

Jongin gulped, and he felt his face heat up in embarrassment.

"Mr. and Mrs. Lee, it's nice to meet you," He said politely, shaking hands with Taemin's parents across the bed.

"We've heard so much about you, Jongin," Taemin's mother smiled. "It's so nice to finally meet you too." 

Jongin shot a glance at Taemin. What had he told his parents about him? The boy smiled up at Jongin.

"Don't worry, I've only told them good things." 

Jongin really hoped so.

*****

Waiting for Taemin to come out of surgery was more nerve wracking than Jongin had expected. Of course he'd expected to be a little nervous, but he didn't expect to find himself pacing the length of the waiting room, wringing his clammy hands in an attempts to calm his nerves. At each end of the waiting room, before he turned around, he'd remind himself that the surgeon knew what they were doing and that everything would go smoothly.

"Jongin, please sit down, you're making me more nervous." Jinki said from his seat across the room. Jongin hesitated, checking his watch. They were only five hours in. He sighed, walking back to Jinki's side of the room and taking a seat next to him. Taemin's parents had gone back to their house for the moment, since they'd come straight to the hospital after arriving home, and needed to get settled in. So Jinki was the only person keeping Jongin company, although Jongin suspected that when he went to work his shift in an hour Jinki would go home rather than stay at the hospital. He looked exhausted, Jongin wouldn't blame him if he did. 

"So Jongin," Jinki paused to clear his throat. Jongin turned to look at him. "I've been meaning to say something for a while, but I haven't had a chance," Jongin wasn't sure what to expect, but he braced himself for some sort of chewing out. "I don't know everything about your and my brother's relationship, I just know what he's told me, and what I've observed. That's all I need to know."

"Look, if this is about-"

"-Don't interrupt me please. Just listen to what I have to say. I don't think it's what you're expecting," Jinki paused to make sure Jongin was listening. "So as I was saying, I know things have gotten very bad between you two before, and I know that you also haven't been able to work on your relationship much since then, for reasons that are neither of your faults. But Jongin, I've seen how much he cares for you. And I've seen that you care about him, too. I guess what I'm trying to get at is that even if you've messed up in the past, your heart's in the right place. But that doesn't mean you won't mess up again. So I guess I'm also saying that you should take this time that you have now, since you have just a little more to spend with him, and use it to work out the issues in your relationship. Don't lose him, Jongin. I'm warning you, it'll be the worst mistake of your life if you do, and I'm not just saying that because he's my brother. He's not someone to just let go of." 

Jongin nodded. He could tell that Jinki had thought this over for a long time, and he had to agree: he couldn't lose Taemin. It'd ruin him. 

"That's all I have to say." Jinki sighed.

"Thanks." Jongin was glad Jinki had given him this talk. Jinki nodded, turning his attention to something on his phone. Jongin fiddled with his hands. They didn't talk for the rest of Jongin's time off, and Jongin left for his shift a few minutes early with nothing more than a brisk good bye. 

*****

Taemin had come out of surgery after twelve and a half hours, and Jongin was still on shift when he woke up. Jongin didn't know exactly when Taemin had woken up, but when he went to check in on Taemin while he was making his final rounds, he'd found the boy to be awake. He informed Yifan, who simply told him to go back and check on the boys' condition. Jongin hadn't noticed much except for the fact that Taemin's eyes were open when he'd initally checked in on him, but when he came back he finally saw Taemin's full state. His boyfriend's face was peaked and drawn, his hair a dull black mess on the pillow, and there were countless tubes connecting him to all kinds of drips and other medications. Even though Jongin knew it was typical for someone recovering from surgery, he couldn't help but to feel a pang of worry for his boyfriend at the sight of him. He crossed the room, heading to Taemin's bedside, the boy's bleary eyes watching him the whole time. 

"Hey there," Jongin cooed. "How're you feeling?" 

Taemin's chapped lips parted, but at first nothing came out. He sighed. 

"...Hurts..." he finally managed. 

"I'm sure it does, but it'll stop soon."

Taemin looked unsure. 

"How?"

"You're on pain meds. That's what all the tubes in your arms are for." Jongin explained. He could tell that Taemin was still in a haze from the anesthesia. Taemin shifted, craning his neck to take a closer look at Jongin.

"Are you a doctor?" Taemin asked after some obvious thought.

"Nope," Jongin laughed quietly. "I'm just a nurse."

"Oh." Taemin went quiet, and Jongin went about his business making sure that all of Taemin's IVs and painkillers were set up properly. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Taemin looking around the room, taking in his surroundings. 

"Hey, nurse?" Taemin called. Jongin turned, giving Taemin a questioning look. Nurse? "You're hot. Just thought you should know."

Jongin laughed. He couldn't help it. The anesthesia had really thrown Taemin for a loop.

"Why're you laughing?" Taemin's brow furrowed as he watched Jongin.

"I mean, I'm sure glad to hear you think that, since I'm your boyfriend." Jongin answered amusedly.

"You are?" Taemin's eyes widened. Jongin nodded.

"I am."

"Man, I did good. I did really good, what the hell?" Taemin shook his head, blinking.

"I'm glad you think so," Jongin grinned. Inwardly, he was cringing. Taemin really hadn't done all that well. Maybe Jongin was physically attractive, but personality wise? And with everything he’d done to Taemin? Yikes was the only word that came to mind. "I'll be right back, okay? I have to finish my shift, it should only take like ten more minutes." 

Taemin nodded, still looking at Jongin in awe. Just as Jongin reached the door, Taemin spoke up again. 

“Hey, hot nurse boyfriend,” he had a thoughtful look on his face. Jongin stopped in the doorway, turning to face him. “Are we in love?”

Jongin froze. Were they in love?

”Yes, Taemin. We are.”

Taemin beamed. 

“Man I’m lucky.” He said, more to himself than Jongin.

Jongin left the room smiling, but there was a storm in his mind as he walked down the hallway towards the next room.

*****

It was the day after Taemin’s surgery, and Jongin had just finished working another shift. Though he knew that he should probably go to the cafeteria and get something to eat, he headed back to Taemin’s room immediately. He’d spent all of his time off yesterday explaining things to a very sleepy, confused Taemin, and since the after effects of the anesthesia should have worn off at this point, Jongin wanted to be with his boyfriend now that he was actually back in a normal state of mind. He had to admit, he was worried about their first conversation from the previous day. Even though he hadn’t really admitted it, he’d essentially let Taemin know that he loved him. Not that there was anything wrong with that, but it just felt... strange. As if something had changed. But Taemin might not even remember anything from yesterday, so it might not even matter. It all depended on just how out of it he was. Jongin sighed, hearing voices from inside Taemin’s room as he approached. Taemin was talking to his parents, who had come to visit him again now that he’d had his operation done. Jongin hesitated at the door. He didn’t want to disturb them. Taemin’s face was turned towards his parents, but he must have somehow saw Jongin lingering in the doorway, because suddenly he turned to look at Jongin and said,

”Look, there he is, my hot nurse boyfriend!” He held out a hand. “Come here.” 

Jongin slowly began to make his way to the boy. Had the anesthesia not fully worn off yet?

”I have a name, you know...” Jongin pouted. 

“Fine, then. Kim Jongin, get your over here,” Taemin’s eyes were shining with mirth. Jongin quickened his pace, getting to Taemin’s side in a few brisk steps. So he was just playing around. But did that mean... he remembered? 

Taemin was laughing softly now, reaching a hand up towards Jongin, who took it in his own, unsure of what his boyfriend wanted. Taemin pulled him down closer to him, letting go of Jongin’s hand and cupping his cheek when he was close enough. Jongin closed his eyes as Taemin pulled him into a kiss. When they broke away, Taemin held Jongin close for a moment. Jongin’s eyes fluttered open.

”Don’t think I don’t remember yesterday.” Taemin whispered, his bright eyes staring directly into Jongin’s. He let go of Jongin’s cheek then, letting him stand up straight again, smiling up at him. Jongin suddenly felt very exposed.

Oh. 

____________________________________________

A/N

First of all, I’ve just got to apologize for taking so long. I didn’t mean for it to take me this long to write this chapter, but I was busy with school and then I had extremely bad writer’s block and getting back into this and finding my old rhythm again was really difficult. Honestly, there were a lot of times when I thought of just giving up for the moment and writing you guys a note to say I needed more time. But I didn’t, and I made a chapter and it’s really not my best work, but I’m proud of myself for just getting it done. 

 Secondly, I need to apologize for the quality of this chapter, because I feel like this isn’t my best writing, since for a lot of this chapter I was just trying to get back into my old flow, and then the last parts of this chapter were written on my phone instead of my computer, so there might be a few more spelling/grammar errors than usual because of how crappy the AFF app is. I’m truly sorry. 

Lastly, I want to thank you all for all the nice comments and being so supportive of this fic, I tried to respond to everyone, I think I did? But yeah, just a huge thank you to all of my lovely readers/subscribers for bearing with me through my seven month hiatus, I’m really so greatful to you all.

Right now I’m thinking there’s going to be somewhere around 2 or 3 more chapters after this, but we’ll just have to see how it plays out. Anyways, I hope you’ve all been well, and I hope you enjoy this chapter! (Sorry for making my author’s note super long lol)

Thanks for reading! <3 <3

-H