Present 

“I should really give that ugly boss of yours a piece of my mind. You've been working way more than a regular person ought to.” Donghae watched as Kyuhyun stepped in the door past midnight for the third day that week.

“I know, but we have a rather big project going on and the manager wants it done by the end of this week.”  Kyuhyun collapsed onto the couch next to Donghae, messing up his hair as he leaned back into the cushions.

“That still doesn’t mean you should sacrifice your health for it.”  Donghae retorted, his full attention now on the man next to him rather than the show he’d been watching.

“I promise everything will go back to normal soon…” Kyuhyun mumbled, already slipping into a state of unconsciousness.

“And that’s what you told me two weeks ago.” Donghae sighed, shifting his body so that Kyuhyun’s head landed comfortably in his lap. “It’s been ages since we’ve spent any quality time together and we’ve still yet to do that. I don’t know why you’re so adamant in refusing when you clearly want it too.”

Kyuhyun cracked an eye open “No I don’t.”  

Donghae lifted an eyebrow as he began threading his fingers through the former’s dark brown strands. “Kyu, we’ve been together for five years already, I know you inside out, so stop pretending because it won’t work around me.”

There was a moment of silence as he waited for a reply, but there was none for the other had already fallen back asleep.

------------

Five Years Ago…..

His whole body felt weak and clammy as he collapsed into the hard emergency room chair.  For two weeks, he’d been having fevers on and off

and the bathroom had become his best friend due to his frequent bouts of vomiting. He had attributed his symptoms to a stomach bug and tried to treat

himself with over the counter pills but when the pills failed to stay down for long enough to have any effect, he decided it was time for a visit to the hospital.

Shivering even though he had several layers of clothing on, he leaned back in the seat in attempt to make it more comfortable while he waited for his name to be called.

He had no memory of falling asleep or even trying to sleep for it had became a foreign concept to him for some time now. When he found himself

lying on a bed attached to several IV lines and a monitor the next time he came to, he realized he’d probably fainted in the waiting room.

He laid unmoving in the bed as he stared at the plain ceiling of the ward in silence for a few minutes. He was exhausted and whatever they’d given

him had allowed him to get his first dreamless hour of sleep in weeks. His body craved for more as a new and unfamiliar wave of drowsiness swept over

him. It seemed the medication hadn’t totally worn off yet. His eyelids fluttered shut against his will and just as he was about to drift off once more, the door to

his ward slid open and an overly chipper voice sounded through. Groaning, he forced his eyelids back open.

“Ah Mr.Cho you’ve finally woken up. It was foolish of you to wait so long before coming to hospital. Your condition is clearly terrible,” Clad in a

pressed shirt and a tie inside of a large white coat, the doctor entered the room with several papers and a clipboard in his hands.

“It’s just a stomach bug. I didn’t think it would get so bad.” he muttered, lacking the energy to throw an actual retort back

The doctor frowned as he lifted his eyebrows. “Mr.Cho, your test results just came back and what you have is most definitely not just a stomach bug.”  

The boy did a double take. “I...then...what-”

“I suggest you contact your family or someone who can take care of you because you’re going to need to stay here for a while for treatment.”  

--

“What?!”

Kyuhyun grimaced as pulled his phone as far as his arm would extend from his ear to save his poor eardrums from his best friend’s shouting.

“Kyu, what?! You don’t contact me for two weeks and now all of sudden you tell me you’re in the hospital with a potentially deadly illness?!” Heechul retorted incredulously.

“Chul I’m sorry, but I really need you here. They say I’m going to have to stay for a while and I don’t want to worry my aunt.” He tightened his fist around a handful of sheets as he lowered his head and bit back the tears threatening to fall.

There was a sigh on the other end and then some shuffling.

“Aish you brat. Wait for me, I’m coming right now.”

----

Heechul remembered the day he recieved he phone call from his best friend like it was yesterday. It had been one of his rare days off and he'd been lounging on the living room sofa in his pajamas with his favorite TV show playing when his phone rang. 

He'd been ready to scold the kid for neglecting to call or message him for two weeks but the minute he picked up the call, he knew something was wrong.

"Hyung? Hyung are you still there?" 

"Repeat...repeat what you just said" His fingers were trembling and he struggled to hold on to his phone. 

There was a light sigh before the boy spoke again. "I said I'm in the emergency room right now and the doctor told me to contact someone close who can take care of me because apparently I have something serious that might kill me if I don't get admitted to the hospital and treated right away." 

Heechul felt himself go pale as he sank deeper into his couch. “Kyu, what?! You don’t contact me for two weeks and now all of sudden you tell me you’re in the hospital with a potentially deadly illness?!”

The boy had gone silent for a moment and thats when Heechul had come back to his senses.

His friend needed him.  

The friend who never asked for help and would rather hurt himself than request for assistance was crying for him. 

He jumped up from the couch, snatched his car keys from the coffee table and bolted out the door still in his pajamas. 

“Aish you brat. Wait for me, I’m coming right now.”