After Dr.Kang’s prognosis on Kihyun’s condition, the management finally decided that it was time to contact Kihyun’s family and tell them what exactly happened. Kihyun’s parents were extremely upset with the management and their decision to keep their son’s health condition from them, and rightfully so.

Finding out that their healthy and active son had been lying sick on a hospital bed for days was a bitter pill to swallow for Kihyun’s parents. They never had to deal with anything to this extent before; Kihyun had always been a healthy child. So, receiving an unexpected call from the company informing them that their son had been admitted to the hospital really sent them into a frenzied panic.

They were told that their son was admitted to the hospital due to a ruptured appendix, they knew that much. They expected to see a weak but conscious and coherent Kihyun, but instead, they were faced with a critically ill son. They were never prepared to see the dire condition that their son was in.

Kihyun was restless. Though he appeared to be asleep, the boy feebly shifted under the covers, small whimpers escaping his lips every now and then. The sight broke his parents’ hearts. They had seen their child through a variety of childhood sickness, but none of them were as serious as this—not even close.  Never in a million years did they ever imagine having to see their son lying unconscious on a hospital bed with various medical equipment and tubes attached to him.  It was a really difficult sight for Kihyun’s parents to process.

The couple had barely settled themselves onto the provided chairs when a tall man with silver hair stepped into the room. He greeted them with a small bow and padded closer towards the bed.

“Sorry if I’m interrupting. I’m Kang Sangmoo. I’m Kihyun-sshi’s doctor and I have been the one in charge of him since he was first admitted. I’m here to explain your son’s condition in detail and the steps that we are going to be taking to help him along the way.”  Dr.Kang went straight up to the point. There was really no time for small pleasantries. “The nurse will be coming in to do their round in a bit. Shall we step outside while I have a word with the both of you?”

Kihyun’s parents looked at each other, exchanging nervous glances but nodded and followed the doctor out into the hall.

Dr.Kang had always been good at being professional and keeping his composure, especially after all those years of practice. But delivering unfavorable news to his patients or their loved ones still proved to be one of the hardest things that he has to face daily in his career.

“What is exactly wrong with my son, doctor?” Kihyun’s mother asked before the doctor could open his mouth.

“As you know, your son was brought here due to a ruptured appendix. When he was brought in, he was unconscious and in a bad shape. We managed to fix the situation by performing an appendectomy on him.”

“Appendectomy?”

Dr.Kang cleared his throat and corrected himself. “A surgical removal of the appendix.” Years of experience in this field, he still managed to forget that not everyone speaks in medical lingo. “While the surgery was a success, there were concerns of possible infection due to the ruptured appendix. Unfortunately, that was exactly the case. We caught it quite early on, but his body wasn’t responding to the antibiotics fast enough to combat the infection from spreading"

“Is he-… is he going to be okay then?” Kihyun’s mother pressed on, her voice visibly trembling.

“He’s still not responding to the antibiotics that we have administered.” The doctor admitted regretfully. “The infection is severe… at this moment it’s already affecting the function of his lungs. I’m afraid if this continues on, it’s going to affect more of his organs. ”

“What are his chances…?” Kihyun’s father willed himself to ask the dreadful question. Kihyun’s mother clung to his side, her eyes glassy with tears.

Here comes the part that he hated the most. Dr.Kang drew in a deep breath before answering. "The mortality rate is quite high, especially for elder patients. Kihyun-sshi is young, but his immune system was already weak when he came in and his body has been through a lot. We are still aggressively trying to treat him with a spread of antibiotics. But, if his infected organs start to shut down, then we will have no choice but to look at a more invasive procedure to keep him alive.” He cleared his throat and gave it a few seconds before continuing. “We’re not at that point yet. Let’s hope we will never have to get to that point.”

Kihyun's parents nodded. They straightened themselves and desperately tried to clear their somber expressions.

“Thank you… if there’s nothing else, we would like to go back and be with our son…”Kihyun’s father said, trying to keep his voice steady.

“Of course, I will drop by again later for my night round. And If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to page me.”

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Kihyun’s mother spent most of her time perched by his son's side. His father came and went from time to time; other responsibilities kept him from staying for too long. For the most part, Kihyun had no other visitors coming in and out to see him— besides his parents, of course. The other members were busy with their schedules, and only a handful of close family members were told about what happened.

The vocalist’s condition was on a steady decline. He slept most of the time, drifting in and out of awareness. Whenever he was awake he never seemed coherent enough to properly interact like he normally would. Kihyun’s mother tried her best to remain strong for her youngest son, remaining by his side while waiting and praying for a change in his condition.

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After getting back to their normal routine, the boys were once again thrown into a whirlwind of demanding schedules. Despite their main vocalist’s absence, the rest of the Monsta X members had to forge on with the group's comeback preparations. Photoshoots, interviews, dance practices, recordings, and other individual activities kept the boys on their toes with barely any time on their hands to spare.

None of them had the chance to see Kihyun at the hospital since their last visit before they got back to work. And that was almost four days ago. They’d receive updates on Kihyun’s condition from time to time through their managers, but that alone wasn’t enough for the worried boys— they needed to see Kihyun with their own eyes. And that was exactly what Shownu and Jooheon had decided to do when they finished their part of schedule a little bit earlier that day.

It was totally an impromptu decision. As much as they wanted the other members to come as well, they knew that their schedules wouldn’t allow them such luxury. They would have to make do with whatever time available to visit their sick friend at the hospital.

As soon as they were let off, Shownu and Jooheon found themselves standing right in front of the door to Kihyun’s hospital room. The leader gave a few soft knocks on the door before slowly pushing it open. He cautiously stepped inside, Jooheon following close behind him.

They had already half expected to find someone else in the room with Kihyun, and they were right. Both boys bowed their heads almost in unison, greeting Kihyun’s mother who had been keeping vigil beside her ailing son. She offered them a wan, but sincere smile. “He’s awake…” she said softly, ushering the boys to come closer. There was a tiny glint of excitement in her tired eyes. “Kihyun… look, Hyunwoo and Jooheon are here…”

Shownu and Jooheon briskly sauntered over, both boys were pleased to see that Kihyun's eyes were indeed open. It had been a while since they last saw their friend awake. The last few times they were there to visit, Kihyun had been sleeping— knocked out by various heavy-duty medications that he was on.

Despite being awake, Kihyun looked dazed and unfocused. His parlor remained a sickly shade of grey, his breaths came in raspy and labored under the oxygen mask. There was something so unsettling about the way Kihyun looked, it was as if the light in his eyes had faded and there was a solemn emptiness to his gaze.

“Kihyun-ah…” Shownu’s face softened, a smile spread across his face despite the pit that formed in his stomach.

“How are you feeling, hyung….” Jooheon broke into a dimpled smile. Unconsciously feeling the need for a physical contact, he placed a hand on Kihyun’s own, being mindful of the IV tubes attached to him.

Kihyun looked up at Jooheon for a mere second, he blinked a slow h