A/N: I didn't make a lot of photo edits for this fic, but there are a few. Please know they are not meant to be HQ (I'm no fanartist!!!) Enjoy the LQ of the edits as part of the humor when they're mixed in.

Every fiber in Jongin’s body wants to bow or even kneel before his crown prince, grateful to see him looking healthy, but the A-frame full of herbs on his back prevent him from doing more than a simple head dip in greeting. Which in retrospect is a good thing, since it’d be hard to explain kneeling before one’s… friend.

“Ah, see? I told you he seemed fine this morning.” Chanyeol says with a grin. “Good as new again.”

“How are you feeling?” Jongin asks, rushing to set down his load and look over the prince, checking to see his skin tone and general princely posture are back to normal. (He looks perfect, but Jongin frets anyway.) “Are you sure you should be up?”

Kyungsoo grins, amused by how Jongin is checking him over, as Yixing emerges from the house and greets them. “Ah, I told him to stay laying down for longer, but he told me to mind my own business, in informal language even,” the physician chuckles.

“He did what?” Chanyeol scowls.

“I wanted to see you,” Kyungsoo says, ignoring the others and speaking directly to Jongin with an adoring smile on his lips.

It’s so disarmingly forward, Jongin’s not sure what to say, tripping over his words a bit in reply. “Ye-yes, I’ve been anxious to see you, too, but if the doctor thinks you should still be in bed, then you should rest, Your Hi--” he catches himself just in time-- “Your head. Here, I’ll help you back,” Jongin gestures toward the clinic’s door.

Kyungsoo’s smile turns coy as he mumbles only loud enough for Jongin to hear, “You want to take me to bed?”

Jongin’s eyes go wide with shock. Did he really just--

“Head trauma can have odd side effects that come and go. You’ve had some disorientation and fainting after seeming alright, so really you should continue resting.” Yixing offers this advice to Kyungsoo before walking past him to tell Chanyeol, “By the way, I figured you’d want to wash up before dinner, so I filled the tub basin with hot water and epsom salts to ease any muscle soreness.”

“I suppose a bath does sound nice about now.” Kyungsoo walks toward the washroom, hands clasped behind his back in regal fashion. He pauses for half a second before speaking over his shoulder to Jongin, “Attend me?”

“Yah!” Chanyeol booms after him, despite the fact Kyungsoo has already disappeared past the rattan curtain of the washroom. “Yixing was talking to us. What the hell do you need a bath for? We’re the ones who just hiked 8km, not you! You just laid around all afternoon, you lazy--”

Jongin glares at Chanyeol and cuts him off with a curt growl. “He’s sick and injured. Cut him some slack. Or do you treat all patients so inhospitably?”

“Injured, my foot. He looked fine a few seconds ago. What’s with this arrogant fool?” Chanyeol turns to complain more quietly to Yixing, whining while the physician pats his back and tells him to let the boy have a soak, helping relieve Yeol of his herbs and market purchases.

Cautiously, Jongin pokes his head inside the washroom and sees Kyungsoo standing facing the tub, with his back towards Jongin and arms held out, waiting for his hanbok to be removed. While it’s encouraging to see him acting as though nothing is wrong, Jongin’s face is red all over at the idea of truly servicing the prince as a full attendant. Not to mention how suspicious this might seem to their hosts.

“You really shouldn’t be so obvious in front of them,” Jongin whispers as he steps closer, wiping his palms on his clothes and preparing his nerves for disrobing the prince. “It’s not safe.”

“Oh?” Kyungsoo asks, surprised. “To me, they seemed to be t--”

“Jongin, could you help wash the rice?” Yixing calls from out in the courtyard. “Where’d he go…”

Frightened at them being caught so obviously as prince and servant, Jongin quickly undoes Kyungsoo’s sangtu, loosing the dark hair to fall around his shoulders. Jongin’s hand starts and stops a few times, hesitating before he pulls the hanbok tie and jumps back as the cloth separates, averting his eyes. “There’s- there’s only the one layer, so please forgive me for leaving you to manage from here.”

Kyungsoo hums and deftly shrugs off the top. Jongin’s eyes unwittingly snag on some superficial red scratches along the prince’s smooth shoulder blades. He frowns, wanting to soothe the injuries and simultaneously ask a thousand questions, but he knows they don’t have time for any of that right now.

“Can we speak later?” he asks, moving toward the door. “Alone?”

There’s a light slosh indicating Kyungsoo has entered the tub. Jongin checks and sees the prince has turned around, arms draped across the top of the small wooden basin, chin perched upon them, just like he had positioned himself the last time Jongin witnessed the crown prince bathing in the palace. It’s strikingly identical, except his eyes. Tonight, Kyungsoo’s eyes are much more… relaxed. Unguarded, though until seeing them shine this brightly, Jongin would never have described them as particularly guarded before.

“Yes, please. Let’s talk privately tonight,” Kyungsoo says with another tender smile that’s so openly fond Jongin can’t believe it’s for him. “Walk me to the watermill after it gets dark.”

Jongin is on edge throughout dinner, trying to think through a plan. Should they leave under the cover of night? He could ride the two of them on his horse, certainly, but that would require Kyungsoo being able to hold onto him securely from behind, and with the prince having passed out earlier today, he’s not willing to chance having him slip into unconsciousness and fall off, where he could be further injured.

Further affirming it’s too soon for this escape, he feels Kyungsoo sag against him a few times during the meal, head leaning onto Jongin’s broad shoulder. He tries to remain sturdy, scooching closer to support his prince. “Are you feeling okay? Do you need to sleep?” he asks, concerned.

“I’m fine,” Kyungsoo murmurs, but his words are too airy to be convincing.

“So, do you have a place to stay tonight, Jaemin?” Chanyeol asks him between a mouthful of rice.

“Jaemin?” Kyungsoo repeats, picking his head up off of Jongin’s shoulder and looking at him with a furrowed brow.

Jongin sends h