SEVEN

Twenty Eight Degrees

What is he waiting for, Chanyeol asks himself as he sits on a dining chair in their kitchen. The sink drips, water droplets creating a rhythmic melody and the wall clock ticks along. A map is spread out on the kitchen table and a bowl of half-eaten cold ramyun sits next to him. Chanyeol has been thinking a lot in the last couple of days.

The addresses on the paper Byulyi handed him has been circled on the map. They’re all public places with the exception of the house in Bukchon. Seoul Metropolitan Library, Ehwa Women’s University, National Museum of Korea, COEX shopping mall. There is even a red mark around Hangang Park in a spot with free public wifi. Whoever is behind must use public computers and public wifi's to ensure nothing traces back to them. Everything leads back to the house in Bukchon.

Chanyeol doesn’t understand it. The old man and his wife certainly seemed like they had little grudge against the government – and he’s not even sure they’d understand how to use a computer. No, it’s definitely not the old couple.

Baekhyun’s words keep messing with him, though. Chanyeol drags a hand through his hair and rests his cheek against the tabletop, crumbling the map in the process and pushing the ramyun a little further away with his shoulders. If only he could figure it all out.

 

---

 

This is a genuinely stupid idea. That is what Minseok would have told him had he not lied before him under a dozen of blankets and life support hooked up to his system.

“I’m doing this for you,” Chanyeol whispers, afraid Sehee or one of the other nurses might hear him. There has been no news from the government, but he still visits Minseok. It’s out of love, he tells himself. He wouldn’t be here without Minseok either way, so stopping by is the least he can do. Besides, this idea he’s gotten will keep him away from the hospital for a couple of days.

He leans down to kiss his boyfriend when he remembers he’s not allowed to touch him with his bare skin and instead grabs his fingers, wraps them together and closes his eyes as he lets his heart speak for him.

 

---

 

The car is an invisible black in a neighborhood of black cars. The back seat is full of snacks and sandwiches from the local convenience store and Chanyeol is sitting in the front seat, sunglasses on and radio on low volume. His phone died a couple of minutes ago after one too many YouTube videos and now he has nothing to do but hum along.

A stake-out is probably the worst idea he could come up with and yet he still sits in his car, waiting for something to happen. It takes another two songs before Chanyeol grows restless. He leans against the steering wheel, careful not to press the horn and closes his eyes for a second or two.

When he wakes up, it’s 30 minutes later and his neck hurts from the position. Dammit, he thinks, when he realizes he’s been asleep instead of just casually blinking and he straightens out, leans against the backseat and cracks his neck to release the tension.

By then it’s almost 5 PM and people start returning home from work and daily chores. A woman who looks to be in her 40’s drags two large bags and a child with her, and she greets an elderly man in his 70’s with a small smile. This feels like a completely different part of Seoul but Chanyeol knows that only a kilometer or two away runs the main road with all its cars and flashy signs.

His stomach grumbles and he absentmindedly reaches out towards his phone only to realize it’s still dead. Instead of grieving his loss of communication to his friends, he turns around in his seat and grabs a sandwich from behind. He’s munching happily when the door to the house he’s looking at opens. Chanyeol holds his breath for a second before the elderly woman steps outside and he deflates against his seat.

Time goes by awfully slow and Chanyeol is about to snooze again when he’s interrupted by a knock on his window. He bashes his head against the rearview mirror in his haste to roll down the window. An officer is looking at him from the other side, head cocked in question. The name tag on his uniform says officer Cha. His black hair falls slightly into his deep brown eyes and he’s bowing down awkwardly to be eye level with Chanyeol.

“What are you doing, sir?” he asks and Chanyeol fumbles with his sunglasses and drops them between the gear box and the seat.

“Uhm,” he answer intelligently. He can’t say he’s on a stake-out, that’s creepy and would probably land him in trouble but what other good excuse does he really have with food on his back seat and sunglasses, now between seat and gear box. Officer Cha narrows his eyes as he takes in the state of Chanyeol’s car and waits for an answer.

“I got lost,” Chanyeol answers meekly after a few seconds. Officer Cha raises an eyebrow in suspicion.

“Where are you going, sir?” he asks. He’s still taking in the state of the car and his suspicion doesn’t lessen at all when Chanyeol whispers “Gangnam”.

“You’re far from Gangnam, sir. If you just follow this road and turn right when you get to the next intersection, you’ll find the main road.”

Officer Cha still isn’t fully convinced about the truth of Chanyeol’s whereabouts, but he doesn’t say anything. Chanyeol, embarrassed at being caught at his stake-out, just nods and thanks the officer for directions before he turns on the car and drives away. He only turns right at the intersection before he stops the car and lets his head rest on the wheel.

Another person knocks on his car roof and Chanyeol only slowly lifts his head, almost expecting to see officer Cha again, but this time it’s a smaller man, hair dyed auburn and permed. His smile radiates and his eyes scrunch up a little to give way to the smile.

“You okay?” he asks, and his voice is melodic and flows almost like a song. Chanyeol sighs and shrugs a little.

“No. Do I just continue on this road to get to the main road?” he asks, and the stranger blinks a little confused, smile falling from his face.

“Hey, you want to talk about it?” Chanyeol isn’t sure, he really wants to talk about it, but for some reason he doesn’t deny the request and the stranger changes his position, so he stands more comfortably. The small bag of groceries he was holding is now placed on the ground between his legs as he waits for Chanyeol to spill his worries. Chanyeol takes his sweet time getting to his worries, though. It feels strange, uncomfortable, to just relay his mind to someone he hasn’t met. A few minutes pass in silence before he ends up shaking his head.

“I’m sorry.” Chanyeol doesn’t know exactly why he’s apologizing but it feels right. The stranger just shrugs a little and leans down to get his groceries again.

“Anytime. Looking for the main road, were you? Hit right at the next intersection and you’ll get to Bukchon-ro. That leads to the crossing between Samil-daero and Yulgok-ro if you’re heading south.”

The stranger sends him a kind smile and steps away from the car to let Chanyeol move along but Chanyeol doesn’t start the car. He just kind of stares at the other man.

“I’m Park Chanyeol. I’m sorry to ask, but do you live in this area?”

The stranger laughs a little. It sounds as melodic as when he speaks. He tilts his head just slightly, just enough for Chanyeol to notice and when he’s done laughing, he smiles again.

“My grandparents do. I come here often to help with groceries and housekeeping. Kim Jongdae,” he says and Chanyeol nods.

“Thank you for helping.”

“Anytime really. If you’re in the area and want to talk, I’ll probably be at the Jeongdok public library. Come find me.”

With those words, Jongdae starts walking away with the groceries and Chanyeol starts the ignition and drives away. He turns the music up as he drives onto Bukchon-ro and the trip back to Gangnam is filled with something that isn’t the usual apathy and hopelessness that resides in Chanyeol.

 

There are 23 text messages and one unanswered phone call waiting for him when he gets home and plugs his phone back in. The texts are from Baekhyun, talking mindless stuff and links to a few articles the media has written on the whole Lab 32 outbreak. The unanswered phone call has Chanyeol’s gut sink to his feet.

It’s a Seoul number he has dreaded on his call list and fear washes over him. He sinks to the floor, staring at his phone that goes back into black screen. This might not be bad news, he tells himself in a whisper. This might not be bad news. This is definitely bad news. What other reason would make the hospital call him?

Chanyeol prays as he sits there, phone in hand. He can feel desperation rise within him, cloud his thoughts and he starts slightly shaking as he suppresses the tears that threaten to spill. He doesn’t want to cry, doesn’t want to grieve in advance. When he finally finds the courage to call back, he’s put on hold for several distressing minutes. It’s Sehee who greets him when it finally goes through.

“SNUH, the ICU, Oh Sehee speaking, how may I help you?”

She sounds so professional and Chanyeol chokes up where he sits. He has to take a few deep breaths and swallow the lump that’s threatening to cloud his voice before he speaks.

“It’s Chanyeol,” he says and takes another deep breath before he continues. “You called me earlier?”

There’s paper rustling on the other end and someone shouting for help.

“Oh yes, Chanyeol! You should come here as soon as you can. Minseok’s status hasn’t changed, so don’t worry, but there’s something you need to hear from dr. Cho.”

Chanyeol’s heart skips a beat or two at the words. He leans back against the wall, neck craning to reach and he closes his eyes while he swallows.

“What is it?” he asks her, and he can almost hear Sehee roll her eyes.

“Dr. Cho will talk to you when you get here.” She shouts to a coworker and Chanyeol wipes his wet cheek with a thumb before he slowly lifts his head from the wall.

“I can get there in about 30 minutes,” he says and Sehee confirms before she hangs up to go help a colleague with a patient. Chanyeol stays seated on the floor for a minute. Thoughts are running rampant in his head, tears are still threatening to spill and instead of getting off of the floor and down to the garage, he calls Baekhyun and only barely manages to ask if he has time to pick him up and drive him to the hospital. Baekhyun is busy, so it’s Sookyung who accompanies him.

 

They enter the hospital in silence. It feels like forever before they reach the ICU and even when they get there, Chanyeol doesn’t feel entirely present. He’s staring at the floor, taking deep breaths and willing himself to stay calm. Sookyung pats his shoulder every so often to comfort him. He hasn’t told her that he’s here on specific request from dr. Cho. A new nurse mans the reception desk when they enter, and she looks at them with sharp eyes.

“Name?” she asks and Sookyung speaks up before Chanyeol gets to.

“Park Chanyeol, he’s with Kim Minseok in room 28.”

The nurse looks through her papers before she nods and points towards the room. Chanyeol knows the way all too well with Minseok having been hospitalized for a month now. They only get to the entrance before they’re stopped by a tall resident.

“This way,” he says and guides them towards a smaller room. It is decorated with comfortable chairs, a mahogany coffee table in the middle. The walls are a pale yellow. It looks like a conference room of sorts, one in which people get bad news. That thought freezes Chanyeol on the spot. Bad news. This looks like the room where people get told their loved ones have died. Sookyung looks towards him confused as she sits down in one of the chairs and relaxes.

“What’s up?” she asks worried but Chanyeol is too afraid of what he’s about to hear to answer her. He can’t deal with Minseok’s death. Sehee said that his condition hadn’t changed but Chanyeol doesn’t trust her. This is all wrong. He’s about to turn on his heel and leave the room when the door opens again and dr. Cho steps inside.

“Ah, Chanyeol! And Mrs. Do,” dr. Cho greets. He gestures towards the chair and Chanyeol reluctantly sits down. He’s sitting on edge, holding his breath as dr. Cho brings a chair around so he can face them. He smiles kindly and Chanyeol feels his lungs struggle for air and he gasps in a breath. Sookyung looks at him concerned, hand finding his shoulder. He doesn’t dare look at her, though. Dr. Cho places his papers upside down.

“I spoke to Mr. and Mrs. Kim earlier. Minseok’s one kidney is starting to show signs of deterioration from the ECMO and it may only be the beginning of organ failure. It has been almost a month already. I know it comes as a hard decision to make but from a medical standpoint, I think it’s time to let Minseok go and remove the ECMO. I can’t do that without consent, of course, and I technically only need Mr. and Mrs. Kim’s consent, but I wanted you to know as well. You should talk to your parents-in-law. Without a change in condition, there isn’t much I can do, however.”

He taps Chanyeol’s thigh once, twice, before he grabs his papers again. Chanyeol feels his breath hitch and anger bubble in this stomach. Dr. Cho is looking at him, head tilted slightly in question as if asking how he’s taking the news. Knowing that Minseok’s fate isn’t in his hands anymore makes him angry.

He thins his lips and fists his hands, knuckles turning white in the process. They can’t take Minseok off of life support. That’ll be the end before he has even had a chance to try again. Why isn’t the CDC doing more?

Chanyeol wants to ask, the question burns in his throat, but he can’t voice it. Emotions are swirling in him, the anger dying and sadness taking over, only to power through once again. No. Someone has to do something. They can’t just give up like that. He has to convince his parents-in-law this is not the right thing to do. They’re going to kill Minseok if they take him off of life support. Chanyeol won’t stand idle by their side while they kill his boyfriend.

When Chanyeol doesn’t say anything dr. Cho gets up and sends Sookyung a small smile before he leaves them. Only when the door has closed behind him does Chanyeol look up from his white knuckles and faces Sookyung.

“No,” is all he says as he stares at her. She holds eye contact, not one to bow down. Her gaze is full of fear and worry but also determination. Chanyeol is feeding off of her emotionally, her stoic façade fuel to his determined anger.

There is no way anybody is taking Minseok off of the ECMO. Chanyeol doesn’t go down without a fight.

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MissMinew
so, im a little early but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ i'll probably upload the ending chapter in the days to come too, don't think i'll wait until sunday so.

Comments

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universal123
#1
Chapter 10: I am so glad that Minseok recovered and Jongdae finally got his justice... It is just sad to know two people paid with their life in this complication. Minseok is so to have Chanyeol, Baekhyun and Sookyung in his life <3 Thank you sharing this story!! This is really good!!
tonnettie
#2
Chapter 10: Chanyeol is so strong. I admire the determination and love. He trusted Jongdae, even without the confirmation he risked everything by injecting the anti-virus. But Atleast it all ended well!
tonnettie
#3
It sounded like COVID -19 all of a sudden ( I don’t mean to offend anyone)
KaihleeLo
#4
Chapter 5: LMAO I almost fell off my chair xD Sounds like Chanyeol got good news from Baekhyun and was growing jolly because of it but then I imagine Sookyung being super deadpan about calling them idiots XD I miss Minseok three! I could feel Sookyung's love for Minseok in this chapter. She and Minseok were really good friends too~ Junghwa is dead T_T Junghwa's case is suspicious. Too bad she didn't live to see 26 T_T I love Luhan and Chanyeol's moments haha. And yes, Chanyeol has been doing things, illegal but good things Sehee.
KaihleeLo
#5
Chapter 4: The emptiness without Minseok T_T Poor Chanyeol, he misses his Minseokie so bad >_< Chanyeol punched Baekhyun for lying and that made me so happy xD Sookyung deserves all the credit in the world <3 Did Yixing almost introduce Chanyeol as his boyfriend? xD T_T Even the apartment misses Minseok. GO CHANYEOL! FIND THAT TERRORIST AND THE CURE! Yesssss Baekhyun! Gah, I need a best friend like him. One that will keep me in check but will also do illegal things with me when necessary xD I'm also excited to see Chanyeol's super squad kick asses!
smolbin
16 streak #6
Chapter 10: I loved the finale!!
Like towards the end I was a bit in wonder because I wished we would see something about jongdae but the final part just summoned it well. I loved it.

You were so good at conveying the character’s emotions and this story just go with the flow. I really liked the idea and I can see you’ve put so much thought and research into this.

Hope to read beautiful stories like this from you :)
KaihleeLo
#7
Chapter 3: After re-reading the first half two or three times, I finally got the chance to finish the whole chapter heh heh xD Minseok isn't getting better and Chanyeol is understandably impatient. Good thing Chanyeol thought of Lab 32. Too bad he had to disturb Baekhyun and Sookyung's date though xD I also love how grounded Sookyung is, though she's less caring then when Minseok first fell ill >_< Sehee is seriously a sweetheart <3 Like if I were ever sick or dying in the hospital, I'd want a nurse like her to look after me muhahaha. I want to know who the man in black suit is too! And what this unknown virus is. Can't wait to find out <333 If only I wasn't such a lazy but normal reader, I'd have the answer by now T_T
midaexiu #8
Chapter 7: Chen!? Noo...
They can't turn off his life support omg ㅠㅠ Chanyeol you gotta save the day!!!
midaexiu #9
Chapter 4: Baekhyun, yea~ what a good friend
midaexiu #10
Chapter 3: An unknown virus no one has encountered before
HE HAVE COVID-19 O_O