"You must rest."

The young man in front of him just smiled, he carried an adorable kid in his arms. The toddler looked very comfortable in the arms of the dark-haired young man. His tiny hands tightly gripped the white coat worn by the young man.

"Doctor, I'm serious ..." Kyuhyun could feel his forehead twitching in annoyance. His usually-gentle brown eyes glared at the male in front of him sharply. However, it seems that the piercing look did not mean much in front of the pediatrician.

"I'm okay, Doctor Kyuhyun," he said. He tickled the child in his arms playfully. The toddler laughed, and his laughter stimulated the pediatrician to form a gentle smile on his pink lips.

"Ye-..."

"Doctor Yesung," suddenly a man interrupted the conversation between the two medical specialists, the man smiled at the kid in the doctor's arms.

The toddler's eyes caught a familiar figure and he immediately stretched out both of his hands towards the man who had just arrived, his tiny fingers doing grabby-hands towards the figure, "Papaa!"

Doctor Yesung chuckled, he handed the toddler over to his parents. He looked at the child gently, his body bent slightly to adjust his height to the height of the child who is now in his father's arms, "well, Donghae-ya, it doesn't hurt right? Come here again next month, will you? Next time, I will give you a lot more candy~!" said the doctor with a sing-sang tone. The toddler named Donghae nodded cheerfully.

Doctor Yesung nodded in satisfaction, then he straightened himself, "Donghae is a smart and good boy," this time he said to the adult who held the kid. Leeteuk, Donghae's father, seemed happy at the doctor's praise. He thanked him before leaving with his son.

After Donghae and his father left, the other doctor, who had been silent for a long time, immediately pulled the pediatrician's hand. Yesung sighed as he knew where they would end up.

 

**

 

"Stop working so hard ..." Kyuhyun threw a large brown envelope to his desk, the other doctor sat quietly on the chair usually occupied by his patients. He was extremely pissed, his brown eyes showed a hint of worry and confusion that he didn't dare look at the face of the male in front of him.

Yesung reached the half-open envelope and took out its contents. It turned out to be a CT scan he did a few months ago. He studied the black and white photo. His eyes were fixed on a large gray circle in his left lung, "Doctor Kyuhyun ... this ..."

"A tumor... a tumor inside your left lung," the pulmonologist cut in quickly. His eyes stared at the young man in front of him with a gaze that was difficult to explain because of its complexity, "it grew bigger from the previous CT scan."

Yesung was silent. Slowly, he put the CT scan results back into the brown envelope then pushed it towards Kyuhyun who was sitting across from him.

"You have to stop working and undergo therapy..." the brown haired man massaged his temples, he took off his glasses and put them on the table. This was the umpteenth time he advised his colleagues. Because of how often he advised the other man, he was able to guess the answer Yesung would give next.

"I'm fine, don't worry."

As expected...

Kyuhyun's patience ran out, the pale-skinned young man got up and slammed his desk. This was the first time his emotions had exploded in public. Usually he will hold back his emotions until he reaches his apartment, then he lets out his anger. But this time he couldn't, because the object that made him explode was right in front of him, staring at him with surprised looks.

Didn't Yesung know that he really cared about him?? Very worried about him ??

"You-are-so-sick-Kim-Yesung," Kyuhyun hissed, he emphasized his every word. His brown eyes, which were usually soft and looked like puppies, now glaring dagger at Yesung. His hands clenched tightly until his knuckles turned white.

"I know... but I can't stop now..."

Yesung lowered his head so that his long dark bangs hid his eyes, "I know I don't have much time..."

"Don't say something like that! You can undergo therapy! You will recover!" said the pulmonologist. His hand ruffled his neatly combed brown hair. He was frustrated, stressed, he didn't want to lose his sun, he didn't want to lose the smile of his beloved.

The man in front of him chuckled, although his laughter looked forced, "recovered? With SCLC and stage IIIA cancer?"

Yesung’s statement rendered Kyuhyun speechless, now it was him who bowed his head deeply. Yesung just slapped an ugly fact to his face. People with stage IIIA have only a thirteen percent chance of surviving for five years, if they are not treated as soon as possible, the percentage of their life expectancy will decrease. Kyuhyun bit his lips, ' at least there is still a possibility. As long as it is not zero percent, then there is a hope...' he thought.

"You know that being a pediatrician is my dream, right?"

Kyuhyun raised his head and found a smiling Yesung. Of course he knew, he and Yesung had been together for so many years. All the dreams, hopes, secrets, sorrows, and desires of him; he knows it all. He knows everything about Yesung.

Including the disease…

That’s why he always bugs him to undergo therapy and remind him to take a break.

"I will not lose to my illness, I will be a pediatrician until I get old. You can calm down, Kyuhyun," he showed an adorable eye-smile to his colleagues to calm him down, then stretched out his hand to pat Kyuhyun's shoulder, "oops ... I forgot I have an appointment with a patient. Excuse me, Doctor Kyuhyun! See you later!"

Slam!

As soon as Yesung left his room, the pulmonologist growled softly before falling back into the leather chair. He looked up at the ceiling, arm covering his eyes, "stupid... stupid..."

"What do you think is the reason I decided to become a pulmonologist...?"

 

**

 

"Yesung hyung~!"

The black haired man who was currently tidying up the scattered files on his desk turned his head when he heard his name called out, a cheerful smile painted on his lips even though he was feeling extremely tired. He had just finished meeting the last patient of the day and was about to rest.

"Wookie!"

The boy -whose real name is Kim Ryeowook- ran towards him with a big smile. When Yesung crouched down to match the boy's height, Ryeowook immediately jumped up and hugged him tightly. Ryeowook is Yesung's nephew. This cute child with a doll-like appearance often comes to his apartment or his workplace every day after school to wait for his father and mother to pick him up. Yesung also considers Ryeowook as his own little brother, as well as Ryeowook who considers Yesung as his brother so Yesung allows the cute boy to call him hyung .

"Yesung hyung is too busy lately..." the little boy pursed his lips, "Yesung hyung always comes home at night, so today Wookie came to drag Yesung hyung home!"

The young man laughed, he the boy's curls gently, "but I'm busy, Wookie..." he coughed, "...lots of kids are sick lately..." -cough again-, "maybe because of the weather?"

Ryeowook pouted, "Yesung hyung is also sick though..." he muttered, he crossed his arms in front of his chest, "Wookie wants Yesung hyung to come home! Wookie is lonely!" he exclaimed persistently. Yesung immediately understood what his nephew meant, Ryeowook didn't want his beloved brother to be tired, "oh right, has Yesung hyung eaten? Wookie saw Yesung hyung's sandwich on the table, Yesung hyung skipped breakfast again huh?"

Yesung stared at his nephew's big eyes who was staring at him with a probing gaze, then he smiled, he shouldn’t make Wookie worried, "I already had breakfast, don't worry!" he lied while patting Ryeowook's head. To be honest, he's kinda lazy to eat because he doesn't have an appetite and he is also on a diet. Now his body is thin because he rarely consumes nutritious food. His weight dropped drastically.

Yesung coughed again, this time his cough was louder than before. He used one hand to cover his mouth. When he took his hand away after the cough subsided, his eyes widened.

The thick red liquid smelled like iron stained his palms.

Suddenly, pain attacked his chest. Yesung gripped his chest and ignored the red that now tainted his white coat. Sweat began to run down his temples, his face showing an extreme pain. Yesung began to feel difficulty breathing, as if there were stones stuck in the cavity of his lungs. He prayed the pain would go away soon in his heart, he didn't want to be seen in this state by Ryeowook... or Kyuhyun.

"Doctor Yesung!! Yesungie!!"

Kyuhyun's voice calling his name and Ryeowook's cries were the last thing he heard before darkness enveloped his sight and Yesung lost consciousness.

 

**

 

Yesung opened his eyes slowly, he scanned his surroundings. The rhythm created by the ticking of the wall clock is the only sound he hears along with a beeping sound every three seconds in this quiet room. There is an IV fluid in his left arm and an oxygen mask helped him breathe.

The black-haired male staring at the ceiling blankly. He had just woken up a few seconds ago and was still processing his current state. He glanced towards the window to his right, from the gap that was not covered by the curtains, the sun was shining with a beautiful reddish color.

It's already late huh ...?

The creaking sound of the door suddenly broke the silence of the room.

"Are you finally awake?" Yesung really recognized that bass voice. Without even turning around, he knew who the owner of the voice that just entered the room. That voice was the voice that kept encouraging him to fight his illness... a voice that kept encouraging him to live on...

"I have brought Ryeowook back to the apartment, he cried because you collapsed in front of him. You should be grateful because I was passing by your room earlier," the owner of the bass voice lied but Yesung did not comment about it. Anyone who works or has been to the hospital where they work knows that pulmonologists and pediatricians are on different wings of hospital. In fact, since Ryeowook came, Kyuhyun was already in front of the pediatrician's room, he was keeping an eye on his colleagues ...

 

As well as his lover.

 

The two of them were friends, they first met when Yesung was in 3rd grade junior high school, while Kyuhyun had just entered junior high school. Their friendship continued in high school. And when both of them were in university, that’s when Kyuhyun confessed his love. Kyuhyun expressed his feelings when Yesung was working on his thesis and Yesung said he would accept it after Kyuhyun graduated. Yesung felt that his underclassman would take several years to finish because the medical department was not easy, so he thought he could finish his specialist program first before answering Kyuhyun's confession.

Kyuhyun, who is a genius and is in the middle of semesters, immediately accelerates his study progress to complete his bachelor's degree in order to catch up with Yesung so that the two of them end up graduating together, studying together, and taking a specialist program together. As Yesung promised before, he answers the confession and the two of them become a couple.

 

Yesung did not take his eyes off the setting sun outside even though his lips formed a smile at the other man’s words.

Kyuhyun sighed, "If only you want to undergo therapy-..."

"You know I don't like therapy, right?" Yesung cut off Kyuhyun's words, "It feels weird, my hair is falling out, I can't eat, my legs and hands are tingling... I can't do anything, Kyuhyun..."

Yesung closed his eyes, "I want to be useful for those kids, I want to make them smile, I want to see them grow up healthily. That's why I can't stop now, I won't stop until I di-..."

"Don't be silly! You are a doctor! A doctor must pay attention to his own health first, then others!" Kyuhyun cut off the other male's words, his brown eyes flashed with anger. There was a speck of sadness that was shrouded by anger in his eyes, "You -... you will be fine, Yesungie... I will try my best..." the young doctor walked to Yesung's bed. He grabbed the young man's little hand gently and held it carefully as if Yesung was a fragile dandelion.

"Kyuhyun..."

 

The obsidian iris had lost its shine. Only emptiness and dullness remains on it.

 

Kyuhyun brought the tiny hand to his lips and kissed the back of his hand gently, "Please rest... I promise, you'll be healthy again..."

A sincere smile bloomed on Yesung's lips, "Thank you... Kyuhyun..."

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

---

"I am home."

"Welcome home, Kyuhyunie!"

The young man with glasses smiled. He took off his shoes and jacket. His feet, which now only wear a white socks, stepped on the wooden floor of their shared apartment.

 

Yes, the two of them, Yesung and Kyuhyun. Both of them now live in the same apartment.

 

Kyuhyun walked into the living room and found his favorite figure sitting on the sofa while watching television. He could smell the aroma of the food that was served on the dining table located not far from there.

"How was the surgery?" asked the black haired man. He smiled sweetly, a smile that was once faded two years ago.

 

A smile that Kyuhyun really loves and protects with all his might.

 

"Success, the husband and wife are so lucky to have the same lung tissue and blood type. Doctor Kim Heechul is also quite skillful when performing the surgery," he said casually while sitting beside his beloved one, his arm wormed its way to that slender waist, "what about you? How are you today?"

A blush spread across Yesung's cheeks when Kyuhyun curled his arm around his waist, but he still answered the question, "Donghae is in 2nd grade now! He only lacks one more vaccination~ oh then there are also new patients, Lee Hyukjae and Shin Donghee. Hyukjae is seven years old, the same as Donghae and it turns out that they are classmates! Meanwhile, Donghee is eight years old! They are both very cute! Well, even though they both are a bit hyper... and then-... "

While Yesung continued his monologue, Kyuhyun stared at him with a gentle smile. To hell with the story Yesung told him, his attention was on his voice, expression, and lips. He noticed how Yesung took a breath at each break of the story. He noticed how those eyes sparkled when he talked excitedly about cute children.

This was the scene he dreamed two years ago, and now his dream has come true ...

"Kyuhyun?"

The brown haired male grunted.

"Kyuhyun? Are you listening to my story?"

The man nodded.

Yesung sighed, he wanted to scold him but he remembered Kyuhyun's sacrifice for him. He will never have the heart to scold or reprimand his lover.

His right hand touched Kyuhyun's hand which was curled around his waist. A light clink between the two metal bands on their ring finger snapped Kyuhyun out of his daydream. He looked at the cute male beside him.

"Kyuhyun ..."

Slowly Kyuhyun leaned his head on the pediatrician's shoulder. He tightened his arms around Yesung's slim waist. His nose inhaling the scent of vanilla that always lingered on Yesung's body, "sorry... suddenly I remembered those times... the times we struggled to breathe just for the togetherness that were almost lost..."

Yesung's dark eyes widened, but then his expression turned soft. He brought his left hand to caress that chocolate strand. Of course he remembers those times, the times where he was between life and death. He can breathe until now because of Kyuhyun. The young man donated the left lobe of his lung so that Yesung could breathe again two years ago.

He recalled how Kim Heechul (a surgeon who is also his friend at the hospital) told him about Kyuhyun who didn't hesitate at all when he was declared eligible to be a living donor for Yesung. He also told him about Kyuhyun's determination even though their lives were at stake. But in the end the operation was successful. Both are alive and can breathe well until this moment.

He survived because of Kyuhyun. He can breathe again because of Kyuhyun. He lived until now because of Kyuhyun...

A year after surgery, Yesung received a very beautiful gift on his birthday. The gift now adorned his and Kyuhyun’s right hand ring finger. Such a simple but meaningful gift.

The two of them sank into a comfortable silence. They don't need words to express their love. Just a loving gaze, a collided breath, and a light kiss on the lips.

.

.

.

END