7llin' in the Dream
Episode Six:  Dear my DREAM, I'll be there for you [P6/6]
Chapter Sixteen
-

  Jaemin had read Haechan's text around five a.m. and they'd talked about it.
  Because of Jeno's blood, Chenle's transition would finish abruptly and it wouldn't be pleasant.  It could happen anytime.  If they'd told them then they would've been freaked out when filming started.
  Filming would start before they woke up, so they wouldn't be able to tell them in the morning.  They'd decided to keep an eye on him.  If anything happened, they had a plan.  One would cause a distraction and the other would get him away from the cameras and feed from him.

-

  Haechan's bed only had room for one person, thanks to the giant stuffed animal.  So, at six a.m... ish... Jaemin had crashed in Mark's bed.  If anything had happened with Chenle, Jeno and Renjun would've let them know.
  Mark's alarm went off and he rubbed his back to wake him up.
  Jaemin stood and rubbed his face.  He stumbled around Haechan's bed and tried to wake him up.  For two seconds.  Having had only three hours of sleep, he wouldn't be moving anytime soon.
  He followed Mark downstairs and they woke up Chenle.  He wore shades and a bucket hat to cover as much of his face as possible.  It couldn't cover his puffiness and red nose though.
  Jaemin plopped three sauce packets on the kitchen island and turned to the stove.
  "Is that it," Mark asked, laughing.  "Is that all you're giving them?"
  "Let them have just that," he said tiredly.
  He laughed again.
  Jaemin began mixing eggs with chopsticks.  Mark studied his emotionless face as the chopsticks made a clunk-clunk-clunk-clunk-clunk sound in the metal bowl.  He caressed his cheek and said, "Cute."
  "Can you go wake up the other guys," Jaemin said to Chenle, who didn't respond.  Had he fallen asleep on his feet?

-

  Chenle whispered to Haechan, "If you're not going to get up, let me come under the covers.  I'm cold."
  Haechan made room and cuddled him as soon as the covers were over them.  He pressed his nose into his shoulder and mumbled, "Mm, Chenle-ah, you smell good," and then he cuddled him tighter.

-

  Jaemin and Mark noticed at the same time that Chenle had been gone for a while.  They snickered, knowing he'd probably laid back down... again.  The first time, he'd snuck to his own bed and they'd had to get him back up.
  "Chenle-ah," Jaemin called in that annoyingly cute way only he could pull off.  "Where are these guys, huh?  What time is it right now?"
  "Too early to be up," Mark said.
  They headed for the stairs and Mark sat at the piano.  As the music started, a serenade of doom, Jaemin went upstairs.  Mark sang,  "Wake up.  Wake up."
  Jaemin chuckled and he belted out in Satoori, "Wake up.  Wake up."
  "Wake up," Mark sang, drawing it out.  "Wake up... Jeno-ah."
  Jaemin went to Haechan's bed.  "Wake up.  Wake up-"
  Jisung, who'd fallen asleep on the couch, sat up looking comically confused.
  "You should wake up, Haechan-ah," Jaemin continued.  He pulled his covers back and said, "Peekaboo."  He covered him and did it again.  "Peekaboo."
  "It's time to wake up.  It's time to..."  He sagged.  "I can't believe I'm awake right now."  He put his hands in his pockets and went to the center of the room.

-

  "How was my serenade," Mark asked as he entered Jeno's room.  He leaned to see him.  "Doggy?  Doggy," he called.  No response.  He shook him until he woke up.  "Come on, bro."
  Jeno put on his jacket and houseshoes and followed him upstairs.

-

  "Haechan isn't getting up," Jaemin said.  Chenle had claimed Renjun's empty bed. 
 "Chenle-ah, let's go.  Jisung-ah, let's go.  Where's Renjun-ah?"
  Chenle sat up and said, "He's showering."
  "What did you make for breakfast," Haechan mumbled.  He stretched an arm out, revealing pillow creases on his face.
  "Water," Jaemin said.
  "Just... some toast," Mark said.
  "Huh?"
  "Toast."
  He laid on his back and said, "Horse?"
  Mark said, "Tooooast."
  Jeno waddled to them at the same time Jaemin said, "Let's go down to eat now.  There's breakfast waiting for you."
  "I'm looking forward to it," Jeno mumbled.  "So, what did you make?"
  Haechan had curled on his side and the others were stumbling out of their respective sleeping places.
  Jaemin commanded, "Come down."

-

  The winning team of the foot-volley-ball game had made requests for breakfast.  Mark had made it a point to make Renjun's ice lemon water.  "Is this what you wanted," he asked.
  "Yes, it is," Renjun said, adding more water.
  "Isn't that just water though?"
  "It is, but it's good."
  

-

  Jisung sat outside with his hands in his jacket pockets.  He closed his eyes and smiled.  "I really like it here.  It's so warm," he said.
  They put the food on a small glass table.
  "Come on, eat up.  You did such a great job," Haechan said.  As Mark put the last bowl down, Haechan said, "Thank you for the food.  Tteokbokki sauce tastes like the one from restaurants."
  Silverware clanked in bowls and the food steamed more from the cold.  The sun shined down and them as they dug in.
  "Mark is a good cook," Jeno said.  Jaemin had either directed him the entire way or had been the one to cook it.  Psh.
  "I had a good night's rest," Haechan said.  He'd gone to sleep at six a.m... ish.  So... liar-liar, pants on fire.  Psh.  "I woke up even before the alarm rang."
  "The doggy house was pretty nice," Jeno said with a cheek bulging from food.
  "Right?  I told you so," Chenle said.
  "Jeno, I planned it all out for you," Haechan said.
  And it would've been great if Chenle hadn't been sick.
  "It felt like sleeping in a tent."

-

  "I want Chapaghetti," Haechan said.
  As usual, they used rock, paper, scissors to decide who'd make it.  Haechan lost and glowered.  He poked the inside of his cheek with his tongue when everyone laughed.
  "Did you really lose?" Jeno said.
  Mark groaned and said, "Wow, this is the worse ever."
  "This is fate."
  "Go," Renjun said.
  He brought the finished (steaming hot, fresh, moist - work of art) product to them and Jisung said, "When I did it, it was dry like a desert."
  "Did I get something on my lips?" Haechan said to Mark.
  Mark squinted.  He shook his head and said, "No," and went back to eating.
  Renjun laughed.
  Haechan said, "Please do the Secret Garden now."
  Renjun laughed again.
  "Mark-ah, do the Secret Garden, right now."
  Mark's eyes widened.  He smacked him, laughing hysterically (nervously - they were on camera - Haechan, stop embarrassing me.)

-

  "Jeno-ah, get yourself together," Haechan said.  Jeno had squatted down and threatened to drop their ice cream in the pool.
  "I'll never room with Jeno again," Chenle said.
  "Is the ice cream that good," Renjun asked.
  "It's legendary," Haechan said.
  Jeno finally gave them their ice cream.
  Of course, when one complimented the strawberry-flavored one, Jaemin said, "Strawberries should be gone from this world."
  Jisung ice cream off his lips.  He smiled when Renjun pinched his cheeks for being cute.
  "Jeno likes two people as his favorite," Haechan said.
  They laughed.
  "He loves both Chenle and Jisung.  But Jisung likes me."
  "What about you," Mark asked.
  "Also, Chenle likes me.  But the problem is... I like Jeno."
  
 

-

  Mark and Renjun went on a walk... with cameras following them.  The company had chosen a great location, with lots of green, water, birds, doggies.
  The first one got so excited she wagged her entire and ran in a circle and the other jumped up Mark's legs, wanting to be held.
  "Cute," Renjun said.
  Mark tried and failed to get the dog to 'Stay'.  "Yeah, he's not doing it," he said.
  Renjun laughed.
  On the way back, Renjun talked about the ring he always wore.  They'd all decided to get one to represent their bond as friends, a group, and a family.  "I've never had a ring with such significance before."
  "This is the first ring I've ever had," Mark said.
  "It's the same for me too."

-

  Jeno missed the table tennis ball and gave Chenle the paddle.
  "Ah, why is he so bad at this," Haechan asked.  He sent the ball over the net.
  Chenle grinned and said, "I've been saying this since yesterday."  He sent it back.
  Jeno grinned sarcastically.  "Wow, I lost," he said.  "Does this make sense?"  He lowered his jacket off his shoulders and plopped into a chair.  "Is this real?"

-

  Finally, they got their bags and headed for the car.
  "We're leaving," Jeno said and put his bag strap over his chest.
  Haechan carried his suitcase and snapped it down to extend the handle.  He rolled it to the car.
  After they'd all put their bags away, they all played one last tennis table game.  And then they took a picture to remember this vacation.
  They headed for the car, going out of camera view...
  "That's a wrap," their manager said.
  And they were free.
  The fans would think that they left when they actually got to spend another day and night.
  Having fun - without cameras.
  At least, that's what they'd planned to do.
  Chenle's transition could happen at any time.  They had to tell him.
  Jaemin, the nurturer, wanted to be brutally honest and tell him it wouldn't be pleasant.  "It's better to let him know what's going to happen.  That way he can be prepared for it," he'd texted Haechan.
  "That'll just freak him out," he'd replied.
  "It doesn't matter.  This is a serious situation.  It's bound to have a serious reaction to it."
  "Jeno will be upset too because he's the one that gave him the blood."
  Jaemin had rolled his eyes.  "And Renjun will be upset because it had been his idea.  It is what it is."
  They'd been sitting on the couch beside each other, texts becoming ferocious.
  Chenle had bounced into the room, grinning, looking better than he had in months.  "I feel so much better now," he'd said.  He'd been so hopeful that things would be normal again, so he'd told them the whole story.  From tight muscles, achy bones, the nosebleeds to coughing up blood, to Jeno giving him the drops of blood.

-

  Jaemin sighed.  Chenle's laugh echoed up the staircase.  "I guess we can give him a little longer," he texted.
  Haechan groaned and replied, "And now I think we should tell him the truth.  How did this happen?"
  "Let's tell Renjun.  Jeno would get upset and Jisung can't be subtle.  Or... maybe telling Jisung would be the perfect idea."
  Haechan his chin.  "He would become overprotective and Chenle would get suspicious.  He'd wheedle it out of him and boom... problem solved.  Sort of."
  "I think this is a terrible plan," Jaemin said tonelessly.  He looked at him.
  Haechan looked back.  "I agree.  Renjun-ah?"
  "Yes, I'll go kidnap him.  I'll be right back."

NOTE:

The new chapter is up!  :)  [Click HERE to Read CH17 - they are finally camera free!]