Chicken Soup

“Ah, I’m so tired!” Baekhyun groaned as he stripped to his boxers and put on a clean shirt. It was one in the morning and only he and Chanyeol were awake in the whole dorm. Since they were unceremoniously pulled out of their beds a few hours ago to meet up with the producers regarding an error in recording, it probably wasn’t their fault if they’d be out cold the whole morning.

“Yah, no stripping in front of me,” Chanyeol said, his face flushed. “I’ll have nightmares.”

“Haha, funny.” Baekhyun laughed breathily as he slunk onto his bed an curled up in the covers. “You’re not sleeping yet? It’s freaking one in the morning. Our little princess might miss his beauty sleep.”

“Shut up, hyung,” the younger grumbled, throwing a pillow at his beloved hyung. “And no, not yet. I need to finish this book Suho hyung gave me. I’m almost to the last chapter.”

“Whatever you say.” Baekhyun whispered, and a few minutes later, a light snore (or whimper) could be heard every few seconds right after the singer fell into unconsciousness.

It felt like five hours when it had only been a half hour when Chanyeol finished his book. He rubbed his eyes and let out a huge yawn, causing Baekhyun to stir in his sleep.

“Oh, sorry.” Chanyeol whispered out of habit, everytime he think he was the reason someone was disturbed or annoyed. He stood up to put the book back in the shelf and take his shirt off when Baekhyun started mumbling something under his breath.

“What did you say, hyung?” Chanyeol whispered, not sure if his hyung was asleep or not.

“Chan… Chanyeollie…” Baekhyun mumbled incoherently as he tugged at his bed sheets. Probably having a nightmare, Chanyeol thought. As soon as Chanyeol found a comfortable sweater to sleep in, he turned of the lights and slipped into his bed.

“Chanyeol…” Baekhyun mumbled again, now a bit louder. ‘Yah…”

“Hyung?” Chanyeol said with an urgency. He quickly rushed over to Baekhyun’s bed and started rubbing the older’s chest. “What’s wrong?”

Chanyeol touched Baekhyun’s forehead and neck, and cringed at each touch. “You have a fever!”

In a flash, Chanyeol, the naïve and innocent ulzzang, turned into a responsible umma as he rummaged through every cabinet in search of some medicine, found a small towel and some ice cold water and made hot chicken noodle soup, all in a few minutes.

He had Baekhyun propped up against the head board and made him wear a thick, winter jacket over his thin shirt and boxers. His whole body was trembling, and it broke the rapper’s heart. “Open up, hyung.”

“Aaah,” Baekhyun opened wide, and Chanyeol carefully fed him the soup. Baekhyun immediately cringed, tears forming in his eyes, but swallowed the substance anyways.

“Oh my gosh, was it too hot?” Chanyeol immediately gave his hyung some water, which the latter rejected. “Did you burn your tongue?”

“N-No, it’s okay.” Baekhyun said weakly, but Chanyeol wasn’t fooled. The younger immediately opened his hyung’s shivering mouth and checked the damage: Yep, there’s a huge red blotch on his tongue.

“I’ll get some ice.” Chanyeol said, sprinting to the freezer and took some ice cubes, tossing them into a bowl. He came back, and saw Baekhyun trying to get up, wincing at the pain his body was experiencing. It was painful to see, and it made Chanyeol feel very bad about himself for not noticing his hyung’s condition earlier.

“Stop moving around so much and put this in your mouth,” Chanyeol said softly, settling Baekhyun back into his bed.

“Since when has our little princess turned into an umma?” Baekhyun chuckled before putting a whole ice cube into his small mouth. He struggled to keep it in at first, but he indignantly kept the ice cube inside, making him look like a flounder. Chanyeol giggled.

“You look so cute, hyung.” He smiled as he pushed the stray clumps of hair from Baekhyun’s forehead, causing the older to blush. Good thing he had a fever to cover it up.

“I know.” Baekhyun murmured, then without thinking, blurted out something he knew he would regret later. “You’re cute too.”

Chanyeol blushed, and without the excuse of a fever, Baekhyun immediately took notice of it. “You’re blushing.”

Chanyeol’s eyes widened, and immediately lowered his head so his hyung wouldn’t see. “No, I’m not!”

“Yes, you are.” The singer said, laughing. “You’re blushing because I called you cute.”

“Just go to sleep, you old bum.” Chanyeol said as he got off Baekhyun’s bed and headed towards his own, his heart fluttering like crazy.

“No, wait.” Baekhyun called after him, stopping him in his tracks. “Sleep with me please? The night mares might come back.”

“Seriously?” the rapper sighed, slipping into the bed with Baekhyun, his body facing his hyung. “What are you, a kid?”

He could feel his hyung’s warm breath against his face, and took in the scent of mint and chicken soup.

“Just…” Baekhyun started, but let out a resigned sigh right after. “Sleep with me.”

“Okay.”

A few minutes later, Chanyeol’s eyelids started to droop, and he knew he was going to fall asleep any time now, when he felt a pair of skinny but firm arms encircle his waist and someone nuzzle into the crook of his neck. He shuddered as soft lips grazed against his skin, but he didn’t pull away. “Hyung? Are you having bad dreams again?”

“No, I'm not,” Baekhyun whispered. “Is it okay if I hug you? I feel so much better.”

Without saying anything, Chanyeol just adjusted himself so that his arms were wrapped around Baekhyun’s shoulders, and his head rested on top of his. The younger inhaled the scent of his hyung’s hair, and he started to fall asleep.

“I’m sorry you had to take care of me,” Baekhyun whispered. “Because of me, you lost your beauty sleep.”

“It’s okay,” Chanyeol smiled, snuggling closer to his favorite hyung, breathing in his scent so he won’t ever forget it. “We love each other, remember?”