"We're home!" Niel announced as he stepped through the doorway, kicking off his shoes. Ricky nudged him from behind, annoyed.

"Move, idiot. These bags are heavy."

The older boy ignored his dongsaeng's irritated comment and darted into the apartment. Calling out to the emptiness, he trilled, "Byungbyungbyungbyungbyungari!"

"Byung?" Ricky saw him put his head around the door of the guest room which L.Joe had previously occupied and set down the bags to go and have a look.

There was no one there; the curtains were drawn but the L.Joe's bed was empty and the lights were off. Only the tousled sheets gave any indication that the bed had been slept in a while ago. Ricky hesitated, feeling uneasy. His enthusiasm of coming back to be with L.Joe was subsiding and a new feeling of fear was starting to set in...

"Where's Byunghun?"

"Don't know. Byunghun! Where are you?"

"You can't find Byung?" Chunji's voice came from the living room, along with the sound of rustling plastic. He and CAP were probably setting the table.

"Yeah..."

"He's not in his room--"

"Hyung?! Hyung!! Come quick!" Changjo's panicked voice caused everyone's heads to snap to him at once. He was a little ways down the same corridor as the bedrooms, standing in front of the open door of the toilet with a shell-shocked expression on his face.

Ricky and Niel looked at one another and started off towards Changjo at the same time. The younger boy was faster and arrived at the maknae's side first.

"Jjong, what--" then he stopped. His eyes numbly registered what he was seeing and the very air in his lungs seemed to freeze.

L.Joe was lying sprawled on the tiled floor, pale limbs all folded and awkward. He looked like a marionette whose strings had been cut and was just lying there, motionless.

"Oh God." Niel breathed, as soon as he arrived. This snapped Ricky out of his reverie.

He stepped dazedly into the bathroom and kneeled down beside the boy, placing a hand on his shoulder. L.Joe's hands were very cold, but his head was very hot. His face had a sickly pallor to it and his lips almost completely white. There was a darkening bruise on his left cheek and the left side of his forehead, presumably from his fall. It was like the previous morning all over again, except this time, things were worse. Much, much worse.

Fearfully, Ricky placed a palm on his hyung's chest. It rose and fell with sharp, short breaths and his body was jerking slightly; it almost seemed as if he was gasping for air because he couldn't take in enough.

Then he got scared.

"Byunghun. Hyung, wake up! Please. Wake up!"

The teenager stirred fretfully just as Chunji and CAP came running.

"What happened-- omigod, Byung."

He opened his eyes and groaned when the lights hit them. The moans turned into thick hoarse coughs. Each breath he took sounded like a death-rattle and he clutched desperately at his chest, face screwing up in pain.

"Byunghun!" Ricky cried and CAP stepped in quickly, sliding his arms under his dongsaeng's body and turning him around, so that he was flat on his back. But L.Joe didn't seem to get any better, in fact, he was gasping even harder now, shivering violently.

"Niel, go call 911!" Barked CAP. The boy disappeared in a flash.

"Is he going to be okay?" Ricky found himself asking the older boy, an edge of panic creeping into his voice.

"I don't know. Byunghun. Byunghun, listen." CAP tried to get his attention. He responded by looking at him, eyes glazed and exhausted from exertion and pain.

"We're going to move you back to your room, but you must focus on not passing out on us, is that okay?"

L.Joe blinked and grimaced, opening his mouth. A soft strangled-sounding word escaped his deathly-pale lips. They all strained to hear.

"...hurts."

Chunji suddenly looked like he was going to cry and Changjo was so pale, Ricky thought that he was going to pass out too.

"We know it hurts, Byunghun. Just hold on, okay? Hyung." After attempting to comfort L.Joe, Ricky turned to CAP pleadingly to do something, anything.

The eldest responded immediately and, with Ricky's help, lifted L.Joe off the floor.

The boy had never looked so small to Ricky before; even though L.Joe was the shortest and the skinniest among all of them he was mature and had an impressive aura of being someone taller, someone who towered over them and knew just what to do in the worst of situations. But now, now he seemed so tired, so shrunken in CAP's muscular arms, head leaning slightly against his hyung's shoulder and panting slightly. All these things made Ricky scared. Scared that things will get worse, scared that this nightmare wasn't going to end.

Scared for L.Joe. Afraid that he would just disappear.

They went back to Ricky's and L.Joe's shared room instead of the 'sick' one, with Ricky holding L.Joe's limp hand throughout. By then, he had, if it was even possible, become paler. As Ricky covered him with the blankets and tried to make him comfortable, he saw the members glancing at each other, at a loss.

"Don't sleep, Byunghun hyung." He whispered just as the said boy's eyelids started to sink. L.Joe's eyes fluttered open and he gave him a tired smirk. The younger sat down by the bed, aware of the others' uncomfortable shifting behind him, and slipped his hand back into the older boy's. It was cold, weak and so, so fragile Ricky felt his vision cloud with tears. He felt so guilty, so frustrated and so scared. So, so scared.

"The ambulance is on its way." Was the first thing Niel said when he burst into the room. The members moved and encircled the bed, like silent, grim sentinels. Ricky continued to grip L.Joe's hand as his raspy breathing filled the room, firmly, silently telling him not to leave... Not to let go...

~

Another cliffhanger dammit. Things are starting to break down now though, so the next chapter should be quite... interesting?

Gah idk I gonna stay here and spill some stuff so yeah if you don't want to listen, just skip this paragraph.

So I've been on something like a crazy writing spree these few days (even though I have major exams coming up and I'm supposed to be studying. emphasis on supposed) and what I've been working on is a nieljoe fic, plus, recently, a chunjoe one-shot. THE THING HERE IS, the idea for the nieljoe fic is very confusing and a little bit 'What the hell' and even though its 3/4 done, I'm not sure if I should post it because once again, I hurt L.Joe (as in I put him in a bad situation, like in this fic) and it's kinda like a whump!fic in a way. God I'm such a sadist. Same thing with the chunjoe fic. But even though this one is not even half-done, I think I might, might post the oneshot before the nieljoe one just because it's much more coherent, but all the same has some really sad, SAD ideas inside. so yeah. Damn I'm so conflicted right now asdfghjkl.

ok, end of ramble. You can open your eyes now.

Anyway, thank you all so much for commenting, I was surprised actually by the number of comments this time:) so thank you~

Everyone's feeling bad for L.Joe OTL Ricky probably feels really bad though, he's just too scared and unsure to say so... 

@j_n_y_f

Hahaha Chunji scolded that kid. Hopefully he will come out of his shell soon and face the music (and his feelings). He's such a scaredy cat sometimes lol

OMFG RICKJOE IN A ROOM TOGETHER. That's a fantastic idea!

@waniesz

yeah:( I feel mean for torturing him... and here I am, still making him suffer. fffffff i'm so cruel /bricked

Thank you:D

@badvolkan91

This is a really sad situation for everyone isn't it? (OTL I feel so bad towards everyone, especially RickJoe, for making them suffer ;A;)

Ricky is super jealous of ChunJoe! But he's too scared of Cold!Chunji to say anything... tsktsk

I wish there was more too... well:(

@RLteentopRickJoe21

Hello!! Where have you been, I didn't see you around for so many chapters hehe:P

Aww I missed you too>< I was wondering where you disappeared off too hehe

(I get it! As in i understand the double meanings~ YAY)

@OnlyForYa

;A; /passes you tissues

we can cry together asdfghjkl

Thanks for reading guys!! leave a comment to tell me what you think, please? hehehe

HERE HAVE SOME RICKJOE CUTENESS to make up for the sadness this fic puts everyone through

*edit* There was a double paragraph thingy!! Sorry, THANK YOU RLteentopRickJoe21 for pointing it out:D