Because I teased you enough with alternate endings... Enjoy the actual story!

(From Chapter 42)

When the doctor walked out of the operating room, the first thing any of them looked for was a somber expression. And when there was none, the room fell into silence as he walked up to the four members and two friends closest to Taemin. “The surgery is going okay and we have a specialist operating on him still as I speak.” A sigh of relief went out throughout most of the room. “However, it is looking like he is going to need a blood transfusion. Not necessarily at the moment, but in the near future. We would like to be prepared for the worst case scenario; him needing blood with no notice.”

They nodded, not quite understanding why it was such a big deal. “Taemin-ssi, he is type B.  The last of the supply was used in an emergency just a few moments ago and we won’t be able to get more until tomorrow at the earliest. Are any of you the same blood type as him and willing to donate?”

Immediately, Key, Minho, and Amber stuck their hands in the air. Others around the room joined them, but the doctor only looked at those three. “Then if you would come with me for a quick check up first, we can get this started.”

“I’m only doing this for Taeminnie.” Key watched with wide eyes as the nurse stuck Amber first and red blood became to flow into the bag. While the girl getting stuck didn’t even flinch, the diva squeaked and squeezed his eyes shut, gripping the chair’s arms tightly with both hands. “Only for Minnie.”

“It’s not all that bad oppa. A little stick and then it doesn’t hurt.” Amber gave him a little smile, but it wasn’t even seen with how tight Key had closed his eyes. “If you can’t look at me getting it down, how will you handle it happening to you?”

“Imagining I’m anywhere else.” He cracked one eye open to look just as the needle was pulled out and a piece of folded gauze pressed to the little spot. “Only for Minnie,” he repeated, practically biting his tongue as his arm was straightened out by the nurse and a small patch cleaned with a cold wipe.

“Want me to sing for you?” Amber was smirking and he could hear it in her voice, but Key was too busy staring at the floor to look at her for proof. He only nodded and she cleared a little before singing the first song that came to mind—some song in English he had never heard before. “Turn away. If you get me a drink, of water, ‘cause my lips are chapped and faded. Call my aunt Marie. Help her gather all my things, and bury me in all my favorite colors. My sisters and my brothers, still, I will not kiss you. ‘Cause the hardest part of this, is leaving you.”

“Really? Of any song you could sing, you pick a song like that?” Key fake-glared at her and she smiled as he didn’t even realize the needle went into his arm until it was in and blood was starting to fill the bag.

“Well it distracted you, didn’t it?” Before he could even ask his next question, she was cutting him off again. “It’s called Cancer. It’s by the band My Chemical Romance. Very fitting.”

“You are an .”

“I know I can be.” She gave a smile, surprising Minho that she even knew the ‘curse’ word. “But so can you. And would you look at that! You’re all done. Thank me later.”

Key finally looked down at his arm just as he was asked to hold the gauze in place like Amber was doing, barely having realized it had happened. “I hate you.”

“Love you too oppa.”

“You guys have the best timing.” The three sat down in the waiting room, having eaten their cookies and drank their juice like Taemin had to do after every blood draw. Now, they were on lollipops, but that stopped at Jinki’s comment. “Not a minute ago, the doctor came in saying Taemin needed blood. You just saved his life.”

That seemed to shock Key a little more than it should have and, coupled with being a little lightheaded from giving blood, he had to lean on Amber’s shoulder to keep steady. The girl stumbled slightly under his weight, but righted herself and managed to guide them both to a seat before they fell. “The doctor had great timing. We just did what he asked.”

“Well Taemin’s okay because of that.”

“But how cool would it be if you could become like someone from having their blood donated?” Jonghyun was smacked up the head by Key for what was close to the tenth time for asking the same question as they sat in Taemin’s dark room, waiting for him to wake up. The dino only gave a little whine at it, completely expecting the slap by now. “You don’t have to be so mean…”

“He called Amber an while getting his blood drawn after she distracted him like he asked her to…” Minho chimed in on the conversation, laughing a little as Key’s glare him.

“You don’t have to tell everyone! I already apologized!”

“Woah, you actually apologized to someone?” Jonghyun might have been the one to ask, but Jinki was listening in just as much from his seat across the room from the three. “Mind. Blown. Do you like her or something?”

Key stayed silent and just started looking at his nails, but they all noticed his cheeks tint red a little. “You do!”

“Shut it Minho. Don’t talk nonsense.” Key tried to sound angry back at the younger, but they could tell his heart wasn’t really in it.

It was with the girl in the waiting room with everyone else.

Taemin watched the fog appear and disappear on the too-big mask on his face with every breath he took. It was about all he could between the pain and the side-effects of the medicines making his mind not work like he wanted it to. It had already been a full day from the surgery, but he still couldn’t do anything but half-lay-half-sit in the bed and watch the others that came in, listening to them talking but not able to respond.

He was dead-set on changing that. Already building up the strength to be able to so do anything, Key danced into the room, followed shortly by the three others that completed their group. “Hi Minnie! We’re back!”

“And we brought you some stuff.” Miho held up the bag he was carrying while Jinki walked forward to place a large and fluffy plush bear by Taemin in the bed. The youngest tried to give a smile, but even if he had, it would have been hard to see with the mask.

“Thanks…” His voice was weak and hoarse, but it was still there. “It’s soft…” Leaning on the toy a little, he tried not to grimace as pain flew through his chest like someone had trapped a wild dove in it.

“You’re talking! That means you’re getting better!” Key gave as enthusiastic of a hug he could without hurting Taemin, wrapping his arms around the boy’s neck and leaning in to the bed instead of pulling the small frame to him. Taemin only gave a little nod a few seconds later, the words finally managing to get through the haze in his mind.

“We brought a whiteboard for you to write on though…” Jonghyun dug through the bag in Minho’s hand, coming out with a small board and marker that he placed on Taemin’s lap. “You can use that too.”

Taemin barely gave it a thought before he uncapped the pen and let the cap fall onto the blanket, only using one hand. He was aiming for moving his arms as little as possible to minimize pain. “Thanks.”

Key erased the word after they saw it and placed the eraser on Taemin’s lap before he joined the others in sitting in the chairs against the wall. “Not a problem. We brought some stuff for you to do during the day too.” He grabbed the bag from Minho without any protest and started pulling things out. First came a laptop. “Someone just has to hook it up to the internet for you. I don’t know how to do that.”

Taemin gave a slight nod, watching with a little smile as Jinki grabbed it from Key’s hand and opened it, starting the computer up. “You should see the fan sites. So many comments are wishing you to get better soon and all.”

“And check this out!” Jonghyun whipped out his phone in the middle of Jinki talking, scrolling for a picture and getting up to show it to Taemin up close. “There are so many presents for you that we can’t even keep them in the apartment! It’s going to take weeks to go through them all.”

“I have the time.”

Time was something he did have then, they had to agreed.

But it wasn’t for long.