Requested by hiwiah on tumblr | Onkey; Onew is sick, Key takes care of him.

"Kibum-" Jinki starts, his voice cracking and crumbling into a loud symphony of coughs that shake his bones and steal his breath as Kibum looks on, feeling helpless. Kibum hates it when Jinki's ill. It's bad for his voice, yeah, and they have a show coming up in two nights to make the situation worse, but Kibum - Kibum worries just for Jinki. To see someone usually so lively and full of thrumming energy, endless optimism, deteriorate into a miserable shell of what they are - it's shocking. And it makes Kibum chew his lip and dig his nails into his palms, wanting to make things better any way he can but plagued with the uncertainty of whether anything he can do will be enough.

Nothing will be enough, but he supposes bringing a spoonful of chicken noodle soup that he spent the last half hour making, perfecting it so that it isn't too salty and it won't burnt he elder's raw throat, to Jinki's lips is the most he can do at the moment. He watches as this ill man takes the broth into his mouth, wincing ever so slightly as it goes down, still burning despite Kibum's precautions.

Sighing, he puts down the spoon, noticing how the elder is smacking his mouth in a way that Kibum deems it dry and uncomfortable, and brings the bottle of water in hand so that Jinki can take a sip of it as well, soothing the burning sensation in the man's throat.

When Kibum pulls the bottle away, diverting his eyes as he leans to place the water on the night stand, sighing softly, but not loud enough for Jinki to hear, he thinks about how the elder could have gotten this bad without the rest of the members knowing. He isn't sure how they missed the red nose, puffy eyes, and constant hacking. When he brings his gaze back up, though, he finds the elder gazing at him with guilty eyes. Then the elder parts his chapped lips, speaking hoarsely, “I'm sorry.”

Kibum frowns, not understanding why the man is apologizing. He can't help that he's sick, after all.

“Why?” Kibum finds himself asking, brows furrowed as he takes a free hand to press against the leader's forehead, feeling the heat that meets it.

“Because I'm the leader, but I'm being useless right now. I should take care of my members, not the other way around.”

Kibum can't help the chuckle that escapes his lips, along with the disbelieving shake of his head. He knows Jinki takes the group atop his shoulders, catering to their every need and taking such wonderful care of them, but he doesn't understand why the elder doesn't let them cater to him every once in a while – just to make up for all he's given them already.

“Hyung,” he begins, tone soft but demanding that the elder listen to him, “You're such a good leader to us, and we all love you, even if sometimes we don't show that we appreciate it. So don't apologize for us having to do what you have to all of the time – we don't mind. You deserve whatever we can do for you, even if it isn't much.” Kibum finds himself murmuring, palm that is till against Jinki's head moving to slide through the blonde locks, smiling comfortingly.

Jinki seems to mull the words over in his tired mind, taking them in before nodding slowly, and Kibum hopes that he understands. When the sharp eyed boy begins to pull away the hand that is caressing the leader's scalp, he's surprised to find a weak grip catching his wrist, pulling to to be held across Jinki's chest.

The leader diverts his eyes, face flushed, but Kibum isn't sure if it's the fever or Jinki himself. “If – if you mean what you say, can you a do me a favor and stay? Just for a little while?”

Kibum feels the corner of his lips tipping up into a smile, and he jokingly huffs an annoyed sigh. “Hyung, you're so demanding. I have a schedule, you know, and -” he cuts off as Jinki releases his hand as if he's been burned.

Kibum laughs, “Kidding, hyung.”

A relieved expression crosses Jinki's face, but the elder doesn't miss the chance to shoot back as Kibum moves from his place of sitting on the edge of the leader's bed, setting the soup aside, to lay down next to the man. “You're so mean to your hyung, especially after all I do for you...”

Kibum pops him lightly on the arm before moving his hand back to the blond locks, caressing gently and avoiding the tangles his fingers make contact with. He shifts a bit closer, reminding him of their debut days when all five of them would sleep in the same room, sometimes cuddling together when things got tough or when one of them needed a warm figure to hold them and comfort them. Jinki had always been a favorite of all the members.

He feels Jinki shift away, and for a moment he feels hurt. Have things really changed that much since they were younger?

But then, he hears that familiar hacking cough, and he makes sure help the elder sit up and regain his breath, patting the man's back gently and comfortingly.

Once again, it's all brought back to him how awful Jinki's illness has gotten, and Kibum finds guilt eating away at his insides.

“Hyung,” he chokes out once the elder finishes his coughing spell, laying back down with Kibum upon his chest (much to Jinki's discretion, because Kibum shouldn't risk getting sick, too) and trying to avoid sniffling – trying to avoid letting too much emotion show. But he can't help that either. “Please take better care of yourself.” he whispers, pleads in a way, and he knows Jinki is listening by the way a hand is rubbing his back soothingly.

The elder's scratchy voice begins to speak again, and Kibum hopes he means what he says.

“Okay, I promise.”

After those three words of agreement, not much else is said. They lay there until Jinki's chest is rising and falling evenly, soft snores escaping the man's mouth, all due to the stuffy nose, and Kibum finds solace in the leader's embrace, much like he had when he was just a seventeen year old kid and Jinki was just a nineteen year old weary barely-on-the-cusp of a man, already giving more than ever expected to his four dongsaengs.

And he hopes, maybe, that this and his words, are enough.