Chen awoke to a cool, soft sponge on his forehead. Yixing was leaning over him, gently dabbing his face with the sponge.

"You're awake." He smiled and tucked Chen's blanket tighter around him.

"Where am I?" He murmured.

"You're in my house, Chen." Seeing Chen's confused gaze, he continued on. "I'm a doctor, but not any ordinary doctor. I don't treat normal people." He averted his eyes for a while, before refocusing on Chen. "I have an antidote for you."

Chen pushed the blankets back and hoisted himself up, despite Yixing's annoyed gaze. He noticed that his sores were bandaged up and the dirt was cleaned from his body.

"Thank you… But I'm fine, Yixing, I'm not poisoned. I just need to rest."

Yixing furrowed his brow. "You're not fine. I don't mean any normal antidote, Chen."

Chen blinked at him, puzzled.

"I mean... This antidote can help you to recover. To your full capacity."

Chen's eyes widened. Full capacity?!

"It will give you back your powers."

                                                                                    ***

It was a nightmare.

Every waking moment was a nightmare. 

When he opened his eyes, all he could see was a brilliant flash of light, mixed with Min's smirking face, mixed with Jung won's evil laugh, mixed with Chen's back as he walked away.

He would scream and scream until the nurses had no choice but to sedate him. Then he would fall back into a peaceful dreamless slumber, until the next time he woke up.

Chen... He's not here anymore... He's gone!!

                                                                                    ***

"Let me drink it, now!!"

Yixing shook his head decidedly. "I can't."

"WHY NOT?!" Chen shrieked.

"This elixir is extremely deranging and weakening. I need you to recover your strength first before I let you take it."

Chen sighed and slumped on the sheets, crest-fallen. Yixing smiled and pulled him close, wrapping him into a hug. "Be strong, Chen. Then you can get well quickly and go see Luhan."

He sniffled into Yixing's chest. "Are you a being?"

Yixing laughed. "Nope, I'm a human."

"Then how did you get the elixir?"

Yixing pulled away to look at Chen, with a gentle smile. "I'm a researcher. I'm a member of HUMP, but I don't reside at the headquarters. Instead, I travel all around the world for my research."

Chen nodded slowly. "You said Kyungsoo sent you...?"

Yixing sighed with a grim expression. "He called me two days ago and told me to come. He said I was to find a boy called Chen, and he gave me your picture. Kyungsoo... He is an amazing person, he's extremely strong despite being so young."

Chen bobbed his head in agreement. "He destroyed Min."

"I know." A smile grazed Yixing's lips. "Min had to die anyway. He was way too dangerous with that power of his, there is no way we could let him continue living."

Chen hesitated, before asking, "Is Kyungsoo a member of HUMP?"

"No... But we want to hire him once he gets old enough. He's only seventeen." Yixing shrugged. "Such a person is a very valuable asset to us. Furthermore, he has the Banisher ring and that itself is extremely powerful."

"What is it exactly...?" Chen found himself asking.

Yixing chuckled softly. "That story is for another day. I need you lie down and rest now. Understand?"

Chen grumbled, but complied, lying back down on the pillows with a flop. Yixing tucked him in and his cheek. "Go to sleep, I'll wake you when you're ready to take the elixir."

                                                                                    ***

Kyungsoo was sitting beside him when he woke, wearing nerd glasses, reading a Superman comic and cackling to himself.

Chen stared. Kyungsoo looked up and caught sight of Chen's weirded-out look, and began to cackle more. 

Yixing stepped into the room and grinned at Chen. "Ah, you're awake." He poked Kyungsoo and dead panned, "Stop with that stupid laughter."

Kyungsoo snorted, and stowed the book back into his bag, turning to Chen. "Hey, Yixing says you're ready. I'm here to give you moral support."

Chen smiled in gratitude, and then he thought of something, and his grin faltered.

"How... Is Luhan?"

Kyungsoo exhaled loudly. "Not very good. He screams for you a lot and attacks the nurses. He tries to bite Baekhyun when he hugs him. And he refuses to eat and keeps plucking off his drip so the nurses have to keep sedating him."

Chen felt his heart twist in pain. "It's that... Bad?"

Kyungsoo pursed his lips and played idly with Chen's fingers as Yixing got the elixir ready. "It's quite bad. It has been a week since he got admitted, but its not improving. The doctors think he could be mentally retarded."

Chen scoffed. "He's not. He just need a slap on the ."

Kyungsoo and Yixing burst into laughter simultaneously, and he pouted at them. "What?!"

"He needs YOUR slap on the , more like it," Kyungsoo gasped.

Yixing shook his head. "Fancy you cracking such a joke, Chen."

"But you're laughing, Yixing."

Yixing shook his head again, chuckling softly.

Chen rolled his eyes. "Min's Inner Pain effects will take about a week and a half to wear off completely. Luhan should be improving soon."

"Why didn't you tell me that earlier? No wonder you don't look worried at all." Kyungsoo grumbled, as Yixing brought the elixir over to him.

"Chen, drink this." He instructed sternly, all traces of laughing gone. "It will hurt like crazy, and the whole recovery process takes about two to three weeks. You have to take a dose everyday. You are not allowed to leave the house while you're recovering, you hear me?"

Chen nodded eagerly. "Okay okay!!"

Kyungsoo snorted again, and gripped Chen's fingers tightly. Chen tilted his head and Yixing slowly poured the contents of the first dose of elixir. 

Immediately Kyungsoo shrieked in pain. "Oh freak hell dammit ARGHHHH CHEN!!"

Yixing pushed Chen back on the bed and held his head tightly as Kyungsoo screamed on. Chen, on the other head, was shaking and his mouth dropped open uselessly.

"Kyungsoo, why are you screaming?!" He stared at the teenager in surprise. "I expected Chen to scream, not you."

"B-b-but..." Kyungsoo gestured weakly towards his hand, where Chen's fingers was clutching it so tightly that it was worse than a death grip. Yixing blinked.

"Oh, nice of you to share Chen’s pain."

"YIXING HYUUUUUNGGG SAVEEEE MYYYY HANDDDDD!!!!"

                                                                                    ***

Luhan's eyes fluttered open. Chanyeol and Baekhyun were reading a newspaper on the couch a distance away. A nurse was tiredly scribbling on a clipboard at the foot of his bed.

He cleared his throat and she jumped up, running towards him with a syringe.

Luhan chuckled and pushed her away. "I'm fine."

The nurse, together with his two best friends, stared at him with dropped jaws.

Luhan stared back. "What? I said I'm fine. I don't feel crazy anymore."

The nurse fainted clean on the floor. Baekhyun began to cry, and Chanyeol began to whoop.

"Umm... Wait. Who’s supposed to be the crazy one here?" Luhan muttered, shaking his head with a sigh.

                                                                                    ***

It was worse than a nightmare. Everyday he dreaded the moment when Yixing entered with the elixir dose. The pain would surge into his veins and pluck at his nerves mercilessly. It wasn't as painful as Min's Electrocute or Inner Pain, but it was painful enough and lasted much longer. The pain episodes would stretch on for around four hours, and then he would fall asleep and wake up the next morning feeling fine.

Everyday before his therapy, Kyungsoo would drop by and update him about Luhan. How Luhan miraculously became sane again, how Luhan was improving, how Luhan is getting discharged soon. How Luhan would stare into space for hours, how Luhan would cry himself to sleep, how Luhan would call out for him in the middle of the night.

His heart ached with longing, and he desperately wanted to go to Luhan, but he couldn't. 


Before long, it had been two weeks. Chen could feel his power returning, everyday he felt his strength filling up, he would sit on the bed after his sleep and practise again and again. The powers came out weak at first, but as the days went by, it kept improving and becoming stronger.

Yixing sat at the edge of the bed with a happy smile. "Chen, you have four doses left." He let Chen consume his fourth-last dose, and Chen fell back on the bed, biting his pillow.

"What... Day is it today... Yixing?" He mumbled.

Yixing rubbed his chest comfortingly. "It's the 20th April, Chen."

20th April. Wait a second. Why did that date sound so familiar.

Oh . It's Luhan's birthday.


Chen waited until Yixing left the room. In between spasms of pain, he knew he had to get to Luhan today. He couldn't wait till his pain episode was over, because when it did, he would sleep and the next thing he knew, it would be the next day.

Chen crawled off the bed and staggered out of the room.

He bumped into Kyungsoo along the way, whose doe eyes widened in shock. "Chen hyung where do you think you're going?!" 

Chen pushed him against the wall and leaned his forehead against Kyungsoo's, breathing hard. "Don't... Tell Yixing... I left..."

Kyungsoo hugged Chen and rolled his eyes. "You know, it's pretty obvious that you left. Yixing is not blind."

"Don't... Tell him... I'm going... To see Luhan..."

Kyungsoo blinked several times, and nodded. "I know why you're going to see him. Okay, I'll tell Yixing you are safe. But promise to come straight back after this?"

Chen nodded weakly.

Kyungsoo squeezed his shoulders before pulling away. "Now go, hyung. Give me a call if you need me."

                                                                                    ***

Luhan laid on his bed silently, watching the Newton's cradle tick back and forth, momentum never seeming to falter at all. 

Chen... Where are you? It's my birthday... Do you remember? 

His eyes slowly slipped shut as the ticking lulled him to sleep.


"Luhan... Happy birthday."

Luhan felt warm shaky arms wrapping around his body, and he leaned into them.

"Chen..."

It's just a dream, Luhan mused sleepily, his eyes still firmly shut. It's a dream.

"Luhan, wait for me... I'll... Recover quick and... Come back properly... Okay?"

Luhan nodded. "Okay."

He felt a soft kiss on his lips, and he sighed. He could almost feel the sweet breath on his face, the trembling heartbeat of the other as his body pressed close to his own.

How real can dreams get?

The arms slowly unwound themselves, and Luhan sighed, his lips pouting instinctively. There was a weak chuckle. 

"I'll... Be back soon..."

Then there was silence.

Luhan slowly opened his eyes. 

My body feels warm, my cheeks are hot, my lips are tingling, my skin has goosebumps... How is this a dream?!

He sat up. Was it really a dream?!

The quiet ticking of the Newton's cradle was the response he got. He gave a tired sigh and laid down again.

A/N: I changed the titles becos they were too long plus it was supposed to be a guideline for me. Now that i've finished writing the story, I can remove those long "twenty-something"s haha :D

Hope you enjoyed it! :D

MY RANDOMNESS SPOT:

Support my new fic! I will start on it once i've finished posting all the chapters of this story :D

(The following videos are credit to owner and exochocolate, where i found them)

Even though its 18 seconds I SEE EXO AND SHINEE 2PM AND APINK AND GIRLS DAY AND ASDFGHJKL :D

@0:50 lol at that guy's face (y) HAHA

@1:41 OMGGG

@2:20 SEO IN GUK!!!!!! xD (idk why but i really like him HAHA)

@3:23 SPAZZES because TAEMIN you are too near NOOOO!!!!!!! and @3:34 K.WILL AHHHHH

@5:02 lol ghei moment HAHA

(No EXO yet...)

@0:28 AHHHHH

@1:30 LUHANNNNNN *dies*

@2:14 XIUHANNNNNNNNN *hyperventilates*

@4:23 Krystal is so cute xD and that hair ruffle awwwh

(WHERE ARE THE REST OF EXO?!)

@0:02 YAYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!

@0:13 becasue I love SeKaiLayChen <3

*dies around awhile and wakes up to continue watching*

@0:48 Jonghyun and SHINee!! :D wait. wait WHY ARE TWO TAEMINS HAHAHAHAHAHAA

@1:06 Taemin glaring at himself HAHAHA I CAN'T

@3:20 CANT BREATHE CANT BREATHE CANT BREATHE>>>.. SCREAMMMMMMMM!!!! (and chenchen picked up the paper right? hehe)

@4:01 IU came too YAY!!

This show is so sweet, like awww :D and the double taemin part was hilarious, like HAHAHA

Until next time  :D