While the doctor moved off to make phone calls to TaeMin’s family MinHo moved back into the room. He was under a daze watching the nurses cater to TaeMin. The young boy’s eyes were opened and staring around at his environment with confusion. He resembled a deer in headlights the way he was glancing around. The breathing tube had been pulled out of his mouth, too, but unfortunately all the other machines had remained.

            A nurse was holding TaeMin up while another was holding a cup of chilled water with a straw to his lips. The one with the cup smiled at MinHo as he walked in.

            “He’s very weak and a bit disoriented but it’s better than being in a coma, right?” She rubbed TaeMin’s back and then handed the cup to MinHo. “Would you like to take over? I have to check his IV.”

            The boy was more than happy to take the cup from her. He steadied it at TaeMin’s lips and used his free hand to brush the hair of TaeMin’s temple. His innocent brown eyes stared at MinHo was confusion. Yet all MinHo could feel was this overwhelming bundle of happiness tearing through his trance like state.          

            As soon as the nurses left and stopped fussing over him TaeMin raised his trembling hand to touch MinHo. The small move was clearly a lot of his energy out of him. MinHo lowered the cup and held on to TaeMin’s cold hand.

            “Welcome back,” MinHo whispered.

            TaeMin’s skeleton fingers held on to his boyfriend’s smooth ones. With one thumb he gently traced over his skin – the one familiar thing he recognized since he woke up from… He wasn’t even sure what he’d woken up from. The last thing he remembered was going out to get a bit of fresh air since he’d been feeling light headed. When he’d woken he had felt and heard MinHo and then it was chaos. He could barely speak since his throat was dry and felt like sand paper. His body wouldn’t listen to him to the point where even lifting his hand the way he was doing now needed lots of effort.

            Fear was slowly churning into TaeMin’s stomach. It slipped icy ropes around his chest and tugged until scarlet beads of blood trickling out of the thin wounds. The coldness spread like a virus, too. Soon TaeMin had fat tears rolling down his sunken cheeks.

            “Shh, it’s okay…” MinHo cooed. He moved closer to TaeMin so that his bottom was seated on the mattress by his side rather than the hard backed chair. He brought TaeMin’s weak body into his chest and held him like a small child while he cried his insecurities out.

            Exhausted from the evenings events TaeMin didn’t even have the strength to cling to MinHo’s shirt. Even his lungs seemed to be too tired to take the sobbing gasps that he really felt like taking.

            He was so confused by everything. There were only two things that TaeMin was sure about. One, MinHo’s embrace was as amazing as ever and he missed his terribly. Two, something bad had happened/was happening and he couldn’t figure out what.

            “MinHo h-hyung…” he whispered hoarsely when his cries died down to little hiccup-like whimpers. His second word disappeared with a crack as his voice was still not able to rise back to its usual standard of volume.

            “It’s okay TaeMin… You’re safe, okay? I got you… And your family is going to be here soon, too,” MinHo assured. His lips pressed into TaeMin’s hair, something he had missed doing.

            TaeMin nodded and indulged in the elder’s small caresses. Eventually he felt his body shutting down in a fashion similar to the way a machine would when needing to conserve its energy. MinHo helped him get comfortable, fluffing up the pillows, arranging his wires and tucking him in. His fingers once again brushed TaeMin’s hair out of his face, kissing the bare skin underneath it.

            “Rest up… I’ll be here when you wake up,” MinHo promised.

            The young boy gave a small bob of his head before succumbing to the calling slumber inviting him into its chambers.

~

            JongHyun got the call regarding TaeMin’s awakening late at night. Or early in the morning depending on how you looked at it.

            The alarm clock on his nightstand flashed 1:02 am when the trill sound of the phone forced him out of his deep sleep. A groan ripped out of him and he rolled onto his side to try and reach the phone. In his sleep induced clumsiness, however, he only succeeded in knocking it off its stand. The clatter is expelled as it collided with the hard wood floor was almost more excruciating than the continuous ringing.

            Judging by the crash coming from Onew’s room he had heard it, too. JongHyun assumed he had answered because the screaming cries of the phone had ceased. He was ready to fall back asleep like nothing had happened when the older boy’s muffled voice grew louder. Soon his door was swinging open and the phone was connecting with his head in the most painful of ways.

            “Go away, I’m sleeping,” JongHyun moaned.

            “It’s for you,” Onew replied, ignoring the younger’s complaints.

            Usually JongHyun would have ignored the phone and resumed sleeping. This time was different, though, since there was an urgent voice screaming his name repeatedly on the other line. Curiosity pricked at him and he ended up lifting the phone. It flopped lazily against his ear, still not awake enough to keep a proper grip on it.

            “He’s awake! He’s awake JongHyun!” TaeMin’s mother yelled.

            “What?” JongHyun asked. He straightened up in his bed, suddenly more awake than is he’d had a bucket of ice water dumped down his pants. “Who’s awake?” he asked.

            “TaeMin! He woke up! I’m sorry for calling so late, but there was so much happening and by the time everything settled down it was really late but I realized I hadn’t called you yet and I’m really sorry about everything JongHyun but he’s awake! TaeMin’s awake!” She finished with a big gasp of breath. The smile could practically be heard in her voice. Hell, JongHyun couldn’t’ stop his own smile from breaking out like a teenager’s pimples during puberty.

            He forgot about how he’d been deceived by her and joined in on the excitement.

            “How is he? When did he wake up? I can’t believe it…” he stuttered.

            TaeMin’s mother moved on to explain everything in great detail. JongHyun listened intently while rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. His hands trembled with a combination of nervousness, excitement and anxiety. He found it near impossible to keep still and he jumped up to pace back and forth across his room. It was a horrible idea. He tripped over his duvet and some loitering clothes with each trip across the room. Needless to say, he was making quite a big ruckus considering the early hour.

            “I have to go see him…” JongHyun murmured to himself more than to TaeMin’s mother.

            “He’s asleep now, and you should be, too! And me too!” TaeMin’s mother reprimanded. He heard her take in a big gasp air. “I’ll come pick you up tomorrow morning, okay? Your mother and I will be there at ten thirty so you better be ready. Good night JongHyun!”

            “Wait! My mom? Hello? Hello?” JongHyun listened in exasperation as the tone mocked him.

            It felt like he’d just gotten a caffeine boost to his system. With this bit of information whirring through his head like a bullet train. His room proved to be acting like a cage. He felt like an agitated tiger roaming around in circles around his room.

            JongHyun moved out to the kitchen, poking his head into the fridge, closing it and nosing around in the cupboards afterwards. Nothing was helping to calm down his jiving nerves.

            While pacing across the living room JongHyun ended up crashing into the glass table. He let out an involuntary howl as he felt the sharp corner dig into the space between his bone and muscle. Hopping on one leg he moved throughout the living room like a kangaroo-flamingo crossbreed. Somehow he managed to make more noise on his way to the couch than he’d done that whole day.

            With all of the ruckus he was making it wasn’t a big surprise when Onew stood in the doorway to his room, blinking the sleep out of his narrowed eyes.

            “What are you doing?” the grumpy boy demanded.

            “TaeMin’s awake!” JongHyun exclaimed and it proved to be the only answer Onew needed. And even though he knew JongHyun knew he would have to face his mom the next morning he knew that it was the only answer he needed, too.