It had been a quiet night.

The only noise he could listen to were the nurses' footsteps as they were supervising patients, the sound of a wheelchair that couldn't move properly, or the screech of beds when people couldn't find a comfortable position to sleep. Dinner time was coming soon, but he couldn't think of eating at a time like this (really hard to believe coming from him), he couldn't think of eating when he was this frustrated; he had been waiting all day long and it hadn't come yet. He was standing under the doorframe of his own bedroom, his head popping out of it looking for any sign of a excited nurse coming to the main desk a few feets away from his room.

Besides de normal pain groans that would awaken him from his irregular naps, the clash of medical instruments with the metal trays as the nurses and interns prepared for surgery, the constant movement of the beds as they were reaccomodating them to make space for new patients or the patients moving on the hallways with their wheelchairs, there hadn't been anything new that day; and that was what was frustating him.

Because he knew.

Ever since that morning when he woke up in his house, there was this feeling on his chest that had been telling him that he'll see a new kind of pain soon. And he was scared, because he first thought that something would happen to him, that he would receive awful news from his doctor, that he'll end up crying because his condition had gotten worse or something. But then he reasoned that he had gone through all that kind of pain already, and he conviced himself that any other bad new wouldn't be as bad as the ones he had already thought himself and had already let sink on his mind.

So there he was. Feet guiding him in circles around the small white room, still waiting for that to appear in front of him. He sighed, letting his exhausted body to fall on his not-so-comfy bed. He slowly reached for the control that was on the night stand near his room and pushed the button. Not even three minutes lates, a nurse crossed his door and smiled gently at him.

"Want me to call Dr. Lee?" she asked, knowing he always talked to Dr. Lee when he pressed the button.

"Please, Tiffany, I'm sorry I always ask you girls to call him for me" he apologized, he didn't like calling his doctor since he never knew when the latter could be in surgery.

"He's in the cafeteria right now, let me go get him"

She quickly made her way out of the room, leaving him alone once again. He closed his eyes and relaxed on the hard mattress below him, letting his body to recover some energy. He hated getting tired that easily, he couldn't do what he loved the most anymore and that surely tored him apart when he was younger. 

"You must have done a lot today if you're trying to sleep in that bed." a frown crossed his face when he heard his friend chuckle.

"I've been walking in circles for an hour, and I must have given about three rounds over the entire hospital. Of course I'm this tired." he replied, annoyed because indeed he was dead tired.

His friend stayed quiet for a bit before speaking again.

"You've been taking your medication?" he's not looking at his best friend and doctor when the latter sighs at the question.

"Yes. Been taking them daily as you told me, haven't miss a transfusion in the last month either."

"Good. We don't want you to come here almost dead again, Hyukjae." he says in a mocking tone. But Hyukjae knows he means it, he's the only one that cares if he dies or not after all. "You needed something? Tiffany said you called me."

"Hae, I'm bored, why don't you eat here with me instead of the cafeteria? You prefer eating with Jessica, don't you?" he says, he didn't want to go home until the feeling left his chest.

"I thought you had already gone home when my shift started, and you didn't even called me to say you had an appointment today" pout on his face, crearly hurt at his friend's accusation. 

"It was supposed to be your day off."

Hyukjae had his arm covering his eyes now, the reflection of the light above him was making him uncomfortable. He felt a foreign weight by his side, and knowing it was Donghae he decided to stay still. Feeling his arm being pulled upward, Hyukjae groaned when his friend lifted his sleeve, revealing his almost entirely pale skin.

"The hematomes almost dissappeared," he watched Donghae smile at his words, he was feeling relieve. 

He pulled his arm away, not feeling happy when someone looked at his bared skin like that; not even his best friend. Donghae was still smiling though, knowing how his favorite patient hated the action, but still complying when he knew he had to let himself be checked. It wasn't normal though. By this time, the hematomes must have dissappeared completely or at least don't be as marked as they still were. He didn't want to think that his friend's condition was different from other people's, but he preferred thinking that it was because the latter was extremely paled.

He stood up, "If you're bored you might as well accompany me at the cafeteria, you know? Jessica is covering Hyorin's shift today, so I was alone." Hyukjae groaned, didn't feel like standing up. "I'll treat you something."

Donghae wasn't even given the chance to blink when a gummy smile was displayed just in front of him, surprising him. 

"Let's hurry up then!"

He could just sigh, seeing his best friend leaving the room with big steps. He should never forget that food made Hyukjae cross rivers.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Donghae was now frowning, tapping the table with the tip of his fingers. He eyed at the male that was sitting in front of him, head hung low and pout on his face.

"I can't" the pouting male said.

"Don't understand why though" he said, not really sounding frustrated as his face would show.

Hyukjae gulped. Because he had come to the cafeteria and gleefuly let Donghae buy him food and even dessert, but the moment Donghae put the tray in front of him, he couldn't even look at it. His stomach felt like filling itself, his chest was shrinking and the pressure from before was coming again.

Sure he was happy when he heard the words "food" and "treat" together, to the point to make him forget his frustration for a moment.

But now he had two bowls of noodles, a large beverage and a strawberry shortcake. And he wasn't like eating anymore.

"I just... don't feel like eating."

He heard a sigh again.

"It's ok Hyukkie, I can eat the noodles and I'll ask the cafeteria personal to make your dessert to go." Donghae smiled at his friend, not wanting to make Hyukjae feel bad. He was rewarded with a shy smile.

Donghae had already started eating his own noodles, slurping the contents of the bowl. Gazing over to his companion, he couldn't help but notice that Hyukjae had been shuffling on his sit for minutes already. Donghae knew the latter was feeling anxious about something, he just didn't want to push him to tell him what was happening, so he just played dumb. Hyukjae always had a hard time talking about how he felt, he didn't like people knowing he was feeling scared, weak, mad or anxious. He always changed the subject when asked, and everything went smooth afterwards, but Donghae always saw the glint of relief in Hyukjae's eyes when everyone forget the matter.

"Has anyone been hospitalized?" Hyukjae asked all of a sudden.

Donghae raised an eyebrow, "I suppose so, everyday someone gets hospitalized over something." Hyukjae shooked his head.

"I don't mean it that way, I'm mean something like an emergency." his head was hanging low again, not really wanting a positive answer to his question.

"Nothing out the usual, you know, just extremely hard colds, two or three pregnant women... that's what's been reported to me, at least."

Hyukjae just nodded, staring blankly to the air. Donghae just chuckled.

"Worried about something?" 

"No" ah, a nervous smile.

Donghae just let it be, smiling silly to his friend. Time would come soon.

Hyukjae relaxed after that. They starting talking about trivial stuff, Donghae started whining about how Jessica stood him up, barely kissing his lips before the girl ran to Dr. Park, Hyorin's boss. They were supposed to eat dinner together before she started her shift and Donghae went back to his, it was the only opportunity they'll have that day to meet each other. But everything fell apart when Hyorin, Jessica's friend, asked her if she could cover her shift since she had a family emergency (code for party at her boyfriend's house). 

"She's a good friend, and you'll get to have dinner with her some this weekend, Hae." Hyukjae commented, smiling at his sulking friend.

"But I wanted to feed her! Make her say 'Ahhhh~' and see her cute face!"

Hyukjae rolled his eyes, his friend was 26 years old and yet he was like a teenager in love.

"I'm sure she'll make it up to you."

"Well she better do!"

Donghae put the last bowl of noodles in the tray, stretching himseld in his sit. He was sure the night shift wouldn't be easy now, he was already sleepy.

"Sorry for making you eat all that, you must be tired already."

"Not as much as you" Donghae answer, standing up and ruffling Hyukjae's hair before heading back to the hospital halls.

Hyukjae didn't spare time and followed him.

Donghae smiled when he felt his friend trailing his steps. They were about to get to the elevator when a group of nurses ran pass them. Donghae got out of the way, seeing that another group of nurses were heading to the emergency entrance with a bed.

"Something must have happened." Donghae thought looking how the nurses now entered again with the same bed, a female laying down, probably unsconcious.

He was already turning to face Hyukjae and tell the ladder to head back home, but before he could open his mouth the male was already running towards the multitude of people that were following the young lady.

Hyukjae didn't know why he was running to the crowd of people, all he knew is that he had to look at the girl. His chest was pounding like crazy, he was stretching his neck just to take a glimpse of that person that was laying in the bed and was quickly been taken to the hospital corridors. He bumped a lot of people, and he knew that his skin would be even more purple the next day, but he couldn't care about that. The pounding on his chest was increasing and he felt scared that he would suddenly just drop on the floor without any energy left to even lift his head, his legs were already that tired. 

His eyes gazed at a different person running besides the bed, different clothes from those of the nurses and doctors that were all over the person on the bed. He couldn't get a close look, but he knew it was a man, taller than him and with really messy brown hair. He was talking to the person, he looked desperate as his head constantly moved from the unconscious person and the doctor that was probably telling him that they had to take her somewhere he couldn't access.

He didn't really realized when the bed cross the doors that led to the surgery corridor. That long corridor that he had passed already and that felt like eternity until his eyes finally closed due to what the nurses applied him.

He was standing in front of the doors, his mind not really functioning as he was currently trying no to fall to the floor.

"Ugh... nff" Hyukjae came back to his senses when he heard  a sob. His eyes quickly looking down at the source of the sound.

And that's when he felt it. The pang in his chest again. His chest shrinking at the view that was in front of him. Messy hair, trembling hands that were vainly trying to stop the tears that fell from those red and puffy eyes. Tears that runned through scarred yet clear skin, pointy nose and settled in trembling thin lips before falling from a quivering chin. The man was practically made a ball, his long legs crashed to his chest.

Hyukjae gulped hardly, feeling his stomach twist as he heard the man sobbing hard on the floor. The man looked destroyed, like his heart had been ripped out of him. Hyukjae looked back at the doors in front of him. Who was that person?

His heart was pounding heart, and Hyukjae didn't know if it was because he had run or because of the man that was beside him.

"Hyukjae!" Donghae's voice startled him, making him turned immediately, "Oh my God, Hyuk!"

Donghae's alarmed tone wasn't good. He felt the latter pulling his chin up, making him look at the ceiling. Donghae took his handkerchief out of his pocket, quickly wiping the blood that was running out of Hyukjae's nose.

"Your nose is bleeding, let's get to your room." Hyukjae could only let himself be dragged, giving a last look at the man that was still cuddled in the floor. His heart beating faster when he saw the man was still sobbing hard.

And Hyukjae wonder why he wasn't feeling the pressure on his chest anymore. Was the sobbing man the reason of it? But why? Who was that man, who was the person that went through the infinite corridor for him to be crying like that?

Hyukjae would have to ask Donghae for information.

-------------------------------------------

Then, again. Sorry for the short update and sorry if it wasn't what you guys expected, the end turned different from what I have planned but at the same time it was the same, lol. Hope you like it, please comment if you did or if you didn't, reviews are always good.

Thanks for the ones suscribing and commenting <3 If you have any question, don't be scared to ask, I'll try to answer without giving everything away xD See ya ~