He awoke in cold sweat, his hands across his face before he pulled himself out of the sheets softly and pressed his palm against the window, facing the darkness outside the glass panels. It was 4am and a sigh escaped from his parched lips. It was time for him to wake Jongin and get ready for the surgery yet he couldn’t quite bring himself to, his hands trembling softly as they hovered over his shoulder. He knelt down slowly and looked at Jongin sleep, his expression devoid of worries, his eyelids shut softly as he breathed steadily. It would be an arduous hour to the hospital, the tension intensely smogging the air. He could feel it by then, the cold sweaty palms and the battered breath. In a couple of hours he’d have to watch them push Jongin into the surgical theatre and spend a few hours of anxiety before spending days and weeks in the hospital with a hopefully not dejected and overly weary Jongin – he too would be hospital bound, ensuring he kept up a bijou radius around his beloved. He knew that it would be a crucial period in the following six months as the difficulty would’ve been much more difficult than the wait – firstly, six months was obviously much longer than two weeks. Also, it would be painful. Going through a successful surgery would bring hope to Jongin and perhaps ignite more excitement and desires to return to the comfort of his choreographies. Sighing, he heard Yixing knock a cup off the table outside as he got back to his feet.

“Jongin. Wake up. It’s time to leave.” Sehun pat Jongin gently on his shoulder as he moved back to let Jongin squirm a little before sitting up. He stared into the distance for awhile before sighing and turning to Sehun.

“Get ready. You can do this.” Sehun pat his head softly and smiled, hoping that his anxiety wouldn’t betray his fervent attempts to stay strong. Jongin nodded, though obviously not convinced as he pushed himself off the bed and dug through his cabinet before leaving to the washroom to get himself ready. Sehun slumped against the wall, his anxiety getting stronger by the minute. Despite the fact that he wasn’t the one who was about to lie under the glring light amongst a team of men holding their menacing tools, he was worried for Jongin. Worried about how he would react, how he would cope and how he would feel. He knew that Jongin was trying his best to be positive as he clenched his teeth in frustration from time to time. He was a strong fighter, and Sehun knew he would get through this – he hoped he could. As Jongin emerged from the washroom in a black pullover and maroon bermudas, he walked over to Sehun and fell into his arms in a moment.

“I don’t know if I can do this…” Jongin’s voice grew increasingly weak. His tone wavered as he trembled in Sehun’s arms. It was getting to him, he was nervous and scared and Sehun knew very well that he had to do something or say something to reassure him yet he knew he was equally crushed, unaware of how to respond. He simply wrapped his arms around Jongin tightly and his head.

“You can. Stay strong.” Sehun wished he could’ve been stronger for him.

-

Sehun volunteered to drive as Yixing attempted to keep Jongin’s mind off things; he knew he would