I gradually blinked awake, noticing a comforting weight just below my ribs and finding myself staring into Kris’ warm eyes. He was laying on his side, chin propped on one palm, the other hand loving circles along my waist.
    “Morning.” Kris murmured, blunt nails running soothingly along my skin. Goosebumps trailed up in the aftermath of his affection, the slightly ticklish sensation making me smile sleepily. There was an immediate slice of pain in my cheek and I winced, watching Kris’ crescent eyes narrow in concern.
    “Does it hurt badly?” Kris asked softly, his fingertips whispering over the gauze covering carefully. I shook my head, reaching out to place a hand on the ridge of his hipbone and draw him closer, the tip of my thumb slipping just under the hem of his sweatpants, his skin warm. 
    “How do you feel?” I asked, my throat scratchy and hoarse. I turned over my shoulder, seizing the half-full bottle of gatorade from the nightstand and downing a quarter of it. I offered the other part to Kris, his eyes closing and the muscles of his throat working as he finished off the blue liquid. 
    “Better. Tired.” Kris said, setting the empty bottle down and reaching out to rest his hand gingerly on my jaw. I watched him from my pillow, his fingers reverent lines along the underside of my jawbone and across my neck. 
    “Me too.” I sighed, scooting forward to bury my face in his chest. He wrapped his arm around me, pulling me closer and curving down to rest his chin on the top of my head. I breathed in his warmth, closing my eyes and feeling the tense muscles of my shoulders relax.
    His heartbeat thudded reassuringly along my right cheekbone, his breath soft and slow along my forehead. He smelled of safety and medicine, a hint of gatorade still on his breath. I tipped my face up, moving slowly, and nosed tenderly along his throat. 
    The edge of his collarbone was hard under my lips and I pressed my mouth more firmly against it, kissing the thin skin over the bone. Kris’ hand brushed over the back of my head, combing through my hair and prompting me to look up at him.
    He gave me a barely-there smile and curved his fingers across the shell of my ear, letting them rest against the edge of the tape on my cheek. His thumb carefully over the gauze, creating a sound that crawled through my ears. 
    “I was so worried when you were gone.” Kris breathed, his eyes closing for a moment and a pained crease forming between them at the memory. I smiled slightly and his eyes opened, his fingers sensing my movement.
    “I’m here now.” I said, reaching up to cover his hand with my own. I laced our fingers together, pulling his hand away to kiss gently at his palm. 
    “And I’m so happy about that.” Kris grinned, his eyes crinkling when he tugged his hand away gently and wrapped his arm around me again.
    I smiled into his chest, glancing up slightly when his fingers crept up to cup my jaw. He tilted my head up and our eyes met, faces pausing a centimeter apart and our breath mingling across my chin. 
    “I love you.” Kris said, resting his forehead against mine. A smile stole over my lips and I closed my eyes, our noses rubbing together slightly when he tilted his head to the side.
    “I love you more.” I said, part of my words disappearing into his mouth when our lips pressed together. 
    Kris’ lips were warm and soft, tugging against mine slightly when he opened his mouth. The tip of his tongue flicked over my bottom lip and the edges of my mouth curled up, my own tongue reaching out to tease over his lip. Kris’ hand stole up to tangle in my hair once more, his tongue slipping ever so slightly into my mouth. I savored the warm feeling spreading through my veins, my own hand tightening in the collar of his shirt and sliding desperately against his neck, needing to feel more of his smooth skin against mine.
    I pushed against his shoulder firmly, turning Kris onto his back and disconnecting our lips briefly. Kris’ eyes widened in surprise but I only smiled, leaning over him and stacking our lips together hurriedly. I cast a leg over his hips and leaned forward, settling my weight on the elbows propped on either side of his shoulders and deepening the kiss. Both of his arms were free now to wrap around my , his hands flat against my shoulder blades, pulling me down closer to him. His hands slipped down and splayed between my intercostal muscles, flexing against my ribs when I gave a particularly skillful flick of my tongue. 
    Kris kept one hand on my back, his other reaching up to rest on my face, guiding me closer against him. His teeth toyed ever so slightly with me, his fingertips trailing fire against my skin. I pulled back gently, opening my eyes and struggling to catch a breath. There was a familiar dizzy rush as air washed back into my lungs, Kris’ fingertips running over my swollen lower lip, a pleased smile on his mouth as he gazed at his work.
    He pulled me back down to rest my forehead against his, holding my eyes and exhaling slowly.
    “Never leave me again.” Kris mumbled, his inky black lashes brushing my own when he blinked. 
    “I promise.” I breathed, skimming the tip of my nose against his and taking a deep breath. Kris nodded, his eyes closing, and we remained pressed together for several heartbeats.
    “Come on.” Kris said finally, opening his eyes and sitting up. I knelt over his thighs, knees resting on either side of his legs, and tilted my head to the side.
    “Where are we going?” I asked, my hands resting instinctively over the broad expanse of his chest. His heart beat against my fingertips and I focused on the rhythm of it, relaxing. 
    “To fix that.” Kris said, hand resting on the top of my hip and the other gesturing over the gauze on my face. When I didn’t move, confused, Kris wrapped his arms around my back and stood. 
    My legs dropped down onto the floor and he released me slowly, making sure I had my balance before letting me go. The floor was cold against my feet and I shivered, stretching my arms up over my head and struggling not to yawn.
    Kris led me to the bathroom, reaching down to swing me up onto the countertop and stand between my knees. I closed my eyes instinctively when he pulled the tape away, a rush of cool air running over my flesh. Kris gave a sympathetic hiss and I opened my eyes, looking at his half-horrified, half-pitying expression and self-consciously covering the stitched gash.
    “I know, it’s ugly.” I mumbled, lowering my eyes and fixating on the countertop, my cheeks flaming.
    “Peach, no.” Kris said softly, his voice pleading. “That’s not what I meant.” 
    I was quiet, slowly meeting his eyes but letting him carefully pull my hand away. He considered the wound critically, his fingertips featherlight on my chin when he tipped my head to the side.
    “It’s deep. I can seal it, but it’ll still scar. What did this?” Kris asked, reaching under the sink to pull out a small basket of scissors, tweezers, and nail files.
    “Part of a concrete wall.” I said, watching him nod and carefully select a pair of tweezers. “What are you doing?”
    “There might still be debris in the laceration. I’ll have to make sure it’s clean before I heal it.” Kris said, also pulling out a bottle of rubbing alcohol and sterilizing the tweezers and a pair of scissors. 
    “Will it hurt?” I asked. I turned towards the mirror, looking at the rough line of stitches and the dried blood around the black thread. The bruising around the cut was magnificent, purple and green blending with black and red.
    “No, I’ll take the pain away.” Kris reassured me, turning my head back towards him and pressing a kiss to my forehead. “Relax.”
    He rested a soft fingertip on my cheek and warmth rushed through my skin, a soft tingling that spread over my entire cheek until it felt tight. Kris raised the tweezers and scissors, focusing in on my face intently. 
     “Wait!” I stopped him with a hand on his fingers, curling mine around his. Kris raised a questioning eyebrow, his brow furrowing. 
    “What’s wrong?” Kris asked, hesitantly lowering the tools. 
    “Are you strong enough?” I frowned, wanting to make sure he had healed enough from our ordeal. 
    “Of course. Come on, let me go.” Kris encouraged, waiting for me to withdraw my hand before continuing.
    There was a slight tugging sensation from my face but no pain, and I quickly relaxed. I closed my eyes, a wet trickle sliding down my jaw the only evidence of Kris’ work. I could feel him dabbing at the blood with a wad of tissues, looking down at the rapidly growing pile of tiny stitches next to me. 
    “Almost done.” Kris said, leaning in close to peer at the exposed gash. He sterilized it quickly with rubbing alcohol, nodding in satisfaction and setting the tweezers aside.
    “No debris.” Kris confirmed, raising his hand to my face and closing his eyes. The heat that spread through me was almost too hot, and I gritted my teeth when the tight feeling increased. It took several long seconds before the sensation eased, my skin cooling as Kris withdrew his hand and considered me carefully. 
    “I could try to get rid of the scar, but I don’t think I could. Maybe Calum has something that would fade it…” Kris said apologetically, looking at my face regretfully.
    I held up a hand to stop him, touching the scar gently and inspecting it. There was no pain and I turned, finding my face in the mirror.
    The scar was a thick, dark red line, stretching from my cheekbone to my jaw. The scar itself was shallow, the surrounding bruising gone, and I smiled experimentally, noting that the scar didn’t hinder my ability to move. 
    “Don’t worry about it. It does’t really bother me, as long as it doesn’t bother you.” I said honestly, looking back at him. Kris’ eyes softened and he shook his head, turning on the water to wash the blood from his hands.
    “You look beautiful. That scar is a souvenir from the day you saved my life.” Kris said, smiling. I met his smile with one of my own, helping him throw away the used tissues and clean off the tools.
    “We should go check on the others.” I said, looking towards the doorway to the hallway and sighing. Kris nodded, curling an arm around my waist and resting his chin briefly on my shoulder. 
    We walked out into the hallway and I paused outside the guest room, frowning. 
    “What?” Kris asked, looking down at me confusedly. His fingers flexed in the small of my back, prompting me forward, but I didn’t budge.
    “Wait a minute…there’s something missing.” I said, furrowing my brow. I looked around, crossing my arms, and then my eyes widened in horror. “Where’s Minji?!” 
    “Calm down. We took her to Calum’s beforehand and then gave her back to Luhan when it was time.” Kris reassured, leading me on down the stairs. I nodded, relieved, and continued.
    “Hello?” Kris called softly, delicious aromas winding their way through the air as we reached the kitchen. An unfamiliar woman was standing at the stove, her back to us as she cooked.
    “Who are you?” I asked, prompting her to turn. She had high cheekbones and long red hair that curled to the small of her back. Her skin was clear and milky, her eyes a shimmering green.
    “Hi. You boys hungry?” She asked, gesturing to the hot omelettes she had just flipped out of the frying pan. I nodded, my stomach cramping, and Kris reached hungrily out for the plates.
    “I’m Jana, Alek’s mate.” She said, offering us forks and then nodding towards the breakfast nook. She had a soft British accent and pearly white teeth, her incisors long and sharp. “They moved the dining room table fully into the breakfast nook so they could keep everything together.”
    “How’s everyone doing?” Kris asked between hurried bites. 
    “Yoichi started rejecting the dialysis around one this morning. His body started displaying symptoms again, so they hung more blood and disconnected the machine. I think Calum was just about to try a new approach from his arm.” Jana said, washing up the plates in the sink.
    “And Aoi?” I asked, worried. Jana gave me a quiet smile and an encouraging nod, stacking the dishes up in the cabinet. 
    “He woke up for a bit a few hours ago, but I don’t think he’ll remember it. You can go see the both of them now.” Jana said, gesturing to the breakfast nook. 
    “I’ll go.” I said, letting Kris stay behind to eat. Jana nodded and served up another omelette for him, obviously used to feeding large appetites from Alek. 
    I walked into the nook, looking around at the silent dialysis machine and sleeping people. Calum and Alek were awake, talking quietly on the floor and comparing a strange array of sealed sterile tools. They both fell silent as I waved a greeting, wandering over to stand in between the two tables. 
    Aoi was curled up on his table, his head resting on a pillow and a blanket bunched around his waist. He still had an IV of saline hydrating him, but other than that he looked almost normal. There was color in his cheeks, a healthy flush that made him look peaceful and rested. 
    In contrast, Yoichi looked pale and sick. His skin was white, dark shadows deepening his eyes and making him look skull-like. His hair was swept back off his forehead and there was still a catheter in his neck, the tubing removed and the lead capped off. 
    “What’s wrong with him?” I asked quietly, looking over at Alek and Calum. Calum stood tiredly, rolling out his shoulders.
    “It was too much to try to filter all of his blood at once through the machine; too much volume. The machine got backed up and the bad blood mixed with the clean again. We’ll have to do it again and hope this works this time.” Calum said, wheeling the pump over to Yoichi and setting down a handful of plastic-wrapped medical tools.
    “Can I help?” I asked, noting Calum’s tired eyes. Calum nodded, guiding me to the kitchen sink and gesturing for me to follow him in scrubbing our hands and arms with antibacterial soap.
    “We’re going to do something called the Seldinger technique to insert the catheter this time.” Calum explained as we walked, motioning for Alek to pull Aoi’s table back to give us more room by Yoichi.
    “Okay.” I said, accepting the pair of latex gloves Calum offered and pulling them on.
    He unwrapped a large gauze pad saturated with alcohol, using it to wipe along Yoichi’s inner elbow. Calum gestured to one of the wrapped tools next to me and I handed it to him, watching him carefully open the packaging over a sterile hollow needle. 
    “Put your finger right here.” Calum said, pointing to a spot a little lower than Yoichi’s elbow. I obeyed, marking out whatever vein Calum was aiming at, and watched Calum carefully slide the needle just under my finger.
    “Hand me that guidewire.” Calum asked, holding out his hand and then guiding the wire through the needle. It took him a few quick seconds to insert the catheter and pull out the wire, hooking up the tubing to the dialysis machine.
    “That wasn’t that hard.” I said, pleased. Calum nodded, fiddling with the machine while I tucked the blanket higher around Yoichi’s shivering shoulders.
    “Let’s just hope it works this time.” Calum said, going to his bag and closing it. Alek took this opportunity to stand up, walking to the kitchen and then appearing with Jana and Kri