A/N: So I'm super sorry for being MIA for so long, so I wrote a super long chapter for you guys. Enjoy!

When Sehun woke up and checked the bed the next morning, he was surprised to see Joonmyeon lying down in a semi-normal position (his feet were situated where his head was supposed to be, but this was still a huge improvement from yesterday). He shook his Hyung awake and they changed into the clothes Luhan seemed to pull from thin air. Joonmyeon wore a black zip-up hoodie, (he couldn’t figure out zippers so Sehun helped him), and grey sweatpants. Sehun wore a light grey shirt and jeans which (he wouldn’t admit aloud) made his look somewhat nicer. (Do jeans do things to butts? I’ll have to ask Luhan.) They both went downstairs and were surprised to see Yixing already awake, putting the water jug on the table. Luhan was just coming back from his run and was about to sit down when Yixing gave him a look. “Go upstairs, you smell like-”

“Xiao Xing you better not be thinking about finishing that sentence,” Apparently Xi-eomma was a mind reader. Sehun quickly translated for Joonmyeon as Luhan quickly trudged up the stairs for a quick shower. “10 minutes max! Oh, you boys are up! I’m sorry, I forgot my languages there. Come and sit, we all get to eat together for once!”

“Are we waiting for Luhan,” Sehun asked.

“I told him he has ten minutes, which is about how long it will take me to finish this soup. Joonmyeon, be a dear and set the table for me?” Joonmyeon glanced at Sehun for help but Yixing was quicker.

“I’ll help. You know where the spoons are right?” Joonmyeon nodded and grabbed the utensils while Yixing grabbed the chopsticks. He demonstrated with one place setting and then let the older do the rest. Seven minutes later they were all sitting down to eat and Luhan had barely made it to the table. He still had a towel on his head which he tied under his chin so he wouldn’t drip on the table.

“Very attractive, Ge.”

“Shut up.”

“Luhan! He’s a guest.”

“Let’s eat,” Yixing said, trying to stop the war that would inevitably happen if that continued. Without thinking, Yixing grabbed his spoon, dipping it into Joonmyeon’s bowl and forcing a huge amount into Joonmyeon’s mouth. Luhan and Sehun snorted at Yixing’s mistake while Yixing simply ate a spoonful of soup before realizing what he did wrong. “Oh Hyung, I’m sorry!” Now both Sehun and Luhan were laughing at Joonmyeon who resembled a chipmunk and Yixing who didn’t know what to do to help the other’s digestion.

Finally Joonmyeon managed to swallow. “It’s okay, I can do it myself,” he said softly.

Even Xi-eomma was giggling quietly behind her hand. She cleared and then began speaking with a straight face. “Boys, I’m making kimbap this morning for my afternoon clients so dinner will be late, would-”

“Can me and Hyung help,” Sehun asked, glancing at Joonmyeon for confirmation. Joonmyeon nodded quickly.

“I was wondering if you two would help me, have either of you ever made kimbap?”

“We’ve never had it before.”

Xi-eomma looked shocked, but in a playful way. “We have to change that. I’ve heard that it’s one of the staple foods for any Korean. Yixing, would you like to help?”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t. I need to study today since I’ll be on duty for the whole weekend and then I have my exams starting Tuesday.”

“Ah, well okay. Come down at noon for food, you’ll need it to study.”

“Okay.”

“Ah, Joonmyeon. I’ve been meaning to ask you, are you planning on cutting your hair?”

Sehun glanced at his Hyung in shock and even Joonmyeon himself looked surprised at the idea. He put down his spoon thoughtfully, tucking a strand of his long (although well kept and tied away) hair behind his ear. “I…hadn’t thought about it until you brought it up…”

“I didn’t mean anything by it, I just wondered if you kept it long for religious reasons.”

Religious reasons? Oh right, we were raised in a church! “Um…yes. Uh…I was raised separately from Sehun-ah, so my upbringing remained more orthodox than his.”

“Separately? But why on earth would they do that?”

“We don’t know either,” Joonmyeon replied thoughtfully.

“Well, it was only a thought, you don’t have to cut your hair. It does look nice long.”

Joonmyeon looked at Xi-eomma solemnly. He looked at her shoulder length hair, tied back in a ponytail. Then he looked at Luhan’s fluffy pink cloud on his head and Yixing’s brown locks. He straightened his back and dropped his eyes to his soup. “I think I would like to cut my hair.”

“Really?” Sehun was amazed. He knew Joonmyeon hated his long hair, but he never thought his Hyung would be bold enough to cut them off.

Joonmyeon nodded. Xi-eomma laughed at Sehun’s shocked expression. “Is it such a shock that Joonmyeon wants to cut his hair?”

“It is. I haven’t cut my hair since I was about 13.” dropped open.

“Well on that note, I’d love to stay and watch but I have to go to class,” Luhan said, getting up from his spot and taking his bowls to the sink. “I’ll be back early today, Ma. Xiao Hun will come get me.”

She smiled and nodded. “Okay, good luck today.”

He nodded and went upstairs. Sehun was still staring at Joonmyeon, trying to imagine what his Hyung would look like with short hair. “Joonmyeon-ie, if you want to cut it soon Yixing here could do it for you. His grandma was a hairstylist and he picked up a couple of tricks.”

“Sure. I could do it today if you want.” Yixing looked excited by the idea of cutting his hair and Joonmyeon actually smiled at his enthusiasm.

“If you’re not too busy, then I would be grateful if you would cut it for me.”

Yixing smiled. “Of course. Let’s plan for 4, is that okay?”

“Sounds fine.”

“Can I watch,” Sehun asked. He knew how personal it was to Joonmyeon, so he didn’t know if his presence would be welcome.

Joonmyeon shook his head with a smile. “No. I’d like for it to be a surprise.” Sehun pouted a bit but smiled anyway. “Besides, you will be gone picking up Luhan-hyung.”

“Oh right,” Sehun said sheepishly. Speaking of the elder, he came sprinting down the stairs with his backpack, running full speed to Xi-eomma. He kissed her cheek and shouted a quick “BYE!” to the rest before stuffing his feet in his shoes and running out the door. Xi-eomma chuckled as she took her bowls to the sink. “That boy…always in a rush. Yixing, you’re on dish duty and then you’re free from us.”

“Okay,” he said. He took up his, Sehun’s, and Joonmyeon’s bowls saying, “Sit tight, she’ll come back with the stuff for kimbap.” Just as he left the table, Xi-eomma came back with Tupperware containers stacked up to her chin.

“We’re making a lot of kimbap today. Several of my clients give me their best catch and other things in exchange for my special kimbap, so you boys better be ready to make these perfect.” Both boys were rather intimidated, but were ready to help. They spent all morning learning how to pat the rice down on the seaweed, add the specific quantities of each ingredient (and boy was it specific), and how to roll up the kimbap tightly. Yixing went up after he finished the dishes and didn’t appear again until around noon.

He laughed when he saw their small (but well made) piles of kimbap in comparison to the small mountain Xi-eomma made in the same time. “So, how’s the kimbap making coming,” he asked, grabbing a knife to cut off the ends. Joonmyeon flinched almost imperceptivity as Yixing began cutting.

“It’s not bad, except the rolling,” Sehun said, finishing off his last one. Xi-eomma began cleaning up the remaining ingredients and putting them away. Joonmyeon began wrapping the rolls in aluminum foil. “I’m kind of bad at it, but Joonmyeon-hyung seems to be pretty good.” Joonmyeon smiled a little. “You’re just impatient Sehun-ah.”

“I prefer to call it eager.”

Xi-eomma laughed as she gathered everything together and went to change. “You boys are welcome to eat the ends and the ones that aren’t pretty, okay?”

“Thank you, Xi-eomma,” the boys chorused. She went inside the room and came back out five minutes later, changed and carrying her bag. Then helped her pack up the mountain of kimbap into a couple bags and she left for work. The boys sat down at the table sharing a large plate of malformed kimbap and kimbap ends. Sehun sighed in appreciation of the kimbap. “So freaking good…”

“I take it you’ve had her kimbap before,” Yixing said, absentmindedly offering a piece to Joonmyeon before taking one for himself.

“Yeah and it’s better than any convenience store kimbap I’ve ever had.”

“What kinds of flavors of kimbap are there,” Joonmyeon asked, holding a piece of kimbap in front of Yixing’s face. The younger was startled by the action for a second, but happily accepted it out of the other’s hands. Joonmyeon bowed his head. “Please do not forget to feed yourself.”

Yixing smiled. “Yes.”

“Um…kimbap flavors…there’s crab, tuna, vegetable, and you can use all sorts of different meats too, but this one is my favorite. Apparently kimbap is popular for lunch, picnics, trips, and Luhan when he has to study in the break room until 4 am.”

Yixing nodded in agreement. “Do either of you have plans after lunch?”

“I was going to study for a while,” Joonmyeon said.

“-And I’m going to look for a job.” Sehun pointed at the newspapers that Xi-eomma brought in from that morning. “There has to be something for me in that stack.”

“Well, good luck to both of you. I’m going to study until 4, then I’ll get my scissors,” Yixing said, glancing at Joonmyeon. He looked nervous, but not regretful and Yixing was grateful for that much.

The house was relatively quiet after lunch. Joonmyeon was propped against the wall with the pillow on the bed, reading the journals with a dictionary, a world map, a calculator and a lunar calendar. Joonmyeon thought at first all the materials were excessive, until he found a use for each one. Yixing sat in his room, reviewing his notes with books upon books and his computer spread out on his desk and bed for reference. Sehun had the entire first floor to himself, looking through the newspapers, calling, inquiring, getting denied, and hanging up. It was tedious work, but one place had promised to call him back if they ever needed an extra hand.

Around 4 pm, Sehun put the papers away and called up the stairs, “I’m going to go get Luhan!”

“Okay,” was the response from Yixing’s room and he appeared at the top of the stairs a second later. “Take your time, ask Hyung to show you around, okay?” Sehun nodded, put his shoes on, and was out the door.

*          *          *

When Joonmyeon heard Sehun’s shout, his insides coiled up and his palms got sweaty. There was a knock on his door as he closed the journal. Yixing slowly opened the door, bowing in apology.

“Are you ready?”

“No, but I’m doing it anyways.”

“No regrets?”

Joonmyeon took a deep breath. “No…I’ve decided to take advantage of my time here…I’m going to try to be better. For Sehun. And myself.”

He felt a hand tip his chin upwards and he saw Yixing smiling down at him. “I’m glad to hear that. First thing to start with is eye contact.”

Joonmyeon smiled a little but didn’t drop his eyes this time. “Luhan told me already. It’s hard for me to get used to.”

“You’ll do fine.” He let go of Joonmyeon’s chin and offered it to the other to take. “C’mon, Suho.”

“Suho? What is that word?”

“It means ‘protector’. I was thinking about what we talked about yesterday and I thought calling you that would remind you…it’s just a nickname if you don’t like it-”

“I do like it…I think it’s a good idea.” He took Yixing’s hand and hauled himself up. “But if you call me by a nickname, should I call you by one too?”

“If you like.”

“Do you have a nickname?”

“Yeah, Lay. My nickname’s Lay.” Yixing led him out of the room and into the bathroom.

“Lay…does that mean something?”

“It means relaxed. My Nai, er Halmoni used to call me that when I was little since I used to be so calm when I was little.”

Joonmyeon nodded. “Then, I’ll call you Lay.”

Yixing smiled as he led the older to sit on top of the toilet. He grabbed what Joonmyeon recognized as a cell phone and touched it a couple times. “Would you mind if I took a photo of you to commemorate this?”

“Er…photo?”

“It’s like a picture.”

“Ah, I remember. Sure, I guess.”

Yixing took a picture, then put his phone down next to the sink. He took out Joonmyeon’s hair tie and began brushing the hair. “Do you have a preference of how long you want it to be when I cut it?”

“You know Sehun’s hair?”

“Yeah.”

“About that length.”

“Whoa, really?”

“Yes. Now that I think about it, I want it all gone.” Yixing was surprised, but it only lasted a second as he continued to brush out the tangles in the older’s hair. When he was done, he tied the hair back again and grabbed his scissors from where he put them on the sink. “You ready?”

“Yes.” His hands were clutched tightly in his lap, but his jaw was set. Yixing took a deep breath to steady his hand and began cutting above the hair tie. It only took a couple of seconds, but when he was done, Yixing and Joonmyeon both let out their breaths.

Yixing held the ponytail out to Joonmyeon. “Well…here it is…”

“Oh my gods…this is my hair?”

“Was your hair…”

“Was…” Just then Joonmyeon snorted, then he giggled, which then turned into a full out laugh. Yixing joined in the infectious laughter, sort of amazed by what he had done. When they both calmed down, Joonmyeon passed it back to Yixing. “Will you throw it away? I don’t want to see it anymore.”

“Sure thing,” he replied, dropping it into the trash bin by the door. “Now here comes the fun part. I’m going to start with scissors and then when I can’t cut any shorter, I’ll use the clippers.”

Joonmyeon nodded. “I trust you.” The older began the difficult task of reworking Joonmyeon’s locks into a shorter hairstyle. Luckily the older was patient (and very brave) and was not easily scared of the snips of the scissors or the noisy buzzing of the clippers. After 20 minutes of hard work, Yixing turned off the clippers and ran his hands under the water to get the extra hair off. He used the extra water from his hands to run through Joonmyeon’s hair to smooth it out a bit and when he was satisfied, he stepped back.

He smiled. “Wow…you look different.”

“Is it bad?”

“It’s really good. Do you want to see?”

“How?”

“The mirror over the sink.”

“But I’m not supposed to look in mirrors.”

“You weren’t supposed to look in mirrors.

Joonmyeon smiled at that. “Right.” He used Yixing’s arm to help him stand and he slowly approached the mirror.

“On three, okay,” Yixing said, noticing Joonmyeon’s hesitation. “One. Two, Three!” Yixing helped the older take one giant step forward in front of the mirror and the other stared back at himself in amazement. Yixing smiled as the other poked at his face and touched his hair in amazement. “How is it?”

“I haven’t looked in a mirror since I was 13…this is sort of surreal.”

“Not what I meant, but is that a good thing?”

“Yes, I think it is. I like it…I can see my face,” he said with a smile. Yixing felt a surge of pride for the elder. He liked seeing Joonmyeon happy, it gave him the same warm fuzzy feeling he got when his first patient thanked him after their surgery.

He patted the older’s shoulder. “I’m glad you’re happy. But you should really shower now to get rid of all the hairs I cut.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah. I’ll clean up when you’re done. Take your time.” He was about to leave when Joonmyeon grabbed his arm to stop him.

“Can you help me first? I can’t do…” He made a hand gesture towards the zipper. “I can’t undo it very well.”

“Sure thing,” he said and he immediately ped the hoodie in one fluid tug. To his surprise, the other wasn’t wearing a shirt underneath. “You aren’t wearing a shirt under the hoodie?”

“No, I’m used to wearing my cloak against bare skin…and I prefer not to wear restrictive clothing.” Joonmyeon stood awkwardly, waiting for the other to leave so he could take off his clothes to shower.

“Why?”

“Why don’t I like restrictive clothing?” Yixing nodded. “I’m not used to it…and I don’t think they’ll fit me well.”

Yixing was trying to think of a nice way of bringing around the subject, but gave up when Joonmyeon began staring at him curiously. “Suho-hyung, may I be frank with you?”

He nodded. “Please do so.”

“…May I look at your back?”

Joonmyeon’s lips parted in surprise. “I never let anyone look at my back.”

“I know…it’s just…as a doctor…what did the doctors say where you came from?”

“The doctors never said anything. I never went to see one about my deform- ” Yixing raised an eyebrow at that word. “My back.”

“So you’ve never seen a doctor for it?”

“For anything, actually. You’re the first doctor I’ve ever met.”

Yixing’s mouth dropped open. He then closed it quickly, trying not to appear rude. “Suho-hyung…I’m asking as a concerned friend and as a doctor…may I see it? Just once and then I’ll never ask again.”

Joonmyeon bit his lip. “I wouldn’t mind showing you…but I’m scared.”

Yixing smiled slightly. “You trusted me to cut off all your hair, can you give me another five minutes?”

Joonmyeon smiled back. “You make it sound so easy. It’s…the last time I had my back uncovered I got in a lot of trouble for it…”

“If it helps, I promise I won’t tell anyone about what I saw. Nothing leaves this bathroom.”

Joonmyeon paused, then nodded. “Alright. Should we pinky swear on it?”

Yixing held out his pinky. “You know about pinky swears?”

“It’s a recent discovery,” Joonmyeon replied, looping his pinky and pressing on the other’s thumb to seal the deal. They let their hands drop and Joonmyeon took a deep breath. “Alright…g-give me a moment.” He turned to face the shower, his back toward Yixing. He took a deep breath. It’s okay, he won’t hurt me. His hands shook a bit as he reached for the material on his shoulders. He slid the hoodie off his left shoulder, then right, then he pulled his left hand out of the sleeve, followed by his right until he stood shirtless with the hoodie on the floor.

Yixing bit his lip and his eyes teared up. The other’s spine was curved into a painful S shape, even his shoulders looked misaligned. The first tear slid down his cheek. He’s been dealing with this his whole life? No wonder he’s been in pain. He took a deep breath and began studying his back from a doctor’s perspective. Without thinking, he gently put his hands on the other’s shoulders to check the alignment definitely. Immediately Joonmyeon flinched at his touch and he withdrew his hands quickly. “I’m sorry!”

“It’s fine, it was just unexpected.”

“…M-may I?

Joonmyeon nodded, but Yixing could see he was tense. “Thank you.” Without another word, he replaced his hands on the older’s shoulders. His right was definitely higher than his left. Joonmyeon shivered at Yixing’s breath on his neck and his stomach trembled and tensed with nerves. Yixing slowly trailed his fingers down the Joonmyeon’s back until he reached one of the bruises Jongdae caused. “What is this,” he mumbled.

“This is what happened the last time I was uncovered.” A second tear ran down Yixing’s cheek. There were no thoughts or words to express how much it hurt him that Joonmyeon was in pain. One of his hands left Joonmyeon’s back to wipe away his tears and Joonmyeon turned around to look. “Why are you crying?” The older looked worried and panicked, wondering what he should do in this type of situation.

Yixing wiped his eyes, saying, “I’m sorry. It’s just that…you’re hurt.”

Joonmyeon smiled, touched at the other’s reaction. “It’s nothing new, I’m fine,” he said, brushing it off as he reached for his hoodie on the floor. He was stopped by Yixing’s hand which closed around his wrist as soon as he reached for the article of clothing. “Um…Lay?”

Yixing looked troubled, like he was trying to figure out how to formulate his thoughts into words. “Suho-hyung…I think we have a name for your back condition.”

“What?”

“I know I said I wouldn’t ask again, but can I examine you to see if you have the condition?”

“I don’t see the point…”

“Please.” The word was so emphatic that it took Joonmyeon by surprise. He was surprised the other was taking such an interest in his back, but so far he hadn’t done anything to hurt him so his intentions couldn’t be bad…What’s it matter, he’s already seen my back, if anything gets worse I can always use the knife in the kitchen. He frowned at his thoughts. No, I’m not going back to that. He nodded at Yixing. “Okay.”

Yixing looked so relieved it actually took Joonmyeon by surprise. “Thanks, can we do this in my room, we’ll need more space than in here.” He opened the door and indicated for Joonmyeon to go out first. When Joonmyeon made no move, he said, “No one’s home.” Joonmyeon clutched the hoodie to his chest anyway and entered Yixing’s room first.

He was surprised by the combination of cleanliness (the floor was clean, the bed was made, and there were no clothes anywhere) and mess (books and notes on every flat surface). He stood in the middle of the room, unsure of what to do. Luckily Yixing entered behind him, shut the door, and indicated for Joonmyeon to sit on the bed. He began rifling through his papers to find a pen, a clean sheet of paper, and something flat to use as a clipboard. He began with basic questions (name, age, birthday) and then began with some more difficult ones.

“How long has your back been like this?”

“My whole life.”

"Has the curvature increased, decreased, or stayed the same as you've grown?"

"Definitley increased." Yixing frowned and wrote something down.

“On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being worst; how would you grade your level of pain on an everyday basis?”

“…Three or four in the sea, six or seven since I’ve been on land.” His pen stopped for a moment before he began writing again. Damn, that’s bad.

“Do any other parts of your body hurt on a daily basis?”

“Um…my hips? I think that’s what humans call them. My feet hurt for obvious reasons.”

Yixing nodded. “Any pain in the neck?”

“No.”

“Do you ever have any difficulty breathing?”

Joonmyeon took a deep breath and frowned. “I’m not sure…I do remember feeling winded very quickly after swimming at accelerated speeds.”

“Oh right I meant to ask, did your tail structure resemble your back at all?”

“It did.”

“Will you draw it on this paper?” Yixing turned the paper over so Joonmyeon couldn’t read his notes and Joonmyeon quickly drew a squiggle that resembled an S. “Okay, will you stand and turn around for me? Would it be alright if I touched your hips?” At this point Joonmyeon was beyond caring so he quickly nodded and stood. “Um…I need to see your hips, will you shimmy your pants down a bit?” Joonmyeon’s cheeks felt a little warm, but he trusted Yixing and pulled them down until they rested below his hips. Yixing gently pressed on the tops of the hips and frowned. They were also misaligned, but thankfully not terribly so. “Suho-hyung will you lean forward for me? I don’t have the proper tools, but I want to check the curvature of your spine.”

Joonmyeon obediently bent forward. “Is this far enough?”

Yixing adjusted him so his upper back was parallel to the ground. “Hold this position for me, try to keep your upper body relaxed…I’m going to touch your spine now is that okay?”

Joonmyeon bit his lip, but nodded. Immediately he felt Lay’s warm hands at his neck, gently smoothing around his shoulders in a comforting manner before moving along the top of his spine. Slowly they moved downward, following his vertebrae before stopping at the middle of his back. “Will you lean over a little more?” He did so and felt down until the area around his hips. “You can stand up,” he said moving his hands, grabbing the paper and writing down notes. “You can redress now,” he mumbled, writing down some numbers. He then looked up quickly, as if he remembered something. “Did you say your gait was off?”

“Yes, I walk with a limp.”

“May I see?” Joonmyeon stood up, walked to the door and back to the bed before sitting down again. Yixing re-read what he wrote and then sat down next to Joonmyeon. “I’m sorry if any of that felt invasive.”

“It’s alright. Is your curiosity satisfied?”

“Yes…would you like to hear about it?”

Joonmyeon smiled gently. “Why not.”

“You know I’m studying to be an orthopedic surgeon, correct?” Joonmyeon nodded. “What I was doing just now was some basic testing we do to check for a spinal condition.” Joonmyeon nodded. “Your particular condition is called scoliosis.”

“Scoliosis,” Joonmyeon repeated, testing the word on his lips. “Interesting, I never knew it had a name,” He stood to leave the room when two words stopped him in his tracks, causing his blood to go cold.

“It’s treatable.”

Those words echoed in his brain for a second before processing them and turning to look at Yixing. “It’s treatable?”

“I don’t have the proper tools to check how bad it is…but I believe you’d be a candidate for surgery. Er…do you know what surgery is?”

“It’s where a doctor opens a body to heal it, correct?”

“Um…basically. We’d have to do several tests to confirm the severity of your curvature, but there are several other treatment options…it depends.”

“If I get this…surgery, how much would it help? Would it reduce my pain?”

“Post-surgery it would be painful for a while, but there are medicines and therapy to reduce that pain. But the main point of the surgery is to straighten the spine.”

Joonmyeon was frozen, caught between awe and shock. They could straighten my spine? He had to ask. “How much could they straighten the spine?”

“It depends per person and usually there still might be a slight curvature, but usually the curve is reduced to almost zero.”

“…And you said I could possibly have this surgery?”

“I could call my professor right now and set up an appointment for a check-up with him. I know I just said that I’m training to be a surgeon but my professor has a lot more experience and he can probably explain it a lot better than me. What do you think, do you-are you okay?!”

He stopped in midst of his explanation because Joonmyeon was crying. Joonmyeon was covering his mouth with one hand, tears were streaming down, and his shoulders shook. Yixing jumped up and Joonmyeon tried to cover his face in embarrassment. Yixing took hold of his hands and pulled them away. “Suho-hyung why are you crying?”

It took a couple seconds for Joonmyeon to calm down enough to speak. “I…I never knew I could be fixed.”

A/N: So this chapter took a bit since I had to look up the condition itself. I'm trying to make this story as medically feasible as possible with my limited knowledge of Korean Hospital systems and health care and such. Well I hope you liked it!