kamiru_kpoplover19: For everyone who waited patiently for an update, I adore you guys so much! [In this chappie, Yuri's dream is in pink. XD]

...........................................................................................................................................................................................

Woohyun’s POV:

Basin of warm water with alcohol, check. Towel, check. Change of clothes, check. Now the question is…how the hell am I gonna give her a bath like this?I thought as I stared at Yuri’s blanket-covered, sleeping figure. To be perfectly honest, I’ve never experienced taking care of a sick person before since people in our family rarely got sick and even if someone did somehow catch a cold or something, someone else was always there to do whatever needed to be done.

Aish, I’ve seen girls’ bodies before, it won’t be that different…will it? Hell, whatever…I thought, shaking my head once in resignation before sitting down on her bed and pulling the covers gently from her body. She was breathing heavily, her usually pale face now flushed red with the fever. She made a sound of discomfort when I had removed all the blankets from her body, shivering slightly from the rush of air.

“An---dwe…” She murmured with furrowed brows, shifting slightly to the side and clutching at a pillow as if to gain some warmth and comfort from it. I should make this quick, she probably feels cold…I thought, before grabbing and wringing the extra fluid from the towel.

Here goes nothing, forgive me Lee Yuri…I sighed, before pressing the towel against her cheek. She flinched slightly at the contact, her brows knitted with discomfort, before sighing gently and adjusting to the temperature. I continued wiping her, my heart beating like crazy all the while, a little afraid that she might suddenly wake up and catch me doing this.

I am NOT doing anything wrong, I’m just washing her for crying out loud…she should be thankful I’m even--…damn, why is her skin so soft---…the hell?? Where did that come from?I shook my head to dispel my idiotic, inner turmoil and focused on the task at hand. I breathed deeply, inhaling and exhaling for a few moments as I finished wiping her face and neck and was about to move on to her arms and chest. Should I…? Or should I not? Dammit, stop being a Nam Woohyun!

“Mhmmm…Woo---hyun…” A murmured but clear voice whispered, suddenly snapping me out of my inner dilemma.

“D-d-d-d-deh??” I answered, almost unconsciously, a hand clutched at my chest. Oh God, oh God, she’s awake, I’m dead, fudge--…

“…wash--…the--…dishes…mhmhmmm…” She muttered with her eyes still closed, before shifting to the other side with her back now turned to me.

Oh crap, I thought I was a goner for a second there…wait, why the hell am I even scared? And dammit, even in her friggin’ DREAMS she’s still nagging and ordering me around… I rolled my eyes at the innocent, sleeping girl, a little thankful that she’d turned her back to me. I chuckled a little when she kept muttering more orders such as cleaning the driveway and putting the laundry properly in the laundry basket, reminding me of her tendency to talk a lot while asleep. She hasn’t changed at all…still the same old, naggy kid…

I washed the towel in the basin and wrung it dry before continuing to wash her off, breathing a little easier now and my heart calmer than it had been just a few minutes ago.

………………………………………………………….

In a conspicuous August morning, a girl was sitting amongst the tall, soft grass and dandelions, her straw hat shielding her eyes from the early morning sunlight while a boy was running around the field, making circles as he continued to pretend to be a pilot. He was making loud, engine sounds as he circled around the girl with his large toy airplane while the other child looked on quietly. 

“Woohyunnie, I’m bored…I want to see umma and appa…” The pretty, 6-year-old girl with dark curly and a white dress said to her 6-year-old, chubby-cheeked companion who was pre-occupied with playing with a toy airplane.

The boy stopped running around and immediately plopped himself down beside the girl, before setting his airplane beside them and turning to face her with an innocent expression.

“But Riri, our umma and appa said they need to go to wo—work…” The boy said slowly, struggling with the last word since it was something he’d only recently understood. The girl pouted, before lowering her eyes sadly as she sighed. Aww, I feel sad when Yuri doesn’t smile…The boy thought while fidgeting worriedly, not liking the expression in his best friend’s face.

“But don’t worry Yuri-ah, Woohyunnie will always be here…so don’t be sad, m’kay?” He said, patting the girl gently on the head like what his appa does to him when he’s not happy.

“…will you sing me something, Woohyunnie? Pwease?” She asked him in reply, a smile on her face now.

“Arasso…Woohyunnie will sing Riri’s favorite song then!” The boy exclaimed before standing up quickly and singing and dancing along to the song his umma used to sing to him before.

[Santoki – A Korean Children’s song]

Mountain bunny, bunny
Where are you going?
Bouncing, bouncing as you're running.
Where are you going?

Over the mountain peaks, peaks
I will climb them on my own
Plump, plump chestnuts
I will find and bring…

He sang and danced, swaying his body and using his hands to make bunny gestures while he did, causing 6-year-old Yuri to laugh and sing along. It wasn’t long before the peaceful, breezy meadow in front of the Nam mansion resonated with the melodious sound of the two children’s laughter and singing voices, causing the workers and maids to pause in doing their tasks for a moment to smile at the two.

“Are you still sad Riri?” The young boy asked her once more after finishing his song, crouching in front of his friend and peering intently into her face. The girl shook her head and gave him a thankful, happy smile instead.

“Woohyunnie makes everything better…”

“Yay! I pwomise when we get m-ma--…mawwied…we will also be happy!” The boy exclaimed, his chubby cheeks widening greatly due to the ear-to-ear grin on his young face.

“Mawwied?” The girl prompted, cocking her head slightly to the side as she struggled to say the unknown word.

“Deh! Like our umma and appa…they told me being m—mawwied…means loving each other and living in the same house…so Woohyunnie and Riri will also be mawwied someday…” The boy explained knowledgeably, tripping over the word he has yet to get used to.

“Oh! Can Riri really live in the same house as you Woohyunnie?”

“Of course! We’ll watch Pororo, eat ice cweam before dinner and play soccer in the house everyday!”

“But Woohyunnie…we can’t ice cweam before dinner… Umma will get mad!”

“We’ll just keep it a--…a---…secwet?”

“Deh, a secwet!” She agreed, nodding her curly head enthusiastically.

The two children giggled mischievously, happy at the prospect of eating their favorite food a lot in the future before the gentle voice of Mrs. Kwon, their caretaker, interrupted their little bonding time.

“Young master Woohyun, Yuri ahgasshi, it’s time to eat breakfast. Your piano teacher will be arriving shortly.”

“Deh!” They answered together with big, childish grins on their faces, causing the older woman to smile tenderly at the two in return. Omo, they will make one very happy and handsome couple someday. She thought before motioning the two to follow her inside the Nam mansion.

The boy turned to the girl and held a finger on his lips, reminding her of their little ‘secret’ and causing her to giggle softly. “Let’s go Riri!” He said a moment later, taking the girl’s small, soft hand in his as they happily ran after Mrs. Kwon, together.

……………………………………………………………..

“…eat--…ice cream…” She muttered under her breath, as I buttoned up her pajamas, now finished with the task of washing her. She was still feverish but the bath seemed to have worked a little since she wasn’t as warm as before.

Aigoo, is she saying she wants ice cream now? This girl really…I thought, raising an eyebrow at her sleeping figure before shaking my head wryly. She must be dreaming of food right now, wonder if she’s hungry…I better cook something.

I pressed a hand against her forehead to check her temperature once more and once satisfied, I stood up and smiled a little at her innocent, sleeping expression. I felt somehow exhausted without even doing much, probably more because of the stress I’d been feeling earlier on. Between the two of us, the expert when it came to taking care of people had always been Yuri which is one of the reasons why I’d left all the chores to her and it was only now that I realized I’ve been spoiled too much by her for the past several months we’d started living together. Now wonder she’d asked for the chores to be split in the contract…

Arasso, just for today, I’ll do the chores with a happy face, Lee Yuri… I thought, smiling a little before exiting the room and closing the door behind me.

I was already at the bottom of the stairs when the sound of familiar voices drifted through the air, snapping me out of my daydreams. I instinctively leaned against the wall, listening intently to the voices I heard coming from the living room.

“That bad guy…he had a party last night and didn’t even invite me! And he calls himself my friend??!” Sungyeol’s whispered tirade rung out before several ‘shushing’ sounds soon followed. What’s Sungyeol doing in my house? And how did he even---…

“Speaking of bad guys…where the hell is he?” I heard Sunggyu say, his voice barely a whisper but I could hear him clearly in the eerily quiet house. Even Gyu’s here…??

“Omo, he’s not asleep…is he?” Dongwoo asked softly, his tone curious and concerned.

“He’s awake, he DID call me just a few minutes ago so…” I heard Hoya remark, letting his voice trail off in the end.

“Let’s go upstairs and surprise hyung!” The maknae Sungjong exclaimed loudly, followed by a muffled ‘ow!’

“Sssssssssssh!”

Oh crap…what the hell are they doing here?? And, oh man--…I could feel my heart beating like crazy, realizing just now that Yuri was just upstairs and couldn’t move. If one of the members happen to find her in my house…oh God, I don’t even wanna think about it!

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Hoya’s POV:

Suspicious. Very suspicious. I thought, glancing over at Woohyun who was laughing at a funny scene in the movie we were watching along with the others.

He came down from upstairs about three hours ago and I noticed his eyes darting nervously towards the stairs every several minutes or so. The others probably hadn’t noticed but I did, especially after I’d asked him about it earlier.

He’d laughed off the question and tried to distract me with games, but I could clearly tell there was something he was hiding from me, from all of us. When Sungjong had asked to explore the second floor of his home, he’d vehemently shaken his head and distracted the maknae with ice cream and lemon candy. I could tell that Sungjong also found Woohyun’s actions strange and unlike him, but he’d shrugged it off earlier and like the kid he was, focused only on his ice cream and candy.

I saw him disappear up the stairs quietly while the rest of us had been playing games on his X-box earlier, carrying a tray of food along with him and he’d reappeared like a ninja a few minutes later as though nothing happened.

His actions…do they have something to do with his call earlier?

“Oh hell no! He—he…how stupid can he get!?” Sungyeol exclaimed, pointing at the widescreen TV before laughing his head off, the others joining in soon after.

“Oh God…I can’t--…breathe--..it’s too--…friggin’--..funny…” Dongwoo struggled to say in between bouts of laughter while Sunggyu and Sungjong were holding on to their stomachs, doubling over with laughter. The idiots had most likely forgotten the reason they’d dragged me out of my apartment so goddamned early in the morning to go here and I could only shake my head in frustration at them. Oh the things I have to put up with…

Actually, I wasn’t paying any attention at all to the movie and instead, continued to glance at Woohyun who seemed to be forcing himself to laugh along with them, the sound coming out as nervous and uncomfortable. He continued to glance nervously at the stairs, as though expecting something…or someone…to appear anytime soon.

In the four years I’ve known Nam Woohyun, I’ve never seen him nervous about something before. He was the arrogant, brash type who had no qualms speaking his mind and getting what he wanted…which was why he was perfect as the ‘leader’ of our group. I wonder what’s making him act like this? Dammit, I’m curious…

“Woohyun, are you…worried about something?” I asked him, my tone low and neutral, so he was the only who could hear it. We were sitting on the leather couch while the rest were sprawled on the carpeted floor, eyes trained on the television completely.

“W-what? A-ani! I’m not worried…why would I be worried?” He replied, his nervous belying his words. He chuckled nervously before looking at the TV again, probably wishing I’d simply believe him and let whatever it was, go.

If I looked at him close enough, I could swear he was sweating up a storm and he was getting more flushed by the minute, a clear sign that he was hiding something. Since he was actually the type who wasn’t used to keeping secrets from us, he’s not very good at doing it either. Nam Woohyun, sometimes you can be such a naïve idiot…

“Hey guys, how about we hit the arcade after this? Then go clubbing or something…my treat.” He suggested out of the blue, eliciting a collection of cheers from the others. I sighed and shook my head at his obvious attempt to get us out of his house and keep whatever it was hidden from us, tricking and deceiving his friends to no end. As if I’m gonna let you Woohyun-ah…

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Yuri’s POV:

Aigoo, why does it feel so warm…?I thought, before stretching my arms up and finally opening my eyes. It took me a few seconds before I realized there were three blankets piled on top of me…probably the reason I couldn’t breathe very well.

I glanced at the clock and saw that it was already 4 p.m. and I struggled to sit up despite the harsh pounding in my head. I still felt uncomfortable and feverish but I could tell that it wasn’t as bad as it had been this morning.

I looked around, distinctly remembering hearing Woohyun’s voice earlier but I shook my head and sighed after realizing what I was actually doing. Seriously? Nam Woohyun? As if he’ll actually stay and---…

I’d glanced at the table beside my bed by chance and noticed the tray of food and glass of juice sitting on it, as though waiting for me all this time to wake up. Don’t tell me---…Woohyun?

I smiled with amusement at the thought of the high-and-mighty Woohyun actually preparing porridge and chicken soup for me. The idea didn’t fit with him at all but I wasn’t about to complain if he actually started acting nicer and treating me like an actual human being instead of the person who washes his dirty laundry.

I took the tray gingerly and placed it on my lap, before taking a spoonful of the porridge into my mouth. It had gone cold, a sign that the tray had probably been sitting there for a while now but it still tasted good. It was then that I realized I was hungry as hell and made the cold porridge even more delicious to me. Good job Nam Woohyun, looks like I can’t complain to you later about your bad cooking…I thought, giggling softly as I continued to take spoonfuls of the porridge.

The sound of the door creaking open grabbed my attention and made me turn towards that direction, just in time to see Woohyun doing his best to creep inside silently. I raised my eyebrow at his ridiculous actions as he approached my bed before he stopped his tracks and looked at me with widened eyes.

“Y-you’re awake?” He managed to squeak, after staring at me silently and unmoving for quite a few seconds there.

“Deh…obviously. Did you make this?” I asked, still continuing to eat and managing to talk only in between bites.

“Deh…is it good?” He asked, his voice trailing off with an air of uncertainty.

“Mhmm…gomawo…” I replied almost unconsciously, making a sound of satisfaction when I tasted the chicken and onion soup he’d made along with the porridge. Now this IS daebak…

“No problem…” He murmured under his breath, scratching the back of his head with a hand, looking very much like a shy little kid right now. I smiled at his unconscious action then turned my attention back to the soup when he happened to look up. Nam Woohyun, you keep surprising me a lot today…

A long, awkward silence set in when I continued taking in the soup and he simply stood beside my bed, watching me do it. I coughed a little a few minutes later, unable to stand the eerie silence and turned to face him.

“So...uhmm…” I started to say, a little unsure if I should ask my next question.

“So…” He started to say simultaneously, causing the both of us to shut up once again. Our eyes met and we both smiled at the ridiculousness of our situation.

“You first…” He finally said, grabbing the swivel computer chair right next to him and sitting on it casually, still facing me. I just noticed that he was still dressed in house clothes…only a simple black, sleeveless hoodie which showed off his muscled arms and gray sweatpants. So he really didn’t go out today…

“…well, I just wanted to ask why you stayed. To take care of me.” I asked him, focusing my eyes on the tray of food instead of him while I did. I immediately felt my embarrassment welling up, causing my already-warm face to warm up even more. Pabo, why did I have to ask that…

“A-aniyo! I didn’t stay here to take care of you…I just didn’t have any plans today so…” He replied promptly, his voice neutral and casual. I knew it…I thought, before nodding my head once at him and finishing the last of my soup.

“Arasso, arasso, whatever you say…” I murmured coolly in reply, before taking a big gulp of the orange juice which was the only thing left on the tray now.

“Aish, it’s true!” He exclaimed, causing me to giggle and look at him with an amused smile. Aigoo, what are you worrying about Woohyun…?

“I didn’t say I didn’t believe what you said Woohyun…but really, thanks.” I said, turning to him with a smile, meaning every word.

I saw his eyes widen with surprise and his cheeks flush pink before he could avert his face and look away quickly. I continued to be amused by his refreshing actions, suddenly reminding me of how he used to be back when we were kids.

“Aish, now I know you’re still sick…this stubborn midget is actually thanking me.” He said a few minutes later, the sneer and mocking tone in his voice already starting to show, to which I rolled my eyes and ignored. Aaaand the real Nam Woohyun is back…

“Don’t get used to it.” I promptly replied before setting my finished tray back on the table and lying down to get under the covers. I covered most of my face with the blanket, feigning sleep so he would take it as a cue and leave but he surprised me even more when he moved towards me instead. He hovered above me, his face showing worry and concern clearly, so obvious that I couldn’t misunderstand even if I wanted to, before I felt his hand snake its way to my forehead.

“You okay now? Feeling better?” He said, his voice suddenly becoming gentle and concerned. I flinched a little on instinct as my heart started to race for some reason. Woohyun, why are you acting like this NOW?

“Much.” I managed to say, my mouth still covered by the blanket so it probably came out as a muffled sound. I felt weak and tired all of a sudden, but my drowsiness didn’t permit me to fall into deep, comforting sleep yet. Instead I had to face the worried eyes of my ‘husband’ whom I still couldn’t fully comprehend even now. Go out, get out of here Nam Woohyun…your confusing actions are making me dizzy.

“You’re still warm…maybe you should just sleep more…” He added, putting both hands on my cheeks now, his coldness feeling very much comfortable against my warm skin.

“Mmhmm…” I murmured, not knowing what to say to him. I wanted him to let me go because the act itself was uncomfortable and strange and yet I was feeling more relieved than I’ve been this entire day that I couldn’t bear asking him to get his hands away either. Eottoke…stop confusing me…

“Will you---…will you be okay by yourself if I go out after this?” He asked almost quietly a few moments later, looking me straight in the eye while he did.

“Mmhmm…” I answered, not sure myself if that was a murmur of agreement or not. It should be better if he goes out and leaves me alone, he makes me dizzy…yes, that’s probably for the best.

“You sure? I could---…I could stay if you want…” He added, his voice uncertain and shy now.

“Then please---…” I started to say when the sound of the door bursting open and the bodies falling on the floor grabbed both of our attentions.

“Y-you--…what are you doing here?!” A horrified Woohyun asked, pointing at his friends who were fidgeting and thrashing about wildly on the floor, struggling to get up. He’d almost instantly removed his hands from me, before a collection of voices promptly followed his stuttered question.

“Dammit!” I heard Hoya’s familiar accented voice shout, as the five intruders came bursting from the door. Omo, what’s he doing here? And who are---…

“Yah, Dongwoo, get off of me!” Our classmate Sunggyu exclaimed, elbowing the taller man who had fallen on top of him.

“Hyung, what are you doing to noona??!” A high-pitched voice which I was unsure if it belonged to a girl or a boy exclaimed, causing Woohyun to laugh nervously.

Still feeling weak, I couldn’t do anything except shake my head in frustration at the sight, before glancing at Woohyun who looked like he was waiting for an opportunity to bolt from the room this instant.

Omo, what are his friends doing here? And more importantly…was I REALLY going to ask him to stay?