Two Days

            The worst day of Ryeowook’s young life was the day he was woken from peaceful dreams into his worst nightmare.  There was loud knocking at the door, startling Ryeowook awake, and then Heechul rushed into the room.

            “Hurry, get dressed.  We need to get to the hospital,” he said, flipping on the light.

            Heechul had haphazardly dressed himself.  Certainly he wasn’t dressed for the cameras.  He quickly crossed the room and began yanking clothes out of the dresser for Ryeowook to wear.  He tossed a pair of jeans and a long sleeved shirt onto the bed. 

            Ryeowook scurried out of bed and rubbed his eyes.  “Why are we going to the hospital?” he questioned, immediately worried.

            “There’s been an accident.”

            Those were the last words Ryeowook registered for a moment because he instinctively knew that if there was an accident, Kyuhyun was in it.  The only members missing when he’d gone to sleep were Leeteuk, Shindong, Hyukjae, and Kyuhyun.  They were recording Kiss the Radio.  Ryeowook looked at the alarm clock and realized that they should have been back long ago, but Kyuhyun’s side of the bed was undisturbed.  He’d never made it home.

            “Dress!  Now!” Heechul reminded him.  “If you plan on going to the hospital with us, we’re leaving in a few minutes.”

            “Kyuhyun,” Ryeowook mumbled.

            “We won’t know anything until we get there,” Heechul said with more patience.  “I don’t even know if they’re all still alive.”

            Ryeowook instantly burst into tears, but Heechul handed him his shirt and he began to change his clothes. 

            “I have to make sure the others are all up,” Heechul said, heading for the door.  “Head to the living room when you’re ready.  They’re almost here to pick us up.”

            Heechul left him alone and Ryeowook dressed in a fog, thinking about what might have happened.  It must have been a car accident if all of them were involved, he realized.  But they didn’t even know if the other members were alive…how bad of an accident was it?  He hurried as fast as possible, given he couldn’t see anything because he was crying so hard, because he didn’t like being alone at the moment.  He needed to be with the other members.

            Ryeowook headed for the living room once he was dressed and had run a comb through his hair.  Half of them were crying as bad as he was.  Sungmin was sniffling, Kibum was tearing up and trying not to, while Donghae was a mess.  “I just called Siwon,” Hangeng said.  “He’s going to meet us at the hospital.”

            Heechul started throwing everyone their jackets and told them to get their shoes on so they were ready to leave as soon as the van pulled up.  Ryeowook tried to tie his shoes several time before Sungmin finally knelt down and did it for him.  Clearly Sungmin knew without being told how upset he was.  They were all upset, but which member they worried most for probably ranged among the members.  Ryeowook worried about all of them.  He did not want to lose a single member, but he would feel worst if something happened to Kyuhyun.  Leeteuk was a close second, however, because just looking around the room told him that they all felt lost without their leader there to guide them. 

Kangin walked into the dorm from the outside door and waved at them.  “The van’s here to take us along with Jonghoon,” he claimed, trying to round us up. 

            “Did he tell you any news?” Heechul asked, dragging Donghae to his feet.

            “Shindong and Eunhyuk have only minor injuries.  Leeteuk and Kyuhyun are in critical condition.  Apparently, Leeteuk got cut up severely from the glass.  His back and face are ripped up.  Kyuhyun’s…”

            Suddenly Kangin’s eyes appeared to water up a little and his voice wavered.

            “What?” Heechul asked, his alert eyes staring down Kangin.

            Kangin softened his voice to nearly a whisper as Heechul neared him.  “He’s not breathing on his own.  They don’t think he’s going to make it.”

            Despite Kangin’s attempt to be quiet, Ryeowook still overheard him and would have collapsed were it not for Yesung quickly catching him.  “Whoa!  Wook, hang on,” Yesung urged him.  “We’ll know more when we get to the hospital.  Don’t lose hope.”

            That was the longest drive of Ryeowook’s life, if you ask him honestly, although he would recall few details about it except the fears gripping his heart.  If Kyuhyun didn’t make it…

            The other members refused to let him think like this though and steered him clear of any talk of people dying.  The oldest members were unnaturally controlled, at least until they made it to the hospital.  Heechul snuck in to see Leeteuk and then he became rather hysterical at seeing their leaded so bloodied up.  It didn’t last long.  Hangeng managed to calm him down pretty fast, but it was still not a good sign.  If Heechul reacted like that over seeing Leeteuk, how much worse was Kyuhyun?

            They got their first inkling when Hyukjae joined them at the hospital.  His cuts and bruises had been looked over.  He was a little bandaged up, but didn’t look terrible.  They had wanted him to rest longer in bed, but he refused, knowing that the other members would worry until they saw him.  He was right.  Everyone relaxed a little once one of the four members was finally returned to them.  Donghae refused to let go of Hyukjae once he rejoined the group.  Everyone else snuck in for hugs as best they could. 

“How was Kyuhyun when you last saw him,” Ryeowook managed to ask.  It was the first coherent sentence he’d said since they’d arrived at the hospital. 

            Hyukjae paled.  “He was in and out of consciousness and he had trouble breathing.  He couldn’t get up either, so he’s definitely got broken bones somewhere in his hips or legs.  He started to fade out while we were praying together on the side of the road, so I helped him lie back down.  I think he passed out for a little bit because he stopped responding to me, but he came to when the paramedics came over.  He could barely speak because he was having so much trouble breathing.  They thought that his ribs were broken and had punctured his lungs.  They had to start helping him breathe.  I’m worried about him.  You’ve heard nothing else?”

            They shook their heads and that was when the manager reemerged from where they were keeping Kyuhyun.  Everyone stood up in anticipation of his news but their faces fell as they took in the long looks of Jonghoon.

            “What’s going on?” Kangin asked.

            “They only give him a twenty percent chance of living.  That’s only if he gets an operation done almost immediately to repair his lungs, but his father is arguing with them because apparently they’d have to cut open his throat to do it and he’d lose his voice.  The doctors are mad because they’re trying to save his life, but his father doesn’t think he’ll appreciate being saved if it means he can never sing again,” Jonghoon said, running his hand through his hair.  “And I don’t know what to make of it, because I want to see Kyuhyun live, but I also want him to be happy.  I don’t envy his father’s position right now.”

            Ryeowook slumped back in his chair.  Only a twenty percent chance of survival and he’ll lose his voice.  Ryeowook began to cry bitterly.

            “Then there was this other doctor who came in at the end…Dr. Wang Yong Pil, I think…and he said he might be able to do the surgery without opening his throat.  He was going to make a couple phone calls to colleagues about the procedure and get back to Mr. Cho.  If he says he can do it, they’re going with him.”

            “So, if they go with him, Kyuhyun would still be able to sing?” Yesung questioned.

            Jonghoon nodded. 

            “See, not all hope is lost, Wookie,” Yesung told him.

            “But that’s still only a twenty percent chance of living!” Ryeowook exclaimed, his voice exceptionally high.

            “Doctors tend it make it sound more bleak than it is,” Heechul told Ryeowook, sitting down beside him.  “They do that so that you won’t feel as upset if it fails.  He’s probably got a better shot than that.  At least fifty-fifty, I bet.”

            Heechul was full of half the time and probably didn’t know what the hell he was talking about, but Ryeowook chose to believe him in this instance.  He had to cling to something.  In the end, the doctor thought he could do the surgery without slicing open Kyuhyun’s throat, so his parents told him to do it.  Ryeowook could only pray they were right.  He wasn’t going to leave until he found out.

            “See!” Matthew said, pointing at the screen.  “The odds get better and better all the time.”

            “Actually, they don’t,” Ferrand said, sitting back in his chair as he stared at the screen.  “It still all comes down to whether or not the group is united enough at this point.  Yes, he’s still alive and the surgeon we want is on board, but are the members a unit?”

            “Ferrand is right,” Amara said.  “That’s what all this depended on from the beginning.”

            “Who gets the final say?  Clearly that’s not an individual person’s elder group’s vote,” Pedro said, “or we would have already voted to spare his life.”

            “Only the head elder of each group gets to weigh in with the other head elders of the other members.  They’ll make the final vote and decide if he lives or dies,” Raisa said.  “There are a lot of factors to weigh in on.  This group has to eventually be successful and that banks on whether or not they act as a team.  They influence many people in the future.”

            “Oh…” Malina said, looking around.  “Is that what Youngja has been doing all this time?  She’s been in a meeting with the other head elders of the Super Junior members?”

            Raisa nodded.  “Once they make their vote, the real die is cast and then Kyuhyun’s fate is set.”

            “So Eunhyuk finding him early means nothing?” Malina questioned.

            “Of course it means something,” Pedro said.  “It means that Eunhyuk’s need to check on his friend overrides his need to tend to himself.  His bond with his fellow bandmate is of utmost importance to him.  Does that tell you nothing?  If the other members feel the same way for each other that Eunhyuk feels for Kyuhyun, then they’ve managed to alter the outcome and Kyuhyun will live.”

            They stopped talking and continued to watch Ryeowook’s screen.  Indeed, this possible switch in events had caused such a stir, several of the elders from the other members, some of the members’ relatives, and even some of the hospital staff had joined them in the room.  There was now well over a hundred people watching along with them.

            Matthew made the comment that it was like being in a movie theater, but most of the other elders had stopped reincarnating long before the invention of movie theaters.  They knew what they were, of course, but they’d never actually been in one, so the thought was lost on them.  Ferrand stopped reincarnating back in the middle ages, so he really had no clue.  A pity. 

            A short while later, the door opened and Youngja walked into the room.  Nearly everyone stood up at seeing her enter and gave her expectant looks.  Youngja walked over to her chair and sat down, making herself comfortable, and began watching the screen.
            “Well?” Ferrand asked in obvious frustration.  “Did you make your vote?”

            “We did,” Youngja said, nodding.

            There was a long silence after this.  “Are you going to tell us what you all decided?”

            “I’d hate to ruin the surprise,” she said, giving him a sweet smile.  “Why don’t we just watch and see, shall we?”

            Raisa pointed at her.  “You’re lucky you’re already dead.”

            Youngja just laughed and looked up at the window, watching the events as they unfolded.

            Heechul entered the darkened room and quietly closed the door behind him.  Leeteuk was propped up on his side, since his back was stitched up and his head was as well.  Heechul walked over to the bed and crouched down next to it.  Leeteuk’s eyes were closed and he was breathing deeply, sleeping soundly.  Heechul reached for Leeteuk’s hand, which was lying on top of the sheets, and gently squeezed it.  Almost instantly, Leeteuk’s eyes opened.

            “You’re back,” he said in a raspy voice.

            “It was a little harder this time.  Once your dad told them I wasn’t really your brother, they refused to let me back in your room.  .  They’re watching me like a hawk now.  I had to be sneaky,” Heechul quietly complained.

            “They’re doing their jobs…and my father was just being honest,” he defended them.

            “Mr. Cho doesn’t feel it’s compulsory to be honest with them.  When I told them I was Kyuhyun’s brother, he just gave me a weird look and introduced me to them as his oldest son.  I’m allowed in and out of his room as much as I want,” he informed Leeteuk.

            “So…he’s out of surgery?” Leeteuk asked, perking up a bit.

            Heechul nodded.  “He’s in a coma, but he’s made it out of surgery and he’s stable.  Assuming he wakes up in the next few days, he should eventually be back singing with us.”

            “He’ll sing again?” Leeteuk asked.  “I didn’t think that was possible.”

            “Of course he’ll sing again,” Heechul said, reaching over with his free hand to move Leeteuk’s hair out of his eyes.  “What the hell kind of drugs do they have you on, anyway?”

            Leeteuk shook his head, which ached and made him wince.  “I don’t know what I was thinking.  I’m in a daze at the moment.  Everything’s a blur.  Tell me when he wakes up.”

            “I will,” Heechul said.  “But the doctors feel certain he’s past the point of worry.  He’ll have a long recovery though.  He broke his pelvis and six ribs.  From now on, we’ll have to take it easy with him.  But yes, he’ll still be able to sing and that’s the important part…he was kind of a ty dancer anyway.”

            “Don’t let him hear you say that or he’ll prove you wrong,” Leeteuk warned.  “How are the others?”

            “Don’t worry…I’m watching over them while you’re laid up.  You get the reins back when you’re better though.  It’s not my favorite job.”

            “I know.  Thank you.”

            “Shindong and Eunhyuk are fine.  The hospital checked them over and treated them already, but Eunhyuk is terribly shook up over the ordeal.  He was very worried about Kyuhyun and stayed by his side until they reached the hospital,” Heechul informed him.

            “Treat him with kid gloves for a while,” Leeteuk suggested.

            “I have been.  Donghae and Sungmin have been tending to him.”

            “How’s Ryeowook?”

            “Inconsolable, but better now that it looks like Kyuhyun will live,” Heechul said, softening his voice when he heard a cart go by the door.  “I wouldn’t have left him except to check on you.”

            “Tell him I’m thinking of him and that we will take good care of Kyuhyun once he comes back to the dorm,” Leeteuk told him.

            Heechul nodded.  “I should leave now before they realize I have their schedules memorized.  I’ll come back when I hear more about Kyuhyun.  I have everything else handled.  Promise.”

            “I would not feel as easy if it weren’t for you.  No matter what my father claims, you’re more of a brother to me than any flesh or blood one ever could be,” Leeteuk said. 

            Heechul smiled wide.  “You’re only this cheesy when you’re drugged up, but it’s very cute.  I love you, too,” he said, standing back up.  He then bent down and carefully hugged Leeteuk before sneaking back to the door.  He opened it enough to peek out and then slipped out entirely and disappeared.

***I've been told that my regular subscribers were not told about this new story or the other recent one.  I have no doubt everyone will eventually figure it out, but that means I get less feedback on a regular basis about the story.  I'd really love some comments from you normally silent readers for a change as well, even if it's just a few words to tell me what you enjoy most about it.  And please subscribe and upvote as well.  I think there's only one chapter left.  You never know when it comes to me, though, I originally thought this would only be three chapters.  Whoops.***