#sickfics

okk so disclaimer kinda, theres like two oposite headcanon types in the ‘sickie’ section bc i lwk can’t make my mind up and switch between them every time i write. choosing isn’t an option anymore or this would stay in my drafts until next century historians discover it. buckle up ladies bc this is my 3:45am comeback after 7 months 💋♥︎

SICKIE

• this part is messy messy bc im bipolar when it comes to i.n. i can see him 100% avoiding human interaction and willingly isolating for the sake of his mental sanity. but i can also see his brain rebooting and making him clingier and actually not allergic to skinship for once in his life. so choose as you will, i’ve crossed some hcs that im not sure about but didn’t wanna delete

• energy’s down, his smile is nowhere to be seen

• when he tries to hide what’s wrong he’s good at pretending

• but it’s not really because of being a burden

• the members baby him enough as it is, the attention is too much sometimes

• plus he doesn’t want to appear weak. he feels like being sick will cause unnecessary worry just because of his maknae status. and while the others don’t mind the worrying, he does

• the members don’t want to let him work, which adds to his reasons to downplay it

• angstiest sickie, kinda??

• ‘don’t look at me like that, it’s fine’ while crying, but boy means it

• the boys literally need to catch him crying/mid fainting or throwing up for him to admit he’s sick

// either that or he’s dying/drained/sleepy and actually speaks up

• doesn’t notice but he tends to gravitate towards minho or seungmin bc they’re the most calm when they notice he’s behaving off — no questioning or excessive worry and doting cough cough han/hyunjin

• if he just feels a bit unwell, he might mention ‘my throat hurts’ ‘i have a headache’, but in his mind that doesn’t count as being worry-worthy sick. it’s like talking about the weather. cue the glares and annoyed sighs at the concerned looks the boys shoot him the rest of the day

• gets headaches often — if it’s a migraine he does speak up because he can’t handle noise at all and skz is loud loud in their natural habitat

• methodical and organised. he’ll take meds when he has to, will go to the doctor alone or call his parents if he doesn’t know what to do // or not idk he could also be a mess when taking meds on time like that kinda tracks

• if he’s bedridden he feels useless and upset. has cried himself to sleep more than once over it

• would choose death over waking someone up at night to help him, but if the boys find him throwing up or sth alone he knows they will never trust him to sleep by himself again. so if he’s dying he looks for someone

• tbh he does whatever he can to be left alone as much as possible, even if it means asking for help trivially

• the type to tense up at physical comfort until he’s pretty much forced to accept it

// or not. might melt into the contact but rarely finds it in himself to hug back

• however he’ll let the others touch him if they don’t know he’s sick or if he doesn’t know that they know he’s sick

• if you wanna take care of him let’s pretend you’re not worried

• ‘i.n-ah, i’m taking care of you because literally why wouldn’t i. no big deal’. that argument usually works, kinda

• see lee know is nonchalant about it and that’s what i.n needs

• oh but please don’t leave him if he has a nightmare — somehow he always gets the most horror-movie-like trauma-inducing nightmares, has a hard time coming to his senses

FEVER

• :(

• his body temp is trump-elon typa unstable no bc i wrote this back when they were having some type of drama but it ain’t like that anymore 💀

• boy’s freezing one moment and burning up the next

• legit jumps from normal to 39°C so cue the mood swings. being so mentally unstable that's the title of a gorgeous wattpad minsung fic btw upsets him bc he feels like a bitch for being so bipolar with the members 😭

• feels really bad when he suddenly wants to be alone after enjoying company, he doesn’t want to come off as spoiled or sth specially bc he knows the members like to take care of him

• either curls up under blankets sipping on sth hot to warm up or spends an hour in the shower to cool off bc he’s overheating

• hoodies scattered everywhere bc ‘i was cold but not anymore’

• gets really tired and his head hurts

→ so he actually doesn’t bother to pull away when the members hyunjin and han baby him like they usually do, but he doesn't explicitly say that he’s unwell

→ laughs at the euphoric look in their eyes when he willingly rests his head on their shoulder or lap — sth that over time he's started to do more bc it's actually comfy ??

→ tiredness and headache are usually the only physical symptoms he has. no rosy cheeks or eye bags or paleness. sometimes he doesn't even notice he's sick bc he gets headaches often and being tired is not much of a symptom (except it is)

→ whoever is playing with his hair or clinging to him ends up noticing the unnatural heat ‘oh he's not accepting my love, just sick’

• lwk loves someone touching his hair bc it makes the headache better

• hyunjin will be by his side 24/7 since i.n finally lets him cuddle him. jk he’s actually super soft and caring and doesn’t try to squish i.n to death for once. seriously treats i.n like he’s made of glass which the maknae finds as heartwarming as excessive (appreciates the intention tho)

• you know we know lee know he’s bad feverish when the nightmares hit, and they’re awful awful

→ he’s left all teary and clingy and the boys can’t even find him cute because he looks genuinely terrified

→ it’s one of the only times he willingly lets himself be comforted so everyone appears by his side like puff 🪄

→ not even 2min make jokes until the scare is over, everyone is so soft and protective — they’re still always caught off guard by the way the maknae clings to them tho, it’s so out of character and sad

→ what scares them the most is when he’s left dazed and zoned out and doesn’t acknowledge nor notice their presence, almost like he’s in another world.

→ sobs to the point of getting dizzy or throwing up, it’s the worst

STOMACH PAIN/BUG

• eats weird shit at sketchy places and somehow is fine

• he has a strong stomach when it comes to food or bugs so he rarely gets food poisoning from it

• unlesssss he’s not that lucky, very rare case in which he dies 😍

→ when he actually catches a bug or gets food poisoning he’ll willingly jump off a bridge.

→ his stomach will hate him. half the time he’s nauseous the other half he’s glued to a hot water bottle

• his stomach does get upset sometimes for no reason tho so it makes up for the lack of bugs he catches

• and it’s so bad with stress or nerves

• he used to get nervous to the point of shaking before performances so… (canon 🙂‍↕️)

• doesn’t happen usually but the cramps can get bad. like crying bad

• super insecure when he gets bloated. the members find it cute but he does not

• his stomach gets rumbly when sick — not exactly loud but he can feel it bubbling when he touches it

• doesn’t always fancy being alone when his stomach hurts but if he’s throwing up he dislikes being watched, it’s like losing dignity

• isn’t scared of throwing up unless he has a migraine bc he’s sure his brain will short-circuit and kill him

• since his head hurts often, it makes him carsick sometimes

• gets super overheated when he’s gonna be carsick but cold and shaky when the ordeal is over

COLD / FLU

• voice is gone gone

• coughs really dry but very frecuently, his chest ends up sore af

• sounds super congested so he can’t hide it. the elephant in the room addresses itself

• cute flush on his cheeks in the shape of that w blush makeup look. bc his nose is rosy from blowing it constantly

• runny nose more often than stuffy

• but when he gets a stuffy nose he dies, it feels like is head is stuffed with cotton but hard heavy cotton

• always dabbing at his nose with his sleeve, it’s cute

• sneezes like a fox as we’ve seen (canon)

• ‘cuteee’ is all he hears when he has a sneezing fit. he’d punch the members but where’s the energy to do so

• sleeps all day, unintentionally. falls asleep anywhere and everywhere but he doesn’t notice until he’s being woken up

• feels bad about interrupting work with his unplanned sleep

• dies when he gets the flu. fever on top of a cold means not sleeping because his dreams terrorise him but being awake and exhausted lowkey isn’t any better ♥︎

• laying down whenever he can, the others take advantage of it and somehow he always ends up with his head on someone’s lap

• always cold when he has a cold. there’s no unstable temperature shit he’s just freezing

• how to bring down a fever without abandoning your hoodie and blanket no glue no borax

CARETAKER

• see this is where my opinion becomes unpopular

• stepping into abandoned territory rn but walk with me

• nothing clueless about this boy he’s naturally caring and protective so he’s a good caretaker

• no awkwardness

• hates despises when someone won’t tell him and specifically him what’s wrong bc he’s the youngest

• has probably gotten in a few arguments bc of that

• feels quite useless and slightly offended when sickie goes to some else after having told him they’re fine

• quite perceptive, easily spots what’s wrong

• zero fucks given about sickie being clingy, unlike his normal social distancing behaviour

• lowkey can tell when something’s wrong with someone hyunjin bc they won’t be all over him squeezing his cheeks trying to kiss him

• protective in like a hot attractive way iykyk

• dare i say especially protective of han and chan

• and of his bf felix of course but that’s just daily basis

• not squeamish 90% of the time. unless there’s blood involved which didn’t send him spiralling but is just kinda unsettling

• won’t show his discomfort in front of sickie/whumpee obviouskt

• the type to play with sickies hair i feel like

• worried face like really obvious concerned frown

• probably does get scared if someone faints

• the best at respecting sickie’s alone time bc he gets wanting to be alone when you feel like shit

so it’s 3am and i.n’s birthday, and i decided to do something useful with my blog for the first time in over half a year 💋

as you can observe this has been in my drafts for way too long but it’s finally seeing the light

i’ve also finally finished my headcanons <3 i lowkey edit sth every time i reread them bc i love inconsistency and change my opinion every day

happy bdayyy to i.n ♥︎♥︎ his bday is legit the only reason i finished this

all skz members now have fully developed frontal lobes 🥺

@lixiesstories @tiffxfiree the way i actually posted sth

"Hyung?" he calls out, finally working out the nerve to ask to turn back early.

"Yeah?" Just as Changbin turns to look, his foot slides on a patch of gravel. It seems as if he moves in slow motion as his knee gives out and his whole body hurtles towards the ground. Crying out, he collapses onto the path and several yards down the mountainside. A sickening snap sounds from his knee and an audible thud echoes from his body slamming onto the rocks. Changbin grasps at his right knee, his knuckles turning white from the force of his grip.

"Changbin?" Seungmin's face pales completely as he jogs towards the older's side. His knee is shifted slightly out of place, leaving a hollow dip where his kneecap should be resting. Upon rolling up his sweatpants, Seungmin's stomach lurches—and not from his illness. The skin is already tinted an angry purple color, making it incredibly clear that they now needed to make it to the hospital, not home like Seungmin had just been about to ask.

"It's okay. It's… fuck," Changbin finally curses, no longer able to keep up with his tough persona as he takes in deep breaths to calm his nerves. He can tell the joint is dislocated, and with as severe as it looks, he won't be dancing for a while. He's letting his members down, letting STAY down, all over dragging his friend out for a hike that he wanted to do. The only thing that snaps him out of his spiral was the sight of his friend fighting back tears.

Seungmin, not often one to cry, is fighting a losing battle. Seeing his hyung so injured, yet remaining so calm, elicits a tearful reaction. That's how he knows he's getting sick—he's never so emotional otherwise. Thick, hot tears roll down his cheeks as he tries to help Changbin up off the gravel.

"We need to get you home. There's no way we can go any further," Seungmin sniffles, stating the obvious. "Hyung, it looks so bad."

"Yeah. Yeah, okay. Just… let's go slowly, yeah?"

Seungmin clears his throat and slowly, painfully helps Changbin stand up.

An immediate shriek. "NO! No, no, no, put me down!" At Changbin's panic, Seungmin lowers him to the ground as fast as he safely can.

"I’m so so sorry, Bin," Seungmin squats down next to him. "I don't think we can move you safely."

Like a cruel joke, the universe chooses this moment to open the skies. Mercifully, it is only drizzling.

"You have to be fucking with me," Changbin starts to truly panic as Seungmin digs in his backpack for his poncho. "No, Min-ah, you take it!" He protests as Seungmin puts the raincoat over his hyung's head.

"You need it more than I do," Seungmin chokes out. He is in completely over his head and has no idea what he should do. Rain is coming down in sheets, pattering against the dirt. Worst of all, his headache is wringing his brain out, making him impossibly dizzy and his thoughts sluggish.

"I… I'm going to call for help."

Changbin's eyes immediately narrow. If they could get through to help, it would likely be a whole public scandal. STAY would panic. STAY would get mad. Mad at JYPE, for 'letting their idols run loose and risk getting hurt,' or mad at Chan for 'not taking care of his dongsaengs.' As much as he wants to avoid the whole potential situation, he realizes that they are quite honestly fucked, and lets Seungmin dial 119.

Seungmin stares at the call that won't go through. Once, twice, three tries, to no avail. The drizzle turns into a steady tapping against Changbin's poncho as Seungmin tucks his phone back into his bag, the "Call Failed" screen causing the tears that had been brewing to finally roll over. He swallows hard and the movement spikes the pain in his throat, causing it to shoot up into his temples.

"Changbin," Seungmin croaks out as he curls up next to his side. "It won't go through."

"What? We can't just sit here!" Changbin continues grabbing his thigh. The higher pressure seems to ease the pain below it, even if it's only in his head.

"We have to go back down. I can try to get you up again," Seungmin suggests shakily. He thinks back to where they are. Luckily, due to the nature of how the trail loops around, they're about a kilometer from the company car they took out today. Unluckily, it's almost completely on a steep decline.

"Slowly, Min," Changbin warns, and they try again. Seungmin awkwardly maneuvers the bigger man up over his shoulder until he can straighten out his body, then acts as a crutch on the same side as the swollen knee.

"Ready?"

"Ready."

Ever so slowly, they set off down the trail. Every lurch makes Changbin's knee hurt more and more as the adrenaline wears off. Not only is Changbin's condition worsening, Seungmin isn't as stable a crutch as he ought to be. With the fever burning full force in the base of his skull, dizziness threatens to send them hurtling hundreds of feet down. It's a wet, rocky slip and slide.

Suddenly, "I need to stop."

The quiet words don't come from Changbin, but from Seungmin.

"What?"

"I need to stop. Hyung, I'm dizzy, I don't want to drop you," Seungmin's voice cracks as he turns Changbin into a hug against his chest. Taking his weight on more evenly helps calm the gray blurs in the younger's vision.

"What? Why are you dizzy? The altitude isn't that high, Min-ah," Changbin replies through gritted teeth.

"No. No, Binnie, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," Seungmin tears up for the third time that afternoon. His face is soaked with an indistinguishable combination of salty tears and thick raindrops. Underneath the dampness, his skin is flushed a deep, red color.

Changbin leans all of his weight into the singer. "What? Why are you sorry?"

"I… I was running a fever this morning. But you were so excited about this hike, and I wasn't feeling too bad, and now my throat is on fire and my head is spinning, and I feel achy, and I'm scared I'll drop you, and what if we both die out here-"

"Whoa, whoa!" Changbin frowns. This entire rant is news to him. "We're not dying. But Seungmin, you can't hide stuff like this!" The rain continues falling in heavy sheets.

"I'm so sorry, hyung. But we need to get back, now. You need a hospital," Seungmin cries and tries to head forward again until the dizziness sends him tipping and he has to fold strategically to get Changbin sitting back on the ground with his poor knee stretched out in front of him.

"Fuck!" Changbin yells out. All of the adrenaline has worn out at this point, making every movement beyond painful.

"I genuinely… I can't…" the younger scrambles to explain. His hands shake with guilt and he struggles to justify his hiding his condition. There really is no excuse.

"I'm not mad at you, Minnie, just… there's at least 300 meters until we're back flat. And then another 400 to the car."

An idea strikes Seungmin. Despite the violent shivering wracking all of his limbs, causing a trembling all the way through to his fingers, he takes off his jean jacket.

"You'll freeze!"

"Hear me out!"

He lays the jacket out on the gravel and helps Changbin sit squarely on the thick body of the fabric.

"Let me know if this hurts too bad," Seungmin rasps out. He stumbles forward, dragging Changbin by the sleeves. When he walks slowly, he's able to progress without straining himself so much, and Changbin is able to slide without hurting so badly. It's not a perfect method. The gravel claws at Changbin's lower back through the denim, sending sparks of pain straight through him, and sometimes they advance a bit too far and risk tumbling down. But the rain acts in their favor for once and they make it down to the bottom of the incline after nearly thirty agonizingly long minutes.

The company car is in sight at this point, across the rest of the trail and through the flat expanse of parking lot. Both men are entirely soaked through. Seungmin is shivering violently, his throat screaming in pain, and his whole body weak and achy. Despite the poncho, Changbin's clothes are also completely wet, and his pants are torn from being dragged along the path.

Back to playing 'human crutch.'

Powered only by pure determination to get Changbin help, Seungmin drags him up to a standing position.

"See the car, Binnie? We're close. So close."

Step. Shift. Drag. Step. Shift. Sway. Recenter. Drag.

It takes forever. Even more screaming. Stopping for dizzy spells, for pain breaks, and for readjustments. But there are no cars in the parking lot (Seungmin supposes everyone else checked the weather), and so they can cross it more easily.

Mercifully, they finally reach the car. Seungmin fishes the keys out of his pocket, so ready to finally climb back in, turn the heat on, and get his hyung medical attention. With Changbin still hanging off his chest, Seungmin clicks the unlock button.

Nothing happens.

Again.

Nothing.

Of course the key won't work. It's been sitting in water for nearly forty minutes, the battery is clearly brokem.

"Changbin-hyung?" He croaks. "The fob. It's not working. Can you hold onto the side of the car? Give me a minute." Changbin obeys, leaning all his weight across the hood. His teeth are gritted in agony but his full trust is in his member to get them out of this situation.

Seungmin steps around to the driver's side, his hands shaking violently as he fumbles with the slippery key. Eventually, he manages to pop out the blade using his thumbnail. Into the lock, turn, click. A small mercy. He stretches across the seat to turn on the ignition and blast the heat.

Seungmin exhales shakily and comes back around to face Changbin.

"We've got to get you in," he rasps.

Changbin shifts his weight from the hood as Seungmin resumes his position as a crutch. Together, they hobble as close to the side of the seat as they can. Support, pivot. With a strong heave, Seungmin pulls Changbin up so that he sits down with his legs hanging out the door.

"Be careful," Changbin pleads.

"I know," Seungmin pants. He reaches for the seat's lever and lets his hyung's seat scoot back enough so that he can rotate him to face forward in the car. It's a slow, bit by bit process, and when they finally make it, Seungmin could cry from a mixture of relief and sheer exhaustion.

The click of the seatbelt buckle is a victory cheer as Seungmin makes his way back into the driver's side and closes the door.

Now, as they soak through the front seats of the company car, Seungmin's symptoms wash over him like a wave. His entire body is trembling from head to toe. Each breath causes fire to explode down his throat and into his lungs. The mixture of sweat and rain cause his wet clothes to cling uncomfortably to his skin.

Dizziness clings to the edge of his vision even as he sits down and pulls hit seatbelt across his chest. Every tiny movement amplifies the pain in his joints.

A soft voice breaks the silence.

"Seungmin?" Changbin gasps, forcing his own breathing to stay steady even as he leans left to check on his dongsaeng.

"Yeah?"

"Thank you so much."

"What for? I got us into this situation. I put us at risk!" Seungmin's voice cracks.

"You didn't make me fall," Changbin interrupts, adjusting the heat so it blows onto Seungmin's side. "You helped me. You saved me. I didn't want to worry you up there, but I was so scared we would get stranded, or… or hurt even worse. I'm so proud of you."

"It's supposed to be you manhandling me, not the other way around," the younger hiccups.

"Seungminnie. Thank you."

Seungmin responds with a full body sob. It's a totally body release of the day's stress, exhaustion, and illness. He swallows, hard, trying to steady himself.

Changbin watches him closely. "You don't have to be strong right now, Min-ah. But we need to go."

The singer blinks rapidly as he tries to focus. He runs the windshield wipers once, then twice. The rain is still coming down, they're miles from the nearest hospital, and his fever is making his head spin.

He looks over at Changbin, who is currently leaned back into his rain-soaked seat, clutching his knee.

"I… Okay. Let's go." Seungmin puts the car into reverse but doesn't proceed backward.

"Are you alright to drive like this?" Changbin's brows furrow. He can't believe that he's about to watch a blubbering, fever-ridden sickie try to navigate the downhill, winding roads, through thick fog and the constant downpour.

"I have to be. I guess we'll find out," Seungmin makes an attempt at levity.

The joke doesn't land. But truly, they have no other choice. Changbin can't even point his toe, and there would be no way he could operate the gas pedal. Ironically, the fever-ridden boy was their best bet.

snowy winter day, late morning, light schedule, it was going to be the perfect day for chan. but when he woke up, he felt wrong.

he could see the snow through his window and his phone showed 11:37, the dorm was- fuck, 11:37. he never slept that late. yet, somehow, he didn’t feel well rested either.

he really didn’t feel like going about his day. dance practice would start in an hour, then he guessed he’d have lunch with 3racha, and lastly they had recording in the afternoon.

it wasn’t much, really, but his motivation to get out of bed was about zero. he was deep in self pity when a loud noise from the kitchen startled him into sitting up.

‘clumsy maknae’, he thought as he heard the familiar sound of a pot clattering to the floor. sighing, he forced himself to stand up and his vision immediately filled with dots. yeah, that was his blood pressure dropping as fast as his mood.

he groaned as the dots finally faded and grabbed grey sweatpants and a matching hoodie and beanie before walking into the kitchen where jeongin was, in fact, glaring at a pot on the floor.

hearing the approaching footsteps, the maknae looked up at him and gasped.

“woah, hyung, you look super pale! like, more than usual”, he said, walking over to chan as the older shrugged.

why did jeongin look so worried? he must look worse than he feels. “i don’t feel bad”, chan told him, “just off”.

jeongin raised an eyebrow at that, “very descriptive, hyung. explain a bit?”. chan chuckled and rolled his eyes, starting the coffee machine.

he noticed that the maknae was ready to go out, shoes on and everything.

“i have no energy”, the leader said, “but like, i slept a lot”. the maknae hummed and crossed his arms as he about it for a moment. “maybe you slept a lot but not well?”.

assuming it was indeed just tiredness, chan nodded, “probably”. after some more light chatter, he went ahead with his morning and made some toasts.

i.n had actually woken up a long while before ago, so when chan sat down with his coffee and toast the boy was already going to leave the dorm. “see you later, grandpa”, he said with a smile that showed his dimples, and left.

as for chan, he spent the next half an hour completely spaced out. he barely registered finishing his breakfast and was only brought back to focus by the chills that had started going through his body.

he groaned, annoyed that the heating wasn’t on, and made his way to the thermostat before stopping on his tracks. oh, so the maknae did turn it on. why was he so cold, then?

chan didn’t bother thinking about it and instead went back to his room since he still had a while until dance practice started. he sat on his bed with a blanket to try and stop the shivering. it didn’t work.

actually, the longer he sat there, the worse he felt. somewhere during the last 10 minutes his head had started to throb. it wasn’t bad, it was barely there, but it was still annoying.

his eyes had started watering too so he put his phone down and dabbed under his eyelashes with his sleeves. what a great fucking morning.

when he felt like he’d silently complained enough, chan reluctantly got out from under his blanket, put his phone, keys, computer and bottle of water in his bag and deemed himself ready to leave the comfort of his room.

he wasn’t ready at all though. the pounding behind his eyes had only grown stronger and when he looked at himself in the bathroom mirror, he saw what jeongin had meant when saying he was paler than usual.

he genuinely looked like a ghost. a hot one, but a ghost nonetheless.

chan splashed his face with cold water in hopes of regaining even the slightest bit of colour, but he was unlucky. thinking about it now, there was no denying that he didn’t feel good.

could he stay home today? it might be an option, but the schedule was so light that he doubted he’d be allowed to skip it. plus, he wasn’t sick sick, because he didn’t have a fever.

‘that’s dumb, you don’t need a fever to be sick’ chan thought, but soon forgot about any chances of missing work when his phone rang with the managers number.

oops, he was going to be late, and if the manager had gone as far as calling instead of texting then he definitely couldn’t stay back.

deciding not to waste anymore time dwelling on his discomfort, chan got out of the bathroom, put on some random nikes he found, grabbed a jacket and finally left the dorm.

the cold winter air greeted him mercilessly and he almost called a cab before deciding that the cold wasn’t worth risking getting recognised by the diver and having to have a conversation.

antisocial chan was a rare find, but he came to the surface every once in a while.

it felt like an eternity before he finally reached the company, and by then his teeth were chattering and his body was trembling from the cold. at least, at the very least, he didn’t have a stuffy nose. or a fever, that would be even worse.

luck wasn’t on his side that day because chan ran into more people than he had talked to the whole year, and everyone seemed to have a conversation to strike with him. yes, he was definitely going to be late to practice.

when he finally made it to the practice room, he was greeted by lee know’s glare. “you’re late. very”, the dancer said, but he was quick to let it go when he saw chan’s lack of response and the way his face had less colour than a paper sheet.

the leader himself felt bad for making his members wait, but he found himself not caring that much.

he’d showed up, that felt like enough effort today. quickly dropping his bag to the side, chan walked to the centre of the room and was relieved to see that the others had waited for him before stretching.

“you didn’t take off your jacket”, changbin pointed out when chan sat next to him, “oh- never mind, hyung, you’re shaking. are you okay?”.

the leader caught sight of the worried expression on the rappers face and it made his chest feel warm. he shrugged and said “its freezing out there and i came walking, i feel like an ice cu-”.

“YOU CAME WALKING?? IN THIS WEATHER??”

startled by the yell, both chan and changbin looked up to an amazed han. “hyung, you have superpowers or something”, the youngest member of 3racha said, wincing when he saw chan’s shaky hands, “not very good decision making skills, though”.

chan chuckled mid stretch and argued that “it didn’t feel so bad when i left the dorm”. their discussion halted when minho walked over to the speakers and started looking for a song to dance.

he must’ve caught felix making puppy eyes at him because he chose mountains. that was a fairly easy dance compared to what they had and chan silently thanked god for it.

the rest of practice was uneventful, mostly. they had to learn a dance for one of the next comeback songs and chan struggled more than usual to get the moves down, but it could have been worse.

through the fog that had settled over his brain and the constant waves of pain in his head, the leader didn’t notice lee know’s careful eyes watching him throughout the whole practice.

instead, he was just grateful that the dancer was in a seemingly unprompted forgiving mood and said nothing when he kept making the same mistakes in a row.

of course, minho had a reason to be so patient. all of the members had noticed chan’s low mood today and the way his face lacked colour. the flush on his cheeks made up for the paleness though, but it eased no one’s worries.

moreover, none of them missed the leader’s winces whenever the music’s bass echoed louder in the room or the way he’d quietly sit down next to his water bottle during the breaks. normally, whenever he had trouble with moves, he’d spend the breaks practicing them, but he didn’t today, and they could guess that he didn’t feel the best.

lunch with 3racha passed in a blur for chan. he didn’t pay attention to their conversation at all even if he probably should have and he appreciated the fact that neither changbin nor han forced him to talk.

dance practice had messed up his stomach, maybe he’d drank too much water? whatever it was, he didn’t feel like eating, but changbin didn't let him leave his food untouched.

‘probably for the best’ chan thought ‘it’s not like i have enough energy to just not eat’. yes, his stomach felt kinda bad, but he was thankful that he didn’t feel actually nauseous. maybe it was just sore from so much dancing? most definitely not.

walking to the studio, chan assessed the situation. his head was pounding, his stomach felt sore and the chills that racked through his body hadn’t completely disappeared.

not good, but not too bad. on a scale from 1 to 10, he was mildly screwed.

now that he thought about it, what bothered him the most was the exhaustion that hadn’t let up ever since he woke up. okay, he could deal with being tired.

han grabbing onto his arm pulled him out of his thoughts and he smiled at the rapper. “what’s up?”, chan asked, slightly amused at the gesture. han replied with a soft “nothing”, so the leader just let him be clingy. he was warm anyway, chan welcomed that.

out of the corner of his eye, he saw changbin jokingly pout over ‘not being chosen by han’ and he couldn’t hold back a laugh. could he ever not laugh while he was with 3racha? probably not.

when they got to the studio, he was surprised to see that the equipment was already set up. changbin must’ve caught his confused expression because he giggled. “we were recording han’s song in the morning, hyung”, he told chan in a playful tone, “you’d know if you had listened to us during lunch”.

the leader rolled his eyes and smiled, plopping down on the couch and pulling out his phone before replying “y’all talk too much, i can’t listen to everything”.

at that, han gasped like he was offended and sprawled out on the couch half on top of chan’s legs. “how could you, hyung, you like listening to me talk”, the boy complained, and then bragged, “everyone does, actually”.

the two older boys laughed and chan ruffled han’s hair playfully, which sent the younger on another round of whined complaints even though he had no intention on moving off of chan’s legs, which at some point started to feel numb from the lack of circulation.

“let him breathe, hannie”, a teasing voice said from the door. 3racha looked up to see minho there. “whats with the looks”, the dancer questioned, “wasn’t i first for recording?”.

to be honest, chan had no idea. he hadn’t checked the order at all but minho was responsible enough. if he said he was first, then he probably was.

“sure”, the leader answered, acting like he knew, “you know the lyrics or…?”. lee know seemed to ponder the question for a moment before saying “let me read them again. han can start recording if he wants”.

the truth was, he did know the lyrics, quite well actually since for once they weren’t in english, but he wanted changbin and han to focus on recording so he could check on chan.

and hey, it worked. han left the couch and got into the booth while changbin sat on the producer’s chair, so now lee know had chan all to himself.

“hello, hyung”, he said a little too sweetly, sitting down next to chan on the couch, “how are you feeling?”. he couldn’t help but laugh at the leader’s surprised expression. he looked like a deer caught in headlights.

“is it that obvious?”, chan asked quietly, not wanting the other two to hear them, “i don’t even feel that bad”

lee know smiled at him, trying to seem reassuring, “not that obvious, just enough. so?”. chan internally cursed but decided to keep it simple. “my head hurts”, he said, “and i’m cold. freezing actually”. a shiver accompanied his words, giving away just how freezing he waqs.

still, the dancer didn’t look convinced. “you made way too many mistakes earlier to be just that”, minho said, and then winced at his words, “no offence”.

chan fidgeted with the sleeves of his hoodie, feeling bad that he did so bad at practice. surely he had been an inconvenience, but he swore he did as well as he could. “sorry”, he mumbled, “i don’t know. i’m really tired but i don’t have a fever, so i- i don’t know”, he looked at his lap, “my stomach feels bad too”.

lee know frowned, getting kinda worried. he reached up to feel chan’s forehead with the back of his hand and then moved it down to the older’s cheek.

“not a fever”, he agreed, smiling slightly when chan unconsciously closed his eyes and leaned into his touch. “see? i’m f-” chan tried to speak but lee know interrupted him with a firm “yet”.

“what do you mean yet”, chan huffed, maybe a bit childishly if the amused expression that took over minho’s face was anything to go by.

“i mean,” lee know started, dropping his hand from chan’s face and smirking at the sad expression the older made, “that you don’t feel too warm. but you don’t feel cold either and your cheeks are rosy, so lets see how long ‘no fever’ lasts”.

chan glared at him and automatically reached up with both hands to touch his face. “i don’t feel warm”

“yes you do”

“no. i’m not warm”

“yes you are, hottie”

“minho!”

the dancer laughed and stood up. “my turn”, he said, pointing at han that was leaving the recording booth. chan rolled his eyes and moved to sit next to changbin, now frowning.

“what’s with the grumpy look, hyung?”, the rapper laughed, playfully nudging the leader’s arm when he mumbled “i’m not grumpy, focus on the recording”.

while minho was smoothly recording his lines, jeongin and seungmin came into the room and sat on the couch to review their part, quietly talking between themselves.

chan liked it when the boys recorded in korean because they barely made any mistakes and didn’t need help with the pronunciation. that meant he, as a producer, didn’t need to be that focused.

of course he always payed a lot of attention to everything, but on days like this when he only wanted to be in his warm bed, a break from hyper-focusing on every detail was very welcome.

changbin was there anyway and he was just as professional as chan was. in fact, it was the rapper that was doing the most work today, because chan soon realised that his headache was steadily getting worse and he couldn’t help but zone out for the most part.

he was still halfway in a daze when minho finished his lines for the day and seungmin took his place in the booth.

“chan hyung”, minho called, standing next to chan who was now slumped over the table with his head resting on his crossed arms. no response. “channie hyung, channie hyung, chan-”

“what.”

lee know smiled at him, “you look dead”, he said, resting his hand on chan’s back. “i feel dead”, the leader groaned, wrapping his arms around his stomach and dropping his head on the table, “everything hurts”.

“sounds fun”, the dancer replied sarcastically, but against his words, he crouched down next to the leader and ran his hand down his back, “do you want pills?”.

chan cracked a smile at that and propped his head up on his hand, “don’t say it like that, it sounds sketchy”. minho laughed and shrugged, “not unless you make it sound sketchy. do you want painkillers or not?”.

when he received a nod in response, he went over to his bag and rummaged through it it until he found pills. “tell me you ate something at lunch”, the dancer said, walking back to chan, who nodded. “changbin made me”.

the rapper seemed to hear their conversation because he smirked, “you can thank me now hyung”. chan glared at him and sat straight to take the pills, which he swallowed dry. “disgusting” changbin mumbled, to which minho agreed, “very disgusting, are you dumb? you have water right there”.

“leave me alone”, chan complained, annoyed that his members were teaming up against him. the other two laughed, but let him be since seungmin needed to start recording.

chan couldn’t really complain right now. changbin was carrying most of the recording, the maknaes’ voices sounded as angelic as always and felix and hyunjin arrived on time to record their parts. everything was going perfectly well.

but still, the later it got, the worse chan felt. don’t get him wrong, the painkillers did work, but they had worn off way too quickly. now, his head was throbbing intensely, making his eyes water.

at some point, changbin had called han to take chan’s place because anyone could tell that the leader wasn’t able to do much even if he tried.

chan himself didn’t even put up a fight, instead giving up his seat to walk to the couch. as soon as he stood up a wave of dizziness washed over him and he was sure he’d have fallen if minho hadn’t been quick to steady him.

the dancer helped him to the couch where chan sat with his knees to his chest. minho felt his forehead again, and in a low voice so as not to make the headache worse, he announced “you now have the fever”.

chan bit his lip, of course everything had to take a turn for the worse before the schedule was over. if he was honest, he could cry.

“of course i fucking do”, he mumbled shakily, rubbing his eyes. at least if he ended up crying he could blame the headache for making his eyes water.

lee know looked surprised at the leader’s reaction. he usually coped well with being sick. apparently not today. “hey”, he said softly, “it’s fine, you’ll be good tomorrow. do you want to go home?”

did chan want to go home? yes he did. he was cold and tired and sick so he legally had absolutely no reason to be here. but he didn’t want to go home alone and miss what little was left of the recording, so he shook his head.

“no? why not? this is almost over- oh, that’s why, this is almost over”. it was almost funny, really, how the second oldest was able to read his mind, but he appreciated it. “then…”, minho continued, “try to fall asleep? you can at least rest, can’t you?”.

chan shrugged. could he? he always found it hard to sleep when he was in pain, so probably not. but it wouldn’t hurt to try.

seeing how he was having an internal debate, minho gently pushed chan’s head to his shoulder and rested his arm over the older. “just try, hyung, it’s fine if you can’t”.

so chan tried. he closed his eyes and tried to focus on the background noise. felix’s and hyunjin’s raps were great for stage, but weren’t exactly relaxing, so it wasn’t long before he needed to grab his airpods to block the noise.

minho winced in sympathy at the way chan kept moving in his seat because he couldn’t get comfortable and started rubbing the leader’s back in a way he hoped was comforting.

it was comforting, that was for sure, but chan felt too bad to rest. he kept moving around, trying to get comfortable, but he didn’t get anywhere. “i can’t”, he whimpered quietly, sitting up and struggling to take a deep breath in without breaking into tears.

minho bit his lip sadly. the leader looked awfully pale and his eyes were glossy, wether that was the fever or tears he couldn’t tell. “i don’t know, hyung…”, the dancer said softly, “i really think i should take you home. binnie and han got this”.

chan didn’t even find it in him to say no this time. his head hurt so bad, his stomach was flipping and he still felt as freezing as he did in in the morning.

plus, he was sure he’d end up crying and he didn’t need everyone watching him. “okay”, he told minho, looking down at his shaking hands, “i-i just want… i r-really want this to s-stop”.

“of course you do”, minho hummed, standing up and giving the leader an unusually gentle smile, “we’ll go, just let me tell changbin first”.

he went over to the rapper and whispered “i’m taking hyung home, he’s dying over there”, to which changbin’s eyes widened in worry.

chan watched the interaction, not even able to feel guilty because he knew there was no way he could stay here, in the crowded recording room, any longer.

out of the corner of his teary eye, he saw changbin shoot him a reassuring smile, and he couldn’t help but smile back, albeit a bit unsteadily as a tear rolled down his flushed face.

when minho came back, took his hand and helped him up and towards the door, he didn’t resist.

when he was gently pushed to the backseat of a car and minho had to buckle him up because his hands were shaking too badly to fasten the seatbelt himself, he didn’t protest.

and when the soothing and constant motion of the vehicle finally lulled him into a light doze, he didn’t catch minho’s loving smile.

but the short drive to his dorm was too short for sleep to help him, and he was woken up by minho slowly shaking his arm. minho, who had apparently taken the role of chan’s pillow.

the leader sat up, a bit shy that he’d acted so… soft? was that even the word? his clouded mind didn’t even know, but he was embarrassed.

as for the dancer, he simply chuckled and waved his hand in front of chan’s face, breaking into a laugh when the older looked up at him with a very not intimidating glare. “let’s go”, he said, leaning across chan to open the door for him, “what a gentleman i am, hm?”.

chan rolled his eyes at minho’s cocky manners, but the movement made him wince. right, his head was killing him and he was feverish. he almost forgot. slowly, so as not to trigger another wave of pain, he got out of the car and thanked the driver.

immediately, minho wrapped an arm around his shoulders and walked with him. once again, chan’s shaky hands prevented him from unlocking the door and, with a poorly concealed pout, he gave the keys to minho.

“can’t believe you’re still cold”, minho teased, opening the door quickly to let chan out of the winter air asap. “don’t believe it, then”, snapped the leader. more like mumbled, actually, because his voice was weak and his expression not offensive at all.

the dancer laughed at him yet again. how many times would he today? it was unfair. chan took small steps into the elevator and slumped against the wall, not having the energy to stand up on his own.

when minho got inside too, next to him, chan couldn’t help but drop his head on the younger’s shoulder.

the dancer let him and even brought a hand up to his neck, but removed it when it’s coldness made chan shiver. “sorry”, he apologised quietly, instead touching his forehead again, “still too warm. you’re taking more pills as soon as i find them”.

true to his word, minho didn’t waste a second, and when they finally got into chan and jeongin’s dorm, he made the leader change into warmer sweatpants and a long sleeved shirt—he didn’t think the thick hoodie would be of any help to the fever, so he made chan take it off—before finding fever reducers and giving them to him.

“comfy?”, he asked after a while, proudly looking at the way he’d gotten chan settled on his bed under a fluffy blanket and looking the slightest bit more colourful. yeah, not colourful, he wasn’t a rainbow (lowkey tho-), just less pale. chan, for maybe the first or second time that day, giggled quietly and nodded.

“won’t you sit with me, lino-yah~?”, he asked in a playful voice, but there was a slight pleading hidden in his words that minho couldn’t ignore, so he just nodded and sat next to the leader, letting himself be used as a pillow once more.

chan was still hurting, of course, but he was in his comfy warm bed and had his ‘cutest little thing’ next to him. and minho would make it better if the pain got worse again, would wake him up if the fever gave him the nightmares that always chased him when he was sick.

minho was there, and would take care of him, right? yes, 100% right.