#spaghetti fics

One (thankfully uneventful) pee break later, Seonghwa was able to get Hongjoong tucked back into bed, with strict orders not to try and get up by himself again unless he wanted to be the one to explain to the rest of the members why their eldest hyung had died of a heart attack at age twenty seven. After a quick trip back to his bedroom to grab his laptop, and another to the kitchen for a protein bar, Seonghwa posted himself up at Hongjoong’s desk, close enough to jump into action if he was needed, but still with enough space between them that Hongjoong could rest easily without risk of being disturbed; despite only having been awake for an hour, the leader had already had an extremely rough go of it, and Seonghwa was really hoping he’d be able to get a bit of sleep before the next round of vomiting began.

That hope was quickly dashed, however, when not even twenty minutes after he’d laid back down did Hongjoong suddenly bolt upright, urgently asking through the shaky hand he’d pressed over his mouth for Seonghwa to please pass him the bin.

Thus, the cycle began anew. For the next three hours, Hongjoong struggled horribly, leaning over the side of his bed to be sick every thirty minutes like clockwork while Seonghwa rubbed his back and whispered soft words of encouragement in his ear. It was early evening by the time he finally managed to fall asleep, the relentless nausea he’d been experiencing eventually easing up enough for him to close his eyes without feeling like he was on a tilt-a-whirl. Seonghwa stayed by his side for a while longer, wanting to be nearby in case he woke up feeling sick again, but after an hour had passed without any further incidents, he decided to leave Hongjoong to rest for a bit so he could have a shower of his own, as well as a proper meal.

Instead of putting on some music to listen to like he normally would, Seonghwa bathed in silence, hoping that the few minutes of quiet before he had to return to his mat-hyung duties would help to clear his mind and calm his nerves a little bit. Although, logically, he knew not to be too worried about the whole situation- any sort of stomach ailment always seemed to hit Hongjoong much harder than it did the rest of the members- it was still difficult for him to watch his best friend suffer so much without being able to do anything to stop it.

Thankfully, the shower was successful in giving him the mental reset he needed, and after a pit stop in the kitchen for a late lunch, Seonghwa was feeling significantly better than he had been a half hour before. He had just gotten done clearing the table and was about to start washing his dishes when his phone buzzed with an incoming text from Yunho.

7:33pm Golden Retriever 🐶: can you come here when you have a sec? not urgent

Seonghwa replied immediately:

7:33pm Mama Hwa 👵🏻: Be right there!

Not wanting to make his dongsaengs wait, despite Yunho’s insistence that it wasn’t a time-sensitive matter, Seonghwa quickly loaded his dishes into the dishwasher and made his way across the dorm to their bedroom. When he opened the door, he was surprised to find that instead of being in Mingi’s bed where he’d left them, the pair were now cuddled up together in Yunho’s, with Mingi’s sheets having been entirely stripped off and left in a pile on the floor.

Before Seonghwa had a chance to ask what was going on, Yunho spoke up: “Mingi knocked his tea over and the sheets got soaked,” he explained, gesturing towards the crumpled heap of bedding in the middle of the room. “I took them off so I could put them in the wash, but then I started getting kinda dizzy again so I had to lay back down before I could finish. I’m sorry, hyung.”

“Oh,” Seonghwa said, feeling rather relieved; given how sick Mingi had been that morning, he was afraid he might have a much worse kind of mess to deal with than just some spilled tea. “Oh, that’s not a problem at all, you’re totally good. I have some laundry to do anyway, so I’ll just toss them in with the rest of it.”

Seonghwa picked up the sheets and threw them into the hallway to be dealt with later before making his way back over to Yunho’s bed and sitting down at his side. “How are you feeling now?” he asked. “Still dizzy?”

“No, I’m okay, hyung,” Yunho replied, offering Seonghwa a reassuring smile. “I feel a lot better now that I’m lying down again.”

“Good, I’m glad to hear that.” Seonghwa gave Yunho a fond pat on the shoulder before turning his attention to Mingi, who was slumped up against the dancer’s side, looking like he was barely following the conversation the two of them were having.

“How about you, love?” he asked softly, reaching forward to tuck a strand of hair behind Mingi’s ear. “How’s that belly feeling?”

In lieu of a verbal response, Mingi pulled a hand out from under the covers and patted his stomach with an exaggerated frown, then puffed his cheeks and gave his head a slight shake.

“It still hurts a lot, but he doesn’t feel like he’s gonna throw up anymore,” Yunho explained, noting the confusion on Seonghwa’s face. While the strain of repeated vomiting had caused Mingi to entirely lose his voice a few hours prior, almost a decade of friendship had made Yunho fluent in Mingi handspeak, and as such, he had dubbed himself the younger’s unofficial mouthpiece until further notice.

“I will literally never understand how you guys do that,” Seonghwa said with an incredulous chuckle. “But alright, that’s progress, I suppose. Hopefully by tonight the pain will have eased up a bit too. I’m sorry you’re still feeling so gross, Mingi-yah.”

Mingi gave a quiet hum of acknowledgement and closed his eyes, nestling his head back into where he’d been resting it in the crook of Yunho’s arm. Yunho leaned forward and tugged the covers up over Mingi’s shoulders, pausing for a moment to make sure he was settled again before looking back up at Seonghwa. “How’s Hongjoong hyung?” he asked, lowering his voice a bit as he spoke. “Is he doing okay?”

“He finally fell asleep a little while ago, but honestly it’s been pretty rough. You know how he gets.” Seonghwa purposefully kept his answer vague, not wanting to worry his dongsaengs with the details of what the last few hours had truly entailed, but Yunho’s face twisted in sympathy nonetheless.

“Aigoo, poor hyung,” he frowned. “Tell him I’m sorry for getting him sick, I feel awful.”

“It’s not your fault, Yuyu. Or yours, Mingi,” Seonghwa added preemptively; Mingi had been horrified when he’d woken up from his nap earlier to find that Hongjoong had also gotten sick, especially since he was the one the leader had been with last, and Seonghwa didn’t want him to feel like he was to blame for the way that things had unfolded. “He’ll be alright in a few days, and I’ll take good care of him in the meantime, so you guys have nothing to worry about, alright?”

Mingi’s eyes remained closed, but he poked his hand back out from under the covers and pointed at Seonghwa, then at the door, then at Yunho, then finally back at himself, before shifting his fingers into what appeared to be a rather clumsy attempt at a heart.

“I think that one means you’re the best hyung ever and we’d probably all be dead in a ditch somewhere without you,” Yunho interpreted, turning to Seonghwa with a smirk. “Or something like that- loose translation, ya know?”

Seonghwa smiled, feeling some of the residual tension he’d been holding in his shoulders melt away at Yunho’s words of appreciation; although it certainly wasn’t the easiest thing in the world to have to be responsible for multiple sick dongsaengs simultaneously, and obviously he’d much rather them not be unwell in the first place, he’d be lying if he said he didn’t take some pride in getting to be the one they all relied on for help.

“Thank you, C-3P-Yu,” he joked, reaching up to ruffle Yunho’s hair. “But speaking of dead in a ditch, I really need to get back to Joongie before he kills himself trying to get out of bed again. I’ve got the sheets already, but do either of you need anything else before I go?”

Mingi, with his hand still up at his chest, stuck his pinky finger out and mimicked sipping from a cup.

Yunho opened his mouth to translate, but Seonghwa held a hand up before he could speak. “That one, I got. More tea coming right up.”

***

After Seonghwa had given Mingi his tea (this time in a thermos with a lid so there would be no further spills), he returned to Hongjoong’s room. He opened the door quietly, not wanting to disturb the leader’s sleep, but much to his surprise, Hongjoong was already awake, sitting up against the headboard with his arms wrapped around his stomach and a faraway look in his eyes.

“Hey,” Seonghwa said softly, making his way over to the side of the bed and placing a hand on Hongjoong’s shoulder. “You okay?”

Hongjoong looked up at him groggily, his eyelids still heavy with sleep. “Hm?”

“I asked if you’re okay,” Seonghwa repeated. “Did you just wake up?”

“Mm, yeah, few minutes ago,” Hongjoong mumbled, lifting a hand to cover his mouth as he let out a drowsy yawn. “Where’d you go?”

“Just to take a shower and have some lunch, but then Yuyu needed me for something, so it took a little longer than I was expecting. I’m sorry I wasn’t here when you woke up.”

“It’s okay, I was just wondering,” Hongjoong said with a slight shake of his head. “Is Yunho alright?”

“Yeah, he’s fine, Mingi just spilled his tea and they needed some help cleaning up, but they’re all good now,” Seonghwa replied, sitting down on the edge of the bed. “How are you though? You feeling any better?”

Hongjoong gave a half-hearted shrug. “Dunno. A little less nauseous, I guess, but not much.”

“Dizzy?”

“Not right now, no.”

Seonghwa reached out and pressed a hand to Hongjoong’s forehead. “Still no fever, so that’s good. Mingi’s still alright on that front too, so it might pass you both by, if we’re lucky.”

“Yeah, hopefully,” Hongjoong agreed. He opened his mouth like he was going to say something else, but then furrowed his brow and closed it again, his gaze falling back down to his lap.

“Something on your mind?” Seonghwa prompted gently.

“Oh, um, I was just gonna ask..." Hongjoong paused, fidgeting awkwardly with the ring on his finger. "Can you... I mean, like, if it isn’t too much trouble..."

Seonghwa frowned. “What is it, Joong?” he asked, leaning forward and putting a hand on Hongjoong’s knee over the covers. “It’s okay, you can tell me.”

Hongjoong hesitated for a few seconds before responding. “I was just wondering if maybe you’d be able to lay down with me,” he finally admitted. “Just for a little bit. If you’re not busy.”

“Aish, is that all?” Seonghwa said with a chuckle. “I thought you were going to pull a Wooyoung and send me on a wild goose chase to find some rare discontinued ice cream flavor or something. Of course I’ll lay down with you, Joongie.”

Seonghwa kicked off his slippers and shifted himself the rest of the way onto the bed, immediately wrapping an arm around Hongjoong’s shoulder and pulling him into his side; while the leader may have been shy about asking for comfort, Seonghwa had no such issues when it came to giving it.

“Do you want to try and sleep again?” he asked, tracing his thumb lightly up and down Hongjoong’s arm as he spoke. “You weren’t out for very long before.”

“Ugh, I don’t know,” Hongjoong replied. “I’m exhausted, but my stomach still feels really weird, so I’m not sure if I’m actually gonna be able to fall back asleep.”

“Hm… how about a movie?” Seonghwa suggested after a moment of thought. “I think a new Marvel one just came out.”

“But… my laptop’s all the way across the room…”

The words “and I don’t want you to leave again to get it” were left unspoken, but Seonghwa understood anyway. “I have my phone, if you don’t mind watching on the small screen?” he offered.

“Yeah, that works,” Hongjoong said with a yawn, turning to the side and tilting his head so that his cheek was resting against Seonghwa’s chest. “Thanks.”

“Of course, Joong,” Seonghwa smiled. He lifted his free hand up to cradle the back of Hongjoong's head and began to rake his fingers through his hair in a slow, rhythmic motion. “Just relax, okay? I’ve got you.”

Hongjoong let out a small sigh of contentment, briefly letting his eyes close again as he relished in the first moment of relative peace he’d had since he’d first woken up sick that afternoon. Despite his earlier insistence that he could handle things on his own, he really wasn’t feeling well, and he was extremely grateful now that Seonghwa had called his bluff and stayed to look after him instead. Although the reputation he’d garnered would suggest otherwise, underneath his rough, prickly exterior, all Hongjoong really wanted when he was sick was to have his best friend by his side. He loved the rest of his members, he really did, but he was hardwired to be in hyung mode whenever they were around, and that made letting his guard down enough for them to actually take care of him an almost impossible feat. In a moment like this, when he was feeling so miserably exhausted and unwell, being with the one person in the world for whom he didn’t have to be the strong, infallible Captain meant absolutely everything.

Hongjoong barely made it fifteen minutes into the movie before he fell asleep, his cheek still pressed up against the soft fabric of Seonghwa’s t-shirt and his arms tucked loosely under his chin. Seonghwa briefly considered trying to move him, thinking he might be more comfortable if he was able to properly lie down, but ultimately decided it wasn’t worth the risk of waking him up, and resigned himself to his fate as a human pillow instead.

The two of them stayed like that for a while, Hongjoong sleeping and Seonghwa silently watching an episode of Doctor Who, which he had switched over to from the movie as soon as it became clear that Hongjoong was going to be out for a while. With how busy their schedules were, they rarely had time to watch TV, and Seonghwa had been meaning to catch up on the show at Yunho’s recommendation.

At some point, the rest of the members returned home, their voices filtering in from the common area and then soon after quieting down again as they broke off into their respective rooms for the night. Seonghwa paused the show and shot Yeosang a quick text, asking how their day had been, and in return received a selfie of the four of them sitting on a park bench, all grinning and making peace signs to the camera. Seonghwa smiled, immediately saving the photo to his own camera roll in a folder titled “KIDS 💖”, before forwarding it to the group chat so that Yunho and Mingi would be able to see it too.

The next half hour passed rather uneventfully, but just as the second episode was nearing its end, Hongjoong began to stir. At first Seonghwa assumed he was just trying to readjust his position, but after a few seconds of shifting around, the leader let out a sleepy hum, lifting his head up from where he’d been resting it and blearily looking around the room.

“Hwa…?” he mumbled, sounding a bit dazed. “Are you…?”

“Hey, yeah, I’m right here,” Seonghwa interjected. He set his phone to the side and placed a hand on Hongjoong’s arm, giving it a reassuring squeeze. “Are you okay?”

“Um… I think so,” Hongjoong replied, clearly still half-asleep. He slowly sat up the rest of the way, his shoulders hunching forward as he rubbed tiredly at his eyes with the heels of his hands. “What time is it?”

Seonghwa picked his phone back up to check. “Just after 9:30. You were out for like an hour and a half.”

“Jeez,” Hongjoong muttered; he assumed he’d just dozed off for a little bit, not taken an entire ninety minute nap. “Are the kids home yet?”

"Yeah, they got back a little while ago. And before you ask, yes, everybody's fine, Yunho and Mingi included."

In other circumstances, Hongjoong might've complained at the presumptuous response, but that had been his next question, and he was grateful that Seonghwa had saved him the energy of having to verbalize it.

“That’s good,” he said instead, turning to the side to muffle a yawn into his fist.

"Yeah, it is." Seonghwa paused, watching Hongjoong intently. "Do you wanna lay down again?" he asked after a moment, noticing the way the leader was fighting to keep his eyes open. "You look like you're about to fall back asleep."

"Ugh, no, I feel like if I keep napping now I'm gonna be up all night," Hongjoong pouted. "Can we keep watching the movie? I promise I'll stay awake this time, I just need something to keep me distracted."

“Of course we can,” Seonghwa replied with a warm smile. “Before you get comfy again though, do you think that if I go make you some tea right now you can try and drink a little bit?”

With the frequency that Hongjoong had been vomiting earlier, Seonghwa hadn’t done anything more than encourage him to rinse his mouth out between rounds, but now that it had been almost four hours since he’d last thrown up, he really was hoping he’d be able to get the leader to drink something. While Hongjoong was holding up okay in that moment, all things considered, it was still early on in the course of his illness, and Seonghwa was worried that if he didn’t try and stay on top of his hydration from the jump, he’d quickly find himself fighting a losing battle.

Hongjoong, however, was clearly not at all on board with the suggestion. “Hwa, please…” he groaned.

“Hey, it was just a question,” Seonghwa replied, holding his hands up defensively. “And I’m not going to force you if you really don’t think you can handle it right now, but I do think you should at least try. You've already lost a lot of fluids and I don't want you getting dehydrated. Plus, it's ginger, so it might actually help settle your stomach a bit, if you can keep it down.”

Hongjoong let out a weary sigh. As much as he dreaded the thought of getting sick again, he knew Seonghwa was right in that letting himself get dehydrated would only make him feel worse in the long run. “Okay, fine,” he surrendered. “But just like… one sip.”

"Yes, Joongie," Seonghwa said with a fond roll of his eyes. "Just one sip for now, that's all I'm asking." He pushed himself up from the bed and was almost to the door when he turned back around. “Bug mug?”

“Bug mug,” Hongjoong repeated, the corners of his mouth quirking into a small smile.

Seonghwa left the room and returned a few minutes later with the tea, which he had poured into Hongjoong’s favorite yellow and black mug (affectionately nicknamed “the bug mug” by Mingi due to its resemblance to a bumblebee). Hongjoong couldn’t even remember where he’d gotten the thing, but it had become a sort of tradition for him to use it anytime he was sick, and although he felt silly admitting it, it did bring him quite a bit of comfort, and it was sweet that Seonghwa always seemed to remember that.

“Thanks, Hwa,” he said quietly, taking the mug from Seonghwa’s outstretched hand. He hesitated for a moment before bringing it up to his lips and taking a small, tentative sip. Seonghwa watched him silently, waiting until he signaled that he was finished before taking the mug back and placing it down on the nightstand.

“I’m just gonna…” Hongjoong gestured over his shoulder with his thumb. “I’m gonna lay back and close my eyes for a little bit, I think.”

“Yeah, whatever you need to do, Joong,” Seonghwa reassured. “I’ll be right here, just let me know if you start to feel sick again, okay?”

Hongjoong hummed in agreement and leaned his head back against the headboard, letting his eyes fall shut.

Knowing how on edge he was feeling in that moment, Seonghwa didn't want to crowd him too much, so instead of reaching out to hold his hand or rub his back like he so desperately wanted to, he settled on just inching his leg forward a bit so that it was pressed against Hongjoong's, hoping the light touch would provide some comfort without feeling too overwhelming.

For a long while, Hongjoong remained motionless, taking slow, controlled breaths in through his nose and out through his mouth as he fought to keep the encroaching nausea at bay. Every so often, his chest would hitch slightly, and Seonghwa would tense up, readying himself to grab the bin if needed, but a few seconds later he’d relax again, and Seonghwa would quickly follow suit.

Almost ten whole minutes passed before Hongjoong finally lifted his head, the grounding grip he’d had on the edge of his blanket loosening as he opened his eyes and blinked a few times against the bright light of the room.

“Okay?” Seonghwa asked softly, giving his leg a slight nudge.

“Yeah, I think so,” Hongjoong replied with a shaky exhale. “But I really don’t want to drink any more right now.”

“Totally fine,” Seonghwa said. “It’s a good idea to let that settle for a bit longer first anyway. We can try again in half an hour if you’re still feeling fine, but for now you can just chill.”

Seonghwa stood back up from where he’d been sitting on the edge of Hongjoong’s bed, raising his arms above his head in a deep stretch. “Is it okay with you if I go grab some stuff from my room before we start watching again?” he asked. “I love you, but if I try and spend the entire night in here with you and your one dinky pillow, it is seriously going to wreck my back.”

“Your dinky pillow, you mean,” Hongjoong corrected. His pillow was still with Mingi, and the one he’d been using in the meantime was one of the near half dozen that Seonghwa kept on his own bed. “But yeah, of course. Do you mind grabbing an extra for me too while you’re at it? My neck feels kinda weird from how I slept earlier.”

“Sure, but you can’t say a word to any of the kids about this later, okay?” Seonghwa responded, his voice suddenly becoming serious.

Hongjoong looked up from where he’d been staring off into space, absentmindedly rubbing at his neck. “Huh? Why not?”

“Because, Joong,” Seonghwa replied, putting a hand on Hongjoong’s shoulder and looking him dead in the eyes. “I think we might be getting old.”

***

With a solemn pledge not to take too long, Seonghwa quietly let himself out of Hongjoong’s room and returned to his own to begin gathering the things he’d need to spend the night. Aside from his own stack of pillows and the additional one he’d promised Hongjoong, he also grabbed his phone charger, as well as a book to read in case the leader ended up falling asleep again before he was ready to go to bed himself. After a moment of thought, he decided it was probably also a good idea to grab himself a sweatshirt too. Hongjoong liked to have the AC on in his room when he was feeling nauseous to try and mitigate the hot flashes it caused, and while Seonghwa hadn’t been bothered by it when they were just hanging out, he knew he’d likely have a hard time actually being able to sleep in there if he didn’t bring an extra layer or two to keep himself warm.

Seonghwa walked over to his closet and was in the midst of rummaging through it to try and find the hoodie he wanted- a comfy, oversized grey one that he’d borrowed from Yunho a few months back and had yet to return- when there was a light knock on his door.

“Come in!” He called, doing his best to keep his voice down; he didn’t know if Wooyoung and Jongho had already gone to bed or not, but he didn’t want to be too loud and accidentally wake them up if they had.

A few seconds passed in silence. Seonghwa was about to repeat himself, thinking whoever was outside must not have heard him, when the door slowly creaked open and San’s head poked around the corner. “Hey, hyung,” he said. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”

“Yeah, of course, San-ah,” Seonghwa replied, making his way over from where he’d been standing to open the door the rest of the way. “What’s up?”

"I'm, um... I'm not feeling very well," San admitted quietly. "I think I might’ve caught Yunho’s bug.”

"Aigoo, Sannie," Seonghwa murmured, his eyebrows knitting together in concern. "Did you throw up? Or do you feel like you might? We can go sit in the bathroom, if you do.”

Out of all of the members, San was one of the least likely to get sick without warning, but the way he was currently leaning against the doorframe with his arms wrapped around his stomach had Seonghwa feeling more than a little worried, both for San’s own sake and for the sake of his floor.

San, however, just shook his head. “I’m okay for right now, hyung,” he reassured. “It’s really not that bad yet, I just thought it would be better to come tell you before it got any worse. You’ve already got a lot on your plate and I didn’t want to make things harder for you by waiting until… well, you know.”

“Thank you, Sannie, I really appreciate that,” Seonghwa said, giving San‘s shoulder a fond pat. The past two days had been filled with far too many surprises for his liking, and San's foresight in helping him avoid yet another emergency was a welcome change of pace. “Come here, why don’t we sit down for a minute?” He moved his hand to San’s back, ushering him over to the bed and gesturing for him to sit before doing the same. “Is it just your stomach that’s bothering you?”

“Yeah, and my head a bit, too,” San replied. “I don’t have a fever or anything though, I already checked.”

“Well that’s good,” Seonghwa said with a smile. Of course, there was no guarantee that San wouldn't spike a temperature later, but at least for now it was one less thing for him to have to worry about. “Did you tell Sangie already?” He asked, leaning forward to tuck a strand of hair behind San’s ear. “He didn’t say anything to me when I talked to him earlier, but that was almost an hour ago, so…”

San shook his head again. “No, he was in the shower when I came here. I can go tell him now though, if you want?”

“Yeah, um, can you please…” Seonghwa trailed off, his mind straying from the conversation at hand as the realization that he was going to have to entirely change his plans for the night finally sank in. While Mingi and Yunho were well enough now to stay by themselves, Hongjoong and San definitely both needed somebody with them, and that posed a bit of a problem, since Hongjoong really didn’t like being around any of the younger members when he was sick.

“Hyung?” San said, turning to look at Seonghwa after noticing his silence. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine, sorry,” Seonghwa replied. “I was just thinking about what I’m gonna do for tonight.”

Seonghwa was quiet for a while longer, weighing his options, before speaking again. “Okay, um, I think if we have Yeosang move his stuff to Wooyoung and Jongho’s room, then I can bring Joongie to his bed and stay with both of you in there instead of having to go back and forth all night. Does that… does that sound okay to you?”

It certainly wasn’t an ideal solution by any means, but Seonghwa couldn’t think of anything else that didn’t involve pulling in one of the healthy members to help, and ultimately he figured it was probably better to have Hongjoong be a little miffed at him than it was to risk further contagion.

“Yeah, whatever you think makes sense, hyung,” San nodded. “I’ll go let Sangie know.”

San pushed himself up from Seonghwa’s bed, wincing slightly as the movement sent a sharp cramp through his stomach. He tried to hide it, but he must not have done a very good job, because Seonghwa stopped him before he could go any further. “Go lay down as soon as you’re done talking to Sang, okay? And call me if you start to feel worse. I’ll try not to take too long, but I don’t know how quickly I’ll be able to move Joong. He’s been getting dizzy every time he tries to stand up and it’s like… a whole thing.”

“That’s alright, hyung,” San smiled, giving Seonghwa’s hand a reassuring squeeze. “Do what you need to do, I can wait.”

Mingi threw up a few more times throughout the course of the morning, each time just as painful and miserable as the last. Yunho stayed by his side throughout all of it, his hand over Mingi’s serving as an anchor through the storm. Seonghwa had wanted to take over, but Yunho insisted he had it under control, as long as the eldest could clean out the bin between rounds of sickness since his fever still had him feeling a bit dizzy anytime he tried to stand up.

The vomiting had finally tapered off by the afternoon, and although Mingi still wasn’t feeling up to eating anything yet, he had agreed to let Seonghwa make him some ginger tea to sip on in hopes that it would soothe his stomach and get some much needed fluids back into his system.

Seonghwa was almost finished preparing the drink, as well as another bowl of juk for Yunho, who finally had a bit of an appetite again, when he heard the unmistakable sound of retching. He was about to rush back to Mingi and Yunho’s room when he realized, with a sinking feeling, that the noise was coming from the opposite side of the dorm. Since the rest of the members had yet to return home from the errand he’d sent them on an hour earlier, that meant there was only one person it could be.

Abandoning Mingi’s tea on the kitchen counter, Seonghwa hurried down the hallway towards Hongjoong’s bedroom. When he opened the door, he found the leader hunched over on the edge of his bed with his arms wrapped tightly around the small trash can that he usually kept under his desk, breathing heavily as he fought to get his stomach back under control.

“Just a headache, huh?” Seonghwa sighed. He sat down next to Hongjoong and placed a hand on his back, only to remove it again a few seconds later after receiving a weak glare from the younger man.

“Obviously I didn’t feel nauseous before I went to sleep,” Hongjoong grumbled, setting the bin down between his feet and resting his elbows on his knees. “I wasn’t lying, Hwa.”

“I never said you were,” Seonghwa said calmly. He knew that Hongjoong’s attitude wasn’t anything personal, but rather an indication of how frustrated he was feeling at the unexpected turn of events, and he didn’t want to inadvertently make things worse by getting defensive. “It’s okay, Joong, I’m not upset.”

Seonghwa’s careful approach seemed to be in vain, however, as Hongjoong just scoffed and pushed himself up from the bed.

“What’s wrong?” Seonghwa asked, standing up alongside him. “Where are you going?”

“Nothing’s wrong, I’m just going to clean the trash can.”

Hongjoong moved to take a step forward, but Seonghwa held out a hand to stop him. “Please tell me you are joking right now.”

“What? Why would that be a joke.”

“In what universe do you think I’m about to let you clean that yourself? Sit back down.”

Seonghwa gestured towards the bed, but Hongjoong stood his ground. “Hwa, I can handle it,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest. “Go take care of Mingi, he needs you.”

“Mingi’s fine, Yunho’s with him. Sit down.”

“Yunho’s sick too,” Hongjoong snapped back. “They shouldn’t be alone.”

“Aish, Joong, they’re fine. They're resting, and they know to text or call me if they need anything. Do you really think I would leave them by themselves if they weren’t okay?"

Hongjoong didn’t meet Seonghwa’s eyes.

“I wouldn’t,” Seonghwa continued. “And you know that. So stop being so stubborn and just let me take care of you, okay?”

Hongjoong kept his gaze down, but he gave his head a slight nod. Whether he was actually convinced or had just run out of steam to keep arguing was unclear, but Seonghwa didn’t really care. “Thank you,” he said, letting out a relieved breath. “Now will you please sit down? You look like you’re about to keel over.”

Hongjoong did as told, sitting back down on the bed and wrapping one of his arms around his stomach. Seonghwa sat next to him and tentatively placed a hand on his shoulder, half-expecting to receive another death stare for the action. This time, however, instead of flinching away, Hongjoong melted into the touch, the stoic expression he’d schooled his face into finally giving way to one of obvious discomfort.

Seonghwa sighed. As difficult of a patient as Hongjoong could be, it was hard to stay upset with him when he was clearly feeling so unwell. “Joongie,” he said softly, doing his best to smooth out the edge of irritation that his voice had taken on. “I know you’re frustrated, and I know you’re worried about the kids, but I need you to trust me, okay? I’ve got everything under control. You don’t need to stress, you’re just going to make yourself feel worse if you try and push through.”

“I’m sorry,” Hongjoong whispered. “I’m not trying to be annoying, I promise, I’m just… I don’t want you to have to do this by yourself. I was supposed to be helping, and now I’m just another thing that you need to take care of.”

Seonghwa couldn’t help but roll his eyes. “First of all, you’re not a thing, you’re my best friend, and I want to take care of you,” he said, giving Hongjoong’s leg a slight nudge. “And secondly, it’s not your fault. Yes, it sucks, but things happen, and honestly, this was kind of inevitable, considering you literally slept in Mingi’s bed last night.”

“Captain cuddles came back to bite me in the ass…” Hongjoong mumbled.

Seonghwa cocked an eyebrow. “Captain cuddles?”

“Yeah, that’s what Mingi called it.”

“That is… really cute. Wow.”

Hongjoong gave a small huff. “Doesn’t feel so cute right now,” he muttered bitterly.

“I mean, yeah, fair enough, sorry,” Seonghwa apologized. “Let me go clean up and then we can figure out what to do to get you feeling better, okay?”

"Okay," Hongjoong repeated. He gingerly lowered himself down onto his side and pulled his knees up to his chest, no longer having the energy to continue holding himself upright. "Don’t take too long?”

"I won’t.”

Seonghwa left the room and returned a few minutes later with the freshly cleaned (and now lined) trash can in hand, having decided that a couple layers of plastic bags would make any additional clean-up endeavors a bit easier for him to manage. It was likely only a matter of time before Hongjoong would be sick again, and while Seonghwa wasn’t particularly squeamish, it was still never fun to have to deal with a bucket of someone else’s stomach contents, even if that someone was his best friend.

“Can you tell me what you’re feeling besides the nausea?” he asked, squatting down next to where Hongjoong was lying and reaching a hand up to feel his forehead. “You’re a little warm, but not quite at fever level, I don’t think.”

“My stomach hurts, and I’m kinda dizzy.” Hongjoong squeezed his eyes shut, gritting his teeth through a painful cramp. “I really don’t feel good, Hwa…”

Seonghwa frowned sympathetically. “I know, love, I’m sorry,” he murmured, running his fingers through Hongjoong’s hair. “What can I do to help?”

“Um, can you get my pillow? I think I left it on Mingi’s bed.”

“Sure. Do you want me to ask Yunho if you can borrow his heating pad while I'm in there too? I don’t think he’s using it anymore.”

“As long as he doesn’t need it, yeah. Thanks.”

“Alright. Just hang tight, I’ll be right back.”

***

“Hey guys, sorry for the delay, Joong’s not feeling very well either,” Seonghwa apologized, balancing the tray he was carrying on his hip as he opened the door to Mingi and Yunho’s bedroom. He knew that with Hongjoong now needing the majority of his attention, it would likely be a while before he’d have another chance to come and check on the younger members, and he didn’t want the tea and juk he’d made for them to get cold in the meantime.

“Oh no, did he throw up?” Yunho asked, sitting up from where he’d been spooning Mingi. He kept his voice low as he spoke, not wanting to wake his friend from the first restful sleep he’d been able to get all day.

Seonghwa nodded. “Can he borrow your heating pad for a bit? His stomach’s really bothering him.”

“Yeah of course, hyung, take it, it’s on my desk.”

“Thanks, Yunho-yah. And have you seen his pillow? He said he left it in here earlier but I don’t- oh.”

Yunho followed Seonghwa’s gaze to Mingi, who was clutching said pillow tightly against his chest as he slept.

“He said it smelled like hyung,” Yunho explained with a fond chuckle. “Do you need it back?”

“No, it’s okay, let him keep it for now. I’ll give Joongie one of mine,” Seonghwa said. The pillow was obviously bringing Mingi some comfort, and he doubted Hongjoong would even want it back before it had a chance to be washed anyway, given that the younger rapper was currently drooling all over it.

“You should eat while the juk’s hot,” he added, gesturing to where he’d left the tray on Mingi’s desk on his way in. “And don’t forget, you’re due for your next dose of meds in half an hour, and when Mingi wakes up, remind him he needs to drink his tea slowly so he doesn’t get sick again, and-“

“I got it, hyung,” Yunho interrupted, reaching up to give Seonghwa’s arm a reassuring squeeze. “Go to Joong.”

“You’ll remember to text me if you need anything?”

“Yes, hyung. Go.”

***

Seonghwa had been planning on stopping in the kitchen to grab a glass of water before heading back to Hongjoong’s room, but that idea was quickly forgotten when he turned the corner and saw the leader sitting in the middle of the hallway, his head hanging low between his knees and a small puddle of vomit at his feet.

“Joong!?” Seonghwa gasped. He rushed across the living room and knelt down at Hongjoong’s side, being careful to avoid the mess as he did so. “Are you okay? What happened?”

“Tried to go to the bathroom. Got dizzy.”

“Why didn’t you wait for me, I said I’d be right back!”

“Had to pee…”

“Aish, you’re worse than the kids sometimes, I swear,” Seonghwa muttered, setting Yunho’s heating pad down so he’d have both hands free to rub Hongjoong’s back. “How are you feeling now? Do you think we can move to the bathroom or do you need a minute?”

Before Hongjoong had the chance to respond, the front door swung open. Seonghwa turned around, immediately locking eyes with Wooyoung.

“What are you guys- oh no…” Wooyoung trailed off, having noticed the puddle on the floor in front of the two older members. “Hongjoong hyung is sick?”

At the sound of his groupmate’s voice, Hongjoong tried to lift his head, but immediately lowered it back down when another wave of dizziness crashed over him.

“It’s okay, it’s just Youngie,” Seonghwa soothed, pressing a kiss to the top of Hongjoong’s hair before turning to look back up at Wooyoung. “Yeah, since about half an hour ago. Where is everyone else? Did you come back by yourself?”

“No, they’re bringing the couch up, they just asked me to come ahead and unlock the door since they have their hands full.”

Hongjoong groaned. It was bad enough that Wooyoung had already seen him like this- he didn’t need the rest of his dongsaengs getting a front-row seat to his misery too. “Hwa… the floor…” he whined, despite himself. He would later be embarrassed about that too, but for now, his desperation outweighed his pride.

“Hm? What was that, love?” Seonghwa asked softly.

“I think he’s worried about the… you know,” Wooyoung pointed towards the small pool of liquid beside them; even without being able to see his face, he knew that Hongjoong was probably feeling pretty humiliated about not having made it to the bathroom in time. “Don’t worry, hyung, I’ll clean up, no one else will even know it happened,” he promised. “You should probably get moving if you don’t want to see anyone, though, they’re gonna be back any minute.”

“Thanks, Young-ah,” Seonghwa said with a smile, feeling grateful not only for Wooyoung’s willingness to help, but also for his ability to so quickly ascertain what their friend needed. “Okay, easy Joong, up we go. Just a few steps, lean on me, you’re o- oh, okay, it’s okay, just get it up, I’m right here.”

***

While Wooyoung had been successful in cleaning the hallway before the rest of the members had returned, the sounds of Hongjoong’s ongoing illness had given away his condition anyway, and the leader soon found himself with an audience as he continued to heave his guts into the toilet of one of the dorm’s two shared bathrooms.

“Oh, hyung,” San frowned, the pout practically audible in his voice. He was standing in the doorway with his jacket still on, having only taken the time to kick off his shoes before running over to check on whoever was getting sick. “What happened?”

“What the hell do you think happened?” Hongjoong grumbled, spitting harshly into the bowl. He reached up to flush the toilet before lowering his head back down and resting his cheek against the seat. It was gross, he knew, but the cool porcelain felt nice against his clammy skin, and he was feeling too awful to really care.

“Come on, love, don’t put your face there, that’s not hygienic,” Seonghwa whispered, guiding Hongjoong away from the toilet and back into his arms. He turned to look at San apologetically. “Sorry,” he mouthed, offering the younger a tight lipped smile; while none of them were strangers to Hongjoong’s short temper when he wasn’t feeling well, Seonghwa still felt a bit bad for San, who was obviously just worried about his hyung.

San shook his head. “It’s okay, I’m sorry, that was a stupid question. Can I do anything to help?”

“You can leave, and you can take the rest of the kids with you,” Hongjoong said bluntly. Even with his voice a bit muffled from where his face was buried against Seonghwa’s chest, his annoyance was evident. “Clearly this is incredibly contagious, and things are already bad enough without the rest of you getting sick too.”

“No, it’s fine, I can-“

Seonghwa cut San off before he could finish the rest of his sentence. “I’m sorry, Sannie, but Joong is right. I don’t want you guys getting any further exposed if we can help it. You can get the couch set up, but after that I want you all out of the house until it’s time for bed. Go see a movie or grab dinner or something, my treat.”

San looked disappointed, but he knew better than to argue with Seonghwa when he put his foot down. “Okay, yeah, whatever you say, hyung,” he said, dipping his head in acknowledgement. “I’ll let the others know.”

San made his way out of the room, shutting the door quietly behind him as he did so. Once they were alone again, Seonghwa turned his attention back to Hongjoong. “You wanna head back to bed, or do you wanna stay here a little longer?”

“Bed, but can you leave for a minute first?” Hongjoong asked, lifting his head from where it had been resting against Seonghwa’s shoulder. “I still have to pee.”

Seonghwa stood up and held his hand out to help Hongjoong do the same. "Only if you promise you won't pass out and give yourself a concussion,” he said, only half-jokingly; after the incident in the hallway, he wasn’t feeling particularly confident in Hongjoong’s ability to stay upright unsupported.

Hongjoong gave a wry laugh. "I'll try my best.”