Chapter Text
Joshua came back to the dorm exhausted. He had done a 2 hour long interview. The interviewer kept trying to talk to him in english, but their english was bad, so when he asked them to repeat what they said he was looked at rudely. All he wanted to do was go home, call his mom, take a nap, and inevitably have to wake up to go to their next stage. Curse whoever made this schedule.
He unlocked the dorm, which was unusually quiet considering the maknae line was home. Being the rowdy teenagers they are, they’d typically be screaming at the TV, playing some video game(still screaming), trying to build a pillow fort(also still screaming), or trying to “bake” something in the kitchen(screaming + the noise of kitchen utensils).
Coming home to a quiet house was never a good sign. They were either a) pulling a prank, or b) dead. He walked into the house with caution, kicking off his shoes and making his way to the main room.
On the couch was the maknae line sound asleep on top of each other. Vernon was on the bottom, with Seungkwan across from him, their legs in a tangled mess. Chan was on top of Vernon and Seungkwan, his right leg under Seungkwan and right leg in the tangled leg pile with Seungkwan and Vernons. A neglected blanket was on the floor, and the TV was still playing whatever they were watching. There was no way that was comfortable.
He pulled out his phone. It read 2:50 pm. They still had over 2 hours before their manager would come pick them up. He took a picture of the people pile on the couch, then opened the group chat.
“normal” one sent a picture
“normal” one
The babies fell asleep
Mom
AWWWWWWWWWWWWW SO CUTE
Alpha Leader
Is that the game i told them not to buy?
Hamster
…
Puppy 1
crazy
Mom
You CANT ground them
Mom
Look how cute they are
Alpha Leader
i WILL ground them because they DIDNT listen to me
Mom
at least theyre not doing drugs, or talking to girls…
“normal” one
im with Hannie on this one
Mom
LIKE THIS MESSAGE IF YOU THINK THEY SHOULDN'T BE GROUNDED BY EVIL CHEOL
8 people liked “LIKE THIS MESSAGE IF YOU THINK THEY SHOULDN'T BE GROUNDED BY EVIL CHEOL”
Mom
9 vs 1 cheol theyre not grounded
Puppy 1
evil cheol is crazy
Puppy 1 renamed Alpha Leader to Evil Cheol
Evil Cheol
omg
Joshua closed his phone, went over to the TV to turn it off, then hid the game they weren’t supposed to have behind the game console. He went upstairs and collapsed on his bed. They were all tired.
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“Channie wake up you’re heavy” Seungkwan said, still half asleep.
“I can't, my leg is stuck” Chan responded, also half asleep.
Chan tried to move his leg out of the pile, but it was really stuck, so he tried pulling a little harder.
“Ow ow ow ow ow, whoever's moving stop.” Vernon said.
While trying to free themselves from each other, Seungkwan accidentally punched Chan in the face.
“OW ah crap my nose is bleeding” Chan said.
“EW DONT GET YOUR BLOOD ON ME” Seungkwan yelled.
“YOU STARTED IT” Chan yelled back.
“GET OFF” Vernon pushed Chan off him.
Chan fell on the floor with a crash, Seungkwan landing on top of him, and Vernon landing on top of Seungkwan.
cough cough
“Ew Chan stop coughing, are you sick” Seungkwan said.
“I’m still bleeding, you know” Chan said, cupping his nose.
Seungcheol rushed down the stairs.
“WHAT WAS THAT NOISE? WHO'S HURT?” He said worriedly.
He rushed over to the pile of people, Joshua not far behind him.
“WHY IS THERE BLOOD ON THE CARPET? WHO'S HURT?” Seungcheol questioned.
“Seungkwan hit meeee” Chan said while raising his hand from the floor.
“ON ACCIDENT” Seungkwan responded dramatically, still on top of Chan.
Vernon got off of Seungkwan, then pulled Seungkwan off of Chan. Chan sat up still dripping blood.
“Omg Joshua, get tissues” Seungcheol said.
“On it” Joshua said, already on his way to the kitchen, grabbing a roll of paper towels.
He tossed them over to Seungcheol who shoved a cluster of them into Chan's face.
“Press” he commanded.
“Geez ok i can do it myself.” Chan grabbed the paper towels from him and started cleaning himself up.
Seungcheol paused for a bit, taking in Chan's messy and flushed appearance. Being the responsible leader he is, he put his hand on Chan's forehead.
“You’re a bit warm, you feeling ok?” Seungcheol said.
“I feel fine, I was just under 2 whole people so my body’s gonna be a bit warm” Chan responded.
Seungcheol gave him an understanding hum then wait with him until his nose stopped bleeding.
His nose finally stopped bleeding when the rest of the members arrived at the dorm. They had time to kill before their managers would come pick them up to head to the performance venue. Most of the members either went to take a nap, or update their socials.
Chan, still feeling tired despite his earlier nap, went up to his room and took another nap.
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What the hell is wrong with my body??? Chan thought. He woke up mid nap feeling hot and cold at the same time, his head hurt, actually no, everything hurt. He tried to go back to sleep but his blankets felt uncomfortable against his skin.
He checked his phone and made sure he could take another painkiller, since that seemed to work last time. He didn’t want to go down to the kitchen, so he went to Minghao's room since he always had a personal stash of painkillers that would magically teleport itself to the kitchen cabinet each month.
Minghao wasn’t in his room, so he opened his bedside drawer quickly, grabbed 2 pills, then walked out as if he’d never been there. He walked back to his room, took the pills with a sip of water, then tried to go back to bed.
“CHAN WAKE UP THE MANAGERS WILL BE HERE IN 10” someone(probably Mingyu) banged on his door while he was half asleep.
The painkillers won’t kick in for another 10 minutes so he was still feeling terrible. He begrudgingly got up, fixed his hair to the best of his ability, checked for all his essentials, then walked downstairs.
By the time the managers got there the painkillers had kicked in, so he felt fine going up to the stage venue. He was still the first to get his makeup done, the makeup artist having to wipe off all the previous makeup, to start a whole new look.
After getting his makeup and hair done, he walked over to a vending machine to buy himself an energy drink; just for good measure if the painkillers don’t work. He practiced his steps and lines while in the waiting room.
He felt ready this time, he really wanted to do good on this performance, maybe to prove his earlier dream wrong, he doesn’t know. Even though he didn’t have many lines he still wanted to deliver them well.
Afternoons typically went by faster, since in the morning everyone was drowsy and tired. He got his outfit and mic checked, then they went up to do a quick rehearsal, checking stage lights and camera angles.
The rehearsal went fine, but the painkillers and energy drink were starting to wear off, so once he got off stage he asked a staff for some painkillers then went to the vending machine again to buy another energy drink, getting one for Soonyoung too since he also wanted one.
He chugged that energy drink and painkillers as he watched the fans shuffle into the venue. It was around 7:30 at night so most of these people had probably gotten off of work, rushed home, got ready, then rushed here.
He truly admired the commitment of some of his fans. He was already bussing from the energy drink, but at this point no one really comments on it since the performance unit has a caffeine addiction, and likes to be bursting with energy before performances.
The members and staff were a bit more harsh on the younger members when it came to caffeine, but everyone is too busy to notice anything nowadays. Backstage everyone was either talking to staff members or each other. Seungcheol eventually called them to do the team cheer before they went on stage then it was showtime.
They all went on stage, being perfectly synchronized and on beat as always. When it was his part he sang his part perfectly. His body was still buzzing with adrenaline from the energy drink so his movements were sharp and precise.
When the music stopped and they were all in their final position he felt proud of himself. He didn’t do much but he felt like he proved himself to himself. The thought of debuting too young constantly lingers in the back of his mind, but after performances like this he pushes that thought back and basks in his success as an idol.
He looks out to the fans, cheering and loud, holding signs with encouragement, and realizes how lucky he was to become an idol. The stage lights finally brightened so they could do ending fairies, interact with fans, etc. He did his ending fairy, then went over to read some of the fans signs.
When they finally left the stage he took off his outfit and started wiping off his makeup. He was going to go to the gym after this, but first he would have to head to the dorm to change.
He took a mental note to never down 2 energy drinks in a row again, because his body was still shaking and his mind was fuzzy. He needed to do something active or he felt like he was going to explode.
He went to the waiting room to wait for the rest of the members, and drank some water, since he needed to tone down the caffeine in his system. Soonyoung sat down next to him and noticed him still shaking.
“Aish Chan-ah, how many energy drinks did you have?” Soonyoung said teasingly.
“Two yea yea i know it's bad for me. I already strongly regret it, I don't need the whole talk.” Chan replied.
“Yea well i’m going to scold you anyways because i’m your hyung. Seriously you’re going to have a heartattack- wow you’re hot” Soonyoung said as he put his hand on Chans to stop him from shaking.
“What do you mean?” Chan questioned pulling his hand away.
“Like your hand is hot” Soonyoung put his hand on Chan’s forehead. “Actually your whole body is warm, do you feel sick?”
“We just finished a stage. I feel fine, plus I'm still buzzing with caffeine so yea” Chan replied.
“Tell us if you feel bad, you’re still young and we can’t have you burning out and breaking early.” Soonyoung reminded him.
“Yea i know” Chan replied
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They arrived back at the dorms at around 9:30 at night. This venue was closer than the last one so he quickly changed into gym clothes and went downstairs to the gym. Everyone else was tired from the day, but he still had energy(wow energy drinks do wonders).
He worked out until 11:00 pm, doing basically everything. He started with a hell of a lot of cardio, then did legs, then did arms, and kept doing arms until he got tired. He ended with a bit more cardio to cool down, then headed back upstairs to close for the night.
He took a long shower, did his skincare, then immediately knocked out once he hit his bed.
____________________
Chan woke up feeling like crap. He felt like he was being trampled by a bunch of elephants while burning the Sahara desert. If he wasn’t sick before he was definitely sick now. He didn’t even want to move to check the time, it was still dark so he assumed it was still pretty early in the morning.
He wanted to curl up into a ball and cry, but he knew he had to do something. He rolled out of bed and as soon as he put both feet on the ground, his energy completely drained. He collapsed on the floor right there.
He didn’t want to move, he doesn’t know how long he stayed on that floor, but he felt like a rock. His throat was dry, he couldn’t even talk. He was in his cold pitch black room, on the cold floor, unable to talk, and unable to move.
After what felt like forever he finally got up, and with all his energy, grabbed his phone and slowly made his way down to the kitchen. Every step felt like a hammer being pounded into his head.
He eventually made it down to the kitchen and got some painkillers. He poured himself a glass of water and took 3 maybe 4 painkillers, he doesn’t know, he was in too much pain to care about his dosage.
He sat in a chair at the table while taking the pills and saw on the oven clock that it was 2:03 am. There was no way anyone was awake right now, which was good, it gave him time to recover without worrying his members.
He spilled some water on himself, it was cold, he was cold, he was shivering. He was really cold, but also sweating. Yea he was definitely sick. He knew he wouldn’t be able to make it back upstairs, so he made his way over to the couch.
He hated sleeping in big open spaces, especially in the dark, and without his favorite blanket and plushie. He had gotten the blanket from Soonyoung on his 16th birthday. It was blue, really soft, and had dinosaurs on it. Soonyoung said it reminded him of Chan, since they had just finalized his stage name as Dino, so he bought it for him.
The plushie was one he had stolen from Jeonghan before debut. As a young trainee he had gravitated to Jeonghan. He stole the plushie from Jeonghan's bunk one night because why not, it was an otter, cute, and it reminded him of the plushies he had at home. He had left his beloved stuffed animals at home so they wouldn't get lost or dirty.
Naturally stealing was a grave crime in their trainee days and when Seungcheol noticed that the new otter plushie on his bunk was not in fact his he got yelled at. He was almost crying when Jeonghan intervened and told him he should keep it. He had plenty of other stuffed animals anyways and Chan's bed apparently “looked bare and sad”.
He now sleeps with those two objects everyday, feeling uncomfortable without them. As he collapsed on the couch he wrapped himself in the blanket that was left there from his previous nap with Vernon and Seungkwan.
The situation wasn’t ideal, but he didn’t have the energy to go back upstairs to his bed. He hated the dark and open empty spaces. He had purposely chosen a smaller room when deciding rooms, because he felt safer in enclosed spaces.
Eventually he fell asleep on the couch, hoping that the painkillers would kick in before starting his schedule.
____________________
“Chan, why are you sleeping on the couch?” he heard a voice say distantly. Then someone was shaking him, trying to wake him up.
“stop” Chan said sleepily.
The shaking kept happening so he slowly opened his eyes to see Jun above him. He shot up remembering how he felt earlier. He put his hand to his forehead to check his temperature. He didn’t feel hot which was good, the painkillers were working.
“You ok?” Jun questioned. “Why are you on the couch?”
“I dunno” Chan said as he fell back onto the couch, already half asleep.
He felt strong arms pick him up, he assumed he was being carried to his room, but he didn’t really pay attention.
He distantly heard the words “Soonyoung i have a present for you”, before being dropped onto a bed, then engulfed in the warm embrace of someone.
The bed was plush and soft, warm covers were put over him, and the person hugging him squeezed tighter.
The door softly clicked shut, and Chan fell asleep again.
____________________
He woke up in a bed that wasn’t his. He almost panicked then realized he was in Soonyoung's room. Soonyoung was awake next to him, scrolling on his phone.
“Morning Channie” he said, ruffling his hair.
“Morning hyung, why am I in your bed?” Chan responded sleepily.
“I don’t know, Jun dropped you in here at 5 am. Something about you sleeping on the couch and looking cold, so he took you to the warmest room in the house” Soonyoung responded.
“Huh ok, do you know where my phone is?” Chan asked and Soonyoung handed him his phone. He kind of remembered what happened last night. He remembered waking up in pain, taking pain killers, missing his blanket and plushie, then collapsing on the couch.
It was 6:07 am, he turned on his phone and opened his schedule.
8:00 attend a tutoring session(since he was practically failing school)
9:30 work/choreograph his danceology
11:00 group practice/film group dance practice
1:00 film some TV show with group
3:00 group meeting with company
5:00 work on danceology
6:00 recordings with jihoon-hyung
8:00 gym
Another day, another packed schedule.
Chan stayed in Soonyoung's bed for a while, too comfortable to move. Soonyoung eventually had to get up to start his schedule, and so did Chan.
He went back to his room, got changed and ready, then waited for his manager to pick him up. He surprisingly felt fine, kind of. He didn’t feel great, but not as bad as he did at 2:00 am.
He went to tutoring, boring as always, then went to the company to work on his danceology. He wanted his dance to be powerful and emotional, so he took a lot of time studying the lyrics and deeper meaning of the song.
At some point Yeonjun popped in, since he had free time.
“What if you did like some kind of jump here, y’know like diving kind of?” Yeonjun commented.
“Ooo yea good idea” Chan replied jotting down quick notes in a notebook.
The two friends kept chatting until Yeonjun had to leave, then it started going downhill. His body began to feel hot again, and fatigue was starting to settle in. He was already tired and out of breath, and all his previous energy and motivation disappeared.
He couldn’t stop now though, he had to be productive. He kept working even though he was exhausted. He didn’t even do much, but yea he was also sick. He was ignoring that he was sick and kept pushing himself to his limits.
He gave himself a quick break before having to go to group practice. He walked over to the vending machine and grabbed an energy drink. He also went through his bag and found some more painkillers, so he chugged the energy drink while taking more painkillers(probably more than necessary).
He took a quick 15 minute nap before heading over to group practice.
____________________
After waking up from his nap Cahn begrudgingly got up and started heading to their practice room. The energy and painkillers were definitely doing… something. Making him feel better not so much, making him feel like he can push through the rest of the day, hell yes.
Everything felt so wrong. Mentally he could push through the day, physically he felt like he was going to faint. Maybe going to the gym yesterday wasn’t the right move. He’s now accepted that he’s sick, but he also doesn’t want to tell the members.
Typically it's not a big deal when it comes to being sick. The managers give you some medicine, they’ll maybe clear up your schedule a bit if you're lucky, and then you move on with your day. He’s seen his members go through it before, take some pills and carry on with their life because having a cold doesn’t excuse work.
Recently Mingyu came down with a cold, and the company just made him push through it, with some medicine of course, and he came out just fine. They were so busy and none of them had time for breaks.
Chan already had the medicine, and it’s not like telling anyone would do much. He didn’t want his schedule to ease up either or he would have to make up all of it in the future, which just makes his schedule more packed. He also didn’t want to cause any unnecessary worry among the members, he wanted to be mature about this and handle it himself.
If the company deemed him old enough to perform on stage in front of thousands of people and work from 6am to 9pm, then he’s old enough to at least deal with a little sickness.
Chan opened the door to the practice room to find most of the members already there and stretching. He had just danced for an hour and a half so he didn't need to stretch.
He started going over the choreography, since Soonyoung would make them do it at least 15 times before turning on the cameras to film. He started practicing his steps, and mentally went over his positioning until Soonyoung called for them to start.
Soonyoung was probably one of his favorite hyungs, but he can be really strict when it comes to dance, which is also how he earned the title as one of the scariest hyungs. Soonyoung was not afraid to berate anyone, or push you to your limits until you got something right.
Back in their trainee days, Soonyoung would make them practice for consecutive hours, and his choreography wasn’t easy either. They were constantly changing formatings and jumping all over the place, even still they're changing formations and jumping all over the place.
Seungcheol and Jihoon were also scary, Seungcheol just having the most authority among them, and Jihoon being strict in the studio. He hated getting in trouble with them, actually getting in trouble with any of his hyungs. Being the maknae despite having some pros, has way more cons, at least for him.
Everyone had gotten into formation and the music started. He moved as always, hitting his counts perfectly until he didn’t. His body felt heavier than normal, like he was dancing with a weighted vest, and as he kept going the weight got heavier. He was starting to fall behind, and like always Soonyoung noticed.
“Chan get back on beat” Soonyoung yelled as the music kept playing.
“Yes,” Chan responded breathlessly.
When did he get so out of breath, Chan asked himself. Eventually with a lot of effort Cahn managed to get back on beat, staying on beat until the music stopped.
“Lets start from the second verse again, it looked rough” Soonyoung yelled, and everyone was immediately getting back into position.
Chan was already tired, he’s never tired this early. By the second run though Chan was sweating and panting his body felt way heavier than it did before, at some point he also developed a headache, making him struggle even more. Curse these painkillers and energy drinks, they should be kicking in now.
At some point Chan was just mindlessly dancing, running on pure muscle memory. Typically this would be fine, it's good to be able to mindlessly do the choreography, but when you're trying to move on muscle memory, and your muscles are working with your mind, you start making mistakes.
He almost tripped more times than he could count, and was also off beat. He was making the whole group look sloppy. With mistakes comes scolding. Soonyoung was constantly correcting and berating him, which made him feel even worse. He was the main dancer for goodness sake. He wanted to cry, from both Soonyoung's scolding and his own frustration.
His final straw was tripping on his shoe lace, crashing into Seungkwan. Everyone stopped, and the music was paused. Mingyu and Joshua were quick to help them up, but all Chan could do was look at the floor. He didn’t want to see the look on Soonyoung's face when he got up.
He really wanted to cry, he looked up, he had to face Soonyoung eventually. He expected to see anger or disappointment, not worry. It wasn’t even just Soonyoung, all the members were looking at him.
“Lets take a 10 minute break” Seungcheol called out, and everyone scrambled to the edges of the room to get water, or sit down.
Chan quickly excused himself to the bathroom before anyone could say anything to him, he didn’t want to hear it. He doesn’t even know why he wanted to cry so bad, he never cries.
“Oh hi Channie- wow you don’t look too good.” Yeonjun said as he entered the bathroom.
“Aren’t you in practice right now?” Chan said back.
“Aren’t YOU in practice right now.” Yeonjun responded.
Chan walked over to the sink checking the temperature of the water to see if it was cold enough to cool him down.
“Hey Chan, look at me,” Yeonjun said as he looked at Chan.
“What-” Chan turned to Yeonjun already in a pissed off mood when he felt Yeonjun press a hand against his forehead.
“Holy crap Chan you’re burning up” Yeonjun said.
Chan, stunned, just stood there. For a second he forgot where he was. He didn't even pay attention to what Yeonjun said, he just looked at him.
“Yea I think im a bit sick” Chan responded after a few seconds of silence.
“ A BIT??? Bro you are like burning up right now, you need to go home. How are you even functioning?” Yeonjun said, flabbergasted.
“I’m fine, I took some painkillers a while ago. I guess they haven’t kicked in yet” Chan responded.
“No, you need to go home,” Yeonjun said with finality.
“I’m FINE” Chan raised his voice.
Yeonjun started walking out. Assuming he was heading back to practice Chan continued to splash water on his face, hoping it would bring his temperature down. He saw himself in the mirror, and yea he did look terrible.
“I’m telling Seungcheol sunbaenim by the way” Yeonjun said as he opened the door and was about to leave.
“WHAT” Chan's voice cracked.
He stumbled to the door, grabbing the back of Yeonjun's hoodie and dragging him back in. They stood in silence for a bit, until Yeonjun turned around taking in Chan's disheveled state. His eyes looked tired, his hair was damp with sweat, and his face was flushed. He looked down to see Chan's hand visibly shaking. Then Chan shivered, which finalized Yeonjun's decision that Chan needed to go home.
“Chan” Yeonjun said softly. “Please, you really look like you're about to faint. If you don’t tell someone I will. You’re scaring me. I don’t want you to be in pain.”
Chan crumbled when he saw the worried look in Yeonjun's eyes. It was one thing worrying his hyungs and staff, but worrying his best friend was a whole new level.
“Fine, ill tell them when I go back” Chan said defeatedly.
“I’m going to call you in an hour and if you're not at home, or on your way home by then I’m breaking into your practice room and telling your hyungs” Yeonjun said.
“Ok fine, I swear” Chan said, holding out his pinky finger.
Yeonjun locked their pinkies together then sealed the promise. After that the two friends left the bathroom, parting ways to go back to their respective practices.
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Chan opened the practice room door, Yeonjun's words lingering in the back of his mind, but determined to complete at least the dance practice video. He had one hour before Yeonjun's threat would soon become reality. His head was pounding, his body felt heavy, his muscles ached, and for a second he thought it might be more than a little cold.
Before anyone could talk to him the 10 minute break was up, and one of their managers was calling them to get back into position. As he moved into his position he felt lightheaded, maybe Yeonjun was right, maybe he was really going to faint.
The backup dancers were now here, which meant at least 4 more run throughs before starting actual recording. The music started and he somehow managed to keep up for the first 2 rounds. He felt like he was going to die while doing it but he didn't get scolded, which was good.
During the 3rd run through he tripped again, but quickly got back up, despite the pain that shot throughout his whole body, because they never pause during full run throughs with everyone. As they finished the dance Chan felt like he was going to cry, he really did feel terrible, like he was about to faint.
Just a bit longer Chan he told himself. The music was already starting before he could get himself together. Everyone was already tired, no one was paying attention to him, good. No one would notice how terrible he looked. They would get a break after this, so the staff could set up the camera, so all he had to do was get through this and he would have a break.
His body moved on auto pilot, his movements a bit sloppy but still on beat. He felt a pain in his ankle, he probably twisted it when he fell earlier. He’ll tape it later. He felt like he was going to faint, he wanted to cry, he didn’t even know why he wanted to cry. He pushed through it. From the first chorus, to the second chorus, to the end, he pushed through.
By the end of it he was exhausted and he wanted to cry. He was in so much pain, every muscle hurt, his head was pounding, his body was heavy, he felt hot, but also cold, and now his ankle hurt.
He had to tell someone, now, or he was going to faint, he could feel it. He mentally went over who would be best to tell. Soonyoung was talking to a backup dancer and Seungcheol was kind of scary in work mode. His mind settled on Jeonghan, because Jeonghan was always understanding and comforting. He was nicknamed “mom” for a reason.
Before he could go to Jeonghan Soonyoung came up to him. He looked mad, but also worried. He knew he was about to get scolded, picked apart and told every mistake he made today.
“Chan, we need to talk” Soonyoung said.
“Ok hyung” Chan said defeatedly.
“Why are your movements so sloppy today? You’re off beat, keep slipping, out of position, and just overall not doing a good job. What's happening?” Soonyoung said.
He didn’t even sound angry, but Chan could feel the tears welling up in his eyes. Most of the staff and backup dancers had left for a lunch break. He didn’t even know what time it was anymore. At some point the TV show they were going to be on got canceled, which extended practice.
“I don’t know,” Chan said weakly.
Before he knew it tears were streaming down his face, he didn’t know why, his body had probably given up. He tried wiping away the tears but they just kept coming. He was standing in the middle of the practice room, like a kid getting scolded, but he wasn’t even in trouble. All Soonyoung did was ask if he was ok.
Before he knew it his legs collapsed under him, but he didn’t hit the ground. Someone caught him. He was slowly brought down to the floor in the lap of someone, who he soon realized was Jeonghan. He was still crying, his body felt hot, he wanted to go home.
“What’s wrong baby? Why are you crying? Did Soonyoung say something?” Jeonghan asked softly while petting his hair.
The other members were crowded around them now. It was unusual for their maknae to cry so randomly and openly. Chan was never a heavily emotional person, so this was shocking for the members.
“I don’t feel good,” Chan said between tears, while clinging onto Jeonghan like a lifeline.
Jeonghan’s eyes widened a bit in worry, then he quickly put his hand on Chan's forehead. He was burning up, then he looked down and saw Chan’s hand trembling.
“Oh my gosh, you’re burning up. You need to go home.” Jeonghan said worriedly.
Seungcheol then bent down to also check Chan's temperature.
“Holy crap that's hot. Someone gets a cold pack, and someone gets a manager.” Seungcheol demanded.
Soonyoung quickly went to grab an ice pack and bottle of water from the cooler in the corner of the room, while Jihoon along with Joshua went to grab a manager. Soonyoung handed the water and ice pack to Seungcheol, who pressed the ice pack to Chan’s head in an attempt to cool down his temperature.
“I don’t know why I’m crying, I just feel bad,” Chan said in between tears.
“I know, I’m sorry baby” Jeonghan said softly, still petting his hair.
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, I thought it would go away, and I didn’t wanna hold down the group,” Chan said, crying harder now.
“Baby you would never hold up the group, but you have to tell us about this stuff” Jeonghan replied, still in that honey toned sweet voice.
“I know, but I wanna prove myself, that I can take care of myself, and didn't debut too young” Chan said, trying to hold Jeonghan tighter.
“Shh, it's ok calm down” Jeonghan said trying to calm Chan down.
Seungcheol took the ice pack off his head and checked his temperature again. The other members were sitting on the floor around them now, waiting to make sure their maknae was ok.
“He’s still really hot” Seungcheol said.
“Should we take him to the hospital? This doesn’t look like a typical cold.” Mingyu said worriedly.
“NO, please no, I don’t wanna go to the hospital.” Chan said as more tears flowed down his face. For heaven's sake no matter how hard he tried he couldn’t stop crying.
“Shh, calm down, you're not going to the hospital, ok” Jeonghan said, still trying to calm him down.
“But look at him, he’s crying because whatever he has is making him feel THAT bad. He’s shivering and sweating at the same time, and he almost collapsed too.” Seokmin said worriedly.
“We’re not making decisions until a manager gets here,” Seungcheol said.
“It IS flu season though, he should at least be tested” Seungkwan commented.
“We all should probably get vaccinated too. Our bodies are being pushed to their limits because of our schedules. Especially his since he’s still developing” Seungcheol said while looking at Chan. “You guys too, you be careful” he said while pointing to Seungkwan and Vernon.
The whole group collectively groaned at the idea of a vaccine. Chan was still in Jeonghan’s arms, a lot calmer now but still crying. He’s glad that he was in Jeonghan’s arms, Jeonghan always comforts him when he’s sick.
Eventually Jihoon and Joshua bragged to a manager, who also bent down to check Chan’s temperature, also commenting on how hot he felt, and probably needed to see a doctor.
More words were exchanged that Chan wasn’t paying attention to. Something about scheduling a doctor's appointment and getting them all vaccinated. Jeonghan was still petting his hair, occasionally contributing to the conversation.
They concluded that Chan was going to the dorm, and his schedule would be canceled for at least the next two days. They all were going to go to the dorms, since the TV show was canceled, and they wanted to be with Chan. The dance practice video would be rescheduled, and one of the members would be at home with Chan at all times, since managers didn’t typically go into their space.
Seungcheol pulled Chan off of Jeonghan.
“Do you wanna be carried or piggyback?” Seungcheol asked him.
“Piggyback,” Chan said sleepily.
Seungcheol put Chan on his back, who clinged to him like a koala, and they started heading out of the company building to get into cars and head back to the dorm. While heading downstairs he overheard discussion on who was riding with who.
Seungcheol eventually got tired of their antics and said they would be riding by age. Seungcheol, Jeonghan, Joshua, and Chan would ride in car 1, Jun, Soonyoung, Wonwoo, and Jihoon, would ride in car 2, and Seokmin, Mingyu, Minghao, Seungkwan, and Vernon would ride in car 3.
Chan was practically asleep when they got in the car. He was seated next to Jeonghan in the very back, and was still clinging onto him. Then he heard his phone buzz. Jeonghan reached to grab it and was about to decline the call, until Chan remembered Yeonjun.
He grabbed the phone from Yeonjun and answered the call.
“Hi” Chan said.
“Chan are you at home or on your way home?” Yeonjun asked.
“Yes I’m on my way home now” Chan responded.
“Good, get lots of rest and drink lots of water” Yeonjun said.
“Thank you” Chan replied.
“No problem, that's what I’m here for. Get better” Yeonjun said.
“Yes ok” Chan said before declining the call.
He put his phone down on the seat, and fell asleep, leaning on Jeonghan.