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“So, it's almost ready.” Jin placed a bowl on the table and looked at Taehyung, who had offered to help him in the kitchen today. Not that he needed to, since they only had to prepare food for three people, but he had been dead-set on the task. The older male suspected that he wanted to pick up a few tricks – poor little Taehyung was constantly nagged that he was one of the worst cooks of the group. “Can you get Yoongi? He'll forget to eat again if no one tells him to.”
“Sure thing”, Tae nodded and took a deep breath. “Yoongi-hyung! Dinner is ready!”, he yelled so loud that Seokjin flinched and almost dropped the dishes he just grabbed.
“Coming!” The answer came from somewhere else in the building.
Jin raised a brow at the younger one and crossed his arms in front of his chest.“Well, that certainly had the job done, but it was not exactly what I had in mind.”
Taehyung grinned at his oldest hyung and patted his cheeks. “Ah, come on, Jin-hyung. This is some kind of voice-training, isn't it? ARMY chants are pretty loud, gotta to keep up with them.”
Jin rolled his eyes, but he didn't manage to hide an affectionate smile. For real... This kid.
“Only the three of us?” Yoongi asked as he entered the room and threw a quick look around. “I thought the rest was scheduled to be back in the evening.”
“Change of plans, apparently”, Jin answered and started to fill soup in each of their bowls. “Namjoonie said he's already on his way back, but still needs a while to get here. Hobi, Jimin and Kookie are still working on a new choreography.”
“Ah.” Yoongi sat down and pushed his hair out of his face before he grabbed his bowl.
“You bleached it”, Taehyung noticed and observed the second oldest closely. They all had to die their hair on such a regular basis that another color-change went unnoticed more often than not, but there was just something about a platinum blond Yoongi that screamed 'Look at me!'
“Ya, management told me to. I hope they don't want another crazy color again, I'd like to keep it that way. Less of a hassle.”
“And really hot”, Taehyung pointed out.
“Yeah, whatever, sure.” Yoongi grinned. “I guess I'll be the new worldwide handsome.”
“Dream on, brat. This disrespect... I can't believe it.” Jin put a hand on his heart, channeling all of his acting skills to portray a deeply hurt man when in reality he had to bite his tongue to keep himself from smiling.
He'd noticed the faint blush that crept up on Yoongi's cheeks when Tae had called him hot.
In fact, he'd noticed a lot of things during the last couple of months. It seemed to become a hobby for the two of them to make each other flustered. Actually it had become second nature to them so much, that they didn't even notice or care when they were caught by camera.
Everybody could sense the change in their dynamics – everyone but two people: The oblivious idiots sitting next to him right now.
“Stop staring at me... it's creepy”, Yoongi complained now and hurried to grab a spoon and start to eat the soup. “Tastes good, hyung”, he praised casually.
“Oh, I didn't make it.” Jin gestured towards Taehyung who was still staring at his second oldest hyung, now beaming with pride.
Yoongi choked a little and examined his bowl skeptically. “Please tell me you supervised him though. We all now that Tae tends to be... creative, when it comes to ingredients.”
“No worries, I had an eye on him at all times.”
“I can hear you two, you know?” Taehyung questioned, his smile becoming thinner and thinner until it turned into a pout.“And there is nothing wrong with being creative. We earn our money with being creative!”
The two older men looked at each other. He certainly had a point there, but...
“Writing songs is a different kind of creativity than combining raspberries with grated Parmesan cheese because 'it kinda looks like white chocolate'”, Yoongi pointed out.
They bickered back and forth until they all had finished their meals.
“So, you think you will live?”, Taehyung asked dryly when both of his hyungs pushed their bowls away.
“Don't be like that, TaeTae.” Jin smiled apologetically and ruffled the younger's hair. “You did well.”
“He is right”, Yoongi confirmed with a fond smile. “Listen, I have a peace-offering. Since you two prepared dinner, I'll do the washing up and afterwards we can watch something on Netflix – how does that sound?”
“Can I pick the movie?” Taehyung's eyes sparkled with excitement. He wasted no time and sprinted towards the living room when Yoongi rolled his eyes but nodded.
Jin trailed behind for a bit. “Didn't you say you had something to do in the studio tonight?”, he questioned.
Yoongi shrugged nonchalantly. “Nothing that can't wait.”
“Oh boy. You are so soft for him.” Jin shook his head fondly and chuckled at the threatening look that was thrown at him before he even finished his sentence.
“I'm not. And now out with you, or do you want to help?”
“I'll go, I'm already gone actually. You never saw me here.” Still snickering Jin left and joined Taehyung in the living room.
The second youngest of their group had already started Netflix and was scrolling through the the recommendations.
“I vote against anything out of the horror genre.”
“But Yoongi-hyung said that it's my choice”, Taehyung complained and looked at Jin with his best Bambi-eyes.
Simple, but effective. Jin should be immune against this look after all these years, but every now and then it still worked in Tae's favor.
Somebody who looked as innocent and had such a gentle soul as Taehyung shouldn't have a special liking for the most gruesome, hair-raising movies – Jin was pretty sure that there was a law against that. He opened his mouth to argue but was interrupted by a scream, followed by a thundering “Oh FUCK!” and a whole lot of other curse words.
He threw a quick gaze at Taehyung, who already got up from the couch alarmed. “Hyung...”
Jin was in the kitchen within a heartbeat, closely followed by the younger singer. “Yoongi? Are you okay?”
He gasped when he found himself in his personal horror movie all of a sudden.
The rapper was standing in front of the sink, holding his right hand against his chest in an attempt not to get blood all over the floor, but it was already to late. An impressive amount of the dark red liquid was gushing out of a deep cut in the skin.
Taehyung swallowed thickly and braced himself against the kitchen counter. He already felt queasy just by looking at the steadily growing puddle.
“Shit”, the oldest member grumbled and grabbed a clean dishtowel to wrap it around the hand. “Here you go... ya”, he scolded lightly when Yoongi hissed and tried to draw his hand out of his hyung's reach. “I know it hurts, but you have to apply pressure to it, otherwise it won't stop. Jesus, Yoongi. How did you manage to...?” He observed the also red tinted water in the sink.
“I dumped everything I found the water to soak and then grabbed the knife at the blade when I wanted to start washing up”, he answered vaguely. “I forgot it was also in there and didn't pay attention.”
“I swear to god...”, Jin groaned and shook his head. “That's something I'd expect from Namjoon, but you should know better than to just dump the sharpest knife in the water with everything else. What were you thinking?”
Yoongi shrugged, not even bothering to give an answer. There wasn't something he could do about it now, right? The cut burnt like hell and the bleeding caused him to be a little lightheaded, but otherwise he was okay. But when he looked over Jin's shoulder and across the room he noticed someone who might not be. “Um... Tae-ah?”
Jin made an impatient noise when the blonde ignored him. “Don't try to distract me, I...”
“I'm not trying to, hyung”, Yoongi interrupted the older and called out again, this time with more force in his voice. “Taehyung, are you all right?”
“I... that's a lot... yeah...” Taehyung's voice was shaky as he finally responded.
Somewhat irritated Jin turned around to look at the younger member himself, who still stood against the counter, gaze fixed on the puddle on the floor.
Shit. Tae hadn't be so pale-faced earlier. A few minutes ago the boy had been the definition of healthy and excited. Seeing his hyung like that must have been a shock and affect him more than Jin had anticipated.
“TaeTae?”, he called softly. “Get out of here, okay? Why don't you wait in the living room until I've taken care of Yoongi? We'll be okay.”
“I don't feel so great”, Taehyung admitted weakly, swaying on his spot despite of the death grip he still had on the countertop.
Yoongi, already seeing where this was going, brushed Jin's hand off the towel and used his own, unharmed one to apply pressure to the wound. “I got this hyung, just take Tae~ ...Fuck, Taehyung!”
The two older boys didn't have any more time to react as Taehyung's eyes fluttered close and he collapsed to the ground, head meeting the floor tiles with a thud.
Jin cursed under his breath as he hurried over to the younger member. “Taehyungie”, he tried, kneeling down next to the unconscious boy. “Baby, come on. Look at me.”
How did everything get out of control so quickly? No longer than five minutes ago his biggest concern had been what kind of movie he would have to sit through, now he was on the ground checking his second youngest dongsaeng for injuries.
Luckily, he couldn't spot any wounds. Yet. He was positive that Taehyung would have a massive bump later on... but that wasn't important now. He swallowed thickly when the boy didn't respond and pressed a shaking hand against his mouth. Now wasn't the time to freak out, he told himself. He had to focus.
“Can I do something?”, Yoongi asked hesitantly.
“Yes, thanks. Can you... ah, nevermind”, Seokjin interrupted himself when he remembered that the rapper was in no position to help at all. “Actually, sit down, Yoongi. I don't want you to be the next one to collapse.”
“I won't...”
“Listen to your hyung. You're injured, you lost blood and you might be going into shock, and I can only deal with so much right now, so when I say sit down you sit the fuck down!”
Yoongi raised a brow as Jin was slowly but steadily losing his cool, but he let himself slide to the ground nevertheless. The older one was right, after all, he didn't want to add to this mess any more than he already had.
Jin fetched another towel and wet it with cool water before he returned to Taehyung and pressed it softly against his forehead. A slight groan was the only response he got for now, but it was better than nothing.
Still, he needed to act. He had to get to call an ambulance – where was his phone? Had he left it in the living room? As much as he didn't want to leave the two of them alone, he really wanted to make that call rather sooner than later.
“Are you okay on your own for a minute?”, he asked, looking at his oldest dongsaeng. He noticed with worry that the previously white towel was already drenched in blood, even though Yoongi was still applying pressure to it.
He was contemplating what he should do first when he heard a key unlocking the front door. A step, another, then a crash.
Jin closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Thank god! “Joonie?”
“It wasn't me... um, I mean, nothing happened!”
Had the situation had been any different, Jin would have smiled at the clumsy try to cover up whatever mess their leader had caused this time, but right now he couldn't care less.
“Don't mind... I need your help in the kitchen... and don't freak out”, he added as an afterthought.
Namjoon must have heard the urgency in his voice, because he followed the plead without a second thought. He entered the room through the open door and gasped. “Holy shit, hyung! What happened here?” With wide eyes he took in the situation in front of him.
“I'll explain later... we need to call an ambulance... Yoongi needs a fresh towel... Tae... Ah, Tae, I should put him into recovery position, but how... I can't remember, I have to look it up...”
Namjoon held up a hand as he noticed that Seokjin was about to work himself into an absolute mess. “Whoa. Okay. Breathe, hyung. One step after another. Fetch me a few blankets, will you? I remember how to do it. And then you can call the hospital – you know better than me what happened.”
His own curiosity had to wait – whatever had happened, his members were injured and needed him, that was all that counted right now.
“Yeah... sure...” Jin quickly left the kitchen, thankful for Namjoon's calmness. As fast as possible he grabbed all blankets that he could find and brought them to their leader. “You need help with that?”
“I got it, Hyung. Go make the call.”
It only took a few seconds for Namjoon to get Taehyung onto one of the fleece fabrics in a stable position. He listened carefully – the boy was breathing normally, thank god. He felt for a pulse, which also didn't appear to be out of the usual. Good. Care for Tae, check. Now off to the next target.
“Yoongi-hyung? How are you holding up?”
“I... I can't feel my fingers”, the rapper admitted quietly. “And I'm kinda cold.”
Namjoon's head whipped around at the comment. When he saw his hyung shivering he pushed himself up and walked over to him.
“Don't... you have to look after Tae”, Yoongi protested.
“I'm almost sure he won't run”, Namjoon assured with a whiff of grim humor. “Seriously hyung, there's nothing more I can do for him right now, so let me check on you.”
He crouched down next to Yoongi and observed him closely. The older rapper was always pale, so that wasn't anything to go by, but his skin felt icy under his fingertips and was covered with a slight sheen of sweat. The fact that the cloth he had wrapped around his hand was leaking and dripping blood all over the floor wasn't exactly reassuring either.
“I'll be fine.”
“Sure you will.” Namjoon spread out another blanket on the floor and pointed at it before he grabbed a fresh towel. “You need to lie down, hyung.”
“I'm not going to lie on the fucking kitchen tiles”, Yoongi argued, making the younger roll his eyes.
“That's what the blanket is for.” When Namjoon used his leader voice, he usually got his members to do what he asked them to, but Yoongi sometimes was to stubborn for his own good. A concerned Yoongi that saw his second youngest dongsaeng unconscious only a few steps away was even more stubborn.
“I'm really okay for now. You should check on~”
“Damn it, hyung”, Namjoon exploded. “How about you care about yourself for a change? Tae is as okay as he can be in this situation, and I want to be able to say the same thing about you.”
At least Yoongi had the decency to look ashamed as he laid down.
He was guilty that they even were in this situation, and here he was stressing his leader out even more. Not something a responsible hyung should do.
As soon as his body was flat on the floor Namjoon covered him with another piece of cloth and propped his legs up on a kitchen chair, then grabbed his injured hand and unwrapped the spoiled fabric. He winced as he saw how deep the cut was and hurried to wrap it again. He didn't let go of it, though. Instead he held it up and tight so the blood flow would slow down.
While he was in the process of doing all of that Jin reentered the room. “The ambulance will be here in a few minutes”, he reported, considerably more calm than he was when he left. “I also called Sejin-nim and~”
“Hyung?”
It took everyone a moment to place the tired, low voice that interrupted the older. Jin was the first to react.
“TaeTae.” He dropped onto his knees next to the second youngest member of their group. “Don't move, everything is okay.”
Taehyung stilled when Jin laid a hand on his shoulder to prevent him from getting up.“What happened?”, he slurred, blinking up at his hyung in confusion.
Jin frowned. “You don't remember?”, he asked. That was a little concerning.
Taehyung went quiet for a few moments, really trying to recall what was going on, but he gave up soon.“I don't know... everything is... foggy. My head hurts. Hurts really bad, hyung.”
“I know, baby. Anything else?”
“A little dizzy... tired...” Taehyung's mumbled words came slower by now.
“Don't fall asleep again, okay? Talk to me, TaeTae.”
“Can you... the lights. It's so bright”, the singer whined.
Jin used his hand to shield Taehyung's eyes from the light. The pained little noises that escaped the younger one's lips were heart-breaking. “Hold on for just a little bit. You'll feel better soon”, he promised.
Of course Yoongi had noticed that Tae was awake and speaking – and therefore at least somewhat okay.
Words couldn't even begin to describe how relieved he was, but now that some of his internal tension faded his own exhaustion caught up to him.
“Joonie...”, he whispered groggily.
“What is it, hyung?”
“My fingers... why can't I feel them? Are they still there?”
“Yup – everything is where it belongs”, Namjoon reassured gently.“It's the adrenaline, hyung. It will soon enough start to hurt like a bitch.”
As soon as the words left his mouth he groaned inwardly. The second half wasn't neither gentle nor reassuring, he'd just talked before he really thought it through. On the other side Yoongi wasn't person that sugarcoated things himself, so maybe it was exactly what he needed to hear right now.
“What if it doesn't? What if I damaged the hand permanently? When I can't play piano anymore...”
“Hyung...” Namjoon's heart hurt seeing the older like that. With his unoccupied hand he brushed a few strands of freshly bleached hair out of Yoongi's face. When he noticed tears starting to form in Yoongi's eyes it wasn't fully unexpected, but still it was unsettling to see his hyung like this.
“I'm scared, Joonie.” Either he had given up on playing the strong completely, or the blood loss was finally taking its toll on him.
“I'm right here, okay? Help is on the way.” Namjoon smiled reassuringly and glanced quickly over to Jin, who was trying his best to keep Taehyung awake.
The few minutes it took for the ambulance to arrive felt like hours, then everything went on faster then Namjoon and Jin could comprehend.
Within a heartbeat the room was filled with paramedics, with questions they struggled to answer, with instructions the medical workers gave each other.
And then... nothing. All of a sudden they were alone in the dorm, their band members already on their way to the hospital.
The silence was deafening.
“So...” Namjoon began and cleared his throat nervously. “Sejin-nim is on his way?”
Seokjin nodded. “He'll pick us up and take us to the hospital. He knew we wouldn't be allowed to ride in the ambulance with them. 'Only family', my ass! We are their family!”
“I know. But it doesn't work that way. And at least they're taken care of, we wouldn't be much of a help right now anyway.”
“Do you have to be so damn reasonable all the time?”
Namjoon raised a brow. He seemed to have underestimated Jin's stress level in this situation. “Come here, hyung.”
“Hu?”
“I said... Ah, forget it.” He walked the few steps over to his fried and wrapped his arms around him. “They'll be fine. I know it was scary, but you did well, hyung”, he assured with gentle voice. “And of course it sucks – I would rather be with them as well. And we will be soon – we just have to wait a little bit, okay?”
“I'm tired”, Jin admitted quietly and allowed himself a moment of weakness, resting his forehead against Namjoon's shoulder. “It was supposed to be a fun evening, some Netflix, a few snacks... I don't know where it went so wrong.”
“If I had to guess I would say right here in the kitchen”, Namjoon deadpanned. Jin rolled his eyes, but managed a little chuckle.
“You have a point there.” He stepped back and looked around, taking in the state of the room. “I think I should clean up before the others arrive. Don't want anyone else fainting. I had my share of disaster for one day.”
“I'll help”, Namjoon offered, and while Jin was thankful that he wouldn't have to deal with everything on his own, he swore his heart stopped for a moment when the rapper went straight for the kitchen sink, attempting to put his hand into the bloody water.
“Stop”, he yelled. “What do you think you're doing?”
Namjoon froze in his movements. “Emptying the sink?”, he answered, but it sounded more like a question.
“No. Just no. How do you think this all started? Go mop the floor, I'll deal with anything that could contain sharp objects.”
Namjoon was to beat to pick up an argument about Jin's (to be honest, not completely unwarranted) lack of trust into his skilles and followed the order. The quietness that fell over the room while they were working gave both of them a chance to clear their heads, at least a bit.
When Sejin arrived the kitchen was far from tidy, but at least it didn't look like they had offered some kind of animal sacrifice to the gods of fame anymore.
Namjoon and Jin explained the situation as well as they were able to – with one not being there when it happened and the other's memories being clouded by the panic he had felt.
“You two look exhausted.” The manager straightened his glasses and observed the young men closely. “You don't have to come to the hospital with me, how about you stay here and get some rest?”
“No”, two voices announced simultaneously.
Sejin sighed softly. “Well, I didn't think so. It was worth a try. Keep in mind that nobody knows how long we'll have to wait and if we're allowed to see them at all.”
“I don't care.” Jin's voice was firm. “I wouldn't be able to relax anyway.”
“Yeah, same here.”
The manager nodded. “Alright, then. Let's go. But do me a favor and call the rest of the bunch, will you?”
“I'll call when I'm in the car”, Namjoon promised.
Of course Hobi, Jimin and Jungkook freaked out when they heard what happened, and it took the leader quite some convincing to get them to go back to the dorm instead of coming to the as well. He felt like a hypocrite – if it had been him who received the call no arguments in the world could keep him away from the emergency ward.
What finally did the job was the request to get Taehyung's and Yoongi's rooms ready for the two hurt members. That, and the promise to keep them updated about everything they found out, as irrelevant it might seem.
When they finally arrived, their members already were getting treatment – one of the perks of being a VIP. Sejin went to find someone with informations while Jin and Namjoon slumped down onto some chairs in the waiting area. Besides them, only one woman was present. She offered them a little smile which seemed just as tired as they felt, but didn't care for them in any other way.
It took some minutes for Sejin to return, hands full with papers and forms that had to be filled.
“Taehyung's got a slight concussion”, he informed as soon as he sat down next to them. “They're giving him something against the pain and let him rest until we can leave. We have to keep an eye on him, but it doesn't seem to be too serious. A few days of absolute bed rest and pain killers and he should be as good as new.”
“A few days? We might have to tie him down”, Jin joked, relief lightning up his stressed features. “And what about Yoongi?”
“His wound already was treated, but he has to get an IV before we can leave – he lost blood and is therefore dehydrated. They said he was really exhausted and weak – apparently he fell asleep as soon as they laid him down onto the bed to put him on the drip.”
“Sounds like hyung.” Namjoon rubbed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose afterwards, clearly battling against his fatigue. “Can we see them?”
“I'm afraid you can't. The doctors said they needed rest more than anything else. I'll ask again a bit later.”
Sejin had to hide a smile while he observed how Namjoon's head dropped onto Jin's shoulder, a defeated look on his face. Almost instantly his lids began to flutter and his eyes fell shut. Jin followed shortly after.
The manager shrugged out of his jacket and spread it over the legs of the boys before he started on his paperwork.
He wasn't going to ask anybody. Yoongi and Taehyung weren't the only ones that needed some rest.
A few hours passed until the injured members were allowed to leave.
If Jin and Namjoon had been upset about sleeping through the whole time, they quickly forgot about it when they were able to put their arms around their friends again.
They climbed into the Van, Jin and Yoongi in the middle seats of the vehicle while Namjoon and Taehyung took the places in the back. The youngest clutched a plastic bag – just in case – and cuddled against the rapper. All he wanted was to be back in the dorm, in his very own bed – a feeling that every present member shared.
Luckily they arrived their home without further incidents. Taehyung was so beat at his point, that it took the combined forces of Namjoon and Sejin to get him out of the car and into the apartment. They maneuvered the boy straightly to his bedroom, leaving it up to Seokjin and Yoongi to meet the
remaining three members, who one by one came out of the living room, dark circles around their eyes.
“Guys... you should've gone to bed”, Jin scolded softly, full aware that none of them would have done it – in fact, he would have waited anxiously too, if the roles had been reversed.
“Oh, hyungie...” Jimin was the first that reached them and instantly pulled Yoongi into a very careful hug. “You have to take better care of yourself... does it hurt?”
“Ah... I'm fine.” Yoongi ruffled Jimin's hair with his uninjured hand and pushed him away softly. “You really don't need to worry. I'm sorry for the trouble I caused.”
As soon as he managed to get out of Jimin's grip, Hosek and Jungkook clung to him instead. Yoongi sighed defeated yet fondly. “Come on you guys... it's not the first time one of us got hurt.”
“Doesn't make it any less scarifying”, Hoseok countered while taking a step back. “We were really worried about you two when Namjoon told us what happened.”
“Speaking of, how is Taehyungie-hyung?” Jungkook asked, slighty pouting. “We didn't get to see him.”
“You can see him in the morning”, Sejin interrupted the moment, having just left the room of the young man in question. “He's okay. I get that you want to convince yourself of it, but he really needs some rest. Namjoon is taking him in, he is already out like a light right now.”
Disappointment was evident in the faces of the three young men, but they nodded understandingly. Of course they'd loved to be allowed to see Taehyung, even if it was just for a mere moment, but more than anything, they wanted the singer to feel better. If that meant that they had to wait for another couple of hours, it was a small sacrifice.
“I'll clear your schedule for tomorrow, maybe the next couple of days if I'm able to”, the manager continued. “Still I'd like you all to go to bed now, too. I can tell that all of you are tired, you look like a bunch of ghosts.”
“I beg to differ”, Jin complained and dramatically brushed a hand through his hair to lighten up the mood. “I still look fabulous.”
“Who said that all ghosts were ugly?” Hoseok asked with a little grin, entertaining the older male.
“Your right. That means... I'm also underworld-wide handsome.”
There were a few collective groans and concealed chuckles following his statement, then the group split up, disappearing into bed- and bathrooms while the manager left the dorm.
Yoongi was the only one that stayed back, rubbing his eyes. Yeah, he was tired to the core, but he felt a restlessness that didn't allow him to go to sleep. He paced up and down the hallway, only hiding behind a corner for a moment when Namjoon left Taehyung's room. He wasn't in the right mindset for a discussion about the importance of sleep right now. In fact, he wasn't in the right mindset for anything.
Exhaustion had him dragging his feet, but he just couldn't stop. Up and down. Up and down.
He focused on his steps to keep his mind from wandering. He really didn't want to think right now, but the more he wished for it, the more prominent his thoughts became, impossible to ignore. A never-ending cycle, and he was trapped in it.
He didn't even notice someone approaching him, until a hand grabbed his elbow and stopped him with gentle force.
“Yoongi-yah, come on. You really should go to bed, too”, Jin sighed. It just felt plainly wrong that he had to tell Yoongi of all people to go and lay down – and even more so that the rapper still refused, eyeing Taehyung's door warily. It took the elder a moment to realize what the problem was.“Would you feel better if you join him?”
“I don't know, hyung”, Yoongi answered, frustration tinting his voice bitter. “I don't think he wants me to. He has to be pissed, don't you think? I'm at fault that he passed out in the first place.”
“Aish, really. It's Tae we're talking about”, Jin reminded with a soft smile. “Just ask him, I'm sure he will...”
He interrupted himself when he heard harsh coughs behind the closed door, followed by the unmistakable sound of someone being sick. He winced – poor baby.
Yoongi stayed behind once more when Jin hurried into room to help Taehyung. He was sure that the younger didn't need an audience when he was feeling this poorly. The pained sounds made his guilty conscience grow even more.
Finally Jin came through the door again, carrying a bucket with him. His gaze softened when he found Yoongi standing forlornly exactly where he left him. “I need to clean this up. Can you look after him for a bit?”, he suggested softly.
“Um... yeah, sure.” Hesitantly he walked over to Taehyung and sat on his bedside.
The singer opened his eyes for a moment when he noticed his presence and studied him with a tired gaze. “Hyung?”
“I'm so sorry”, Yoongi whispered without looking at the younger.
“What for?”
Kim Taehyung, Ladies and Gentlemen. Only he would ask such a question when the answer was clear as daylight. The rapper suppressed a sigh and forced himself to answer. “Well... Everything. This. It's my fault.”
“Hyung. I'll just say it once, so listen, okay? It. Was. Not. Your. Fault!” Taehyung pronounced every word emphatically, really trying to hammer them into Yoongi's head.
Did he feel awful right now? Yes, of course. He was drained, had a killer headache and felt nauseous – it was like the worst hangover of his life.
Did he want Yoongi to feel guilty about it though? Heck no!
“Fuck! Sure it was.”
The singer would have rolled his eyes if it didn't make him feel even more dizzy. “So you thought 'Hey, I have a great idea. I'm gonna cut my hand and lose a few gallons of blood to knock that annoying dongsaeng of mine out'?”, he asked, a hint of amusement in his tired voice.
Yoongi blinked, slightly taken aback. “Of course not.”
“Then it wasn't your fault... It was an accident.” Taehyung explained slowly.
“But...” Yoongi wasn't going to let it slide so quickly. Not when he was beating himself up since he witnessed Tae going down in the kitchen. Not when he felt so awful about it.
Taehyung groaned and closed his eyes again. “I can't do this now, hyung. My head feels like it's about to split open.”
“Ah...” Yoongi swallowed thickly. Great job, making Taehyung feel worse than he already did. One more thing he messed up. “I... sorry... I'll just leave...”
“No!” Taehyung reached out blindly before Yoongi could get up again and grabbed his arm to hold him in place. “Talking hurts. I don't want you to leave, though. Stay.”
“Okay”, the rapper whispered and held Taehyung's hand with his uninjured one. Silence settled down, but it wasn't uncomfortable. Far from it, to be honest. It was the first time since the dinner that Yoongi managed to feel a little bit at peace.
After a few minutes Jin returned to the room and placed the freshly cleaned bucket next to the bed again.
“Do you need something? Any of you?”
“Thanks hyung, but no.” Yoongi answered quietly.
“You're gonna stay here, I take it?”
“For a while... yeah.” Yoongi averted his eyes when Seokjin smiled at him fondly, the 'See? I told you so' unspoken, but still prominent in his face.
“That's good. Do you have your phone on you?” Jin waited for the second oldest confirming nod. “Call if you need anything. Anything – you hear me? If you don't I'll just come back in a few hours with the pain killers for the both of you, alright?”
“You should get some rest yourself, hyung.”
“Ah, don't worry about me. Focus on getting better instead. See you.”
And just like that, Jin disappeared again, flicking the light switch on his way out.
The sudden darkness made the older feel uneasy. His breathing seemed unnaturally loud in the otherwise silent room, and the more he focused on calming down, the more anxious about it he became.
He startled when Taehyung pressed his hand, comforting and encouraging at the same time.
“Can I...” Yoongi took a shaky breath, cursing the tight feeling in his throat. “Can I lie next to you?”
Taehyung smiled softly into the night. “Of course. But fair warning, I still feel really sick, I might puke again.”
Yoongi climbed into the bed and laid behind the younger singer, his injured hand in an awkward angle over their heads while the other arm snuck around Taehyung's waist. He felt like crying when the other boy clasped his hand tightly and intertwined their fingers again, but he managed to get a grip on himself before the situation became any more embarrassing.
“I'm still sorry”, he whispered in the darkness before his fatigue caught up with him.
They managed to sleep for about two hours until Taehyung woke up feeling unbearably nauseous again. He whimpered and pressed his hands against his stomach, trying to fight his sickness. The squirming alerted Yoongi just in time to scramble out of the bed, help the younger sit up and place the bucket under his chin.
“Hyung...” Taehyung's voice sounded pityful. “I don't wanna~”
Whatever he didn't want, his body clearly had a different idea when the singer didn't even manage to finish his sentence before retching into the bin. Nothing was coming up, but the choking sounds and gasps were painful to hear.
Yoongi wished he had two hands to steady the other and pet his back simultaneously, but he had to make do with some reassuring words which he wasn't sure Taehyung was able to hear at all.
“It's fine, you're fine”, he whispered. “Hyung's here with you. Don't fight it, Taehyungie. Just try to breathe, your body will do the work.”
It felt like an eternity until the heaves got productive and Taehyung was finally bringing something up.
“There you go, that's it. It'll be over soon.”
He talked the younger through the whole ordeal, which thankfully didn't last too long. There wasn't much in the singer that could come up anyway, but it sure as hell still felt really unpleasant.
“I think I'm done”, Taehyung announced finally, voice scratchy and weak. “Uah. Hyungie... I hate puking.”
“Yeah, I think it's nobodies favorite activity”, Yoongi muttered and grabbed a bottle of water from the nightstand. He held the lid between his teeth and unscrewed it with his hand. “Here, flush your mouth, Tae-ah.”
The singer did as he was told, he even managed to drink a few sips afterwards.
Yoongi helped to lower him on the mattress again. “I'll be right back, okay? I'll clean the bin really quickly.”
“I'm sorry. It's gross.”
“Hey, didn't you tell me not to apologize? Take your own advice, will ya?” He ran a hand through the younger's hair carefully and winced when he felt a large bump under the tips of his fingers.
Yoongi made his way over to the bathroom. It wasn't as easy as he'd expected to clean with only one hand, but he was dead-set on the task. He refused to wake Jin or anybody else for such a minor issue. And he made it, it only took a little longer as it usually would have. While he was there, he wet a washcloth so he could freshen Taehyung up a bit once he returned.
“You came back.” A tired yet happy voice greeted him when he reached his destination.
“Told you I would, didn't I? Did you doubt my words?”
The way he talked might seem harsh to people who didn't know him, but Taehyung long learned how to take his hyung's words. He knew that Yoongi really cared for him – he was soft, even if he didn't particularly like to show this side of him. The softness was evident in his actions – like now, when he gently cleaned Taehyung's face with a lukewarm wet cloth.
“No, I didn't. But I'm cold, so I waited for you to return.” The boy patted the spot at his side pointedly.
“You know, I wondered...” Yoongi began, while slipping next to him again. “Ah, nevermind. You have to sleep, I shouldn't talk so much.”
“But now I'm curious. If you won't tell me, I will never be able to sleep!”
“Just... why did you faint? You usually have no problem with blood, given your movie preferences. And when Namjoon hurt himself during dance practice that one time, you were the first to help.”
“Oh...” Taehyung's cheeks started to burn, and he was thankful for that the room wasn't lit anymore. He turned onto his other side and hid his face against his hyung's chest. “Um... you're right, I guess. Normally I don't have a problem...”
His words were muffled by the fabric of Yoongi's shirt, yet the older was able to understand him just fine.
“It's just... well... It was your blood, hyung.”
“Oh...” This time, Yoongi was at a loss for an answer. Maybe he would have blushed when his brain caught on to what the words implied, but his body still had to rebuild enough blood cells to have some extra for such shenanigans. So instead of responding, he hugged the younger with one arm and pulled him a bit closer, so that he was able to softly stroke his back.
“I think... we'll both feel better tomorrow. Should we continue this conversation then? You think you're gonna be able to sleep now?”
He felt Taehyung nod against his chest and smiled into the darkness. His lips brushed the younger's hair briefly, a barely there kiss that he hoped the boy wouldn't have noticed.
“Good night, Taehyungie”, he murmured softly and finally allowed himself to drift into a deep, dreamless sleep.