Chapter Text
Munyeong was driving, a little too fast than normal, pointedly ignoring Kangtaes advice.
She could hear his nagging tone as clearly as though he spoke from right beside her, chuckling at the thought and missing him tad more, she presses her foot down on the pedal and zooms past the pathetically slow drivers on the road.
She was tired, hungry and massively annoyed.
Kangar and her had spent their first week apart since moving in together, she had a book signing event in Seoul and had plans to stay for following the weekend as Moon Kangtae was supposed to go with her, but then he volunteered to fill in at the hospital so that his colleague could take a week off for his best friends wedding.
She obviously got mad when he told her, but he was adamant, besides Sangtae oppa would go with her so what was the problem?
She couldn’t decide what made her more annoyed, the fact that he changed plans without telling her or that he thought his presence didn’t matter.
So naturally she yelled at him but the newly unpinned Kangtae was a force to be reckoned with and before she knew it the were arguing back and forth, saying things she could hardly remember now but was sure were not nice, and it had resulted in him walking away with a ‘you don’t own me’
Now it’s mostly (always) her yelling and him eventually giving in, as per their custom, so it was just bickering on her part, but him being equally if not more angry, threw her off completely
She was sure his overreaction came from being stressed because he had been picking up extra shifts to be free for their fun weekend but she was definitely mad. So in a fit of very well placed anger she had packed a big bag and left later that night, 2 full days before she needed to, leaving a note for Sangtae telling him to meet up with her at Seoul the day they originally decided on. She had also conveniently left her hotel card on their nightstand as after thought, so if Moon Kangtae wanted to makeupto her, he had an option.
He didn’t show, and she stopped expecting him after the second night.
On the third day she received a series of texts and an apology she knew he didn’t mean; so she had made him wait a whole day before replying but when he had responded quickly conversation flew easily, both of them wordlessly deciding to ignore the altercation they had
Since then they texted often, but it was superficial, a good morning here and goodnight there, a have you eaten and take care hastily thrown in the middle,
He had called her, once, but she had been in a meeting and couldn’t pick up, when she got back to it was too been late at night and she was too high strung from having had to tolerate too many people she decided to just leave him a good night text.
Munyeong had attempted to reconcile over a call next morning but to her surprise and fury had for the first time ever been subjected to Kangtaes voicemail. H only texted her back am that afternoon about a runaway patient and wanting to sleep the rest of the day away. She she shims cursory goodnight.
It was almost a week since they have actually had a conversation, Munyeing was supposed to return Sunday but her pain in the ass if a manger has bought in a deal for translating her stories to English and Japanese and insisted she stay for the series of meeting that would inevitably follow. Now a week ago Munyeong would have raced back home after giving CEO Lee a piece of her mind but these days she couldn’t help but wonder if Kangtae and her were getting sick of each other. Perhaps some distance would do them both good.
She hadn’t heard his voice since their fight except that wretched voicemail she vowed was, it was now a week later and the air between them only got frostier.
He hadn’t texted her when home last night, her measly little goodnight sat glaringly alone in their chat box. his week of filling in had ended the day before, so he was probably having a day off. So there’s not easing i why he would not text her back. Sure they were fighting but he never left her hanging, he knew how she tends to worry. So when her her texts from this morning had also gone unanswered she grew uneasy
She had tried, unsuccessfully, to not cook up reasons for his absence but was massively unsuccessful, each dire outcome she envisioned Kangtae in, far more scarier than the other. She had eventually given up and called him but when he didn’t pick up after some 15 tries, she was genuinely disturbed and had left in between her meeting with the English translator, after politely asking him to f-off, anxious to get back home, to Kangate
She had even swallowed her pride and called Jaesu who insisted he was fine and probably sleeping off a hangover since they’d spent the previous night drinking. Moon Kangtae was a sad emotional drunk, there’s no way he could not call her and weep if when he drank enough to be hung over.
So here she was speeding and honking at every unsuspecting soul on the road, she was always a fast driver, some would even call her rash, but today she outdid herself, and arrived in half the time.
Leaves crunched under the screeching wheels as she parked hastily and got out.
She had left Seoul around lunchtime , so it was almost sunset when she got home, the view from the hilltop with skies bathed a golden orange if twilight was mesmerising. She admired the view, taking a moment to calm herself she put on practiced poker face not wanting him to know she had rushed over just because he wouldn’t answer calls and she worried about him.
She didn’t bother with her luggage knowing Kangtae would deal with it later and walked in.
The door was unlocked.
‘Aish this man, and then he tells me to keep the door locked all the time, hypocrite’
She mutters under her breath.
The house looked clean as ever, one of the things she loved about Kangtae is how diligent and organized he is, nothing was ever out of place with him. And it looks like he made time for it that weekend too, papers and magazines arranged by date and then by color gave away his occupation for the past days and she couldn’t help but smile fondly at his oddities.
She wondered why he hadn’t immediately rushed out, there was no way he couldn’t have heard the screech of the tires because she made sure to make a lot of noise .
Was he still mad about the little fight?
She calls out his name walking from the empty study to the kitchen, and he was still a no show.
She finally walks up the stairs to the room she now shared with him, begrudgingly admitting that Jaesu was probably right.
Well, if that were the case, she decides he’s slept enough clambering loudly up the stairs making her annoyance obvious by being as loud as she can.
She thinks about what to say to him, she wasn’t going to apologies no he yelled first so-
‘Ya Moon Kangtae, how long are you going to put this up, I called you so many times-’ she says pushing the door open and walking in
The lights were off, but the soft light from the window had bathed the room in a golden hues, she trails off her ramble noticing the sad pile of blankets on the bed that was her lover .
So here he was indeed sleeping the day off when she had spend the whole day worrying about his sorry ass, she thought fury rising inside her, but he also looked so peaceful, cheeks puffy and flushed, mouth slightly ajar, heck Moon Kangtae was too cute to stay mad at. She couldn’t understand how he could sleep so soundly though, the room was stuffy and overheated she was getting sweaty by the minute yet he barely moved through all the noise she was making, completely dead to the world .
She cautiously walks over an pokes at him
‘Ya, what wrong with you?’
‘Why are you sleeping?’
‘Are you sick?’
‘Are you hurt?’
‘Why aren’t you answering?’
'Cant you hear me?'
'Did you lose your voice?’
‘Hyaa’
‘Moon Kangtaee’
She throws question after question, while pulling the blanket off of him
He wakes up with a groan, shivering a little and tugging the blankets back to him.
‘Munyeonga, you came home’ he says, his voice thick with sleep.
He blinks few times, struggling to sit up and eventually just leans on the headboard, groggily looking at her.
She stares at his flushed face and glassy eyes and anger quickly morphs to concern.
‘Are you all right? She says softly, sitting down the edge of the bed and laying a palm on his head.
She is not surprised that it was burning hot, he closes his eyes and leans his head against her palm,
‘mm it feels nice, I missed you’ he mumbles, his hot breathes warming her hand.
She gives him a quick once over, the flushed cheeks she thought were cute was actually a bye product of a high fever, was his pale face shone with sweat, his shirt was damp and he seemed to be bothered by what little light was in the room, he was definitely sick.
‘Aish, are you going to get sick every time we have a row?’ she says exasperatedly, brushing some hair from his forehead
‘Ani, I’m all fine’ he says, in contradiction to his droopy head.
Sighing she tucks him back under the covers, a little guilty for yelling at him.
‘How long have you been like this? Why didn’t you call me hmm…?’ she chastises, he only hums in response already half asleep.
She is slightly relived to find a pack of fever reducers by the bed, he seemed to have taken a couple which was probably why he seemed so sleepy.
She sits a while, running her hand through his sweat damp hair, he looked soft like this, boyish even, all worry lines softened by slumber .
Him shivering was what eventually made her get up from her post, she walks over to the windows and closed them against the chill. She wondered if the medicine was actually helping, he still had a high fever, but since it didn’t seem to be getting higher, she decides to just let him sleep.
She walks over to the bathroom to freshen up.
He gets worse as night falls.
Munyeong sits vigil, applying cold compresses to his head and wiping him down but her efforts are futile, no matter what she did the fever wouldn’t go down.
She eventually manages to coax him into drinking some juice and take another fever reducer but it does absolutely, she wondered if it actually made him weise because he kept sweating and shaking delirious in throes of fever.
She’s about to step out and call a doctor over when she hears Kangtae whining in his sleep calling out to his mother, he sounds pained seemingly having a nightmare.
She rushes over and tries to calm him down, his voices high pitched scream as he thrashed in bed, eyes screwed shut and jaw clenched
Suddenly overwhelmed by fear Munyeing doesn’t quite understand what to do. She scrambles atop the bed trying to get him to too kicking out
‘Its just dream love, wakeup please’ she begs grabbing hold of his shoulder, she shears that you shouldn’t wake someone having a nightmare but she can’t watch him suffer
Fear bubbles in her throat when he pushes her off and thrashes, tears and sweat streaming down his face looking like he’s doused in a bucket of water, even in his weakened state he’s much stronger than her, she presses both hand in his shoulder bracketing him with her whole body roughly shaking him.
‘Kangtae please, you’re scaring me’ her voice is shaky,
‘wake up please’ she crying now
His arm smacks violently against the headboard as he wakes with a loud gasp, knocking her off him and to the side and he struggles to gain purchase and sit up. His eyes are wild and unfocused as they dart around the room, she manages to untangle from the blanket pile to help him up to a sitting position, that’s when he finally macaws to focus his gaze in her, his eyes wide and impossibly round he looks so lost and scared that she feels fresh tears pooling in her eyes.
She simply hugs him to her, letting his head come to feast against her shoulder holding his neck and running her free hand along his back
‘It okay, you are sick, you were just having a bad dream, its all right now’ she says,
‘it’s alright’ she repeats, mostly to calm herself down
He sits stiffly in her arms for a bit before hugging her back, pushing his impossibly warm head into her neck, his arms around her waist hot vice.
She rocks them gently sideways, struggling to swallow her sobs, last thing she wants now is him worrying over her.
‘Munyeong’ he says her name in a shaky breath, his arms loosening around her slim waist, she feels him slump against her the adrenaline leaving his body, she struggles trying to keep them both upright.
‘Its okay, everything is fine i’m here, I’m here’ she repeats unsure if it is more for him or her, patting his back comfortingly as she has often seen him do trying to calm Sangtae oppa,
She tries to pry his limp arms off and lay him back down but he only tightens his hold
‘No please don’t go, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to say it; he says, shaking his head vigorously before managing to lift his head off her shoulder, she can tell it takes great effort for him to hold his head up so she brings her hand hold his face in it leering him lean against it, looking imploringly at her.
‘Please don’t leave me’ he practically begs her weakly trying to pull her closer to him, she goes all to willingly, carving the proximity but his words stun her
Shocked, she takes in his fever bright eyes, and wonders what he’s talking about.
she fears that he was still delirious and holds his face in both her hands trying to peer into his eyes. They look glassy and too bright
‘I’m not going anywhere’ she says, running her thumb along his face, under his eyes and tracing cheekbones, his eyelids droop and she watched him try to peel them open. She sighs, Moon Kangtae was one stubborn boy
‘You’re very sick jagi ,you need to lie down, I promise I’m not going anywhere ’ her voice cracks, she slips her arms under his to try push him back to bed. He struggles weakly against her
‘No, you’ll go’ he says, he’s swaying alarmingly in her arms and she’s having a hard time trying to keep them both upright, they’re both teetering close to the edge of the bed and if he falls off there’s no way her tiny self can carry him to bed. His fingers dig into her hip from how tight he’s holding on
‘Moon Kangtae, I love you, and I’m never going to leave you, but you need to lie down okay, you’re fall’ she says, hugging him close to press a kiss on his damp forehead, he looked so young like this, boyish and lost and she felt her heart crack watching him suffer
‘Please for me?’ she tries and he finally let’s go of her waist and she cant tell if its because she’s managed to convince him or because he simply ran out of energy. It takes some manoeuvring but she managed to get him to lie down and let her pull the covers over him. He’s started shivering again and hai head looks in his pillow and he goes and out of consciousness. She need to get him help and fast but he needs to sleep first or she’s scared he’s hurt himself trying to follow her
She runs her hand through his hair and pats his chest trying to get him to relax but he battles against his body trying to keep his eyes open, jerking awake in between a blink and another when sleep washes over
She registers his want and lies next to him, letting him bury his head into her chest and hugging him close
‘Sleep now, I’ll be right here when you wake up’ she whisperes
He mumbles something she can’t make out and slumps against her falling into deep exhausted slumber.