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It was Friday evening but also one of the rare days where Chan and Changbin decided to go on a date.
That night they would let 17 year old Minho watch over his younger siblings, not that the three 15 years old and the 14 years old would need much supervision until they came back from their date.
They wanted to hire a babysitter as they usually would but Minho insisted that he was old enough to keep everyone alive for 3 hours. Despite trusting the older boy with his younger siblings, they prepared Jeongin to drop him at Changbin's parents where he would sleep and they had some food delivered for the kids before leaving.
They made sure the food arrived and that the kids were eating, including Jeongin so he would be full before going and hopefully sleepy once they arrived at Changbin's parents so he wouldn't cause much trouble.
"You look good Appa.", Minho said when Changbin appeared in the room dressed in a blue suit stripped vertically with fine white lines, an assorted pair of pants and a black button up shirt.
"Dad too.", Jisung added when the other appeared.
Chan was wearing a red turtleneck with a faux leather jacket, a pair of dark blue jeans and boots. The couple usually didn't really go out on date but tonight it was their anniversary.
"I'm done.", Jeongin chimed, face still covered in the barbecue sauce he had with his fried chicken.
"Great? Go wash your hands and face.", Changbin told the 8 year old.
"And go get your plushy on your bed before we go.", Chan added.
He ran to his room squealing all the way upstairs.
"Have a nice evening.", Seungmin signed.
"Don't be menaces.", Chan said and signed.
"And listen to your Minho hyung.", Changbin added.
"They better or I'll airfry them 20 minutes at 180 degree.", Minho said, looking at Hyunjin who cringed. "We'll be alright. You should go now, otherwise you'll be late."
Chan chuckled, usually it was the other way around, they needed to remind their teens to go not the teens reminding them.
"We'll come to check on you when we arrive.", Changbin said. "Go get showered and then you can do whatever you want but get ready for bed first."
The 8 year old came back running to his parents, a stuffed fennec fox hanging from his small hand and Chan pressed him to go to the car so they could drop him.
An hour and a half passed, Minho went to check on each of his younger siblings. Seungmin was playing video games online with some of his friends, Hyunjin was painting in his room and Jisung was laying on Hyunjin's bed, just hanging out and watching YouTube videos, what seemed to be National Geographic.
"Do you know where Felix is?", Minho asked.
"He went to take a shower upstairs since I was showering downstairs.", Jisung said.
"Alright."
Minho decided to let it be and went to his own room, passing in front of the bathroom where Felix was.
He heard cries. He knew that Felix was in there so he knocked on the door and without waiting for an answer he entered. After all, he wasn't scared of what he could see behind the door. Minho had seen enough of his siblings roaming around the house half naked if not totally so he didn't care anymore.
He couldn't let Felix alone especially if he was crying, anything could have happened and maybe he was hurt so he just rushed in.
Felix was curled up on the floor of the shower. He was crying silently and his body was shaking, his face decomposed and his lips shaking as he tried to hold everything in.
Minho jumped in the shower stall with his younger brother, not caring that water was pooling around the boy and that he'd end up soaked.
"Hyung.", he cried when he saw Minho join him.
"You had a seizure, didn't you?"
Felix nodded, he was shaking.
"Oh Lixie. Did you get hurt?"
"Burnt my scalp.", he manages to mumble through his cries.
"You got burnt with water?", Minho frowned.
The younger boy nodded.
"And the shock brought a seizure, didn't it?"
Felix nodded, he was crying. He showed Minho his scalp that was red. The way Felix sobbed was making Minho sad. Felix didn't cry like that, he wasn't a silent crier. He rarely hid his tears, rarely held himself from making any sound as shaky squeaks passed his lip. It was hard for Minho to see him like that.
Minho got the shower hose, checked the temperature and rinsed Felix' skin that was tinted from the water burn.
"It must hurt, let hyung take care of you. Do you know what you were doing, hum?
"All I wanted was to take a shower.", the boy mumbled.
"I know, I know. You know which bathroom you are in, don't you?", Minho asked to check how coherent the boy was.
Felix took a minute looking around, he knew he was at home but space was always confusing after a seizure. Sometimes he could forget the way to his bedroom, where he was… so knowing which bathroom he was in was quite a challenge.
"Hyung's bathroom?", Felix tried.
"Yes. That's right, you're doing great. But, you should have told me, I would have come to watch over you.", Minho tried gently, he knew sometimes Felix didn't quite like it when he got a little overprotective but as the oldest it was what he did.
"It's not your job, I can take a shower. I wanted to be on my own.", he whined.
"If you want to be on your own you should shower in your bathroom where there are a fall alarm and a water temperature management system."
"I don't need a medical shower. Don't need handles, don't need bars, don't need a seat, a fall system, alarms …", he cried harder.
Minho sighed. He knew Felix was tired, even more since he just had a seizure that no one acknowledged, no one knew how long it was nor which type of seizure it was.
"You need all that, you need wheelchair accessibility when you don't feel good and that your legs don't hold you up properly. You need the chair when you can't stand and Appa or Dad has to help you. You need an alarm to make sure you don't stay on the floor with vomit clogging your airways if you have a big seizure. You have needs, Seungmin has needs, Jisung has needs, Hyunjin too, hell even Jeongin and I have needs, we're all human … so you better be grateful you have accommodations. Now let hyung help!", the older one scolded.
Felix curled up even more, the water sprayed on his hair was cold and it made him shiver a little.
"Not your job.", Felix whined.
"No, it's not, you're right. I'm your brother not your caregiver, Appa and Dad always made that very clear but I am also the one that knows how to give you your emergency meds because I chose to know so that our fathers can go out on a date from time to time."
"Hyung, let me.", he cried.
"I don't have to do anything but I want to, I am your big brother and you're my baby brother. I'm your hyung, now shut up."
Felix sniffled into his elbow. He was clearly tired.
"How about you let hyung give you a quick wash up? I think you may have wet yourself, smells like pee and coffee. When did you have coffee? You can't have coffee, it's not good for you. "
"Hyuuung~."
"Yongbok-ah!"
"Stop! I … I, hum, I had, I think I had coffee with a girl in the afternoon."
"A girl? You'll surprise me every day.", Minho snickered.
Minho squatted in front of Felix, grabbed him under the armpit, asked Felix to get ready and counted to 3 before standing up, pushing him up.
"Come on, lock up your legs. I need you to stand up so I can move you closer to the drain."
"I can't."
"Alright hold on a second, I call Hyunjin to help me up."
"Don't call them. I'm alright, I'll get, hum, give, give me a minute."
It didn't take a minute but after 10 minutes Felix started to fall asleep so Minho knew he had to clean him up as quickly as possible and bring him to bed.
He left Felix for a minute and went to Hyunjin's room.
"Why are you all wet?", Hyunjin asked.
"Because Yongbokkie had a seizure."
"Oh?"
"Yes, come help me move him. I need to help him wash up and bring him to bed."
"Did you text Dad?", Jisung asked.
"No I didn't but let's not bother them, it's their anniversary date."
They all moved to the bathroom, Jisung coming by in case he'd be needed.
"Hyung is back, Bokkie."
"Hyung?", he asked sleepily.
"Yeah I know you fell asleep a little. Hyung is gonna help you wash up."
"Gotta move you first. Don't wiggle.", Hyunjin said.
Minho washed Felix's hair as softly as he could and the boy cried when he brushed the irritated part of his scalp that was already back to a more normal-ish color.
It took about 15 minutes but Minho could finally tell Felix was relaxing. He was more awake now but he still had trouble getting up.
"We're gonna get you out of the shower now. You're gonna get changed in your pjs. Did you bring any?"
"Here.", Jisung said, handing them the t-shirt and shorts that Felix wore to sleep.
"Alright."
"Let's omit boxers, they suck and are unnecessary work.", Minho said.
Hyunjin and Jisung held Felix up while Minho dressed him up.
"I bring him to sleep in your room until Appa and Dad come back to bring him downstairs.", Minho said.
"Why not your room?"
"I'm gonna do my homeworks. I have things to hand out next week and he needs a cuddle buddy."
Once they brought him to Hyunjin's room, Felix curled up on the bed close to Jisung who went back to watch YouTube videos on his phone and he started to fall asleep.
When Chan and Changbin came back, Minho was in the kitchen preparing himself a late night snack. He informed them about the little accident that happened earlier.
"We shouldn't have gone.", Changbin immediately started to say.
"Hey, Minho did a great job, Felix is sleeping now, he is fine."
"What if -"
"No what if, Changbinnie. We have the right to go out a little. The kids know how to call 119 if there is a real problem, he is safer at home with the boys and Sammy than at school but he still goes, right?"
Changbin sighed, his husband was right.
"I'm proud of you Minho. Thank you for taking care of everyone.", he then said to his oldest son.
"It's alright, it was ok apart from the seizure. I really like to stay home with them so you can enjoy some together time. Seungmin is still playing online with some friends and apart from him everyone else gathered in Hyunjin's room. Jinnie is painting and Jisung is doing whatever, I'm not sure.
"Alright. We'll check on them in a minute."
"Hum, I think Yongbok will have trouble getting downstairs so you'll probably have to carry him."
"Alright. Thank you, kid.", Chan said, ruffling the teen's hair.
Minho was proud. His parents didn't let the others with him often, instead hiring nannies to watch over them. They'd explained to him that it was because they didn't want to let him deal with situations that could happen with his younger sibling. But tonight Minho proved to them that he was able to, that they could trust him and he was quite proud of himself for that.