The Guardian (Kyuhyun/Henry)
So, now that the contest is over, I think it's safe for me to post my entry here. I didn't win, but I wasn't expecting to either, as there were some totally epic entries there. darleenk won, and she certainly deserved it.
I'm on vacation from work now, currently in Tennessee for the weekend. I'm hoping I'll be able to get some writing done while I'm on vacation.
Anyways.... onto the story. :)
Title: The Guardian
Pairing: Kyuhyun/Henry
Rating: PG
Summary: Henry discovers one of Kyuhyun's best kept secrets, and in turn Kyuhyun helps Henry when he needs it most.
Henry usually wasn’t the type to spy on his band mates, especially when they were in the bathroom. Everyone deserved privacy when they were in the bathroom, but the door had been left open a crack on accident, and it was only natural for Henry to want to peek in. What he saw made him stop though, mouth hanging open as he stared through the small opening.
Henry had never seen Kyuhyun with his shirt off, not once in the entire time he’d known him. Now that he thought back, he hadn’t really seen him in a tank top either. Kyuhyun always wore a t-shirt of some sort when he was sleeping, even when he went swimming. Kyuhyun wasn’t the only one that preferred to stay clothed though (not everyone was built like Siwon after all), so no one had ever made a fuss about it. Henry never would have imagined that Kyuhyun wore a t-shirt to hide something like this though.
Henry had passed by the bathroom just as Kyuhyun was peeling his shirt off, sweaty from a long day of rehearsals. Kyuhyun had his back to the door, and Henry had been more than surprised to see inch after inch of tattooed skin being revealed as Kyuhyun’s shirt was lifted. It wasn’t until the shirt was up and off though that Henry was able to make out what the tattoo was. Kyuhyun had a large set of feathery wings inked onto his back, starting at the very tops of his shoulders, extending all the way down his back with the tips ending a few inches below the waist of his pants, near the back of his hip bones. Whoever had done the tattoo had put quite a bit of work into it, the detailing was exquisite, so much so that as the muscles in Kyuhyun’s back shifted with each of his movements it made it seem as though the feathers were dancing in a non-existent breeze. Henry knew little of tattoos, but he knew one like that must’ve taken hours to do, and he wasn’t sure when Kyuhyun could’ve found the time to get it done, especially without anyone else knowing.
Kyuhyun rid himself of his pants and kicked them aside near the hamper, still unaware that he was being watched as he stepped into the warm spray of water coming from the shower, obscuring Henry’s view of the inked skin that had him fascinated just moments before. He wanted to look at it again, he wanted to be able to look at it up close and in person, to be able to run his fingers over the inked lines. He knew he would look like a fool though if he continued to stand at the door like that, staring at the crack in the door as he waited for Kyuhyun to finish his shower. He reluctantly pulled himself away, and was even polite enough to pull the door the rest of the way shut in hopes that Kyuhyun’s tattoo would remain his own little secret. He knew it was possible that the other members already knew about it, but he figured if they did then Kyuhyun wouldn’t feel the need to always remain covered up.
It was a full three weeks before Henry and Kyuhyun were left alone with enough time to actually sit down and talk. Super Junior M were in the middle of promotions for their latest release, but that day was one of the rare moments that they were actually given time off. Siwon had gone to church and then said he would be going to the gym afterwards, Hangeng had gone to visit his family. Zhou Mi had insisted Ryeowook go shopping with him, and Donghae… had disappeared somewhere. Henry wasn’t sure if he’d left the hotel room or if he was pretending to be a ninja and lurking somewhere in a darkened corner, but he’d learned long ago that trying to anticipate what Donghae was doing or would be doing next was absolutely impossible. Kyuhyun would have preferred to have been playing StarCraft, but he’d procrastinated so long in Korea when it came time to pack that he’d completely forgotten to pack his laptop as he rushed to get ready hours before they were scheduled to leave for the airport. Instead he was slouched on the sofa flipping through the television channels, trying to find something halfway decent to watch though he wasn’t having much luck. He’d only offered a brief glance to Henry when the younger boy dropped down to sit next to him on the sofa before turning his attention back to the television. Henry had sat on the sofa quietly through fifteen minutes of television and two sets of commercials, but his curiosity grew to be too much and he was unable to keep quiet any longer.
“So… when did you get your tattoo?”
Kyuhyun had been in the process of changing the channel yet again but stopped, hand hovering in mid air with the controller held tightly in his grasp. Slowly his head turned, eyes focusing on Henry yet again, though this time they didn’t return to the television.
“What? How do you know about it?”
Henry realized how foolish he’d been then. How else could he explain his question without admitting that he’d been spying on Kyuhyun? It just wasn’t possible.
“I… Well one day you were getting ready to take a shower and you left the door open a little… I saw… I wasn’t doing anything dirty I promise!”
“Like spying on people in the bathroom isn’t a dirty thing to do.” Kyuhyun rolled his eyes, but pressed the off button on the remote, shutting the television off before leaning to set the remote on the small coffee table. “I got it while I was recovering from the accident. I was already taking so much pain medicine it didn’t hurt that much. I actually fell asleep a few times, but that was from the medicine.”
“But… why did you get that? Angel wings, I mean.”
Kyuhyun shrugged, leaning against the back of the sofa, letting his hands rest in his lap. “Whether you believe in them or not, I saw quite a lot of angels then. They said I was just in a coma, but I wasn’t. I was… I don’t know. I wasn’t dead, but I wasn’t alive. It was some place in between. I could see myself laying on that bed, with all the tubes and equipment, but I could see so much more.” He lowered his head down, watching his fingers as he picked at a loose string in the denim of his jeans.
“I don’t remember much about the accident. I just remember seeing this bright light… it was blinding. I thought for a while it was headlights, but now I know it wasn’t. I think it was a guardian angel. I don’t remember anything after that light, I don’t remember hearing anything, I don’t remember feeling anything. It was just... nothingness. The next thing I know I’m in a hospital room looking down at myself.”
Henry had heard of out of body experiences before, but he had never thought about it long enough to decide whether or not he believed it. He would’ve thought Kyuhyun was just making it up too, if it weren’t for the wings inked onto his back. “How long were you like that? Was it like that until you woke up?”
Kyuhyun nodded, slouching himself down a bit further into the sofa. “I don’t know how long it was, honestly, I didn’t have any concept of time then. But eventually they told me it was time to go back. That it wasn’t time for me to pass on yet.”
“They?”
“The angels. I talked with them. I don’t even know how to describe it, really. It wasn’t as though we said actual words, it was more a mental thing, perhaps not even that. A feeling maybe, a feeling so intense it needs no explanation. It was so warm on the inside. A warmth in my soul. Everything was so bright it glowed. And it all just felt so… comfortable.” He bit his lip, lifting his head just enough to glance at Henry. “I love being here, with my family, my friends. I love doing what I do. But… I miss how things were then. It’s just… I don’t know how to describe it. It goes beyond words.”
“So this was your way of taking it with you then, huh?”
Kyuhyun nodded, laughing softly, relieved that Henry didn’t try to tell him he was nuts for thinking the things he did. “As odd as it sounds, it gives me comfort. Even when I was back on my feet after the accident and starting rehearsals again, when the pain was so bad I thought I couldn’t take another step, somehow it felt as though it lifted me up just enough so I could take that extra step, and then the step after that. I know they’re not real wings, I know I can’t just up and fly around here like Tinkerbell…”
Henry laughed softly at the thought, eyes squinting shut even as he reached out to poke at Kyuhyun’s arm. “You wouldn’t look bad in that little dress though! You have the figure for it!” Kyuhyun rolled his eyes even as he laughed, reaching out to give Henry’s shoulder a light shove.
“Shut up. I’d make an ugly ass Tinkerbell and you know it.”
Both boys dissolved into a fit of giggles then, taking turns shoving at each other and poking at each others ribs until the tickle fight dissolved into a pillow fight, and it didn’t stop until they were both lying exhausted on the floor, feathers scattered all around from when one of the pillows had exploded.
Nothing more had been said about the tattoo after that. Henry’s curiosity was satisfied, and he respected Kyuhyun’s wish to keep the tattoo a secret from everyone else, at least for now. It was something deeply personal, and he knew the story behind it was something not everyone would easily believe. Kyuhyun would tell them all and some point in time, whenever he was ready.
Another two weeks passed, two weeks of absolutely grueling schedules that left the boys with little time to themselves. Sleep was a luxury, and with six other men in the group decent showers were a luxury as well. Henry had been looking forward to the onset of fall in hopes that the warm weather would slip away and be replaced with cool autumn breezes, but he wasn’t having much luck. That day in particular had been so hot and humid that they had all begun to sweat the moment they had stepped out of their hotel room that morning. To top it off the air conditioner in the van used to transport them back and forth wasn’t working, and even with the windows open it was still so muggy and uncomfortable. By the end of the day they were all quite stinky, no matter how much cologne they had layered on.
Henry, being one of the youngest, knew he wouldn’t be able to shower for quite some time. It had cooled off slightly since the sun went down, so he’d chosen to wonder down to the pool area of the hotel to relax in one of the lounge chairs for a bit in hopes that the slight breeze would carry his stench away from him, rather than keep it confined to him like it would have been in the hotel room. He kicked off his shoes, leaning back in one of the chairs, tucking his hands behind his head. That only lasted for a moment though, before he realized that was carrying his underarm stink right across his nose. He frowned and sat back up, slouching over a bit to let his elbows rest on his knees. He debated on going back to the room, at least the air conditioner was still working in there while it was still slightly humid outside.
The blue water if the in ground pool caught his eyes then, lit up with underwater lights until it was glowing in the relative darkness that surrounded the area. He bit his lip then, wheels turning in his head as he pondered whether or not he should go for a swim this late at night. There was no one else around, so surely a quick dip wouldn’t hurt. He was tempted to run back up to the room to get his swim trunks, but if he did the other boys would probably see and want to come too. He could strip down right there and go swimming in his underwear, but the last thing he needed was a crazed fan snapping a picture of him like that and posting it all over the internet for everyone to see.
Perhaps the heat and humidity had fried his brain, but he decided then that his best option would just be to dive in fully clothed. He was sure Hangeng would probably scold him, but Hangeng was the leader and never had to wait to be last in line for a shower on a hot day, either. With his decision made he pushed himself up from the lounge chair, using his toes to peel off his socks (because wet clothes were one thing, wet socks were just icky), leaving them in a pile next to his shoes. He ventured to the edge of the pool then, glancing around one last time to make sure no one was about to witness his foolishness. He bent his knees, rocked forward on his toes, and with a swing of his arms he dove right in.
Despite the unseasonably warm weather, the pool water was refreshingly cool, and Henry decided then as he glided underneath the water that this was absolutely the best decision he’d ever made in his entire life. He swam as far as he could under the water before surfacing, pausing only to take another deep breath before slipping under the water again. He swam into the shallow end of the pool before surfacing again, running a hand up over his face to push hair out of his eyes. He turned himself around and slipped back beneath the water yet again, bringing his bare feet up to push against the tiled wall, propelling his body forward to glide through the water near the bottom of the pool. Even with the drag of his clothes he’d nearly reached the center of the pool before he began to slow. He kicked with his feet then, and had just started to rise ever so slightly when he found himself being yanked right down to the bottom of the pool.
Arms flailed as his feet kicked about wildly, trying to swim upwards but he didn’t even lift an inch. The suction drain in the bottom of the pool was quite powerful and had snagged onto his shirt as he passed over it. He grabbed onto his shirt with both hands, trying to wrench it away, but the material was wrapping around the metal grate as it was being sucked in, pulling tight against Henry’s body and pulling him all the more snuggly against the drain. He continued to struggle as best he could, but the harder he fought against his shirt and the drain, the more it pulled until he was being held flat on his stomach against the bottom of the pool.
He was already beginning to get dizzy, his lungs were already screaming for air, when he got the bright idea to try and slip out of his shirt. He wriggled himself about, trying to back himself out of his shirt. He would have been delighted when he managed to begin prying himself away from the material, but his brain barely had enough oxygen to function, let alone have the ability to process any other emotion other than fear.
Henry thought he was about to succeed, having managed to slip both of his arms out of the shirt, leaving only his head remaining. When both arms were freed though, it left that much more material to be sucked right into the drain, pulling the collar of the shirt tight around Henry’s neck. He’d nearly exhausted himself getting his arms free, and now the shirt was pulled so tightly around his throat that he couldn’t even slip his trembling fingers in beneath the material. He somehow managed to get himself turned around to face upwards, thinking perhaps if he let the rest of his body float upwards he’d be able to twist his neck backwards and pull his head out that way, but even that failed. He’d gone without oxygen for so long his whole body had grown weak, his feet left floating useless in the water now even though he’d been kicking about so strongly before.
He thought then that this was how he was going to die. He thought of how pathetic it was going to be to read about the death of an idol at the bottom of a hotel pool because he was too stupid to take his clothes off when he went swimming. He swore he could feel his heartbeat slow, simply because it was struggling and pounding so hard in his chest. His head was spinning, his vision blurred. Lungs felt as though they were going to explode, and it was all he could do to keep from opening his mouth and attempting to take a breath because that’s what his brain was screaming at his body to do. The brightly lit pool water around him was beginning to grow dark, but he knew it was his life that was fading, not the life of the underwater light bulbs.
Something moving above the surface of the water caught his attention, but before his oxygen-deprived brain had a chance to ponder what it was, the surface of the water was broken with a loud splash that even Henry heard over the pounding of blood in his ears. There was a body rushing towards his, hands pressing to his head to shove it right on through the collar of his shirt, snagging his nose in the process. Henry vaguely felt the drain tugging on his hair as well, but then he felt hands grabbing hold of his arms, dragging him upwards and to the surface.
He didn’t have the strength to try and help his savior swim to the steps that lead into the pool, all he had the strength to do was let his hand flop on the man’s shoulder as he gasped for breath. His lungs ached, they burned with every rush of oxygen into them, and Henry vaguely remembered thinking it almost hurt as much to breathe now as it did to go without oxygen.
His eyes were glassy but open as he was hauled out of the water and onto the cement, still slightly warm from soaking up the sun’s heat during the day. Through blurred vision he saw someone kneel over him, then he felt a gentle hand upon his cheek, slapping the wet skin ever so slightly.
“Hey… Hey. Henry. C’mon man…”
With each breath of oxygen that he managed to suck into his lungs his vision became a little clearer until he realized that it was Kyuhyun leaning over him.
“K…Kyuhyun?”
“No, you idiot. Tinkerbell.” Kyuhyun laughed, one of those that sounded slightly relieved yet still horribly nervous at the same time. He brought a hand back up to Henry’s face, letting fingers run through the Chinese man’s wet hair to brush it away from his face. “What the hell were you thinking’, man?”
“I…” Henry’s brows furrowed, realizing he didn’t really remember all that much of what happened before since his brain was still a little foggy. “I don’t know.”
“If you wanted a shower that bad, you could’ve taken my spot.”
Henry didn’t really have anything to say in response. His head was still spinning, and he wasn’t entirely convinced that his limbs were still attached as he was so weak he couldn’t really feel them.
Kyuhyun brushed a bit more hair from his face before he shifted to sit next to him. “Here I thought I was going to go sit on the balcony and enjoy the nice view… but then I saw some blob at the bottom of the pool, so I jumped in.”
“You jumped from the second floor balcony?”
“What was I suppose to do, wait for the elevator?”
That made Henry laugh for some reason, though that only resulted in causing him to cough and sputter a bit. He shifted though, lifting his head just enough to let it rest on Kyuhyun’s thigh. “You put your wings to good use then…”
Kyuhyun took to running his fingers through Henry’s hair again, lightly rubbing the back of his scalp. “Hmm?”
“Your wings…” He coughed again, lifting his eyes up to meet Kyuhyun’s. “You must be my guardian angel.”
I'm on vacation from work now, currently in Tennessee for the weekend. I'm hoping I'll be able to get some writing done while I'm on vacation.
Anyways.... onto the story. :)
Title: The Guardian
Pairing: Kyuhyun/Henry
Rating: PG
Summary: Henry discovers one of Kyuhyun's best kept secrets, and in turn Kyuhyun helps Henry when he needs it most.
Henry usually wasn’t the type to spy on his band mates, especially when they were in the bathroom. Everyone deserved privacy when they were in the bathroom, but the door had been left open a crack on accident, and it was only natural for Henry to want to peek in. What he saw made him stop though, mouth hanging open as he stared through the small opening.
Henry had never seen Kyuhyun with his shirt off, not once in the entire time he’d known him. Now that he thought back, he hadn’t really seen him in a tank top either. Kyuhyun always wore a t-shirt of some sort when he was sleeping, even when he went swimming. Kyuhyun wasn’t the only one that preferred to stay clothed though (not everyone was built like Siwon after all), so no one had ever made a fuss about it. Henry never would have imagined that Kyuhyun wore a t-shirt to hide something like this though.
Henry had passed by the bathroom just as Kyuhyun was peeling his shirt off, sweaty from a long day of rehearsals. Kyuhyun had his back to the door, and Henry had been more than surprised to see inch after inch of tattooed skin being revealed as Kyuhyun’s shirt was lifted. It wasn’t until the shirt was up and off though that Henry was able to make out what the tattoo was. Kyuhyun had a large set of feathery wings inked onto his back, starting at the very tops of his shoulders, extending all the way down his back with the tips ending a few inches below the waist of his pants, near the back of his hip bones. Whoever had done the tattoo had put quite a bit of work into it, the detailing was exquisite, so much so that as the muscles in Kyuhyun’s back shifted with each of his movements it made it seem as though the feathers were dancing in a non-existent breeze. Henry knew little of tattoos, but he knew one like that must’ve taken hours to do, and he wasn’t sure when Kyuhyun could’ve found the time to get it done, especially without anyone else knowing.
Kyuhyun rid himself of his pants and kicked them aside near the hamper, still unaware that he was being watched as he stepped into the warm spray of water coming from the shower, obscuring Henry’s view of the inked skin that had him fascinated just moments before. He wanted to look at it again, he wanted to be able to look at it up close and in person, to be able to run his fingers over the inked lines. He knew he would look like a fool though if he continued to stand at the door like that, staring at the crack in the door as he waited for Kyuhyun to finish his shower. He reluctantly pulled himself away, and was even polite enough to pull the door the rest of the way shut in hopes that Kyuhyun’s tattoo would remain his own little secret. He knew it was possible that the other members already knew about it, but he figured if they did then Kyuhyun wouldn’t feel the need to always remain covered up.
It was a full three weeks before Henry and Kyuhyun were left alone with enough time to actually sit down and talk. Super Junior M were in the middle of promotions for their latest release, but that day was one of the rare moments that they were actually given time off. Siwon had gone to church and then said he would be going to the gym afterwards, Hangeng had gone to visit his family. Zhou Mi had insisted Ryeowook go shopping with him, and Donghae… had disappeared somewhere. Henry wasn’t sure if he’d left the hotel room or if he was pretending to be a ninja and lurking somewhere in a darkened corner, but he’d learned long ago that trying to anticipate what Donghae was doing or would be doing next was absolutely impossible. Kyuhyun would have preferred to have been playing StarCraft, but he’d procrastinated so long in Korea when it came time to pack that he’d completely forgotten to pack his laptop as he rushed to get ready hours before they were scheduled to leave for the airport. Instead he was slouched on the sofa flipping through the television channels, trying to find something halfway decent to watch though he wasn’t having much luck. He’d only offered a brief glance to Henry when the younger boy dropped down to sit next to him on the sofa before turning his attention back to the television. Henry had sat on the sofa quietly through fifteen minutes of television and two sets of commercials, but his curiosity grew to be too much and he was unable to keep quiet any longer.
“So… when did you get your tattoo?”
Kyuhyun had been in the process of changing the channel yet again but stopped, hand hovering in mid air with the controller held tightly in his grasp. Slowly his head turned, eyes focusing on Henry yet again, though this time they didn’t return to the television.
“What? How do you know about it?”
Henry realized how foolish he’d been then. How else could he explain his question without admitting that he’d been spying on Kyuhyun? It just wasn’t possible.
“I… Well one day you were getting ready to take a shower and you left the door open a little… I saw… I wasn’t doing anything dirty I promise!”
“Like spying on people in the bathroom isn’t a dirty thing to do.” Kyuhyun rolled his eyes, but pressed the off button on the remote, shutting the television off before leaning to set the remote on the small coffee table. “I got it while I was recovering from the accident. I was already taking so much pain medicine it didn’t hurt that much. I actually fell asleep a few times, but that was from the medicine.”
“But… why did you get that? Angel wings, I mean.”
Kyuhyun shrugged, leaning against the back of the sofa, letting his hands rest in his lap. “Whether you believe in them or not, I saw quite a lot of angels then. They said I was just in a coma, but I wasn’t. I was… I don’t know. I wasn’t dead, but I wasn’t alive. It was some place in between. I could see myself laying on that bed, with all the tubes and equipment, but I could see so much more.” He lowered his head down, watching his fingers as he picked at a loose string in the denim of his jeans.
“I don’t remember much about the accident. I just remember seeing this bright light… it was blinding. I thought for a while it was headlights, but now I know it wasn’t. I think it was a guardian angel. I don’t remember anything after that light, I don’t remember hearing anything, I don’t remember feeling anything. It was just... nothingness. The next thing I know I’m in a hospital room looking down at myself.”
Henry had heard of out of body experiences before, but he had never thought about it long enough to decide whether or not he believed it. He would’ve thought Kyuhyun was just making it up too, if it weren’t for the wings inked onto his back. “How long were you like that? Was it like that until you woke up?”
Kyuhyun nodded, slouching himself down a bit further into the sofa. “I don’t know how long it was, honestly, I didn’t have any concept of time then. But eventually they told me it was time to go back. That it wasn’t time for me to pass on yet.”
“They?”
“The angels. I talked with them. I don’t even know how to describe it, really. It wasn’t as though we said actual words, it was more a mental thing, perhaps not even that. A feeling maybe, a feeling so intense it needs no explanation. It was so warm on the inside. A warmth in my soul. Everything was so bright it glowed. And it all just felt so… comfortable.” He bit his lip, lifting his head just enough to glance at Henry. “I love being here, with my family, my friends. I love doing what I do. But… I miss how things were then. It’s just… I don’t know how to describe it. It goes beyond words.”
“So this was your way of taking it with you then, huh?”
Kyuhyun nodded, laughing softly, relieved that Henry didn’t try to tell him he was nuts for thinking the things he did. “As odd as it sounds, it gives me comfort. Even when I was back on my feet after the accident and starting rehearsals again, when the pain was so bad I thought I couldn’t take another step, somehow it felt as though it lifted me up just enough so I could take that extra step, and then the step after that. I know they’re not real wings, I know I can’t just up and fly around here like Tinkerbell…”
Henry laughed softly at the thought, eyes squinting shut even as he reached out to poke at Kyuhyun’s arm. “You wouldn’t look bad in that little dress though! You have the figure for it!” Kyuhyun rolled his eyes even as he laughed, reaching out to give Henry’s shoulder a light shove.
“Shut up. I’d make an ugly ass Tinkerbell and you know it.”
Both boys dissolved into a fit of giggles then, taking turns shoving at each other and poking at each others ribs until the tickle fight dissolved into a pillow fight, and it didn’t stop until they were both lying exhausted on the floor, feathers scattered all around from when one of the pillows had exploded.
Nothing more had been said about the tattoo after that. Henry’s curiosity was satisfied, and he respected Kyuhyun’s wish to keep the tattoo a secret from everyone else, at least for now. It was something deeply personal, and he knew the story behind it was something not everyone would easily believe. Kyuhyun would tell them all and some point in time, whenever he was ready.
Another two weeks passed, two weeks of absolutely grueling schedules that left the boys with little time to themselves. Sleep was a luxury, and with six other men in the group decent showers were a luxury as well. Henry had been looking forward to the onset of fall in hopes that the warm weather would slip away and be replaced with cool autumn breezes, but he wasn’t having much luck. That day in particular had been so hot and humid that they had all begun to sweat the moment they had stepped out of their hotel room that morning. To top it off the air conditioner in the van used to transport them back and forth wasn’t working, and even with the windows open it was still so muggy and uncomfortable. By the end of the day they were all quite stinky, no matter how much cologne they had layered on.
Henry, being one of the youngest, knew he wouldn’t be able to shower for quite some time. It had cooled off slightly since the sun went down, so he’d chosen to wonder down to the pool area of the hotel to relax in one of the lounge chairs for a bit in hopes that the slight breeze would carry his stench away from him, rather than keep it confined to him like it would have been in the hotel room. He kicked off his shoes, leaning back in one of the chairs, tucking his hands behind his head. That only lasted for a moment though, before he realized that was carrying his underarm stink right across his nose. He frowned and sat back up, slouching over a bit to let his elbows rest on his knees. He debated on going back to the room, at least the air conditioner was still working in there while it was still slightly humid outside.
The blue water if the in ground pool caught his eyes then, lit up with underwater lights until it was glowing in the relative darkness that surrounded the area. He bit his lip then, wheels turning in his head as he pondered whether or not he should go for a swim this late at night. There was no one else around, so surely a quick dip wouldn’t hurt. He was tempted to run back up to the room to get his swim trunks, but if he did the other boys would probably see and want to come too. He could strip down right there and go swimming in his underwear, but the last thing he needed was a crazed fan snapping a picture of him like that and posting it all over the internet for everyone to see.
Perhaps the heat and humidity had fried his brain, but he decided then that his best option would just be to dive in fully clothed. He was sure Hangeng would probably scold him, but Hangeng was the leader and never had to wait to be last in line for a shower on a hot day, either. With his decision made he pushed himself up from the lounge chair, using his toes to peel off his socks (because wet clothes were one thing, wet socks were just icky), leaving them in a pile next to his shoes. He ventured to the edge of the pool then, glancing around one last time to make sure no one was about to witness his foolishness. He bent his knees, rocked forward on his toes, and with a swing of his arms he dove right in.
Despite the unseasonably warm weather, the pool water was refreshingly cool, and Henry decided then as he glided underneath the water that this was absolutely the best decision he’d ever made in his entire life. He swam as far as he could under the water before surfacing, pausing only to take another deep breath before slipping under the water again. He swam into the shallow end of the pool before surfacing again, running a hand up over his face to push hair out of his eyes. He turned himself around and slipped back beneath the water yet again, bringing his bare feet up to push against the tiled wall, propelling his body forward to glide through the water near the bottom of the pool. Even with the drag of his clothes he’d nearly reached the center of the pool before he began to slow. He kicked with his feet then, and had just started to rise ever so slightly when he found himself being yanked right down to the bottom of the pool.
Arms flailed as his feet kicked about wildly, trying to swim upwards but he didn’t even lift an inch. The suction drain in the bottom of the pool was quite powerful and had snagged onto his shirt as he passed over it. He grabbed onto his shirt with both hands, trying to wrench it away, but the material was wrapping around the metal grate as it was being sucked in, pulling tight against Henry’s body and pulling him all the more snuggly against the drain. He continued to struggle as best he could, but the harder he fought against his shirt and the drain, the more it pulled until he was being held flat on his stomach against the bottom of the pool.
He was already beginning to get dizzy, his lungs were already screaming for air, when he got the bright idea to try and slip out of his shirt. He wriggled himself about, trying to back himself out of his shirt. He would have been delighted when he managed to begin prying himself away from the material, but his brain barely had enough oxygen to function, let alone have the ability to process any other emotion other than fear.
Henry thought he was about to succeed, having managed to slip both of his arms out of the shirt, leaving only his head remaining. When both arms were freed though, it left that much more material to be sucked right into the drain, pulling the collar of the shirt tight around Henry’s neck. He’d nearly exhausted himself getting his arms free, and now the shirt was pulled so tightly around his throat that he couldn’t even slip his trembling fingers in beneath the material. He somehow managed to get himself turned around to face upwards, thinking perhaps if he let the rest of his body float upwards he’d be able to twist his neck backwards and pull his head out that way, but even that failed. He’d gone without oxygen for so long his whole body had grown weak, his feet left floating useless in the water now even though he’d been kicking about so strongly before.
He thought then that this was how he was going to die. He thought of how pathetic it was going to be to read about the death of an idol at the bottom of a hotel pool because he was too stupid to take his clothes off when he went swimming. He swore he could feel his heartbeat slow, simply because it was struggling and pounding so hard in his chest. His head was spinning, his vision blurred. Lungs felt as though they were going to explode, and it was all he could do to keep from opening his mouth and attempting to take a breath because that’s what his brain was screaming at his body to do. The brightly lit pool water around him was beginning to grow dark, but he knew it was his life that was fading, not the life of the underwater light bulbs.
Something moving above the surface of the water caught his attention, but before his oxygen-deprived brain had a chance to ponder what it was, the surface of the water was broken with a loud splash that even Henry heard over the pounding of blood in his ears. There was a body rushing towards his, hands pressing to his head to shove it right on through the collar of his shirt, snagging his nose in the process. Henry vaguely felt the drain tugging on his hair as well, but then he felt hands grabbing hold of his arms, dragging him upwards and to the surface.
He didn’t have the strength to try and help his savior swim to the steps that lead into the pool, all he had the strength to do was let his hand flop on the man’s shoulder as he gasped for breath. His lungs ached, they burned with every rush of oxygen into them, and Henry vaguely remembered thinking it almost hurt as much to breathe now as it did to go without oxygen.
His eyes were glassy but open as he was hauled out of the water and onto the cement, still slightly warm from soaking up the sun’s heat during the day. Through blurred vision he saw someone kneel over him, then he felt a gentle hand upon his cheek, slapping the wet skin ever so slightly.
“Hey… Hey. Henry. C’mon man…”
With each breath of oxygen that he managed to suck into his lungs his vision became a little clearer until he realized that it was Kyuhyun leaning over him.
“K…Kyuhyun?”
“No, you idiot. Tinkerbell.” Kyuhyun laughed, one of those that sounded slightly relieved yet still horribly nervous at the same time. He brought a hand back up to Henry’s face, letting fingers run through the Chinese man’s wet hair to brush it away from his face. “What the hell were you thinking’, man?”
“I…” Henry’s brows furrowed, realizing he didn’t really remember all that much of what happened before since his brain was still a little foggy. “I don’t know.”
“If you wanted a shower that bad, you could’ve taken my spot.”
Henry didn’t really have anything to say in response. His head was still spinning, and he wasn’t entirely convinced that his limbs were still attached as he was so weak he couldn’t really feel them.
Kyuhyun brushed a bit more hair from his face before he shifted to sit next to him. “Here I thought I was going to go sit on the balcony and enjoy the nice view… but then I saw some blob at the bottom of the pool, so I jumped in.”
“You jumped from the second floor balcony?”
“What was I suppose to do, wait for the elevator?”
That made Henry laugh for some reason, though that only resulted in causing him to cough and sputter a bit. He shifted though, lifting his head just enough to let it rest on Kyuhyun’s thigh. “You put your wings to good use then…”
Kyuhyun took to running his fingers through Henry’s hair again, lightly rubbing the back of his scalp. “Hmm?”
“Your wings…” He coughed again, lifting his eyes up to meet Kyuhyun’s. “You must be my guardian angel.”