Fic: Family Arc II - 21
Title: Family Arc II - 21
Author: vic_sim
Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the plot. I apologise for any incorrect portrayal of people or any inaccurate details mentioned in my story.
Pairing: None at the moment.
Category: Angst + fluff
Rating: NC-16 (just to be safe)
Summary: The dinner with all of them.
Arc I Arc II
Hankyung looked at Kyuhyun. He had a shy look on his face, as if it was embarrassing to ask such a question. Yet Hankyung was able to spot a bit of anticipation in his eyes. Kangin was a little reluctant to allow Kyuhyun to have dinner with the rest as he knew how tiring it could be with so many people. He didn’t want Kyuhyun to tire himself when he was still recovering from his illness.
"Are you sure you want to have dinner together? Do you feel well enough?" Kangin asked, not wanting Kyuhyun to strain himself unnecessarily.
Kyuhyun nodded. He really wanted to have dinner with his hyungs. It had been a long time since he had dinner with anyone at all. He was tired of sitting at the table facing the food and having no one to share with, of feeling lonely as he stared at the food. It didn’t matter to him that he was still not at his best, didn’t matter that he might be really exhausted after the dinner. All that mattered was being together with his hyungs again.
Kangin looked at the longing in Kyuhyun's eyes, and caved in. "Alright, but you'll have to rest first."
Kyuhyun smiled at them and nodded. Hankyung and Kangin felt their faces imitating Kyuhyun's, both glad to see a trace of happiness on their youngest magnae after all the stress in the past few days.
"Kyu, remember what I said to you that day at the hospital?"
Kyuhyun tilted his head at Hankyung. What words?
"That I'll cook whatever you want?" Hankyung reminded Kyuhyun.
Kyuhyun actually did not forget those words. They were just floating around somewhere in his head because he didn’t really think that Hankyung meant it when he said that.
"Anything I want?"
"Anything." Hankyung replied.
Kyuhyun thought about it and listed out several dishes. "Fried rice, kimchi pancake, sushi, mushroom soup."
Hankyung nodded at the suggestions, they were relatively simple to make.
"Hyung, can I have chocolate cake for dessert?" Kyuhyun added softly. "It's okay if it's too troublesome. I can do away without it. Rea…"
"Nothing is too troublesome for you. Hannie will make it all for you." Kangin cut in, stopping Kyuhyun from going on about how they really did not have to listen to his requests.
Hankyung punched Kangin slightly on the shoulder. "That's easy for you to say. You're not the one cooking."
"Ow! Hyung!"
Kangin's exclamation was ignored as Hankyung turned to Kyuhyun.
"But really, what Kangin said is true. I'll make them all for you tonight."
"Then why did you hit me?" Kangin mumbled under his breath, rubbing his shoulder.
Hankyung pretended that Kangin didn’t say a word.
"Thank you Hyung." Kyuhyun thanked Hankyung, bowing his head.
"There's no need to thank me. I'm doing this willingly for you." Hankyung ruffled Kyuhyun's hair. "Now, what did you promise Kangin-Appa?"
Kyuhyun looked at Kangin, trying to spot some reaction from Kangin with regards to Hankyung calling him Appa. Kangin just smiled at him and walked up to him to help him lie back down on the bed. Kangin felt Kyuhyun still trembling a little when he touched him, but Kyuhyun no longer shied away from his contact. Kangin mentally sighed, wondering how long it would take for them to repair the broken bridge between them. As Kyuhyun lied on the bed, Hankyung pulled the blanket over him, whispering a "Sweet dreams" into Kyuhyun's ears. Kyuhyun nodded.
"Kangin, stay here with Kyuhyunnie. I'll go and prepare for dinner." Hankyung instructed. Kangin was about to take a seat when Kyuhyun spoke up.
"Kangin-hyung, there's no need to stay here with me. I'll be okay. You should go help Hankyung-hyung with the preparation. Don't worry about me. I'm jus going to be sleeping here."
Kangin looked at Kyuhyun then at Hankyung. There was truth in Kyuhyun's words. If left to Hankyung by himself, Kangin doubted that Hankyung would be done in time for dinner. Or before they come back. Kangin thought of those members who would cause a disaster in the kitchen, being over-enthusiastic about helping. Apparently Hankyung felt the same way and accepted Kyuhyun's request.
"Okay, Kangin can help me. Just remember if you need anything, anything at all just call out for us. I'll leave the door open so that we will be able to hear you."
Kangin stood up and walked out of the room with Hankyung.
As they were out of Kyuhyun's hearing, Kangin stopped back facing Hankyung. Hankyung nearly crashed into him. He was about to ask why Kangin stopped suddenly when Kangin spoke up.
"Hyung, do you think we'll be the same again? Do you think me and Kyuhyun will have the same relationship anymore?" Kangin asked, his insecurities hitting Hankyung hard.
Hankyung knew then that Kangin was vulnerable as well. He took one step forward, hugging Kangin from the back.
"Things will not be the same anymore. We've been through too much for things to return to before. You and Kyuhyun will definitely not have the same relationship anymore."
Kangin's tears began to flow.
"It will not be the same because this incident will change you, change him, and change all of us. At the start, it may be awkward between you two, but don't give up. Give him some time. Give yourself some time to come to grips with what happened. Slowly, you'll rebuild your relationship with a stronger foundation, and you will be closer than before, because you know simply just how vulnerable relationships are, just how easily they can be broken simply through a dream or someone's words. Because we know that despite how mature, how strong Kyuhyun may portray himself to be - even if he really is independent and strong, he is a child who grew up too fast in a treacherous world."
Hankyung voiced out the words that he had been saying over and over again to himself when they faced setbacks after setbacks with Kyuhyun, when everything seemed bleak and the future unknown. Kangin nodded, his hyung's words bringing hope to his heart. His tears turned from tears of sadness and despair to tears of hope and determination. He would take things step by step, slowly showing Kyuhyun that there was nothing to be scared of, that none of them would ever leave him. They stood there for a while, letting out the rollercoaster of emotions they had felt in that day.
"Alright, let's get down to preparing the best dinner for Kyuhyun!" Kangin pulled out of the hug, wiping the tears off his face.
Hankyung nodded and both headed for the kitchen, intent on created the best dinner for Kyuhyun.
Kyuhyun waited till his hyungs were out of his sight before letting the pain appear on his face. His back had been hurting a little from sitting in one position for too long, but he didn’t want to let his hyungs know about it as they were already worried enough about his illness. Lying down on the bed, Kyuhyun tried to stretch a little to loosen the muscles in his back so that they were not so tight. He moaned softly as the muscles stretched. The pain was not intense, it was more of a pain that was constantly there even when not moving, and hurt when moved. Kyuhyun lied on the bed, waiting for the pain to subside a little so that he could sleep. He did want to keep his promise to his hyungs and did not want to let his pain ruin his plans of having dinner with his hyungs. Kyuhyun shut his eyes, almost willing the pain to disappear. Don't think about it. Kyuhyun told himself. Think about the dinner that you will be having. Think about how long you've been waiting for it. Kyuhyun tried to focus his thoughts on the impending dinner and it seemed to work. Slowly, but surely, the pain lessened until a manageable level. Kyuhyun began to fall asleep. I can’t wait for dinner.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kangin gave all the members a text message asking them to come back early for dinner. He didn’t say why, so the members were all puzzled as they read the message. Is there any occasion that we're celebrating? Was the thought that ran through most of their minds. Nonetheless, everyone tried their best to get home as early as possible. Time flew by as Hankyung and Kangin prepared the food. Or rather, Hankyung was cooking while Kangin was just in charge of occasionally cutting the ingredients but mostly, he was in charge of setting up the table. They had decided to have dinner in the living room so that Kyuhyun could be seated at the sofa which would not be too strenuous on his back. One by one the members came home.
"We're back!" Sungmin and Eunhyuk shouted as they entered the dorm, announcing their presence to everyone. Kangin turned around from his position at the sofa.
"Shhh! Not so loud. Kyuhyun is resting."
The two immediately covered their mouths with their hands and tiptoed into the dorm. Eeteuk and Siwon who followed after them could only shake their heads at the two.
"Why did you ask us to come back early?" Eeteuk asked Kangin.
"Kyuhyun wants to have dinner with all of us."
Four of them stopped in their motions.
"Kyuhyun. Dinner. All of us." Kangin spoke word by word.
Then it clicked in their minds. Sungmin let out a squeal pulling Siwon into a hug before bouncing over to Eunhyuk to do the same thing. Eeteuk felt the pricks of tears coming.
"Hyung, you're supposed to be happy. Not crying." Kangin said, knowing what was going to come.
"I'm not crying. Who said I was?" Eeteuk retorted, tuning away from them, his hand rising suspiciously to his face to wipe the tears from his eyes. Kangin shook his head knowingly.
Then the four all went to put their things down first before going to help out with the preparation.
"Hannie, do you need help?" Eeteuk asked as he walked into the kitchen.
Hankyung froze. He could still remember what happened the previous time when Eeteuk helped him.
"Er, why not you go wake Kyuhyun and help him to the shower, Hyung?" Hankyung attempted to divert Eeteuk's attention. No, not divert. Just getting him to do something that he is better at.
Eeteuk thought about it for a while and nodded, pulling Sungmin with him. Eeteuk didn’t think that leaving two troublemakers with Hankyung would be a good thing. Hankyung gave a mental sigh of relief before instructing Eunhyuk and Siwon what to do.
Eeteuk and Sungmin walked quietly into Kyuhyun's room. Kyuhyun was sleeping soundly in bed, with the blanket covering half his face. Eeteuk touched his forehead, happy to know that the fever had completely subsided. He looked so peaceful that Eeteuk almost didn’t have the heart to wake him.
"Kyuhyunnie." Sungmin shook Kyuhyun gently.
Kyuhyun's eyes opened slowly. Normally Kyuhyun would have jerked awake, being a light sleeper, but his body just needed to rest too much that he slept soundly. Kyuhyun blinked a few times.
"Min-hyung? Eeteuk-hyung?"
Sungmin nodded.
"It's time to wake up. You want to have dinner right?" Eeteuk asked from his side.
Sleep disappeared immediately from Kyuhyun's eyes as they lit up at the thought of dinner. Kyuhyun nodded, pushing himself up. Sungmin helped him up, knowing that he should not be straining himself yet.
Eeteuk laughed softly at the enthusiasm Kyuhyun was showing, knowing how Kyuhyun felt. It was exactly what he felt when he was discharged to finally be able to have dinner together as one family. It was surprising that the things one missed were all the little things that everyone took for granted. It is only when you no longer experience it that you realise how important those little things were.
But Eeteuk didn’t know that Kyuhyun had never treated having dinner with them as something trivial. Instead he always treasured all the dinners they had together because he never had memories of those before he stayed with them.
"Do you want to bathe?" Eeteuk asked Kyuhyun.
Kyuhyun looked up at Eeteuk. "Yes, Hyung."
Kyuhyun felt a little dirty having not showered for the past few days when he was too sick to do so. Instead he only changed his clothes and had sponge baths.
"Sungmin, would you help Kyuhyun to the bathroom while I grab his clothes?" Sungmin nodded, helping Kyuhyun up to walk to the bathroom.
Kyuhyun had trouble keeping his balance after staying in bed for so long. Sungmin waited for Kyuhyun to stabilise before proceeding. Kyuhyun walked slowly, holding on tightly to Sungmin's arm. Kyuhyun did his best to keep the pain off his face, even if his grip gave it up to Sungmin. It was as if he had deteriorated to the point when he had just started the physiotherapy when he had just progressed from balancing to walking. None of the two spoke as they made their way to the bathroom. Eeteuk handed the clothes to Kyuhyun.
"If you're inside for more than 20 minutes we'll bang the door down."
"Hyung!"
"I'm serious."
Kyuhyun looked at Eeteuk's face and nodded. Sungmin walked out of the bathroom as Kyuhyun made to close the door.
"Remember, 20 minutes." Eeteuk said again as the door closed on him.
Kyuhyun sighed as he heard Eeteuk. He quickly stripped and stepped under the shower, wanting to make full use of the 20 minutes to shower.
As he stood under the hot shower, letting the hot water beat on his back, soothing the sore muscles, Kyuhyun closed his eyes. When he was walking to the bathroom, he had a sudden fear that all the progress that he had made in physiotherapy were all for naught. He seemed to be back to one and a half months ago when he had just learned how to walk. Kyuhyun didn’t want that to happen. He wanted to be back with Super Junior as soon as possible. Okay. Don't fret over it now. You'll know when you return to physiotherapy in two days. Don't fret over it right now. Tonight you're going to enjoy the time with your hyungs. Kyuhyun reasoned with himself.
He quickly washed himself though careful not to get his injured hand wet and turned off the water. He hung on to the wall as he made his way out of the shower cubicle not wanting to fall. As he dried his body, Kyuhyun looked into the mirror. It was the first time he was standing in front of his reflection since the day he punched it. The shadow under his eyes had lessened. He no longer looked so pale and tired. He reached out a hand to touch his reflection in the mirror. My hyungs did not leave me. Jong-hyung did not leave me. They are still here. There was no urge to punch the mirror today. Instead Kyuhyun smiled at himself in the mirror. I'm glad to be here.
"Kyuhyun, you have one minute more!" Eeteuk's shout came through the door.
Kyuhyun quickly grabbed his clothes and put them on. He had no doubt that Eeteuk would break into the bathroom. He didn’t want to appear naked in front of Eeteuk and Sungmin, or anyone for that matter. Kyuhyun draped the towel around his neck and opened the door. Eeteuk's fist stopped just in front of his face.
"Ah, you're out. I was about to knock again." Eeteuk said, lowering his hand.
He looked at Kyuhyun, stepping closer to arrange his clothes neatly. Sungmin was laughing behind him, knowing that Kyuhyun had haphazardly put on his clothes to prevent Eeteuk from banging down the door. Kyuhyun blushed at the state of his clothes. Eeteuk then pulled his towel over his head and proceeded to dry his hair.
"Hyung, I can do that myself." Kyuhyun weakly protested while still lowering his head for Eeteuk.
Eeteuk merely 'hmmmed' as he continued.
"Sungmin-ah, can you grab a brush?" Eeteuk turned to Sungmin, who quickly stifled his laughter and nodded.
Eeteuk took the towel off Kyuhyun's head after making sure that Kyuhyun's hair was relatively dry. He didn’t want Kyuhyun to worsen his illness due to a wet head. He threw the towel into the basket in the bathroom just as Sungmin came back. Sungmin stood on his toes in front of Kyuhyun, brushing through his hair. Kyuhyun thought about saying that he could do that just fine by himself, but he couldn’t deny that it felt really wonderful to have his hyungs take care of him.
"There. All good." Sungmin exclaimed as he stood back to admire his work.
Eeteuk nodded next to him. Kyuhyun had no idea what Sungmin did to his hair, but it must not have been something awful since Eeteuk-hyung had agreed as well.
"Thank you, Eeteuk-hyung, Min-hyung."
Sungmin flashed a brilliant smile at Kyuhyun while Eeteuk just shook his head.
"It was nothing. No need to thank us."
He held Kyuhyun by the arm and guided him to the wall along the corridor for Kyuhyun to hold onto it.
"Let's head to the living room. I hear dinner calling for us." Kyuhyun nodded and prepared himself for the journey to the living room. I just hope that I don't fall on the way there.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As Kyuhyun settled onto the sofa, the rest of the members came home. Shindong, Heechul, Donghae, Yesung, Kibum and Ryeowook walked in one by one. As Donghae walked past the sofa, he noticed something.
"Kyu!"
His word caught the attention of the rest.
Kyuhyun waved shyly from his position at the sofa. He was made to stay put as Eeteuk and Sungmin went to help out in the kitchen. So he had spent the time staring at the door, waiting for the rest of his hyungs come back. He knew straight away that his hyungs were back when he heard the key inserted into the doorknob. Kyuhyun sat up straighter. When Donghae noticed him, Kyuhyun managed to wave to them. They all rushed and crowded around him.
"Are you feeling better?"
"Why are you alone in the living room?"
They bombarded him with questions, though each of them was really happy to see Kyuhyun sitting up in the living room, instead of being stuck in his room.
"No crowding around Kyuhyunnie!"
Eeteuk came out of the kitchen carrying a huge bowl of fried rice. "Go put your bags, wash your hands and come and have dinner."
They nodded to Eeteuk, resigned to not get any answer from Kyuhyun at the moment. Eeteuk watched as they walked off before placing the bowl onto the table.
"Stay seated Kyu. You're not allowed to help." Eeteuk spoke without looking up, having guessed what Kyuhyun would attempt to do.
Kyuhyun was about to stand but sat down when he heard Eeteuk. Eeteuk took a seat next to Kyuhyun and waited for the rest to come out. Siwon, Eunhyuk, Sungmin, Kangin and Hankyung carried the rest of the food out. The utensils were already set out on the table. The rest came back to the living room to see a spread of food on the table.
"Fried rice!" That came from Yesung.
"Kimchi pancake. Wow!" Ryeowook exclaimed.
"Sushi!" Donghae clapped his hands.
"Oh Kyungie, you know me so well. You cooked mushroom soup." Heechul reached out for the soup straight away.
Hankyung and Kangin stared at each other. So all the food he asked for were not for him? They turned to Kyuhyun, who was not paying attention to them. Instead Kyuhyun was smiling to himself observing the happy expressions on his hyungs' faces. The two shook their heads. It was so like Kyuhyun to do something like that.
They all settled down around the table with Eeteuk and Kibum claiming the space beside Kyuhyun, Heechul on the other sofa with Siwon, Hankyung next to Kibum, Kangin next to Eeteuk, Ryeowook, Yesung, Donghae, Sungmin, Shindong and Eunhyuk on the floor.
"What's the occasion Hyung?" Kibum asked Hankyung.
"To celebrate that Kyuhyun is back."
Kyuhyun looked at Hankyung shocked as if he didn’t expect that. Kibum nodded, accepting the reason. Eeteuk picked up his glass of water and passed another to Kyuhyun. He raised it.
"To Kyuhyun."
"To Kyuhyun."
The rest all raised their glasses. Kyuhyun looked around at all of them, blushing. Kibum nudged Kyuhyun gently, telling him to raise his glass as well. When all their glasses were up, they shouted with the exception of Kyuhyun.
"To Kyuhyun!" They drank the water and quickly began to eat. Kyuhyun was still blushing from the attention - though he was sincerely touched by his hyungs - when Kibum placed a plate of food in his hands.
"Don’t just look. Eat."
Kyuhyun nodded and brought the spoon to his mouth.
"Wait!" Ryeowook suddenly said, standing up and dashing off to the kitchen. Huh?
As Ryeowook came back again, Kibum stood up as well walking to Ryeowook.
"Before we continue, Hyung, we have a little something for you all." Kibum said causing all of them to lean forward in anticipation.
"Since we are all going to take care of Kyu, we should all eat the vitamins every day."
Ryeowook flashed the bottle of vitamins at all of them.
"What?" Donghae, Sungmin and Eunhyuk shouted.
"That's unfair!" Kibum shook his head.
"It's not unfair. We should all eat. If not we might fall sick then we won't be able to take care of Kyu."
"That's true. Okay everyone. All of you have to eat vitamins from now on. We don’t want anyone getting sick."
Eeteuk agreed to his dongsaengs' logic. Everyone groaned when Eeteuk agreed. Now they had no way of getting out of the situation. Grudgingly accepting the pills from Kibum and Ryeowook who were happily giving them out, they all swallowed the medicine. Kyuhyun laughed softly behind his hands at all the faces his hyungs made while swallowing the pills. When they noticed that Kyuhyun was laughing, they began to exaggerate their motions and expressions. It had been a long time since Kyuhyun had laughed so free. The members all smiled at each other and at Kyuhyun. Kibum and Ryeowook exchanged a small high-five behind them glad to have exacted their revenge and in the meantime made Kyuhyun happy.
As dinner progressed, they all started to discuss the various things that occurred. Kyuhyun simply sat there, slowly clearing his plate of food, watching his hyungs interact with each other. He didn’t say anything, just like a silent observer sitting there.
Hankyung looked at Kyuhyun when he noticed that Kyuhyun had not said a single word the whole night. He noticed the contented look, the slight smile, the way Kyuhyun looked lovingly at the scene. Hankyung decided not to say anything, allowing Kyuhyun to bask in the presence of his hyungs.
When the food was almost finished, Hankyung stood up, excusing himself to the kitchen. He came out with a chocolate cake that looked exactly like one that came from the cake shops or even better. Kangin cleared a space on the table for Hankyung to put the cake. On top of the cake there was a message. 'Welcome back, Kyuhyun!'
Hankyung handed a plastic knife to Kyuhyun.
"Make a wish and cut your cake Kyu."
Kyuhyun looked at his hyungs receiving nods from all of them. He had not expected such a cake when he had asked Hankyung to make it for him. He held the knife with two hands about the cake. He made the wish in his heart.
I wish that we will be one family.
He pushed the knife into the cake, catching a flash just in time as Donghae took a picture. All of them clapped and cheered, happy that Kyuhyun was back.
"Let's take a picture! Everyone try and squeeze!" Donghae said as he arranged the camera properly. "Okay. Ready?" Donghae did not wait for a reply as he pressed the timer.
Donghae dashed over and found himself a spot before the timer went off.
"Can we eat the cake hyung?" Shindong asked as they settled back down. Hankyung nodded and proceeded to slice the cake. When each of them had a piece they began eating. Kyuhyun ate about half his slice before placing the plate on his lap. He had already been leaning on the sofa as everyone talked around him. He was contented to just listen to them. As he let the voices washed over his head, Kyuhyun felt himself drifting off to sleep, his hand losing the grip on the plate which sat on his lap.
"Kyuhyunnie! Do you…"
Sungmin looked up at Kyuhyun as he spoke when he noticed that Kyuhyun was asleep. The rest were puzzled as to why Sungmin stopped midway of his question. They all followed his gaze. Kyuhyun was sleeping with a contented look on his face. They smiled.
"Alright, it's time to clear up. Siwon-ah, carry Kyuhyun to his bed late with Kibummie. The rest go clean up." Eeteuk instructed.
Kibum nodded, removing the plate from Kyuhyun's lap. Siwon stood up and walked towards Kyuhyun. He carried Kyuhyun on his back and walked to Kyuhyun's room with Kibum.
Eeteuk sat by his seat at the sofa watching Siwon carry Kyuhyun and watching as the rest cleaned up with happy looks on their faces even if they didn’t like to clean at all. He let a smile grace his lips.
Things will be better.
"Teukie! Why are you sitting? You should be clearing as well!"
Eeteuk nodded at Heechul and joined in.
Life will be better.
hope u enjoy the chapter! sorry didnt post yesterday cos was not in the mood to do anything except lie on my bed.=P
i was arguing with my sis just now about how to spell 'pajama'. she insisted that there was a 'y' in the word. then i was like it seemed correct to me. but she kept saying there was a 'y'. so we checked it n realise that both was correct. 'pajama' was american english. while 'pyjama' was british english, which we learn in singapore. so it turned out to be a stupid n meaningless argument.-____-
Author: vic_sim
Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the plot. I apologise for any incorrect portrayal of people or any inaccurate details mentioned in my story.
Pairing: None at the moment.
Category: Angst + fluff
Rating: NC-16 (just to be safe)
Summary: The dinner with all of them.
Arc I Arc II
Hankyung looked at Kyuhyun. He had a shy look on his face, as if it was embarrassing to ask such a question. Yet Hankyung was able to spot a bit of anticipation in his eyes. Kangin was a little reluctant to allow Kyuhyun to have dinner with the rest as he knew how tiring it could be with so many people. He didn’t want Kyuhyun to tire himself when he was still recovering from his illness.
"Are you sure you want to have dinner together? Do you feel well enough?" Kangin asked, not wanting Kyuhyun to strain himself unnecessarily.
Kyuhyun nodded. He really wanted to have dinner with his hyungs. It had been a long time since he had dinner with anyone at all. He was tired of sitting at the table facing the food and having no one to share with, of feeling lonely as he stared at the food. It didn’t matter to him that he was still not at his best, didn’t matter that he might be really exhausted after the dinner. All that mattered was being together with his hyungs again.
Kangin looked at the longing in Kyuhyun's eyes, and caved in. "Alright, but you'll have to rest first."
Kyuhyun smiled at them and nodded. Hankyung and Kangin felt their faces imitating Kyuhyun's, both glad to see a trace of happiness on their youngest magnae after all the stress in the past few days.
"Kyu, remember what I said to you that day at the hospital?"
Kyuhyun tilted his head at Hankyung. What words?
"That I'll cook whatever you want?" Hankyung reminded Kyuhyun.
Kyuhyun actually did not forget those words. They were just floating around somewhere in his head because he didn’t really think that Hankyung meant it when he said that.
"Anything I want?"
"Anything." Hankyung replied.
Kyuhyun thought about it and listed out several dishes. "Fried rice, kimchi pancake, sushi, mushroom soup."
Hankyung nodded at the suggestions, they were relatively simple to make.
"Hyung, can I have chocolate cake for dessert?" Kyuhyun added softly. "It's okay if it's too troublesome. I can do away without it. Rea…"
"Nothing is too troublesome for you. Hannie will make it all for you." Kangin cut in, stopping Kyuhyun from going on about how they really did not have to listen to his requests.
Hankyung punched Kangin slightly on the shoulder. "That's easy for you to say. You're not the one cooking."
"Ow! Hyung!"
Kangin's exclamation was ignored as Hankyung turned to Kyuhyun.
"But really, what Kangin said is true. I'll make them all for you tonight."
"Then why did you hit me?" Kangin mumbled under his breath, rubbing his shoulder.
Hankyung pretended that Kangin didn’t say a word.
"Thank you Hyung." Kyuhyun thanked Hankyung, bowing his head.
"There's no need to thank me. I'm doing this willingly for you." Hankyung ruffled Kyuhyun's hair. "Now, what did you promise Kangin-Appa?"
Kyuhyun looked at Kangin, trying to spot some reaction from Kangin with regards to Hankyung calling him Appa. Kangin just smiled at him and walked up to him to help him lie back down on the bed. Kangin felt Kyuhyun still trembling a little when he touched him, but Kyuhyun no longer shied away from his contact. Kangin mentally sighed, wondering how long it would take for them to repair the broken bridge between them. As Kyuhyun lied on the bed, Hankyung pulled the blanket over him, whispering a "Sweet dreams" into Kyuhyun's ears. Kyuhyun nodded.
"Kangin, stay here with Kyuhyunnie. I'll go and prepare for dinner." Hankyung instructed. Kangin was about to take a seat when Kyuhyun spoke up.
"Kangin-hyung, there's no need to stay here with me. I'll be okay. You should go help Hankyung-hyung with the preparation. Don't worry about me. I'm jus going to be sleeping here."
Kangin looked at Kyuhyun then at Hankyung. There was truth in Kyuhyun's words. If left to Hankyung by himself, Kangin doubted that Hankyung would be done in time for dinner. Or before they come back. Kangin thought of those members who would cause a disaster in the kitchen, being over-enthusiastic about helping. Apparently Hankyung felt the same way and accepted Kyuhyun's request.
"Okay, Kangin can help me. Just remember if you need anything, anything at all just call out for us. I'll leave the door open so that we will be able to hear you."
Kangin stood up and walked out of the room with Hankyung.
As they were out of Kyuhyun's hearing, Kangin stopped back facing Hankyung. Hankyung nearly crashed into him. He was about to ask why Kangin stopped suddenly when Kangin spoke up.
"Hyung, do you think we'll be the same again? Do you think me and Kyuhyun will have the same relationship anymore?" Kangin asked, his insecurities hitting Hankyung hard.
Hankyung knew then that Kangin was vulnerable as well. He took one step forward, hugging Kangin from the back.
"Things will not be the same anymore. We've been through too much for things to return to before. You and Kyuhyun will definitely not have the same relationship anymore."
Kangin's tears began to flow.
"It will not be the same because this incident will change you, change him, and change all of us. At the start, it may be awkward between you two, but don't give up. Give him some time. Give yourself some time to come to grips with what happened. Slowly, you'll rebuild your relationship with a stronger foundation, and you will be closer than before, because you know simply just how vulnerable relationships are, just how easily they can be broken simply through a dream or someone's words. Because we know that despite how mature, how strong Kyuhyun may portray himself to be - even if he really is independent and strong, he is a child who grew up too fast in a treacherous world."
Hankyung voiced out the words that he had been saying over and over again to himself when they faced setbacks after setbacks with Kyuhyun, when everything seemed bleak and the future unknown. Kangin nodded, his hyung's words bringing hope to his heart. His tears turned from tears of sadness and despair to tears of hope and determination. He would take things step by step, slowly showing Kyuhyun that there was nothing to be scared of, that none of them would ever leave him. They stood there for a while, letting out the rollercoaster of emotions they had felt in that day.
"Alright, let's get down to preparing the best dinner for Kyuhyun!" Kangin pulled out of the hug, wiping the tears off his face.
Hankyung nodded and both headed for the kitchen, intent on created the best dinner for Kyuhyun.
Kyuhyun waited till his hyungs were out of his sight before letting the pain appear on his face. His back had been hurting a little from sitting in one position for too long, but he didn’t want to let his hyungs know about it as they were already worried enough about his illness. Lying down on the bed, Kyuhyun tried to stretch a little to loosen the muscles in his back so that they were not so tight. He moaned softly as the muscles stretched. The pain was not intense, it was more of a pain that was constantly there even when not moving, and hurt when moved. Kyuhyun lied on the bed, waiting for the pain to subside a little so that he could sleep. He did want to keep his promise to his hyungs and did not want to let his pain ruin his plans of having dinner with his hyungs. Kyuhyun shut his eyes, almost willing the pain to disappear. Don't think about it. Kyuhyun told himself. Think about the dinner that you will be having. Think about how long you've been waiting for it. Kyuhyun tried to focus his thoughts on the impending dinner and it seemed to work. Slowly, but surely, the pain lessened until a manageable level. Kyuhyun began to fall asleep. I can’t wait for dinner.
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Kangin gave all the members a text message asking them to come back early for dinner. He didn’t say why, so the members were all puzzled as they read the message. Is there any occasion that we're celebrating? Was the thought that ran through most of their minds. Nonetheless, everyone tried their best to get home as early as possible. Time flew by as Hankyung and Kangin prepared the food. Or rather, Hankyung was cooking while Kangin was just in charge of occasionally cutting the ingredients but mostly, he was in charge of setting up the table. They had decided to have dinner in the living room so that Kyuhyun could be seated at the sofa which would not be too strenuous on his back. One by one the members came home.
"We're back!" Sungmin and Eunhyuk shouted as they entered the dorm, announcing their presence to everyone. Kangin turned around from his position at the sofa.
"Shhh! Not so loud. Kyuhyun is resting."
The two immediately covered their mouths with their hands and tiptoed into the dorm. Eeteuk and Siwon who followed after them could only shake their heads at the two.
"Why did you ask us to come back early?" Eeteuk asked Kangin.
"Kyuhyun wants to have dinner with all of us."
Four of them stopped in their motions.
"Kyuhyun. Dinner. All of us." Kangin spoke word by word.
Then it clicked in their minds. Sungmin let out a squeal pulling Siwon into a hug before bouncing over to Eunhyuk to do the same thing. Eeteuk felt the pricks of tears coming.
"Hyung, you're supposed to be happy. Not crying." Kangin said, knowing what was going to come.
"I'm not crying. Who said I was?" Eeteuk retorted, tuning away from them, his hand rising suspiciously to his face to wipe the tears from his eyes. Kangin shook his head knowingly.
Then the four all went to put their things down first before going to help out with the preparation.
"Hannie, do you need help?" Eeteuk asked as he walked into the kitchen.
Hankyung froze. He could still remember what happened the previous time when Eeteuk helped him.
"Er, why not you go wake Kyuhyun and help him to the shower, Hyung?" Hankyung attempted to divert Eeteuk's attention. No, not divert. Just getting him to do something that he is better at.
Eeteuk thought about it for a while and nodded, pulling Sungmin with him. Eeteuk didn’t think that leaving two troublemakers with Hankyung would be a good thing. Hankyung gave a mental sigh of relief before instructing Eunhyuk and Siwon what to do.
Eeteuk and Sungmin walked quietly into Kyuhyun's room. Kyuhyun was sleeping soundly in bed, with the blanket covering half his face. Eeteuk touched his forehead, happy to know that the fever had completely subsided. He looked so peaceful that Eeteuk almost didn’t have the heart to wake him.
"Kyuhyunnie." Sungmin shook Kyuhyun gently.
Kyuhyun's eyes opened slowly. Normally Kyuhyun would have jerked awake, being a light sleeper, but his body just needed to rest too much that he slept soundly. Kyuhyun blinked a few times.
"Min-hyung? Eeteuk-hyung?"
Sungmin nodded.
"It's time to wake up. You want to have dinner right?" Eeteuk asked from his side.
Sleep disappeared immediately from Kyuhyun's eyes as they lit up at the thought of dinner. Kyuhyun nodded, pushing himself up. Sungmin helped him up, knowing that he should not be straining himself yet.
Eeteuk laughed softly at the enthusiasm Kyuhyun was showing, knowing how Kyuhyun felt. It was exactly what he felt when he was discharged to finally be able to have dinner together as one family. It was surprising that the things one missed were all the little things that everyone took for granted. It is only when you no longer experience it that you realise how important those little things were.
But Eeteuk didn’t know that Kyuhyun had never treated having dinner with them as something trivial. Instead he always treasured all the dinners they had together because he never had memories of those before he stayed with them.
"Do you want to bathe?" Eeteuk asked Kyuhyun.
Kyuhyun looked up at Eeteuk. "Yes, Hyung."
Kyuhyun felt a little dirty having not showered for the past few days when he was too sick to do so. Instead he only changed his clothes and had sponge baths.
"Sungmin, would you help Kyuhyun to the bathroom while I grab his clothes?" Sungmin nodded, helping Kyuhyun up to walk to the bathroom.
Kyuhyun had trouble keeping his balance after staying in bed for so long. Sungmin waited for Kyuhyun to stabilise before proceeding. Kyuhyun walked slowly, holding on tightly to Sungmin's arm. Kyuhyun did his best to keep the pain off his face, even if his grip gave it up to Sungmin. It was as if he had deteriorated to the point when he had just started the physiotherapy when he had just progressed from balancing to walking. None of the two spoke as they made their way to the bathroom. Eeteuk handed the clothes to Kyuhyun.
"If you're inside for more than 20 minutes we'll bang the door down."
"Hyung!"
"I'm serious."
Kyuhyun looked at Eeteuk's face and nodded. Sungmin walked out of the bathroom as Kyuhyun made to close the door.
"Remember, 20 minutes." Eeteuk said again as the door closed on him.
Kyuhyun sighed as he heard Eeteuk. He quickly stripped and stepped under the shower, wanting to make full use of the 20 minutes to shower.
As he stood under the hot shower, letting the hot water beat on his back, soothing the sore muscles, Kyuhyun closed his eyes. When he was walking to the bathroom, he had a sudden fear that all the progress that he had made in physiotherapy were all for naught. He seemed to be back to one and a half months ago when he had just learned how to walk. Kyuhyun didn’t want that to happen. He wanted to be back with Super Junior as soon as possible. Okay. Don't fret over it now. You'll know when you return to physiotherapy in two days. Don't fret over it right now. Tonight you're going to enjoy the time with your hyungs. Kyuhyun reasoned with himself.
He quickly washed himself though careful not to get his injured hand wet and turned off the water. He hung on to the wall as he made his way out of the shower cubicle not wanting to fall. As he dried his body, Kyuhyun looked into the mirror. It was the first time he was standing in front of his reflection since the day he punched it. The shadow under his eyes had lessened. He no longer looked so pale and tired. He reached out a hand to touch his reflection in the mirror. My hyungs did not leave me. Jong-hyung did not leave me. They are still here. There was no urge to punch the mirror today. Instead Kyuhyun smiled at himself in the mirror. I'm glad to be here.
"Kyuhyun, you have one minute more!" Eeteuk's shout came through the door.
Kyuhyun quickly grabbed his clothes and put them on. He had no doubt that Eeteuk would break into the bathroom. He didn’t want to appear naked in front of Eeteuk and Sungmin, or anyone for that matter. Kyuhyun draped the towel around his neck and opened the door. Eeteuk's fist stopped just in front of his face.
"Ah, you're out. I was about to knock again." Eeteuk said, lowering his hand.
He looked at Kyuhyun, stepping closer to arrange his clothes neatly. Sungmin was laughing behind him, knowing that Kyuhyun had haphazardly put on his clothes to prevent Eeteuk from banging down the door. Kyuhyun blushed at the state of his clothes. Eeteuk then pulled his towel over his head and proceeded to dry his hair.
"Hyung, I can do that myself." Kyuhyun weakly protested while still lowering his head for Eeteuk.
Eeteuk merely 'hmmmed' as he continued.
"Sungmin-ah, can you grab a brush?" Eeteuk turned to Sungmin, who quickly stifled his laughter and nodded.
Eeteuk took the towel off Kyuhyun's head after making sure that Kyuhyun's hair was relatively dry. He didn’t want Kyuhyun to worsen his illness due to a wet head. He threw the towel into the basket in the bathroom just as Sungmin came back. Sungmin stood on his toes in front of Kyuhyun, brushing through his hair. Kyuhyun thought about saying that he could do that just fine by himself, but he couldn’t deny that it felt really wonderful to have his hyungs take care of him.
"There. All good." Sungmin exclaimed as he stood back to admire his work.
Eeteuk nodded next to him. Kyuhyun had no idea what Sungmin did to his hair, but it must not have been something awful since Eeteuk-hyung had agreed as well.
"Thank you, Eeteuk-hyung, Min-hyung."
Sungmin flashed a brilliant smile at Kyuhyun while Eeteuk just shook his head.
"It was nothing. No need to thank us."
He held Kyuhyun by the arm and guided him to the wall along the corridor for Kyuhyun to hold onto it.
"Let's head to the living room. I hear dinner calling for us." Kyuhyun nodded and prepared himself for the journey to the living room. I just hope that I don't fall on the way there.
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As Kyuhyun settled onto the sofa, the rest of the members came home. Shindong, Heechul, Donghae, Yesung, Kibum and Ryeowook walked in one by one. As Donghae walked past the sofa, he noticed something.
"Kyu!"
His word caught the attention of the rest.
Kyuhyun waved shyly from his position at the sofa. He was made to stay put as Eeteuk and Sungmin went to help out in the kitchen. So he had spent the time staring at the door, waiting for the rest of his hyungs come back. He knew straight away that his hyungs were back when he heard the key inserted into the doorknob. Kyuhyun sat up straighter. When Donghae noticed him, Kyuhyun managed to wave to them. They all rushed and crowded around him.
"Are you feeling better?"
"Why are you alone in the living room?"
They bombarded him with questions, though each of them was really happy to see Kyuhyun sitting up in the living room, instead of being stuck in his room.
"No crowding around Kyuhyunnie!"
Eeteuk came out of the kitchen carrying a huge bowl of fried rice. "Go put your bags, wash your hands and come and have dinner."
They nodded to Eeteuk, resigned to not get any answer from Kyuhyun at the moment. Eeteuk watched as they walked off before placing the bowl onto the table.
"Stay seated Kyu. You're not allowed to help." Eeteuk spoke without looking up, having guessed what Kyuhyun would attempt to do.
Kyuhyun was about to stand but sat down when he heard Eeteuk. Eeteuk took a seat next to Kyuhyun and waited for the rest to come out. Siwon, Eunhyuk, Sungmin, Kangin and Hankyung carried the rest of the food out. The utensils were already set out on the table. The rest came back to the living room to see a spread of food on the table.
"Fried rice!" That came from Yesung.
"Kimchi pancake. Wow!" Ryeowook exclaimed.
"Sushi!" Donghae clapped his hands.
"Oh Kyungie, you know me so well. You cooked mushroom soup." Heechul reached out for the soup straight away.
Hankyung and Kangin stared at each other. So all the food he asked for were not for him? They turned to Kyuhyun, who was not paying attention to them. Instead Kyuhyun was smiling to himself observing the happy expressions on his hyungs' faces. The two shook their heads. It was so like Kyuhyun to do something like that.
They all settled down around the table with Eeteuk and Kibum claiming the space beside Kyuhyun, Heechul on the other sofa with Siwon, Hankyung next to Kibum, Kangin next to Eeteuk, Ryeowook, Yesung, Donghae, Sungmin, Shindong and Eunhyuk on the floor.
"What's the occasion Hyung?" Kibum asked Hankyung.
"To celebrate that Kyuhyun is back."
Kyuhyun looked at Hankyung shocked as if he didn’t expect that. Kibum nodded, accepting the reason. Eeteuk picked up his glass of water and passed another to Kyuhyun. He raised it.
"To Kyuhyun."
"To Kyuhyun."
The rest all raised their glasses. Kyuhyun looked around at all of them, blushing. Kibum nudged Kyuhyun gently, telling him to raise his glass as well. When all their glasses were up, they shouted with the exception of Kyuhyun.
"To Kyuhyun!" They drank the water and quickly began to eat. Kyuhyun was still blushing from the attention - though he was sincerely touched by his hyungs - when Kibum placed a plate of food in his hands.
"Don’t just look. Eat."
Kyuhyun nodded and brought the spoon to his mouth.
"Wait!" Ryeowook suddenly said, standing up and dashing off to the kitchen. Huh?
As Ryeowook came back again, Kibum stood up as well walking to Ryeowook.
"Before we continue, Hyung, we have a little something for you all." Kibum said causing all of them to lean forward in anticipation.
"Since we are all going to take care of Kyu, we should all eat the vitamins every day."
Ryeowook flashed the bottle of vitamins at all of them.
"What?" Donghae, Sungmin and Eunhyuk shouted.
"That's unfair!" Kibum shook his head.
"It's not unfair. We should all eat. If not we might fall sick then we won't be able to take care of Kyu."
"That's true. Okay everyone. All of you have to eat vitamins from now on. We don’t want anyone getting sick."
Eeteuk agreed to his dongsaengs' logic. Everyone groaned when Eeteuk agreed. Now they had no way of getting out of the situation. Grudgingly accepting the pills from Kibum and Ryeowook who were happily giving them out, they all swallowed the medicine. Kyuhyun laughed softly behind his hands at all the faces his hyungs made while swallowing the pills. When they noticed that Kyuhyun was laughing, they began to exaggerate their motions and expressions. It had been a long time since Kyuhyun had laughed so free. The members all smiled at each other and at Kyuhyun. Kibum and Ryeowook exchanged a small high-five behind them glad to have exacted their revenge and in the meantime made Kyuhyun happy.
As dinner progressed, they all started to discuss the various things that occurred. Kyuhyun simply sat there, slowly clearing his plate of food, watching his hyungs interact with each other. He didn’t say anything, just like a silent observer sitting there.
Hankyung looked at Kyuhyun when he noticed that Kyuhyun had not said a single word the whole night. He noticed the contented look, the slight smile, the way Kyuhyun looked lovingly at the scene. Hankyung decided not to say anything, allowing Kyuhyun to bask in the presence of his hyungs.
When the food was almost finished, Hankyung stood up, excusing himself to the kitchen. He came out with a chocolate cake that looked exactly like one that came from the cake shops or even better. Kangin cleared a space on the table for Hankyung to put the cake. On top of the cake there was a message. 'Welcome back, Kyuhyun!'
Hankyung handed a plastic knife to Kyuhyun.
"Make a wish and cut your cake Kyu."
Kyuhyun looked at his hyungs receiving nods from all of them. He had not expected such a cake when he had asked Hankyung to make it for him. He held the knife with two hands about the cake. He made the wish in his heart.
I wish that we will be one family.
He pushed the knife into the cake, catching a flash just in time as Donghae took a picture. All of them clapped and cheered, happy that Kyuhyun was back.
"Let's take a picture! Everyone try and squeeze!" Donghae said as he arranged the camera properly. "Okay. Ready?" Donghae did not wait for a reply as he pressed the timer.
Donghae dashed over and found himself a spot before the timer went off.
"Can we eat the cake hyung?" Shindong asked as they settled back down. Hankyung nodded and proceeded to slice the cake. When each of them had a piece they began eating. Kyuhyun ate about half his slice before placing the plate on his lap. He had already been leaning on the sofa as everyone talked around him. He was contented to just listen to them. As he let the voices washed over his head, Kyuhyun felt himself drifting off to sleep, his hand losing the grip on the plate which sat on his lap.
"Kyuhyunnie! Do you…"
Sungmin looked up at Kyuhyun as he spoke when he noticed that Kyuhyun was asleep. The rest were puzzled as to why Sungmin stopped midway of his question. They all followed his gaze. Kyuhyun was sleeping with a contented look on his face. They smiled.
"Alright, it's time to clear up. Siwon-ah, carry Kyuhyun to his bed late with Kibummie. The rest go clean up." Eeteuk instructed.
Kibum nodded, removing the plate from Kyuhyun's lap. Siwon stood up and walked towards Kyuhyun. He carried Kyuhyun on his back and walked to Kyuhyun's room with Kibum.
Eeteuk sat by his seat at the sofa watching Siwon carry Kyuhyun and watching as the rest cleaned up with happy looks on their faces even if they didn’t like to clean at all. He let a smile grace his lips.
Things will be better.
"Teukie! Why are you sitting? You should be clearing as well!"
Eeteuk nodded at Heechul and joined in.
Life will be better.
hope u enjoy the chapter! sorry didnt post yesterday cos was not in the mood to do anything except lie on my bed.=P
i was arguing with my sis just now about how to spell 'pajama'. she insisted that there was a 'y' in the word. then i was like it seemed correct to me. but she kept saying there was a 'y'. so we checked it n realise that both was correct. 'pajama' was american english. while 'pyjama' was british english, which we learn in singapore. so it turned out to be a stupid n meaningless argument.-____-