Don't run away from me

ch. 26

//joshua;

That evening, Joshua lost track of time, possibly spending hours crying uncontrollably in the fresh snow that had fallen. As a result, the next day, a terrible cold hit him, leaving him completely drained of energy. His head pounded so intensely that he felt like it was about to explode at any moment. His nose was stuffed, and he coughed until his chest hurt. He felt terrible and guilty for getting sick at such a crucial moment for Seokmin, knowing that he would probably mess up the exam because he hadn't been able to study with him in the last 2 days. With difficulty, he got out of bed and decided that he didn't have a common illness to stop him, so he started getting ready, dressing warmer and wearing a mask on his face. Joshua generally looked terrible, in his opinion, but now he looked ten times worse. He wrapped a scarf around his neck and then headed to the library where he was supposed to meet Seokmin. Outside, the snow had already formed a fluffy and sparkling layer, creating a fairytale-like landscape. Arriving at the library before Seokmin, he started preparing his things, making sure not to give the boy any reason to suspect his illness.

"Hyung! Seokmin finally appears, his radiant smile seeming to alleviate Joshua's headache. 'Did something happen?' he points to the mask, concerned.

'Nah, I'm just afraid of catching a cold. It's their season, and my weakened body doesn't really know how to fight them off, so I'm trying to avoid them as much as possible.' Joshua smiles beneath the mask, evident in the shape of his eyes forming a crescent.

'Ah, I see. Please don't get sick though..' Seokmin sits down with a sad and worried expression next to Joshua, who moves his chair slightly further away.

"Don't worry, Seok. I'm fine." Joshua smiles and then reaches out to ruffle his hair a bit.

Seokmin was wearing an absolutely adorable sweater with a puppy wearing a Santa hat, and Joshua couldn't help but notice the resemblance between the two. Despite feeling increasingly weak and starting to shiver, Joshua manages to finish the 4-hour meditation without worrying Seokmin. In front of the library, Joshua gives Seokmin a brief hug before quickly getting into a taxi because he knew that if he stayed there any longer, he risked collapsing. On the way home, he takes out his phone and opens the conversation with Seokmin.

shua: "Tomorrow I'll be out of town, so please work on everything I circled and send me the picture for me to correct, okay?"
seok : "Hyung, are you sure you're okay? I didn't even get a proper chance to say goodbye to you."
shua: "I'm sorry, Min. Something urgent came up and I had to leave. I promise I'll make it up to you. Plus, I'll reward you properly after your exam."
seok: "About that..."

Joshua's heart sank as he watched the three dots indicating that Seokmin was typing a longer message. All sorts of possible scenarios raced through his mind, which didn't help with the excruciating headache he was experiencing.

Seok: My mom called to let me know that my dad will be in town for something on the day of my exam, so he'll wait for me after the exam and we'll go straight home to save money on the bus ticket.
shua: Oh...
Seok: That means we won't see each other for 2 weeks :(
shua: Hey, no problem, dummy.
shua: I'll wait for you as long as it takes.
Seok: And what about the reward?
shua: When you come back home ;)

As Joshua arrives in front of the complex, he pays the taxi and puts his phone in his pocket, heading towards the entrance of the building. In the elevator, his vision blurs, suddenly feeling a headache that makes him lose his balance. He looks at himself in the mirror and sees his face completely flushed, even though he feels frozen despite wearing those 10 layers of clothing. Surely he had a fever, and there was no pill in the house to alleviate his symptoms. Having reached home with difficulty, Joshua heads to the bedroom where he wraps himself in multiple blankets, nestling in the middle of them, hoping to feel better after a short nap.

//seokmin;

After Joshua's sudden disappearance, Seokmin felt a bit demoralized and sad because even though they spent most of their time together, they were limited to studying and reviewing, as Joshua was strict with him. To lift his spirits, Seokmin decides to visit the café near campus before going home, praying the whole way that he won't run into Mingyu. After the fight in the dormitory, Mingyu and Seokmin haven't spoken at all, with Seokmin completely ignoring his friend. As he enters the café, behind the counter is Soonyoung, blowing a sigh of relief at the sight of the energetic boy with a smile from ear to ear. Seokmin ordered a cinnamon latte, his favorite during such chilly weather. He asked for it to-go, determined to get home quickly and do some exercises. On the way, he tries to call Joshua to see if he arrived home safely, but the call is immediately ended. The fact that Joshua's phone is off brings all sorts of possible scenarios to Seokmin's mind, some more horrifying than others. He tries again and again to call him, feeling panic creeping in. Joshua visibly didn't feel well the whole day, and Seokmin was convinced that he should trust his instincts and pay him a visit. He tosses his latte into a trash bin because it's getting in the way as he runs towards the apartment complex where Joshua lives.

Seokmin quickly arrives at Joshua's door and starts knocking and ringing the doorbell multiple times, but when he sees that there's no response, he enters the code (Jihoon gave it to him when he brought Joshua home drunk - ch. 11, I think) and heads towards Joshua's bedroom.

Joshua is in the middle of the bed, trembling in every joint and completely wrapped in multiple layers of blankets. Seokmin places his palm on Joshua's forehead, and it's burning hot. Panicked, Seokmin starts frantically searching the house for medication but to no avail. He doesn't even realize when he reaches the pharmacy and then rushes back, his feet moving without his mind fully aware. Back at Joshua's bed, he starts applying cold compresses to Joshua's forehead. When he tries to give him a pill, Joshua refuses to open his mouth and keeps turning his head away from it. In his panicked state, Seokmin does the first thing that comes to his mind, he takes the pill in his mouth along with a sip of water, then passes it to Joshua through a kiss. When he sees that it works, Seokmin smiles with relief. With the fever being so high, the boy constantly changes the compress, and the shivering gradually subsides.