Limbo

But I Don't Wanna Go Tonight

"What is taking him so long?" Bang Chan hissed. While the rest of the boys were already asleep, he was up at the kitchen table, scrolling through their schedule for the week, waiting for Minho to get home. There was so much going on, how they'd manage, he had no idea - somehow, they always did though. But it was getting really late and still Minho wasn't home - that wasn't going to help this week go by any easier when they started it sleep deprived. 

Chan checked the clock on the bottom of his laptop screen. 1am. It had been hours since Minho was supposed to be home. He was supposed to be home for dinner - before that even. But there was no sign of the dancer. 

Seojun - his manager - hadn't called though, so Chan assumed he was still on company property or at least with staff members. He was probably fine. It was likely one of those nights that Minho worked himself until 3am in the dance practice room. Chan trusted Seojun to get him home safe and sound though - he had no reason to believe otherwise. Still, he'd have to talk to Minho about staying out so late especially without warning and with a busy schedule that week.

Chan sighed, closing his laptop. Just as it clicked shut, his phone started vibing on the table beside him. He stared at it for a second, processing the fact that it was probably Minho saying he was sorry he stayed out so late, and that he wouldn't do it again - the predictable, unchangeable usual. He reached for the phone without even bothering to check the caller ID - who else besides Minho would call him at 1am? "Lino?" He asked, holding the phone up to his ear. 

"Is this Christopher Bang?" The woman's voice on the other side asked politely. 

Chan took a deep breath; very aware this could be a sasaeng. "I'm sorry, who is this?" 

"This is Yejin, I'm a nurse at St. Mary's Seoul Hospital."

Chan's mind went blank. There was a long pause before he realized he should speak. "Oh, um, yeah, I'm Chan. Christopher... Or Chris. Um, what... why are you calling me?" 

"You were listed as an emergency contact for a Lee Minho. Does that sound right?" 

Chan's mind might have been blank, but now he felt like his heart stopped and he couldn't breathe. "Yes... Um, yes. That would be right. Is... is Minho there? At the hospital?" 

"Yes, he is. Would you be able to come fill out some paperwork for him? He is currently incapable of filling out more than his name and date of birth." 

"What happened? Is he okay?" 

"He's stable. I think it would be best if you came in." 

"Yeah. Yeah. Okay. I can... I can do that. Um, yeah. I'm heading there right now." 

"Good. Just talk to information desk when you come in and they'll point you in the right direction." 

Chan hung up the phone, immediately running to the door to grab the car keys, his coat and shoes. He barely even got his shoes on right and he only had one arm in his sleeve, but he didn't care. Something was seriously wrong. He needed to be at that hospital five minutes ago. 

He tried not to speed, but that was incredibly difficult when his heart was going a hundred miles an hour. He almost ran one red light and had to break hard. "Come on!" He screamed at the light as traffic started flowing from the other side. He needed to breathe, he was too worked up. The nurse said Minho was stable. That could mean anything though. 

He leaned back, rubbing his eyes and taking a deep breath. "Come on, Chan, it's okay. You need to be level-headed right now. Focus. He's probably fine." 

The light turned green, and with another deep breath, he drove through it at the normal speed now. Minho didn't need him to get a ticket, he needed a calm Chan - even if he was fine. So, for his sake, Chan would keep a level head and try to calm his pounding heart.