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ch 5 . shit this is r̶e̶d̶ sad too :((( w.c. : 1.5k
Jihoon catches him as he falls, a terrible deadweight. There's a light rain falling outside - barely more than a drizzle, so misty that Jihoon hadn't even heard it inside - but Soonyoung has clearly been out in it for long enough to be soaked through. Frightened, Jihoon pulls him inside, somehow gets the door shut again, and then thumps down in the hallway with Soonyoung slumped in his lap.
"Soonyoung?" he says, voice shaking. He shifts his body, cradling Soonyoung's head in his hands. In addition to the split lip, there's a nasty gash on his forehead and swelling around his right eye. His knuckles are bloody and raw, and Jihoon is a heartbeat away from phoning an ambulance when Soonyoung stirs, blinking muzzily up at him.
"Jagi?" he croaks, and Jihoon will have to set aside several hours to deal with that in the future, because right now Soonyoung is shivering violently, clutching at his clothes.
"Soonyoung, where are you hurt? Do you need the hospital?"
"Nh, I need you," Soonyoung mumbles. "I'm sorry, Jihoon. I'm sorry I was late."
Jihoon wants to cry. "You have nothing to apologize for," he says roughly, smoothing his fingers through dark, wet hair. "We need to get you warm, dry."
Soonyoung makes a noise that is a distant laughter. "That sounds nice."
"Can you stand?"
"I'll try," says Soonyoung, and lets Jihoon take his weight, grunting in pain as he straightens up.
They head for the bathroom. Jihoon sits Soonyoung carefully on the toilet cover, then finds the plug and turns on the bath tap, running it nice and warm. He kneels over Soonyoung's feet and carefully unlaces his boots, easing the stiff, cold leather off his feet. Even his socks are wet, he realizes - the boots are old, not waterproof - and just peeling them free leaves his fingers chill. He straightens, unable to mask his concern as he looks into Soonyoung's eyes. He's clearly been hit in the head - does he have a concussion?
"I'm not concussed," says Soonyoung grouchily, wincing as he shuts his eyes. "I walked all the way here and I didn't throw up once."
"That is not definitive," Jihoon says, gently easing Soonyoung out of his jacket. His work shirt is a button-down, thankfully - he'd prefer not to have to pull anything over his head right now - and he pops each button methodically.
"Jihoon?"
"Hm?"
"Jihoon," says Soonyoung, a little desperately. Jihoon looks up at him, and stills to see the fear and shame in Soonyoung's expression. Soonyoung grabs his wrist, holding him in place before he can undo the final button, and murmurs, "I didn't want you to find out like this."
