Fluffy SKZ Oneshots EP.2🧸

Flushed cheeks 🌡️

Sickie: Jeongin
Caregivers: mainly Chan (+Minsung)

No one’s POV.:
Jeongin had been pretty run down for the past two weeks, which wasn’t really surprising considering the busy schedules he’s had. For weeks, he had constantly been stressed, unable to catch a break and it got to the point that he even stressed about being stressed. Tired didn’t even come close in trying to describe what he felt, so right now that they finally got a weekend off to rest and recuperate, Jeongin couldn’t imagine getting up at all. His limbs were heavy as lead and struggled to roll over and pull his blanket tighter but the light was peaking through the curtains and burned his eyes, keeping him from going back to sleep.

Chan had spent most of the night editing a track he had been working on and ended up sleeping almost till noon. When he finally emerged from his room, he figured Jeongin had already eaten breakfast and probably gone out to spend the day with some of the other members. He might even be visiting his family, though he didn’t mention anything the day before, at last not as far as Chan could remember. Only when the Aussie heard the bathroom door open and shut did he start to question his assumptions. He had figured Jeongin would join him as soon as he was done but the maknae simply went back to his room. Since he hadn’t seen his dongsaeng since the day before, Chan decided to check on him and was surprised to find the curtains drawn and the younger already back in bed, curled up under his blanket.

With the blanket pulled up to his chin, Jeongin turned to Chan, hair ruffled and cheeks flushed. He looked dazed with sleep still, which was weird as it was already lunchtime. “Hey there”, Chan hummed, crouching next to the boy’s bed. He smoothed Jeongin’s hair down and whispered: “Are you okay? You do feel a little warm to me. Want me to fetch the thermometer?” The younger shook his head and mumbled: “I might be a teeny tiny bit sick, but it’s fine. Don’t need to know if I have a fever or not.” – “Sick how?”, Chan frowned worriedly, cupping Jeongin’s flushed cheek. He was pretty confident that the maknae was running a temperature. “My body is one big ache”, Jeongin sniffled, closing his eyes, “And no matter how much I sleep, ‘m still exhausted.”

Chan took a seat on the edge of the bed and stroked Jeongin’s hair, humming: “I’m pretty sure you have a fever, so good thing you can take a sick day and rest as much as you need. Can I get you anything?” – “Some water please? Been kinda thirsty an’ my head hurts but the distance to the bathroom already felt so incredibly long”, the younger muttered. “Of course, I think I’ll also get you some Emergen-C. Might help giving your immune system a little boost. Do you think this is a virus you caught or is it stress induced?”, Chan inquired, his finger trailing down Jeongin’s neck to feel his lymph nodes. The maknae sleepily blinked up at him and yawned: “Could be stress induced, ‘cause it neither feels like a cold nor some kind of stomach bug. ‘m jus’ so lethargic and aching all over.”

“Do you feel like eating?”, Chan asked softly as he watched Jeongin sip his drink, “I could get you some ibuprofen once you got some food in your tummy, so we could get your fever down and maybe ease the aches and pains a little.” – “Not hungry. Think all I really need is rest”, the younger mumbled, placing his glass on the nightstand. Helping him settle back down under his blankets, Chan smiled: “Do you want me to leave you alone, so you can sleep?” Jeongin just shrugged at that. Being alone hadn’t really helped him sleep earlier, so maybe some company while he waited out his misery would be nice. “Or I could get my laptop and sit with you for a while. If you’d like that”, the leader offered, knowing his dongsaeng wouldn’t openly ask for it. When he received a tiny nod, he smiled: “Alright, be right back.”

With his headphones dangling around his neck, laptop under his arm, Chan returned to Jeongin’s room and handed the maknae an icepack. “Here, this should help bring your fever down and ease the headache a bit”, he explained, waiting for Jeongin to scoot over, so he could take a seat next to him. Getting comfortable curled up against his hyung’s side, Jeongin pressed the icepack against his forehead and sighed in relief. With how nice it felt against his flushed skin, there was no way he wasn’t running a decent fever but he hoped he'd be able to sleep it off soon.
“Are you still awake?”, Chan frowned, when the younger was still squirming an hour later. Jeongin nodded and groaned: “Can’t get comfy, everything hurts.” – “Okay”, the Aussie sighed sympathetically, “How about a bath? It might help?” – “Too much effort”, the maknae whined, making Chan chuckle. Petting his hair, the eldest teased: “Silly. You won’t even have to do anything. Let me go fill the tub, I’ll carry you there.”