Metal

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"What do you think you're doing?"

Tao stops midway from sitting up to look at Sehun leaning against the door frame, his eyebrow cocked up.

"I was going to join you for dinner," he answers, unsure. Is he doing something wrong? Evidently, the "poison" hadn't really been a poison. Only something to make him a bit sick and tired, but nothing that wouldn't have worn off after a couple hours. He feels better already, and thought that he should take the privilege of accompanying Sehun to dinner like he usually did.

"Absolutely not." Sehun shakes his head in disappointment as he crosses his arms and makes his way to the bed. Tao's not sure why he's still in Sehun's room. He'd just woken up from what had been a relatively short nap after having been denied access to walk back to his own room. The young master is making overly protective efforts to make sure he stays in place and gets his rest, though he doesn't feel like he needs it.

"Do you even know how to take care of yourself?" Sehun takes a seat at the foot of the bed. "I've sent for someone to send up the meal."

"Thank you." Tao says. He props himself up on the pillows.

"It's snowing again," Sehun murmurs quietly, staring out the windows. Fat flakes are drifting through the air outside, piling on top of the already one foot high snow on the ground. Tao nods in acknowledgement.

"Do you ever think," Sehun continues, "this'll ever be over?" His eyes seem to glaze over at the thought. "That I'll be able to leave. That I'll go back to school and return to my normal life. That things can rewind. Do you ever think this might just go on forever since I'm trapped in here because everyone thinks something might happen? Don't you think all this precaution is driven by fear?" He turns to look at Tao, who can only furrow his eyebrows at the words. He feels a mixture of pity and something else that eats away at his conscience.

"Sehun..." He wants to say something, but he can't predict the future, and he can't stop fate. He's trained for solid protection, not emotional care.

The younger feels tired and restless. He barely knows what day it is anymore, if it's a Monday or a Friday, and clocks only provide the constant ticking of time to remind him that it hasn't stopped. There's nothing to do in the old manor, nothing to say, nothing to feel. He turns to Tao with a grimace. "Sorry, I didn't mean to go on like that."

"It's fine," Tao is rather surprised at his sudden change of emotions. It's like he's unstable. Almost. "I'd rewind time for you," he says, and he means it. It feels awful knowing that all Sehun wants is to go back to the better days, just months ago. It feels even more awful knowing that he has part in all this change.

A servant comes in a moment later with a tray and a prop up table for Tao to eat on the bed, interrupting the conversation before Sehun can reply. The food and table is set and Tao feels himself blush again. He's not used to being taken care of, more the other way around. It's weak to have to succumb to this.

Sehun sits down on the ground next to him, his back against the bedside. There's a tray in front of him too, decked out in fancy dishes and whatnot. He isn't touching any of it.

"Sehun, you should eat." Tao points at the food in front of him.

Sehun scoffs. "You're telling me to?"

Tao raises an eyebrow. "Well you're not telling yourself."

Sehun lifts up his fork and picks away at the the small bowl of rice on the corner of the tray. He mumbles something incoherent and puts the utensil back down. "Not hungry," he says more clearly this time.

He sits himself up a bit and lets his head fall back onto the bed, next to Tao's arm. Sehun closes his eyes and mutters, "I miss the outside world, Tao."