ballad of flowers / changki

06

Changkyun took two weeks in the hospital, and when he got out of it, all that remained of the Hanahaki was the scar on his chest. Kihyun was noticeably more comfortable around him, but still treated him differently. "I'm okay, you know," he told Kihyun, when Kihyun got him a cool cup of water as soon as practice was over. "The surgery's a simple surgery."

"You were in surgery for 8 hours." Kihyun pointed out quietly, pouring him another cup of cool water. "You're supposed to be taking it easy."

"I'm not that fragile. And I took it easy for two weeks at the hospital." Changkyun sighed. He slumped back and leaned on the mirror in the dance studio. His chest throbbed dully, and he winced as he pressed the heel of his palm into the scar. He noticed Kihyun's worry and smiled brightly.

Kihyun didn't look like he believed that at all. "Let's call it a day today, guys."

"Kihyun, I'm-"

"I'm tired." Kihyun said, cutting Changkyun's complaint off. 

He sighed and beelined for the bathroom. On the way, Minhyuk attached to his side, rambling about some kind of game he'd gotten into recently and telling Changkyun he should totally play. Changkyun leaned forward over the sink, splashing his face with water as Minhyuk went on about a mile per minute. 

Changkyun clearing his throat to get rid of the stuffiness in his chest. He ended up coughing into his hand, and he froze when he felt soft petals land on his hand. Minhyuk suddenly fell silent, looking at the crimson petals in the boy's hands. "What," Changkyun whispered. "I got surgery."

Minhyuk jumped up in panics, grabbing Changkyun's wrist and dragging him back to the practice room, yelling for Kihyun. Changkyun didn't have a choice on what was happening, even when Kihyun took up his hand and unwrapped his fingers from the petals. "I thought you said you could take care of it," Kihyun said, his voice shaking as Shownu dialed their manager. "How could you have possibly taken care of feelings so deep that they came back even after you got surgery?"