★Please... cherish me★ | Yoosung x Reader

MC collapses from exhaustion

You had finals coming up which meant you'd spent day and night studying, pulling more and more all-nighters with only a few naps in between. Despite Yoosung's insistence that a break now and then wouldn't hurt, you'd been adamant that if you took even one second away from your total study time, you'd flunk everything.
You found a book online that would help your progress considerably, and decided to venture to the library to check it out; ignoring the dizzy spells you experienced upon walking out of your front door.

After arriving and locating the book, you found a table and pulled out your study supplies, not wanting to waste another second by going back home again.
You'd sent a text to Yoosung before you left telling him you'd be at the library in case he dropped by your house while you were away.
Instead, he decided to visit you at the library a few hours into your visit.

~★~
"MC!" His whisper ended up being more of an exclamation and he received a few glares from other people. Smiling apologetically at them, he eagerly slid into the seat next to yours, propping his head up with his arm as he watched you, still too absorbed in reading to realise his sudden appearance.

You looked very pale, he noted with a frown, and the circles under your eyes could not be darker.
Gently, he placed his hands over your own; still warm from where they'd been in his coat pockets for the walk there and shivered as they met ice cold flesh. You were freezing!

"MC?" He said, desperately trying not to sound as worried as he was in case you tried to evade what he was going to ask next.
"When was the last time you took a break?"

You reluctantly dragged your gaze away from your book to meet his warm amethyst eyes, which you had to blink several times before you could see them properly.

"I haven't." Seeing him open his mouth to protest, you quickly stepped in, "I'm just so close to finishing this book and I find it really hard to focus on something if I keep taking breaks. You understand, right, Yoosung?"

He bit his lip, "You look exhausted MC. I'm really worried about you."
You tried to give him a reassuring smile, but every muscle in your body seemed to ache the moment he mentioned your fatigue.
You felt exhausted...

"I... I guess I could take a 5 minute break..."
His face broke into a smile, "We can go to the cafe across the road!"
Your newfound desire to have a break faltered slightly. If you went to a cafe, you knew you'd end up being there for much longer than your suggested 5 minutes...
But, you loved Yoosung, and he looked so happy.
Since you'd taken up studying you hadn't had much time to spend with him, and you'd made yourself too busy to even realise how much you missed his voice.

You nodded, gathering your study stuff together into your bag.
"Let me carry that for you," he said kindly, "It looks really heavy."
"Thanks," you murmured, stifling a yawn.

You'd barely taken two steps when another dizzy spell hit you hard and before you knew it you were falling falling falling...
"MC!?" Strong arms were suddenly wrapped around your frame, preventing you from barrelling backwards into the ground. Thank goodness Yoosung was stronger than he looked.

Black spots seeped into your vision and instinctively your eyes snapped shut, trying to block out the headache that you knew would soon follow.

Yoosung's heart sank. The people around stared at the pair of them, uncertain as to how to help.
A girl sitting closer to them offered to call an ambulance.
"Please." He said, not looking away from your suddenly feverish face.

~★~

You woke up in a daze, unsure of when you drifted off. Something warm was tangled up with your fingers, while something else stroked through the soft strands of your hair with a tender touch.

Your throat was raw when you tried to call out to him, causing you to croak.
"Yoo...sung...?"
The hand combing your hair faltered slightly, but you heard him lean forward and brush his lips against your forehead.
"How are you feeling? Is it sore anywhere?" The panic underlined in his voice betrayed the reassuring circles he was tracing on the back of your hand.
Your entire body felt heavy, and already your eyelids were drooping again, ready to lull into your dreams.

"I'm okay," you murmured, managing a tiny smile. The gesture seemed to lift a huge weight off his shoulders and he let out a sigh of relief.
"I'm so glad." His eyes filled with tears and he blinked them back with an embarrassed smile.
"Sorry... It's just... I was so so.. worried... about you..."

Guilt washed over you as Yoosung sniffled, still stroking your hair. He looked as exhausted as you felt.
"I'm sorry," you whispered, tears threatening to spill from your own eyes; a combination of exhaustion and watching Yoosung suffer, "I should have considered you more... I should have looked after myself better... I've been such a burden–"
"You haven't!" He burst out, "You could never be a burden to me. Never! I should have helped you study more rather than leaving you all alone."
"I'll be more careful," you promised, fighting to stay awake from the fatigue. A hospital bed had never felt so inviting before.
He nodded knowingly, recognising your drowsiness, "It's okay," he squeezed your hand, "Sleep as much as you want. I'll be here when you wake up, 'kay?"
He barely felt the weak squeeze in response, but a slight sigh escaped your lips as you fell asleep, "Love... you..."
His heart felt calm again as he listened to your breathing. He lightly kissed the tip of your nose, "Get some rest, my love."