The sound of hurried footsteps, and wavering breaths. Accelerated heartbeats, worried brows.

The two step-siblings rushed down the bright polished halls, a pungent antiseptic scent lingered in their noses while they followed the simple path the hospital worker at the front desk had directed them toward; only to find a boy seated over a row of chairs against the walls, waiting in the empty hall.

He was leaned forward over his lap, face hidden into both palms, and it was only once he heard their approaching footsteps that Jeongguk lifted his head up toward them.

"Gguk!" Yerin called out the minute their eyes met. The younger boy let a trembling breath slip past his throat, body slowly rising to his feet to greet the two.

"Yerin.. Joon..." He spoke softly, then let himself sink into the feeling of his noona's embrace once the woman pulled him into her arms.

"I-... I got your message.." Yerin's words were careful against his ears. "We came here as fast as we could. What exactly happened..?"

Jeongguk bit down on his lip to stop his shaky exhales. "I-I don't know.." He said in a helpless reply. "It was so s-scary, noona. Dot just-... He just dropped d-down and fell unconscious, or-... I think he was h-having a seizure, I-.."

"Shh, it's okay, kid.." Namjoon spoke up from behind them, and Yerin removed herself from the hug so that the two could look at him. "Sadly this isn't the first time something like this has happened to all the Taehyungs." Jeongguk gaped at the older while he spoke. "The only good news I can offer to you is that he's been fine every time, so... Tonight won't be any different."

Jeongguk lowered his head and felt his stomach sink, images of what had happened not far from school grounds flashed through his head.

Something like that was normal for Taehyung?

That's how the gang leader spoke of it. And although Namjoon himself didn't seem as phased from the news as the other two, Jeongguk could still see a flame of worry burning in his eyes. Surely, only because this has happened before didn't make it any less scary.

Still, he appreciated the man's attempt at comforting him. And the trio fell into a short silence before a set of double doors burst open down the hall. Two nurses walked at either side of the doctor, each holding clipboards and blank expressions. The three straightened their shoulders and mentally prepared for whatever update the medics had for them on Taehyung's state.

"Family of Mr. Kim Taehyung?" The doctor spoke, a softened expression on her face.

Namjoon was quick to step forward and give a nod. "Yes, ma'am. I'm his legal guardian, Kim Namjoon."

The woman gave a nod before giving a respectful bow. "Hello Namjoon-ssi. We've stabilized Mr. Kim Taehyung from an overdose of drugs, and are currently monitoring him. We're hoping to keep him overnight just in case, and if all goes well we can discharge him tomorrow at noon."

The three visibly relaxed at the news, and Jeongguk felt Yerin's small hand squeeze at his arm reassuringly.

"That's-... That's great, doc. Thanks so much," Namjoon managed the words out. "Is he alright?"

The doctor gave a sympathetic smile and grabbed one of the clipboards that was passed to her from a nurse. "We'd like to check up on him once he wakes up, but his vitals are doing good. We ran a gastric lavage procedure and applied antidotes to negate the effects of the drugs, so we'll recommend soft foods for his meals once he's discharged. We'll give you more details when we run further tests."

Namjoon sharp eyes remained attentive to her every word, and once the doctor finished he bowed his head forward and repeatedly thanked her.

The woman gave another gentle smile and shook her head. "I'm only doing my job. You guys take it easy, okay?"

She began to walk further down the hall and the two nurses followed behind her, though one of them stopped briefly to look at the trio.

"If you'd like to visit Mr. Kim, we've placed him in Room 613 for recovery. Only one person at a time, please."

"Thank you," Namjoon bowed again, then watched the medics disappear through the other side of the door.

"You've been waiting here for god knows how long.." Yerin mumbled quietly towards the younger. "Do you want to go check up on him first?"

Jeongguk stared off at the distance, toward the door the doctor had disappeared to, and gulped down his saliva.

"O-Okay.."

He peered his gaze toward Namjoon, who gave a knowing nod toward him, and then turned to the other side where the room numbers began to get higher. With one step forward, he began his journey past the double doors connecting to a longer hall, and the more his heel pushed against the floor, the more his heartbeat accelerated.

Finally, he could see Taehyung again.

Granted, he wouldn't be awake; but even then Jeongguk could confirm his safety for himself. Though he wasn't quite sure if he was truly ready to see his unconscious lover hospitalized.

A fear that was proved to be potent once Jeongguk had walked into the spacious yet cozy medical room, only one of the bright lights illuminating from the ceiling while the other remained off to ease the eyes a little. As he drew closer he got a better look of Taehyung's sleeping face, his skin pale and weary, dry lips shut naturally.

Jeongguk walked up beside the bed and ignored the beeping of the heart rate monitor that rang loud inside his ears, instead redirecting his attention on the motionless man laying on the medical bed. He could feel his own heart rate pumping faster than the monitor's beats, a sense of fear instilled in him once he began to recall the very moment that had landed them here.

How Taehyung's body had collapsed in the middle of the street, seemingly out of nowhere. How Jeongguk had watched all color leave his skin, as though the man had passed away on the spot.

Jeongguk was scared.

Scared.

Scared.

Life was feeble. And he had assumed the very worst. Had worried much to the point where he was sure he had cried himself dry. And yet he surprised himself once he felt a damp wetness on his cheek, a quiet sniffle jolting out of him while he reached to wipe the tears that had accumulated over his eyes.

And then he gently reached out to cup Taehyung's face into the palm of his hands. His skin felt cold against Jeongguk's warm fingers, but even so the boy pushed back the older's bangs and placed a slow kiss at his forehead.

"You're so loved, hyung.." His quiet voice whispered, his cheek pressing against the older's. "We'll all be waiting on you. Okay..?"

Taehyung's eyes remained shut. A lifeless response to the other's words.

Jeongguk retreated his head, caressed the side of his lover's face gently. And then suddenly—a knock on the door.

His unfocused eyes blinked repeatedly, and Jeongguk slowly stepped back from the bed and strolled towards the exit. When he turned the knob, Yerin appeared behind the door, a faint empathetic smile on her face.

"Gguk... you've been here for a while now just waiting, haven't you?" She then spoke softly, reaching to grasp the younger's frail hands into her own. "Let's go out across the street and get you something to eat."

The boy lowered his head, teeth gently digging to his bottom lip. "I-I'm okay.." he nearly whispered. "I'll stay here and watch over Taehyung."

Yerin's brows quickly lowered in disapproval, hand squeezing on their grip. "Sure, but.. something tells me you'll stay the night here. And you sure as hell won't be doing that on an empty stomach. Now c'mon, it's already past midnight."

There was a hesitant look on the younger's face before he finally exhaled a low breath and gave a short nod. Yerin's smile returned to her lips, and she released her grasp on him before stepping past the doorframe.

"I'll pay him a quick visit before we go—can you go fetch Joon to watch over him while we're gone?"

"Sure.." Jeongguk's small voice spoke up, and the boy exited the hospital room while Yerin moved to take a seat on the chair beside Taehyung's medical bed.

She let her gaze fall on the man's washed out features, listened to the rhythmic beeping of the heart rate monitor attached to him. Her shoulders slumped down, a glistened worried look in her softened eyes. With a careful rise of her hand, she placed her palm over Taehyung's arm and caressed his skin gently.

"You idiot.." She mumbled beneath her breath. "Making Jeongguk worry like that, the way Joon and I've always done.." She fell silent for a moment, the tips of her fingers gliding smoothly down to the male's wrist. "He, of all people, shouldn't get used to paying you dumb hospital visits.."

The beeps of the heart monitor persisted. Yerin's eyes lowered, the ache in her heart falling numb once she assured herself in her thoughts, that Taehyung was strong.

And with that, time had fallen short once there was another knock on the door. Yerin lifted her gaze toward it and rose from the chair, finding Namjoon's half worried face on the other side of the opened door.

"You guys should go eat." The man spoke sternly, head flicking to the right to gesture towards Jeongguk. "Now. Go, go!"

"Alright, alright, I'm going.." Yerin mumbled beneath her breath.

She stole one last glance at the sleeping male, and moved to exit the room altogether.

※ ※

Jeongguk lifted noodles with his chopsticks, head dipping down briefly to take a bite of his meal, only to then slurp it into his system. The warmth, and enticing aroma of the ramyeon did wonders to soothe his ached body, and in that moment he was truly grateful that Yerin had dragged him out of the heavy hospital environment, to put some food into his stomach.

The two had merely crossed the street and were immediately met with a local noodle place, and before they knew it they were sat facing the window, looking out at the empty streets while the city fell into a quiet melody. A stillness that somehow made Jeongguk uneasy. Made it easier for his mind to drift into thoughts of the love of his life laying unconscious in that hospital bed.

Yerin quietly munched on her noodles on the stool beside him, her eyes glancing at his forlorn expression every now and then. And of course, it certainly didn't go unnoticed to her how the seconds would pass and quiet sighs would slip past the younger's lips, almost as though a pattern.

"He's going to be okay, you know..." Eventually she spoke up, an attempt to comfort the boy. To ease the worries that must be flooding at his thoughts, overflowing in anxiety at its edges.

But Jeongguk couldn't help that.

"I'm just trying to understand..." Jeongguk then said quietly, chopsticks pressing together while he poked down at his bowl. "An overdose... why? What could Taehyung have gained for feeding himself all those drugs...? And why now?"

Yerin stole a glance toward his direction and sighed softly. "Chances are it wasn't Tae that took in drugs this time.."

The words made the younger pause, gaze wavering while he lifted his head toward the woman, clacking of Yerin's chopsticks against her bowl filled the air around them.

"You've said it before... That V likes to lie for his own amusement.." He started, voice low. "That he causes mischief, just because he's bored. Which was why that time he and Jimin had an encounter near Abyss, V lied and said Jimin was the one that tried to kiss him. Not the other way around."

A short pause.

"He knew we were best friends, and that something like that could make a dent in our friendship. Perhaps one we could never recover from, if we fell deep into that trap. So V told me that lie, just to see how it would play out. And then he lied again the time he made me do a drug deal, because it was amusing. Or how he would twist words, back and forth, saying he'd never lie to me, or that I'm the only one, or other stupid false statements.."

The boy's hands were shaking now, but Yerin kept her focus solely on his wavering words.

"When we came back from Boryeong, I told you that V practically said he loves me.." Jeongguk hesitated for a moment, and then spoke the words he feared to utter out loud, lest he was only proved right on the very matter. "Is it possible I may have gotten too carried away, in thinking that he meant it..?"

Yerin rose her shoulders in a shrug, mouth preoccupied with munching on her noodles while she listened to the boy. "You should ask him that directly, when you get the chance.." She finally spoke after having swallowed her food. "But-... Well, you also told me that Taehyung was the one you ended up getting intimate with, not V."

Jeongguk gave a slow nod. "All V and I did was make out before that.."

Yerin tapped her chopsticks to the side of Jeongguk's bowl. "And that's just it! He wouldn't do that with just anyone, Ggukie."

The boy looked back down at his meal in silence, allowing the girl to continue."If V really likes someone, he could kiss them for hours and hours on end." She turned back to grab at some more noodles. "He's told me that himself."

Jeongguk glanced at her, cheeks flushed pink while he dipped his head once more to blow at the hot steam rising from his bowl.

"Besides, once that man starts talking about you like some kind of possession, then it's already begun. He's obsessed."

A low, scoffed chuckle. "Is that supposed to be a good thing?"

Yerin giggled in response, another set of noodles entering her mouth. Jeongguk's gaze trailed off toward some spot on the table, suddenly deep in thought.

"I just-... I don't know.." He then sighed, voice weak. "I've tried so hard to be perfect for Taehyung. I've been so patient, and.. somehow managed to be happy with the other alters."

Another pause.

"What if V's an obstacle I'll never overcome..?"

Yerin swallowed the food in her mouth and reached one hand to slap harshly at Jeongguk's arm. "Stop it right there!" She huffed, ignoring the quiet 'ow' emitted from the younger. "You don't have to try to be perfect for Taehyung. You already are. Naturally. And even if V spends the rest of his life trying to push you away, be that annoying little pest on his shoulder and keep coming back to haunt him. He won't be able to keep up his act forever!"

Jeongguk's lips pursed into a pout while he listened to his noona. "Act..?"

"Yes—now finish up your food. The faster we go back, the faster we can check if Tae's awakened yet. That way we can kick his ass ourselves!"

The boy stifled a laugh, tightened his grip on his chopsticks and perked up in his seat.

※ ※

Namjoon sat over the cushioned chair beside Taehyung's hospital bed, arms crossed in front of him, on high alert toward the sleeping male. He'd pay precise attention to every single detail on the monitor—the tempo of Taehyung's heart beat, how quickly or how slowly his blood pressure would change, even watched the steady rise and fall of his chest while the man inhaled and exhaled in his unconscious state.

Though the gang leader's expression remained rather indifferent—a blank resting state on his facial features, the reality inside his head consisted of swarming thoughts and concern. Because, despite this certainly not being his first time seated over a chair and waiting for Taehyung to wake from an overdose, the experience never got any easier.

The man whom he viewed as a little brother. The man whom he shared not blood with, but a mere surname and yet, were anything to happen to him Namjoon would surely lose his shit.

So he watched him, with one leg bouncing up impatiently, his brows furrowed as though with fatherly worry.

The seconds went on and went on and went on, but to Namjoon it all felt so trivial. After all, there were too many thoughts in his head for him to pay much mind to reality.

Even so, what had pulled him right back was the slow flutter of Taehyung's unfocused eyes settling over the ceiling, adjusting to the room. And at first the older thought he had imagined it.

That was, until he heard a curt cough, and Taehyung's head fell to the side while he grunted quietly. Namjoon's eyes became large, his arms uncrossing while he scooted to the edge of his seat, leaned an arm at the side of the medical mattress.

There was a grimace on the younger man's face while he scanned the room he was in, the silence being repeatedly punctured by the beeps of the monitor attached to him. He blinked a few times, then slowly shifted himself while he sat up on the inclined bed.

"Hyung.." He spoke in a coarse voice, laced in thick gruff, eyes glossed over. "H-Hyung, I'm-... I'm sorry.."

Namjoon closed his eyes briefly, shook his head while he forced a calm smile to his lips. He reached a hand over and placed it at Taehyung's leg over the bedsheets.

"It's okay, Vante.." The older said the words quietly, in a soothing voice. But it didn't stop the alter from wiping his eyes, only for new tears to laminate them quickly.

A sniffle. "W-We overdosed..?"

Namjoon exhaled softly. "Yes, kid."

"I'm s-sorry.."

"You wouldn't have known."

The rhythmic beeping filled their short lack of chatter, and then Taehyung's gaze fell somewhere to the floor, facial muscles relaxing back into a blank expression. Namjoon watched him patiently while the man sat seemingly frozen for a prolonged amount of seconds.

"Vante?" He then spoke up. "Who's trying to front?"

Taehyung's hand twitched beside him, head slowly turning to look at Namjoon. "Our-.." A low grunt, "Our body's in.. a lot of pain r-right now, so-.."

"Hm." Was the other's simple response.

After all, he knew how this all worked by now. Whenever Taehyung's body came to a load of emotional distress, it was usually Dot who would take over and process the system's mental pains.

But when it came to physical pain, well... There was really only a certain alter that could tank that ache for them all on his own. Which was why Namjoon would always end up face-to-face with him in a hospital bed.

"It hurts that much? Would you like me to call a nurse for painkillers?" Namjoon's head tilted to the side in question, and Taehyung's dark eyes remained fixated over him.

With a rumbling of his deep voice, the man then spoke his response.

"No, I'm good. Vante's just a pathetic little crybaby."

Namjoon let out a low chuckle, his hand retreating back toward the edge of the bed. "Cut him some slack, yeah?" A short pause. Namjoon leaned back on the chair and stretched out his legs. "Nice to see you, V."

"Nice of you to visit us."

The older glanced at the monitor before letting a quiet sigh slip past his lips. "If you heard Vante and I talking I'm assuming you know what's going on."

Taehyung shook his head to the side, eyes then beginning to roam around the room. "I didn't hear you guys. But one look around and I can guess we overdosed. Isn't that right?"

Namjoon nodded, watched as Taehyung wiped a tear from his cheek, remnants of Vante's curt period of distress. He then opened his mouth to say something, and a short knock on the door interrupted him. The gang leader rose from his chair, retreated to the room's exit and peeked through the small window on the door, to see just who was on the other side.

Taehyung blinked in silence while the older then turned to look back at him, the gentle smile from before still stretched over his lips.

"We'll talk later, alright? You've got a little visitor who's been eager to get back to you."

The alter's brow quirked up in slight confusion, though he didn't utter a response to those words; instead watched as Namjoon swung the door open and stepped past it, only for someone else to timidly stroll in and swap places with him.

The door shut. Two men's gazes found each other, and Taehyung's lips slowly parted. Quiet footsteps approached the medical bed he was laying on, and seconds later someone new was sat over the same chair Namjoon rested over just seconds ago.

Somehow, Taehyung couldn't look away from the big eyes that held his stare, an innocent glimmer in them, although he could tell that the boy now seated beside him was somewhat nervous. Worried, maybe.

Worried about them. All five of them.

But the two didn't speak a word. For a while, they let the heart monitor speak for them. The consistent beeps assured Taehyung's health, and the boy—Jeon Jeongguk, gladly let the sound wash away his fears.

Though, despite the lack of conversation the older was making, and the fact that Dot had been the last alter he had interacted with, Jeongguk knew that Dot himself couldn't have still been fronting.

No. That intent stare, the cluster of shadows pooling at the edges of Taehyung's pupils. A look that challenged its opponent, pierced through corneas and penetrated emotions. It was all too obvious who he was facing.

But V had avoided him this whole time, since their date in Boryeong. Surely, upon Jeongguk's sudden presence he'd take the opportunity to switch out and let another alter deal with him.

And yet, their silence continued. And so did V's stare.

It took a prolonged amount of seconds for Jeongguk to finally realize that V wouldn't back out. That he wouldn't run away, despite the efforts he had made to avoid interacting with him.

But that, too, was just like the alter. V never runs from a fight, after all.

"H-How-..." Jeongguk quietly cleared his throat, then spoke up. "How a-are you feeling, hyung?"

The corner of the older's lips stretched into somewhat of a smirk.

"Like death's knocking at my door."

The boy lowered his head, hands clasping together over his lap. There was a short tremble on his lip before he continued. "The-... Um, the doctors said you overdosed..." He let his thumb brush over his knuckles. "Were you taking drugs..? Or-... did something happen, with your medication?"

The small grin at the older's lips faded, the usual blank expression replacing it.

"Jeon." His rough voice husked out, and Jeongguk lifted his head to look at the man once more.

To meet those challenging eyes again. And somehow the lack of response irked the younger more than he'd like to admit.

"What? Are you not going to tell me?" Jeongguk huffed. "Not going to explain because it's 'not my business'?" He perked up in his chair, brows lowering into a permanent frown. "Well, whether you like it or not it is my business. Because Taehyung is still my boyfriend, so I think I have a right to know about the things that could be a danger to him. I understand you may not want to share everything, V. But you do share your body with Taehyung, as well as Dot and Vante who I know would want me to know what's going on, so.." He took in a deep breath. "So—tell me what's going on!"

The older merely stared back at the boy, seemingly intrigued by the younger's strangely scolding tone. Though truthfully, he couldn't say he hadn't quite expected the sudden burst out of Jeon Jeongguk.

So he pushed a low breath from his lips and laid back against the bed, hand reaching to rub at his forehead.

"Ah.." He muttered. "How I could use a smoke right about now.."

Jeongguk's eyes narrowed, watching while the older looked off to the side, perhaps deep in thought. But before a pout could form over the young one's lips, Taehyung spoke again.

"I'll... explain everything," he said slowly, gaze still directed at a spot on the wall. "When I'm out of here.. we can have a proper talk. I won't run away. Alright?"

Jeongguk blinked back at him in slight surprise, somehow not having expected the alter to have been compliant so easily. As though he had thought about it for a while now. Because, offering to have a talk with him was unusual, in Jeongguk's eyes.

But there was no way he'd turn that offer down, so the boy quietly uttered a word of agreement, and the two were back to more silence. Taehyung's face remained turned to the side, and Jeongguk watched him in a gentle gaze. The way his dark eyes seemed distracted, though somehow focused on something—perhaps his own thoughts. Jeongguk imagined perhaps the alter was busy having conversations inside his head. With the others, maybe.

Because truthfully it didn't seem like V was actively ignoring him, but rather he was preoccupied with something else. And after a long moment of a stagnant atmosphere, Taehyung was the first to speak again.

"What time is it?" His deep voice husked out.

Jeongguk slowly unclasped his hands, let them rest over his thigh. "Um.. it's 4am right now.."

"I'll be released later in the morning, yes?"

The boy nodded, despite Taehyung's gaze being elsewhere. "Y-Yes. Well, at noon.."

The older finally lifted his head and Jeongguk's jaw lowered, tongue urging to push lingering words from his mouth. Words he'd meant to ask the alter days ago, but he'd never gotten the chance in his absence.

But V was fronting now. He was there, right in front of him. So Jeongguk wasn't about to let this chance slip him by.

"V.." He began, throat dry, a sudden chill feeling rising at his skin at the sheer anticipation. "Can-... Can I ask you something..?"

Taehyung returned eye contact, the usual cold stare digging into the boy's accelerated heart. Really, this wasn't his first time confronting the alter while he was laid over a medical bed, but as it turns out it was still just as intimidating.

And at the lack of response, Jeongguk continued. "At the hotel... after our date, you-.." He gulped down his saliva, then lifted one finger and placed it directly on the mole below his lips. "You kissed me here. Do you remember?"

The older didn't say anything, at first. Instead his gaze on him persisted, until it fell down to the floor, and then back up to Jeongguk's eyes.

And eventually, Taehyung finally responded.

"Yes. I remember."

Jeongguk slowly lowered his finger, then quietly cleared his throat and shifted timidly in his seat.

"Well, it-..." Jeongguk paused, took a brief moment to inhale a long breath. "Doing that has a deeper meaning, you know..." He mustered up the courage to maintain direct eye contact with the menacing alter. "T-Taehyung knows, but I-... I thought he was the only one that knew.."

The man's deadpanned expression remained blank while he spoke.

"He's not."

Jeongguk froze in his seat, breath caught in his throat while he processed the other's words. "H-He's not the only one?" He let out quietly. "Then-... You knew what you were doing when you kissed my mole like that?"

Taehyung blinked. "Yes."

Suddenly, the room wasn't quite as frigid as Jeongguk had initially found it. A temperature that reflected that of the outside world's frosty winds. But instead, the boy's skin began to heat up, a warmth stemmed from his sudden embarrassment upon realizing the alter's intentions.

"R-Really..?" He squeaked out, though his face remained with that of sheer surprise.

The older scratched the side of his neck and swiftly looked away, lips pressing to a thin line while he let further silence linger between them. Following a couple of beeps from the heart monitor, he then spoke up, gaze avoiding Jeongguk's.

"You should go home. It's really late."

Jeongguk bit back a smile, a shine reflecting over his glossed doe eyes. "No way. You'll get lonely without me."

"I don't get lonely."

"Everyone gets lonely."

More silence. Jeongguk leaned forward and placed his arms over the mattress, then rested his head down over it while he kept his soft gaze on the older.

"Fine.. I'll go home." He then said, foot tapping gently beside him. "But only when I confirm you're sleeping here safe and sound. So until then, let me watch over you." He let his fingers graze the sheets with a slow brush of his nails. "Is that okay?"

Taehyung crossed his arms in front of him and narrowed his eyes at the younger boy, a stale expression remained at his features.

"Do whatever you want, Jeon."

✱