Hongjoong inhaled deeply as he took in the familiar scent of his pillow. He pressed his face further into the soft plush and sighed in contentment. He could have sworn he had the most awful dream about escaping some kind of hospital but he was glad it was over now and that he hadn't left his nice, warm bed.

Deciding that he had probably slept enough, he stretched in a cat like manner and set his feet on the chilly wooden floor. He scratched absently at the back of his head and he smacked his lips as he made his way blindly to the bathroom. His mouth was surprisingly dry and his limbs were heavier than normal. Maybe he was getting sick.

Now inside his bathroom he flicked on the lights and noticed that his first aid kit was all over the floor. Frowning in confusion, he bent to pick up a few of the items. Once his hands were full he stood up to put them back in the case when he caught sight of himself in the mirror. For the second time in twenty-four hours, everything clattered back on the ground.

Staring at his reflection everything from the day before came rushing back. Feeling bile rise in his throat, Hongjoong threw himself at the toilet and felt himself dry heave violently. If he had anything in his stomach, he was sure it wouldn't have been there for long. After about a minute of convulsions, the small man felt something wet touch his cheek. Reaching up and touching his face, he found that he was crying.

The first tear seemed to open the dam and suddenly he descended in full out sobs. He didn't know how long he sat on the cold bathroom floor but by the time he pulled himself up and looked back in the mirror, his eyes were heavily swollen and bloodshot. Feeling a sudden surge of anger and disgust at the sight that greeted him, he picked up his soap dish and tossed it at the glass. He watched in a sick sort of satisfaction as the mirror shatter along with his reflection.

Once all the anger seeped out of his body, he suddenly felt exhausted and empty despite just waking. Not able to stand to be in the same room anymore, he made his way slowly to his living room and collapsed on his couch. He pulled his knees to his chest and wrapped his arms around them. He was about to place his head down when he noticed a bowl on his coffee table that he didn't remember being there before.

Mingi. The name suddenly hit him like a ton of bricks. The lanky man had been in his apartment. He would have known that Hongjoon hadn't come home. In fact, who knows how long he had been trapped in that hell hospital before he had woken up. He couldn't imagine how his friend must be feeling. He was sure that the other was probably out looking endlessly for him and he didn't have his phone to call him.

Standing from his couch he made his way into his room to change clothes. He knew it was a horrible idea to go out right now in an emotionally volatile state. He didn't even know or understand the full extent of what had happened to him but he couldn't let his friend worry for another moment. He had to tell Mingi he was alive.

Not really caring what he was grabbing, he threw on a black hoodie and black pants. He ran a hand through his hair and, remembering it was a bright red now, pulled a black cap on that he found in the back of his closet and threw the hood on top. It wasn't necessarily strange to have bright hair. It was Seoul, lots of people had unusual hair colors. He could just tell people he dyed it, but it still felt unnatural to him and he felt it necessary to hide it. He didn't want to risk running into anyone that could recognize him while he was out.

The biggest problem was his godforsaken eye. Going back into the bathroom, he sorted through the mess that was his first aid kit, mindful of the broken mirror shards, before finding what he was looking for. He was grateful now that he still had the disposable eye patches from when he had pink eye last year. He placed that on his face and, once it was secure, put on a surgical mask to hide the rest of his face, just to be safe. Once ready, he pulled on the first set of trainers he grabbed by his door and headed out.

It only took a moment for Hongjoong to decide on his destination. With his goal in mind, he hopped down his apartment steps quickly and kept going straight. Behind him, the sun had already set on the horizon and the man realized he must have spent more time in his bathroom sulking than he realized. He hoped that he would be lucky and find Mingi still there.

While walking, Hongjoong placed his hands in his hoodie pocket and tried to keep his head down to look at his feet. He kept a steady pace until he felt himself step on something. Curious, he moved his foot to see what it was, only to be greeted by his own face smiling back. Startled, he bent down quickly and picked it up.

It was a fairly recent picture of him. Mingi had taken it the moment he had announced he finished his new song for his music theory project. It was the same work his tall friend had assured him was good the last time they were together at the cafe. His hair was still long and sandy blonde and his smile was so big it almost made his eyes close completely.

He tore his eyes away from his face to scan the rest of the paper. It was a missing person's flyer and said that if anyone saw him to call, day or night. He recognized the number as Mingi's. He was right. The other was out looking for him and was even putting up flyers all over town.

The only other thing on the flyer besides his name was a "date last seen" that read October 29th. Realizing he didn't even know what day it was, he looked up and spotted a small newsstand a few yards away. He took off towards it and skidded to a stop in front of it before roughly grabbing a newspaper. He ignored the shout of "hey!" and "damn, kids" at his rough treatment of the merchandise and scanned it for the date.

November 14th. Two weeks. He had been missing for a little over two weeks. He felt the sick sensation from this morning return ten fold. Two weeks he had been held captive having who-knows-what done to him. Two-weeks of Mingi having no idea where he was and driving himself crazy looking.

Having seen enough, he tossed the newspaper back on the stand and took off again. By the time he had reached his destination he was panting with his hands on his knees. Once he had caught his breath he stood and stared at the mahogany door and debated whether or not he wanted to go in. Was he ready to possibly face Mingi after being gone? He wasn't, but he didn't think he could put it off any longer. With a deep breath he pushed away the gut clenching feeling inside that made him want vomit, took off his face mask, and pushed the door open.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Yeosang! Wait up!" The older CCG agent didn't slow his stride as the apprentice called out to him from behind. Jongho, struggling to keep up behind him, started a light jog to catch up to the other. It was a few hours from sundown and the two had just returned to the office after spending hours, in Jongho's opinion, looking at nothing. As soon as they had pulled into the parking garage, the older agent was out of the car and walking quickly inside the building.

"You should really address me with honorifics," the lighter haired man said emotionless. "I am older than you and your superior."

Jongho had to resist the urge to roll his eyes. Yeosang had been acting oddly ever since their talk with the director and getting scolded. The younger had figured the other man's pride had been hurt and so he had decided to stay back to see if everything was alright but now his behavior was reaching the point of ridiculous. He had always been a bit of a reserved guy but despite Jongho's best efforts, he had not said more than three words to him all day. For someone older, he sure was throwing a righteous temper tantrum.

"Maybe I would if someone wasn't being a colossal baby," Jongho muttered under his breath, finally unable to take it anymore.

"What was that?" Yeosang shot back with a raised eyebrow.

"Nothing," replied the younger a little too quickly. When he still saw the skeptical look on the older's face he sighed. "Look, whatever is bothering you, just tell me. We're a team and I want to help." When the other didn't reply, Jongho had to bite back the urge to sigh again. It seems like it would take a lot longer to worm his way into the shell of one Kang Yeosang.

They walked in silence for another minute or two before they came upon their designated office space. Jongho typed in the passcode and waited for the accepting beep. Once it did, he held the door open for the other to enter through, which he did without a word. The two entered the office, expecting to be alone, and were surprised to see their leader typing vigorously at his computer.

Seonghwa exhaled heavily as he threw his head back in his chair and rubbed at his face in frustration. He had just read the fourth email containing the lab results on the lollipop stick and it had come back negative for all traces of DNA. At first he couldn't believe it and had the lab keep retesting it, much to the annoyance of the lab tech, and now he had no choice but to accept the results. Not only did he not get the lead he was hoping for, he may have ended up getting himself banned from ever showing his face in the laboratory again for risk of incurring the wrath of the head of the department.

"I thought it was supposed to be your day off?" Seonghwa turned his head at the sound of his subordinate's voice. "You wouldn't shut up about it for weeks and I expected you to be spending the whole day binge watching How to Train Your Dragon since you look like one."

"Oh, ha-ha Yeosang," the leader replied sarcastically. "Yes, just another one of your hilarious Toothless jokes. For your information, I was following up on a lead but it turned out to be a bust."

"Well, what was your lead?" Jongho asked while pulling out a chair and flipping it around to sit in it backwards.

"Did either of you see a guy dressed in all black? Two-toned hair with a compass neck tattoo?" Both young men shook their heads in the negative. "Figures. Well he was a little off to me but he dropped a lollipop stick before he left so I figured if I could identify him by his DNA. If I could find out who he was, I could ask him some more questions but the lab results kept coming back inconclusive."

Jongho raised an eyebrow. "You seriously went to all that trouble just because he was a little odd? The world is full of weird people."

"Hey," Seonghwa said decisively with a point of his index finger. "I had an instinct and I followed it. I've been on the job long enough to not ignore gut feelings."

"Well, did you ask him any questions?" Jongho continued. "Maybe you can figure out more about him from what he said. He could have let something slip."

Seonghwa leaned his head back again and closed his eyes to think. "He said he owned a store in the area with 'certain' clientele. Whatever that means."

"Seriously?" Yeosang asked incredulously. "You really need to get out more. It means we have to look for any shops that sell decidedly adult things. We just check each one out and see if we can't find your guy."

Seonghwa looked decidedly uncomfortable but tried to play it off. "Why do you know this? You're too young for all of that!"

The sandy brunette rolled his eyes. "It's like you never experienced adolescence and secretly looking up stuff and tried not to get caught by your parents."

"Anyways..." Jongho said loudly as he spun in his chair to stand. "Yeosang and I can start compiling a list of places to visit. Why don't you go home and get some rest?"

The eldest of the three sighed and rubbed tiredly at his eyes. "Yeah, I'm sure you're right. I trust you guys can handle it without me." The agent stood from his chair and headed for the door but before he could open it, he heard a voice cry out.

"And after we're done with this case we are going to find you a partner!" Seonghwa paused and turned to see Yeosang leaned back in his seat with a grin on his face. The eldest didn't even bother with a comeback and just shot the other the bird before exiting.

Jongho had his hand in front of his face to hide his laughter. The youngest may not have been the biggest supporter of teasing an authority figure, but at least Yeosang seemed to have been out of the mood he was in earlier. It just went to show how much he had to learn and how new he was to the team. Jongho couldn't get anything out of the older but a few minutes in a room with their leader and he was back to his old self. He hoped that one day he could have a relationship with his team like that. Or even this one if he was lucky enough to be able to stay on.

"What are you sitting around smiling for?" Yeosang chastised, back to his stoic self now that they lacked supervision. "We have work to do."

Jongho watched as the other turned to his computer before he himself turned to his own. The room was soon filled with furious typing and the other mumbling to himself. After a few moments a frustrated whisper of, " Why are there so many sex shops in this area?!" And the younger had to suppress his smile.

Yeah, this team would do.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Mingi rubbed vigorously at his eyes while trying to stifle his yawn. He couldn't remember the last time he had gotten a full night's sleep since this whole thing started. The lanky boy spend almost every day out on his bike searching for his lost best friend. If it wasn't for Yunho, he probably would have stopped going to classes all together but the blonde had put his foot down and insisted he at least attend some of them and email his professors so that he wasn't too far behind.

Thinking of the other boy caused the corner of his lips to twitch. He had been Mingi's rock these past two weeks. It was a wonder that basically a stranger would take in an emotional wreck but now the lanky boy knew the blonde had a heart of gold. The brunette just wished that it wasn't such a horrible event that caused the two to form a friendship.

"I'm going to take the trash out," Yunho called from over his shoulder as he headed for the back entrance that lead towards the alley. Mingi nodded from behind the counter where he was still drying dishes. It has been about a week since the blonde had asked if the tall man would like to help out at the cafe-part time and he was grateful to have something a bit mindless to do with his hands to keep him occupied. However, when he remembered the events that triggered Yunho to ask caused the man to wince.

Mingi stumbled as he tried to catch himself on a nearby wall. A few hours ago now he had just left a meeting with the officer's of Hongjoongs case to check if there had been any progress in finding him. The officer there had disregarded the seriousness of his case, stating that he was a man who had freshly entered into his twenties, he could take care of himself and would turn up eventually. They said they would keep looking, but that he himself should stop and focus on other things.

Mingi had to resist the urge to shout at the ignorant uninformed men. They didn't know his best friend like he did. They didn't know that he would never disappear like this and that he would never leave without telling him. They only had each other. It was how it had always been, ever since Hongjoong's mom died at the end of elementary school and Mingi's dad left in middle school. They had promised they would never leave each other like their families had left them. They would become each other's family. And now Mingi's family was gone who-knows-where.

He had gone on a bender after that. He went to several convenience stores and bought as much Soju and beer as he could with whatever cash was in his pocket and sat by the river. Somewhere around the second or third bottle he could feel his senses dulling. After, he figured to screw what the cops said and to keep looking but first he would need to sober up. He was wasting time just sitting here.

With a lurch, the tall man pulled himself up and moved in one direction. Was the ground always that far away? Shaking off the thought he made his way back up the hill and let his feet carry him in any direction.

After about a fifteen minute walk he was feeling the chill of the early November air as he suppressed a shudder. Eventually, he tripped on his feet and collapsed into a brick wall to his left. Looking up, he noticed that his body had unconsciously taken him to the cafe. Ignoring the unlit sign that read Utopia: Coffee and Cake (Had it always been called that?) Mingi drunkenly reached for the door handle. After missing several times because he was reaching for one of the three spinning ones, he finally got ahold of it and gave a yank.

The door didn't budge and Mingi gave a huff of frustration. Looking around he noticed a small back alley. Figuring it might lead to a back door, the brunette headed in that direction. Spotting a door that he hoped led to the cafe, he tried for the handle and this time it turned. He let out a little cheer as he fell into the back kitchen, the door banging loudly on the wall behind him.

Not even bothering to close it, Mingi attempted to fumble his way into the main dining room. Whenever he felt himself lurch he threw out a hand and attempted to catch himself which just ended up in him knocking things down with a clatter. Finally reaching his destination, he managed to shuffle himself behind the coffee bar. He rummaged through the numerous glasses, not caring how much noise he was making. He was staring curiously at the siphon when he heard a sound from beside him.

"Mingi?" Yunho was standing at the end of the counter staring at him in confusion with his head slightly cocked to the side. He was wearing a t-shirt and plaid flannel pants. His hair was in disarray as if he had just rolled out of bed and his eyes were squinted as if he wasn't fully awake yet to comprehend the situation he was seeing. That reminded Mingi that he had no idea what time it actually was. "What are you doing here?"

Mingi held up the siphon as if it were the obvious answer. "Coffee."

"The cafe is closed," Yunho answered as if he still couldn't believe what he was seeing. "A-are you drunk?"

"No," the brunette shot back airily as he tried to peer into the siphon like a periscope. "I'm buzzed ."

"How did you get in here," Yunho said.

"Back door s'unlocked."

"Forget it." The blonde sighed and rubbed at his forehead. " Look, just why don't you come sit down for a minute."

"No!" Mingi suddenly shouted, throwing the siphon to the ground. The other man in the room jumped from the sound of shattering glass and the sudden shift in moods.

"Why can't I look for him, Yunho?" The blonde looked up from the broken pile and into the eyes of a man that was quickly becoming a good friend to notice that they were as glassy as the shards by his feet. "They said I can't look for Hongjoong anymore."

"Who?" the blonde asked quietly as he slowly approached like he were a scared animal, careful not to startle him. He could feel a few pieces of glass cutting into his feet but the man chose to ignore it. He reached out a hand to softly lay on the brunette's shoulder. "Who said you can't look for him anymore?"

Mingi hiccuped as the first tear escaped from the corner of his eye. "The police. They said that he was a man and could take care of himself. That he probably went out on his own without telling me, but that's a lie! I know he would never do that."

"No, no, of course he wouldn't." The other guided the brunette closer as he whispered gently. Once Mingi was close enough, the blonde guided his head onto his shoulder as the dam broke. Yunho rubbed the brunette's back as his shoulders shuddered and wetness seeped into his shirt. After awhile, standing became too much and the young barista guided them both to the floor and leaned against the counters while Mingi curled further into the other. The cafe was silent except for the brunette's soft cries.

"He's my family. He's all I have left." Mingi muttered brokenly after some time had passed. His crying had turned into soft sniffles and his eyes were puffy.

"Hey, hey don't say that." Yunho guided the other's head back up to stare him in the eye. "We'll find him and you'll get your family back." The blonde paused and the corners of his lips turned in a small smile. "Besides, you have me to help now."

Mingi gave a soft smile back. "You know, you have been awfully nice to a stranger. How do I know you aren't just waiting to take advantage of me?"

Yunho barked a short laugh. "Ok, that right there is how I know you're going to be ok."

The brunette laughed with him the giggles died out quickly. He asked, "How did you find me here anyway?"

"Besides all the noise you were making?" The blonde asked with a raised eyebrow. When the other didn't respond he continued. "I live in the apartment above."

Mingi made a small 'ah' sound and nodded. The brunette was decidedly more sober now after his crying episode and he moved away from the blonde to find his own space leaning against the counter. The two fell into silence after that but it wasn't an awkward one. In fact, the student felt quite comfortable as he stared at his hands.

"You know," Mingi started after a few more minutes. The waiter turned his head to give the other his full attention. "I've known Hongjoong since we were kids. We always went to the same school together but we never really talked. He was a pretty quiet kid, always carried around this notebook." A small nostalgic smile quirked his lips for a moment but as quickly as it had shown up, it fell.

"It wasn't until his mom died that we really became close. I don't know how much it had really affected him. I never saw him cry about it but I would see him sit by the river every day after school and just....stare at it." Mingi gave a half shrug. "I never knew what he found so interesting and I didn't ask but, I don't know, one day I was walking home and I saw him, just sitting there."

Yunho didn't dare say a word as he watched the other young man regale his tale. He seemed lost, almost in another world. "So one day, I just sat next to him...and the next...and the next. Until finally, we started talking." Mingi took a deep breath and leaned his head back to stare at the ceiling. "I thought he was a weird kid at first, always talking about music, but then I got to know a bit more about him. I guess you could say then that the rest was history. We've been inseparable ever since."

"It's really nice that you have that with someone," Yunho said softly while pulling his knees to his chest. He wasn't going to say anything but it was starting to get rather cold in the room. "I'm sure Hongjoong feels the same way about you and is trying to get back home as quickly as he can, wherever he is."

"Yeah," Mingi exhaled softly. "I think so too." The two lapsed into silence for a third time but no one dared to break this one. Instead, the brunette felt his eyes grow heavy and soon it was difficult to keep them open. The two were found by another part-timer the next morning asleep with their heads leaning against one another and peaceful smiles on their faces.

Mingi felt the corners of his lips twitch at the memory. It was the next day that Yunho had offered him the part-time position and joked that, now, he didn't have to break into the cafe, he could just unlock the door (with strict stipulations, of course.) It was a miracle that an honest guy like Yunho still existed in this messed up world but the brunette would be forever grateful. Who knows where he would be or what he would be doing right now without it.

The tall man was brought out of his musings as the bells above the door chimed, signaling a new customer. "Sorry, but we're closing up-"

The sound of breaking glass filled the room as the coffee cup Mingi was drying slipped out of his fingers. "H-Hongjoong?"

The man at the door looked up and gave a shaky laugh while reaching up and rubbing the back of his head nervously. "Yeah, it's me."

The taller man didn't waste anymore time and launched himself over the counter and raced towards the other before pulling him into a tight hug. The two held on tightly to each other and Hongjoong took a deep breath and refamiliarized himself with the others scent. It was the same, rugged but homey smell as before but this time mixed with a hint of coffee. He may had been asleep for most of his time missing but he couldn't imagine how hard it must have been for Mingi who lived through each day.

"Mingi, you're crushing me." Hongjoong mumbled from where his face was pressed into the taller man's chest.

"I don't care," came the response from above. The smaller of the two chuckled before he patted the other on the back and he released him but still kept ahold of his shoulders. He took a moment to fully look his friend over. "Oh my god, Hyung, what happened to your eye?"

He made to reach for the eye patch and Hongjoong, panicked, slapped it away with a shout. "Don't touch it!"

Mingi retracted his hand as if he had been burned and he had a slightly hurt look in his eyes. The smaller man sighed in guilt and tried to make up an excuse. "It's, uh, still healing. Can't get any bacteria in there."

"Well what happened? Are you okay?" Mingi seemed ready to hop out of his skin. At the meer mention of anything by the shorter, he would run to the moon to get it. At the question, Hongjoong felt his panic rise. He hadn't thought of an explanation. He just wanted to see his friend as soon as possible. Quickly he glanced around the room to try and look for any reasonable excuse. Spotting the TV behind the counter he saw a news broadcast about a car wreck on the highway and that the area would be blocked off for the next few hours.

"C-car," The man sputtered out quickly. At his friend's raised eyebrow he tried to elaborate on his lie. "I was hit by a car."

Mingi's mouth dropped open and he had to take a step back. "A car?! Why didn't you call me? Why didn't the hospital call me? We're each other's emergency contact!"

Hongjoong felt extremely awkward and he rubbed on the back of his neck to have something to do with his hands. "I didn't really have my phone or wallet on me....and I was sort of in a coma the whole time."

"Oh my god," The taller whispered for the second time. He rubbed at his forehead in disbelief. "But you're okay to be out of the hospital now right?"

"Yeah," Hongjoong breathed out. He didn't really sound like he believed himself but if it would put the other's worries at bay he didn't mind lying no matter how much it hurt him to do so. "I think I will be."

Mingi looked like he was about to say something but caught sight of something from underneath Hongjoong's hat. "Did you dye your hair?"

"Uh," the shorter boy didn't really have a valid response for that and fumbled. "I guess I wanted a new start once I woke up and realized I was still alive. Seeing the light and all that."

"You wake out of a coma and the first thing you do is dye your hair?" The brunette said with skeptical eyebrow. He didn't look like he bought it but didn't bother to question it further. "Whatever, all that matters is you're okay and that you're back now."

The now red-head let out a sigh of relief that was quickly interrupted by a loud growl that seemed to have been coming from his stomach. Mingi laughed. "Looks like someone is hungry. Grab a seat, I'll make you your favorite sandwich and pour you a cup of coffee."

"That would be great, thanks." The shorter smiled as he sat down on one of the barstools at the counter. "So you work here now or something?"

"Sorta?" The brunette said as he stooped by the sink to wash his hands. "I'm mostly just helping out for now. It's only been a week and it's probably temporary. Yuho offered me the job since he figured I needed something sort of mindless to keep me busy after....you know."

Hongjoong nodded. He didn't need anymore clarification. He crossed his arms and placed them on the counter. "So you and Yunho have gotten pretty close, huh?"

"Well I needed someone to stand in as 'best friend' while you were away," the younger joked while placing a filter on the siphon. "But it's nice to have the original back."

"And I fully intend to take that position right back." the red-head played back. It was nice to fall back into old routines. It was familiar. Safe. The two shared a laugh before sobering up.

"But seriously," The brunettes said, his eyes softening with a look of fondness. "He-he's been like a rock these past two weeks. I'm really grateful to him."

Honjoong mimicked the look and smile softly back. "He's been good to you, huh?"

"Whose been good?" another voice chimed. The two turned to find the aforementioned man making his way back into the main room as he wiped his hands clean on a towel.

"Yunho!" Mingi said enthusiastically as he ignored the question. His whole body seemed to perk up with excitement. "Look who's back!"

The blonde's eyes shifted over to the other person at the counter and the smallest of the three gave a small little wave. "This is great! I'm so happy for you Mingi and it's nice to see you again Hongjoong. I'm glad you are back safe."

"I was just about to go make him a sandwich, I'll be right back." The younger said as he headed back into the kitchen. Yunho, seeing where the other left off with the siphon, grabbed the kettle of hot water and started to slowly pour it over the coffee grinds on the filter in a measured circle.

"I know I don't know you that well but I really am glad you are back." The blonde said without taking his eyes off the process. "He really cares about you."

Hongjong once again felt the guilt gnaw at his insides. "I know he does. Thank you for taking care of him."

Yunho just half shrugged on shoulder. "I just did what anyone would do."

The red-head shook his head. "No you didn't. You went above and beyond for him and I really appreciate that. He may look big, but he is a huge softy. I'm glad to know if something happened to me, someone would be there for him."

"Yeah, well, lets not have a repeat performance ok?" The blonde muttered with a half smile.

Hongjoong nodded with his own smile. "Duly noted."

"Lunch is served!" Mingi announced with a flourish as he burst from the kitchen. He set the plate down proudly in front of the other and waited for him to take a bite.

The red-head laughed at his friend's antics and shook his head as he picked up the offered meal. He didn't realize until that moment how hungry he was. He hadn't had a proper meal in over two-weeks. With anticipation, he opened his mouth and took a bite. As soon as the bread hit his tongue, though, he gagged and had suppress the urge to spit the food out.

"What's the matter?" Mingi asked concerned, "I know I'm not a great cook but a sandwich isn't too hard."

"I-I'm not sure." Hongjoong forced himself to swallow or risk offending the other. The bread tasted like what he imagined a moldy sponge would. The lettuce and tomato felt like slime sliding down his throat. "I must have hit my head harder than I thought and it messed with my sense of taste?" He responded feebly.

Yunho furrowed his brows at the response but decided to ignore it. He finished his prep and poured a cup of coffee before setting it in front of the other man. "Here, this should help."

Hongjoong looked at the cup suspiciously before taking it and sipping cautiously. When he found that the taste was still the same, the tension in his shoulders released and he sighed gratefully. "Thanks."

The blonde nodded but he pressed his lips together into a thin line. "No problem."

The three sat for about another hour chatting as Hongjoong nursed his coffee. He didn't dare touch his sandwich again for fear of actually getting sick this time. Finally they had decided to call it a night and Yunho offered to finish up the rest of the closing duties so Mingi could walk Hongjoong home.

"Are you sure you're not hungry?" The brunette asked as they were putting on their jackets. "We can always stop somewhere and pick up something."

"Yeah, I'm fine." The red-head said as they made their way outside. "Maybe I just need to ease myself back into eating, yannow? Drink some broth or something."

"I guess that makes sense," Mingi nodded before quickly cutting in. "Do you want to stop somewhere and grab some?"

Hongjoong laughed. "I'm fine, Mingi. Don't worry so much about me."

"I can't help it," the other huffed as he placed his hands on top of his head. "You just got back. I want to make sure you don't go disappearing on me again."

The shorter rolled his eyes, "Trust me, I don't plan on doing that again anytime soon."

"Are you sure you're safe crossing the street then?" Mingi shot back. "Maybe we should take the long way around and avoid crosswalks. Don't want you to be careless and get hit again."

"Yah!" Hongjoong protested as he playfully shoved the other. It seemed that he was back to his old playful self. The two joked and teased each other the whole way back and before they knew it, the two were outside the smaller's apartment.

"Seriously, though, you sure you're going to be alright by yourself tonight?" Mingi asked as he pulled his arms closer to his body for warmth. "Or do you want me to stay with you?"

"I think I should be alright for right now. I think I'm just going to head to bed." Hongjoong replied quickly. As much as he did want to spend more time with his friend, he didn't want to risk the other seeing his eye.

"If you're sure," the taller said a bit dejectedly, but he didn't stay that way for long. "But I demand a sleepover as soon as you feel recovered enough!"

The red-head chuckled as he typed in the passcode to his apartment. "Wasn't even a question." The two bid their final farewells before Hongjoong opened his door. As soon as it shut behind him he sighed in relief as he leaned against the cool metal. That was a lot more stressful than he imagined but he hoped now that the worst was behind him, he could maybe move on.

With a yawn, the man pulled off his shoes and tossed them to the side, not even caring where they went. It had been a long evening and he couldn't wait to crawl into his sheets. He wasn't lying when he said he was just going to head to bed. Tomorrow he would have to visit school and figure out just how much work he had actually missed.

Walking into his living room, he flipped on a lamp.

"About time you got back."