Sunshine Shower

Even though it was the weekend, there were probably pharmacies open. As he went to the living room and grabbed his wallet, he called Nam Tae-eun. The porridge he had eaten last time suddenly flashed through his mind. Woo Yeonjae, who was picky about food, wouldn’t eat convenience store porridge, so it seemed like a good idea to buy it while he was out.As he was about to take the call outside, he heard a familiar voice over the phone while putting on his shoes in the foyer.– Oh, isn’t it my roommate who’s been out all night?“Hyung.”Moon Seoyoon chuckled softly as he finished putting on his shoes.– Why? Roommate who’s been out all night?“You don’t usually come home on weekends either, so what are you talking about?”Lowering his voice, Moon Seoyoon opened the front door. As he stepped outside, the still-chilly air hit his cheeks. Since the breeze felt cool, it was evident that Woo Yeonjae’s body temperature was quite high.– When someone who’s usually good at something fails once, they get nagged even more. Anyway, how’s your friend? Is he okay?“Ah, yeah. It seems he doesn’t need to go to the hospital.”Moon Seoyoon had already told Nam Tae-eun it was another friend. If he found out the sick friend was Woo Yeonjae, he would definitely start nagging.– Then why? Is something wrong?“You bought me porridge last time, right? Where did you get it?”– Are you going to buy porridge?“Yeah. There’s a pharmacy nearby, right?”– Yeah. Hang on. I’ll find it and send it to you.After a brief pause, a message with the address appeared. Judging by the distance, taking a taxi seemed like the best option. Since it would be disappointing for Woo Yeonjae to wake up to find no one there, Moon Seoyoon planned to make the trip quickly.“Thanks.”– Are you coming back to the dorm today?“I’m just going to drop off the medicine and leave.”– Okay. If you’re thankful, bring back something tasty when you come.“Yeah. Call me if you think of something you want to eat.”Moon Seoyoon waved at an approaching taxi.Making porridge doesn’t take as long as I thought. Moon Seoyoon pressed the familiar password while holding the porridge and medicine bag in one hand. It was a number he couldn’t forget.He went straight to the kitchen and set down the porridge, then grabbed some water and medicine before heading to the bedroom. He felt rushed.“Where did he go?”Contrary to his expectation that Woo Yeonjae would be sound asleep, the bedroom was empty. The only sign that someone had been there was the messy blanket. Given Woo Yeonjae’s habits, he would have tidied up as soon as he woke up, but the bed was in disarray.Moon Seoyoon put the medicine on the side table and then heard the sound of running water. It seemed like Woo Yeonjae was taking a shower immediately after waking up. Considering his neatness, it wasn’t surprising, so Moon Seoyoon decided to wait until he came out, although he had an oddly bad feeling.As he moved towards the bathroom, he paused before knocking. The door was open.‘Something…’Why is there no warm air if he’s showering? As he thought about it, his hand moved on its own.“Woo Yeonjae. What are you doing right now?”Woo Yeonjae was standing under the shower. Far from being steamy, the bathroom was almost frigid.Moon Seoyoon knew that taking a cold shower with a fever wasn’t advisable. He quickly ran over and turned off the water.“Who takes a cold shower when they have a cold?”His eyes, which had been blinking slowly, turned to look at him.“…Is that you, Moon Seoyoon?”“What nonsense is that? Who else would it be?”Standing under the shower with his clothes on, the contours of his body were clearly visible. Moon Seoyoon tried hard not to notice and pulled out a towel to hand to him. Instead of taking the fluffy towel, Woo Yeonjae just blinked vacantly.“Seoyoon.”“Why?”“Are you going to leave me again?”At the unexpected question, Moon Seoyoon furrowed his brow.“When did I ever leave you?”“I woke up and couldn’t see you…”“I went to get medicine for you…”“I was about to go look for you, but, ugh… my body wouldn’t cooperate.”Woo Yeonjae twitched his cheek and irritably brushed back his wet hair.“I thought maybe it was the fever, so I tried to cool down, but washing my face didn’t clear my head.”“…So that’s why you were standing under there?”“Yeah.”From his tone and train of thought, it was clear he wasn’t in his right mind, likely due to the fever. Moon Seoyoon thought he should quickly give him medicine and get him to sleep. What to do about the cold shower, though? Should I turn on the hot water and warm him up? He was flustered, raising his arm to dry the wet hair, when his wrist was caught.“I can’t cry when you’re not around.”“What?”“There’s no one to watch me.”With fever-glazed eyes and a languid smile, Woo Yeonjae drew his lips up in a moist grin.Moon Seoyoon let out a breath he’d been holding. The sound of water droplets echoed in his ears. It seemed to be drops falling from Woo Yeonjae’s hair.“…”In the cold bathroom, without a trace of steam, Moon Seoyoon found himself unconsciously mouthing words as he faced his flushed, heat-soaked face.Perhaps it was because the words, “I’ll only cry in front of you,” sounded excessively special. Even though he knew they held no particular meaning to Woo Yeonjae, he couldn’t help but feel affected.He didn’t want to be mistaken again.“What are you talking about, again?”Moon Seoyoon mumbled, avoiding the hand that wasn’t caught and adjusting the direction of the shower lever. If they stayed like this, the heat would intensify, and they couldn’t remain in this standoff any longer. More than anything, the hand Woo Yeonjae had wrapped around his wrist was icy cold, like ice. If he left it like this, Woo Yeonjae would fall seriously ill.“And let go of my hand.”He wondered why someone so sick could be so strong. Then again, if he could stand calmly under cold water, he must have considerable endurance.“If I let go, you’ll just go to someone else.”“What are you talking about? Who else would I go to? I’m not going anywhere.”He couldn’t understand what had gotten into Woo Yeonjae to make him say such strange things. As he looked at him in disbelief, Woo Yeonjae’s eyes, heavy with fever, grew hazy.“You won’t abandon me?”“Why would I abandon you? I told you, I went to get medicine.”Woo Yeonjae’s gaze, as if trying to discern the truth, slowly blinked open and shut repeatedly. Only after several more attempts did the grip on his wrist finally loosen. Though the cold touch left him, the spot where his wrist had been held felt uncomfortably warm.“Shall I turn on the water?”Moon Seoyoon pulled Woo Yeonjae slightly to the side to avoid the direction where the water would fall, then turned on the shower. Soon, warm water began to flow. After checking the temperature with his hand, he guided Woo Yeonjae to stand under it. He couldn’t just leave him there under the cascading water in his dazed state, so he made sure only his shoulders were getting wet.“You’re more troublesome when you’re sick, even though you’re not usually unwell. I’ll leave some clothes out front, so wash up and come out. Did you hear me?”“You’re not going to leave?”“I told you, I’m not leaving. But if you keep acting like this, I might just go. What are you, a kid?”He was acting strangely all morning, and Moon Seoyoon couldn’t understand why he was behaving like this. He frowned slightly, thinking it might be best to take him to the hospital since he kept talking nonsense.“Okay.”Woo Yeonjae responded as he peeled off his drenched t-shirt. The action, abrupt yet natural, made Moon Seoyoon take a step back. He had to make a conscious effort not to be overly aware of Woo Yeonjae’s bare body.“Are you sure you’re in the right mind to shower? I’ll leave the clothes out front.”“Yeah.”His voice echoed in the bathroom. Woo Yeonjae still spoke with a tone as if he were half-asleep. The moment Moon Seoyoon saw his large hands moving towards his pants, he awkwardly turned around and hurried out of the bathroom. The cold air quickly heated up around him.After carefully closing the door, he found himself unable to move, standing still in place. It wasn’t Woo Yeonjae’s bare body that made him freeze but his sudden actions. The nonsensical words kept echoing in his ears.“Is he acting like this because of the fever?”He recalled the saying that people who are normally healthy tend to get really sick when they finally do fall ill. Maybe that was why.Swallowing a sigh, Moon Seoyoon headed to the dressing room. First, he planned to bring him some clothes and then wait until Woo Yeonjae finished washing up before giving him his medicine. Whether he’d put him to bed or take him to the hospital would depend on Woo Yeonjae’s condition.In the dressing room, he began to gather clothes with familiarity. It was only the second time he had visited Woo Yeonjae’s studio apartment, but having frequented Woo Yeonjae’s family home since they were young, he knew how his clothes were organized.Should he grab something long-sleeved? Moon Seoyoon debated whether to choose a short-sleeved or long-sleeved shirt and eventually settled on a simple hoodie. Since Woo Yeonjae was burning up, keeping him warm seemed to be the priority. After picking out a pair of sweatpants, he stopped in front of the drawers.‘Underwear… I should probably grab some.’Though getting underwear for a friend wasn’t a big deal, he couldn’t help but feel a bit awkward. But he couldn’t just bring out only the outer clothes, so he cautiously opened the drawer and pulled out a pair of underwear. He quickly wrapped it in the hoodie, feeling a wave of self-consciousness, questioning what he was even doing.After that, he felt a mix of embarrassment and guilt, realizing he might be overthinking the situation.“Sigh…”Moon Seoyoon ran a hand through his hair with a sigh and left the dressing room. Placing the clothes in front of the bathroom door, he listened closely and heard the faint sound of running water. The occasional change in the sound suggested that Woo Yeonjae hadn’t collapsed under the shower.Returning to the bedroom, he picked up the cup of water and the medicine from the side table and made his way to the kitchen. No matter how sick Woo Yeonjae was, he had a habit of not eating in bed. Since he would likely eat the rice porridge at the dining table, Moon Seoyoon planned to give him the medicine afterward.“Is the porridge cooling down?”When he touched the container, it still felt warm. It seemed like it would cool down to the right temperature by the time Woo Yeonjae finished showering. Feeling restless, Moon Seoyoon thought of searching for information about heat exhaustion on his phone. Just as he turned it on, a notification popped up at the perfect timing.