San's POV

Everyone has their own coping mechanism for stress, Seonghwa goes to cuddle with Hongjoong, Hongjoong writes songs, Yeosang talks with Wooyoung and the other's all have their ways. My coping mechanism probably isn't the greatest one, or most sanitary. Ever since I was a child, I've had this irrational fear of having long nails and I developed a habit of whenever I'm really tired or anxious, I chew my nails. One, it helps with the stress and gives me something to do and two, it helps with my fear as my nails will never be long. Unfortunately though, it's not the best thing to be doing and I've constantly been told off because of it. No one knows why I'm doing it because I've never told them but they all know I bite my nails and I'm always getting told off by Hongjoong, Seonghwa and Mingi.

We've had a really long past week, doing heaps of promotions and a few small performances. It's been tiring and everyone's absolutely exhausted which is why everyone is asleep right now. Oh maybe also because it's 1am but I'm still awake. I'm laying in bed, staring up at the ceiling aimlessly as my brain won't shut off. I clenched my fists around my sheets in frustration and turned over for the hundredth time. Why can't I just sleep! I sat up and grabbed my pillow, going to throw it against the wall but stopping at the last second. I quickly put my pillow down and stood up, walking to the other side of the room. I sighed and gently bent down, placing a soft kiss to Mingi's forehead and softly brushed his hair from his eyes. He moved slightly in his sleep and cuddled closer to his pillow, making me smile fondly. Sometimes people forget the Mingi is actually one of the youngest in the group, he always seems to act older. Well not always, he does act like a child sometimes but he does act older a lot. I pulled his covers up and tucked it softly under his chin before going back to my bed and sitting down, leaning against the wall. I groaned in frustration but made sure to keep my voice down so that I wouldn't accidentally wake up Mingi. I wanted to sleep, I need to sleep but for some reason I couldn't. It was frustrating and upsetting and before I knew it, tears of frustration welled up in my eyes. I don't understand why I can't sleep. I've gotten like 8 hours of sleep in the past two days and that is nowhere near enough sleep. I brought my hand up to my face and slowly begun to chew on my nails as I continued to get frustrated. I leaned my head back and smacked it against the wall with a sniffle as the tears begun to fall. I bit down harshly on my nails and a small sob escaped my lips. I looked down at my nails and noticed how they were longer than usual. Damn it, I haven't been fixing them lately. I've been too preoccupied with all of the schedules we've had going on that I haven't paid attention to my nails. Fear and more frustration built up in my stomach and pretty soon I was hurriedly chewing on my nails, trying to get them back down too a reasonable size. I was so zoned out that I didn't realise just how much I was chewing on them until I felt a sting and I looked down at my hands. They were bleeding, and they stung like hell. I begun to cry harder as I shook my hands, trying to get rid of the sting that I could now very much feel. I sobbed and brought my knees to my chest as my body begun to shake. My fingers were stinging but I couldn't stop myself from chewing again. I was a mess, chewing my nails, sobbing and shaking on my bed in the pitch black in the middle of the night but I couldn't stop myself. I started to get choked up and my chest felt tight but I couldn't stop. I just COULDN'T!

"Sannie, Sannie, shh. Hey don't do that aegi." I jumped in surprise as hands slipped into mine and pulled them away from my face. I tried to pull them away but he just held on tighter.

"L-Let go," I sobbed.

"Sannie. Sannie I need you to look at me." I slowly lifted my eyes up and met his that were looking at me in concern.

"That's good, you're ok," he said softly.

"Take a deep breath for me San," he whispered. He moved so that he had both my hands in one of his and he lifted his other one to gently caress my face. I took a slow deep breath and closed my eyes, leaning into his hand as my cries calmed slightly.

"Good job San, that's it," he encouraged. His voice was soft and calm and it made me feel safe so I shuffled over and collapsed in his arms. He hugged me close and started to brush his fingers through my hair softly to calm me down, not letting go of my hands. I sniffled and buried my head in his neck, itching to bite at my nail. I tried to move them again but he held on tightly to them, gently rubbing the back of my hands with his thumb.

"San you can't keep biting your nails. Your fingers are bleeding," he told me.

"I want to, I have to," I cried.

Mingi's POV

I was startled awake by the sound of choked sobs coming from somewhere in the room. I was still half asleep so I groggily opened my eyes and sat up. I rubbed my eyes sleepily, looking around before my eyes stopped on a figure across the room. I sat up straight as I realised it was San leant against the wall, sobbing. What the hell? Why is he awake and why is he crying? I took a closer look and realised his hands were by his mouth, a tell-tale sign of him chewing his nails. It's something we've tried to get him to stop doing but he never does, I think it might be some sort of comfort thing because he always does it when he's anxious or scared. Another sign he is anxious or scared is the fact that his body is trembling. Shit. I jumped out of bed and quickly rushed over to his bed.

"Sannie, Sannie, shh. Hey don't do that aegi," I said as I went onto the bed and quickly slipped my hands into his. I pulled them away from his mouth, fighting back a gasp as I noticed the blood on the tips of his fingers. Has he bitten them so much that he made them bleed? I felt him resist and try to move his hands away from mine so I held them tighter.

"L-Let go," he sobbed. My heart clenched as his sobs but I can't let him continue damaging his fingers.

"Sannie. Sannie I need you to look at me," I told him. I need him to look up at me in order to try and help calm him down. I don't fully understand what's wrong with him but his breathing is slightly off and he's crying which means he's upset. He lifted his head up and he sad, tear filled eyes met mine.

"That's good, you're ok," I encouraged him. San does well with encouragement so that will probably help him calm down.

"Take a deep breath for me San," I whispered to him. I moved so his hands with both gently held in only one of my hands and I gently raised my other hand and placed it on his cheek, rubbing it softly with my thumb. His eyes slipped closed and he nuzzled closer to my hand.

"Good job San, that's it," I said, smiling fondly. I was surprised when he suddenly moved over from the wall and climbed into my lap, all but collapsing into it. Despite the surprise, I quickly hugged him back and ran my fingers through his hair, something Wooyoung always does when San is slightly worked up. I kept his hands held in my own, so he wouldn't bite his nails. He moved his head so it was nestled into my neck. I felt him suddenly try to pull his hands away, catching me off-guard but I quickly stopped him from moving them, rubbing them softly.

"San you can't keep biting your nails. Your fingers are bleeding," I told him firmly.

"I want to, I have to," he said with a cry. Huh?

"What do you mean you have to," I asked him.

"I can't stop myself. T-They can't be long," he said shaking his head.

"But they aren't long San. They're literally bleeding because you chewed them too much. You need to stop doing that, it's really damaging," I said with a frown.

"I'm scared. I'm scared of having long nails and when I get frustrated or anxious I bite my nails. I'm so tired Mingi, so, so tired but I can't sleep. I tried so hard but I couldn't get to sleep and then I got so worked up so I started biting my nails. I couldn't stop and I'm still tired and can't sleep and now my fingers are stinging. They really sting," he ranted. Oh my god, that's why he's always chewing his nails? I never realised it was actually because he was scared of having them too long. And he's having trouble sleeping? Poor aegi.

"Why don't we go get those fingers cleaned up then huh bub," I asked gently. He sniffled and nodded quickly. I slipped back off the bed and quickly lifted him up into my arms, letting him hug me like a bear. I carried him out of the room and over to the bathroom down the hall quietly, so as to not wake anyone else up. I turned the light on and closed the door behind us gently before setting San down on the sick. In the light I could see just how bad his fingers were. They were red raw and there was blood all over them. Thankfully it didn't seem to be as bad as it looked, it just bled a lot.

"How are you feeling darling," I asked him as I gently wiped his tears off his face. He was still slightly crying and sniffling but he seems a lot better.

"It stings," he said sadly.

"I know aegi and it's going to hurt as I clean it up but I promise you that afterwards it will feel a lot better," I said with a sigh.

"O-Ok," he sniffled. I placed a quick kiss on his forehead before kneeling down and grabbing the first aid kit from the cupboard and placing it next to the sink.

"Uh, uh, no Sannie," I said, quickly pulling his non-existent long nails from his mouth.

"Here, nibble my sleeve if you really want to chew something," I said with a sigh, holding up my arm. He sniffed before grabbing my sleeve and starting to chew on it. He looked cute, like a big child but not in a bad way. I kept my arm held up and used my other to open the first aid kit, pulling out a few things that I would be needing. I looked back up at him to see him still chewing my sleeve with wide eyes.

"I need to clean your fingers now, can I have my arm back," I asked him. He whined before slowly opening his mouth and letting my sleeve fall out before pouting.

"I take that as you're feeling a lot better," I said with a chuckle.

"I think maybe chewing things just helps," he said, his cheeks turning pink.

"That's fine," I said as I grabbed his hand and started to clean his fingers, making him wince slightly.

"No, it's not. God, it's so embarrassing," he said, making me look up.

"What do you mean it's embarrassing," I asked, continuing to clean the blood.

"Only babies chew on things. Not only that but I'm scared of something so stupid," he groaned.

"That's not true. Any fear is in no way stupid, especially yours. There's nothing wrong with you being scared of having your nails too long, nor with you wanting to chew something to calm down. Maybe you like chewing things because of your fear or you got your fear because you always chew them, having nothing else to chew," I pointed out. I paused what I was doing at him so I could look up at him, showing him I was sincere. He was quiet for a few seconds before he finally spoke up.

"Thank you Mingi, for everything tonight. I didn't mean to wake you and force you to look after me. I'm the older one, I sh-."

"Don't you dare say that you're supposed to be the one looking after me, that's not how it works. We're a family Sannie, we all look after each other. Did Hongjoong complain when he overworked himself in the studio and Jongho carried him home and looked after him. That's the Maknae looking after the second eldest, you're literally a few months older than me," I pointed out.

"Oh, good point. But still, I'm so sorry for waking you up Gi, we all need our sleep-."

"Says the person who hasn't slept yet, you wanna tell me why that is," I asked softly as I continued on with the last few fingers.

San's POV

I was so embarrassed at how I'd been acting with Mingi. I mean seriously, I was chewing on his sleeve for some stupid reason. But it made me feel so much better for some reason and it took my mind off my nails.

"Thank you Mingi, for everything tonight. I didn't mean to wake you and force you to look after me. I'm the older one, I sh-."

"Don't you dare say that you're supposed to be the one looking after me, that's not how it works. We're a family Sannie, we all look after each other. Did Hongjoong complain when he overworked himself in the studio and Jongho carried him home and looked after him. That's the Maknae looking after the second eldest, you're literally a few months older than me," he cut me off. Ok, that is a very valid point.

"Oh, good point. But still, I'm so sorry for waking you up Gi, we all need our sleep-."

"Says the person who hasn't slept yet, you wanna tell me why that is," he asked, cutting me off yet again. I would've rolled my eyes but he was genuinely looking after me.

"I dunno. My mind just won't shut off and it just got more and more frustrating and I kind of just spiralled from there," I said looking down sadly as he finished cleaning my fingers. He sighed and grabbed some band-aids, beginning to apply them to the tips of my fingers.

"Was it eerily silent and could you just not feel comfortable," he asked me. I furrowed my eyebrows and looked down at him as he remained looking at my hands.

"Yeah," I said slowly.

"You've had that feeling before," I asked him.

"A few times. Sometimes you can get just too overstimulated," he told me.

"How'd you get over it," I asked.

"I just went to Yunho and slept next to him," he shrugged, standing up as he finished bandaging my fingers.

"Oh, that sounds. That's cool," I said with a small nod. Realistically, I wanted to ask if I could sleep next to him but he's already helped me so much tonight and I don't want to burden him.

"Yes, you can. It's fine. Let's get some sleep before we have to wake up in a few hours," he said, making me yelp as he suddenly picked me up. I wrapped my arms around his neck and my legs around his waist as he turned the light off and carried me down the hall.

"You don't need to carry me Gi," I whispered shouted. He chuckled as we got into the room and he chucked me down on, he put me on his bed? Wait a second, I just registered what he said earlier.

"Wait, how'd you know I wanted to sleep next to you," I asked with a raised eyebrow as he walked over my bed.

"Because it's you Sannie, you love cuddles and I mentioned a hug which means your gonna want one. Here's Shiber," he said, handing me my plushie. I grinned and slipped under the covers as he joined me and I immediately cuddled up to him, with Shiber in my arms. He chuckled and wrapped his arms around me and let me rest my head on his chest.

"Thank you Gi," I whispered into the darkness.

"No problem Sannie. Always happy to help," he whispered. He begun to brush my hair softly and sleep was surprisingly quick to embrace me.

A/N

This was requested by @Harry_1276 and I really hope you like it!

Thank you everyone for reading  :)