(Had this song on repeat the whole time lol. Opening theme to Goblin, the Lonely and Great God)

Too hot. 

Teller cracked one tired eye open, only be greeted by complete darkness. He let out a quiet groan and tried to get up, but couldn't. Keeping himself calm, he focused on what he could hear and feel, without actually reaching out with his arms, which felt mostly pinned beneath weight. 

He soon figured out that he was still in Tay-Yun's bed, and that Tay-Yun was likely the weight holding him in place. Judging by his calm breathing, he was out cold, leaving him between a bed and a slightly muscular, hard place. 

I could just shove him off, but then he'd likely wake up. If I tried to carefully move him, he also might wake up. 

It didn't help that every few breaths from Tay-Yun tickled his neck, making Teller squirm. That had probably been what woke him in the first place, along with the added body heat beneath the blankets. He was considering his options, pros and cons, when he heard something from the hallway. He couldn't quite figure out what it was, but curiosity had him carefully nudging Tay-Yun until he was free of the guy, then hurried to slip from the bed. 

Once out in the hallway, Teller knew exactly what was going on. He hurried to the kitchen and got a glass of warm water, mixing in some honey before carefully carrying it to the bathroom where Sahn-Re was hunched over the toilet, shivering and coughing in En-Ti's arms. 

Aw, this isn't good at all. Poor Sahn-Re. 

The guy's normally perfectly styled hair was an absolute mess and hung limply, shielding most of his face as he wretched into the toilet. He set the cup down quietly on the edge of the counter, catching En-Ti's eye long enough for the guy to nod before he was silently dismissed as his attention returned to comforting Sahn-Re. 

Not wanting to intrude, Teller hurried from the room and found himself perched on the sofa watching the TV with the volume low. He knew that it was embarrassing to be heard throwing up, so he made sure that it was just loud enough to hopefully make Sahn-Re feel a little less stressed about being sick. 

"Hmm. We've got a show tomorrow night." Wan-Nu said quietly from behind him, nearly making Teller jump as he came around the side of the sofa and sat beside him. Neither him nor En-Ti looked like they had slept much, if at all. 

Sahn-Re definitely won't be okay for tomorrow's concert if he doesn't feel better soon, and that doesn't look like it's about to happen. 

Teller wasn't sure what to say as he focused on the television broadcasting the weather for the next few days. When he felt a nudge to his arm, he looked over at Wan-Nu. Immediately, he was hesitant considering the look on the guy's face. 

"Teller..." Wan-Nu said slowly, making Teller fidget. 

"Yes?" He asked, hesitant. 

"Do you know any of our songs?" Wan-Nu asked, a tiny flicker of hope in his eyes. 

Uneasily, Teller nodded. "About eight?" He said as he leaned back discretely, only for Wan-Nu to lean forward. 

"I know you don't know to play instruments." He said in slightly broken English. "But, you learn very fast and already know them..." 

He's insane. I can't learn eight songs so quickly! 

A gentle hand sifting through his hair for a brief moment brought his attention up to Tay-Yun as he came into view heading toward the kitchen. "That's unfair, Wan-Nu. One day to learn how to play for Sahn-Re?" 

Wan-Nu sighed and leaned back into the couch. "Yeah. I got ahead of myself. We'll just have to cancel the show." 

Frowning, Teller looked back toward the bathroom. He hadn't heard Sahn-Re throwing up anymore, but they also hadn't come out yet, either. Ah, I think I hear the shower running. He's probably rinsing off. 

He got up from the sofa when Tay-Yun walked over to take the other spot beside him. "I think I'm going to go rest a bit more." He mumbled before heading back toward Tay-Yun's room. 

Teller knew that it was stupid to even consider trying, but he found his feet walking over to the spiral staircase at the far end of the bedroom. This is stupid. You're stupid. Even so, he carefully walked down the dark staircase, then searched along the walls with the help of the faint emergency light by the sealed double doors until  he found a light switch. 

It was a dull glow around the piano area, but not too bright. There were several more switches, but he didn't want to accidentally push something besides a light or turn on too many. Okay. Just sit down and prove that you can't do this, then go to bed. Nodding to himself, Teller slowly walked over to the piano, stifling a small yawn as he sat down. 

His fingers went through the keys quickly, remembering each of their sounds much easier after having played a few times before. I don't have the beats memorized yet. He realized, getting up from the piano to wander over to the sound room. Unsurprisingly, there were several stacks of CD's sitting just inside the room. 

Checking the doorknob, he grinned when it turned easily in his hand. Even less of a surprise when he started sifting through the CD's, was that they were all different versions of Ello's songs. Some were remixes, works in progress, and so on. He finally found what he was looking for after a few moments. 

Their third CD. D.N.A.

Taking the case, and a small CD player likely kept for studying, considering it looked ancient but well taken care of, he made his way back out to the piano. Tucking the earbuds in that were already connected to the device, he slid the CD from its case and put it in, then hit play. 

For nearly thirty minutes he just replayed the first song on the disc. After that, he began singing the lyrics, easily remembering them after a few tries. Alright. Got that down. Now for the music. He lifted his hands to the keys after lowering the volume just enough so that it would mesh with what he played, but he could still tell the two sounds apart. 

His first try was hilariously funny, but keeping the smile on his face, he forged onward. It took him about an hour before he could turn off the CD player and go through the entire song without a single mistake, besides what his tired mind sometimes slipped in here or there. 

Okay. That wasn't so bad. 

Pursing his lips, he then licked them and turned the CD player back on, this time going through the second song. Since the first one had warmed him up to all of the keys' sounds, he managed to get through the second song in about thirty minutes. 

Covering his mouth as a yawn slipped out, Teller stood from the bench and stretched his arms over his head. He was getting really tired, but he wanted to know what was going on with Sahn-Re. Setting aside the CD player and headphones, he hurried back upstairs. He wasn't sure if he was relieved or more worried when he noticed that the bathroom was empty. 

"En-Ti took him to the hospital. He's got a pretty bad fever." Tay-Yun said as he walked over with a cup of what appeared to be tea in his hand. 

He pushed it forward until Teller was forced to take it. The cup was warm to the touch and when he brought it to his lips, Teller faintly tasted mint and honey. "Mmm." He took a few more sips before the cup was taken back and Tay-Yun took a drink from it. 

Hey... wasn't that supposed be mine? 

"I was just letting you taste." He said, giving Teller a smirk before turning on his heels and heading toward his room. Teller stalked after him, scowling at his back as his hands balled into fists. 

He expected Tay-Yun to climb into bed after finishing his drink, but instead, he headed toward the stairs and descended. Teller stayed at the top of them, weighing his options. He was tired, and the clock on Tay-Yun's nightstand told him in dimmed lights that it was close to three in the morning. 

"Come here." Tay-Yun's command drifted up to him, drawing a frown on his lips. 

Just to spite Tay-Yun, Teller turned and walked back over the chilly floor toward the bed. He was almost there when he felt a strong arm wrap around his waist, easily halting his steps. Grumbling, he turned to glare up at Tay-Yun in the darkness. 

"What do you want? I'm tired." 

When Tay-Yun didn't respond, Teller  turned back around and struggled to get away, but Tay-Yun just added his other arm to hold him, the cup he'd previously held clearly absent. "Come on. Let me go Tay-Yun. I want to go to sleep." He said, frustrated. 

He was just about to start trying to stomp on the guy's feet when he felt Tay-Yun's forehead press gently against the back of his head, making him freeze. "We are going to make roughly around fifty-thousand American dollars for this concert. It's not a big one, but it's important because a lot of the tickets were gifted through different programs to those who normally wouldn't have been able to afford to come normally." He said as his arms gently tightened around Teller's belly, forcing him back against Tay-Yun's chest. 

"I will pay you if you can learn those eight songs." Tay-Yun added quietly. 

Teller frowned, staring down at the floor as he tried to focus on the guy's words and not where his hands were. 

"But a concert is almost always longer than eight songs." Teller mumbled. 

I do owe them for all their kindness, though...

"Yes, we intended to play more." Tay-Yun replied. "But, they will understand if Sahn-Re's sick, but to just cancel... I really don't want to do that." 

"Can't you play all of these songs on the piano easily enough?" Teller asked as he stepped forward, finally being allowed out of Tay-Yun's grasp so that he could turn around and look at the young man in the darkness without being restrained. 

"Yes, but I have to play the guitar for most of them, as En-Ti is our drummer." 

Teller knew that the guy also played the guitar, but then that would leave one of them off drums, piano, or guitar. Most of their songs incorporated all three and wouldn't sound the same without one of the instruments. 

His shoulders hunched and he returned his eyes down to his feet. "I'm not a musician, Tay-Yun. I don't want to stand up in front of people." He didn't have the enthusiasm Sahn-Re did. The charisma Tay-Yun did. The poise that En-Ti did. Hell, even Ike looked pretty content when he was performing. 

I'm not a performer. I just want to stand behind a curtain and do my job without people looking at me. 

Feeling Tay-Yun's hands gripping his shoulders, Teller lifted his head again. 

"Just those eight songs. I'll pay you double what you earned yesterday, including what Ike added on." 

That's a lot of money... 

He still felt his stomach twist nervously. To learn six more songs, then perform them later that night. It was a daunting task to think about. Especially because he had to play in front of hundreds of other people. 

"Would... it help if we kept the piano just out of the audience view?" 

Teller licked his lips, thinking his words over. If he didn't have all of those eyes on him... perhaps it wouldn't be nearly as hard. He was used to hearing all the cheering, music and singing. 

"I... might be able to do that." He said, his words quieting as he spoke them. 

His nerves had his arms shaking slightly at just the thought of doing it, though. He was just about to open his mouth and decline, when Tay-Yun leaned over and wrapped him in a tight hug, then pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Let's try." He said as he hurried to take Teller's hand and tug him toward the stairs. 

In a daze, Teller let himself be pulled. They spent the next several hours listening to each of the eight songs Teller knew through the large speakers Tay-Yun turned on. He had assured Teller that no one was sleeping until they got the OK that Sahn-Re was doing well, so they could use the speakers to study. 

They did help, because they allowed for the bass of the songs to come through like it would on stage, allowing him to catch the beat much faster than before. As they worked, they shared the tea until it was empty, then Tay-Yun ran upstairs to refill it and bring down a container of spicy beef for Teller and plain rice and ham kimbap for himself. Teller stole a few pieces of his food as they worked, just because he could... and he knew that Tay-Yun wouldn't dare touch the spicy beef. 

"You are a brat, you know that?" Tay-Yun reminded him for the fourth time as Teller popped another piece of kimbap in his mouth happily.

He couldn't help picking at the guy. Even with his slightly frustrating attitude, he was still kinda nice, especially when they were working on something. They spent another hour on the fifth and sixth song before Tay-Yun's phone began ringing. 

Teller immediately stopped playing when he picked it up, then listened in, since it was clearly impossible not to in such a quiet room. 

"Hey Tay-Yun, Wan-Nu might have fallen asleep waiting, since he didn't answer his phone. The doctors want to keep Sahn-Re for at least two days. His fever is high and he's dehydrated. I'm going to stay with him. Let me know what Wan-Nu has decided for the concert tomorrow night."

"It might still be on, but we'll see. Take care of Sahn-Re and be careful not to get sick. We'll talk again tomorrow." Tay-Yun said before hanging up. 

"I hope he gets better fast." Teller whispered before covering his mouth on a yawn. 

He shook his head to try and push away the clouds of sleep starting to weigh down his mind, but he could feel himself falling asleep sitting there. 

"Come, you are tired." 

Before Teller could respond, Tay-Yun took his hand and pulled him up from the bench. "We will clean up tomorrow." He added before tugging him carefully up the stairs. 

There was nothing that could have felt better at that moment then falling into Tay-Yun's bed. "I will go check on Wan-Nu. Good night, Teller."  

He mumbled something unintelligible in response, then shut his eyes. Not a second later, he was out cold. 

He awoke some time later when the bed shifted. Sleepily, he rolled toward Tay-Yun and opened his eyes, only to see the guy sitting on the edge of the bed, leaning over, holding his head with one hand. 

What's wrong? 

Immediately, Teller jerked himself upright, thinking that something could have possibly gone wrong with Sahn-Re. "Tay-Yun?" He didn't respond right away, so Teller scooted closer and leaned over, trying to see his face. "Tay-Yun? Is everything okay? Is Sahn-Re okay?" He asked, trying to keep from overthinking the situation until he actually knew what was wrong. 

Hm? Is he wearing his jacket? Did he go out? 

Looking down, he noticed that Tay-Yun was barefoot and wearing pajama pants, from what he could see with the minuscule light from his alarm clock. So he wasn't going out, but then why the jacket? 

After waiting several minutes for some type of response, Teller gave a silent sigh and carefully climbed out of the bed. He wasn't  happy with the frigid feeling from the tile on his bare feet, but he ignored it as best  he could as he walked from the room, down the dark hall, and toward the kitchen, feeling along the wall as he went. 

When he turned on the kitchen light, then looked back into the living room, Teller noticed Wan-Nu asleep on the sofa. En-Ti would get a hold of him if something happened to Sahn-Re... Reluctantly, he went over and picked up Wan-Nu's phone. He clicked it on and quickly swiped through the few recent messages that he was allowed to see with the device still locked. 

No calls from En-Ti since earlier. Thank god. 

He quickly set it back down, then took one of the folded blankets from under the television stand and draped it over the guy. Teller then went back to the kitchen and looked through the teas, only to find none that said mint. Did he use it all? Or maybe make it himself? Come to think of it, it didn't taste very strong at all. 

Opening the fridge, Teller grinned as he found a bag of mint leaves pushed behind a few takeout containers. The honey bottle had fallen over, but it was right next to the bag. Taking both, he nudged the fridge shut, then got busy heating up some water, then carefully measuring out the drink and testing it until it tasted pretty close to what he'd had earlier. 

I hope he at least will sip this. He thought as he turned off the lights and navigated his way back to Tay-Yun's room. To his surprise, Tay-Yun wasn't there, and there was a faint light from the stairs. 

Just let him be. 

It was hard not to go down and try to comfort him since he appeared so hurt for some reason, but if he hadn't talked before, he probably just wanted to be left alone for a while. Deciding to just set the cup of tea on the nightstand, Teller did just that, then climbed into bed. His frozen feet warmed quickly after he climbed beneath the blankets, drawing a tired sigh from him as he nuzzled into the pillows. He never usually slept with more than one, but he found that it was actually quite comfortable to have several. He even grabbed a smaller one and hugged it to his chest with one arm, while the other rested next to it. 

He was asleep in minutes, but it felt like barely an hour had passed before he was awake again. Teller didn't open his eyes when the bed dipped next to him, however, signaling that Tay-Yun was finally coming to rest. He thought that he'd just lie down and go to sleep, but when he heard him lift the mug he'd placed on the nightstand, then take a barely-audible sip, he had to fight to keep himself from smiling a little. 

It was quiet for several long minutes as Tay-Yun likely nursed the drink. When it was finally set down quietly, Teller forced himself to relax more, in order to appear like he was still asleep. He felt the bed shift close to him, but only near the upper portion. 

He's not lying down? Is he sitting next to me, then?

His question was partially answered when he felt the bed dip a little closer to him, then the faint feeling of fingers brushing against his messy hair. Teller nearly caught his breath at the touch, but managed to steady himself before he gave any clear signs that he was still awake. 

Tay-Yun's touch was gone a few seconds later, leaving silence before the sound of rustling filled the large room. A warm weight that had to have been his jacket, considering it held the same weight and was very warm from his body heat, settled over the blanket Teller had pulled up to his shoulders. 

He felt Tay-Yun get under the blankets soon after, then the faintest of touches against his hand that was just barely sticking out from the top of the blanket near Teller's face. 

He's resting his arm over mine beneath the blanket... and pressing his fingers to the palm of my hand, almost as if he's thinking about- Tay-Yun's fingers slowly, ever so slowly, danced along Teller's skin, up the base of his fingers, until they all slid over just enough for him to then bend them, grasping his hand gently. 

Tay-Yun released him after a minute, a sigh escaping his lips before his weight shifted and the blankets pulled a little, silently telling Teller that he'd rolled over to give him his back. 

Teller felt his own body relax as time passed slowly in the darkness. He couldn't tell if Tay-Yun was asleep or not, but neither of them moved or made any indication that either of them were still awake... until Teller slowly scooted a little closer. 

He inched his way forward over several long minutes, being sure to keep the jacket over himself, until he leaned forward and pressed his forehead faintly against Tay-Yun's back. He felt the young man's muscles tense immediately, but forced himself to stay still until Tay-Yun released his breath a few moments later. When he didn't move away or speak, Teller allowed his eyes to finally close. It was surprisingly easy to fall back to sleep next to him.