Help

Yitian grabbed Chao's hand and squeezed it, needing help from him. It was something that focused Chao's attention to Yitian. His face appeared in Yitian's field of vision and calmed him down a bit.

"What happened?" Chao kneeled down, to be face to face with Yitian, shocked at his condition. There was no sudden loud noise made. And even if it was, in the past months Yitian had no problems with it. Since the first panic attack, he had none again.

Yitian was breathing hard, panicked eyes seeking help. He forgot how bad of a feeling this was. He felt like dying, his chest heavy and body shivering, unable to move or control it.

"I am here. You know what this is already. Breathe in and out. In and out. It will pass soon. I'm here for you. In and out. Good boy." Chao praised him, when his breathing became a bit slower.

Yitian's eyes flooded with tears. And as soon as he calmed down even more, he looked around. He saw concerned gazes of Yixing and Huobai. But he was suddenly very embarrassed and overwhelmed. He couldn't take the pity and jerked his hand away from Chao.

"I'm sorry!" he said and fled to his room. He sat in the room's corner and folded his legs to his chest, laying his chin on his knees.

Yitian suddenly knew that his panic attacks now would reoccur when he was under big stress. Because he had no other explanation for what happened just now.

He was there, alone, for a while. Usually he would hate being alone again, but now, he was glad that Chao left him a space to breathe.

The knock on the doors could be heard, but Yitian said nothing. He was too tired. Everything was too much for him. His feelings, his worries, his work and gaming. He would have to choose soon what his future was.

His heartbeat started to go up once again, but now his head throbbed and he felt dizzy. He knew what this was. And for once he was glad he was sitting down. He saw only blackness next.

***

A loud bang could be heard from their room, and it made Chao worried. He looked at Yixing. He was the person who told him to wait and not enter the room so soon, that Yitian needed his time alone. But Chao wanted to run there and hug him and caress him.

"Go, it sounded dangerous." Yixing nodded, and as soon as he said that, Chao got up and ran to the room. He knocked, but no sound could be heard.

Chao slowly opened the door, just that if Yitian needed more privacy, he would back out again. But nothing. Chao got more afraid, because he couldn't see Yitian at all. Chao rushed into the room and spotted him immediately.

Yitian was sprawled on the floor, in the corner of the room. Chao ran to him and shook with him, but nothing happened. He wasn't snoring; he was just lying there. Chao laid him on his back and checked if he was breathing. Thank god, he was breathing.

"Yitian!" Chao shouted, and Yixing and Huobai ran to the room.

"What's going on?" they spotted Yitian on the ground and hurried to him.

"What happened to him? Did he faint?" Huobai looked really worried. He had an idea why that happened, but he didn't want to be the one telling it to Chao.

"Let's take him to the hospital," Huobai stated, and Chao nodded. He picked him up with an off and surprised face. But after some adjusting, he had no problem to carry Yitian to the car.

When they put him on the back seats, Chao looked around.

"Someone knows how to drive?" he asked. But both, Huobai and Yixing shook their head, so Chao had to be the one driving.

"Sit to his legs and elevate them," he said to one of those twos, he didn't care who did it, but Yitian had to be okay.

They got on the ride, and it was a hell of a ride. Chao broke some speed limits and could be glad that he wasn't caught by cops. He got into the hospital at really record rate.

"Please, help, he fainted." He ran to the emergency and handed in Yitian to the doctors. They asked him many questions and soon they put an IV into Yitian's hand.

"He overworked and fainted. He needs a good rest and sleep. And no stress," the doctor said to Chao and left. Chao looked at Huobai and Yitian sitting in the room.

"Overworked?" Yixing looked to the side and Huobai refused to look at him too. Chao said at the bed, beside Yitian.

"Is he still doing the part-time job?" he asked, looking at the pale person in the bed.

"Yep. He needs money. He is not like me and you. Not even like Huobai. And you know it." Chao stared at Yitian when Yixing answered what he already knew.

"Do you think it's time? Do you think we are ready for the challenge?" Chao took Yitian's hand and squeezed it.

"Chao, he can't go on like this. He goes to school, part-time job and then he spends every free time he has playing. Then he studies till late at night. His major is not as easy." Huobai said, and Chao felt terrible again. He promised Yitian that he would be a better friend, but he failed to see what even Huobai saw.

"But he doesn't listen to me. He doesn't want my money." Chao sighed.

"Well, you are his friend. He doesn't want to leech from you. I think it's time for you to make a team. It was only a matter of time. So why don't we do it now? Then we can join official tournaments and make some money." Yixing came to Chao and put his hand on Chao's shoulder.

"Wait for him to wake up and have a talk. I won't do anything without him," Chao said. Yixing looked down at the hand Chao was holding and chuckled inside.

There is another thing that is only a matter of time.