Work Text:
A nonchalant text and a Sunday was all it took. Izuku hadn’t expected his friends to make a big deal out of a tiny fever from (once again) overworking himself. His text was meant to be short and sweet, explaining his situation, I’ve got a fever, so I’ll see you guys tomorrow.
But after sending the text and only about 20 minutes after, he heard a knock at his door. His mother had gone out to buy some food for dinner tonight and Izuku had been left to rest. And he had been sleeping for the better part of the day. His clock read that it was about 6pm, but he had already felt like he’d been sleeping for a month. He was only really half awake now and still kind of delirious from heavy sleep and medicine, so he wasn’t really sure if he wanted to see anyone. He thought about getting up to open the door himself, but his body seemed to disagree with the idea, staying completely still as he heard the door open quietly.
“Sorry for intruding!” a familiar voice spoke loudly.
Some shuffling footsteps, a couple hushed voices (“Is anyone home?” “Let’s just check around”), and what sounded like plastic bags wandered down the hall to Izuku’s room.
“Looks like this is it,” a second, also familiar voice said softly.
There was a quiet knock on the door. Izuku meant to reply to it, but felt too exhausted from… sleeping? to do much of anything right now. A second later, the door cracked open, and Iida’s face peeked in.
“Midoriya?” Iida asked softly, scanning the room, eyes landing on Izuku’s form, curled up in his bed. Behind him, Uraraka strained her neck to look over his shoulder into the room. The duo’s faces seemed to wash over with relief with the sight of him.
Izuku blinked, trying to collect his thoughts. His mind was still heavy from the apparently-20-minute nap. “What are you guys doing here…?” Izuku asked, his own voice sounding distant and small. He tried to look up at them, but a migraine had awakened along with him and it wasn’t happy.
The two entered the room carefully. Uraraka peered around the room in awe, glancing over his desk, and Izuku suddenly felt embarrassed by all the All Might merch plastered around his room. She turned on the lamp, but once she saw Izuku wince at the sudden brightness, she switched it off again with a quiet “Oops, sorry!” The pair made their way over to Izuku’s bed, and Izuku noticed the bags the two were holding. From the way Izuku was laying, it just looked like there was food in them.
Uraraka leaned in over Izuku’s face. “We’re gonna take care of you, since you’re sick and all!” she beamed.
Izuku murmured back, “I’m fine.” He had said it so quietly, even he wasn’t sure if he really had said it or if he had just imagined him saying it. God, he was tired again.
Before he could think anything else, Iida reached out, moving his messy bangs aside and placing the back of his hand on Izuku’s forehead. Iida’s hand, while not incredibly cold or anything, was still cool against Izuku’s heated skin. For a moment, Izuku closed his eyes, appreciating the coolness for a few moments before it was removed.
“You’re burning up, Midoriya. Simply one day is definitely not enough for you to recover,” Iida said, crossing his arms.
Uraraka turned to Iida, frowning. “Maybe we should have asked Todoroki to come. He might have been able to help with cooling Deku down,” she said.
The thought of that many people coming to his house - or rather, his room - made Izuku a little embarrassed, but if he was blushing, it was kind of drowned out by his fever.
Iida shook his head. “Well, we’re here now, so it’s fine. Let’s see… I suppose I could go make some soup,” Iida said, flashing a grin at Izuku.
Uraraka nodded in agreement. “I can get an ice pack prepared!” she said, following Iida out of the room, leaving Izuku alone once again in his dim room.
Izuku took this moment to actually collect his thoughts. While he appreciated the help from his friends, he had more or less expected the day to go by slowly and quietly. He wasn’t exactly accustomed to having friends care for him when he was sick. In the past, when Izuku became sick, his mother would usually nurse him back to health.
Which brought Izuku to a new thought; his mother. He was pretty sure the only “friend” his mother was properly acquainted with was Kacchan, and, well.
He had talked about Iida and Uraraka a couple times to his mother before, but his foggy mind couldn’t remember if he had ever actually mentioned their names to her. He was worried that if his mother walked in, she would be a little panicked by the two people in their house.
Of course, Izuku had other things to worry about right now, too. He wanted to get up to tell his friends he would be fine, but his body refused to move. His head still felt cloudy and he could feel how little energy he had, and his eyelids were just starting to feel heavy…
The sound of his door being opened jarred Izuku to open his eyes.
“Oops! Sorry Deku, did I wake you?”
Izuku groggily turned his head to see Uraraka, holding something wrapped in a towel. An ice pack, he presumed.
Izuku tried to mumble out, “How long was I asleep?” But once again, his tired brain second-guessed that he had actually gotten it out.
Luckily, Uraraka answered to reassure him. “I didn’t even know you fell asleep. Iida and I just left about 15 minutes ago, so…”
It had felt much longer than 15 minutes. Izuku wondered if he would ever be able to sleep in anything other than 15 to 20 minute intervals.
She walked across the room to him, stopping by his bed. “Here,” she offered, delicately placing the ice pack on his forehead.
Izuku instantly appreciated the coldness against his skin. It might have been a little too cold for his finicky fever-ridden body, and after a few moments, he kind of felt like he was about to have a brainfreeze instead, but he decided to keep his mouth shut and just be appreciative.
“Oh, right! Your mother’s here, by the way. Iida and I hadn’t even thought that she might be here with you, oops, haha,” Uraraka said with a small chuckle. She was gesturing vividly with her hands and Izuku realized she probably picked that up from Iida. Which was incredibly cute, to be honest.
Before Izuku could begin asking questions, she went on, “She was a little spooked, but we explained ourselves and she appreciated the help. Right now, Iida and her are preparing food and tea. Your mother’s so sweet! You’re lucky to have her, Deku.”
She gave him a big grin, turning to walk out of the room again. Izuku, in a brilliant flash of panic and impulse, quickly caught her wrist gently, and she turned back with a mildly concerned look. Of course, Izuku knew what he wanted to say, but his bold action sort of made the scene a bit awkward. That being said, his fever was still drowning out his embarrassment.
“U-uh! I just wanted to say… thank you! Thank you, to you and Iida! I’m really glad you guys stopped by,” Izuku blurted out. His thoughts were still scattered, but his tongue urged to get them all out, so he continued, “I’ve never really had such caring and great friends like you, I’m really used to just taking care of things like illnesses and stuff by myself with my mother and I really really appreciate that you and Iida care about me so much because I also really care about you guys, so if you ever need anything from me-”
He stopped as he heard Uraraka giggle, and he let go of her wrist as fast as humanly possible. He went to scramble for more words to explain his sudden outburst, but practically stopped breathing when Uraraka reached a hand out and gave his head a brief pat.
“Don’t worry about it, Deku. We’re glad to help you out!” she said with a grin, giving another short pat before standing up straight and turning back around, leaving without another word.
Izuku was sure he was turning even redder. For the first time today, he could actually feel his face heat up over the fever and for a moment, he kind of felt like he was about to have a heart attack. Or a heat stroke.
After Uraraka left, Izuku took the time to properly wake up and clear his thoughts. He actually worked up the energy to sit up in his bed, though he felt mildly dizzy once he was actually up. He yawned, sleepy tears peeking out from the corners of his eyes. He tenderly stretched his arms out to the sides before standing up, taking the time to lazily make his bed.
Izuku made his way slowly out into the hall and into the main room. He could hear low voices from the kitchen and the slight tink sound of a spoon hitting the sides of a pot. A delicious smell wafted through the halls, and Izuku felt amazingly cozy simply from just being in his home. He stepped out into the main room and was instantly seen by Iida.
“Midoriya! You’re up!” he grinned, shuffling over to him quickly, followed by Uraraka. “Are you feeling better?”
Izuku nodded with a tired smile, making his way to the table, his friends in tow. All his movements were slow and careful, trying to keep his migraine at bay.
His mother wandered over holding a pot of what smelled like soup. She gave him that warm motherly smile as she said, “I’m glad you’re feeling better, Izuku. Your friends are so wonderful!”
Izuku took a moment to realize how little he had friends over, let alone how little he’d had dinner with friends. He, admittedly, would have liked to have this experience when he wasn’t in a constant state of surrealism and sleepiness, but he’ll take it.
But for now, he was just content to be around his loved ones, chuckling over stories from school and promising his friends a dinner sometime in the near future in which he would be able to participate in a more grounded conversation.