Chapter Text
The moment you woke up you knew it was about to be one of those days. From the second you sat up in bed and felt your head swimming, your consciousness treading water, you knew you were going to have a hard time. What was worse was that you had plans with your boyfriend.
John and yourself had planned to go out for the day for weeks now, trying to find time in both of your busy schedules to have some time together, and with the local fair in full swing, you decided that there’d be nowhere better than there. That had seemed like a fantastic decision, at first, but with you chugging water in the hopes of staving off the dizziness you felt, barely able to stand without leaning against your kitchen counter, you were starting to hope you’d chosen something less out in the open. Not to mention, knowing him, he was likely to want to do everything the fair had to offer, which meant more physical exertion for you.
You almost considered calling the day off, but you barely ever got to see John anymore, and the thought of doing so because of your fickle medical condition made you determined to just push past it. You’d always loathed the strange dizziness that suddenly appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, and the effects of such. You just hoped you would be able to keep yourself going for the day.
You didn’t have long to get ready before John was knocking on the door, you rushing to open it, ignoring how wobbly your legs felt, and your urge to lean against the wall for support. No, you didn’t need that, you were going to be fine.
You were quickly enveloped in a crushing hug, one you returned as best as you could manage. But the moment John had stepped back, he was suspicious.
“Wow, you’re looking a little flushed. Are you feeling ok?” He asked, hand raising to your forehead. You quickly grabbed his wrist, maneuvering it so it seemed like you were grabbing his hand. The anchoring feeling of holding onto him helped, but you tried not to show it.
“Just excited to see you, Laurens.” You chuckled before giving him a peck on the nose. He laughed quietly before starting to pull you out of your doorway, reminding you that ‘There’s so much to do and see!’ you making sure you had all your stuff before closing and locking the door behind you.
Still holding his hand tightly in your own, you started over to his car, when you were pulled away gently. The slight change of direction had you stumbling a moment, but you caught yourself before it was noticeable, “Uh, hun, are we not going in the car?” You asked.
“What? Nah, I thought walking would be better. It’s just down the road, and I’m almost out of gas anyway.” You felt yourself pale, having hoped that the short car ride would allow you a moment’s reprieve before you were forced into the day. It seemed that wasn’t about to be the case.
While the walk wasn’t far, every step had you feeling worse. You stuck close to John’s side, who was still glancing over at you in concern from time to time. When he wrapped an arm around you, he’d assured it was just because he wanted to be close to you, but you could see his hidden motive. You appreciated it, even if you were worried about him knowing of your health condition.
While, for the most part, you had always been honest to John, your health was one thing you tended to keep hidden, not just from him, but everyone. It was something you hated about yourself, that kept you from being able to do some things, that left you exhausted after very minimal tasks, and something that was always holding you back. John was a boisterous ball of energy and passion, and even though you adored him in every way possible, and he assured you that he felt the same, you couldn’t get rid of the lingering feeling that, if he found out, he would lose interest. Surely he wanted someone who could match his energy levels, right?
You managed to make it to the fair in one piece, but by now the world around you was swimming. Your face was entirely flushed, and you could feel the pins and needles in your hands and feet. Matched with a far away, detached feeling, you knew you had to at least sit down and get some water in you before you passed out or something.
You glanced around for a seat of some kind before you felt something slip you up. You let out a small screech as you tripped, but before you could fall away too far you felt the secure arms of your boyfriend wrap around you.
“Woah! You almost fell over!” John cried out, pulling you in close. Your eyes were unfocused and by now you were just searching for the water bottle you’d chucked in your bag, trying to fish it out and get some water in you, “I think we should go home-”
“No!” You quickly said, whipping around to face him. He seemed startled for a moment, but you quickly tried to cover it up, “John I’ve missed you so much, and I know how much you were looking forward to today! I’m just a bit out of it, I’ll wake up in no time.” You tried to assure, but even as you spoke you could hear your own words slurring, and feel your legs buckling beneath you. John was holding you up now, arms wound around you tightly as he held you to his chest.
“We can come back whenever the fair’s on next, you look like you’re about to pass out!” He uttered, and you didn’t even realise that he’d pulled you over to a bench, sitting you down and searching through your bag to find your water bottle.
You were barely conscious at this point, hands gripping to the wooden planks as tightly as you were able to in an attempt to keep yourself grounded. You’d ruined the day already, all because your body decided to be stupid.
“Hun, eyes on me, ok?” You suddenly glanced up to see Laurens, his face the clearest thing you’ve looked at in the last few minutes. He looked terrified, bottle of water in hand, his other resting on your face. You did your best to focus on his eyes, on every freckle on his face-
And like that you were gone.
You couldn’t tell if you’d been out for long or not, but John was in a panic when you awoke, on the phone as you sat there, trying to regain full consciousness. It usually took a good while, and a lot of water and sugar, but you were feeling far worse than usual. Maybe it was seeing the boy you loved in such a fit over you, over something you tried so hard to hide. Or maybe it was from something else, but for the moment you tried to pretend you were fine. You moved your fingers, trying to regain dexterity as you reached out for your boyfriend.
“Laurens-” Your eyes were watering as he turned to you, relief and fear etched into his face as he listened to whoever was on the other side of the line. You hoped he hadn’t done something stupid like call the ambulance, there was no need for that for something so small.
“Alex, she’s awake, what’s Angelica saying to do?!” He asked frantically as his other hand caressed your face, wiping away the tears, “Shh, don’t cry, baby.” He hushed you as you reached up your hand to hold his own, leaning into it as your eyes closed against your will. You snapped them open seconds after, realising that you couldn’t just go to sleep after this. John was suddenly beside you, water bottle in hand as he looked over you.
“Honey, you have to drink water until Angelica gets here. Drink water and look at me, ok?” He told you quietly. You nodded, and even if you would have felt embarrassed in any other situation, you allowed him to tip the water into your mouth. You weren’t feeling dextrous enough to move your fingers properly let alone grab something.
It didn’t feel like long before an extra three familiar voices filled the bubble that only you and John occupied. He held tightly to your hand as Angelica’s face swam into your vision, Alexander and Eliza in the background. You tried to do what Angelica told you, but you were finding it harder and harder to understand what she was saying.
You suddenly felt an absence of John’s hand, quickly replaced by his arms scooping under your frame and picking you up. You leaned into him, too out of it to argue as he carried you, and by how you were jostling around, he must have been running. You clung to his shirt as he ran, presumably to your home, and soon enough you were laid down on the familiar old couch, the soothing voice of Angelica by your side.
But you weren’t able to focus on anything for much longer as you once again passed out.
By the time you’d come back around, you were feeling substantially better, but not your best. You turned your head to see Laurens on the floor beside you, hand holding yours as he talked quietly with someone across the room. You stirred, wanting to sit up, but your movement instantly has John hovering over you, forcing you to lie back down. His eyes were scanning over you in worry as you sent him a weak, wry smile.
“Hey, Laurens. Didn’t give you too much of a fright, I hope?” You whispered, hand finding his once more and holding it tightly.
“Babe, I didn’t know what was going on.” He said, and you swore you could see tears in his eyes. His hand was caressing your face once more, rubbing your cheek gently, “how are you feeling?” He asked softly, sitting beside you on the couch so he could see you.
You thought on his question for a moment before looking up at him, “Besides feeling super guilty? A lot better.” You replied, shifting closer to him. He held your hand tighter, giving you a gentle look that told you not to move.
“Babe, why didn’t you tell me? Angelica said you’ve been like this for a while, and that you were lucky she knew of the situation, otherwise you would have had to go to hospital.” He asked, and the tears you’d seen building up streamed down his cheeks. You put a hand up to wipe them away, almost slapping him in the process, so he leaned down where it was easier for you to reach. Your thumb clumsily brushed away the trails of tears, before pulling him down so his forehead rested against yours. The feeling of solidarity was a comfort for you, and at the moment, that’s all you needed.
“Promise me you’ll tell me about this sort of thing from now on, alright?” He whispered, holding you close. You nodded against him, giving him a quick kiss on his nose.
“Promise.”