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Ranpo wakes up with a cough.
This, in itself, wouldn’t really be that big of a deal. However, Ranpo always tends to be quite dramatic about his ailments, so Poe finds himself running around the whole of Yokohama in search of medicine and groceries to get rid of whatever disease Ranpo came up with over the course of the morning.
By the time Poe gets back, Ranpo also has a fever.
“Poe-kun,” Ranpo whines, “this is horrendous. Make it stop.”
Poe huffs in slight amusement at the childish scowl on Ranpo’s face and walks over to him. “I can’t, Ranpo-kun.” He pauses and starts putting his purchases away. “Let’s get you to bed, alright? I think some rest will do you good.”
After finishing with the bags, he starts walking towards the bedroom. When he doesn't hear Ranpo follow him, he turns around and raises an eyebrow questioningly. “But I don’t wanna sleep.” Ranpo has his bottom lip jutted out and his arms crossed in front of his chest defiantly as he stares him down. Just then, however, a cough racks his body and Ranpo has to bend over, clutching his sides.
He groans and loudly snuffles after the cough eventually lets up and Poe’s already reaching for his hand, dragging him into the bedroom. “It’s bedtime for you, Ranpo-kun. I’m no doctor but even I know that you won’t recover if you don't rest.”
Ranpo seems to have resigned himself to his fate because he relents without much of a fight and lets himself be dragged onto the bed, shivering when the cool silk of the bedsheets makes contact with his hot skin.
Poe throws him a worried glance as he tucks him in, making sure to put multiple blankets on top–despite Ranpo heavily complaining that he’s feeling hot not cold right now–before going back to get the thermometer.
“Hold on, Ranpo-kun,” Poe says when he notices that Ranpo’s already close to drifting off into sleep. “Let me first check your temperature.”
He leans in close and doesn’t even need to put the thermometer in his mouth to feel the heat emanating off Ranpo, like he’s burning up from the inside. Just to be sure, Poe still prompts Ranpo to open his mouth and sticks the thermometer in it.
While they wait, Ranpo glances up at him through half-lidded eyes, beads of sweat forming on his forehead and cheeks flushed with exertion and heat. Poe gently brushes the hair off his face before taking the thermometer out and scowling at the number on the display. It’s quite high.
“See? I really am sick,” Ranpo says and Poe sighs as he leans in and places a hand on his forehead.
“I never doubted that, Ranpo-kun.”
Ranpo immediately leans into the touch, the coldness of Poe's hands soothing his burning skin and a content smile appears on his face.
“You can go to sleep now,” Poe murmurs and pulls his hand away, sitting down at the end of the bed. “I’ll be here when you wake up.”
Before Poe even finishes his sentence, Ranpo eyes already flutter shut and his whistling breathing slows into an even, steady rhythm. Poe makes sure that Ranpo’s body is covered by at least four blankets and goes to grab a damp towel to place on his forehead before he sits down again and watches over the peacefully sleeping Ranpo.
—
When Ranpo wakes up, he looks–and feels–about a million times worse.
His drawn-out groan causes Poe, who dozed off himself in the chair next to the bed, to wake with a start. The uncomfortable sleeping position promptly makes itself felt by the pain shooting up in his back as soon as he moves. He winces, but is soon distracted by Ranpo sighing heavily in exasperation and letting his head fall back, sweaty hair spilling on the pillow around him like a crown.
“I feel terrible. I want cookies,” he announces and sniffs pointedly.
“Ranpo-kun…” Poe starts and tuts. “You know that cookies won’t help you. What you need right now is a balanced diet with lots of vitamins and nutrients. Which you won’t get from cookies and sugar.” He pauses. “I can offer you some chicken soup, if you want,” he finishes, thinking back on the dish he prepared earlier, while Ranpo slept.
Ranpo grumbles and tries to glare at him. He fails miserably, though, his weakened body merely flopping back down as soon he sits up. Another groan escapes Ranpo and he presses his hand against his forehead, exclaiming, “I’m dying, Poe-kun.”
Poe chuckles softly in response before leaving the room to walk into the kitchen.
He returns soon after, to a dramatically whining Ranpo, but when he gets closer and sits down on the bed, he notices the strained breathing and the feverish glint in his eyes and his brows furrow with worry.
Tentatively, Poe reaches for Ranpo’s hand to alert him of his presence and sluggishly Ranpo’s eyes blink open, though it takes them a moment too long to focus.
“I compromised,” Poe says with a slight grin and sets down a tray, containing a plate of cookies and a bowl of steaming soup, on the bedside table. Ranpo’s eyes immediately begin to sparkle with delight as soon as he spots the sugary treat and Poe quickly helps him sit up, propping him against a pillow.
The simple act of sitting up clearly leaves Ranpo much more exhausted than it should have and he whimpers quietly, shivering without the comforting warmth of the covers. His feverish fingers brush over Poe’s lightly, a silent thanks, and Poe gives him a small smile. As much as Ranpo loves to exaggerate, he knows from experience that being ill feels like shit and right now, Ranpo is quite obviously suffering–and Poe would happily take care of him for the rest of his life.
After Ranpo inhaled the whole plate of cookies in a manner of seconds, he, at least, tries a few spoonfuls of the soup before turning on his side and burying his face in the sheets. His cheeks are even more flushed now, due to the hot soup, and his eyes flutter shut seemingly of their own accord when he mumbles, “I really love you, you know…”
Poe feels like whimpering then, too, his chest close to bursting with affection and love as he watches the small frame of Ranpo rise and fall with every breath. “I love you, too.”
He only breathes the words, ghosting over his lips before they disappear into thin air, but his hot breath hits Ranpo’s clammy skin, making him shiver. Subconsciously, or not, Ranpo reaches for Poe’s hand, interlacing their fingers and relaxing into the pillows.
It’s so unusual to see him like this, so soft and overly affectionate, Poe thinks to himself as he watches him dream, I can’t wait to get to know every side of him.
__
send me your songs of tomorrow
i’m dying to know it all
stories of joy and of sorrow
i’m dying to know it all