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When Mikey woke up to the bus feeling like it was twisting and turning even more than usual, he knew it wouldn’t be a good day. As he woke up more, he noticed how badly his stomach was churning. He turned onto his back, rubbing at it gently. It felt bloated and sloshy, almost as if one more sharp turn would make the contents of his belly spill. He sighed softly, contemplating his choices. He could wake up his brother, the oldest and who always seemed to know what to do. He could wake Ray, the most mature one who would tuck him in on the couch and make him tea and secretly kiss his forehead the way he did when he thought no one was looking. He could wake Frank, who would sympathize with him, having such a shitty immune system, and most likely give him comfort. Or, he could lay here by himself and hope one of them would get to him first. As nice as cuddles and tea sounded, not moving sounded even better. Mikey groaned softly, half hoping that someone would hear him. After a while of laying and purposely increasing the volume of his whines, he finally heard someone get out of their bunk. It happened to be Gerard, shuffling down the ladder and past Mikey’s bed. He grabbed his brothers wrist, resulting in a yelp from the older Way.
”Jesus, Mikey, way to give a man a heart attack,” Gerard grumbled, an irritated look on his face. When he didn’t get a snarky comment in return, he crouched down to see his brother, his face turning from annoyed to concerned. He brushed his hair back a little bit, frowning softly. “What’s the matter?”
Mikey leaned into the touch, closing his eyes a little. “Sick,” he mumbled, sighing weakly. He did feel like he could throw up any minute if he was being honest, but simultaneously, his body was too tired to care.
Gerard frowned, feeling his forehead. He hummed sympathetically when he felt how warm Mikey was, gently prying him out of his bunk.
“Let’s go to the couch. You’re definitely sick, bud.” He carried Mikey over to the tiny couch, bundling him up with several blankets. “Do you think you’ll need a bucket?”
Mikey shrugged halfheartedly, not sure how his tummy would act. “Dunno. Don’t really care. Come over here and cuddle me or else I’ll purposely puke on you.” He knew he sounded like a little kid, but he couldn’t deny that he was craving comfort.
Gerard shook his head, muttering something about “kids these days.” He sat down next to Mikey, pulling him back against his chest. “Belly ache?” He whispered softly, able to hear some of the upset sounds from his brothers gut.
He nodded softly, letting his head flop back against Gerard’s shoulder. He let out a low hum when he felt Gerard’s hands against his achy belly, letting his body go limp. He thought he heard someone else getting up, but he was too sleepy to care. It probably had something to do with the fever Gerard mentioned that he had, but again, too sleepy to care.
“Hey,” someone whispered, sounding like Ray. “Is he asleep?”
Mikey shook his head, poking out from all the blankets. “No,” he whispered, frowning when his throat felt raw. “Cuddle.”
Ray obliged, sitting down on his other side. Mikey let himself move to lay across their laps, deciding Ray’s belly would be a good pillow. They weren’t exactly dating, per se, but Frank and Gerard didn’t label themselves, so why should they? He snuggled against him, letting out a quiet groan when he felt Ray’s hand massaging his scalp. Gerard was still rubbing at Mikey’s stomach, trying to calm it down a little. It gurgled softly, still feeling upset, but the other two had lulled Mikey into a half asleep sort of state anyways.
At some point, maybe an hour or so later, Mikey woke up, realizing that he must’ve fell asleep at a point. This time, Frank was curled up on Gerard’s other side. He whined a little when he found that the others weren’t paying attention to him, nuzzling into Ray. They all looked to him, immediately paying attention again when they realized he was up again.
“Hey Mikes,” Frank smiled softly. “You feeling any better?”
Mikey shrugged, contemplating it. He felt a little less nauseous, but still out of it. And he definitely wouldn’t complain if Gerard were to start rubbing his belly again. “I don’t know,” he mumbled. “Think I’m sick.”
They all laughed softly, smiling fondly. “You’re definitely sick, bro,” Gerard murmured with a small smile playing on his lips. “Does your stomach still hurt?”
He nodded a little, turning to lay on his back expectantly. As if on cue, his brother started rubbing his tummy again, any leftover ache immediately lessening. He relaxed back against everyone, closing his eyes again.
“Thank you,” he whispered, already starting to feel tired again.
“Go back to sleep, Mikey,” Ray whispered. “We’re all here.”
Mikey just nodded, drifting off as quickly as he woke. He thought back to this morning, of how he wasn’t sure who to get when he didn’t feel well. Now, he knew the answer. He wanted everyone, smushed together on the tiny tour bus couch, cuddled close together. That was one thing he knew for sure, and he wouldn’t want it any other way.