Work Text:
Shouta was rarely one to get a good night’s sleep but this night was an exception. He fell asleep easily and managed to remain unawakened for a good portion of the night until a little voice disrupted his heavy slumber.
“Tou-san… my tummy doesn’t feel right…” The words of his daughter mingled with his dreams, pulling him from his deep sleep.
“Eri?” He mumbled sleepily in response “What’s wrong?”
“My tummy hurts… I feel weird,” she mumbled, tears beginning to form in her eyes. She was so quiet that her words were barely audible, but, in the silence of the bedroom, Shouta was just able to decipher her cries.
A small whimper from his daughter pulled him from his thoughts. “Weird how? Are you sick?” He tried to keep the worry from seeping into his voice to avoid frightening Eri. ‘She’s already stressed enough.’ He told himself.
Through her small cries, she started to explain but cut herself off, bringing a hand up to her stomach. Shouta took this as his queue to get her to the bathroom. He sat up, grabbing Eri by the hand and standing to escort her to the bathroom down the hall.
The movement caused by Shouta leaving the bed was enough to wake a sleeping Hizashi, who was oblivious to the current situation. He wasn’t a particularly hard sleeper, but his quirk had caused him to slowly lose his hearing over the years and his family’s quiet voices had not been loud enough to disturb him. He rolled over groggily reaching to pull Shouta close. When his hand was met with only the wrinkled bed sheets Hizashi sat up, looking for his husband.
“Sho?” He called into the darkness, much louder than he realized. He fumbled with his hearing aids before turning them on. He was met with the low voice of his husband from the doorway of their room.
“Eri isn’t feeling well, I’m taking her to the bathroom,” Shouta responded hurriedly, exiting the room. Hizashi pulled back the covers, getting up and making his way to the bathroom. Through the open bathroom door, Hizashi could see Eri sitting on a stool, hunched over the toilet, shaking as her stomach emptied its contents. Shouta sat next to her, holding her hair from her face and rubbing her back comfortingly. Walking in, he stopped at the sink, opening the mirror medicine cabinet and pulling out a bottle of pink medicine and a thermometer. He hurried to the kitchen and grabbed a measuring cup and a glass of water, measuring out the right dosage of the medicine and hurrying back to his daughter. Passing through the living room he saw Eri’s stuffed cat sitting on the couch. Smiling, he grabbed it and headed into the bathroom.
“You’re okay, Eri, I’ve got you. Do you feel better now?” He heard Shouta’s hushed voice soothe.
“A little,” Eri whispered hoarsely, looking up at Hizashi as he entered.
“Hey, little listener! How are you feeling?” He asked enthusiastically, trying to raise her spirits.
“A little better,” Eri replied, wiping her eyes and smiling up at Hizashi.
“I brought you some stuff to make you feel better!” Hizashi said with a smile, holding the glass of water out to her. “Here, rinse your mouth out and then you can have some medicine,” Eri did as she was told, spitting the water into the toilet and looking back at Hizashi, who was holding a small cup of pink liquid out to her. Hesitantly, she took it, looking skeptically at it. “Don’t worry, it won’t taste yucky, it’s the bubble gum flavored kind!” Hizashi encouraged.
Eri took a breath and bravely swallowed the medicine. She had to admit, it did taste like bubble gum. She handed the cup back to Hizashi, taking a small sip of her water. “One more thing!” Hizashi mused, beaming down at her. He reached out the hand holding her small stuffed cat. Eri’s face lit up at the sight of it and she took it excitedly, hugging it to her chest.
“We should probably take your temperature too,” Shouta said, running his hand in circles on Eri’s back. She opened her mouth as Hizashi gave her the thermometer. After a moment it flashed, emitting a series of loud beeps. Shouta took the thermometer, reading the number on the display aloud. “39.6,” he frowned, looking worriedly at Hizashi.
“That’s okay! Here, take these,” Hizashi exclaimed, trying to stay cheerful for Eri’s sake. He handed her a couple of white pills. Frowning, Eri took them, looking at them nervously. “It’s okay, they’ll make you feel better!” Hizashi spoke, trying to convince Eri to accept the medicine. She quickly swallowed the pills, calming after realizing it wasn’t as bad as she had anticipated. “Good job! Now let’s get you back to bed, you look exhausted!”
At that, Shouta hoisted Eri onto his hip, following Hizashi out of the bathroom. Sleepily, Eri rested her head on Shouta’s shoulder for the short trip.
“Tou-san?” Eri muttered nervously, lifting her head slightly. “Can I please stay in you and papa’s room tonight?”
Shouta would never admit it but the question filled his heart with warmth. “Of course you can,” he assured her. Eri hummed in contentment, laying her head back against Shouta’s shoulder as he entered the bedroom, setting Eri gently into the bed. Grabbing an extra blanket from the closet, he tucked her into bed. He sat down beside her, petting her head comfortingly as Hizashi returned to the bedroom.
“Alright kiddo! I’ve got a trashcan that I’m gonna put right here for you in case you feel sick again okay? And I brought you a Gatorade,” Eri nodded sleepily in response to Hizashi’s words. He held extended the Gatorade out to her but she refused it, shaking her head.
“You have to drink at least a few sips,” Shouta instructed. “It’ll help you feel better faster.”
“But it’ll make my tummy sad again and I’m not thirsty,” Eri protested tiredly.
“Kiddo you’ve gotta. Your body needs it to feel better” Hizashi objected.
“But I already feel sick again… I don’t want to throw up again…” By the end of the sentence, Eri’s voice was no more than a whisper. She shuddered at the thought of going through that a second time.
“I know, kid, but you have to drink just a little,” Shouta insisted. Eri was too tired and felt too sick to try to retaliate, reaching her hand out to take the Gatorade. She took a few slow sips before returning the bottle to Hizashi, flopping back down against the bed, defeated.
“There you go!” Hizashi cheered proudly “Are we ready for bed then? Do you need anything else?” Eri nodded, groaning and placing a hand on her stomach. “Some sleep will do you good. Feel better Eri!” Hizashi encouraged, turning off the lights and joining his family in bed. It didn’t take long for him to fall back into a blissful sleep.
Shouta, on the other hand, wasn’t having the same luck. His thoughts swam as he lay there, awaiting sleep. ‘I hope it was just something she ate and not a bug. It’ll be best to keep her away from Hitoshi and Shoto for a while just in case. But they’re around her enough that if it’s a bug, they’re all but guaranteed to have it as well. Eventually, Shouta’s thoughts became hazy as he drifted off to sleep.