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If Reggie had only a small bit of poetry in him he would call the sea a dark blue monstrosity with a bottomless stomach who tried to swallow all it could, never satisfied with what it got and furious with whoever dared to ride its back in their nutshell like boats but he didn't.
Fancy words had always been Frank's department and always would be. And so the sea was just rough and a load of shit.
He never had thought he was one to get sea sick easily. To be honest he had seen a lot of awful nauseating things in his life already that had forced other men to bend over and had never felt ill in the stomach but the ocean seemed to be a whole nother thing. The waves were messing with his head and everything started to feel unbalanced and his guts like they wanted to turn inside out if they were just a bit above average. On days where he could stay on deck and watch the horizon while helping out it was manageable but on days like today where they had sailed into a huge storm, sky and sea melted into one dark blue void and he was stuck under deck as well, it was right up horrendous.
Groaning Reggie let his head sink down on the wood of his desk and squeezed his eyes shut hoping it would stop his stomach from turning upside-down. He had tried to distract himself with some left over paperwork since you couldn't ask anyone to deal with Frank's handwriting voluntarily but it only had made it worse and now he didn't even dare moving away from his chair anymore fearing he would just fall over if he tried. Sadly that trapped him in this uncomfortable position leaning over the desk until the storm would be over except Frank came downstairs for some reason and helped him to bed or he called out for help which he would never do.
That would be pathetic. He was a grown ass man. He could manage this. He should be able to-
The boat titled to the right and a few pens rolled over the tabletop until they fell off onto the floor and his still full cup followed dangerously close to the edge. Reggie groaned his head still pressed to the wood and wrapped his arms around his stomach, praying to whoever could hear him to make it stop. He was glad he hadn’t ate anything yet. It would have made this end a lot less nice and he sighed heavy as the boat titled back. If he only could manage to get to the cabinet to get some medicine and then preferably to lay down in his bed. It would make things so much easier to get through.
Like his prayer has been heard, soon there were steps on the stairs and the door of the cabin opened, bringing a wave of salty air and coldness into the stuffy room. Frank stumbled completely drenched in sea water inside and cursed to himself about the awful weather as he closed the door shut again. He rubbed his numb hands together to get the feeling back into them before taking his hat and coat off and hanging them on the wall where they started to drip onto the floor. For a moment he just stood there by the wardrobe like he was collecting his thoughts, his cheeks red nearly violet from the coldness outside, then he turned to the table and his eyes fell onto his best friend laying there feeling and looking miserable.
"You look like utter shit." He commented rather bluntly about the obvious and wouldn't have had Reggie felt so sick he might have had a good comeback but right now he just managed to roll his eyes. "I know." He grumbled and forced himself to sit back up slightly to keep some of his posture groaning when he had managed to. "This storm is killing me and my stupid ass still thought doing paperwork would be a good idea." Frank chuckled lightly amused and stepped over to him rubbing his tense shoulders to help him relax and also warm his own fingers a bit. "And now you're stuck here?" He teased with a smirk on his lips as he observed the situation. Reggie only let his head hang down a soft embarrassed blush creeping on his cheeks but still hummed agreeing and leaned into the touch.
His old friend's smirk turned into a warm smile, the mask of the strict cold captain slipping off and he carefully pushed the chair away from the desk to better help the other up who was already clearly disturbed by just the small motion alone. "Come on big guy, let's get you to bed." Frank said softly and cupped the other's cheek before helping him onto his feet and to the small bed on the other side of the cabin. It was a bit of a struggle since Reggie was unsteady and the boat continued to sway in the strong going storm but they managed and even though he was still as pale as a sheet he already seemed more relaxed when he rested against his pillow. He turned onto his side and curled up breathing deeply in and out to calm the upcoming nausea.
The captain watched him for a moment before shaking his head lightly. God, did his friend look awful... "How about I make you some ginger tea and look for some medicine. Its the least I can do for putting you through this." Reggie huffed and pointed at him half heartedly feeling a bit more bold not being cramped in his chair anymore. "About that. I expect a huge payment when we are in this Rapture for the torture youre putting me through here." Frank only laughed and ruffled through his brownish red curls. "Sure sure, Reg." He said still mildly amused before turning away and leaving the cabin to go to the kitchen and get some cups with tea.
For a while Reggie just heard the rain and wind raging outside again and the heavy steps of all the workers who tried to keep their shipment safe over his head until Frank returned and his attention lingered on his best friend again who balanced two cups, a spoon and a small brown medicine bottle in his right hand. He had hurt his left one some days ago when a net had gotten stuck and still avoided using it much. Lost half a finger that day and his only proper reaction was that he didn't need it anyway, his mouth was skilled enough. It had made all the other men laugh but Reggie had seriously considered letting him bleed out or just to throw him overboard in that moment but then he would have been stuck on this swimming nutshell by himself with all those smelly sailors and he despised that even more than his friends' bad jokes.
"Does it still hurt?" He asked as Frank placed the cups on the nightstand and sat down next to him on the mattress. For a moment his eyes lingered on the dirty bandages at his left then he sighed "Like a bitch but it doesn't pulse or burn so think I get around an infection" He took the medication and unscrewed the glass bottle pouring the dark liquid onto the spoon. "Now stop worrying like the idiot you are and open up!" He finished his words cocky and held up the silverware while Reggie only grimaced. He hated the taste of that shit but he knew it would help and that he couldn't say no after how he had forced the painkillers down the others throat those few days ago. With a clearly disgusted expression he sat up as best as he could and took the spoon for Frank, swallowing the liquid in one go. Coughing at the burn he laid back down and dropped the cutlery on the nightstand not caring where it landed.
"See? Half as bad." Frank said satisfied and patted his back with a grin. It was exactly what Reggie had said and done to him after he had taken care of him and slowly this felt just like one cruel revenge. Who knew maybe Frank had even summoned the storm on purpose?
The man groaned feeling the waves push them around and closed his eyes once again. It would get better, he knew that, he just had to get through the time the medicine needed to be effective but who knew how long that would be. He really wished they would soon be done with this and live in this promised city.
"Do you want me to stay? Told the boys I was warming myself up and getting a break. I'm sure they won't miss me for another hour." Frank broke the silence, the teasing tune having left his words and sounding more warm and soft. Reggie only nodded as answer and rested one of his hands on his friend's thigh to show his appreciation for the offer. "I could read you something to distract you. How does that sound? Then I won't get bored too." The captain stood up from the small bed and went over to the small shelf looking through the few books they had.
He didn't want to tell Reggie something about sailing obviously or how to tell fish species apart so he grabbed an all time favourite of the two of them: Hamlet.
To be honest he wasn't sure if they would have liked the drama as much, would they have learned about it in any other context but it was one of the reasons why they had met at all and why they were still alive. Without it and the actor Frank had met they wouldn't be where they were now and so it held a special meaning to them. It was a symbol of their fighting and their victory.
Smiling to himself Frank returned and made himself comfortable next to Reggie who soon placed his head into his lap after he had taken some small sips of the tea his friend had made which would also help to calm his stomach. Placing one hand on his head to stroke through his hair while he read the captain started the book with a familiar scene giving every role the voice he always had given them and allowing his bodyguard to drift back in his mind to a time where things had been a lot easier and nearly magical.