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"Shinoooo…"
Shino blinks, closing the front door behind him quietly. There's no sound, so surely he'd misheard.
He's sitting on the edge of the genkan, removing his shoes, when he hears it again, his name called out in a loud whine in a much stuffier than usual sounding voice.
Kiba is in his apartment. He doesn't know why, or how, but he is. Shino pinches the bridge of his nose with a sigh.
He's had a long day. He doesn't feel like dealing with Kiba right now. Especially if he's going to be whiny.
Shino already has a headache.
He sits there, still, for but a moment, but clearly it's a moment too long for his friend. Because it takes mere seconds for Kiba to shuffle into the room, Shino's stolen house slippers on his feet, and drape himself over Shino from behind, looking absolutely pathetic as he does so.
"Shinoooo…"
He sighs heavily. "Yes, Kiba?"
"I'm sick." Clearly.
"Okay?" He was even less in the mood for a sick Kiba than a regular one. "And what do you expect me to do about that?"
Kiba pouts, clearly not getting the response he wanted.
"Take care of me…."
"Absolutely not."
"Shinoooo…" Kiba wraps himself tighter around him, resting his chin on Shino's shoulder. "You're just gonna let me die?"
"You won't die."
"I will!" He sniffs. "I can't even smell. You know how useless I am without a sense of smell?"
"Ask your mother to care for you."
"Ha! She stopped wantin' to do that when I was fresh outta diapers. She definitely doesn't wanna take care of me now."
"You could still ask." The urge to shove Kiba off of him was growing stronger, but he resisted.
"Tried. She told me to 'get lost'."
"Ask your sister."
"She's busy takin' care of every animal in Konoha."
"Then why aren't you there?"
Kiba's quiet for a beat before the joke seems to register and he snorts out a laugh. It sounds gross, and it's right in Shino's ear. Still, he can't help but smile a little bit at the response. "Shut up." He buries his face in Shino's collar from behind and tightens his arms around him.
Shino really should push him off. But he still doesn't.
They've had a strange unspoken thing between them, lately. Neither has said a word about it, nor put a name to it, but it's definitely there. Kiba's grown more bold with his affections, and Shino's denied them less and less.
They sit closer when alone in one another's company, often pressed side by side, sharing one another's body heat. He can't deny he's actually been enjoying it a bit, despite himself.
He supposes he can find it in his heart to take care of Kiba, as much as his mind tells him it's a terrible idea.
Because it is definitely a terrible idea. He's never seen more than a glimpse of sick Kiba before(he rarely got sick, growing up rolling around in the dirt with dogs likely gave him a stronger immune system than most) , but he's heard from those who have. He's heard he's insufferable. Whiny, needy, and an absolute baby. Of course he'd heard this from Kiba's own sister, so it's possible she exaggerated a bit. He hopes.
"Fine."
He feels Kiba stiffen a little behind him. "Fine?"
"I'll babysit you until you are well. But you best not act like a child."
He turns his head slightly to find Kiba pouting. "I never act like a child."
"Sure. Now please remove yourself from me before you spread your disease."
"I don't have a-" He's interrupted by a loud coughing fit, during which Kiba makes no move to cover his mouth.
Shino roughly shoves him off, causing Kiba to fall unceremoniously to the floor, where he continues to cough like he's planning to expel his lungs from his body. He ends up curled in a little ball on the floor by the end of it, and Shino would almost feel bad, if Kiba hadn't coughed on the side of his face.
"Please refrain from doing that again." Shino grits his teeth. He feels absolutely disgusting.
Kiba groans weakly. "Coughing? Can't help that, man…"
"Please cover your mouth next time. The reason is because I don't want your germs on my face."
"Sorry…" Kiba looks over at him, and Shino fully registers how awful he sounds. And looks. He didn't get a good look at him before. He's got horrible bags under his eyes, and his skin is several shades paler than usual.
He sighs. He can't stay mad for long when his friend looks so ridiculously pathetic.
He stands up and walks over to Kiba, nudging him with the side of his foot. "Come on. Get up."
Kiba only groans in response. "You can't stay on the floor. Why? Because it's both cold and uncomfortable, and extremely unsuited as a place for someone to sleep when they're under the weather."
Kiba glances up at him, another pout on his face. "Carry me?"
"No."
He seemingly deflates a little before mustering the strength to stand, looking a little bit wobbly while doing so.
It then dawns on Shino that there's something, or rather, someone, missing here. An extension of his best friend that he'd definitely assume would be around if he was sick.
"Where's Akamaru?"
"Sent him to town earlier to find you…" Kiba laughs a little, although it's not nearly as boisterous as usual. "Guess you beat him here though. He'll probably be back soon."
There's a scratching at the door not a moment later, exactly on cue. Then a bark. Shino opens the door and Akamaru bounds inside, straight over to his master. He looks and sniffs Kiba over as if checking to make sure nothing terrible happened to him while he was gone.
"Hey buddy." Kiba has a small smile on his face as he scratches Akamaru behind the ear, and Shino pushes back the thought that he finds the expression cute.
Akamaru licks Kiba's face, and Shino is reminded that dogs don't have a care in the world for germs. Then again, it's not like Kiba's cold could spread to a dog. Probably not, anyway. He was basically a dog himself, after all.
He shakes the thought from his mind. Right. He's supposed to be babysitting Kiba.
"Go sit on the couch, I'll make you some tea."
Kiba pouts again, an expression he seems to be wearing a lot tonight. "Tea?"
"Yes. I'll prepare something suited for clearing out your sinuses."
"I don't want tea…" He smirks a little. "Got any beer?"
Shino rolls his eyes despite the fact Kiba cannot see them. "No, and even if I did that is not what you would be drinking. The reason is because it would make you feel even worse."
"Fiiine." He finally shuffles his way to the living room without protest, Akamaru following close behind, and Shino makes his way to the kitchen to start the tea.
He goes into the bathroom while waiting for the kettle to boil to find his thermometer. He rarely gets sick himself, but it never hurts to have one on hand, and he's very glad he does. He doesn't trust himself to detect whether or not Kiba has a fever otherwise, given the fact that he himself is always cold and Kiba always feels excessively warm to him.
Once he's finished the tea he finds Kiba half asleep on the sofa, the TV he'd convinced Shino to buy after he began renting his apartment playing some mindless game show in the background.
Shino rarely uses the thing unless he has company over, much preferring the sound of the cicadas droning outside in the summer and the peaceful silence of the winter over the sound of voices chattering about everything and yet nothing at all. But he knows Kiba finds comfort in it, so he leaves it alone.
He shakes Kiba a little, pulling him out of his half slumber.
"Here." He hands him the cup of tea, and Kiba sips it silently. He makes a face of displeasure, but says nothing. He must really be sick, then, if he has nothing bad to say about the odd assortment of flavors Shino put together to combat his illness.
"I also brought a thermometer to take your temperature."
Kiba looks up at him and smirks over the rim of his cup. "Gonna stick it in my ass, doc?"
Shino fixes him with a look he's sure is still readable despite the goggles on his face, and Kiba chuckles softly before taking another sip of his tea and setting it aside.
He opens his mouth wide with an exaggerated 'Ahh!', and Shino sighs in annoyance before shoving the thermometer in his mouth, likely rougher than he probably should.
Kiba closes his lips around it, looking a bit annoyed himself, before they wait the amount of time they're supposed to for the thermometer to read Kiba's temperature.
When he takes it out he discovers that Kiba indeed has a fever. His temperature is several degrees higher than normal.
"You have a fever."
"Coulda told you that without the thermometer…"
"I'll go and buy some medicine for you." Shino begins to walk towards the door to put his shoes on when he feels a hand grab onto his sleeve.
"Wait, Shinoooo…" Great, he's whining again. Shino looks down to see Kiba staring up at him with bleary eyes, looking absolutely needy and downright pathetic. "Don't leave meee…"
"You need medicine."
"Later." He tugs on Shino's sleeve and Shino humors him, sitting down on the couch next to him. "Right now you're the only medicine I need."
That line would have been terribly romantic if they were actually dating and Kiba wasn't downright delirious with fever. Instead it's just terrible and only serves to remind Shino of the fact they are indeed not dating and that the thing between them is still as undefined as ever.
Still, Kiba's got him wrapped around his finger, clearly, and he finds himself sinking back on the couch, all plans of leaving the house tonight to seek out medicine for his sick friend abandoned.
Kiba wastes no time snuggling into his side, wrapping the large, thick blanket Shino keeps on his couch around them both.
They stay like that for a while, Kiba slowly sliding down until his arms are wrapped around Shino's middle and his head is smushed into his side.
Akamaru joins them, eventually, stopping his worried pacing around the house to literally lay directly on top of Kiba. It's a wonder he isn't crushed, but Shino supposes he's used to it.
"Will you play with my hair?"
Shino sighs. "You're so needy."
"Please?"
"...Fine." He'll humor him. Kiba is sick and he needs comfort in whatever way Shino can provide. This is the least he can do, even if the idea of it makes his heart jump in unidentifiable ways.
His fingers hesitate before eventually landing in Kiba's hair. Once they settle, though, he finds himself much more comfortable with the idea.
Kiba's hair is slightly damp with sweat, but still very soft nonetheless. Shino cards his fingers through it gently, and Kiba lets out a sigh.
"S'nice." He mutters, barely audible. But Shino hears him, and can't help his small smile. He's right. This is nice. He probably needed this just as much as Kiba, with as busy and stressed as he's been lately.
They stay like that for a while. Shino's hand in Kiba's hair and Kiba's cheek pressed against his hip. Eventually Kiba dozes off, and Shino finds himself actually watching whatever movie had begun to play on the television.
He does become rather engrossed in it, so much so he almost doesn't notice when Kiba begins to stir again.
But a ninja's senses never waver that easily, so when Kiba awakens and lets out a groan Shino's eyes are on him immediately.
"G'morning…."
"It's 9pm."
"G'nine." Kiba grins, but Shino rolls his eyes.
"I lied earlier y'know." Kiba's voice is scratchy, and it honestly sounds like it hurts for him to speak. Shino wants to give him water or perhaps more tea, but that would require moving, which he doesn't think either of them want him to do.
His words register with Shino. "Lied? About what?"
Kiba stares up at him with lidded eyes, looking moments away from falling back into slumber. "I didn't ask my ma or sister to take care of me. I only wanted you to."
"I'm flattered." He couldn't be less shocked. He'd suspected that from the start.
"Knew you would be. You're my favorite nurse, y'know." Kiba tightens his hold around Shino's waist.
"Quite a feat, considering I'm not a nurse, nor have I done anything besides take your temperature and give you tea."
"Which was gross as hell, by the way. I drank it to be nice."
"The health benefits outweigh the taste."
"Whatever you say, Doctor Shino."
"I thought I was a nurse?" Shino laces his fingers through Kiba's hair again.
"Hm. I'm fine with whichever, as long as you keep doing that." He closes his eyes and relaxes into Shino's touch.
"You really are like a dog. Why? Because you like to be pet like one."
"Heh. Nothin' wrong with that. I don't mind being called a dog." Kiba's mumbling now, clearly soon to be taken by slumber once again.
"Most people consider being called a dog an insult."
"But I love dogs…."
'And I love you.' Shino keeps the thought to himself. He'll save it for another time.
For now he enjoys the moment. As needy and annoying as Kiba is, he's very glad he chose to come to him today in his time of need. Because he really does need this just as much as Kiba. Perhaps more.
Although he isn't quite so sure he'll feel that same sentiment when he inevitably wakes up in the morning with a cough.
But that's a thought for another day.