Work Text:
Melvin was hiding something from you.
It started with the fact that he wasn’t in bed when you woke up– instead, he was in the bathroom where the shower was turned on. You asked him if everything was alright, but he gave you a nonchalant “yeah” and you moved on with your morning. You’ve only stayed at his house overnight a few times before, so you weren’t too familiar with his regular routines just yet.
…However, the second thing that rang the alarm bells in your head was the noise he made while in the car with you. It was as if he was trying to hold a cough– and was failing horribly.
“Are you okay?” You had asked while driving, furrowing your brow. “You’re acting… off.”
Melvin nodded. “Allergies,” he told you. His voice sounded… a little strange. It had a nasally sound behind it.
Figuring that he didn’t want to talk further about it, you didn’t say anything else during the rest of the drive– even when he sneezed into a tissue. Twice.
The morning went alright– you were ahead of the majority of your assignments and projects, so you had no need to rush in anything.
The third thing that ticked you off that something was wrong was when you went into his office to ask him something and found him face-down on the desk, his glasses placed off to the side.
“Melvin?” You called out gently. He lifted his head, squinting in your general direction.
“Did you need something?” He grumbled, putting his glasses back on. If you had come in five minutes later, you probably would have caught him drooling. He was about to say something else, but sneezed into his elbow instead. At a closer look, his fleshy nose was a little red.
“You need to go home,” you began, moving over to stand next to his desk. You could hear some of the fans running loudly inside his robotic half. Was he running a fever? “You’re obviously not well.”
“I’ll survive.”
“...Melvin,” you mumbled softly, giving him a look that made him frown. “I really think you should go rest in the nurse’s office for a bit– maybe even clock out early. You shouldn’t be here…”
Melvin made a face, scrunching up his nose. Although you were… likely correct, he couldn’t simply just go home right this very moment. “I have some things I need to do,” he said firmly. “It’s due by the end of the day.”
“...What exactly do you have to do?”
He listed a few things, making sure to include specific details about a project. It was mainly paperwork and math, but it still needed to be completed.
You nodded along slowly, seeming to listen to every word. After a while, you hummed, giving him a smile. “I could do that.”
…
He stared. “Abs–” he took a moment to tilt his head away and cough into his elbow. “Absolutely not.”
You lowered your bottom lip. “C’mon– I doubt you’ll be able to finish it while you’re like… this...” A sigh escaped you at his defiant expression. “Just… at least go to the nurse’s office and lay down in an actual bed for a little while. I doubt your desk is very comfortable to lay on.”
“...Fine,” he mumbled, slowly getting up and shuffling out the door. He must be really drained– normally, he’d spend at least another ten minutes arguing or giving you sarcastic remarks.
You followed him to the nurse’s office, making sure that he actually goes to lay down.
When he made it to the door, there was a small note stating that the nurse wasn’t in today, making you grunt. “Is the door still unlocked?”
Melvin tried the door– it was locked– before rolling his eyes and opening the door with a set of keys he had in his pocket.
You peered inside, flicking on the light switch. “Mm… The smell of disinfectant. My favorite.”
He shuffled over to a set of curtains in the corner of the room, peeling them back, kicking off his shoes, and flopping down onto the bed.
You shut the door before pulling over a chair, sitting next to the bed.
He shuffled around, now laying on his back instead of his front. After a moment, he took off his glasses, placing them on a nearby stand.
…
He stared at you.
You stared at him.
A few more moments passed by, and he huffed. “So, are you gonna read me a bedtime story, ooor…?”
You pouted. “I just want to make sure you actually sleep.”
“Uh-huh. Don’t you have stuff to do? And, I wasn’t planning on going asleep, ya frozen steak. I just wanted to rest my eyes for a minute.”
“I’ll wake you up in thirty minutes,” you assured, reaching a hand over to run your fingers through orange hair. As you assumed, he was definitely running a fever. “I don’t have too much to do today, so I should be fine.”
“...You’re gonna get sick,” he murmured, though relaxed a little.
“Maybe. Maybe not.”
“So when I find you sniffling and coughing, I’m going to remind you of this moment.”
“If you find me like that,” you smiled, leaning in to smooch his forehead.
He… rolled his eyes before closing them, getting under the thin pale blankets and ignoring how his face was warming up from your display of affection. He was getting more used to kisses and hugs, but there were still moments when he’s caught off guard. The motion of you petting him slowly lulled him to sleep, sending him off to a fuzzy dreamland.
–
Melvinborg woke up with his head feeling like a chunk of lead… well, a good portion of it was made out of metal– he felt awful. His nose was stuffy, his joints hurt…
“What time is it?” He murmured to himself, slowly sitting up and glancing around for a wall clock.
He nearly fell out of the bed when he saw that it was five o’clock on the dot. He had slept through his entire shift.
He cursed under his breath, shakily standing and getting his shoes back on. He shoved his glasses onto his face– only to see you casually walk in, smiling like nothing was wrong when your gaze landed on him.
“Hey Melvin. Are you ready to go home?”
He glared. “You were supposed to wake me up!”
You tapped your finger to your chin– you were messing with him. “Was I? I don’t recall.”
“Look,” he began firmly, “I know that I’m sick and all, but I still have plenty of work to get…” he coughed into his elbow, his voice sounding more raw when he spoke up again, “I have work that needs to get done.”
You hummed. “You mean the work that I completed for you?”
…
He slowly squinted at you, suspicious. “There’s no possible way you finished everything.”
“I did. I finished everything you told me about earlier.” You paused. “Though, Grenada popped by and said she wanted to talk to you– I told her that you were out for the day.”
Melvin slowly rubbed his face, blinking down at you… “You really did everything?”
Your expression softened at his tone. After a moment, you nodded. “Or at least, I did everything you said. There were a few papers on your desk that you didn’t say anything about, so I put them to the side.”
Melvin sighed deeply, relaxing and closing his eyes in relief. “Okay. Um. Let’s…” He paused when you hugged him. He slowly returned the gesture, though huffing. “You’re going to get sick from me.”
“Maybe... Maybe not.”
“Isn’t that what you said when...? Whatever– let's head home. I’m tired.”
You hummed, lifting your head to meet his eyes and not bothering to comment on the fact that he slept all day. “I’m staying at your house again?”
He made a noise in his throat. “I mean… you don’t have to. I’m not keeping you hostage.”
“Mm… But what if I want to?”
“...You’ll have to sleep on the couch– if you sleep with me again, there’s no doubt that you’ll get sick too.”
You lowered your bottom lip, patting his chest. He could’ve sworn you were able to feel his stuttering heart. “Well, don’t you worry– as soon as you fall asleep, I’m getting in bed with you.”
He glared, though it had no heat behind it. “You’re lucky I love you.”
You smirked, having won this conversation. “And you’re lucky I love you.”
With that, you grabbed his fleshy hand, leading him out of the nurses office. Although he wanted to protest that he could’ve done his own work, he was incredibly glad that you did that for him. If you had woken him up thirty minutes later, he probably wouldn’t have been able to finish his work today regardless of his perfectionist nature.
Whenever this sickness is gone, he was certainly going to get you something nice.