Chapter Text
Calum honestly didn’t know what to do. He had known that the older boy hadn’t been feeling his best the whole morning, but in true Ashton’s style, the drummer had managed to brilliantly dodge every single time he had tried to question him about his well-being, claiming he was just tired. So here they were. All four of them piled up on one too small couch, in the middle of an interview, with a sick bandmate who looked like he was about to lose the battle with his stomach at any given second. It honestly couldn't be better.
The worst part though was that he didn’t know if he should say something and risk Ashton getting mad at him, for drawing unnecessary attention, or if he should just stay quiet and wait for the drummer to come to him. Until now, he had been slightly more inclined to choose the second option, the safe one, but with the older boy’s face only getting greener every time he spared a glance at him, he was starting to reconsider his idea.
Ashton was the definition of washed out. He was pale, paler than Michael, except for the flush on his cheeks, he had beads of sweat visible on his forehead, despite the cool temperature in the room, and he honestly looked tired as fuck. Not only that, but he kept shifting in his seat, in an attempt to make himself more comfortable, and with the poor man pressed right to his side, the bassist just couldn’t ignore that, no matter how hard he was trying.
“You okay?” Calum whispered, noticing the way that the older boy had his arm wrapped loosely around his middle. Ashton looked startled for a moment, but then shrugged, discreetly rubbing his uneasy belly. “Stomach feeling bad?” The bassist added, alarm bells ringing in his head at the fact that the drummer hadn’t tried to wave him off like usual.
Ashton nodded shyly, clenching his teeth when he felt a painful cramp squeeze his insides. His stomach was absolutely pulsing with cramps, waves of stomach acid sloshing around the organ. He let out a small groan as acid bubbled in his throat, a quietly wet belch rumbling from his mouth. “Cal.” He mumbled urgently, sitting up straighter. He swallowed thickly when the nausea he had been fighting the whole morning returned with a vengeance, letting him know his small breakfast wasn’t going to stay down for much longer.
“Fuck,” Calum cursed, eyes widening when Ashton’s gray complexion became completely green. He turned to the middle aged woman who was busy asking Michael a question, totally unaware of their predicament. “Can we be excused?” He blurted out, already standing up before she could even answer. He ignored the confused looks Michael and Luke were throwing his way, in favor of helping Ashton up from the couch.
The drummer’s gut gurgled loudly from the movement and he had to bite back the urge to heave right there, in the middle of the studio, as saliva pooled under his tongue. He gripped Calum's arm tightly as they walked out of the room, the strong nausea making him feel woozy. “Urgh..” He muttered, trying to clear his head, as his stomach roiled heavily.
Ashton shut his eyes, in an attempt to ride out the waves of nausea that were pounding over him, as Calum led them out of the too crowded place, closing the door right behind them. They managed to stumble halfway through the bathroom when the drummer suddenly pulled away from Calum and doubled over, retching harshly. Liquid rapidly rose in his throat and splashed against his palate to gush out his mouth, a torrent of vomit barely missing his shoes and spilling against the once clean floor. The sick man coughed and burped wetly, the sound echoing in the empty room, as he heaved again, another thick stream of half digested food spilling from his parted lips.
“Just breathe, bud. It 's okay.” Calum soothed, rubbing Ashton’s back while the older boy’s body arched and shook underneath his touch as he puked once more. The drummer spat and panted, moaning when he felt his belly churning painfully again. Another small gag escaped his lips and he covered his mouth with his hand, begging for his stomach to calm down.
“Hey, don’t do that Ash, you have to let it out.” Calum said, gently taking his hand away. Ashton’s belly made a horrible noise and he grimaced as he burped out another mouthful of bile.
“Mmmm.” Ashton groaned, breathing heavily. “Fuck, I don’t feel good.” He murmured, his voice shaking slightly. His abdomen was sore and his throat was absolutely burning, but his gut was still bubbling under his hand.
“You done?” The bassist asked, brushing the drummer’s sweaty hair off his forehead. He winced when he felt the sticky heat radiating off him, another proof that Ashton had indeed managed to come down with a nasty bug. “Shit, you’re boiling, Ash.”
“I-I want to go to the restroom.” He whispered, wrapping his arm protectively around his middle. A quick shiver ran down his spine and he was just now aware of the amount of sweat on his back. Damn. He was a mess.
“This way.” Calum said, immediately ushering the pale boy to the right direction. Ashton’s legs were shaking with every step he took and if it wasn’t for the younger man’s arm wrapped around his torso, he definitely wouldn’t have made it. “Still good?” The bassist questioned when he finally saw the bathroom sign.
“Feel sick.” Ashton mumbled quietly, cold sweat breaking out across his whole body. He could feel the chunks rising in his throat as if in slow motion and he swallowed convulsively, determined to not make another mess.
“Almost there, mate.” Calum encouraged, quickening their pace. He let out a sigh of relief when he pushed open the door, leading the smaller man straight to the first available stall. He pushed the toilet seat up and carefully lowered the drummer to the ground just in time for him to spat out watery slime, saliva dripping from his mouth into the water below.
“Ohh.” Ashton whined, curling tightly on himself as his stomach gurgled. He belched sickly, body heaving forward with the force of the next heave. Calum kneeled down behind him, placing one of his hands on the boy’s shoulder in support and the other he used to keep Ashton’s hair away from harm's way. The drummer dry heaved once more before a wave of hot puke poured out from his mouth into the toilet.
“Geez, bud.” Calum gulped, trying not to be disturbed by all the vomit and sick noises. Ashton hiccuped, drool dripping from his mouth in a steady stream. His stomach tightened harshly and he abruptly vomited, tasting the bitterness of coffee on his tongue.
Ashton felt his stomach muscles clenching and he gagged, albeit unproductively. He closed his eyes, trying not to think about it. Hig gut sloshed heavily and a strange feeling went up his spine, turning into an intense lightheadedness. He whimpered and attempted to lay his heavy head on the dirty seat, but the bassist quickly pulled him backward until he was resting against his chest.
“Ash, hey, you with me?” The drummer’s eyes shot open and he promptly burped up a mouthful of bile on his front. “Fuck.” Calum helped the boy back over the toilet where he instantly expelled more vomit. Ashton weakly put his hands on his aching tummy, trying to soothe the cramps.
“ ‘m done.” He slurred with his eyes shut, slumping against Calum. The bassist flushed the toilet and reached for the toilet paper, ripping off a piece, using it to gently wipe off Ashont’s mouth and shirt. The older boy felt his cheeks burning with shame, but he couldn’t muster the energy to care or do anything about it.
“You okay, buddy?” Calum asked, rubbing soothing circles on the boy’s belly. The bassist felt Ashton’s tummy churning widely underneath his touch, the air bubbles rolling from one side to the other. Not wonder he felt that bad.
“Mm-mm.” The drummer slowly shook his head no, not wanting to talk much. Another chill ran through his body and he unconsciously curled closer to Calum’s chest. He was tempted to just fall asleep right there on the cold tiles, but his eyes popped open when he felt the bassist’s fingers running through his messy curls. “We should go back.” He mumbled half asleep.
“That’s a joke, right? Calum questioned, incredulously. “Man, if you think you’re going back there after all these, you're way sicker than I thought.” The younger man said seriously, still kneading Ashton’s tummy, trying to lull the cramps away.
“It wasn’t that bad.” Ashton whispered, blushing when his stomach moaned loudly in protest.
“I think you have your answer.” Calum chuckled. “Feeling a bit better though?”
“A little.” His gut was still churning and the nausea hadn’t completely faded as he had hoped, but he didn’t think he was at risk of throwing up anytime soon.
“Think you can stand?” Ashton visibly groaned, but began trying to push himself up off the ground. With Calum’s help, they got him upright, the bassist’s strong grip on his arm the only thing preventing him from crumbling to the floor. “You got it?”
“Too dizzy.” Ashton mumbled, squeezing his eyes shut. The younger man's solid form caught him and supported him and he pressed his face to his shoulder as they waited for the dizziness to pass.
“We can go now.” The drummer said quietly once he got his bearing back.
It was a slow process getting Ashton to the car that was waiting to take them back to the hotel, half because the older boy could barely hold himself upright, and half because they kept having to stop when he thought he was going to be sick again, even though his stomach seemed to have nothing left to bring it up. But finally, they reached the vehicle and the drummer immediately curled up on the backseat, laying his head on the brown eyed lad’s lap, as his stomach sloshed lazily.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” Calum questioned when he heard the boy whimper. When he didn’t get an answer, he sneaked his hand under the drummer’s shirt and sure enough Ashont’s belly was bubbling under his palm, his muscles clenching and unclenching painfully. “I’m sorry you’re feeling so bad, bud.” He said sympathetically, moving his hands in shapes over the boy’s stomach.
“It hurts.” He whispered, weakly grabbing the bassist’s hand and pressing against the lower middle of his tummy where the cramps were worst. “R-right here.” Calum nodded and rubbed the achy spot, adding a bit of pressure every now and then.
It didn’t take long for Ashton to start dozing off, the boy was truly exhausted, and once Calum realized it, he grabbed his phone and texted Michael, knowing he was more likely to check his phone than Luke, letting him know where they were and briefly explained the whole situation. He would give them ten minutes to text him back and if he didn’t get an answer, he would just ask the driver to take them to the hotel and then pick the other two up later.
Not even two minutes later though, his screen lit up. He grabbed his phone, smiling softly, when he saw that it was Michael saying they were on their way.
***
“Gosh. He looks terrible.” Was the first thing Luke said when he quietly got in the middle seat of the car, followed closely by Michael. Calum had warned them that the drummer was sick but he didn’t expect Ashton to look this worse for wear. His hair was soaked with sweat, he had vomit on his shirt, and even though the bassist’s hoodie was draped over him, he was still trembling in his sleep.
“What the fuck happened?” The guitarist quickly added in, shocked as well when he saw the usual bright eyed lad, curled on the backseat.
“Stomach bug, I think.” Calum told them, lightly running his fingers through the boy’s caramel curls. “He threw up so much, I don’t think I had ever seen that much vomit in my lifr.” He continued, grimacing at the memory.
“That’s why he was so quiet today.” Luke remembered then, concern evident in his voice.
“Does he have a fever?” Michael asked, watching as Calum placed the back of his hand on the drummer’s forehead and then on his back.
“A bad one. He 's burning up.” Calum answered just as the car went over a bump on the road. He winced when he felt the older boy shift slightly on his lap, a softly groan escaping his lips, when he heard Ashton’s stomach rumble once again and judging by the sympathetic looks evident on his other bandmates' faces, he wasn’t the only one he had heard.
“That sounded painful.” Michael whispered as Calum gently rubbed Ashton’s back, hoping to lull him back to sleep.
It didn’t work.
A few minutes later, the sick boy’s eyes slowly opened up, revealing a pair of glassy orbs, the pain evident on his face. He blinked a couple of times, trying to make sense of where he was, but then his eyes landed on Luke and Michael’s worried expression and everything came back to him, including the uncomfortable ache on his gut. It was a horrible feeling of fullness mixed with waves of cramps, even though he had nothing in his stomach at this point.
“Hey bud, stomach still giving you trouble?” Luke asked and to his surprise Ashton actually nodded. Another proof that he was still feeling like shit.
“I-I want to sit down.” The drummer mumbled, feeling the nausea increase. Calum carefully and slowly helped the boy up until he was pressed into his side, not that their caution had mattered that much, seeing that Ashton’s belly still gurgled and moaned when he changed position. “Mmm.” He whimpered nervously, feeling his stomach lurch.
“You’re looking seriously peaky, mate.” Michael commented and Ashton gulped against the turning in his gut.
“I don’t feel good.” Ashton slurred, swallowing hard against the lump in his throat.
“Gonna be sick again?” Calum had just finished asking that when Ashton started throwing up.
A lot.
He heaved, helpless to stop it, as a violent rush of acidic vomit rose in his esophagus and gushed out of his mouth before spilling out everywhere: on himself, on Calum’s shoes and pants, on the back of the middle seat and on the floor.
“Fuck.” Calum cursed, trying not to freak out, and turned the smaller man so he was just facing the floor.
Ashton didn’t even have the time to contemplate his humiliation or to even catch his breath before the next wave of nausea hit him like a ton of bricks. He burped and his stomach grumbled as a stream of bile landed on the car’s mat. The drummer whimpered and panted, a sharp cramp shooting through his belly.
“I’m so sorry, Cal, so sorry. I really didn’t mean to.” Ashton mumbled, tears streaming down his red face, when he finally caught a break.
“Hey, it’s okay, it’s alright. I’m not mad.” Calum shushed him, trying to calm down the boy, when he felt how much worse his stomach was churning now that he was crying.
“B-but s’ puke everywhere.” He whispered quietly, rubbing his eyes. He was pretty sure he had never felt more embarrassed in his 28 years of existence.
“You’re sick. It happens.” Calum told him gently, helping him off his soiled shirt.
“We’re just about to pull over at the hotel and then we're gonna get you cleaned up, okay mate?” Michael explained and only now the drummer realized they hadn’t stopped. Ashton gave a small nod and sniffed, his nose running from crying. He closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of the bassist's rubbing circles on his back.
True to Michael’s word, the driver parked the car not even a couple of minutes later, but it was enough time for Ashton to doze off again, his head on Calum’s chest. The bassist knew he had to be dehydrated by now.
“Put this on him.” The guitarist instructed, taking off his own hoodie, so they could enter the hotel lobby. The pants would have to do for now.
“Man, I don’t think I have ever seen him this poorly.” Luke said, hopping out of the car to help. He had to admit it was kinda scary, actually, to see the older boy pretty much limp, covered in his own puke, as the bassist helped him into the hoodie. “Hey Ash, we’re here, mate.” He called out, rubbing the boy’s arm.
“Hmmm.” Ashton’s eyes struggled to stay open but once he did manage to keep his heavy eyelids open, he was on the move.
“Don’t let go of him.” Calum quickly said to Luke when his youngest bandmate helped the drummer get out of the car. The blonde rolled his eyes, but did make sure he had a strong grip on the shorter man’s shoulder.
Ashton shivered once the rush of cool air hit his heated body and he stumbled a bit.
“Whoa.” Luke exclaimed, pulling the drummer closer to his body. “You good?”
“Think so.” Ashton whispered, but didn’t try to pull away.
They waited a few moments to make sure Ashton was steady on his feet, in the meantime the drummer profusely apologized to the driver who just waved him off, and then they started their slow walk to the hotel lobby. It took a lot longer than normal, but eventually they made it inside.
“There’s a drugstore not too far from here, I’m gonna go there so we can stock it up on some meds. I’m almost sure we’re out of Pepto Bismol. You guys got him?” Michael asked, knowing Ashton was more comfortable with Calum and Luke when he wasn’t feeling his best.
“Great idea. I’ll take Ash for now so you can shower, Cal.” Luke said, placing his hand on the poor man’s back. He could feel him shaking, his legs having trouble holding his weight.
“Okay, but make sure he drinks something. I meant it, Luke.” Calum told him seriously, stroking the drummer’s curls.
“Cal, I know how to take care of him. You don’t need to keep reminding me.” Luke shot back and the bassist sighed, nodding, although he didn’t look that convinced.
“Alright, sorry. I’ll meet you there in a few, then.” Calum said.
Then everyone went their separate ways. Michael went to the drugstore, Calum to his own room and Luke and Ashton went to the drummer’s room.
“ ’m gonna throw up.” Was the first thing Ashton mumbled as soon as they entered his room. For some miracle, he had managed the lobby and the elevator ride without puking his guts up, but his body apparently had enough.
“Come on.” Luke told him, immediately ushering the pale boy in the direction of the toilet.
He helped his sick friend kneel on the floor and Ashton quickly hovered over the bowl, one hand holding him up and the other clutching tightly at his abdomen. He squeezed his eyes shut as he felt his stomach bubbling with nausea. He coughed and lent forward, bringing up just stomach acid and bile this time.
Luke patted his back, feeling not only the heat radiating off him, but Ashton’s shoulders arch as he heaved again, burping up another small wave of liquid. The blonde moved his hand to the boy’s belly and rubbed up and down a bit to comfort him.
“It hurts.” Ashton muttered through gritted teeth before harshly dry heaving.
“Ash, take a deep breath and try to calm down. You’re empty.” Luke told him gently and Ashton nodded, trying to regulate his breathing with the younger man’s help. After another minute of quivering, his stomach began to settle. “Better?”
Ashton sat back, leaning against Luke’s chest, and wiped his face with his hand. “Yeah.” Luke grabbed some toilet paper and handed it to the boy. Ashton nodded in thanks, using it to clean his hand and mouth.
“You good if I leave you here for a bit, bud?” Luke asked, brushing the drummer’s hair away from his forehead.
“Where you’re going?” Ashton mumbled, turning around to look at the blonde’s face, and Luke could swear he heard a bit of fear in his voice.
“Just to get the thermometer and a water bottle otherwise Cal will murder me.” Luke joked and Ashton smiled softly, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “I just don’t wanna move you yet.”
“Okay.” Ashton muttered tiredly.
Luke, then, quickly stood up from the floor, flushing the toilet, before making his way over to the main room. He went straight to Ashton’s toiletry bag where he knew the older boy kept his medicine and grabbed the Tylenol and looking through another small division he found the thermometer. He closed it all off before going to the mini fridge, taking a cool water bottle.
When Luke returned to the bathroom, he saw that the drummer was in the same position as he had left him, although he had his head resting on his hand that was propped up on the toilet bowl. “My head hurts.” He mumbled, rubbing his temples. “It’s not a migraine, it just hurts.” He added, when he saw the worry evident on the blonde’s expression.
Ashton was the king of migraines and it seemed that almost every time before or after he got really sick, he would end up with a migraine which just made things ten times harder on all of them and that was why Luke didn’t want that to be the case this once.
“Lucky for you, I found these.” Luke said, holding the Tylenol pills, “but first, I need to take your temperature.” He placed the bottle and the pills on the counter before crouching down in front of the boy. “Open up, mate.”
Ashton rolled his eyes but did open his mouth, wincing when the cold metal slid under his tongue. The drummer laid his pounding head on the taller man’s shoulder and Luke gently started running his painted nails through his hair, massaging his scalp. He must have blacked out for a bit because the next thing he was aware of was the annoying beep and Luke carefully removing the thermometer.
“103.4, no wonder you’re feeling this crap, bud.” The younger boy grabbed two pills and the water and then handed them to the drummer. “Drink slowly.”
Ashton took a couple of small, cautiously sips, and then drank a bit more with the pills when his stomach didn’t try to turn itself out. Once he was done, he placed the bottle on the floor, and then let his eyes slip closed, cuddling closer to Luke’s body.
“Let’s get you cleaned up, mate” Luke said softly, tracing lightly shapes on the boy’s back. Ashton whimpered, obviously exhausted, and the younger man felt a twinge of guilt in his gut for making the drummer take a shower even though he knew that his friend would be way more comfortable once he was in clean clothes. “C’mon. I’ll help you.”
“Ok-kay.” Ashton whispered, barely audible. He struggled to get to his feet, Luke’s strong grip on his arm doing more of the holding than his own muscles. “I don’t like standing.” He whined, slowly blinking the dizziness away.
“I know buddy.” Luke told him, giving him a sadly smile. Once he was confident that Ashton wasn’t gonna drop to the floor, Luke turned around to start the shower, giving the older boy privacy to undress himself.
Ashton pulled off Michael’s hoodie and then shakily stepped out of his pants, moaning when his stomach churned painfully for a few seconds. He placed one hand on his bare tummy, rubbing circles on it to try and ease the horrible cramps, and muffled a burp with the other.
“Still doing okay, Ash?” Luke asked, glancing back. Ashton looked absolutely miserable, standing in the middle of the room, staring at the ground with his arms wrapped around his bare torso, shivering still.
“Mhmm.” He nodded, even though the low gurgle that came from his belly didn’t agree with that, but for the boy’s sake Luke also didn’t comment on that either.
“I’m gonna leave you to shower, then.” Luke told him, “just don’t lock the door and call out if you need anything, got it?” He added, making sure that the older boy really understood. Once he was satisfied with the drummer’s answer, he slipped out of the steamy bathroom, closing the door.
Luke went over to Ashton’s suitcase and grabbed the comfiest shirt and pants he could find, setting them on the bed, as he waited for the older boy to finish showering.
“Luke?” The blonde man heard Ashton call from the bathroom. It had been less than ten minutes since he left the boy alone.
“Yeah buddy?” Luke quickly asked, not liking the shakiness on the drummer’s voice. He knocked on the door, just to give his bandmate a heads up, then walked in without even waiting for an answer.
“I d-don’t feel g-good.” He mumbled, his face turning an alarming shade of green. He gulped against the rising nausea, his stomach sloshing and gurgling again.
“Ash, breathe. Deep breaths, bud.” Luke instructed, opening the shower door. "Shit." He stripped down to his underwear and got in as well when he noticed the drummer was swaying slightly. “You dizzy?” The taller man questioned, pulling Ashton into a hug, letting his heated forehead rest against his shoulder.
Back in the day, showering together had been almost a daily occurrence during the busy days, but as they had grown older, their need for privacy also got higher, so it had been quite a long time since they had last done this.
“ ‘m gonna-” Luke easily turned Ashton around, so he was facing the drain, and pointed the shower head away so it wasn’t directly spraying the drummer’s face as the older boy finally lost the battle against his stomach, throwing up all over the floor.
“Shhh, it’s okay, you’re okay.” Luke soothed, tightening his hold on the boy’s waist when Ashton suddenly gagged harshly, his body determined to spill out all the water he had just drunk. He coughed up another stream of bile, a pained groan escaping his lips.
“I wanna get out.” Ashton whispered, burying his face on the younger man’s chest.
“Give me a minute, bud.” The next thing the drummer knew, Luke was gently washing up his hair with shampoo, his long fingers massaging his scalp and he almost moaned when the boy’s touch reduced his pounding headache to only a small throb.
“Hmmm.” Ashton mumbled against his chest, eyes barely opened as Luke worked now on scrubbing his torso with a washcloth. He was extra gentle around the older boy’s tummy and wasted a few minutes on trying to rub the bubbles that were still sloshing around Ashton’s stomach.
About five to ten minutes later, Ashton was practically falling asleep standing up against Luke’s broad chest, the warm water also helping relax his achy muscles.
“Ash, I’m gonna dry you off, okay?” Ashton made a small noise of agreement in the back of his throat so Luke turned off the water, picked up the towel that was on the counter and carefully dried the older boy off, wrapping the towel around the drummer’s waist afterwards, ignoring the blush that appeared on both of their faces.
“Buddy, I’m just gonna change real quickly and grab your clothes, do you need to sit down?” Luke asked, rubbing the boy’s arm that was covered in goosebumps. Ashton opened his heavy eyes and gave a small nod, feeling lightheaded.
Luke then closed the toilet lid and slowly helped Ashton sit down, making sure the boy was good for now, before he quickly went back to the other room. He dried himself off with the spare towel he found and then rummered through the drummer’s clothes, until he found one that would fit him the best until he could go to his own room.
He got dressed and then picked up Ashton’s clothes, making his way over to the bathroom. “You’re quite a mess, mate.” Luke muttered sadly when he saw that the older boy was nodding off, still sitting up. The drummer’s head shot up at the blonde’s voice and he rubbed at his face shyly “Let’s get you changed then I promise I’ll let you sleep.”
“Yeah” Ashton mumbled through a yawn. A wave of tiredness had washed over him, making him feel lethargic and sleepy. He let Luke pull his shirt over his head and then grabbed the rest of the clothes from the singer’s hand. “I got that.” He whispered, looking down a bit embarrassed at the entire situation, but Luke just nodded, looking to the other side to give his sick friend some space.
Ashton carefully changed into his underwear and pants, using the wall for support, as his stomach groaned and churned. “I’m done.”
“Ready for bed?” Luke asked, chuckling, when the shorter boy quickly nodded. Luke placed his hand on the drummer’s back and led him to bed.
Ashton laid down more carefully than he ever had, trying not to upset his belly more, and immediately curled up into a ball, arms loosely around his aching stomach. He was exhausted.
“Tummy hurting still?” Luke questioned, sitting down on the edge of the mattress, beside the drummer. He placed his hand on the older boy’s forehead, wincing when he noticed that Ashton was still too warm for his liking and with the pills out of his system, there was a slim chance of his temperature going down on its own.
“Mmm” He whimpered nervously and the blonde sighed sadly.
“I hate to say this, but I really think you should try and take the medicine again.” Luke said, brushing his fingers through Ashton’s wet hair. “Think you can keep it down?”
“Don’t know.” He shrugged, surely his gut was still bubbling lazily underneath his hand, but he didn’t know if it was true nausea or it was just discomfort from his achy stomach muscles.
“Can you try?” Luke asked, looking pleadingly at the smaller boy. Ashton gave a small nod, more to not hurt the younger man’s feelings than out of confidence in keeping it all down.
Luke then carefully got up and grabbed the pills and water from the bathroom, quickly returning to Ashton’s side. “Here, bud.”
The drummer blinked sluggish and propped himself up on one elbow, accepting the water bottle Luke was offering. He took a few cautiously sips then reached for the pills, swallowing them down with a groan. Once he was done, he handed the bottle back to Luke and was about to crawl back under the covers when the taller man’s hand on his shoulder stopped him.
“Just stay still for a bit.” Luke instructed, not wanting the drummer moving too soon.
“I’m tired.” Ashton whined, rubbing his eyes.
“C’mere.” He watched as Luke carefully sat down beside him and pulled him closer so his head was resting on the singer’s broad shoulder. "That 's better, right?” The drummer nodded and snuggled closer to Luke’s body, enjoying the warmth that was radiating off him.
After just a few minutes with the older boy pressed to his left side, Luke could feel every little gurgle and rumble from the drummer’s belly. He looked down, frowning pitifully when he saw that Ashton’s eyebrows were knit in pain, the older boy clearly struggling to relax. Luke, then, placed his hand up under the smaller man’s shirt and started tracing soothing circles on his upset stomach, chuckling softly, when Ashton's cheeks turned a nice shade of red, but Luke just kept rubbing his tummy, massaging the pain away, glad that at least he could offer some kind of comfort.
It took less than three minutes for Ashton to start dozing off, eyelids getting heavier as he slumped more against Luke. The blonde smiled at the scene and continued kneading the cramps away and not too long after, the drummer was completely out, snoring softly.
***
Luke had been quietly scrolling through Twitter on his phone for the past twenty or so minutes when he heard voices outside of the room. Finally. He honestly had expected Calum to burst in a lot sooner. He glanced expectantly at the door and sure enough his other two bandmates walked in, a few groceries bags between them.
"He 's alive, I promise. He's just napping.” Luke joked, gesturing to the drummer who was pretty much passed out on his lap. “He’s clean, medicated and asleep.”
“HaHaHa, you’re so funny, Hemmings.” Calum muttered, rolling his eyes. He placed the bags down on the floor and walked over to the bed, gently sitting on the mattress. The bassist brushed a few curls off the boy's forehead, resting the back of his hand on it. “He’s still too warm.” Calum whispered, moving his hand to the drummer’s rosy cheeks. He left his hand there a bit longer than necessary when even in his sleep Ashton seemed to lean on it .
“I know, I gave him some Tylenol almost half an hour ago, but they didn’t do shit.” Luke said honestly. He also had taken the covers off the bed as soon as the older boy had fallen asleep, in hopes of cooling him down some, but that didn’t work as he had expected.
“He’s lucky, we’re only here for interviews and stuff and not concerts.” Michael added in, glancing at the sleeping drummer. He didn’t know why, but he had kinda thought or hoped that Ashton would be looking a bit more like himself in the time he was gone, but he was truly wrong. His oldest bandamate still appeared absolutely poorly, especially now that he was all curled up, face pressed into Luke’s leg.
“Yeah, he definitely wouldn’t be able to play the drums.” Calum agreed, seeing how weak Ashton was right now. “Did he throw up again?” He asked, looking at Luke.
“A couple times.” Luke answered, wincing at the memory. “Once right after we got in and then in the shower.” The blonde continued, running his fingers through Ashton’s curls.
“Damn it. I bought the stomach relaxers and a few other pain relievers so once he wakes up, he can hopefully keep those down.” Michael said, pointing to the bags.
“Why did you guys take so long anyways?” Luke questioned, the curiosity getting the best of him. “Thought you would be desperate to come in.” The blonde kept talking, directing the last bit to Calum.
“Michael convinced me to give you some alone time with Ash.” Calum admitted, remembering the conversation he had with the guitarist. Michael had made a good few points about Ashton feeling overwhelmed when there were too many people around him and he wasn’t in control and he also said, more than once, that Luke was perfectly capable of taking care of the drummer. “So we had lunch.”
“We bought yours and Ash’s too.” Michael told him. “It’s in one of those bags.”
“Thanks, I’m just gonna wait for him to wake up.” Luke said, shifting a bit as his legs were starting to get numb.
“Do you want me to take him?” Calum asked, but Luke shook his head no.
“Nah, it 's fine. I don't wanna risk waking him up.” It was the most restful sleep Ashton had been getting since he had first woken up that morning and he didn't want to disturb him this soon.
Ashton, then, stirred in his sleep and let out a cough, his stomach grumbling and rumbling loudly enough for all the boy to hear it.
“I don’t think Ash’s eating anytime soon.” Michael said sadly as Luke sneaked his hand under the older boy’s shirt and started to rub his stomach, feeling the bubbles roll around.
They were in for a long couple of days.