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"Are you feeling okay, Willy?"
"Couldn't be better, Noodle."
"Then why do you look sick?"
"Trick of the light."
Noodle had been watching her friend Willy Wonka work on his chocolatey creations all afternoon, and she couldn't help but notice that he was acting rather strangely (even more so than usual). He was coughing quite a bit and swaying when he stood. His eyes glowed, and his face was flushed a deep pink. In her opinion, he didn't look at all well.
"Are you sure, because..."
"Now, Noodle. Do you really think I'd lie to you?" he said, turning his soulful eyes upon her in what could only be described as a hurt pout.
Noodle felt her heart sink. She loved Willy more than anyone she'd ever met, so to be challenged with such a question from him made her feel bad for not entirely believing what he claimed. However, because she loved him she wanted to ensure his well-being, and right now he looked anything but well. She debated on what course of action to take but was promptly interrupted by him clapping his hands rather (and unnecessarily, she thought) loudly.
"Right, then! We still need a bit of that giraffe milk, so what do you say we take a little trip to the zoo?" he exclaimed, galavanting off in the entirely wrong direction.
Noodle rolled her eyes. "It's the other way, Willy. And do you really think you should be..."
She found herself once more interrupted as he grabbed her hand and spun her around. "Come on, then," he smiled as he swung their hands back and forth. "Let's get to it!"
Noodle allowed him a small smile, but she still worried that he was much too sick to be prancing about on such a cold winter's night. Still, if he insisted he was okay he probably was.
She certainly hoped so anyway.
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After making their way past the front gate of the zoo (a ridiculously complicated but humorous task), Willy and Noodle found their giraffe named Abigail. At first the tall creature didn't seem too pleased at their arrival, so Willy decided extra manners were in order.
"Miss Abigail," he said as he leaned down and bowed to her. The problem with this was that his congested head didn't agree with the sudden movement. Before he knew it, his eyes had blacked out, and he toppled over towards Noodle.
"Willy!" she cried, wrapping her arms around his slender waist to save him from hitting the cold, concrete floor.
"Uhh," he moaned, unable to focus or command his muscles. "I c-can't seem to..."
"Shh, you're okay. Just let me help you," she soothed as she slowly lowered him into a sitting position.
She allowed him to lie against her, his head upon her shoulder. Never having been in such a predicament before, she wasn't too sure of what to do next. After all, it wasn't as if she had ever had a mom to care for her when she'd been sick. Therefore she was left no choice but to imagine what might happen in a book. How did characters comfort each other in stories? She seemed to recall that checking for fever and taking note of symptoms was important and a logical first step. But she'd also read about characters rubbing a person's arm or caressing his cheek when he didn't feel well. Either would probably work, right? All she wanted was to help her friend feel better. To see him so ill made her heart break.
The issue was that they were still sort of stuck in a room with a giraffe. Only a problem one might encounter with Willy Wonka, she thought affectionately.
"Willy, do you think you can make it up? We're kind of not in the most ideal of places." Abigail snorted in agreement at that. She still wasn't happy with these intruders.
"Anything you like..." Willy replied drowsily, though making no effort to actually move.
"Alright, stand up, then. We've gotta get out of here," said Noodle. As she rose Willy's head fell from her shoulder and onto the cold floor. He frowned and whined, his eyes still closed. "Come on, Willy. Please," she urged, tucking her arms beneath his in an attempt to get him up. Still he offered no help. With a sigh, she realized she was going to have to drag him out instead. Good thing he was a skinny little thing, she thought.
As she pulled him towards the door, she reflected upon how insane the whole thing was. Even Abigail seemed to think them both mad, and in a way Noodle supposed she was right. Still, she supposed she'd rather go mad than be sane in an already insane world.
With a final grunt of effort, she pulled Willy out and shut the door behind them. Now that they were left in the hallway of the enclosure Noodle suddenly realized she was alone. Without Willy everything seemed so dark and hopeless. It frightened her.
She looked down at his face and noticed it was terribly pale and glistening with perspiration. Hesitantly, she laid a hand upon his forehead and grimaced at how warm he was. At the same moment he began to shiver violently, his brow furrowing in pain. Without thinking twice, she shrugged off her own jacket and draped it over his small frame.
"N-Noodle," he moaned deliriously, his teeth chattering. "It h-hurts..."
"What does, Willy?" Noodle frowned, her hands upon his chest to keep him grounded.
"E-everything."
Involuntarily Noodle began to tear up. She had never felt so badly for anyone in her life. Willy was the kindest person she'd ever met—to her he was simply too sweet to ever be sick or in pain. She hugged him close to her chest and caressed his warm cheek, just as she'd read about in her books.
"I'm so sorry, Willy," she said, her tears falling upon his plum-colored coat.
He was too weak to respond, and she realized she had no idea of what to do. He was too sick to walk with her back to Scrubitt and Bleacher's, and there was no way she'd be able to drag him all the way there. She saw that there was really only one option—to leave him and go get help from Abacus and the gang. The very idea hurt her to even think about. The last thing she wanted to do was leave him alone when he was so sick. But it was her only choice.
"Willy," she tried, lightly tapping his cheek to rouse him a bit.
He groaned and turned his head away from the prodding touch. She simply tapped the other side of his face in response. This forced him to open his bleary, shimmering eyes.
"What's wrong?" he slurred, fixing her with a delirious smile.
"Look, Willy. I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to go get Abacus and the rest so they can help me help you. Is that okay?"
It seemed to take him a moment to fully register what she had said. He gave her such an addled look that in any other situation it would have been comedic. Finally he nodded ever so slowly and closed his eyes.
"Is that a 'yes?" Noodle tried.
But it was too late. He'd already dropped back off to sleep, his long lashes curved against the dark circles beneath his eyes. She used this as her opportunity to leave, hoping that he'd remain asleep until she and the others got back. Before leaving him, however, she bent down and gave his forehead a gentle and soothing kiss. "I'll be right back. Just hang tight, Willy."
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It took a bit of explaining for Noodle to convince Abacus and the gang that she wasn't pulling their legs and was in fact telling nothing but the truth. Together they snuck out and began the journey through the brisk, dark night. They were all extremely worried about their young friend. Abacus didn't say much on the matter, but Noodle noticed that his brow was furrowed and his mouth was set in a concerned frown. Piper was a different story, though. Her worry presented itself in the fact that she couldn't help but ask incessant questions regarding Willy's sickness—the entire way there. Chucklesworth tried to tell a few jokes to lighten the mood but to no avail. Everyone was much too anxious to appreciate even the best of quips.
After what felt like an eternity, the five friends made it to the zoo enclosure. "He's in here," said Noodle, leading them down the hallway. Quietly (as if it was the only way to be around sick people), they approached his lean figure. It seemed he was asleep, Noodle's jacket still covering his chest and torso.
"The poor lad," said Abacus, his tone graver than the other four had ever heard.
"No reason to worry, Abacus. We'll soon have him all fixed up and feeling better," Piper assured him as she bent down to feel Willy's face. "Bless him, he's as warm as a furnace."
"How should we take him back?" asked Noodle, wanting nothing but for her friend to be in a warm bed as soon as possible.
"Carry him," suggested Abacus as he began to lift Willy's torso into his arms. The chocolate maker let out a pained moan at being moved, sending everyone's hearts reeling. "Aw, there now, my poor lad. You're okay. It's only us, and we're going to take good care of you."
This seemed to calm him, and he nestled his head into the crook of Abacus's neck. Piper volunteered to take his legs and together they lifted him up. Noodle took to arranging her coat over him again, fearing that he'd begin shivering if he wasn't tucked in properly. Carefully they carried him back to the inn. He only ever became semiconsciously aware of the pain, and when he did Noodle was always there to hold his limp hand or caress his hair.
Eventually the six of them managed to sneak Willy back into Scrubitt and Bleacher's. Being that Willy's bed was still broken, Noodle insisted that he take her bed instead. And so, ever so gently they laid him down upon her bed and tucked all the blankets they could find between them around his trembling frame. Noodle sat down beside him and held onto his thin hand as Piper mentioned something about grabbing a bowl of cool water and a washcloth to bathe his fever away.
"Do you think he'll be okay, Abacus?" Noodle asked, perturbed by how incredibly ill her friend looked. His face was a hectic flush of red, and the skin around his eyes was a dark purple. It bothered her that he was usually so pale and thin, too. Of all things she never expected a chocolate maker to appear quite so slight. It made her worry that he had a more serious illness than just the flu.
Abacus sat down beside her and patted her arm. "Not to worry, dear. I'm sure Mr. Wonka won't let a little bug get the best of him."
"But..." Noodle whispered, her eyes tearing up for the second time that night. "What if...what if it's not just a little bug? What if he's sicker than we think? I don't know what I'd do if he..." At that Noodle began to cry. She couldn't bear the thought of anything happening to him, even if it was only a worst case scenario.
"Now, there, there," Abacus soothed her. "He's going to be just fine, you watch. He'll be back up and about in no time. He just needs a little bit of caring for right now. That's all."
"Do you really think so, Abacus?" Noodle sniffed, holding on tighter to Willy's hand.
"I know so."
Just then Piper came back with the bowl and washcloth, as well as a thermometer and various bottles of medicine. She looked quite the woman on a mission.
"And here's the proof," Abacus added with a chuckle as he moved out of her way.
"Alright, let's get this little man all fixed up, then," she said, sticking the thermometer beneath his tongue and holding it there since he wasn't awake to do so himself. All eyes watched the line of mercury rise, wondering apprehensively when it would decide to stop. Finally, it met its journey's end. "101 degrees," Piper determined. "Here, hand me that washcloth, Noodle. No way we're going to let him burn up like this." Noodle handed her the damp cloth and she laid it firmly against his forehead. The sudden coolness shocked him awake, and he jumped upright with panic in his eyes.
"What's happening?" he gasped, his breathing labored and uneven. "What's..."
"Shh, shh. There now, Mr. Wonka. Don't overwork yourself—you're very sick," Piper explained gently, laying a hand on his shoulder to steady him.
"But what about Noodle and Abigail? I don't remember what happened," he panicked, not realizing that the girl in question was right beside him.
"I'm right here, Willy. It's okay," she smiled, giving his wrist a reassuring squeeze. "Now just lie back down, you need to rest."
As she pushed him down against the pillow, he fixed her with a trusting gaze. He had that certain look of his that was so pure and innocent it made her heart soar and break all at the same time. It made her want to bundle him into her arms and never let go, as if that would somehow save him from the brokenness of the world he seemed completely naive of.
"I'm glad you're okay, Noodle. I would have never forgiven myself if anything had happened to you," he said, his eyes brimming with tears.
She gave him a smile, her own eyes threatening tears again. "It's okay, Willy. Don't cry."
"Sorry," he replied, tears streaming down his warm cheeks even as a small chuckle managed to escape his cracked lips. She bent down and pulled him into a hug, his lanky arms trying and failing to return it. She giggled affectionately and kissed him upon his brow, wondering not for the first time what she'd done to deserve someone like him in her life.
He quieted soon after that and closed his eyes. With the pounding headache he had there was very little else he could do. He grimaced, his face twisting in pain as terrible aches coursed through his weakened body. "Ah," he moaned, shifting beneath the blankets.
Piper took this as her cue and poured him some of the medicine she'd found. "Here, Mr. Wonka, take this. It'll help you feel better."
He did as instructed and swallowed the stuff in one go. If he hadn't been so sick he undoubtedly would have commented upon its revolting taste, but as it was he only had the energy to muster a small whine.
"What was that stuff, Piper?" Noodle inquired worriedly.
"Just an antihistamine with a little bit of something that'll hopefully make him sleepy. Poor thing needs to have a nice long rest. Every time I've seen him so far he's looked nothing but exhausted. It's no wonder he got sick. That stuff oughta knock him out for the night and maybe longer."
"Just m-make sure you wake me up for chores tomorrow. I-I can't let you all do my part of the work," he shivered.
Everyone exchanged a fond smile. This young man truly was remarkable. Perhaps a bit loony, but still remarkable.
"Not to worry, Mr. Wonka. Now you just rest," Abacus instructed, stepping forward to pull the blankets up to his chin. As soon as the soft fabric touched the skin, Willy's eyes involuntarily drooped. It looked as though he was already off to sleep, when he forced himself to stay awake.
"Are...are you all going to stay?" he stammered. "I mean you don't have to or anything, but..."
Noodle cut him off with a hand to his cheek. "Of course we'll stay with you, Willy. We love you." Everyone nodded in agreement at that. They didn't see a way possible not to love him.
Willy suddenly looked as though he hadn't been told such a thing for many long years. His tired eyes watered and widened, and his lip began to tremble. "Oh," he gasped. "I never thought I'd hear that again after...after Mama died."
Everyone was near tears now, and no one seemed to know what to say in response. Therefore it was to everyone's shock that Lottie of all people was the one to speak up.
"Well, then, Willy," she smiled, taking his hand and giving it a small kiss. "You'd better get used to it, because we're going to be saying it more than you could ever begin to count."
He returned her smile as tears spilled down his cheeks. "Thank you," he said, his voice whole-hearted and genuine. "Thank you all."
The five friends simply nodded, their eyes full of affection for their sweet friend. He took this as permission to sleep and finally closed his heavy eyelids.
"Sleep well, Willy," Noodle whispered, bending down to give him one last kiss before he drifted off into a very deep slumber. "I'll be right here until you wake up."
With the little strength he had left, he took her hand and gave it one, gentle squeeze. And then he was out.
If he'd been awake he would have felt the mattress dip slightly and a pair of small arms wrap around his torso. But it wasn't until the next morning he awoke to find Noodle holding him close, her face buried into the crook of his neck. Her grip on him felt as though she feared he'd drift away if she let go. He smiled fondly at her, let out a small yawn, and then went back to sleep.