Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Another round of blood-stained white tulip petals stung against the inside of Sunny's throat. Shit, he'd gotten blood on the photo album.

As he tried to get the blood off of a picture as best he could, the door to Sunny's room gently creaked open, and Mari peeked through. "Me and mom are going to buy some groceries, Basil's coming over to take care of you while we're out!", she says with a smile, "Don't wait up!". 

Sunny coughed up more petals the second Mari left the room.

Weird.

When Sunny hears the front door open, he coughs up a few more flowers.

How odd, he wasn't that far along in the disease yet.

maybe it's because you like him

HOW ODD.

Sunny's legs itch with stagnation, feeling the urge to get up despite the state he's in. The smell of chicken noodle soup from the kitchen downstairs urges him further. He gets up, wobbling and dizzy from blood loss. Practically tripping his way down the stairs, he makes his way to the kitchen.

Basil stands calmly by the stove, making chicken noodle soup.

The petals reach Sunny's throat before he even enters the kitchen. He feels his legs go numb.

Shit.

Sunny's vision blurs as he falls to the ground, the ringing in his ears hurts so so bad--

Basil abandons his spot by the stove to go help Sunny and shit he's coughing again. Each cough pounds on his head like a mallet, it feels like ants are crawling up his skin- he can't breathe he can't BREATHE HECAN'TBREATHEHECAN'TBREATHE----

Sunny wakes up in a cold sweat, his too-hot clothes uncomfortably clinging to his body. His throat is far itchier than before, so he picks up water off the nightstand adjacent to his bed. Wait- since when was there water there? And chicken noodle soup. And a note. How long had Sunny been out? He tries to estimate the time he was asleep as he sips from the lukewarm water bottle. He takes a peek at the note.

I finished the soup, just call me when you need me. I don't want you getting hurt again!! 

-Basil

A few flowers worth of petals.

are you sure there's no correlation?

Sunny ignores the awful itch all over his body and grabs the soup. It tastes amazing, much like everything else Basil makes. Sunny wonders if gardening lends itself to cooking. Does Basil make his own seasoning? -a few more petals- 

you're literally gonna die if you keep denying it

More soup should help. Sunny takes this precious time in which he can coherently think to think of who it might be that caused his hanahaki. He couldn't think of anyone who piqued his interest.

oh cmon. you know that's a lie.

Basil walks in, Sunny holds back a flurry of petals.

Basil looks at Sunny with an... odd expression, before shaking it off. 

"I have to go back home, Mari and your Mom should be back soon. Will you be okay for a few minutes?" He says, very obviously not happy about having to leave Sunny alone.

Sunny nods his head.

The second Sunny hears the doors creak downstairs, he coughs-coughs-coughs. He probably has petals everywhere at this point, not that he has the strength to sit up and look around after that bad of a coughing fit. The blood stains on his bedsheets don't reassure him about the stability of his condition.

unfortunately Sunny's Mom and Mari were out again, looking at houses in a nearby city until nightfall. This meant Basil would be taking care of Sunny again.

just admit it.

Sunny noticed the darker circles under Basil's eyes. Was he paler now, too?

Although, Sunny wasn't one to talk. He looked more like a sick kid from the 1800s than someone of the modern day.

And of COURSE, Basil had to be so caring as to try to talk to Sunny while he was sick. Basil would read to him too, engaging as ever. Sunny had to hold back large amounts of petals when such things happened.

wow, i wonder why.

Sunny thought he may be going crazy. When he opened his eyes, the environment around him seemed to swirl. Of course, he didn't tell anyone. Why would he worry anyone with that?

Basil currently sat by Sunny's bed, playing music from his iPod. 

Sunny never thought Basil would be into metal. 

In hindsight, that makes a lot of sense.

Basil anxiously drums on his legs.

"Do you drum?" Sunny says, his voice scratchy from lack of use. Jeez- that was a dumb question.

Basil's eyes widened, as per what usually happens when Sunny speaks. "Yeah." Oh, ok.

Sunny failed to not cough up more petals as Basil mumbled along to the words of Dragula. 

jesus, dude. is it that hard to admit it?

Basil looks at Sunny, concern in his eyes.

Sunny feels the flowery bile rise in his throat.

He swallows it down.

Basil looks more concerned.

SWALLOW.

Sunny's mom and Mari were going to be out for a few weeks. Sunny's mom was house hunting again, and Mari was on a trip for her college work. Basil (of course) had volunteered to stay over during this time (with much objection from Polly).

Sunny was doomed.

not that he'd admit that.

Swallow.

Sitting across from Basil during lunch gives Sunny a hard time keeping his lunch in his stomach. 

Basil's near-constant presence weighs on Sunny. The coughing seemed endless when Basil was near.

you can't keep denying it. 

Ok, maybe Sunny was into Basil. He wasn't going to admit that anytime soon, though. Sunny had done the proper research to know that his ailment could be fixed with a surgery, or even some medications. If it really came to that (and Sunny was sure it wouldn't; surely he could get over his feelings by then) his mom would have the money for the meds. Sunny could take the coughing, he really could, if it meant that nothing changed. 

That didn't make the petals stop, though.

Sometimes Sunny considers letting the hanahaki run its course. He won't actually, his mom and sister wouldn't let that happen. 

Doesn't mean he can't think about it.

about what the petals would feel like taking over his body.

stems seeping into his pores.

how would it feel?

Sunny tries the shake the thoughts out of his head, but it makes him dizzy.

Sunny wonders if god hates him.

Kel came over and INSISTED that they watch a movie. (Not that Sunny was mad about either of those things.)

"Let's watch a horror movie!", Kel said, "It'll scare the sickness right out of you!", Kel said.

Sunny hates horror.

Loud screams and banging really upset Sunny, overstimulation and all.

Basil knows that Sunny hates horror, but also knew Kel would insist on watching one until everyone got too tired to argue with him anymore.

What was his solution?

Being next to Sunny (as close as possible, mind you) in order to comfort him. Sunny coughed up a whole bouquet's worth of flowers just thinking about it, let alone it actually happening.

Hell was Sunny's living room couch, and Satan was a horror movie.

Sunny coughed through the movie, and Jesus if Basil kept being so caring he was gonna die.

Every scare, every cough, Basil squeezed Sunny's hand.

How was Sunny not dead by now??

Not to mention Kel's discreet teasing.

Okay maybe he panicked and told Kel when he accepted that he liked Basil.

(It was a bad decision.)

Someone ought to remind Sunny to never tell Kel anything ever again, because that little shit could not stay quiet about it.

From knowing glances to blatantly implying the two were in a relationship-

Sunny had half a mind to push him down the stairs.

Not that he would.

Basil had recommended that Sunny take a melatonin. Sunny is extremely open to the suggestion of not having to be awake right now.

Sunny still had a hard time falling asleep, even with the melatonin.

But eventually, he falls asleep anyway.

(Perspective Switch - Basil)

Sunny had fallen asleep on Basil.

Needless to say, the botanist was freaking out.

Basil had already been worried when Sunny came down with Hanahaki, but when it worsened around him...

Basil didn't know what to think.

Sunny was coughing up his favorite flower. Sunny's cough worsened when Basil was around. Sunny fell asleep practically cuddling with Basil.

But that couldn't mean anything.

He couldn't be that lucky.

Kel looked at him with that shit-eating grin. Basil made the most deadpan face humanly possible at Kel.

"So", Said Kel, "Seems like Sunny liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiikes youuuuuuuuu!!!"

Basil's face does not change.

It doesn't.

He swears.

"Ssssshut uuuuppppp...", Says Basil. Extremely convincing. Good job, Basil, Good job.

Kel's grin widens. "C'mon!!", He says, "You wanna give 'im a lil smooch on the forehead don'tcha?"

Basil is not red.

You can't prove that.

Kel begins whisper-chanting "Do it! Do it! Do it!", because of course he does.

Basil rolls his eyes.

Kel does not stop chanting.

Basil is not getting redder. That is not happening right now.

Kel chants harder somehow.

Basil is wearing thin.

How is Kel still chanting?

Jesus Christ, Basil thinks, fine.

Basil gives Sunny a small kiss on the forehead, and then promptly falls asleep.

(Perspective Switch - Sunny)

Sunny woke up cuddled up to Basil.

He immideately got up and ran to the bathroom to cough up whatever awful flurry of petals he was about to hack out.

Wait.

Sunny's breaths were easier now, no constrictions.

And he didn't cough up any petals.

Chapter Text

And he didn't cough up any petals.

Sunny stood confusedly before the bathroom toilet, decidedly not as relieved about the lack of bile shooting from his throat as he should be.

'Am I over him?' Sunny thought.

No, no, that's not correct. Sunny still feels things about Basil, to his own embarrassment and annoyance.

maybe this means he li-

No. Sunny won't get his hopes up.

Everything was fine. He didn't have hanahaki anymore, so what was the point in even considering the idea? Why tell Basil, when it could change everything?

Back to the problem at hand, though, why was Sunny cured?

He sure as hell hadn't told Basil, and he hadn't gotten over his awful crush or gotten the proper medical support to get it under control, so how was he cured? 

Sunny pushed down the thought. Why pursue the answer when things could just stay the same?

but there could be so much more, just beneath the surface

What Sunny has now is fine. It's fine.

When Sunny walked out of the bathroom and announced that he was no longer coughing up flowers, Basil was...

Basil was feeling a multitude of things.

Had it been the forehead kiss? Basil thought not. It couldn't be, that's not how that works, right? 

Was it?

Nevertheless, how was he going to tell Sunny? Should he tell Sunny? If Basil was wrong, what would Sunny think of him? Hatred, probably. Basil couldn't bear that, he thinks. Better to leave it be and not say a thing. Yeah. 

---

Basil is hanging out with Sunny later, when he brings up the issue.

"So, do you know what cured your hanahaki?

Sunny freezes up.

What was he supposed to say? 

"Did you confess to the person?" Basil pushed further.

Fuck.

Of course, Basil had asked similar questions while he was sick, all 'Who is it' and 'Do you need help telling them?' Sunny had always easily dodged the questions, after all it didn't take much for Basil to back off (much to his disappointment). It was far more difficult though, now that he wasn't sick.

Sunny found himself missing the hazy unfocused feeling of sickness. The clearness of his mind gave way to guilt, of course. the same icky feeling of guilt whenever he lied about having a crush before the sickness. Like when guys teased him for being uninterested in girls, or when his father asks when he'll get a girlfriend. This was all far easier to deal with when his mind was spinning with blood loss.

"No." Sunny says, answering both questions.

Basil backed down, leaving Sunny feeling rather guilty. However... he's not equipped to start a conversation, so he waits for Basil to do so.

The awkward silence is broken by Basil's cell ringing. He headed home soon after.

Basil's home is cold and empty, as per usual.

Almost as soon as he walks through the door, he feels this terrible itching at the back of his throat. He goes to drink water, and finds that his legs have become wobbly and unbalanced.

It's fine, he probably just got up too fast. Or walked too fast, maybe? It made sense, he was far too eager to get out of that awkward silence with Sunny. God forbid he noticed how nervous he made him--

COUGH

...huh?

COUGH COUGH

The itch lurking behind Basil's throat intensifies, as petals flutter down to the kitchen floor --when had he gotten to the kitchen?--

COUGH COUGH COUGH

Suddenly, Basil was on the ground. he was able to catch himself, but his arms felt weak. 

As his arms gave out, the last thing he saw were white tulip petals. The last thing he felt was dread.

Chapter Text

When Basil woke up, he was in his bed.

His clothes smelled of the hospital. His head hurt like hell.

There was a deep pit in his stomach. Contracting hanahaki was one thing, but right after Sunny had been cured?

There was no way he wasn't going to catch on.

A thermos of soup sat on his bedside table, alongside a glass of water. The aroma was calming, at least. The smell of herbs and spices served as a nice distraction from his current predicament. He'd have to thank Polly later.

He couldn't distract himself for long, though. Sunny came to his mind, as he often did, and along with it came a flurry of petals.

COUGH COUGH

Blood dripped from his chin, as white petals fluttered down from his lips.

Basil looked down at his bedsheets, now stained an ugly crimson. That's going to be hard to get out.

He wiped at his nose, finding that blood was dribbling from it. Was that even part of the disease?

Basil ignored the sharp pain deep in his throat, and grabs the water from his bedside table. He takes a large gulp, the kind that hurts to swallow. He tried the soup and it burned his tongue. He left the thermos open on the bedside table, waiting for the soup to cool.

He grabbed his ipod and turned on some gloomy music, it seemed appropriate.

The somber melody soothed his mind, if only a small bit. It did not, however, soothe his throat. He only seemed to cough up more and more petals, their stark white almost angelic in the dark of his room.

The petals reminded him of Sunny. Calmingly plain, simple in every way, yet still so complex. This train of thought wasn't healthy, though. His coughing fits grew worse rather quickly, and Basil tried as hard as possible to push the thoughts away, to calm the storm within his body, the small garden in his throat.

He tasted iron, his eyes itched, and his body ached with this awful melancholy. It was almost poetic, he was sure. He couldn't quite think of how, but he was sure something about this drifting feeling was beautiful somehow.

It had to be, or it had no purpose.

Sunny filled to the brim with dread when he heard the news.

Had he somehow been contagious?

is he the one basil wants?

When Polly had told everyone, Sunny almost couldn't bring himself to visit. The thought of seeing someone in the same pain he was in only yesterday made his throat close up and his head spin. 

His desire to see his friend safe overthrew his cowardice, however. Seeing Basil unconscious, mouth caked in blood... it was terrifying. The thought alone of his best friend hurting made him want to hurl, let alone the sight. 

He went out with Polly to get Basil's medication. The ride was uncomfortable. A deep sense of wrongness permeated in his blood, his body, and his bones.

"So..", Said Polly awkwardly, "Do you know who it could be?"

She says it like it's not even a question.

"No clue." Sunny replies, to Polly's apparent confusion.

Polly gives Sunny a look, to which he just shrugs. 

Sunny finds he much prefers the silence.

Although... Keeping within his thoughts proved to be its own kind of uncomfortable. Thoughts of Basil drifted around in his mind, bouncing around the corners like a DVD screen.

He doesn't know why he keeps going back to the idea of all this being his fault. It's not like he was the object of Basil's affections, right?

Right?

Basil sat in the quiet of his room. He knew Polly and Sunny were out getting him medicine, in fact, the thought caused him multiple coughing fits.

Sunny really cared about him, despite what people might think... Or what he sometimes thought.

Basil pushed the thought out of his mind, coughing up more petals in the process.

The gloomy music at least made the experience worthwhile. It's almost like a music video, or something you'd see in a movie. If the hurt he feels is beautiful, is it even hurt at all? He hopes not. 

The steady drip drip drip of blood from Basil's nose is a constant. it's almost become relaxing, an easy distraction from his thoughts. The smell and taste of iron sharply contrast the flowery scents in his room, simultaneously lovely and deeply unpleasant. 

Basil hears the front door creak open. Ah, Polly and Sunny are back, it seems. He feels more petals work their way through his respiratory system at just the thought of Sunny caring for him. fuck, he's going to give himself away, isn't he? He feels like he's going to vomit from the stress. The rejection would probably be immediate, Sunny was always blunt. Basil had always admired that about him. He feels himself shake as he hears a knock at the door.

To his intense relief, Polly enters alone, holding pills and water. He takes the pills, feeling the pressure as they go smoothly down his throat. His throat feels better for sure, but now he can think. He feels that it might be an even worse punishment than the petals.

Sunny sits awkwardly in the living room. Anxiety gnaws at him, settling deep in his bones. He can't bear to look at Basil like that, laying helpless on that bed. The mental image of his friend laying on that bed, mouth caked in blood, staring up at him... it almost killed him just thinking about it. He feels the ghost of petals scratching his throat despite his recent unexplained recovery from hanahaki. 

He had to go visit Basil at some point, right? Sunny doesn't know much about social norms, but he knows coming here and not visiting his sick friend would probably be inconsiderate. 

He could hear the songs faintly from Basil's room. He hums the melody to himself in a futile attempt to feel closer to him. 

Eventually, Sunny worked up the courage to go talk to Basil.

Basil coughed up a few petals as Sunny entered, much to his chagrin.

"Hi", Basil rasped out as he entered.

Sunny struggled to respond with much more than a wave.

He cringed as he stood lamely at the doorway.

Basil smiled. "Sit", he said, "You look uncomfortable."

Basil could always tell how Sunny was feeling. Sunny felt a flush creep up his neck.

He sat down at the edge of Basil's bed. Basil responded with a heavy cough, making Sunny wince.

"Do you need anything?"

"No, i'm fine for now."

...

Sunny found that he didn't enjoy this silence as much.

Chapter Text

Basil can hear Polly in the kitchen. She’s calling his parents, as it seems. She’s clearly distressed, calling over and over, begging for the money to treat Basil’s hanahaki.

They have the money, of course, but clearly would rather not spend it on their son if they can.

Basil assumes Polly is cooking something based on the pleasant smell wafting in from the kitchen. He’s thankful. Polly’s home cooked meals have been a wonderful distraction from his feelings. Basil wonders faintly if she’s used his herbs for this one. She doesn’t often use them without his permission, but the meals turn out especially delicious when she does.

A while later, Polly comes into his room with a nice plate of mushroom pesto pasta and a mug of lemon tea. Basil smiles faintly at her. “Thank you”, he manages to rasp out. He wonders when his throat got this sore.

“So”, Polly says, “your parents won’t pay for treatment.” She sounds dejected. It’s been a few weeks, and she’s been calling Basil’s parents nonstop asking for their help with it. “They told me if I care so much, I ought to pay with my own money”, she continued.

Basil can’t bring himself to feel surprised. His parents haven’t paid much attention to him for a while. He often wonders why. If it’s his not-very-masculine demeanor or his interest in pursuing botany, he’ll never know.
Polly sports a guilty look as she approaches the door of Basil’s room. “We’ll talk more after you finish your food, okay?”, she says kindly, “Call for me if you need anything.”

Basil sips the tea Polly had given to him. He breathes a sigh of relief as it travels down his throat, soothing the ever present itch of flowers deep within his esophagus. The lovely aroma of  pasta and tea calmed his heart and mind, misting over everything he didn’t want to think. The pasta was delicious, of course, Polly always made the best meals. Basil was thankful he had her instead of his actual parents here. His Mother and Father rarely cooked from what he could remember, and when they did he often wasn’t allowed to have any. It may have been on account of having guests over? He was far too young to remember, 

Thinking about his parents brought Basil back to their refusal to pay for his hanahaki treatment. He knows he’s going to have to tell Sunny if he wants to cure himself of his ailment, but he simply can’t bring himself to. As he sees it, getting rid of the white tulips forcing themselves out from his throat, he’ll scare away the white tulip who has always remained comfortably by his side. He doesn’t know what he’ll do if he scares Sunny off, so he barely even considers it.

COUGH

COUGH

COUGH

Shit, he really needs to avoid thinking about Sunny. He takes a few more sips of his tea, soothing his throat once more. He hears Polly talking on the phone beyond his door. Probably still trying to reason with his parents, he assumes. It’s probably futile, of course, they’d always been stubborn, but Basil appreciated Polly’s effort. He eats a bit more, the feeling of nourishment almost letting him forget about the flowery pit in his stomach. He hopes faintly that Polly manages to convince his parents. It’s not likely, but he knows the money Polly gets to take care of him isn’t enough to cover medication. He finishes his meal, and calls for Polly.

Polly comes back into basil’s room, seeming exhausted. “How was the food?”, She asks, to which Basil responds with a thumbs up. 

“I’m glad you liked it.”, Polly says, smiling, before dropping the pretense. “Well... As you know, your parents refuse to pay for your hanahaki treatment…”, She muttered, upset by the fact. She spoke further, “And you know we don’t have the money to pay for it out of pocket so…”, Polly sighed, “I think you should tell that Sunny boy about your feelings.”

Basil felt his stomach drop. “How’d you know?”, He says, now distressed. He realizes this prospect shouldn’t be as scary as it is to him, but he can’t bring himself to care. He could lose Sunny. He doesn’t know what he’d do without him, how could he even bring himself to–

Polly put a hand on Basil’s shoulder. It grounded him, stopped his harsh breathing. He hadn’t even realized he was hyperventilating. Polly speaks slowly, as to not make Basil panic. “It was rather obvious, I think.”, She says, instilling a deep paranoia into him. Does everyone know? Does SUNNY know? “I’m not going to force you for now, but if your condition gets any further and your parents refuse to pay, you’re going to have to.”
Basil responds with a meek thumbs up. Polly smiles and leaves.

A few hours later, Basil even begins to consider calling his parents. They barely speak, and he wonders why he even let himself bother with the thought, but… He has to. Maybe, just maybe, he can keep things how they are. 

He attempts to walk over to the phone, his numb legs barely carrying him from one place to the other. Picking up the cell and dialing his mother’s number was nerve wracking in itself. The 20 seconds of ringing before the artificial ‘ THIS-CALLER-IS-NOT-AVAILABLE ’ is almost unbearable, which makes it even harder for Basil to bring himself towards a second attempt.

He feels his throat tighten when the phone rings, mouth clamped firmly shut. Should he have even tried this? What will happen because of this? His father would kill him if he found out who–

“Hello? Son, if you’ve called me for no reason–”

“NO-! I-I have a reason. It’s about the Hanahaki, I-”

“Ah, yes. Your ‘illness’... well you do know we’re aware, correct?”

“..yes.”

“And you’ve called us anyway. Explain.”

“I’m sorry, I just- I- can you please help pay for treatment?”

“No.”

“But father-”

“I said no.”

“I just-”

“ NO, Basil.”

click.

Chapter Text

hi guys! idk if anyone is following this story, but i'm totally rewriting the whole thing. ofc i'll leave this one up, but i'm super unhappy with it and want to do it better, especially the earlier chapters! i have plans for chapter 5 and onwards too so stay tuned!!!