Chapter Text
Aramis shuffled towards the kitchen, pulling his bathrobe tighter around him as he shivered. He paused in the doorway, fumbling in his pockets for a tissue as he sneezed several times.
"What are you doing out of bed?" Porthos' voice was stern.
"What, no bless you?" Aramis sniffled and pouted.
Porthos sighed and rolled his eyes as he set put down the knife and the vegetables he was chopping. He he wiped his hands on a dish towel and made his way around the kitchen island and towards Aramis.
He put his arms around his shoulders and pulled him close, bending down to kiss the tip of his nose. "Ok, bless you Aramis." He squeezed him tightly for a moment, pressing their foreheads together. "Now, why aren't you still tucked in bed where I left you?" He asked softly.
"It's boring in bed, I miss you!" He whined, snuggling closer to Porthos.
Porthos huffed fondly. "You're sick, and you still have a fever, you need to sleep."
"But I want to be with you, can't I just sit quietly at the table and watch you?" He pleaded.
"Aramis," he began patiently. "You know how much you love Christmas Eve. If you don't rest now you'll sleep through everything tonight."
"No I won't!" Again, the adorable pout.
Porthos tried not to smile. "You've had this cold almost a week now. The reason it's getting worse instead of better is because you're not getting enough rest. I want you to have a special Christmas, but if you don't get any rest you're just going to get sicker." His expression turned serious and he cupped Aramis' cheek. "I love you, I don't want you to be miserable. Pretty please, for me?"
Aramis sighed, "Fine, you know I can't resist you when you ask like that." He pouted again.
"That was the idea," Porthos smiled and leaned down for a kiss. Aramis, leaned into him, responding eagerly at first, before suddenly pulling back. Porthos looked concerned. "What's wrong?"
"You probably shouldn't keep kissing me, especially now that I have a fever. I don't want you to get sick..."
Porthos pulled him close once again, "I imagine if I'm supposed to get this I will. You've been sniffling and sneezing for days and we sleep in the same bed, and besides if that's the price of kissing you, it's well worth it." He leaned in and kissed Aramis once more.
Once they pulled apart after a minute they were surprised to see Athos standing in the doorway, carrying a box of ornaments. "If you insist on continuing to kiss him Porthos, you will get ill." He sighed, rolling his eyes.
"I'll be fine," Porthos grinned, giving Aramis another kiss.
"Don't expect me to take care of you if you are both sick on Christmas," he added loftily and Porthos chuckled.
"We'll manage somehow." He turned back to Aramis, "How 'bout you head back to bed and I'll bring you some tea?"
"Fine," he sighed, pouting until Porthos leaned in to kiss him yet again.
"Now go," Porthos patted him on the butt and Aramis headed towards the doorway.
"Honestly, you two," Athos huffed fondly.
"It's because I'm irresistible," Aramis called hoarsely from the hallway, rushing to finish the words before he was overcome by a series of rapid sneezes.
"Yes, I can see that," Athos smirked as Aramis blew his nose, cringing with embarrassment.
"Bless you," Porthos chuckled. "I'll bring your tea in a few minutes."
"He's not feeling any better?" Athos asked sympathetically after Aramis had gone back to the bedroom.
"Nah, and he's too stubborn to just stay in bed." Porthos frowned.
"Sounds like someone else I know..." Athos added. "Can I do anything?"
Porthos shook his head. "No, thanks. I'm just hoping he'll get some rest so he'll at least be awake for part of Christmas Eve.
After drinking his tea and being dosed with a fever reducer, Aramis managed to sleep until early evening. He shuffled out of the bedroom once again, to find Porthos and Athos sitting at the kitchen table sipping wine. He was surprised that they were not sitting in the living room near the Christmas tree and the fireplace.
"There you are," Porthos quickly made his way to the doorway and pulled Aramis into his arms. "How are you feeling?"
Aramis shrugged, "Ok, " he answered, clearing his throat. "Why are you sitting in the kitchen? It's Christmas Eve!" He looked confused.
"We were waiting for you." Porthos answered softly, leaning down a planting a kiss on his forehead.
"But why?"
"We did not want to start any of our Christmas traditions without you Aramis." Athos made his way over to the two men and placed a hand on Aramis shoulder.
Aramis' eyes filled with tears and he buried his face in Porthos' chest. "Are you alright?" Porthos asked with concern and he nodded.
"If you still aren't feeling well enough, we can postpone our festivities for another day or so," Athos offered, squeezing his shoulder.
Aramis lifted his head and looked at Athos scandalized. "You can't postpone Christmas!"
"Of course we can," Athos huffed. "You are the most important part of our Christmas Aramis."
Aramis' arms were tightly around him before Athos knew what was happening. Porthos chuckled as Aramis snuggled into their friend.
Athos was stunned for a moment but soon relaxed and hugged Aramis back. After a moment he felt Aramis suddenly cling to him more tightly.
"Aramis?" His voice was full of concern. "What is wrong?"
"Just...a little dizzy...." He murmured, holding on tightly.
Porthos moved closer to help support him and took one of Aramis' arms. "Let's get you lying down." He spoke softly and reassuringly. "Do you want me to carry you?"
"No," Aramis sounded indignant. "I can walk!"
"With help...." He added after a growl from Porthos.
They led him into the living room and over to the couch and gently sat him on the edge. Athos lifted his legs while Porthos guided his head down on the pillow.
"I can sit..."
"No, you can't." Porthos' tone brooked no arguments.
"What can I do?" Athos asked nervously, pacing behind Porthos.
"Could you please get some water," he pressed his hand against Aramis' forehead frowning at the heat there. "And a cold cloth for his head." Athos nodded and slipped off to the kitchen.
Aramis, for his part gave in and relaxed, feeling secure with Porthos sitting beside him on the edge of the couch. Porthos spoke softly and soothingly to him, gently pushing his hair back from his forehead.
Once Athos returned, Porthos helped Aramis sit up and drink, he finished the entire glass before Porthos eased him back down onto the pillows. Aramis smiled as the cool cloth was then placed on his head.
"Better?" Porthos asked and Aramis nodded.
"Much," Aramis sighed and closed his eyes.
"Why don't you rest a little bit and then we can decorate the tree."
Aramis' eyes flew open and he suddenly sat up. "You haven't done the tree yet? But it's so late!" He closed his eyes almost instantly as a wave of dizziness struck.
"Hey, settle down!" Porthos voice was firm yet gentle as he guided Aramis back to a lying position and replaced the cloth on his head. "You're not doing yourself any favors here you know."
"I know, sorry." Aramis whispered after the dizziness passed. "I'm just surprised that you didn't decorate the tree."
"Athos already told you, we were waiting for you. We figured if you weren't up to decorating, which you are clearly not, You could stay on the couch and direct us."
"It probably wouldn't be that different from every other year..." Athos drawled.
"Yeah," Porthos chuckled, "The tree really is your thing. We didn't want to screw it up and have you try to redo it."
"I'm sorry," Aramis sounded so sad that both men looked at him with open concern.
"What are you sorry for?" Athos asked with surprise.
"For ruining Christmas," his eyes were suddenly filled with tears and he closed them tightly turning towards the couch and away from his friends.
"Now Aramis," Porthos gently lifted his chin and waited for Aramis to turn and open his eyes to look up at him, finally he did. "The only way that you could ruin Christmas is if you weren't here." His voice was low as he leaned down and kissed Aramis softly on the lips. Aramis couldn't help but melt into him as Porthos pulled him gently into his arms and held him.
After a few minutes Aramis regained his composure and pulled back, sniffling. "I'm sorry I'm such an emotional mess."
"We know it's the fever." Athos reassured, sitting down on the couch by Aramis' feet.
"It's going up again, I'm gonna get you some medicine and some more water ok?" Porthos waited for Aramis' nod before he stood and left his side.
Athos moved up on the couch so he was beside him. "Are you alright?" He rested his hand on Aramis' arm.
"I am. Sorry," Aramis sniffled again, and Athos grabbed the box of tissues from the coffee table."
He handed Aramis the box. "You have nothing to apologize for. Please stop."
Aramis nodded and reached into the box grabbing a handful of tissues, turning away from Athos to blow his nose. "Sor..." He began but stopped at Athos' faux-glare. "Ok then, not sorry," he offered a faint grin.
"Much better." Athos smiled and gave his arm another squeeze as Porthos returned to the room with more water and a bottle of ibuprofen. Athos quickly vacated the spot beside Aramis and Porthos sat.
Aramis accepted the medicine and finished the water before settling back on the couch. "Now then," Porthos asked. "Do you want to rest a little, and let that medicine kick in first or do you want us to start the tree?"
"I've been sleeping all day, do you mind if we do the tree?" Aramis asked hopefully.
"Of course we don't mind." Porthos answered. "Do we want to open our Christmas Eve gifts now or afterwards?"
"We at least need to do Athos' first." Aramis smiled. "So we might as well do them all. Can you get mine from our closet?"
"Of course."
Porthos and Athos swiftly returned with stacks of gifts. It had become tradition for the three, in addition to their Christmas morning gifts to exchange their own traditional gifts on Christmas Eve.
Porthos always bought the others holiday pajamas. He had started buying them just for himself and Aramis, but Athos had made enough snarky comments that he had started buying them for him as well. He also did his best to manage a pajama selfie of the three every Christmas morning even though Athos tried desperately to avoid them.
Aramis always provided them with some form of holiday attire. Sometimes it was a Christmas sweater, other years he had bought them socks and ties and matching suspenders. It was always something unique and not too tasteless to be worn on Christmas Day even if they were visiting or having guests.
Athos bought ornaments. He always took great care in choosing them and always commemorated a special event from the previous year. Aramis always had great anticipation of the gift and tried to guess what the ornament would be. He loved that their tree told the story of their history and friendship.
Presents distributed, one at a time they opened their gifts. Porthos insisted that Aramis start. He tore into his ornament first, wracking his brain, trying to guess what occasion Athos would commemorate. He was surprised at the box once the wrapping was off. It was not from one the fancy stores where Athos usually bought the ornaments. In fact the box was almost rustic, indicating something more handcrafted, definitely not Athos' usual style.
He was stunned and then very amused once he saw it. It was definitely hand crafted, made with some sort of clay or dough, Athos must have gone in search of it, or fortuitously happened upon it. It was a person in a bed, clearly it was originally a dark haired child but someone had painted on a mustache and beard, surprisingly accurate to his own. The figure had a red nose, and a thermometer in his mouth. On the bed was a Christmas stocking and a pile of gifts, topped with a box of tissues. The side of the ornament said " Merry Sickmas 2016" and the name Aramis was on the end of the bed.
"I did get you a regular ornament too," Athos interpreted his initial silence as unhappiness. "I'm sorry if it's upsetting you, perhaps it was a bad choice."
Aramis interrupted him giggling hoarsely, "Oh my God Athos, it's perfect! I can't believe that you actually went into the kind of stores that would sell these. Thank..." His laughter broke off into a bout of coughing and Athos quickly retrieved more water and Porthos rubbed his back until the coughing stopped and he caught his breath. "Sorry, " he panted. "I love it!"
His second ornament coordinated with the one Athos gave Porthos and one he bought himself. They had all taken a trip to New York City during the summer and he had gotten them each an ornament of one of the sites they had visited and loved. For Aramis he chose The Staute of Liberty, for Porthos , Times Square, and for himself the Empire State Building. . Aramis was thrilled with both of his ornaments.
Next opened were the pajamas. Porthos somehow managed to find just the right pair for each of them every year. For Aramis he got Grinch pajamas, it was his favorite Christmas movie, and years earlier when they were first dating he used to refer to Athos as the Grinch. For Athos he had gotten something more subdued, dark green pajamas with reindeer. For himself he got Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, mainly because Aramis also loved to watch Rudolph and he knew it would make him happy.
Finally they opened Aramis' gifts of their Christmas Day attire. It was a sweater year. While Athos would always wear what Aramis bought him on Christmas Day and again on the following Christmas Eve, Aramis would rotate through all of his throughout the month of December. Porthos fell somewhere in between he two.
This years sweaters were Nordic sweaters and coordinated without matching too closely. Athos' was dark gray with an evergreen design, Porthos' was navy blue with snowflakes, and for himself he found a red sweater with a reindeer design.
Once the gifts were open, Porthos and Aramis decorated the tree under Aramis' close supervision and direction. Once the tree was done, Aramis, feeling a bit better with his medication kicking in, made his way to change into his new pajamas while the others brought the small selection of food they had prepared out to the coffee table.
The fire was roaring, Christmas music was playing softly in the background and Aramis felt content to be with the two most important people in his life. The day he met Porthos had been the luckiest day of his life. He thought about how different his life has been five years ago. He wasn't exactly unhappy, but something had been missing, he didn't know what that something was until he met Porthos.
They had met at a professional conference, fortunate enough to be seated at the same table and forced to participate in group activities all day. It was the kind of thing that Aramis normally hated, awkward small talk and ridiculous team activities, but Porthos had been hilarious and instantly put him at ease. He did the same for the other members of the group and by the end of the day he felt as if he had made nine new friends. But his connection with Porthos had seemed deeper.
He was afraid to make the first move, Porthos had been kind to everyone there and he wasn't sure if he was imagining their mutual attraction. As they were leaving one of the other participants, a very attractive woman, pulled Porthos aside and they seemed to be engrossed in conversation. Reluctantly he left, not wanting to interrupt. He had probably misread the signals, Porthos probably liked women....
He was almost to his car when he heard someone calling his name. He turned to see Porthos sprinting across the parking lot. He was breathless when he reached him. "Didn't.... want you ....to leave." He panted, catching his breath.
Aramis couldn't help but smile. "You looked busy," he managed nervously. "I didn't want to interrupt you..."
Porthos smiled back, "Wish you had, I was trying to escape the conversation. I was afraid you'd leave before I could ask for your number."
Aramis could feel himself blushing. "I'm so glad I didn't."
Porthos grinned, "I would've found you, connections and all. But I'd much rather get it from you, if you want to give it to me that is."
"I do, I'd like you to call."
Aramis gave him his number, smiling as Porthos hurried away, rushing back to the conference center where he'd left all his things. Aramis had just gotten back into his car when his phone buzzed. He didn't recognize the number, but was thrilled to hear Porthos' voice when he answered.
"Is it soon to ask to see you again? I'd like to take you to dinner."
From that point on their relationship had flourished. It was the happiest time in both their lives. Porthos and Athos were best friends and Aramis met Athos fairly soon after they started dating. He was sure that Athos couldn't stand him, though Porthos reassured him that was just how Athos was.
After a few months Porthos set up an interview for Aramis at the publishing company he worked for. They both worked in copywriting and editing but specialized in different areas. Aramis was stunned and a bit embarrassed to walk into the interview to find out it was with Athos. Porthos had told him he knew Athos from work but never mentioned he was Athos de la Fere and that it was his family's business.
Athos immediately saw Aramis' distress and apologized for Porthos not telling him who he be interviewing with. They both soon realized that Porthos was trying to prevent Aramis from backing out in the interview.
"You need not worry about me giving you a job because you are a friend of Porthos and myself," Athos began, stunning Aramis most by admitting he considered him a friend. "This is a business I take great pride in, I would not even interview you if I did not already know how superior your work is. I would be honored if you joined our team."
Aramis was leery of accepting the position at first, he was afraid Porthos and Athos would grow tired of seeing him so often. The offer however, was too good to refuse. He didn't see Athos usually much more than once or twice a week at work, though he and Porthos carpooled together and almost always met for lunch.
Soon after the two moved in together. A month after that Athos' troubled marriage completely unraveled. He moved out of his house and into a hotel. Aramis could see how worried Porthos was about his friend, about how much he was isolating himself and how much he was drinking.
Their apartment was fairly large and had two bedrooms, they had only ever used one. One night after Porthos got home from running over to check on Athos after he had missed a dinner invitation , Aramis had suggested they ask him to move in temporarily. At least once his divorce was settled he could make more permanent arrangements.
Porthos had been stunned and so very grateful. He was so worried about his friend, but was afraid to do anything to screw up the fabulous relationship he was building with Aramis. He was in tears by the time they finished talking about it and the next night they invited Athos over for dinner again and offered him their hospitality.
Athos too was stunned, especially when he realized it was Aramis driving the offer. He argued, insisting that it would not be fair to them as they grew their own relationship but they had insisted. He was touched by how worried about him and a bit embarrassed when he thought about how he had been coping with his divorce.
They arrangement had gone amazingly well right from the beginning. Living in the same space had allowed he and Aramis to get to know each other better and discover a number of shared interests, besides Porthos. Both were shocked that it never ended up feeling awkward. Once Athos' divorce was finalized and he was shopping for a new house he invited them both to move with him. Even though it seemed odd at first the arrangement worked so well for them all that they did. That had been four years earlier.
Porthos looked down at Aramis who was snuggled up beside him on the couch. He couldn't help but to lean down and kiss him. Aramis sleepily kissed back and Porthos could feel his smile against his lips.
Athos cleared his throat again, "You will get sick." It was not the first time the conversation had been repeated. "And it will be your fault, not Aramis'"
Porthos chuckled, "I already told you, it would be completely worth it, plus I've already been exposed. It's too late to stop now."
"I hope you don't get sick," Aramis frowned. "It really would be my fault."
"Stop making him feel bad," Porthos shot a look at Athos, who then looked somewhat guilty himself.
"I am sorry Aramis, I did not mean to make you feel guilty. I know that it's not your fault that Porthos cannot exercise any restraint whatsoever. And certainly not your fault that you are so..." He paused, seeing the expression on Aramis' face and quickly handed him the box of tissues from the coffee table.
"Irresistible." He added after Aramis had sneezed for the third time. "God bless you." He added sympathetically.
"Bless you," Porthos echoed hugging him a bit tighter.
"Oh, definitely irresistible," Aramis chuckled hoarsely after blowing his nose. "I can't imagine how Porthos can control himself. What with my greasy unwashed hair, my clammy feverish skin, the constant sniffling, sneezing and coughing. It's a miracle you're not all over me too Athos."
Porthos kissed his cheek and gently turned Aramis to face him. "I know you don't think so, but all I want to do when I see you like this is to hold you and take care of you until you're feeling better."
Aramis sighed as Porthos kissed him softly once again, understanding exactly what he meant. Seeing Porthos sick or hurt always did something to his heart as well.
"Aramis, I hope that you know I was just teasing. I did not mean to..." Athos began, worried that he had offended Aramis.
"Oh Athos," Aramis began, his voice thick with congestion. "I'm not at all offended my friend. Please don't worry."
"I am sorry you are feeling so poorly, especially on Christmas. I know how much you love the holiday."
"Actually," Aramis smiled. "This is not so terrible. I'm with my two favorite people in the world. I'm warm and comfortable and cuddled up with the man I love, and you are both taking such good care of me. It could be so much worse."
"I'm sorry we had to cancel our plans." Porthos added, squeezing him once again. "I know how much you look forward to all the company."
"It's fine," Aramis shifted to hug him back. "Everyone I need is right here."