Chapter Text
Charlie’s curly hair tickled Nick’s chin as Charlie cuddled on top of him while they watched a movie on Nick’s laptop. Nick adjusted himself upwards and reached over to his nightstand for his glass of water, feeling something uncomfortable in the back of his throat. Charlie made a noise in response, playfully acting bothered that Nick had moved out of their comfortable entanglement.
Nick chuckled. “Sorry, I needed a drink,” he said before taking a couple of sips of water.
Charlie sat himself up and faced Nick, who was setting the water back onto its coaster. “I was very comfortable and warm, so you may need to kiss me to make up for it.” He said, which made Nick’s lips tug into a gentle smile.
“Okay,” Nick said, cupping Charlie’s warm face in anticipation to feel his soft lips, but a sudden rush of lethargy stopped him from closing the gap between the two of them. He looked away from Charlie and blinked forcefully, almost trying to see if that would make him feel less fatigued.
“Are you okay?” Charlie asked after pressing pause on the laptop. Nick turned back to him, “I don’t know. I think so?” He said in response. “I just got hit with an unusual amount of, like, tiredness. My eyes are actually starting to hurt.”
Nick cleared his throat and felt the lingering discomfort that he had felt before. “I think I might be getting ill. I’m not sure.”
“Here, let me check your temperature,” Charlie said as he placed his hand on Nick’s cheek before kissing his forehead. Nick laughed at his curly-haired boyfriend, “Oh, did that work well?” he questioned.
Charlie looked somewhat quizzical, “I was joking and trying to be cute, but you do actually feel a bit warm. Do you want me to head home?” He asked kindly, reaching out to hold Nick’s hand.
Within an instant, Nick pulled Charlie close like a child clinging to a teddy bear. “No, please stay,” he said softly. “I’m probably not ill. I may have just over-exerted myself at rugby today. Stay here with me until the movie finishes, please.”
“Fine,” Charlie said while smiling, gently lifting his head up to see Nick’s puppy-dog eyes. “But I’ll go make us some tea quickly.” Charlie stood without confirmation from Nick and went downstairs to prepare two cups of tea.
Nick got under the covers and rested flat on his bed, and he sighed in annoyance as the random fatigue didn't dissipate. He hoped that he wasn’t getting ill; he hated missing rugby practice, and he didn’t like the idea of getting Charlie sick. He closed his eyes for a minute and felt a noticeable relief over his eyes. He took a deep breath and stretched his legs and feet, feeling the lethargy spreading to the rest of his body. He sighed and then opened his eyes when he heard Charlie walking up the stairs.
The door creaked quietly as Charlie pushed open the already slightly-ajar door. “Here you are,” Charlie said as he handed Nick his warm mug. “I just added a splash of milk—no sugar.”
Nick smiled. “You know me too well. Thank you.” With that, the two sipped on their tea while they continued the movie. Nick kept unconsciously blinking roughly, genuinely shocked at the amount of effort that it took to open and close his eyes. He set his half full mug on the nightstand and cuddled up on Charlie, who was sitting upright as he drank his tea.
After a few minutes of intently watching, Charlie set his empty mug down next to Nick’s. He noticed Nick’s mug was still half way full, and when he turned back to ask Nick if he wanted it, he noticed that his freckled boyfriend seemed to be asleep already. Charlie smiled and refrained from running his hand through Nick’s golden hair; he looked too precious to wake up—a thought that made Charlie sad, considering he’d have to wake him up after the movie to say goodbye. He put more of the blanket over Nick and just enjoyed having a sleepy Nick Nelson resting on his lap.
When Nick awoke the next morning, his throat felt painfully dry, and his instinct of swallowing only proved to hurt more. He shut off his alarm for school and took a drink from the glass of water still on his nightstand, hoping that the irritation in his throat would go away. To his disappointment, even drinking water seemed to sting terribly. He also felt immensely exhausted despite sleeping over eight hours, and his eyes ached from an uncomfortable pressure. He sat up slowly, and once he stood up, he felt an immediate rush of nausea. He turned back to his nightstand and took another drink of water, trying to suppress the queasy feeling in his stomach.
He already knew he couldn’t possibly go to school, so he walked down the stairs, every step feeling like it required more energy than he had. Sarah was sitting at the dining room table sipping a warm mug of tea in her dressing gown when she saw Nick walk in. Nick hardly ever asked to stay home from school, so when he did ask, she knew that he really wasn’t well. She checked Nick’s throat with her phone flashlight, and it was bright red.
Within the hour, she had taken him to an urgent care, where he was diagnosed with strep throat and prescribed some antibiotics and a steroid pack. Nick explained to the doctor that his main symptom was, aside from his sore throat, how exhausted he felt.
“Your blood pressure is a little high from the infection, so it makes sense that you feel foggy and fatigued.” The doctor said. “I recommend not going to school tomorrow. You need to rest lots.”
Sarah nodded and turned to Nick, brushing hair out of his face.
“And for you, Ms. Nelson,” the doctor spoke kindly, “you’ll need to remind him to have enough fluids. It’s easy to become dehydrated when throat pain makes you not want to drink anything.”
“Absolutely,” Sarah responded. “Thank you very much.”
Back at home, Nick remained in bed, texting Charlie about how miserable he felt. He stayed in bed all day, not even realizing that he hadn’t eaten yet, and it was nearly seven o’clock. As if sensing her son’s hunger through maternal telepathy, Sarah warmed up a can of chicken broth and added some noodles and shredded chicken. She took it up to her sick son, who was fast asleep with his laptop still playing the first Captain America film. She gently touched his shoulder while whispering his name, and he woke up.
He groaned instantly, reaching over to his water once more. He looked back at Sarah and smiled, “You made me soup?” he asked sweetly.
“Oh, of course, my love.” She responded. “You haven’t eaten all day.”
Nick realized at that moment that she was right: he hadn’t eaten all day. “Right,” he said. “I suppose I wasn't even thinking about food with how I’ve been feeling today.” It was an odd thing to think about, considering Nick always ate at least twice a day. It felt especially weird to think about because he never understood how Charlie could go a day without eating, but here he was an entire day without food, and he hadn’t realized.
“Well, it’s just as important for you to eat as it is for you to stay hydrated.” She handed the soup to him and walked toward the door, “Let me know if you need anything, darling.”
Nick sipped on the soup and hummed in delight, making her chuckle.
“Goodnight, sweetie.”
“Goodnight, mum.”