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Try as he might to pretend that everything was just as it should be, at this point, Vincenzo was struggling just to stay away.
Still, he persisted.
No weaknesses.
No chance for someone to take advantage.
He hummed in vague acknowledgment at whatever one of his advisors was saying, sipping at a tepid cup of tea that was not helping with his increasing nausea in the slightest. Whatever this was, it was sapping all of his energy, forcing himself to keep his fluids up, only managing a couple of bites of food before his stomach was roiling in protest.
He ached all over.
He was either too hot or shivering from the non-existent cold.
There was a dense, raw pressure gathering in his temples and behind his eyes, trying to force them closed and every little shift made it feel like his bones were rattling.
He couldn’t let anyone know.
No weaknesses.
Michel and Luca seemed oblivious to this though, talking between themselves. Not that he had told either of them he was getting sick; not wanting them to start fretting or fussing over him.
In hindsight, he probably should have played it safe, made some excuses and worked alone in his office.
He could leave now.
He’d just lean on something sturdy, recover some of his strength and go to his office.
Honestly, he just didn’t want to hold his own weight anymore; his world was too dizzy, too heavy…he was tired, he was-
…..
When Michel heard the thump, he just thought that Vincenzo had dropped something, only to hear Luca curse, prompting him to turn and see Vincenzo on the floor.
“Vincenzo!”
Whatever happened to his brother was quick and fleeting, as the only response was a couple of exhausted sounding coughs, and they both rushed over.
“You’re feeling a little warm.” Luca muttered as Michel reached out to check, wincing at the heat that he felt there.
“More than a little warm.” Michel frowned, “I think he has a fever.” He moved a little closer, even as Vincenzo tried to pus him away, not wanting him to get sick as well, “Vincenzo? Is there anything else? Do you feel sick or- “
“- headache.” Vincenzo admitted finding that he was unable to stop now that he’d gotten started, “Freezing and hot at the same time, my whole body hurts and I think I’m going to throw up.”
“And no filter.” Luca sighed, “Okay, come on.”
The pair helped him to his feet as best they could, leading him towards the bedroom. Luca then helped him into cleaner, fresher clothes and then into the bed, and when he managed to open his eyes, he frowned at the worried look on Michel’s face.
Luca also seemed to notice.
“Michel, are you- “
“-I’m fine.” Michel didn’t sound fine, “We-we should let him sleep, right?”
“…Right.”
Vincenzo wanted to argue…but found that he was slipping into sleep before he could do so.
….
He did manage to get a little sleep, but he didn't feel any better after waking than he had the first time. In fact, his body didn't even give him time to get out of his bed before vomiting the contents of his stomach onto his lap. It was painful, and the smell alone made him feel sicker.
When it was finally over he just sat there for a moment, shocked at what he just happened.
It had been years since he’d gone and done something like that.
It was like Michel had been summoned by the sound, suddenly appearing in the room, taking a deep breath to steady himself against the smell for a moment, before going to grab the box of tissues from off the bedside table and wiping Vincenco’s mouth as carefully as he could, sensing that Vincenzo was starting to get a little overwhelmed by all of this.
“It’s okay.” He tried to bring Vincenzo out of this slight shock he was in, not wanting to feel so bad that he threw up again, “It’s okay.” He disposed of the tissues, gathering up the blanket that was saturated with the vomit, checking over Vincenzo to make sure none got on him, satisfied that it hadn’t.
“I’ll be right back.” He picked up the little bin, handing it over….just in case.
The blanket was thrown in for washing, and when he got back, he sat on the edge of the bed and took his hand.
“I wish I could do more.” Michel whispered, as Vincenzo gave him a weak smile.
“You’d be amazed at how much this is helping…I could probably do with something to rinse my mouth out though.”
Seconds later (Vincenzo may have blacked out a little), there was a glass of water in his hands. He rinsed his mouth out, spitting it into the bin, as Michel bit at his lower lip.
“Maybe we should move you to my bed, so I can get all this cleaned.”
“And if I throw up there as well?”
Michel gave him a gentle smile, “Don’t worry about it.”
“…Do you think you can lay with me here for a bit?” His mum used to do that for him…before everything happened. Sometimes, it was nice just knowing that someone was there.
Michel nodded, getting Vincenzo a new blanket for him, before laying next to him, Vincenzo focusing on hearing Michel’s heartbeat in his chest.
It was odd seeing how far they had come since what happened in Korea.
But he couldn’t imagine it going any other way.
Content, he let his eyes slide shut as he slipped off into sleep.
Huh.
It was odd how much better he felt now.