Work Text:
Update: Liam is now 14 years old, and Lily is 21. Liam is in 8th grade.
Liam is at school. He's in math class and feels very ill. He had a tummy ache all day. He did his best to ignore it, but now he's really hurting. Liam couldn't pay attention to the math lesson. He went to see the assistant teacher, Ms. Kim, a kind lady in her 30s, always willing to help out. She was grading papers at her desk.
"Ms. Kim?"
"Yes, Liam?"
"My tummy hurts."
Ms. Kim looked at him, concerned. "I'm sorry, Liam. Do you need to use the bathroom?"
Liam shakes his head. He didn't need to poop.
"Would you like me to take you to the nurse?"
"Yes, please."
Ms. Kim stands. "Let's go."
She tells the teacher she's going to take Liam to the nurse, and they leave the classroom. Liam walks slowly. "Does your tummy hurt when you walk, Liam?"
"Mhm. I'm sorry."
"It's okay, buddy. It's no rush."
Slowly but surely, they made it to the nurse's office. Ms. Luna looks up and greets them. "Hi, Ms. Kim. Hi, Liam. What can I do for you?"
Liam was too ill to talk, but he managed to whisper, "Tummy."
"Your tummy hurts, buddy?"
"Mhm."
"How long has it been hurting?"
"All day."
"Oh dear. Why don't you hop up onto the table so I can feel your tummy?"
Liam shakes his head no. "Don't touch it."
"Can I listen to it with my stethoscope, then?"
"Okay." Liam hops up onto the table and lies down. Ms. Luna lifts up his shirt and places her stethoscope on his stomach. Liam shivers.
"Sorry, I know it's a little cold."
She listens all around his stomach. "Liam, you have got a very noisy tummy." She turns to Ms. Kim. "Has he been sick at all?"
"No."
"Has he been to the bathroom?"
"No, I asked him if he needed to go, and he said he didn't."
"Alright, Liam. Let's have you lie down on the cot." She pulls out a cot and places a pillow so Liam can rest his head comfortably. Liam lies down.
"Is that better?"
"A little."
"Let's have you rest for a few minutes."
Liam closes his eyes and tries to relax.
(20 minutes later)
Liam has a lot of pain in his tummy. He sits up and wraps his arms around his stomach. "What's wrong, Liam?", Ms. Kim asks.
Liam coughs hard and gags.
"Ms. Luna, get the trash can quickly!"
Ms. Luna gets the trash can and holds it under Liam's mouth. He throws up a few times, and then it stops. He bursts into tears.
"It's alright, Liam. You did so well", Ms. Luna says, while rubbing his back.
"I want Lily!!!"
"I'll call her, Liam. Don't worry."
Ms. Kim goes back to class to get Liam's bag and jacket. Ms. Luna calls Lily, one of Liam's emergency contacts.
(At home)
Lily is watching TV when she hears her phone ring. She looks at it and sees it's Liam's school nurse calling. She answers.
"Hello?"
"Hello. Is this Lily?"
"Yes."
"Hi, Lily. I'm calling to let you know that Liam has just thrown up. I think it's best if you could come pick him up and take him home."
"Oh my gosh. Okay. I'll be right there."
She hangs up the phone, gets her bag and keys, and leaves the house.
(10 minutes later) Lily walks into the nurse's office and sees Liam lying on the cot with tears in his eyes. She walks to him and kneels down.
"Hey, sweetie. What happened?"
Liam starts crying all over again, clearly emotional for being ill. "I threw up", he says, sniffling. "In a trash can."
Lily helps him stand up and holds him close. "Is your tummy not feeling well?"
"No. It's yucky."
"I'm so sorry, sweetie. Let's get you home to rest, yeah?"
"I want to go pee pee first."
"That's fine. Do you want my help?"
"No, thank you, Sissy." Liam walks to the bathroom and does his business.
"I don't understand", Lily says to the nurse and teacher. "He didn't say his stomach hurt this morning."
"He said his stomach hurt all day.", Ms. Kim informs her. "Maybe when he arrived at school, he started to feel ill. He never spoke up about it until he was feeling really sick and couldn't take it anymore."
"Not a surprise. He's really shy like that sometimes."
Liam is done in the bathroom and comes out.
"All good, bud?"
"Mhm."
"Alright, let's head home. We'll get you feeling better in no time."
Liam zips up his jacket and holds Lily's hand as they walk out of school. His tummy still felt a little funny, but having Lily always made him feel good.