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Shadow Milk coughed violently. He was trying to find a comfortable position in his bed at Pure Vanilla’s castle. But no matter what position he chose, it only made him feel worse. Nothing worked. He tried lying on his back, sitting on his butt with his back against the pillow, lying on his side, but he couldn’t find a comfortable position to rest or, at best, to fall asleep.
He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been sick. Maybe when he was the Fount of Knowledge? He had no idea. All he knows is that he hates this and wants it to stop. He shouldn’t be sick. He was immortal. Age and illness shouldn’t normally affect him. Yet, inexplicably, he managed to get sick.
Pure Vanilla tried to help him as much as he could. He couldn’t completely cure him of the cold, but at least he could ease his pain if it got too bad. That was the least he could do for him. But of course, Shadow Milk being Shadow Milk, he was too stubborn to go to him every time he had an attack of coughing. He’d rather die here than let Pure Vanilla see him looking so pathetic. He hated that, even though he wanted Pure Vanilla here to help him. But between his desire and his pride, his pride had won. He would suffer until he got better.
If Shadow Milk wanted to blame anyone for his cold, it was Dark Enchantress for rebuilding his body so weak. That was annoying.
Shadow Milk felt his eyes heavy with exhaustion, his head throbbing with pain. He was so tired and had wanted to sleep so badly. He blinked for a few moments, feeling relieved that his cough had subsided. His throat still felt like it was burning, but that was okay, he’d grown accustomed to the pain. Finally, he could fall asleep. His eyes grew heavy and he drifted off, comfortably in the soft bed with the blanket over his head, feeling safe and secure for the moment.
Only to be violently awakened by another violent round of coughing. Shadow Milk felt his throat burning. He couldn’t stop coughing. His face was wet with tears from the pain. He wanted it to stop. The pain was unbearable. He begged for it to stop. The pain in his throat was so intense that he just wanted his throat to be cut just to escape the pain.
Shadow Milk quickly got out of bed and sat down in a chair at his desk. He was breathing heavily; his cough subsided once he changed position and was no longer in bed. But he still felt absolutely awful. Shadow Milk shivered. He covered his face and began to sob. He wanted nothing more than to sleep. He wanted to be healthy again. Being sick was the greatest torture for him right now.
***
Meanwhile, Pure Vanilla was in his room, still working on his papers works. He knew it was late and that he should be sleeping by now. He would have work to do again tomorrow. He felt exhausted, but he wasn’t really sleepy, not when he had so much work left to do. These papers works were important. He couldn’t delay them until tomorrow. Even if his work was a little too much for him and his energy, he was still too stubborn to leave his work undone, especially if it was for his kingdom.
In the next room was Shadow Milk’s bedroom. He is the guest whom Pure Vanilla had welcomed with open arms into his kingdom. Shadow Milk practically lived here since he’d accepted his request for friendship. He’d specifically chosen for Shadow Milk’s bedroom to be right next to his own. That way, if Shadow Milk needed anything, he’d always be close by. In other words, Pure Vanilla just wanted him close. Shadow Milk was welcome to stay with him in his room as well, but he thought that might be too much all at once and only let him come to him when he felt the need.
Pure Vanilla looked up from his papers when he heard Shadow Milk coughing again. He frowned with concern and his heart ached thinking about him suffering. He wished Shadow Milk would accept his help and stop pushing him away. He waited a moment, and when the coughing finally stopped, he breathed a sigh of relief, thinking he had probably fallen asleep. At least that was his hope.
Being a healer at least meant he could do a lot to help Shadow Milk feel better. He was really trying to help him as much as he could, even when Shadow Milk chased him out of his room, rejecting his help. He offered him medicine and care, even when it was difficult to help him because of Shadow Milk’s pride. Fortunately for him, in the most horrible way possible, Shadow Milk was more cooperative in letting him help when he felt too weak to reject him anymore.
Pure Vanilla doesn’t know if he’s ever felt so helpless before. He didn’t want to force Shadow, but he also didn’t want to see him suffer. His illness was causing him a lot of stress. He just wanted him be healthy again.
Suddenly, he heard a violent cough that made him jump immediately. Pure Vanilla got up from his desk and stared wide-eyed at the door. Hearing the violent coughing that wouldn’t stop, and with no sign that it was going to stop, Pure Vanilla’s feet immediately hurried toward the door. Rushing anxiously wanted to check on Shadow Milk. He didn’t wait a single second. He needed to know how he was doing.
Before Pure Vanilla could even press the handle on his bedroom door, the coughing stopped. Pure Vanilla paused, waiting for a few moments. Maybe Shadow Milk had just had a brief episode of coughing, but Pure Vanilla was still worried about Shadow Milk. He still planned to go in and check on him. So he pushed open the bedroom door to step into the hallway.
As expected, the hallway was empty and dark. It was long past midnight. No one should be awake at this hour. With slightly hurried steps and full of worry, he approached Shadow Milk’s bedroom. Pure Vanilla just wanted to go in and check on him to see if he was okay. If he was asleep, he would make sure to enter as quietly as possible so as not to wake him. He needed his sleep. It would be cruel to wake him by mistake, especially if he had finally managed to fall asleep.
Finally, with a gentle movement, he placed his hand on the door handle and slowly opened the door, carefully and silently. He paused when he heard sobbing coming from the bedroom. Alarmed, Pure Vanilla pushed the door open and immediately stepped into the room.
The first thing Pure Vanilla saw was Shadow Milk’s empty bed. Then he looked around the room. He was trying to see in the dim light, since he hadn’t brought his staff to help him see better. He could only make out blurry shapes. Finally, in the dim light of the room, he saw Shadow Milk at the desk, holding his face in his hands and sobbing. He looked terrible with his hair greasy and messy in all directions. His eyes were barely visible through his hair, and they looked like they were crying too. Shadow Milk gave no sign that he had noticed Pure Vanilla in the room.
Carefully, Pure Vanilla approached Shadow Milk, gently touching his shoulder to let him know he was there. He felt Shadow Milk flinch at his touch, but he calmed down immediately. Pure Vanilla didn’t take his hand off him. He slowly low his hand to rub his back to offer comfort.
“Shadow Milk, why aren’t you in bed?” he asked worriedly.
Shadow Milk slowly lowered his hands to look up at Pure Vanilla’s face. Seeing his red eyes was like a stab to Pure Vanilla’s soul.
“I’m fine, I just can’t sleep,” Shadow Milk replied, he wiped the tears from his face with the back of his hand. He was trying to brush it off as if nothing serious was happening, but Pure Vanilla knew better; he frowned at Shadow Milk.
“You need sleep, especially when you’re sick.”
Pure Vanilla gently took Shadow Milk’s hands from his face and held them in his own. He tried to encourage him to get up and go back to bed, but stopped when he saw the look on his face. Shadow Milk glanced at the bed in terror, looking truly traumatized. It was clear he didn’t want to go back there. As usual, Pure Vanilla didn’t force Shadow Milk and just held him close, gently rubbing his back, wanting to offer him comfort.
"Shadow Milk." Pure Vanilla softly said his name, holding him close, waiting for Shadow Milk to calm down in his arms. A few moments later, after feeling him sink comfortably into his arms, he lifted him up and covered his body with his cloak. Shadow Milk didn’t resist; he was too tired for that. Instead, he simply wrapped his arms around Pure Vanilla and let himself be carried by him. “Bluebird, will it help if we cuddle together? Hopefully, sleeping with me will help you sleep better.” Pure Vanilla said softly, gently rubbing Shadow Milk’s back.
Shadow Milk didn’t answer. He just sank deeper into Pure Vanilla’s arms and nuzzled his neck. The healer smiled softly, finding Shadow Milk’s seeking for comfort adorable. He could feel his body was slightly warm, he had a fever. Pure Vanilla held him closer and gently nuzzled Shadow Milk’s hair with affection and love. He could feel how the beast was just melting from it and response back with nuzzle his face.
“You’ll get sick, you idiot.” Shadow Milk muttered indignantly, trying to reject Pure Vanilla’s offer, though his body betrayed his words. Despite his attempts to push him away, his body pressed closer to Pure Vanilla, craving more closeness.
“Don’t worry about me, I’ll take the risk,” Pure Vanilla replied, kissing Shadow Milk’s forehead.
Gently, Pure Vanilla sat down on Shadow Milk’s bed. He still held him close in his arms. He lay down on the pillow and wrapped a blanket around them. Then Shadow Milk began to cough again. He coughed into Pure Vanilla’s chest, trying to stop the coughing, and trembled in Pure Vanilla’s arms.
With a gentle touch, Pure Vanilla carefully placed his hand on Shadow Milk’s neck and used his magic. He tried to soothe his pain, making it bearable. Unfortunately, he couldn’t heal him completely, but at least he could do that much. He just wanted Shadow Milk to be able to fall asleep and get rest.
He felt Shadow Milk relax in his arms again. His breathing became more regular, and he nuzzled slowly into his neck. Gently, Pure Vanilla ran his fingers through his hair, gently untangling the knots he found.
“You idiot. You don’t have to use magic on me. You’ll be tired tomorrow, Vanilla.” Shadow Milk murmured, letting himself sink deeper into the healer’s arms.
“Then I’ll cancel all my tomorrow’s activities. You’re my top priority right now.” Pure Vanilla said softly, resting his head on Shadow Milk’s forehead, feeling him nuzzle his neck, appreciating it.
“You fool, how will you take care of me if you’re sick too?” Shadow Milk murmured, still looking for excuses to reject Pure Vanilla’s affection and care. But at the same time, he didn’t really want Pure Vanilla to go through this pain. Being sick was the most unbearable thing that could happen to anyone.
"Don’t worry about me. I’ll keep taking care of you even if I’m sick."
"Idiot."
Pure Vanilla smiled softly at Shadow Milk’s behavior. He knew his intentions. He knew what lay beyond his words. He had learned that Shadow Milk didn’t really know how to express his own feelings, especially because of his pride. But he was grateful that Shadow Milk knows when to set his pride aside and ask for help, even if that’s hard for him.
Looking at Shadow Milk’s relaxed face and his gentle breathing, Pure Vanilla realized that he had finally fallen asleep. He smiled softly, gently kissing his forehead careful not to wake him before he closed his own eyes. He quickly fell asleep with Shadow Milk in his arms.