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Katie could barely stand by the time she stumbled out of the shower.
Steam clung to the bathroom walls, fogging the mirror while exhaustion weighed heavily on every part of her body. Her fever had only gotten worse throughout the day, leaving her shaky and overheated and completely drained.
Even drying her hair felt impossible.
She leaned weakly against the sink, trying to catch her breath while another cough tore through her chest.
The bathroom door opened almost immediately.
Ewron appeared in the doorway wearing one of his hoodies and sweatpants, his expression softening the second he saw her.
“Katie,” he said quietly.
“I’m okay,” she rasped automatically.
Ewron raised an eyebrow.
The look alone made her sigh tiredly.
“…I’m not okay.”
“Yeah. I know.”
He stepped closer, already holding one of her oversized hoodies and pajama pants in his arms. The second he reached her, his hand slid gently against her waist to steady her.
“You’re shaking.”
“I’m cold.”
“You have a fever.”
“No kidding.”
Despite her sarcasm, she instinctively leaned into him the moment his arm wrapped around her.
Ewron noticed immediately.
And something possessive curled warmly in his chest at the realization that even sick and exhausted, Katie naturally reached for him.
Mine.
The thought came embarrassingly easy these days.
He brushed damp hair away from her flushed face before pressing the back of his hand against her forehead.
“You’re burning up.”
Katie groaned quietly. “Don’t remind me.”
“You should’ve let me help sooner.”
“I didn’t wanna be dramatic.”
Ewron looked at her for a long second before laughing softly under his breath.
“Katie, you texted me ‘I fear this is the end for me’ because your fever hit one hundred.”
“It was one hundred point four.”
“That doesn’t help your case.”
A weak smile tugged at her lips despite herself.
Ewron’s expression softened instantly at seeing it.
God, he was addicted to her.
To every expression.
Every sleepy blink.
Every tiny noise she made when she was tired.
It almost scared him sometimes, how intensely he felt things when it came to her.
“Sit down for me,” he murmured.
“I can stand.”
“You’re literally swaying.”
Katie looked offended. “Rude.”
Still, she sat on the closed toilet lid while Ewron plugged in the hairdryer.
The warm sound filled the quiet bathroom as he carefully brushed through her damp hair with slow, gentle movements.
Katie closed her eyes almost immediately.
“You’re being suspiciously nice to me,” she mumbled sleepily.
“I’m always nice to you.”
“No you’re not.”
“You love when I’m mean.”
A laugh escaped her before she started coughing again.
Ewron’s hand immediately moved to her back, rubbing slow circles until she caught her breath.
“There,” he murmured softly. “Easy.”
Katie looked up at him tiredly.
And there it was again.
That look she only gave him when she stopped pretending she was okay.
Vulnerable.
Soft.
Completely exhausted.
Ewron’s chest tightened painfully with affection.
Nobody else got to see her like this.
Nobody else got to have this version of Katie curled against them and trusting them enough to let her guard down completely.
Selfishly, he loved it.
Not because she was sick—he hated seeing her feel awful—but because she needed him.
And Ewron was embarrassingly addicted to being needed by her.
“You’re staring,” Katie murmured.
“Can you blame me?”
“I look disgusting.”
“You look cute.”
She groaned immediately. “You’re actually delusional.”
“I’m serious.”
He leaned down without hesitation and kissed her forehead.
Katie blinked at him instantly. “Ewron, you’re gonna get sick.”
“Don’t care.”
“You say that now.”
“I’d still kiss you if you had the plague.”
“That’s not romantic. That’s concerning.”
Ewron laughed quietly against her skin before kissing her forehead again anyway.
Katie’s face warmed despite the fever.
The hairdryer clicked off after a few more minutes.
“There,” Ewron said softly, running his fingers through her now-dry hair one last time. “Better?”
“Mmhm.”
He helped her stand carefully before pulling the oversized hoodie over her head himself. Katie practically melted the second the soft fabric settled around her.
Especially when Ewron’s hands lingered at her waist afterward.
“You look adorable.”
“I look half dead.”
“You can be both.”
Katie rolled her eyes weakly, though she couldn’t stop herself from leaning closer when his arms slid around her.
“You’re clingy today,” Ewron teased quietly.
“I’m sick.”
“So?”
“So it doesn’t count.”
“It absolutely counts.”
His voice dropped softer near her ear.
“You’ve been attached to me all day.”
Katie immediately hid part of her face in his chest. “Shut up.”
Ewron smiled instantly.
He loved this.
Loved her sleepy embarrassment.
Loved how she stopped fighting him when she was tired.
Loved how naturally she fit against him.
It was probably unhealthy how possessive it made him feel.
The idea of anyone else seeing Katie like this made something ugly twist in his chest.
No.
This was his.
Not in a controlling way.
Just… intimate.
Special.
Ewron guided her slowly toward the bedroom, keeping one arm securely around her waist the entire time.
The second Katie reached the bed, she collapsed face first into the blankets with a miserable groan.
“I feel horrible.”
Ewron sat beside her immediately. “I know, baby.”
The nickname slipped out naturally.
Katie looked up weakly from the pillows. “You only call me that when I’m sick.”
“And?”
“And it makes me emotional.”
“Good.”
She laughed softly before coughing again.
Ewron frowned immediately. “Okay. Medicine first.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
“It tastes disgusting.”
“You’re being dramatic again.”
“I’m suffering.”
“You’re surviving a cold.”
“A horrible cold.”
Ewron couldn’t stop smiling while he grabbed the medicine and water from the nightstand.
Katie narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “You enjoy this way too much.”
“Maybe because this is the first time you’ve actually let me take care of you.”
The words made her go quiet.
Because he was right.
Katie hated being vulnerable around people. She hated feeling weak or needy or dependent.
But with Ewron…
It was different.
He made weakness feel safe somehow.
Ewron noticed her expression soften.
His own gaze softened immediately in return.
“Hey,” he murmured quietly, tilting her chin up gently. “What’s going on in that head?”
Katie looked down at the blankets. “Nothing.”
“Liar.”
“…I just don’t like people seeing me like this.”
“Like what?”
“Weak.”
Ewron’s expression changed instantly.
“Katie,” he said softly, “being sick doesn’t make you weak.”
She shrugged tiredly.
He leaned closer, his hand resting against the side of her face carefully.
“I like taking care of you.”
“You sound weirdly happy about it.”
“I am happy about it.”
Katie blinked.
Ewron smiled faintly before brushing his thumb beneath her eye.
“I like being the person you need.”
Her chest tightened painfully.
“Why can’t you be nice to me like this all the time.” she whispered.
“I love you.”
The words came out automatically. With his thick accent laced between each word.
Neither of them moved afterward.
Silence filled the room.
Katie’s heart pounded wildly despite her exhaustion.
Ewron looked suddenly nervous for the first time all night. They had always told each other they loved one another but this felt different. It felt real and raw.
Something unbearably soft flickered across Katie’s face.
Then she reached up weakly and pulled him down into a kiss.
Ewron melted immediately.
It was slow and sleepy and fever-warm, but he kissed her back like he’d been waiting forever to do it.
When they finally pulled apart, Katie rested her forehead against his.
“I love you too,” she whispered.
Ewron looked at her like she’d just handed him the entire world.
Then he kissed her again.
And again.
Little soft kisses against her forehead and cheeks and nose while Katie laughed breathlessly beneath him.
“You’re gonna get sick,” she reminded him weakly.
“I do not care.”
She smiled sleepily.
Ewron pulled the blankets over both of them afterward, wrapping his arms tightly around her while Katie curled against his chest automatically.
Safe.
Warm.
His.
The thought settled warmly in Ewron’s chest as Katie melted further into his arms.
“You staying here?” she mumbled.
“I’m not leaving.”
“You promise?”
His arms tightened instinctively around her waist.
“Always.”
Katie woke up to fingers in her hair.
Slow.
Careful.
For a second she was too sleepy to process anything beyond the warmth surrounding her, but then she felt Ewron’s arm tighten around her waist the moment she shifted.
“There you are,” he murmured softly against her forehead.
Katie blinked tiredly. The room was still dim, gray morning light slipping through the curtains while rain tapped gently against the windows. She was sprawled halfway on top of Ewron, wrapped in blankets and his arms at the same time.
And judging by the way he was already awake watching her, he hadn’t slept much.
“How long have you been awake?” she asked groggily.
Ewron shrugged slightly. “A while.”
“You should’ve slept.”
“I was watching you.”
Katie gave him a sleepy look. “That sounds creepy.”
“It probably is.”
But he didn’t sound ashamed about it at all.
If anything, he sounded weirdly pleased.
Katie noticed the way his hand stayed resting against her side, fingers lightly gripping the fabric of her hoodie like he needed constant reassurance she was still there.
“You’re staring again,” she mumbled.
“Can you blame me?”
“I look horrible.”
“You look sick.”
“That’s not better.”
Ewron leaned down and kissed her forehead without hesitation.
“You’re pretty anyway.”
Katie rolled her eyes weakly, though the faint smile tugging at her lips ruined the effect.
Her throat hurt less than before, but her entire body still felt heavy and exhausted. The second she tried sitting up, dizziness hit her again.
Ewron’s arm immediately tightened around her waist.
“Whoa. Easy.”
“I’m okay—”
“No you’re not.”
His tone wasn’t harsh.
Just firm.
Possessive in that quiet way he got sometimes, like taking care of her had become something he refused to let anyone else do.
Katie noticed his expression soften as she slumped back against him again.
“There,” he murmured, brushing hair away from her face. “Better.”
“You sound way too happy about me being helpless.”
“Maybe because I am.”
Katie blinked at him.
Ewron looked down at her with this strange mix of affection and something deeper. Something intense.
Ewron smiled faintly before pressing another kiss against her temple.
“You know what I was thinking last night?”
“That I’m annoying?”
“No.” He paused. “I was thinking about how nobody else gets to have this.”
Katie frowned sleepily. “Have what?”
“This.”
His hand moved gently through her hair again.
“You all soft and sleepy and letting someone hold you.”
Katie immediately hid part of her face in his hoodie. “That’s embarrassing.”
“It’s cute.”
“It’s humiliating.”
“I’m obsessed with you, Katie. Everything you do is cute to me.”
Her face felt warm for reasons unrelated to the fever now.
Ewron only smiled at her reaction.
He loved this version of her.
Not because she was sick—he hated seeing her feel awful—but because she stopped trying so hard around him. She stopped pretending she didn’t need comfort.
And selfishly?
He loved that he was the one she reached for.
Even now, half asleep and feverish, Katie instinctively curled closer into him every time he loosened his grip.
Like her body automatically sought him out.
The thought made something possessive bloom warmly in his chest.
Mine.
The thought came naturally.
Not in a cruel way.
Not controlling.
Just intense.
Like his entire heart had wrapped itself around her without permission.
Katie yawned quietly against his chest. “You’re thinking too loud.”
Ewron laughed softly. “Sorry.”
“No you’re not.”
“Nope.”
He shifted carefully before pulling the blankets higher around her shoulders.
“You hungry?”
“Not really.”
“You should still eat.”
Katie groaned dramatically. “You sound like my mother.”
“Your mother isn’t here. I am.”
The words came out low and automatic.
Katie blinked up at him for a second.
Something about the way he said it made her stomach flutter.
Ewron noticed immediately.
“There’s that look again.”
“What look?”
“The one where you realize you like when I take care of you.”
Katie narrowed her eyes. “You’re unbearably smug.”
“And you’re clingy when you’re sick.”
“I am not clingy.”
Right as she said it, she tightened her grip on the front of his hoodie unconsciously.
Ewron looked down slowly.
Katie followed his gaze.
Then immediately let go. “Okay maybe a little.”
“A little?” he repeated with a grin.
“You literally tried getting up five minutes ago and almost fell over because you stopped touching me.”
Katie looked offended. “That’s not true.”
“It absolutely is.”
She opened her mouth to argue.
Then stopped.
“…Okay maybe.”
Ewron looked way too pleased about that.
“You’re enjoying this.”
“Very much.”
“You’re evil.”
“No.” He brushed his nose lightly against her hair. “I just like when you need me.”
Katie went quiet for a moment.
Then softly: “I always need you.”
That caught him completely off guard.
Ewron stared down at her while Katie avoided eye contact immediately after saying it, suddenly embarrassed.
But the damage was already done.
His heart practically melted.
“Katie,” he said softly.
She made a tiny embarrassed noise and buried her face fully into his chest. “Forget I said that.”
“Absolutely not.”
“That was humiliating.”
“That was the sweetest thing you’ve ever said to me.”
“I have a fever. It doesn’t count.”
“It counts to me.”
He kissed the top of her head again, lingering there for a second longer this time.
Truthfully, Ewron didn’t think he’d ever get tired of this.
Of her.
Of waking up with Katie curled against him while rain played softly outside.
Of hearing her sleepy voice.
Of feeling her melt into his arms every time he touched her.
He was addicted to her in the most embarrassing way possible.
And Katie knew it too.
“You know,” she mumbled sleepily, “you’re kinda intense.”
“Kinda?”
She laughed softly.
Ewron smiled immediately at the sound, like even her laugh was something precious.