Chapter Text
It was three in the morning and Hannah was still awake.
Not because she wanted to be. She had an early class the next morning, and she'd been trying to fall asleep for nearly an hour. The problem was the noises. Every few minutes she'd hear something from elsewhere in the apartment— a floorboard creaked, a door opened and closed. Something bumped softly against a wall. None of it sounded urgent enough to justify getting out of bed, but it was more than enough to keep dragging her back awake whenever she started drifting off.
The only reason she hadn't investigated sooner was because she knew Dean was spending the night.
And unfortunately, that fact came with a history.
Over the couple months Allie and Dean had been together, Hannah had walked in on enough awkward moments to learn an important lesson: if strange noises were coming from the apartment in the middle of the night and Dean was involved, there was a decent chance she didn't actually want to know what was happening. She'd opened doors she shouldn't have opened before. She'd seen things she'd never asked to see. At this point, self-preservation told her to stay in bed and mind her own business.
Hannah sighed and rolled over, pulling the blankets over her head.
Nope.
Not her problem.
Whatever Dean and Allie were doing at three in the morning could remain completely and entirely their business.
She squeezed her eyes shut and focused on falling asleep.
Ten seconds later, a door slammed shut somewhere in the apartment.
Hannah's eyes flew open.
"Fuck," she whispered, throwing the blankets aside.
She sat up with a low groan, rubbing the sleep off her eyes. Then, slid out of bed and shoved her feet into a pair of slippers. As she made her way toward the bedroom door, she was already planning her speech.
Something along the lines of:
Hi, guys. It's three in the morning. Some of us would like to sleep. Please keep whatever weird couple activity you're doing quieter.
Hannah didn't plan on seeing anyone naked.
She didn't plan on interrupting a romantic moment.
She didn't plan on becoming traumatized by whatever Dean and Allie were doing at three in the morning.
She simply wanted to sleep.
That was it.
Sleep.
A very reasonable goal for three fucking am.
Unfortunately, living with college students had taught her that reasonable goals were rarely achieved, especially when Dean Di Laurentis was involved.
With a sigh, she stepped into the hallway and followed the source of the noise.
It didn't take long to find it.
The bathroom door was closed, but a strip of light spilled out from underneath it, cutting across the dark hallway floor.
Hannah stopped.
Stared.
Then stared some more.
"Oh, you've got to be kidding me."
Hannah closed her eyes.
Kill me.
For one brief, hopeful second she considered turning around and going back to bed.
Maybe if she ignored it, the problem would solve itself.
Maybe she didn't actually need sleep.
"Nope."
Hannah marched forward.
Whatever was happening in there, she was ending it.
At minimum, she was getting an explanation.
At maximum, she was kicking both of them from the apartment.
Taking a deep breath, Hannah raised her hand and knocked on the bathroom door. For a few seconds she heard absolutely nothing, she sighed and was about to turn around and leave, hoping that they had gotten the hint when she heard a muffled, “shit.”
She opened her mouth, fully prepared to tell them to keep it down and save whatever was happening in there for daylight hours when she was not around, but she was cut short by a low groan.
Hannah blinked because that groan was not I’m getting laid one neither a shit, I got caught type of groan. It sounded genuinely miserable.
And then she heard it, the unmistakable sound of liquid hitting water.
Hannah froze, her annoyance vanished instantly.
"Oh."
A second later another miserable groan came from behind the door and suddenly the pieces started falling into place. The door slamming, the constant trips she'd been hearing for the past hour and the strange noises.
Oh no.
She stepped closer to the door, "Everything okay in there?"
She didn’t get an answer, but at this point she didn’t need one. A second later, she heard someone gagging and coughing, before the characteristically sound of vomiting filled the space.
Hannah winced in sympathy.
"Give me a second," Allie's voice drifted through the door.
So Dean was the one getting sick, her tired brain provided. Poor guy.
"Yeah, of course," Hannah replied quickly, leaning against the wall.
Throughout the door, Hannah could hear whispers between Allie and Dean. Her friend was whispering words of comfort something along the lines of hey, it’s okay, you’re fine or just take a deep breath.
Hannah couldn’t help but smile.
This wasn't a side of Dean and Allie she saw very often as most of the time they operated at one of two extremes, either they were bickering or they were making everyone around them uncomfortable with all their flirtation.
There was rarely any middle ground.
Dean would deliberately say something annoying and Allie would immediately rise to the bait. Five minutes later they'd be arguing about hockey, classes, movies, or some completely ridiculous topic that neither of them actually cared about.
And when they weren't doing that?
Well, that was even worse.
Then they were usually curled together on the couch, holding hands, stealing kisses, or looking at each other like everyone else in the room had stopped existing. Hannah had lost count of how many times she'd walked into her own living room and immediately regretted it.
There were absolutely no middle settings with those two.
At least none that Hannah usually got to see.
Yet standing outside the bathroom at three in the morning, listening to Allie quietly take care of Dean while he felt miserable, Hannah realized there was another version of their relationship hidden underneath all the flirting and chaos.
One that most people probably never got to witness.
Hannah was pulled from her thoughts by the door opening and Alie appeared in the doorway. Her hair was piled into a messy bun on top of her head, several strands having escaped hours ago. Her oversized t-shirt was wrinkled, and the dark circles under her eyes made it obvious she hadn't slept much.
She looked exhausted.
"Hey," Hannah said, offering her a small smile.
"Hey," Allie returned the smile, though it looked tired.
"Sorry we woke you up."
Hannah shrugged. “Not a problem.”
Allie sighed and rubbed a hand over her face, "I think Dean picked up some sort of stomach bug."
As if hearing his name, a miserable voice drifted from inside the bathroom.
"Sorry, Wellsy."
Hannah stepped slightly to the side, glancing past Allie through the partially open door.
From where she stood, she could only see part of him.
Dean was sitting on the bathroom floor in a navy hoodie and his head was resting on one arm draped over the toilet seat while the other arm was wrapped around his stomach. His blond hair was sticking up in every direction and his eyes were barely opened. All in all, he looked absolutely pathetic, with his blond hair sticking up in every direction and eyes half closed.
Since she had started dating Garrett, Hannah had gotten closer to all the other boys as well and that included seeing them in some miserable positions. She had seen them injured, hungover, exhausted after hockey games, and even suffering through brutal practices. However, she wasn't sure she'd ever seen Dean look quite this miserable and that was saying something as he was the one she had seen the most in those situations.
"You look awful," she informed him.
Dean managed to lift his head just enough to look in her direction.
"Thanks."
"You're welcome."
His head immediately dropped back onto his arm.
Hannah shook her head, then she looked at Allie.
"When did all this happen?" she asked, gesturing toward the pathetic figure currently draped over the toilet.
Allie sighed, "Honestly? I don't have a fucking clue." She leaned against the doorframe for a moment before continuing, "We were sleeping, and then he woke me up saying his stomach hurt."
Her eyes drifted toward Dean.
"We've basically been camped in here ever since."
Hannah winced, "Jeez."
Immediately she felt guilty. While she'd been lying comfortably in bed trying to ignore the noises, the two of them had apparently been having a terrible night.
"You could've woken me up."
Allie looked genuinely surprised.
"Hannah."
"I'm serious."
"You had class in the morning."
"So do you."
"Yeah, but—"
"No, seriously."
Hannah crossed her arms.
"I was literally twenty feet away."
A small smile appeared on Allie's face, "Honestly, there's not a lot you could've done."
Allie stole a glance in Dean’s direction before continuing, "I've mostly just been rubbing his back while he pukes for the hundredth time."
Dean let out a weak groan at the mention of his name.
Hannah sighed, unfortunately, she knew Allie was right. There really wasn't much anyone could do when someone had a stomach bug. Mostly you just waited for it to run its course and tried to keep the person comfortable in the meantime.
Still, she felt bad.
The two of them had clearly been dealing with this alone for hours.
"Has he been able to keep any stomach relaxers down?" Hannah asked.
Allie's laugh held absolutely no humor, "I wish."
Hannah frowned.
"So he's just—"
She didn't get to finish as suddenly Dean made a small sound from the bathroom floor.
Not a groan.
Not a complaint.
A whimper.
The noise immediately drew both girls' attention.
Dean sat up straighter so abruptly that it startled Hannah. One second he was practically draped over the toilet, the next he was upright, one hand pressed hard against his stomach.
His face had gone several shades paler.
"Fuck," Allie whispered.
Before Hannah could even process what was happening, Allie was moving. She crossed the bathroom in two quick steps and dropped into a crouch beside him. One hand immediately found its place between his shoulder blades.
Dean barely seemed aware of any of it, His eyes were squeezed shut and his breathing turned shallow.
For a second he just sat there looking miserable.
Then his stomach finally won and Dean lurched forward, the sound of him getting sick again filled the small bathroom.
Hannah winced sympathetically.
The poor guy.
At that point Hannah knew she should probably leave. Dean didn't exactly need an audience for this, besides If he was even remotely aware of how much of this she was witnessing, he'd probably be mortified.
Yet somehow she found herself unable to move.
Partly because she was worried.
Partly because she couldn't stop watching the way Allie handled everything.
Her friend rubbed slow circles between his shoulder blades while he was sick, her other hand resting lightly against his arm as if to steady him. The motion looked practiced, not because she'd done this before with Dean specifically, but because she seemed to instinctively know what he needed.
For a few moments the bathroom was quiet as Dean remained bent over the toilet, breathing hard.
Hannah was just beginning to think the worst of this round might be over when Dean suddenly tensed again, a small gag escaped him.
Then another.
Immediately Allie noticed and shifted closer, her hand never leaving his back.
"Deep breaths, babe," she said softly.
The nickname sounded so natural coming from her that Hannah almost didn't register it.
"You're alright."
Dean nodded weakly.
His eyes were squeezed shut as another gag shook him.
Allie's hand moved higher between his shoulders.
"That's it," she murmured. "Slow breaths."
For a few seconds Dean focused entirely on doing exactly that and gradually the tension left his shoulders again as the nausea seemed to ease, at least a little.
When the wave finally passed, Dean slumped back against Allie. She adjusted automatically so he could rest against her shoulder, then she reached for the toilet paper sitting on the counter. With the same patience she'd shown all night, she gently wiped his mouth before tossing the paper into the trash.
“Sorry,’ The word came out rough, almost slurred from exhaustion.
Allie immediately rolled her eyes, "Stop apologizing."
A small smile tugged at the corner of Hannah's mouth, apparently that conversation had happened more than once tonight.
Allie looked up then, finally seeming to remember Hannah was still standing there.
"Hannah?"
"Yeah?"
"Can you get us some water, please?"
"Of course."
Hannah pushed away from the wall immediately.
As she headed toward the kitchen, she glanced back one last time. Dean was still leaning against Allie and Allie's hand was still rubbing slow circles across his back. Neither of them had noticed they'd unconsciously moved closer together.
Cute.
Hannah moved quietly through the apartment, grabbing a glass from the cabinet and filling it with cold water from the sink. Once she had what she needed, she headed back down the hallway.
As she approached the bathroom, she slowed slightly. The door was still partially open and from where she stood, she could see the two of them. Dean was leaning against the bathtub now, eyes closed, his face even paler beneath the harsh bathroom light.
Allie was sitting beside him, one arm loosely around his shoulders, her hand continued tracing absent-minded circles across his back. For a moment neither of them seemed aware of anything else. Then Hannah watched as Allie gently brushed a few strands of messy blond hair away from Dean's forehead.
Dean didn't react, at least not visibly. He just seemed to relax further into her side.
A second later Allie leaned over and pressed a soft kiss against the top of his head.
The gesture was so quick.
So natural.
That Hannah almost felt like she was intruding and maybe she really was, but without meaning to, she'd stumbled into one of those private moments most people never got to see.
The realization made her smile.
Then she deliberately scuffed her slipper against the floor before stepping fully into the bathroom, giving them both some warning.
"Here," she whispered.
Allie looked up immediately and carefully reached for the glass, their fingers brushed briefly as Hannah handed it over.
"Thanks," Allie mouthed silently.
Hannah nodded.
"No problem."
Dean didn't open his eyes, his head was resting against Allie's shoulder now, his body looking completely boneless from exhaustion.
For a moment Hannah watched him.
Then she nodded toward him.
"Is he asleep?"
Allie shook her head, a small smile tugging at her lips, "No."
She glanced down at him, "Still nauseous."
As if to prove her point, Dean grimaced slightly and shifted closer to her side.
Hannah winced sympathetically.
"Sorry."
The word slipped out before she could stop it. It just seemed like the right thing to say.
Because honestly?
The whole situation sucked.
Dean looked miserable.
Allie looked exhausted.
And it was three in the morning.
Allie chuckled softly, "You can go back to bed."
Hannah immediately opened her mouth.
"No, it's—"
"I've got him."
Hannah looked from Allie to Dean and saw how Dean was practically melted against her side at this point. And despite how awful he clearly felt, he looked calmer than he had earlier. Safer somehow because Allie was there and she clearly wasn't going anywhere.
Hannah found herself smiling.
"You sure do."
And honestly, after watching the two of them for the last several minutes, Hannah didn't have a single doubt about it. Because for all their teasing and arguing and ridiculous flirting, moments like this made it obvious how much they cared about each other.
With one last glance at the couple on the bathroom floor, Hannah took a step backward toward the hallway.
"Good luck."
Allie laughed quietly.
"We're gonna need it."
Hannah smiled.
Then she slipped out of the bathroom and gently pulled the door almost closed behind her.