Chapter Text
it took jinki until mid-afternoon to realize that the sniffles his husband had started the day with weren’t his usual allergy-induced ones. especially when accompanied by a cough so deep that even jinki rubbed his chest at the sound.
no, poor minho was definitely sick which definitely meant that their plans would need cancelling. a development minho was definitely not willing to accept.
“we can still go out for dinner!” cough cough “it’s not that bad!” sniffle sniffle
jinki watched him fight the inevitable even as he couldn’t bring himself up off the sofa. minho was too limp with exhaustion & illness than to do much more than make little punching motions in the air & half-hearted declarations of health & vitality. jinki spooned him some cough syrup, a quick “have this & if you feel better in an hour we’ll go”, moving towards the kitchen as his husband fell asleep on the sofa.
when minho woke four hours bundled in a burgundy afghan it was to a dark sky & soft candles & the sound of something that sounded very much like rap playing at a hum in the background. the coffee table in front of him was set with linens & flatware, two spoons at both settings.
“oh good, you’re up. well, awake.” jinki chuckled from the doorway & minho blinked through his medicinally-induced fatigue at his bright smile. he disappeared & returned, a bowl in one hand & a teapot in the other with a little tea cup hooked over his pinky.
he placed the bowl, filled with soup minho noted, on top of the coffee table & the little tea cup beside it. steam poured from both as the cup was filled with the piping hot tea from the pot & he stirred in a little honey from a plastic bear he pulled out of his back pocket.
“it’s supposed to help with coughs.” minho watched it all from his prone position on the sofa & silently mourned the loss of their buffet plans. and his fight against gravity.
“too tired,” was all he could get out, limp with the virus & defeat.
“all you have to do is open your mouth & swallow.” minho raised his eyebrows because that was definitely a little smirk that danced over his boyfriend’s lips; too quick to have been noticed by strangers but a shift he was able to notice after so many years in love.
“here.” he held out a spoonful of broth over an open palm & minho let the salty fluid slip between his lips & down his throat. the rest of his meal was conducted in a similar fashion; prone on the sofa with jinki’s hands slowly shifting the soup & tea from their vessels on the coffee table to minho’s mouth.
when he was finished, he watched jinki stuff the bear back in his pocket & silently scoop up the cup, bowl, & tea pot. he listened to the clatter of the items being placed on the counter in the kitchen & the sound of jinki’s footsteps bringing him back to where minho lay on the sofa.
“do you think you can sit up?” minho nodded, confused, as he struggled into an upright position. jinki sat down where his head had been resting only a moment before & pulled him back into his lap, an arm wrapped around minho’s chest while the other rested on his shoulder while fingers stroked his hair.
“comfortable?” minho nodded again, his eyes slipping shut from the warmth of his husband’s body & the gentle scratch against his scalp. it was quiet in the flickering darkness, the little candles doing their best to stave off complete blackness. suddenly he snickered which brought on a violent round of coughing & he had to sniff three times deeply before he could breathe again.
“sir-mix-a-lot?”
“it’s a good track,” jinki responded & minho could hear the humor in his husband’s voice. he rolled his eyes.
“thank you for dinner,” he murmured & closed his eyes again.
“happy birthday, min.” he’d nearly fallen asleep when he felt the soft kiss behind his ear & a whispered “i love you & your small butt.”