I Had One Task And I Failed Again

Fever

Sicktember 2021 - Day 1

As the back of their fingers reached A’s cheek, B paused. A felt warm. Slightly too warm.

A comes down with a fever, their partner B takes care of them.

B chuckled at the program. It was a Friday night tradition to get take away and spend the evening on the sofa watching whatever entertainment show of the week happened to be on, followed by a movie. Tonight was no exception.

A was curled up next to B with their head on a pillow in B’s lap. This was one of the standard arrangements.

Sometimes B would lay with their feet in A’s lap (and if they were lucky, get a foot massage). Sometimes it was the other way around. Some days they would push the table to the side and put their feet up on the ottoman, snuggled together under the same quilt.

But tonight A had felt a bit chilled and wanted to cozy up under a warm blanket. Which led to the current situation, with a blanketed A resting their head in B’s lap.

What was unusual however, which B just noticed, was that A was sleeping. Sure, it wasn’t that out of the ordinary for A to fall asleep. But normally it would happen later in the evening, towards the end of the movie.

B smiled fondly down at A’s sleeping form. “Hey, sleepyhead,” they began in a low voice, barely louder than a whisper. They raised their hand to stroke their cheek and continued, “you’re gonna wake up at 4am if you fall asleep now.”

As the back of their fingers reached A’s cheek however, B paused. A felt warm. Slightly too warm. They pressed down just a tiny bit more firmly, then slid their hand up to press their palm against A’s forehead.

This confirmed it. A was definitely running a fever.

B had just decided they should go get the thermometer when they heard a small voice.

“Mmh, that feels nice,” A said in a sleepy voice and let out a small sigh.

“What, this?” B asked as they adjusted their palm on A’s forehead.

“Yeah,” A said, eyes still closed.

With one hand still on A’s forehead, they touched the back of their fingers of the other to A’s cheek.

“How are you feeling, sweetheart?” B said softly, concern lacing their voice.

“M’okay, just a bit of a headache,” A replied sleepily.

“I think you’re running a temperature,” B said, feeling A’s neck with the back of their fingers, then stroking A’s cheek again.

“Stay right here, I’m gonna get the thermometer,” B said, carefully sliding out from underneath the pillow, trying not to jostle A too much.

A pouted but didn’t say anything. They did however wrap the blanket tighter around themselves. B noticed.

“Are you cold?” B asked.

“A bit,” answered A and pulled the blanket right up to their chin.

B leaned down and rubbed A’s arm, more for comfort than to create heat. “I’ll be right back.”

B returned shortly, carrying a thermometer, a glass of water, and A’s duvet. They began by putting the first items on the table. Then they gently laid the duvet on top of A’s already blanketed form and proceeded to tuck them in tightly.

“There we go, that should make it better in a moment,” B said with a soft smile. Then they knelt down next to A. Picking up the thermometer they continued: “Okay, let’s see what we’re dealing with here.”

A looked up at B as they held the thermometer close, and somewhat reluctantly opened their mouth to let B insert the thermometer.

Once B was sure that A held the thermometer in place by themselves, B let go and looked up into A’s eyes. They were bright and glassy with fever.

“Oh, honey,” they all but whispered while reaching out to cup A’s flushed cheek. A sighed and leaned into B’s cool touch.

B stayed kneeling next to A until the thermometer beeped, at which point they took it out and read the verdict.

“101.2,” B stated and looked at A. “Would you like something for the fever, for the headache?” A nodded.

B fetched a pill from the medicine cabinet which A gratefully accepted.

“Do you want to go to bed now?” B asked once A had swallowed the pill.

A pouted. “No, I want to stay out here with you.”

B couldn’t help but smile. “I’d go with you of course,” they said, ruffling A’s hair slightly and then immediately smoothing it down again.

A considered for a moment and then said “No, I want to watch a movie. We always do.”

B thought that if A had already fallen asleep once, they’d most likely not stay awake for the movie. But they didn’t argue. They just smiled warmly and nodded. “Okay. Let’s watch a movie.”

B slipped back in under the pillow so that A was once again resting their head in B’s lap. They decided on a movie and settled down to watch.

B would alternate between slowly running their fingers through A’s hair, gently massaging their neck, and tracing their fingers along the shell of A’s ear; all things they knew A liked and which would hopefully make them feel more relaxed and comfortable.

Occasionally B would look down and see how A was doing. They managed to stay awake for much longer than B expected. But it was only a matter of time before A fell asleep, softly snoring into the pillow.

Once the movie was over, B slowly woke A up. They hated to do so, but knew that A would sleep better in the bed, in their pyjamas, teeth brushed. And A would need lots of restful sleep, so B insisted. A was a bit dazed but didn’t complain.

But after only a few hours, A woke up. It was still dark and they knew they should go back to sleep. But no matter how much they tried, they just couldn’t.

They’d been so cold earlier that evening, but now they were starting to feel too hot instead. They pushed away the duvet. But then their feet got cold so they pulled it back over their feet and legs.

They kept turning over to try and get more comfortable, but nothing was helping. And the pyjama shirt was suddenly very rough on their skin. Even when they were perfectly still it felt like every seam was digging into their skin.

A’s movements had slowly been waking B up, and when they heard A whimper they were instantly awake. They sat up quickly, turned on the bedside lamp and looked over at A. “What’s wrong?”

A winced and covered their eyes at the brightness. Then their hands fell to their pyjama top, pulling at the collar.

“It hurts,” was all they managed.

B looked A over in concern. “Where?”

“This,” B said, pulling on their pyjamas once again. “And it’s too hot and too cold and I can’t sleep,” they added in a voice sounding more and more as if they were going to cry at any moment. Their breathing was shallow and more rapid than usual.

B leaned over and put the back of their hand to A’s forehead. It was dry and very warm.

Looking over at A’s bedside table they noticed that the glass of water was empty.

“I’m gonna get you some water,” B began, sliding their hand down to caress A’s cheek with the back of their fingers. “But first I’d like to take your temperature again. I think your fever’s gone up.”

First they helped A out of their pyjama top. Then they propped up A to a slightly more seated position and placed the thermometer under their tongue.

“I’ll get you some more medicine, okay,” B more stated than asked. A nodded. B’s heart broke for them. They looked exhausted, and the feverish flush had spread, covering most of their face and was creeping down their arms and chest as well.

B hurried away, returning soon after with a pitcher of water and a fever reducer.

They refilled A’s glass, and when the thermometer beeped they checked the number and frowned. 102.6. B looked over at A with concern. Their eyes were even brighter and glassier now.

“Here, take this,” B said, handing A the pill and the glass. A swallowed the pill.

“I want you to drink all of it, I don’t want you to get dehydrated,” B said with a concerned voice.

A emptied the glass. B refilled it from the pitcher and placed both back on the nightstand.

Then B helped A lay down again. Doing so they felt how hot A’s skin was. No wonder they were feeling uncomfortable.

They wanted to give A a hug, but were afraid that doing so would only hurt them or make them feel worse. They settled on trying to make A feel better in other ways.

“Here, see if this helps a bit,” B said, slipping their hand under A’s neck and carefully lifting A’s head and torso up so they could turn A’s pillow over.

As A settled back down on the cool side of the pillow they closed their eyes and let out a sigh of relief.

This gave B an idea.

They hurried away and returned with another pitcher of water and a few cloths. They sat down next to A and put the first cloth in the pitcher. They wrung it out, folded it once, then used it to very gently dab A’s face.

B let the cloth rest on A’s warm skin, cooling it down. First they held the cloth to their right cheek, then their left. Then they proceeded to wipe their chin and nose, before folding the cloth again and placing it on their forehead.

Then they wetted another cloth and held it against the sides and front of A’s neck, before slipping it in behind A’s neck and letting it rest there.

B continued with the rest of the cloths, wiping down A’s shoulders, arms and chest. All the while they noticed how A’s breathing was slowing down, and they were beginning to take deeper breaths. A good sign, B thought.

Once the final cloth was placed over A’s collarbones, they seemed to have calmed down enough to possibly be able to go back to sleep. Plus, at this point the medicine should have started doing its job.

B turned off the light and laid down on their side of the bed. It took a moment for their eyes to adjust to the darkness, but soon they could see the rise and fall of A’s chest. They were now breathing so steadily and deeply that B hoped they’d fall asleep soon, if they hadn’t already. But suddenly they heard a small voice.

“Thank you.”

B almost chuckled at that. “Oh sweethart, you don’t need to thank me.”

A turned their head to look at B. “I’m so lucky to have you.”

B would have pulled A into a tight hug, if they weren’t afraid that would counteract much of the effort they’d just put in trying to cool A down.

“And I you,” they replied, settling for caressing A’s cheek with the back of their fingers, relieved that A was sounding calmer and more coherent now. It was still too warm, but slightly cooler than it had been. “Do you think you can sleep?”

A paused for a moment, then said “Will you trace my back?”

B smiled fondly. “Yes, of course.”

As A turned over to their side, facing away from B, the cloth on their forehead slipped down. B reached over and picked it up, turned it over and placed its cooler side back on A’s forehead.

They then laid down facing A, reaching out their hand to start tracing their fingers up and down A’s back in featherlight touches.

A gave a deep sigh and B could feel them become even more relaxed.

“I love you.”

It was barely audible, but B was just able to hear it.

“I love you too,” they whispered back.

B kept lightly touching A’s back in long, slow strokes, until they could hear the soft snoring which let them know they A was finally getting the restful sleep that they so desperately needed.

When someone really feverish/congested just does that really warming smile but their eyes are half lidded and they look so damn tired with bags under their eyes, and their breathing is dirty rattly and wheezy out their mouth but the SMILE IS JUST

is there a (real) doctor in the house..?

Common cold

I love a good sickfic with a full on fever and delirium and all that just as much as most of us, but as someone who gets a cold at least once every winter but is literally never actually stay-home-in-bed-sick, consider:

it starts with a sore or scratchy throat for a day or two and your character just knows

when the throat finally stops hurting, their nose gets all stuffy and no matter how hard they try to blow their nose, it doesn’t help one bit so they’re left basically unable to breathe through their nose at all

there is also this pressure in their head which is pretty much a constant headache

and because they have to breathe through their mouth their lips get dry and sore and they lick them frequently in an attempt to wet them a little which just makes them more sore, and that’s another thing that hurts, just great

they’re miserable but there’s no fever and technically no reason to stay home from work/school/stop doing their duties/whatever they’re doing, so there’s no choice but to suffer through the day

when they finally get home all they want to do is sleep, but it’s really hard when your nose just won’t let you breathe

and then

after a few days of struggling through breathing and dealing with persistent headaches, their nose finally decides to stop being all stuffed

instead, it won’t stop running all of a sudden and they’re left going through an entire pack of tissues a day

when they’re not blowing their nose they’re sneezing because their nose won’t stop tickling

and when they aren’t doing either of the two, their eyes just keep watering from the constant tickle in their nose and honestly they feel awful

but still, there’s no fever so it’s actually just an inconvenience, and they’re doing their duties as usual, so if they’re still in school or working an office job or are in the middle of a meeting, they’re torn between trying not to blow their nose too often because it’s disruptive, and trying not to sniffle because everyone thinks that’s gross

and the headache is still there

but of course that can’t be everything so during the entire thing there’s also a really persistent cough that brings frequent coughing fits

starts out with the constant urge to cough where the coughing won’t bring any relief at all and the urge is still there, then turns out into a painful cough from deep within their chest

the coughing is also something that is disruptive in their working space or at school so they try to hold it in as long as possible which makes the resulting coughing fit honestly even worse

plus it keeps them awake at night

they’re terribly cold all the time so they go about their days bundled up in a warm hoodie and a scarf, which, combined with their pale face and tired expression and drooping eyes, just serves to make them look extra vulnerable as they’re holding onto a mug of hot tea with both hands because it provides some warmth and the tea soothes their throat

the whole thing lasts for at least a week and even after their cold is technically gone, the cough might linger for another week

“They’re exhausted.”

Hi could you write something where A has been hiding sickness for a while now, but suddenly B got sick as well (maybe got it from A) and everyone else are too busy so they ask A to take care of B not knowing A is worse off? Maybe A even gave up some comfort items or the last meds for B?

just a disclaimer that this is all in good fun and not actually recommended treatment for the following illness - I just wrote purely from vibes lol 😆

A suppresses another cough in the corner of their elbow, disguising it as a clear of their throat. They’ve definitely felt off for the past week or so - deep aches and chills all the way to their bones, a constant cough, and the desire to just stay curled up in bed - but they’re not going to tell anyone that.

Instead, they pull on a sweatshirt and head down to the kitchen to make themselves a cup of tea to ease their shivers, praying that today is the day they finally take a turn for the better.

“Hey, have you seen the hot water bottle anywhere?” C bursts into the room, eyes searching urgently, just as A takes their first sip.

“Um…yeah, it’s in my room.” And it’s been my constant companion for the last two nights because I ache all over and can’t get warm for anything. “Why?”

“B woke up not feeling great, so I was gonna grab it and give it to them. You’re good if I take it?”

“…Sure.” A rolls their shoulders, rubbing their aching joints and trying to stretch out their sore muscles. They’ll take a hot bath later, then.

“Thanks,” C says, darting back out of the room, then suddenly poking their head back in. “Hey, A?”

“Hmm?”

“Listen, I’ve got a bunch of errands to run today and a work meeting I’ve got to go into the office for, and D’s working later at the hospital, so do you think you could look after B?”

A shrugs, clearing their throat. “Sure.” If C’s asking them, then B must be much worse off than them - so they owe it to them to suck it up and help out.

After they finish their tea, they head upstairs to B’s room. B’s curled up in bed reading a book, hot water bottle laying on their stomach.

“How’re you feeling, B?” Despite not feeling well themselves, A has to admit that B looks a little wan and peaked.

B sets the book down, coughing into their elbow. “I’m okay. Just a fever, aches, that sort of thing.” Their voice is scratchy, but they’re clear-eyed and alert.

Same as them a few days ago, then. Guilt washes over A - if they’d have just confessed to being sick, they could’ve isolated and B would be okay. This is all my fault. “Well, can I get you anything?” They try to brighten their voice, but overdo it and it just comes out sounding forced.

But if B notices, they don’t let on. “Maybe….some cough medicine? It’s all in my chest, and coughing hurts.” They rub their breastbone with a wince, pulling the hot water bottle over their chest.

“On it.” A shuffles off to the bathroom, pulling the brown bottle they know all too well from the medicine cabinet. There’s only a little left, but they don’t even give it a second thought - B needs it more, and they can text C to grab more while they’re out. Their hands tremble as they pour the remainder of thick liquid into the little cup, and they squeeze their eyes shut to try and stop shaking. Come on, A. Get it together.

By the time A sets the dose of cough medicine on the nightstand, their vision’s swirling in their eyes. Even walking to the bathroom was exhausting.

“A, are you alright?” B sits up in bed, eyebrows furrowed as they pick up the dose and knock it back. “You’re really pale.”

“I’m…I’m fine.” A sudden shudder rattles their teeth and they lean on B’s bed for stability. Despite their layers, their whole body’s just gone ice cold, a sheen of cold sweat and goosebumps covering their body. They tilt toward the bed and lean heavily against the mattress, bracing themselves with both their arms, suddenly finding it hard to take a full breath between the deep, painful coughs.

“A, I’m serious, are you sure you’re…”

But A doesn’t hear the rest as their knees slip, and they’re falling down, down…..

“A. Wake up. Come on, now.” B’s raspy voice cuts through the haze, commanding with an edge of fear. They’re out of bed and on the floor with them, looking just as shaken as A feels. “Get up. Please.”

A blinks awake, immediately aware that B’s at their side, tugging at their sweatshirt, trying to lift them off the floor.

“A. Get in bed. Now.” B’s voice is someone between stern and on the verge of tears. A’s so spent that they can’t even respond verbally, so as B half-lifts them with their remaining strength, A claws at the comforter to pull themselves up, up, until they tip onto the covers in a heap next to B. They cough deeply, the effort burning in their chest, and moan slightly. In a minute, they’ll get up and care for B.

“A….are you sick too?” B’s crackly voice sounds small and scared, and A wishes that they could spare them from this.

I should’ve said something. This is my fault. I’m sorry.

But a sob is the only thing that can escape their lips as they nod. They’ve been trying and trying so hard not to bother anyone with this, and now they’re collapsing in front of the only other sick person in the house.

“God, A, why didn’t you say something?” The words are angry, but A can hear the tremble in B’s voice.

“I’m sorry,” A weeps. “I just didn’t know what to say.”

“Hey, hey, you’re alright. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have snapped.” B clears their throat, resting a hand on A’s shoulder. “You’re just scaring me, is all. Tell me what’s up.”

“I’m so cold,” A chatters weakly, hugging themselves. That’s all they can get out, anyways. In reality, they’re feverish and cold to the bone, shivering from head to toe, and their chest is on fire. They’ve barely done anything and yet they can’t catch their breath, and the air feels thick and heavy when they breathe.

B hurriedly covers them with a blanket, pulling them close and rubbing their shoulders, pressing the hot water bottle to their chest. A clings to it like a lifeline against their sore chest, but the chills still course through their body. Nothing warms them - they’re slowly freezing from the inside out, even though they can feel their head and joints burning with fever.

The next hours (or days - A’s lost all sense of time) are an absolute blur. They’re aware of a voice shouting, thought they sound like they’re underwater, even though there’re right next to them. Hands tug at their clothing, pulling off their sweatshirt, and in their fevered dreams, vultures peck away at them, and they’re unable to fight off the vicious birds. Cold, damp rags are laid across their forehead and over their chest and stomach, and to them, they’re trapped in the deepest ocean, and seaweed wraps around them and chokes the life out of them.

And the shakes - god, the shakes are unlike anything they’ve ever felt. Great, rolling earthquakes of chills from their core that rattle their bones and teeth so hard they’re scared they’ll break. At times, it seems the only thing keeping them together is the warm arms that hold them tight and the gentle whisper of comforting words in their ear.

When A surfaces from the dark hell they’ve been trapped in, they realize they’re still in B’s bed, covered in piles of blankets. D hovers next to them, fiddling with a small orange bottle, and the night table has been filled with all sorts of medical paraphernalia - medicine bottles, a nebulizer, a stethoscope and box of tissues. Perks of living with a doctor, they think, but they’re too drained to poke fun at B about it.

They’re acutely aware of feeling worse than they had earlier. Everything aches - their arms, their legs, their back and shoulders, especially their chest, and even shifting in bed is painful. Not to mention that they’re still freezing, and they can’t take a deep breath.

“What….happened?” They rasp, coughing between each word.

“Hon, you’ve got pneumonia.” D slides onto the bed next to them, pushing A’s hair back off their forehead to feel their fever. “How long were you feeling this bad?”

A shrugs. “Couple days.” D gives them a pointed look, but doesn’t push further. Instead, they pop open the small bottle and tap two pills into their hand.

“Take these,” D says. “B called me at the hospital freaking out, and we were able to chat with the doctors and get some antibiotics to pump into you for the next few days.”

A’s too tired to respond to that, so they just oblige as D slips the bitter medicine under their tongue, then props their head up so they can sip some water to chase them. As they sit up, the blankets slip from their shoulders and allow the cool air of the room underneath, setting off another round of shivers that send them clutching at the covers. D hurriedly tucks A back in, gently rubbing at their shoulders.

“Shhhh, you’re alright. You’re okay.” The chills seize their body for what feels like an hour, but finally, A stops shivering enough to ask the question on their brain.

“B, how’s B?”

“Fine. We still think they’ve got a bad cold, but they shouldn’t get nearly as bad as you if we take care of them.” D smiles sadly, gazing up at the ceiling. “They’re in your room - we didn’t want to move you.”

As if on cue, B pokes their head in the door, blanket wrapped around their shoulders. A’s awake enough to see them lean against the door, exhausted from their own illness.

“B, I thought I told you to stay-“

“Is A okay?” B asks it in that crackly, worn out voice of theirs.

D glances back at A. “Still pretty sick. But we’ve got some medicine in them now. Once C gets back with the rest of the prescription, I think we’ll be out of the woods.”

B nods, coughing into their own elbow. “Sorry you’re sick, A.”

A nods, stifling a coughing fit of their own, cinching the covers up to their chin. In that moment, B darts back into the room, carefully settling on the bed next to A while D’a back is turned. When D sees it, they exhale and roll their eyes at B’s clinginess. “B, you need rest. Go back to-“

“Can’t I stay here? Just for a little bit?” B’s voice is pleading, and they nestle closer and rest their head ever so gently near A’s stomach.

D finally relents. “A few minutes. But only until their nebulizer treatment’s done. You push it, and you’ll end up like A here.”

B nods, sneaking under one of A’s many blankets and wrapping an arm around A’s waist. D fiddles with something on the nightstand and turns around with the mask of the nebulizer in their hand, then gently eases it over A’s face.

“There. That’ll help your breathing a bit.” D rubs their hands together and surveys the room, and with every breath of the medicine A wants nothing more than to throw their arms around D and thank them for helping them be able to breathe better. But D leaves to go get something else, and B curls closer, pressing themselves into A’s side like they’re scared they’ll fade away.

“Don’t you ever sacrifice yourself like that again, okay?” B’s voice is shaky, and they gently rub A’s side.

A nods weakly, letting their tired eyes fall shut. They wish they could pull B close, but they can’t bring themselves to pull their arms out from under the warmth of the covers. So instead, they just roll toward B and hope they get the message. And from the way B hugs them tighter, A thinks they do.

That Iconic Aesthetic when a character is both feverish and super congested so they get that hazy look where their eyes are not even half lidded like, ¾ lidded but they’re definitely awake, just too groggy and gross to be attentive.

Sicknario

Okay so earlier I got to thinking about subtle sick progression.

A classic caught in the rain scenario:

A gets caught in the rain walking home from work. They are drenched and chilled through when they get home, and B quickly ushers them to the bathroom for a hot shower. A feels worlds better as the hot water chases the chill away, and they spend the rest of the evening with B until they go to sleep.

In the morning, B is pulled from sleep by a few sneezes and a couple of weak coughs from A. B places a hand on A’s thigh. “Are you coming down with something?”

A shrugs. “Probably just a cold.”

Since it’s A’s day off, B tells A to spend the day resting before getting ready for work.

With B gone, A gets up for the day. The first few hours start off okay, with just a few sneezes and a couple of coughs here and there, but as the day progresses, a headache begins to take house across A’s forehead. A decides to take a nap to sleep it off.

Hours later, B comes home and finds A fast asleep. They look on fondly before migrating back to the living room to watch some television before starting dinner.

A is pulled from sleep an hour after B’s return by what feels like ice clinging to their bones. They sit up, sneezing harshly, before shuffling out of the bedroom while struggling against a headache paired with post-sleep disorientation.

A finds B on the couch, and they flop down beside B, curling up against B’s side when B lifts their arm in welcome.

A’s shivering has B growing worried. “Are you cold?”

“Freezing,” A responds, and B brushes cool fingers against A’s heated cheeks with a frown.

“You’re very warm.”

A only replies with a weak cough followed by a groan, and B pulls a blanket from the back of the couch, drapes it over A, and makes a mental note to check A’s temperature and get medicine before the two go to sleep for the night.