Surviving - Illness (a 'For Every Action, A Reaction' side story)

[churbooseanon]

Summary: David gets sick and Miles doesn’t have the first clue of how to handle it.

Surviving - Illness

I believe, Delta observed, voice clearly meant to be soothing and it was absolutely anything but, that at this phase you are supposed to check his temperature.

How am I supposed to do that?

He could feel more than hear Delta sigh in the back of his mind before he felt the consciousness of the AI move to curl around his arm and reach out. David, pale and sick looking, flinched away from the brief touch against his forehead, and Miles snatched his hand back, yelping in shock at how warm David’s skin was.

Yes, I would say that David has a high grade fever.

What do we do?!

“Aspirin,” David groaned from where he still lay on the bed, covered in a mound of every last blanket they had. “Water.”

“You have a headache too?” Miles whimpered in pity.

That drove another groan from David, maybe a touch more frustrated than simply miserable.

Aspirin is a commonly used drug to reduce or even break a fever, Delta provided. I do believe Nic keeps a bottle of it in the bathroom medicine cabinet.

“R-right,” Miles agreed, because now that Delta mentioned it he was certain he had seen it there. They’d gone through a bottle in the first month from the headaches Miles and Nic got when they pulled D or Theta for David’s sake. But that habit had stopped as Theta became more necessary for Nic’s work, and Delta more anxious to be pulled from Miles’s head.

“Just… stay there, David. I’ll get…”

Wait, Delta insisted, and at the AI’s tension Miles froze. He tilted his head to the side and closed his eyes and let himself sink into the expanded sensory processing power Delta submitted his senses to.

Nic, Delta decided at last, identifying a specific series of creaks beyond the door.

Miles scrabbled to his feet and bolted toward the door, throwing the lock back and swinging the door open even as Nic stared at him, shocked, keys poised just short of where the lock had been.

“Miles?” Nic asked, concern in his voice. “Did something…”

“David’s sick,” Miles whined, grabbing Nic’s arm and dragging him into the room. “His head is really hot and his skin is really pale and he’s cold even though he’s under every blanket. Delta says we should give him aspirin.”

Nic stared at him for a long moment and then shook his head, chuckling lightly.

“Don’t laugh. He’s sick. He could die!”

I believe it is merely a common flu, Miles. As such your behavior would fall into the area of overreacting. Perhaps even severely overreacting.

Or maybe you’re severely underreacting.

“He’ll be fine,” Nic assured York, smiling softly.

Why the hell was everyone so calm!?

“But he’s…”

“Go into the bathroom and get the aspirin. Give him two with a full glass of water, alright?”

“You’re sure?”

His lover nodded and kissed his forehead. “Trust me. I’m going to make David some soup, but he needs you right now to deal with his pain. Understand?”

“And after?”

“After I want you to get a wash cloth, soak it in cold water, wring it out well, and then fold it into thirds on the short side so that it’s like a band. You want to put that over his forehead, alright?”

Why a wet cloth?

I would imagine it is soothing against a fevered brow. But if you desire I can do a search on…

Yeah, can’t afford to zone out like that when Nic’s depending on me.

Delta pinged an affirmative as they headed for the bathroom. That being said, Miles didn’t get the medicine cabinet open before Delta had control of his arm, pulling the aspirin bottle out for him.

“I can see it myself, D.”

Your current levels of agitation are not conducive to…

Please, I’m just worried. I’ve never dealt with a sick person before. Especially not someone I care about. I’m just… I’m just so helpless to help him without Nic.

Your heart is in the right place. That is what matters.

If only that was ever enough.