Yet another request that I can check off my list!
Kay, so this one is for hellgirl-fan1. I HOPE YOU ENJOY IT!
This a NemoxSuperboy pairing in case you didn't get the memo. NOW YOU HAVE THE MEMO.
Warning: Very much fluffiness ahead.
Disclaimer: Again with the pointless nonsense...
When Conner walked into the kitchen that day, Rachel was sitting on the counter, staring at something he couldn't see. As usual.
It frustrated him a little. Okay more than a little. It was so hard to understand her. It wasn't just her speech, it was the actions behind them, the thoughts that where behind the scenes pulling the strings. It was easier to understand, ever since Robin had explained things, but it was still hard. And Rachel knew it was hard for him. Try as he might, he couldn't hide anything from her.
She could always tell when he was frustrated or angry or sad or happy or content. And she always knew why he felt whatever it was he felt. He didn't really think it was fair.
But then he began to notice things. He realized that he knew how to read her when the others couldn't. He could tell how far away she was just by looking at her eyes. He knew exactly what her heartbeat sounded like.
It was this knowledge that made him pause when he entered the kitchen. Rachel's heartbeat was…off. Its cadence was at least two beats ahead of its usual pace. Rachel herself didn't seem to notice the change; which was not surprise to him. According to her eyes, she was as far away as China right now. Her face was slightly flushed, but she seemed fine, so Conner continued his way to the pantry to grab some cereal.
He was in the middle of pouring said cereal into a bowl when her heart rate suddenly dropped. He moved without thinking, suddenly in front of her, catching her as she tipped forward, falling off the counter.
"Rachel?" he asked slowly, lightly gripping her chin and turning her face toward his. He knew the contact grounded her, helping her focus on him. The fog in her eyes cleared, but they remained hazy. Her body was warm, he noted, warmer than it should be. "You're sick," he said, eyes widening in realization, "Why didn't you tell anyone?"
Rachel's brow furrowed in concentration. "Sick?" She paused, humming thoughtfully. "So this is sick. It is not a nice feeling," she said softly, leaning against him, her eyes half closed. Suddenly, she looked up at him, a worried gleam in her hazel orbs.
Conner noticed the question the most would have missed. "You'll be fine," he said, bring up a hand to feel her forehead, "I'm pretty sure it's just a cold. Nothing serious."
Rachel nodded and curled into him as he scooped her up, carrying her back to her room. "Nemo feels heavy," she mumbled into his shoulder, "She doesn't like it."
Conner just held her closer. He entered her room and gently laid her down on her bed, running through everything he knew about colds in head. He leaned down and brushed some hair out of her face. "I'll be right back."
He didn't have to tell her, he knew she would know he was coming back. But he also knew that she liked to hear things spoken out loud. It was reassuring to her. He quickly gathered what he needed and returned to the room. He heard her breath dip and stop for a moment. Panic flooded his chest as he opened the door, immediately placing himself at her side and gently shaking her shoulder.
She exhaled slowly and opened her eyes, turning her flushed face toward his. "Head hurts…" she mumbled groggily, "Feels s'uffy. Can' breath righ'…" her voice started slurring as her eyelids became heavy.
"I brought you some medicine. You have to take it," he said, gently pulling her up as he sat next to her. She took the pills from him and put them in her mouth before he brought the glass of water to her lips to help her swallow. When she was done, he put the glass on her nightstand. Rachel watched him through half lidded eyes as he placed a cold compress on her forehead. She sighed gratefully as she leaned forward, resting her head on his shoulder. Conner automatically put an arm around her waist and pulled her closer to keep her steady.
"Son's warm…" she sighed, her breath fanning across his neck.
He didn't respond, knowing it was rhetorical. Instead, he let his fingers comb through her hair as he listened to her irregular heartbeat. He knew about colds, about sickness. But he had never actually seen someone get sick before. It never occurred to him that it could happen to someone he knew, he never thought Rachel would ever get sick. What about the others? Robin and Artemis were both human, so it was probably easy for them to get sick. But Rachel had powers; did that mean Wally could get sick too? And what about M'gann and Kaldur? They weren't human, so could they get sick? What about him? He was the clone of a Kryptoinan, so where did that leave him?
"Son can' ge' sick," a mumble came from his shoulder and he looked down. Rachel rested against him, eyes closed. "Kryptonian's immune sys'em stronger th' a human's. No'ffected by bacteria, viruses, or poisons. Immune ta 'em,"she slurred.
Conner relaxed slightly, relieved. But only slightly. "But you're not," he said frowning.
"No," she agreed.
"So you can get sick," he said slowly, turning it over in his head, "You could catch something worse."
"Hmm," she hummed, the sound vibrating into Conner's body. "Bu' the Son c'n take care o' Nemo." She opened her eyes and gave him a sleepy smile.
Conner stared at her for a long moment before nodding seriously. "Always," he said.
And before he realized what he was doing, he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. He pulled back before his actions caught up with him. He blinked and looked back at Rachel, worried about her reaction. What he found was her grinning up at him.
She giggled childishly and pressed her face into his neck. "Nemo's sleepy – Son stay?" she asked, her speech punctuated by a yawn.
Conner felt his lips lift into a smile. "Sure."
He felt her grin against his neck before he gently lay her down in bed, crawling into the space next to her. She immediately curled into his chest, wrapping her arms around him. She looked up at him for a moment as if thinking about something. He waited, knowing she would tell him if it was important.
Instead, she tilted her head up and pecked his lips before burrowing her face into his chest. Conner blinked, shocked, at the wall in front of him. He could feel her smile through his shirt. Coming out of his daze, he wrapped his arms around her and dropped a kiss to her hair.
"Sleep, Rachel," he murmured when he felt her fighting her drowsiness.
"Be here when Nemo wakes up?" she asked groggily.
He smiled. "Of course."
Little short I know, but...that's how it happened.
Thoughts?
