Christmas Challenge | Day 1 - Catching A Cold
Rating - E, No Warnings
"Aachoo!"
Koge gave a small, sarcastic gasp from the sound of sneezing that came from upstairs, loud enough to get through a closed door and over the roaring sound of cartoons on the television. "Oh goodness. What a sneeze." She looked down at the tiny figure of her daughter, who was eagerly bouncing her body up and down without actually lifting her feet off the floor. Crimson eyes locked on her mother, the two year old had both tiny hands on Koge's leg, waiting impatiently for her to finish her work. "Ma!" She spoke through her pacifier, bringing a smile to Koge's lips.
"Yes, Natsuki, I know. That was Daddy sneezing, wasn't it?" After mixing a vitamin C boosting powder into a glass of water, Koge placed it onto a tray. Already on it was a bowl of soup, which was a special recipe graciously given to Koge by her mother-in-law, to which her darling husband had already thrown a fit about. Bakugou had never been one for his mother's home remedies, but Koge had seen this stuff work, and she was determined to get him feeling better as quickly as she could. Having just hit a high fever yesterday, her lover was totally miserable, and it broke her heart to see him so pathetic. In fact, she was pretty sure this was the first time he had gotten sick since he was a pre-teen, so the way he was handling the situation was absolutely ludicrous, in Koge's opinion.
At first, it had been denial. Then more denial, followed by further denial, all the way up until he hit a 103 degree fever and had gone through an entire box of tissues in only two hours. Even then, he refused to believe it, stating that it must have been an aftereffect of a villain's quirk, one which he must have captured recently. Koge had effectively told him that he was stupid, forced his stubborn ass into bed and medicated him. Now, he was beyond needy, so delirious with fever that he had screamed about not being able to find the remote to the television, when it had been in his lap the entire time. Koge loved Bakugou to the deepest depths of her soul, but he could really be a moron sometimes.
Her attention was pulled back down to her daughter as she continued to bounce, finding her enthusiasm exhausting. "How many times do you think Daddy has sneezed today?" Natsuki stopped bouncing, looking at her hands as she put up a variety of fingers, before displaying two to Koge confidently. Koge smiled, picking up the tray in front of her to take upstairs. "Two? Oh man, that sure is a lot. I'm going to take this to Daddy now, you stay- ah, Natsuki!" Before Koge could even take a step, the tiny girl took off out of the kitchen, vanishing behind the wall with her light blonde hair bouncing vigorously in its ponytail. With a sigh, Koge followed, having to be careful with each step so that she didn't spill the food.
"Natsuki! Baby, you can't see Daddy right now." Much to her dismay, the tiny speed demon was already halfway up the stairs, a skill that she had acquired very quickly after learning how to walk. In fact, Koge was pretty sure the child had come out of the womb with the willpower of a god, learning to walk before she could even crawl. Her daughter was a completely different experience compared to her son, who was very attached to Koge in contrast to her highly independant daughter. Bakugou had always claimed that she was going to be someone amazing who would one day even surpass him, and Koge didn't doubt a word he said.
As she passed through the livingroom to the stairs, she looked over at the couch, spotting her son sitting on the floor at the coffee table. He was drawing, tongue sticking out of his mouth with extreme focus. He had just turned four, and was very mellow compared to his sister. "Matsuki, baby, I know you're drawing, but could you come help me, please?" Pale blue eyes that matched her own locked onto her before the child stood, quickly making his way over. "Yeah, Mama. Need me to open the door?" Matsuki made his way up the stairs with Koge following, still being careful not to spill the soup. "Please hun, thank you. And try to keep your sister from barging in if possible, I don't want her to catch this stuff."
"Yes, Mama." Matsuki looked back at her a few times as they headed up, concern on his face, as if he were worried about her having to carry the soup. Besides the eyes, Matsuki was nearly an exact clone of Bakugou when it came to looks. Personality wise, however, he was incredibly soft and timid. He had an extreme sense of empathy, even for something as small as an ant. Koge loved that about him, though she could already see him struggling in pre-school and with other kids. With a father like Bakugou, an extremely well known and powerful Pro Hero, Matsuki had a lot on his shoulders that was starting to weigh him down. Everyone expected big things of him, and told him that constantly. Koge vividly remembered the defeat on his face when he had told an adult that he had wanted to be a doctor instead of a pro, and that person had the audacity to tell him that he had no other choice than to follow in his father's footsteps.
If not for the child in her arms, Koge would have knocked that man's teeth out, though that didn't stop her from giving him a piece of her mind. Bakugou had even been the one to pull her away from that confrontation, with Koge still spitting venom even as she walked away. She hated people like that, and if she were honest, the world of Pro Heros was nothing but constant stress and ridiculous expectations that often times made her sick. On top of that, she was constantly worrying about Bakugou's safety, no matter how strong he was. So, in a way, she was thankful for this little cold that kept him home with her, where she could take care of him.
When she finally reached the top of the stairs, Koge gave a small roll of her eyes at the sight of her daughter, trying to hop up to reach the doorknob to where Bakugou was resting. Matsuki quickly made his way over to her, putting his arms awkwardly around her tiny torso to pull her back. "Natsu, Mama said you can't go in!" The pacifier in Natsuki's mouth flew out, though was successfully caught onto her clothing by the clip and string Koge had bought to limit the loss of them. "No, Da!" The tiny girl struggled against her brother, desperately reaching for the doorknob. Koge shook her head as she approached, stopping beside the door. "Natsuki, that's enough."
"What's going on out there? Sounds like a -cough- damn wrestling match."
"Sorry, Katsuki. Baby, open the door for Mommy, please." Koge address Matsuki, who successfully got his sister to sit on the floor. "Yes, Mama." Though, the instant the door was opened, Natsuki tumbled her way into the room, pushing past her brother with a sudden burst of speed of which Koge had never seen before. "Ah, Natsuki!" She could only watch in defeat as her daughter rushed over, first climbing up onto the cushioned bench that sat at the foot of the bed before onto the mattress itself. Clumsily climbing over the thick layers of blankets, she crawled her way over to her father, who was already sitting up and looking at her in a numbed state of annoyance.
Natsuki plopped down beside him, putting her pacifier back into her mouth. Koge sighed, walking into the room as well with her son following. "I'm sorry, we tried to stop her, but she's so stubborn. Like someone we all know." She smiled at Bakugou as he glowered up at her, though the tissue shoved up one nostril ruined any sense of intimidation he was trying to give off. Paired along with the pale complexion, bags under his eyes and exhausted expression, he looked all around pathetic. "Well if she gets sick, you can't blame me." Bakugou's voice was hoarse and nasally with stuffed sinuses, and Koge could tell that he was in need of another round of medication.
"Katsuki, you need to eat this and then take more meds. Have you checked your temperature recently?" Koge walked over to the pop up table she had set up beside the bed, placing the tray down onto it. Bakugou grumbled at the thought of putting food into his mouth, looking away from it in disgust. "I haven't. But I don't know if I can eat. Especially not that garbage my mom made." He quickly brought his arm up to cover his mouth, giving a series of coughs into his hoodie sleeve. The instant he lowered his arm, he was suddenly poked in the face by an object, startling him a bit and pulling his attention to the small girl beside him.
Peering up at him with intense focus, she was holding the digital thermometer up towards his lips, once again poking him in the chin. Carefully, Bakugou took it from her. "What, you little squid? You want me to take my temperature? I don't think you want to know what it says." He glanced at Koge before pushing the button to turn the device on, placing it in his mouth with the sensor under his tongue. Matsuki came closer, crawling up onto the end of the bed as well. "Daddy, I tasted Grandma's soup, it's good. It's not gross like you said." Bakugou raised an eyebrow at his son, silenced by the device in his mouth. Koge smiled, sitting down beside Bakugou's legs. "He wanted to taste test it for you, to make sure that it was good. He thinks it's delicious, and so do I."
Bakugou glared at the steaming soup beside him, not responding until the thermometer beeped and he removed it from his lips. "Then she must have not been the one to make it." He turned the thermometer towards Koge, allowing her to read the small screen. 102.8 wasn't exactly a good thing, but it had gone down a little from that morning. "Ah, still high. Well-" She was cut off as Bakugou gave a small hiss, suddenly smacked in the face with his box of tissues by Natsuki. Taking it from her, he did his best not to glare at his daughter, taking in a deep breath the best he could to stay calm. "Thank you, Natsu-" Next was the television remote, which was something he wasn't entirely sure why she had picked, as it had nothing to do with his recovery.
Stifling her giggles, Koge covered her mouth, smile on her lips. "Aw, she's just trying to help you." Matsuki laughed softly as his sister stood, placing her tiny hand on Bakugou's forehead, as if to feel for a temperature. Bakugou placed a hand on her back gently to steady her, allowing her to ruffle his hair a bit, as she always enjoyed doing. "Natsu, I think you're a miracle worker. I already feel- ah no, you don't need that." The child suddenly yanked the tissue out of his nostril, which Bakugou promptly took from her tiny hands, tossing it into the trash can beside the bed. With this, Natsuki sat back down, leaning against Bakugou's torso. As he let his arm rest around around her, she tenderly stroked his stomach, obviously mimicking the way Bakugou rubbed her back when he held her during naptime.
Koge patted Bakugou's leg gently, gaining his attention. "I'll take her so that you can eat and then get some rest." Bakugou shook his head, clearing his throat a bit. "No, it's fine. I don't want any of you catching this, but… Honestly this is the best I've felt. And she's already asleep." Sure enough, Natsuki had completely crashed. Koge gave a small sigh, laying down across Bakugou's legs in defeat. "How about we all just take one big family nap."
