Disclaimer: Title from "Breath of Life" by Florence + the Machine.

A/N: So I'm sick. My judgement is not at its best at the moment, which explains why I decided to write this. Well, that, and escape-fic kinda talked me into it. Thanks for the pointers and advice and, yeah, even the encouragement. I also feel like I should say that the idea behind this story was inspired by a drabble written by the wonderfully talented SMC-27. So...I guess chalk this up to momentary insanity.

"And the Fever Began to Spread From My Heart Down to My Legs"

"You're being completely ridiculous."

Normally, it's Aubrey saying these words but the blonde has to admit that Chloe is doing a pretty good impersonation. She even has the hands on her hips stance down and the crooked eyebrow. But Aubrey doesn't bother to comment on this or Chloe's words. Instead she just pushes her face into her pillow and groans.

"I don't care about your germs." Chloe continues and Aubrey can imagine her tapping her foot impatiently. "Just come into the bedroom."

"No." Aubrey mumbles, her words nearly swallowed up by the pillow. "I don't want you to get sick."

Chloe lets out an exasperated sigh. "And I don't want you to sit out here on the couch when you are sick. We have a perfectly good bed. It's where you should be." She informs her girlfriend. "Because, you know, you're sick and all. The doctor said bed-rest."

"He said rest." Aubrey protests, lifting her head just enough to look at Chloe. "I'm resting out here. Or I was, until you started to bother me."

Chloe clicks her tongue and shakes her head. "Stop being stubborn." She chides. She comes over and balances on the edge of the couch, lightly brushing Aubrey's hair away from her forehead. Aubrey can't help but close her eyes and lean into her touch because her skin feels like it's on fire and Chloe's fingers are blessedly cool. "Let me take care of you."

"I'm fine." Aubrey mumbles, resting her chin against Chloe's knee. Chloe continues to stroke her hair and Aubrey doesn't even have the energy to feel self-coconscious about the fact that she hasn't had the energy to shower in two days. "I don't want you to get sick."

"Can you worry about yourself for once, please?" Chloe remarks, shaking her head.

Aubrey's response is lost in a fit of coughing. Chloe hands her a bottle of water and rubs her back until she remembers how to breathe again. "See?" Chloe raises an eyebrow. "Sick."

Aubrey just groans and lays back down on her pillow. "I'm fine here. I already have all my stuff." She half-heartedly points to a box of tissues on the table, along with a pile of cough drops, three water bottles and a half-finished glass of orange juice that has not helped in the slightest. "I don't want to move."

"Fine." Chloe shrugs. "Then I'll just stay out here too."

Aubrey manages to find the energy to roll her eyes. "Don't be stupid." She mumbles. Her voice is scratchy and hoarse from days of coughing and is barely above a whisper. "You're going to get sick. Only one of us should have to suffer."

"I won't get sick." Chloe assures her. "I never get sick." She kisses the top of Aubrey's head and then gets off the couch. "And I'm not going to let you stay out here by yourself."

Chloe goes into the bedroom and comes back a few minutes later with the comforter from their bed and she lays it over Aubrey before getting onto the couch. She lifts Aubrey's legs and drapes them across her lap and makes herself comfortable.

"You can't sleep out here." Aubrey protests weakly.

"Why not?" Chloe questions, tilting her head. "You have been." She picks up the television remote and starts flipping through the channels. "What do you want to watch?"

Aubrey doesn't bother to reply. She just mumbles something and closes her eyes, pressing her face against her pillow. Which she has been sweating all over for the past few days. She feels gross but lacks the energy to do anything about it. Honestly, she feels like the fact that Chloe even wants anything to be with her at all is a huge testament to their relationship.

The fact that Aubrey doesn't bother to complain when Chloe puts on a rerun of Pretty Little Liars lets Chloe know just how sick her girlfriend is feeling. She hates seeing Aubrey like this and she hates that there's nothing anything she can do to help her. Aubrey always takes such good care of her when she's sick or stressed out and she feels like she can never return the favor. She can tell that Aubrey is miserable, even though she's trying to suffer through it with as much dignity as she can manage. But Chloe can tell.

Chloe honestly doesn't mean to fall asleep on the couch, it just sorta happens that way. It's hard for her to sleep without Aubrey and apparently just being close to her girlfriend and having that contact, even if it's just simple as simple as having Aubrey draped across her lap, is all it takes to send her into dreamland.

Not that either of them get much sleep that night. Aubrey wakes up shortly before midnight with a cough that she can't seem to shake no matter what she does. All the cough drops and aspirin and water in the world don't seem to help. Chloe can't help but wince every time Aubrey really gets going because it's one of those barking coughs that just sound painful.

"I'm sorry." Aubrey croaks out when she finally manages to take a breath long enough to actually speak. Chloe is sitting next to her on the couch, patiently rubbing her back and muttering soothing platitudes against her hair. "I'm keeping you awake."

Chloe kisses the side of her face. "Shh. Don't be ridiculous." Of course she's tired because she's been doing nothing for the past two hours but listening to Aubrey cough like she's going to hack up a lung any second and it's the middle of the night but it's not like she can just leave Aubrey to go through this by herself. And she wouldn't want to anyway. "I'm sorry you're sick."

But Aubrey just starts coughing again before she can even think about responding.

The night progresses in this same way for the next several hours. As if Chloe needed further proof of how horrible Aubrey feels, her girlfriend just starts crying somewhere around four in the morning because she can't stop coughing and can't get to sleep and nothing seems to be helping and she just puts her head in her hands and cries. Which only makes her coughing worse and her nose gets stuffy and she can't breathe, so the whole cycle just starts all over again. Finally Chloe convinces her to come into the bedroom and actually lay down in a real bed and props Aubrey up so high with pillows that it can't possibly be comfortable. But Aubrey manages to finally stop coughing long enough for them to both finally fall asleep, with Aubrey propped on her mountain of pillows and Chloe on her side with her hand resting lightly against the curve of Aubrey's hip.

A few hours later, Aubrey wakes up coughing and sneezing and she groans as she pulls the covers over her head. "I just want to be well." She grumbles. Or, at least, she intends to but her voice is so hoarse by this point that it just sounds like a lot of croaking. Being under the blanket just makes it harder to breathe, so she pokes her head back out again and looks over at Chloe.

Chloe yawns and presses her palm against her girlfriend's forehead. "You don't feel like you have a fever." She remarks.

"I don't think that's a practical way to tell if someone has a fever." Aubrey mumbles.

Chloe just sticks her tongue out at Aubrey. "Well, you sound like you're starting to feel better since you're being mean to me." She remarks.

Aubrey half-heartedly shakes her head. "I'm not being mean." She protests. "I'm just making a point…" Her words trail off into a weak cough and she groans. "Uh. No more." She looks over at Chloe, as though imploring her to make it all better. "I don't want to be sick anymore."

"I know Bree." Chloe says, taking Aubrey's hand in hers and kissing her knuckles. "I'm sorry."

Aubrey pulls her hand away. "You'll get sick." She protests. "I wouldn't wish this on anyone." She exhales and grimaces. "We need to wash these sheets, otherwise I'll never get better with all the germs hanging around."

"Yep." Chloe smirks. "Definitely getting back to your old self."

But Aubrey just ignores her. "And I should wash these clothes. And myself." She sits up a little straighter. "Yes. I should definitely shower."

Chloe arches an eyebrow. "Are you sure that's a good idea? You've barely stood up since we went to the doctor. And even then you looked like a drunk college freshmen."

Aubrey rolls her eyes. "Exaggeration." She mumbles. "I'll be fine. In fact, I'm sure I'll feel better when I shower."

She stands up, teeters a bit and then sits back down on the edge of the bed. It's just going to take a bit of time for her to reorient herself with doing normal people things like sitting upright and walking short distances.

"Bree, you should rest." Chloe advises, getting out of bed and coming around to where Aubrey is sitting. "Just stay in bed. I'll bring you some more orange juice and cough drops."

Aubrey shakes her head. "I'm tired of being in bed. I've been in bed for the past three days." She points out. "I'll start to feel better if I just get up and move around and try to go back to my normal routine. The more I baby myself, the sicker I'll become."

Chloe gives her a confused look. "And that makes what kind of sense?"

"That's what my father always told Brad and I when we were younger." Aubrey tells Chloe. "He almost never let us stay home from school or miss important events if we weren't feeling well. And I hardly ever got sick as a child, so I guess there was some logic to it."

"Um…well…" Chloe's pretty sure that now isn't a good time to get into an argument with Aubrey about her father's parenting choices. So she just shrugs. "Okay. But I still think you should stay in bed."

Aubrey stands up again and shakes her head. "No, I'll feel better if I just start to get back to my normal routine."

She walks into the adjacent bathroom and doesn't bother to shut the door behind her; she turns the shower on and leaves the water to heat up while she brushes her teeth, feeling better already as she rinses out the taste of cough drops and cold medicine.

Chloe walks into the bathroom and nudges the door closed with her foot and Aubrey looks at Chloe's reflection in the mirror. "I think I can manage to take a shower by myself." She remarks. "I'm not a total invalid."

But Chloe doesn't say anything. She just comes up behind Aubrey, slipping her arms around her waist and nuzzling the side of her neck. Aubrey turns around to face her, surprised. "Chloe, what are you-"

Chloe just kisses her, effectively putting an end to her questioning. Aubrey's lips and tongue taste like mint and the balmy taste of cough drops still lingers there as well. Aubrey finally pulls away, her cheeks pink and flushed. "Are you trying to get sick?" She questions, arching an eyebrow. "Because I really don't need you to suffer with me."

"No. I'm trying to kiss my girlfriend but she keeps talking." Chloe remarks. She puts her hands on Aubrey's hips and pulls her closer. "Which is so like her…"

Aubrey doesn't look amused by her latest comment. "I'm sick. And gross." She protests. "Why do you even want to kiss me?"

Chloe smiles at her. "I think you're beautiful." She assures Aubrey. "And I read somewhere that having sex can cure you of a cough and get rid of your fever."

Aubrey gives her a doubtful look. "That is so not true." She protests. "Where did you even hear that?"

"I read it online." Chloe shrugs. "WebMD."

Aubrey laughs, but very little sound comes out thanks to her raw and scratchy vocal cords. "You did not." She shakes her head. "You're ridiculous."

Chloe smirks at her. "So…I guess we could test the theory. Do a little research and report our findings." She kisses Aubrey again and is met with little resistance. "You like research, don't you Bree?"

Aubrey has no idea how such an inane phrase can sound so sexy passing through Chloe's lips. She can't help but shiver and she feels Chloe's lips quirk up in a smile as she leans in for another kiss.

But Aubrey still forces herself to turn her head away. Though that gesture ends up coming back to bite her in the ass because Chloe just kisses the curve of her jaw line and down the side of her neck. "Chloe, I really don't know-"

"You said you wanted to get back to your normal routine, right?" Chloe questions, her words ghosting against Aubrey's skin. "What could be more normal than this?"

Aubrey tilts her head back and can't help the sigh that slips past her lips. Chloe kisses the arch of her throat. "Chloe-" But it comes out as more of a plea and less of an admonishment.

"Research, Bree." Chloe says again. "Just let me make you feel better."

Aubrey brings Chloe's lips against her own and sighs into Chloe's mouth when she feels Chloe's hands slip underneath the tank-top that she's been wearing for days and she feels Chloe's fingers splay across the bare skin underneath.

The bathroom is starting to fog up from the still running shower and the air is quickly becoming humid and sticky. But Aubrey hardly notices as she releases Chloe's lips long enough to let her pull the shirt over her head. Chloe kisses the spot just below Aubrey's ear that always gets a groan out of her girlfriend and this time is no exception. Though, she doesn't so much as hear the sound as feel the vibrations against her lips and she drags her teeth lightly against Aubrey's skin, smiling when she's rewarded with another silent moan.

Aubrey lowers her head slightly so that she can reach Chloe's lips and Chloe's hands trace down her back and across the xylophone of her sides and her fingers tip-toe across bare skin and touch her basically everywhere except where Aubrey wants to be touched right now. Aubrey nips on Chloe's bottom lip, holding it with her teeth before soothing the sting with her tongue and Chloe groans and pushes Aubrey against the counter with a little more force than she intended but Aubrey hardly seems to notice.

As Chloe's lips move across Aubrey's clavicles and down to her chest, Aubrey lets out a breathy sigh and closes her eyes. Chloe presses open-mouthed kisses against her left breast and the hand that was previously tangled in Aubrey's hair slips down and ghosts across her right breast, her touch teasing and too infrequent in Aubrey's opinion. Her skin is covered in goosebumps despite the heat in the bathroom and she can't help the impatient moan that escapes her lips. She pushes her hips against Chloe's and she can practically hear Chloe smirking. It would be a little annoying if Aubrey didn't have more important things on her mind.

Aubrey puts her hand against the side of Chloe's face and when Chloe looks up at her, she brings their lips back together. As much as she loves Chloe's lips paying attention to the other parts of her body, she really loves kissing her. It reminds her of the beginning of their relationship, when they could say so much with just a few shy and hesitant kisses. It reminds her of the day that she realized that she could just kiss Chloe whenever she wanted, that she didn't have to think of something to distract herself or wonder what it would be like to really kiss her friend, to be acquainted with her in a totally different way. It reminds her that, as good as she is with words and logic, a kiss will say so much more than she ever can.

Chloe looks at her and smiles, as though she can tell the thoughts that are running through Aubrey's mind. "You're beautiful." She whispers.

Aubrey thinks it's ridiculous that she still manages to blush over just a few simple words. Even now. Chloe has seen her at her absolute worst, she's seen her naked in every sense of the word and she's loved her like no one else ever has before. But it's still possible for those few simple words to get Aubrey blushing.

"I haven't showered in three days." Aubrey protests. "I'm sick and-"

"Shh." Chloe kisses the corner of her mouth, smiling softly. "You're beautiful." She kisses her again. "I love you."

And, as always, those words send a shiver down Aubrey's spine and down into her toes. "Show me." She whispers against Chloe's lips.

Chloe groans against Aubrey's lips and Aubrey imagines that same of the heat that she feels spreading through her body comes from Chloe's lips. She pushes Aubrey back against the counter again and the edge digs into the small of Aubrey's back but she doesn't mind the biting sensation. Chloe pushes her fingers past the waistband of Aubrey's sweatpants, her nails pressing against the skin underneath.

And, yeah, Chloe is pretty sure that Aubrey's little moans and sighs come out even sexier now that her voice is hoarse and half gone and she doesn't want her girlfriend to stay sick or suffer or anything but she doesn't mind this little side effect. It somehow makes things even sexier. Not that Aubrey needs any help with that.

Chloe pushes Aubrey's pants and underwear down toward her knees in one smooth movement and Aubrey feels heat start to pool in her stomach, mixing there with the anticipation and desire that she's been feeling since Chloe kissed her when she walked into the bathroom.

Chloe kisses the side of Aubrey's neck and down her shoulders, tasting the sweat on her skin from her fever and from the heat in the bathroom. Her tongue licks at some of the beads of sweat that have collected there and Aubrey tightens her grip on Chloe's hips, her fingers pressing against her skin so hard that Chloe is sure that she'll be bruised even through her clothes. It's not the first time and she hopes that it won't be the last.

Aubrey lets out an impatient noise that comes out as more of a growl thanks to her sore vocal cords and Chloe smiles but gets the message anyway. She lets her palm move across the curves of Aubrey's body, past the small scar she got when her brother pushed her into a lake when she was eight, past the few freckles that pepper her skin like an unfinished game of connect the dots, past the delicate curve of her hips to the beginning of her thighs. Chloe's hands may have traveled that path before, she may have touched and kissed the places that no one else has been privy to, but that doesn't mean she doesn't still like to take her time and admire the view. Though Chloe's not sure that Aubrey is in the mood to take things slow; at least, not at the moment.

The sound that Aubrey makes when Chloe's fingers finally brush against the slick heat between her thighs is almost enough to make Chloe lose her mind. She bites down against the curve of Aubrey's shoulder, which only elicits another moan from the blonde. Aubrey can already feel her body thrumming with anticipation and need and it's making her crazy and they've hardly even done anything. Which is a shame really and that needs to be fixed.

Aubrey grabs Chloe's wrist and presses the palm of Chloe's hand and her fingers against her center and they both moan in unison. "Chloe…" Aubrey is whining, pleading, begging. Things that she only does with Chloe, behind closed doors. Chloe loves to hear her name like that. But she loves it even more when Aubrey can't even get a single word out.

Chloe pushes two fingers into her and Aubrey groans and pushes her hips against Chloe's hand, adjusting to the sensation and begging for more. She grips the edge of the counter behind her with one hand, her knuckles going white with the effort. The other hand Aubrey slips through Chloe's hair and Chloe doesn't mind when she tugs a little too hard.

Chloe quickly finds her rhythm, pushing her fingers in and out, slowing or quickening her pace whenever Aubrey seems to have adjusted to the cadence. Chloe kisses Aubrey, her tongue mirroring the curl of her fingers as they move in and out of her. Aubrey tears her lips away from Chloe's to make it easier to breathe because she's finding it hard to focus on that simple task. She almost can't take it; the heat, the pressure, Chloe's touch, everything. It's too much and not enough at the same time. But the idea of losing any of the sensations is just unthinkable in Aubrey's opinion.

It should come as no surprise that Aubrey can be quite vocal during sex and Chloe always knows when she's doing something right. Not that she minds of course. Usually she encourages Aubrey's responses; she loves it when her words start to become unintelligible and dissolve into nothing more than unfinished pleas and sighs. But Chloe finds this forcibly silent Aubrey unfairly and undeniably sexy. Aubrey has her eyes shut tightly and her head tilted back and her lips are moving with words that Chloe just can't hear. Every so often a hoarse sigh or plea will actually make itself heard and Chloe feels her own composure start to slip.

Chloe presses her thumb against the already sensitive bundle of nerves and trying to maintain a rhythm while stroking her thumb simultaneously gets a little difficult. Especially when Aubrey digs her fingers into her shoulders and starts keening her name, along with a string of words that she most definitely wouldn't use in the court room. Aubrey's toes curl and she can feel herself start to lose control and she wants that release. She needs it.

Chloe can feel Aubrey start to tremble against her and she strokes her thumb once, twice, three times before she sends Aubrey over the edge and Aubrey throws her head back, her body arching away from the counter and into Chloe. Her mouth is open soundlessly and Chloe can't help but groan as she looks at her; she thinks that Aubrey always looks so beautiful in moments like this, so unencumbered and free.

Chloe continues to work her fingers lazily, curling and pushing until Aubrey reaches out and curls her fingers gently around Chloe's wrist. Chloe smiles as she pulls her fingers out and Aubrey sighs deeply and rests her forehead against Chloe's shoulder. Her heart is pounding and her skin is flushed and damp with a thin sheen of sweat. But she feels like she can breathe again, her cough is gone and she actually feels, dare she say it, normal.

"So," Chloe says after giving Aubrey a chance to catch her breath, "how do you feel? Is my theory true or not?" She smirks at the blonde, clearly already anticipating the answer.

And even though Aubrey feels amazing and has absolutely no complaints, she doesn't want to give in to Chloe so easily. She doesn't like it when she's not the one who gets to say I told you so.

"I'm not sure." Aubrey says, her voice still strained and hoarse. Maybe even more so now than before. "I feel like we didn't do the experiment properly. I mean…you're still wearing clothes. And that just won't do."

Chloe smiles and arches an eyebrow. "Is that so?" She leans in to kiss Aubrey. "I guess we'll just have to start all over then."

Aubrey smiles and nods and kisses her again. As she pulls away, she says, "And we should also turn off the shower. Or the water bill is going to be outrageous."

Chloe can't help but laugh. "Yep, I'd definitely say that you're feeling better."

Two days later, Chloe is sick. She stays up all night coughing and sneezing and trying to figure out how to breathe through her mouth while coughing up a lung and Aubrey sits up with her and strokes her hair and rubs her back and fights down the urge to say I told you so. But she sympathizes with Chloe, she really does. And it kills her to see Chloe so miserable; Aubrey doesn't even worry so much about re-infecting herself as cuddles next to Chloe and holds her while she bemoans her lack of sleep.

"Ugh." Chloe complains on the third day, propped up on her own mountain of pillows. "This sucks. The medicine sucks. The orange juice sucks. None of this is helping. I'm going to die."

Aubrey smiles at her and shakes her head. "You're not going to die." She says patiently. "I'm still here."

Chloe just groans. "Yeah but your asshole dad made you go out and run laps and stuff when you were sick. I'm not as strong as you are." She moans. "I'm going to die. I'm ready to die. I just want to stop coughing."

Since Chloe is sick, Aubrey decides to let the comment about her father slide. Plus Chloe has a point so… "You're not going to die." Aubrey tells her. She comes around to Chloe's side of the bed and sits down beside her, kissing her girlfriend on the forehead.

"Yes I am." Chloe sighs. "Say your goodbyes."

"Well, someone once told me that having sex can get rid of a cough and get rid of a fever." Aubrey remarks. "And I have on pretty good authority that it works."

Chloe smiles and sits up a little straighter. "Well, in that case, what are we waiting for?"

end.