Coughs and sneezes
It had been a long day at the ware house and Arthur was exhausted. He slumped in his chair and stared blankly at the laptop screen, his hands sat limply on its keyboard. He'd been working harder than usual and by this point he had completely forgotten what it was that he was supposed to be doing.
"Arthur," Arthur jolted, snapping his head upwards to see Cobb, who was stood in front of his desk. "Hmm?" He hummed lightly, looking up at the sandy haired man through bleary eyes. "It's time to go home. Yusuf has already gone and we're all going to leave soon." Arthur noticed that Cobb already had his coat pulled on and out of the corner of his eye he noticed Ariadne packing up her things. He shook his head. "I've still got work to do." He responded, nodding his head towards the computer screen. Cobb sighed. "Come on Arthur." He pleaded. "You've been working so hard recently, don't you think it's about time you took a break?" Cobb had always been very close to Arthur, having known him since he was just a teenager. He had seen Arthur grow up from a boy into a young man and he knew him well. Maybe better than Arthur knew himself, Cobb thought. And so when Arthur gave a weak smile and shook his head again, Cobb tightened his jaw, prepared to do anything to make the younger get some rest.
"Arthur, I'm serious." Arthur raised an eyebrow and looked up at Cobb, taken aback by the serious expression on the man's face. Cobb looked at Arthur with such ferocity he looked like he would burst a blood vessel at any moment. "If you don't walk out that door in the next two minutes," He continued, pointing to the large white double doors on the opposite wall. "I swear to God I will drag you out of here myself." Arthur's eyes widened, well as much as they could when they were half shut, he knew from experience that Cobb wasn't kidding.
"I really have to finish this work. I still have tons of research to do and if I don't stay, there's no way I'm going to get it all finished by our deadline." Arthur's tone was dry and void of emotion. He was too tired to fight. He just wanted to get his goddamn research done. "I don't care, Arthur, you have to rest." Cobb said, mocking him. "I don't want my point man falling asleep on the job." Arthur rolled his eyes and sighed indignantly. "Arthur?" Cobb prodded. "Please." The point man closed his eyes for a moment, before answering.
"Thirty minutes" He said plainly, looking the extractor in the eye. "You and the other's go and I promise I'll be out of here in half an hour." Cobb looked at him sceptically. "Half an hour." He repeated and Arthur nodded. "Just don't do anything stupid." The older man said warily, knowing that if no one else was around, Arthur would probably stay up all night working and they'd walk in the next morning to find him asleep at his desk. A smirk tugged at the corner of Arthur's mouth. "Just go, Dom." Cobb took a few steps before turning back and surveying Arthur with an, almost, father-like eye. Arthur really didn't know when to give up. Cobb let out an exasperated sigh, before turning back towards the door and exiting the building.
Ariadne ran over to Arthur's desk, smiling. "You coming?" She asked, cheerfully, wrapping her bright red scarf around her neck. Arthur looked up at her and couldn't help, but smile. "I'm just staying a little while longer. I've got some work I have to finish." "Oh." The girl's smile faltered and Arthur felt a twinge of guilt. Ariadne cared so much about everyone and she hated it when one of them had to stay late.
"I won't be asleep when you get here in the morning, if that's what you're worried about." Arthur chuckled lightly. Ariadne smiled again. "Promise?" "I promise." Arthur agreed. "I'll be sure to see to that." A thick British accent spoke up from the corner. Both the architect's and the point man's heads whipped round to face the figure. Eames stood in front of the coffee machine, clutching his white mug in one of his large calloused hands. Arthur rolled his eyes, he really didn't think he could deal with Eames' "playful" banter right now.
Eames took a gulp of his coffee and winked at Ariadne. "What's that supposed to mean?" Arthur snapped. A smirk formed on Eames' features, he always got a kick out of winding the young man up. "I'm just saying I'll make sure you leave. We don't want you to be all grumpy in the morning, do we? Oh wait!" Eames grinned and Arthur had to grit his teeth to hold back the onslaught of insults that sat on the tip of his tongue. Ariadne beamed at the pair. They always fought, but deep down she knew that their insults didn't mean anything. She pulled Arthur into a hug and then started to the door. "Make sure he gets back." She called over her shoulder, as if Arthur wasn't there. "I will." Eames laughed, watching Arthur as he shook his head.
An hour and a half passed and Arthur still hadn't done a third of the research he was supposed to. He knew he had promised Cobb half an hour, but he had to get something done, he couldn't let him down again.
"I'm never going to get this done." He growled to himself, putting his head in his hands and closing his eyes. He rubbed his temples, feeling a migraine coming, maybe he should get some rest. He was about to start to pack away his things, when his chair tipped back and he flailed helplessly, trying to regain his balance. The chair was caught at the last moment, just before it hit the ground.
"I think it's time you retired, Arthur." A voice whispered in his ear. Arthur span round in his chair and glared at the Brit. "Eames let go of my chair right now." Arthur growled. Eames gave a mischievous grin and removed his hands from the back of Arthur's chair. The point man's eyes grew wide as his chair fell back and the ground rushed up to meet him. He groaned and cradled his head in his hands. Why did Eames have to be an absolute ass all the time? Arthur looked up expecting to see the forger bent double as usual, but instead was greeted by a large hand. Arthur's brow furrowed and he looked at Eames' face, but he was smirking, he looked genuinely concerned. "I'm sorry." He said, "I didn't think you'd hit the ground so hard." Arthur couldn't tell if he was being serious or not. "Here," Eames offered, extending his hand. The young man scowled and pushed the chair upright, before using it to push himself to his feet. "Suit yourself." Eames grumbled, stalking over to where his bags sat.
Arthur stretched, his head was spinning and he really needed to get back to his hotel. He scrabbled in his satchel, searching for some aspirin and sighed, running a hand down his face when he couldn't find any. He looked up when something landed on his desk. A packet of aspirin sat there, alongside a glass of water. He closed his satchel and slung it over his shoulder, before straightening up and dusting of his waistcoat. "I don't need your help Eames." He said quietly, but just loud enough that the older man heard it. "You just keep telling yourself that." He responded craning his neck to look out the window.
Arthur walked towards the exit, leaving the full packet ibuprofen and the glass of water on the desk. "Goodnight Mr Eames." He said without looking back. "Ah." Eames exclaimed, clapping his hands together. "You've finally seen sense, I see." He grabbed his bag and hastened to catch up with Arthur.
They walked out of the building in silence and Eames waited as Arthur locked up. They walked down the street for a while until eventually Arthur stopped. "What do you want? Why are you following me?" Arthur asked. Eames smiled coyly. "I'm not following you darling. I'm walking you back to your hotel." "What?" Arthur gawked, one eyebrow cocked. "Just what I said. I'm walking you back to your hotel. Is that a problem?" Arthur paused for a moment, before continuing down the street faster than he had before, but after taking a few steps got the feeling he was going the wrong way and changed direction. His head was still spinning from the "incident" earlier.
He heard heavy footsteps from behind him. "Stop following me Eames." He looked down at his feet, noticing that he was staggering slightly as he walked. And crap, were the street lights usually this bright? He squinted and tried to think why he might feel like this. Then it snapped. The chair. Arthur remembered blacking out for a moment after he hit the ground, Jesus, he probably had a concussion. He tried to straighten himself up, putting on his usual expressionless face, not wanting to give away to Eames that anything was wrong. Just as Arthur thought this evening couldn't get any worse, it started to rain.
Huge rain drops pounded the street as Arthur walked. He glanced around for the nearest shelter. Unluckily for him the closest cover was right at the other end of the street. He tried to pick up his pace, but his legs failed him and he tripped, hitting the ground. The point man didn't know if Eames was still following him, but he wasn't willing to find out, knowing that taunting was sure to ensue. He picked himself up and carried on, but now his sight was hazy and wet strands of hair were blocking his view. Arthur pushed his hair back and noticed he was only a few steps away from cover.
He reached the shelter and leant against the wall of the building, his breath was shallow. He never remembered being this unfit. The rain didn't seem to be stopping and Arthur was beginning to shake. Okay, really shake. His thin shirt and waistcoat were soaked through and he was freezing. His teeth chattered and he wished that he had brought a jacket with him. Idiot.
"You look worse than ever love." A voice mocked from Arthur's left. The young man spun round and punched the speaker in the jaw, recoiling from the pain in his knuckle. "Jesus Arthur! What the hell are you playing at?" Arthur wasn't listening, he was too focussed on willing the pounding in his head to subside. "Not now Eames." He growled through gritted teeth. Arthur was really shaking now and Eames glanced and him worriedly. He pulled of his jacket and went to place it around Arthur's shoulders. The younger was about to protest, but Eames interrupted him. "I know you don't think you need my help, but you're going to catch hypothermia like this." The forger watched as Arthur's shoulders relaxed and he nodded. Eames smiled and wrapped the jacket around the young man's shoulders. Arthur wrapped his arms around himself and closed his eyes. Trying to steady his breathing.
There was silence as the rain pounded down and Eames debated whether or not to ask Arthur what was wrong, when the point man let out a loud yet at the same time tiny sneeze. Eames had never heard anything so cute in all his life. It was something he had never expected from the ever composed Arthur. He turned to Arthur to see that his eyes had gone wide, realising that there was no way he could come back from this. The large jacket engulfed the slender man and he looked so vulnerable and young, that Eames didn't know what to do.
The older man took a step closer to Arthur and snaked an arm around his shoulders. Arthur flinched away, but then gave in and allowed Eames to run his hand up and down Arthur's arm, trying to warm him up.
"What's wrong pet?" He asked softly, noticing Arthur grimacing in pain. Arthur took a deep breath. "I think I've got a concussion and now I'm going to get a… a… a..." He paused and gave another adorable sneeze, but Eames knew better than to say anything. "Cold." Arthur finished grumpily. "It's perfectly normal Arthur. You are human." "Yeah. Well…" Eames knew what Arthur meant. This was Arthur. Always composed, always on time, always organised Arthur, he didn't get ill and it was more than likely that the point man didn't want anyone else to see him like this.
"We should probably get you to a doctor." Eames said quietly, as Arthur leant back against the wall, holding his pounding head. "Arthur?" Eames tapped the side of Arthur's face with the back of his hand. "Hmm?" Arthur murmured, showing no sign of moving. "Come on, the rain's stopped. Let's move." Arthur groaned, nausea bubbling up inside him, as the forger pulled his arm across his shoulders. "Come on sleeping beauty." Arthur forced a weak smile, but didn't have the energy to insult Eames.
"E-Eames," Arthur stuttered and Eames stopped, bending down to his slumping figure. "Yes love?" "No one hears about this or I swear to God I will kill you." Eames let out a chuckle and shifted Arthur's position to a more comfortable one and looked down at him when he winced. "Sorry." He grimaced. "I mean it Eames." Arthur scowled. "I am I man of my word." "I don't doubt that one bit." Eames smiled and couldn't help but laugh when Arthur sneezed again. "I'm sorry, but that is adorable." "Oh shut up."