It was quiet within the walls of Blue Base, and not the normal quiet where Church is yelling at Caboose or Tucker being perverted. They had acquired a new member, a woman with navy blue armor that went by the name of Niki and, in a sense, she was similar to Caboose. Well, not completely: She had the same cheeriness and the same I'm-so-happy-that-I'll-flip-a-goddamn-tank-like-it's-nothing attitude that Caboose had; but, when something was serious, she would straighten up.
She would sing to herself, or laugh at jokes shared among the members. But this time, there was only one voice of useless chatter and it was Caboose. Niki wasn't anywhere to be seen.
"Hey, Caboose," Church asked as they all stood outside the base, watching out for the Red team, "Where's Niki?"
"I don't know." He simply replied, "She didn't get out of bed...or she is a very good hider and playing hide-n-seek without anyone knowing."
"She knows that the Reds are planning to attack us..." Church spoke up, "Tucker, go see if she's still asleep."
"What?! Why me?" Tucker replied.
"Because I said so, jackass."
"Why can't Caboose go see? She's his friend."
"Ugh, fine!" Church exasperated, "Caboose! Go see if you can find Niki."
The blue soldier happily agreed and went to search for his friend. Caboose checked the places where they usually hang out: The mess hall, on top of the base, and around the river that flowed through the canyon. Caboose then went to her bunk room door and knocked.
"Niki? Are you still sleeping?" He asked rather loudly, but got no response, except for a low moan. Opening the door, Caboose saw that she was pale faced, strands of blonde hair and blue hair sticking to her face, and shivering.
"Hey, Caboose." She said, her voice hoarse.
Caboose walked over to her bedside and kneeled down, removing his helmet and set it down on the floor, revealing his shaggy blonde hair and innocent blue eyes. His face was clouded with worry as he saw her pale face and dull light blue eyes.
Walking into the hall, Caboose shouted for the light blue Spartan, "Church! Come here!"
"What now, Caboose?" Church grouches out as he approached the taller soldier, followed by Tucker.
"Something is wrong with Niki." Caboose replied. They could hear the genuine concern in Caboose's voice. Taking a look at their newest member, Church has concluded that she might have the flu. Going over to Red Base, Tucker and Church were met with Simmons and Donut.
"Hey guys!" Donut greeted, being his happy-go-lucky self.
"Hey, Donut, is Doc around?" Church asked.
"What do you want with Doc?" Simmons asked.
"One of our members is sick and we believe she has the flu. We need to see what we can do about it."
"A blue is down?!" A heavy, gruff, and excited voice said from inside.
"She's just sick, Sarge..." Grif said only to be told to shut the hell up.
"I know that, numnuts! The playing field had given us an advantage."
"Is Doc around or not?" Tucker asked. Donut nodded and went to fetch the purple armored soldier.
"Church. Tucker." Doc greeted, "What's up?"
"We need you to see if you can help us with something. Our new member is sick and we need your all-knowing expertise." Tucker said, the last part dripping with sarcasm. Doc agreed and followed them to their base, where they saw Caboose sitting on the floor by Niki's bedside. Doing a thorough examination, he confirmed that she has the flu, explaining that it was contagious, but the pug stuff like sneezing or coughing on another, eating or drinking after the ill person.
"She should be fine within a couple of days." Doc said, "Plenty of water or she will get dehydrated, nothing major when it comes to food, and not too much. When she recovers, no heavy duty for awhile."
They noticed the silent snicker that emitted from Caboose, but acted like they didn't hear it. Thanking Doc, the purple medic made his way back to Red Base and the members of Blue team took care of Niki as she lay bedridden.
Caboose mostly doing it all.
"He really likes her, doesn't he?" Tucker asked out of the blue. Both he and Church knew about the strong friendship Niki and Caboose shared, but it was the little things they noticed between them.
"Yeah. I actually miss it when he would bug me...but honestly, I'm actually kinda happy for the numbskull. She'd be perfect for him." Church replied as Caboose walked into the kitchen, grabbed a water bottle and went back to Niki's room. Caboose was a shy person when it came to talking to girls. They had him try talking to Tex, but he struggled with it; and besides, Niki shared a similar personality and they both got along well. She even improved his mood when he got a bit down.
For the next couple of days, Caboose was the one who had watched over Niki to the point where Church and Tucker would force him into taking a break. Occasionally, she would have a fevered dream of some sort, and that cemented the idea that Caboose was not leaving her side. One night, Niki was tossing and turning to the point where she woke up with a start, fevered sweat spotting her forehead.
"Bad dream?" Caboose whispered in the darkness and his ill friend nodded. Night was now upon the base and everyone else was asleep, so Caboose tip-toed to a bathroom, grabbed a wash cloth and wet it down with cool water. Returning to the shared room, Caboose gently dabbed the wet cloth along Niki's forehead and cheeks. Caboose was about to go and discard the cloth before he felt a small hand grab his armored wrist.
"Don't leave." She whimpered.
"I will be right back." Caboose reassured her and exited the room, returning minutes later in a plain t-shirt that had the same Regulation Blue as his armor and black shorts. Niki had never seen anyone in just civvies, and realized how in good of shape Caboose really was. Not as built as most, but still...
Crawling into the bed, the two rested back to chest, Caboose's arm resting lazily and protectively around Niki's waist, holding her close, while her head was resting on his other bicep. Everything was silent for a few moments until Niki spoke up.
"We should start a Cuddle Time, Caboose."
"Yep. Only for us...and Church...if he wants to. We all can have our own Cuddle Time!" Caboose whispered, being his happy self.
"Good idea, Caboose." Niki yawned out and soon fell asleep.
"Sleep well, Niki." Caboose said quietly and he fell asleep as well, his presence erasing any bad dreams from Niki's mind.
I will keep the bad dreams away.