A Perplexing Case of Dr. Laxus
Usually the smell of vomit made Laxus, well, vomit, but at the moment it wasn't too bad. Not that it was appealing or anything (ew), but he was honestly too focused on Mira to care.
"I can't believe I came home to find that you have a virus."
She sniffled, resting on her knees in front of the toilet. "I took something for my fever, but it's done nothing for my nausea. Or my headache."
"Have you been checked out by anyone?"
"Yes, Laxus. I mean-"
"Why isn't your sister or brother here to care for you? Huh?" He stood in the doorway of the bathroom, glaring in at her. Not that he was upset with her. More worried. "You look…well, paler, I guess."
She only moaned, glancing up at him. "It's really not that bad. And Lisanna had to work the guild for me. Elfman's on a job and has been the whole week, so he didn't know."
"Well, you can't just stay alone when you're sick like this, Mirajane."
"I knew you'd be home soon."
"Still." Stepping forwards then, he went over to the sink to get a rag and run it under some cool water for her. "How long you been sick then?"
"Yesterday afternoon I didn't feel well and it's only gotten worse."
"One of those stupid ill-bred idiots at the guild probably got you sick."
"Laxus-"
"Here you go."
Perplexed, she watched as he slowly got down on his knees as well, reaching out with one hand to run that cool cloth over her face. Never before had he been so caring towards her. Sure, they lived together, but that had always seemed more of just an easier way to continue their relationship. Laxus was rarely around and it was just silly for him to pay for an apartment he wasn't using. And when Evergreen and Elfman got married and he moved out, that left Mira and Lisanna alone in their home. And even though Elfman had never rather liked him, Lisanna was fine with Laxus being around, so it was just easy to move him in without too much fuss.
But still, she had never deluded herself much. Fine, Laxus was fun for her. And yeah, so he was pretty faithful, but she knew that there was no way that he truly loved her or anything. He more or less just seemed to know that Mira was the last one in Fairy Tail that really gave a damn about him and it was best not to ruin that. And giving up other women for permanent access to the she-devil wasn't too horrible a fate. Not really.
Still though, there were rare moments like what was taking place in that one when Laxus really seemed to care about her. And they always shocked her, what with their rarity and long absences in between them.
"I'd kiss you, babe, but I'm not one for puke." He did press one to her forehead though before nuzzling the top of her head. "You're just so-"
She turned away from him suddenly and back to the toilet. He was disgusted for a moment before moving to hold her hair back for her. It was just an instinct thing. Guys did that for their women, right? He was pretty sure.
Her breathing was heavy then as she hunched over the toilet, as if waiting to see if there was more. Then she glanced at him and made a face.
"S-Sorry, Laxus. I just-"
"Don't you apologize to me." He moved to flush the toilet before reaching for her again. "C'mere."
When she turned to face him again, he just moved to pull the little hair tie from her bangs, letting them fall forwards. Then he handed it to her.
"Put your hair up. It'll make you feel better." Standing then, he went to wash off the rag again as he had set it on the floor. As he avoided his own eyes in the mirror (once again he was making himself weak for Mirajane, which he hated), he glanced at her reflection. Down there on the floor he could just make out her face. "You almost look like you did when we were kids."
She only made a noise, watching him. "Laxus, you don't have to stay here with me. I'm sure you can find something else to do. I'm fine. Really."
"You're fine," he mocked with a shake of his head. Wringing the washcloth out, he turned to look at her once more. That time, he handed it off to her, though he just as quickly moved to bend down.
"L-Laxus-"
"You ain't that heavy, Mirajane." He cradled her in his arms with a slight grin. "Don't get used to this kind treatment or anything though."
"Believe me, I won't."
He took her straight to their now shared bedroom. Since moving in, he had purchased a bigger mattress for them because, honestly, sharing her tiny one was just not gonna fly.
"There you go." Gently setting her on the unmade bed, he quickly moved to cover her over. Then he turned to head out of the room. "I'll go get you a drink, huh? To get the taste out of your mouth?"
"That'd be nice," she mumbled, still watching him with interest.
"Need anything else?"
"No, I don't think so."
Grunt. She must really have been sick if she wasn't even going to make some sort of out there request of him.
After he was gone, she just settled into their bed, wiping her face down with the cloth one last time before setting it on the nightstand. What was wrong with him anyhow? She just had a viral infection or something. Flu, maybe. It'd be gone soon enough.
When he returned, he came bearing a glass of water, as well as his duffle bag that he had dropped off in the hall when he heard her retching in the bathroom.
"Alright, Mira." He handed off the water before going to set his bag in the corner. "You feel better yet?"
"Not really, but I'm sure I just need to rest."
"Hn." He bent down then, unzipping his bag. "I was bringing you this regardless, but now that you're sick-"
"Laxus." She sat up some more, smiling slightly. "How cute."
"Thought you'd think so." Coming closer, he held the necklace by the gold band. "In lieu of pay, this is what I got. Its fetching rate is a nice amount of jewels, but we're not down money or nothing. Thought it'd be nice if you could keep it."
"It's beautiful." She took the necklace from him then, grinning down at the design. "Thank you."
Grunt. Then he went back to his bag to start unpacking. "Like I said, I'm pretty set on jewels right now. I was thinking about, you know, doing a few extra jobs anyhow, to get some extra, but if you're this sick, maybe I'll stick around a while."
"Laxus, this will pass soon enough. I-"
"Nonsense." He glanced over his shoulder at her. "You're practically dying here, Mira."
She made a face, pressing a hand to her stomach. "I wouldn't go that far."
"I would. I mean, just look at you."
She wanted to be offended, but that would take energy that she didn't have. Not to mention, she was pretty sure that he wasn't trying to be nasty. He was serious. Laxus had never seen her sick before and was trying to cover his worry with a grim prognosis.
Mirajane figured that everyone should just be happy he wasn't a real doctor. Because his bedside manner could use some work.
"Now," he was beginning again. "As you know, I wasn't rather well as a child."
"I know." She was snuggling back into bed then, her eyes getting droopy. "What about it?"
"Well, I know all the ends and outs of these sorts of things, Mira. I got stuck with all sorts of doctors and things before my father put that lacrima in me. I-"
"Laxus," she sighed as she laid on her side, clutching her necklace in one hand. "I'm not terminal. I'm just sick. So come over here, huh? Or are you afraid of getting sick?"
He snorted. "Weren't you listening? Nothing can touch me with this lacrima in me."
"Then get over here." His self-absorbed bragging wasn't interesting to her. Shivering, she added, "I'm cold."
"Na-ah, Mirajane." He turned to face her again. "Not yet."
"Not yet?"
"You just vomited all that stuff up, huh? There's nothing in your system now. We gotta get you some soup."
"Laxus, I'm not-"
"Ten minutes. I'll be back."
"But I'm not hungry."
"I-"
"No. Come here."
"But-"
"No soup." She raised an eyebrow. "Now do I have to ask again, or you going to come over here?"
Slowly, he walked over to her. "I just don't want you to get dehydrated or nothing."
"I'm drinking water, aren't I? Besides, it'd just come back up and I don't want that."
With a grunt, he fell into bed with her. "It's still so early though. What am I supposed to do?"
"I told you that you could leave if you-"
'Well, I can't leave you alone," he said with a frown as he moved to lay on his back. "That's be a pretty low move. And I'd only worry about you."
"Really?"
He didn't seem bashful in that moment about admitting it, which was odd of him. Usually he was resistant to admit to anything about their relationship. It took them forever to both come to terms that they even had one, honestly. And even still, the word girlfriend rarely fell from his tongue when describing her. And she would say she had a boyfriend if someone asked, but it was never in an overly ecstatic kind of way.
Still, at the moment, her being sick must have really been messing with his mind. He only sat up slightly to pull his shirt over his head and set his Sound Pod on the nightstand. So he was staying.
"Your fever must be breaking," he mumbled when she started shivering. Sighing slightly he laid on his side. "C'mere then."
She smiled slightly as she snuggled up against him, curling so that her head was pressed against his stomach. He just pulled the covers up over her head, cocooning her in there.
"So, uh, since we're slowly getting naked anyhow-"
"You took your shirt off. I'm not anywhere close to being-"
"You want me to, like, go down on you or something?"
The blanket was over her head, so she knew her glare was useless and directed it at his tattoo.
"Laxus-"
"I like blows when I'm-"
"You're a guy. So just shut up."
"Fine by me." He slipped an arm under the blanket to stroke her cheek. "Mirajane."
"You'd have made a horrible doctor," she mumbled against his stomach as she curled into him again. Nuzzling his abs, she said, "Then again, I should have known. Your flawed morals and all."
Eventually he did get her to doze off, at which time he took to reaching over and grabbing his Sound Pod. If she could sleep, he could at least entertain himself a little.
At one point, she awoke dazed and complaining about being too hot. He just tossed the covers off her before slowly stripping her. It was his discarded shirt that he threw over her head then before allowing her to curl away from him and slowly fall back asleep. He only grinned at the sight before going back to his music.
He must have fallen asleep, because at some point, he heard their bedroom door opening and then the sound of someone entering. Not turning a light on, he heard the person call out softly. "Mira?"
It was Lisanna, of course it was. When Laxus sat up though, she jumped in surprise and almost dropped the bowl that she was clutching in her hands.
"O-Oh, it's just you," she said as Mira slowly rolled onto her back and opened her eyes slightly. "I didn't know you were home, Laxus."
"Just got here," he grumbled, annoyed that she was disturbing them. "And Mira's sick, so-"
"Oh, I know. Of course I know. Here, sis." Lisanna came over to the bed then, going over to Mira's side. "I made you some soup at work and brought it home. You hungry?"
"Mmmm." Slowly, Mirajane sat up. "Smells nice."
"No fair," Laxus complained as Lisanna grinned. "When I offered, you said-"
"I don't like you as much," Mira told him, her headache giving way to brutal honesty. Not that he should ever have thought otherwise. Lisanna was above everyone on Mira's chart of important people. Even above herself. And maybe Elfman.
"Here, sis." Lisanna had a spoon too. "Let me turn on the light and then I can feed-"
"No way." Laxus reached over Mira then and rather roughly took the bowl from the younger woman, almost spilling it all over Mira in the process. He was so happy that didn't happen because that just reeked of banishment to the couch (which didn't happen if anyone ever asked him. If you asked Lisanna though, Mira kicked him out at least once a month. Which was really something considering he was only home a few weeks or days at a time.)
"Laxus," Mira complained as Lisanna only looked shocked. "What are you-"
"This is totally my domain," he growl as he moved to sit cross legged. "Get out then, Lisanna. Mira's my woman, after all. I feed her, not you."
"I didn't ask for either of you to feed me, you know," Mira pointed out. "I'm not-"
"I-It's fine, sis," Lisanna said before laughing uneasily. "I'm sorry. I just thought-"
"No, you don't apologize." Even sick, Mira wasn't going to let Laxus get away with his behavior. "Laxus-"
"Sorry," he told Lisanna gruffly. "But Mira is my-"
"There are no buts in apolog-"
"Shut up and eat your soup," Laxus said before scooping some of it up in the spoon and giving his girlfriend a death stare. Lisanna finally smiled for real, no doubt planning on going to find someone to tell about this cuteness to, before running off.
"Nice, Laxus. I didn't even get to thank-"
With her mouth open, it was the perfect time to shove some of that soup down her throat. It won him no favors, but it did shut her up for a moment.
"Tomorrow I get to make the soup," he told her softly then, the darkness of their bedroom making it okay to sound maybe a teensy bit hurt. "Alright?"
"That's fine, Laxus." It was easier to just give in to him then. After all, she didn't really feel too well. "But you really don't need to feed-"
He only went back to it though, getting more soup on the spoon then. Not that he would ever admit it, but he was finding that he rather liked taking care of a sick Mira. A lot.
"Your sister should learn how to knock anyhow," he grumbled, still trying to be gruff when it was clear that he wasn't. He had to keep up appearances at all costs. "So you should say something to her."
Mira didn't feel well enough to roll her eyes then. Instead she just decided to be glad that Laxus was being nice enough to want to be there when she was ill.
"You know all of this will probably come back up in an hour, right?" Mira asked him. He only shrugged.
"Just don't puke on me or nothing and I'm fine."
"I make no promises."
He kissed her head that time instead of giving her anymore soup. Against it, he mumbled, "That's okay. Then we'd have to take a bath together."
That time her eye roll couldn't be controlled. Still though, she only giggled slightly because he was being so sweet and being so sick, it was probably just what any real doctor would have prescribed. So many his bedside manner needed work, but Dr. Laxus had his in bed manner down pat.
When Laxus went to the guildhall a few days later, it was rather late in the day. Mira had finally felt well enough to go back in to work, but he had stayed home, finally able to sleep in the bed alone and relax. Even Lisanna wasn't around, though he just figured she was up at the guild with her friends.
It was Mira that he was really there to see, per usual. Not to mention he thought he'd just glance at the board to see if there really was anything there that he cared to do. If not, then it was just as well. He really did want to be around Mira for a little while longer, to make sure that she stayed healthy. All the filth and vermin that the guild seemed to breed wasn't giving him much faith in her keeping her health up.
He saw her immediately, of course, going around giving drinks and taking orders. She saw him too and her face lit up, looking much better than it had days previous. He didn't smile back at her or anything crazy like that, but when she waved at him, he did nod at her.
Laxus was happy to see that his necklace that he had given her was on her neck, though he would expect no less of her. She always made sure to take the few relics he gave her and make sure everyone knew about them. He rarely gave her anything, but annoyance, after all.
"Mira." He was headed over to her then to kiss her or at least pat her on the shoulder. Something. But then someone fell on him.
No, literally. It was that annoying ice guy, Gray. He literally draped himself over him.
"Help me, Laxus," he pleaded. "I'm sick. I need you to carry me to bed."
"What is wrong with you? Loser." He shoved him off. "Don't-"
"Laxus, please." It was the Salamander's blonde girlfriend, over at a table with the pink haired mage himself. She was laying with her head down and looked up at him with half-lidded eyes. "I don't feel good. Come kiss my head."
"What are you-"
"I can hardly lift my hand, Laxus," Natsu said, glancing back at him. Unlike his two teammates, he wasn't as good at acting and started giggling half way through. Like a freaking chick or something. "Come feed me."
It was making sense then. It was also making him angry. Were they…teasing him? Instead of going and ripping into all of them (Mira constantly told him that Team Natsu were their friends), he began looking around. Mira was behind the bar then, but had overheard and was staring at him with wide eyes. She only shook her head though. No. It wasn't her. But who else would know about the past few days?
When he turned again, he saw the other Strauss sister running out the guild doors, laughing the entire way. "Lisanna!"
I was supposed to write another Natsu and Lucy story next, but then I got this idea and, well, here we are. And am I the only one that just loves the word perplexing? I never get to use it when I'm talking, but just saying it's so much fun.