FireCacodemon: Welcome to my one-shot for the Cells at Work Appreciation week. This is day 1: Writing about your favourite character, mine is U-1146. My top favourite. Anyway, enjoy the one-shot.

Marks of Appreciation

A Cells at Work Fan-Fiction

Written by FireCacodemon

Disclaimer: Cells at Work belongs to Akane Shimizu

Summary: It's always nice to know that your hard work is appreciate in the body. Written for the Cells at Work appreciation week.

"Miss Red blood cell?" Cell boy asked AE3803 one day as she delivered him his nutrients.

"Hmm? Is there something wrong?" She asked him, a carefree smile plastered on her face as she took the box of CO2 from the floor. Cell boy shuffled awkwardly on the spot. He felt silly feeling like this to the red blood cell but she was the closest person to the white blood cell who guided him around the digestive system. He also knew that their paths often crossed more than his path with the white blood cell.

"You know more about White blood cell than I do…" he started before nervously scratching the back of his head, he didn't know why he was so nervous. AE3803 was friendly to everyone and here she was, still waiting for him to say what he wanted him to say.

"Is there anything you need me to deliver to him? Our paths seem to cross every day and he makes me smile~" AE3803 chirped happily with the box in her hands.

"No no, I was wondering what to get him." She looked at the cell confused for a second before her eyes widened and a bright smile formed on her face.

"You want to give him a gift or something?" She couldn't contain her excitement at that thought. "I think that'll be a great idea! I mean, I give him tea whenever I can but it'll be nice if someone else was kind to him too~"

"From what I think…he's underappreciated…so I want to do something to make him feel appreciated just that little bit more."

"I think it's a great idea! I hope you can make him feel more appreciated~ Take care~" She took off, leaving Cell boy behind in his apartment. He closed the door and let out a sigh. He hoped that he could get some idea on what he could do to show his appreciation to the white blood cell. He glanced at his cloning machine and knew it would be safe for a while, letting him go for a stroll through the body.

"Number 4989, what are you doing?" U-2626 asked as he watched the energetic neutrophil trying to make something. The neutrophil looked up at his companion and beamed at him with a wide smile as if he was planning something that was instantly going to backfire.

"I'm making something for Number 1146, we all know he's a hardworking cell and with how the red blood cells and normal cells are afraid of us…" he paused and looked back down at what he was trying to make. "Well, let's just say he's going to be getting a gift from me~"

"And what might that gift be?"

"I'm trying to make him his own personal tea dispenser. We all know how he's been addicted to the stuff since he was a myelocyte. We probably shouldn't have dared him to drink it when we were all myelocytes, huh?" Hearing the reason made U-2626 chuckle as he remembered that memory well and the many attempts after for U-1146 to take a sneaky sip from their mentor's tea. After their mentor had caught him red handed, he was scolded at first but mentor started to use the tea as a reward…and gave the young myelocyte a smaller cup for him to drink rather than the normal sized cups.

"Is there anything I can do to help? The idea sounds nice," U-2626 asked his friend.

"I kinda need someone to distract Number 1146 while I work on this. I've got the other two doing the same but they haven't found Number 1146 yet to distract him. I've got all that I need and just need to put it together."

"I'll see what I can do, please radio us when you're ready and…move into a building or somewhere not in public, please? Wouldn't want him patrolling here and seeing you doing this."

"He's already patrolled here and won't be returning for a long while, I'm all good~ But…you're right, I'll move to inside for safety."

"Thank you."

U-1146 was on patrol once more with a freshly brewed cup of tea in his hands and a small smile on his face. So far his patrol was rather fruitless as no pathogen had tried to enter the body or cause any issues. For the moment, the body had peace. It was fragile but he and his friends and the rest of the immune system were already ready and waiting for the next attack. The body was constantly monitored by the T cells and when needed, they sprang into action to eliminate the threat swiftly. Taking a sip of tea, U-1146 let out a small sigh of relief. The body had been through a lot and for once he was glad to have some down time.

"I wish this peace lasts for a little while longer…" he spoke quietly as if his voice was going to jinx the peace.

"White blood cell!" U-1146 heard a cell call out. He glanced around before he saw a hand up in the air. The hand belonged to Cell boy and not Cancer cell in disguise.

"Hello Cell boy, is there something wrong?" U-1146 asked the cell who willingly approached him. The cell shook his head but smiled up at him.

"Oh no, I just…" He started before he looked down. Without thinking, Cell boy wrapped his arms around U-1146 and gave him a hug. U-1146 froze in place, unsure on how to react to the sudden gesture but after the initial shock, he relaxed and slowly wrapped his arms back around Cell boy.

"What's with the hug…?" He asked after the hug, Cell boy wasn't letting him go and instead only hugged him tighter.

"I…I didn't know what to get you…because I appreciate the work that you do…but tea just…" Cell boy tried to say what was going on in his mind but his mouth had other idea, saying random things instead of what he really wanted to say. Sometimes he cursed how his mouth and nucleus wanted to do different things at the same time.

"Okay, calm down and think about what you want to say," U-1146 spoke calmly to the cell as he unwrapped his arms from the normal cell's body. Cell boy let him go too and looked up at the neutrophil.

"I really appreciate the work you do for the body! Even if the other cells are afraid of you…you deserve to know how appreciated your work is!" Cell boy instantly covered his mouth after realising that he basically shouted at U-1146. He looked down and blushed with embarrassment and failed to notice that U-1146 had reached up to his cap and gently lowered it over his visible eye, a tiny blush visible on his cheeks at the sudden gratitude.

"I was…just doing my job," the neutrophil whispered.

"You're one of the hardest working cells I've ever met! You deserve to know how much it means to everyone! Would it make you feel better if I made you some tea?"

"Tea, would be lovely…thank you." Cell boy tried to calm his nerves down as the pair of them headed off towards the nearest tea station. Both had nerves to settle down after that affection and gratitude.

"This is silly, I haven't even seen Number 1146…" U-2048 spoke as he looked around for the hardest member of their division. Even while following the patrol route that U-1146 took…he still would have suspected that he'd seen the neutrophil or that red blood cell he hung around with. Maybe he was just unlucky or he was traveling away from where U-1146 was? He didn't know and he wasn't going to radio him just to find him…it took the fun out of the one-sided game he played with U-1146 and the other neutrophils.

"Number 2048, it's finished!" U-4989's voice blared through the radio and nearly scared U-2048 jump out of his membrane. He grabbed his radio and held it do his mouth.

"Thanks for nearly scaring the membrane off me! I didn't find Number 1146…"

"Number 2001 found him with Cell boy so no distraction was actually needed~" U-4989 chirped playfully. "I've asked him to meet me at the steam bun shop."

"Are we all allowed to come?"

"I wouldn't be offering if I didn't want you there~"

"Then I'm coming, thank you." And with that, the radio was replaced back onto the belt.

"So, why was I called here?" U-1146 asked as he approached his division. He gained all their attention quickly after asking that question. He tilted his head slightly to the side as he waited for the answer to his question. U-4989 beamed at him and moved in front of the group. It looked as if he was the ringleader for this idea and meeting.

"Well, we've been talking for a while now and we know how much you love your tea…so we decided to make you something~"

"Something?" U-1146 asked confused as he looked back at the others. They all smiled innocently before U-4989 continued.

"We made you this~" U-2626 and U-2001 stepped out of the way and revealed what they were hiding behind them. U-1146's eyes widened as he instantly recognised what they had presented him with.

"Is…that what I think it is?" U-1146 found the words he wanted to say. At the reveal, his thoughts turned blank. He felt joy, pride, excitement and happiness. Standing behind the two neutrophils but in the centre of the small group was a functioning tea machine. Something small that he could take back to his home and set up there. There was room for any size cup (but U-1146 only had large cups of tea) if others were around his home and wished to have some tea. U-1146 knew that he was going to need to supply the contents but if he didn't have to leave home to have a cup of tea in the morning…that was one of the best gifts that he had ever been given. It was another way to fuel his tea addiction and he knew it. Just looking at the hand-made tea machine brought tears to his eyes.

"Bro?" U-4989 asked with a smile on his face as he watched the tears of joy roll down U-1146's face. "I guess you like it~?" He asked.

"Like it? No, I love it!" U-1146 smiled as he wiped his tears away. U-4898 pulled U-1146 into a hug and the others all joined in on the group hug.

"It's for all the hard work you do and always somehow being okay at the end of any outcome. It's really inspiring to have you as a member of our division and we couldn't have asked for a better brother than you."

"How…can I repay you all for this?"

"Number 1146, you don't need to repay us for anything. Trust me, we're doing this because we want to show you how much you and all your hard work means to us. Bet a dendritic cell is snapping pictures of you crying though," U-2626 chuckled at that thought.

"May I have a cup?" U-1146 asked the innocent question.

"Wondered when you were going to ask that, here~" U-2001 handed him a large cup. It was time to see the machine in action and pour the cup of tea. U-1146 placed the cup under the nozzle and pressed the button that switched the machine on. The neutrophils watched as it whirred and started to heat up the water inside. It took a while for the machine to warm up but once it had started the machine did the best it could do. A few minutes passed before the nozzle released the tea. The neutrophils watched as the brown liquid filled the cup until the tea had reached a suitable level in the cup and the machine stopped. U-1146 removed the cup and took a sit from the tea. It wasn't the perfect cup but it was still drinkable tea and that was all that mattered to him.

"Good tea…~"

FireCacodemon: Thank you for reading~