6 pm

The doorbell went. Jo scurried to answer it. It was Sam, with Phil in tow. Why bring Phil? Jo frowned a little. Phil smiled ruefully. "I know, but it wasn't my idea."

"You had better come in, and since you're both here," Jo picked up a slip of paper from the table in the hallway, "would someone kindly go out and fill that for me."

Phil took the slip of paper, it was a prescription and Sam looked panicky. "What's wrong?"

"Well, the doctor did warn me that Stu's swim in the Thames might have a couple of side effects." Jo's smile was a bit strained, "and it has."

"JO"

There was a distant wail from the direction of the sitting room, and Jo hurried to answer it, Sam following.

"I'm here," Jo grabbed the bucket, and caught him before he fell off the sofa. Holding his head while he retched into the bucket. He lay sprawled across her knees, as she rubbed his back with her free hand.

"What's the matter?" Sam moved to kneel next to them. Putting a cool hand on Stu's back. He didn't even acknowledge her, feeling too washed out to even move.

"He's picked up an infection. He started feeling sick just after lunch, his temperature shot up and when he actually started being sick, I called the doctor."

Stu made a grumbly noise.

"Hun, I think that was yesterday's breakfast." Jo rubbed his back again, and an arm slid round her waist. "No... not now, Stu... come on hun, you're heavy." Together Jo and Sam managed to push him back onto the sofa. He lay on his back and flopped a weary arm over his face.

"Sam's here." Jo said unnecessarily as Sam moved to take his free hand.

"Stuart. It's me."

"I know." he rasped.

"I'm sorry."

"I know... everybody's sorry...I have no idea what for." he grouched, his throat felt lousy again and a postmortem on why he and Sam had broken up was the last thing on his mind.

"What happened..."

"Accident..."

Sam gently stroked his hand. His skin was hot to the touch. He dropped his arm and looked her, and she took in the hectic glitter in his brown eyes and knew that he wasn't just feeling sorry for himself, he was genuinely sick.

"Stuart... I" Sam looked down at her hand holding his, trying to make it up to him and close the door on their past was tougher than she expected.

"Sam." Stu's response was grumpy to say the least. "Does this look like a confessional? If you want absolution, go and see a priest. I forgive you. Do you forgive me?" He coughed hard, the lengthy speech playing havoc with his sore throat and the pain in his head.

"Stuart, of course." Sam squeezed his hand tightly. The look on his face changed, a strange greenish pallor under his skin tone.

"OH GOD." he lunged, and this time it was Sam who caught him, as Jo shoved the bucket under his nose just in the nick of time.

Stu screwed his eyes tight shut and lay across Sam's knees, two feminine hands stroked his back, and he tried to concentrate on that and not the thundering pain in his head, or the twisting in his guts.

Together they managed to push him back onto the sofa again. Jo plumped up the pillows behind him and Sam tucked the duvet around him, and Stu just let it all happen, he hadn't felt this rough in his life before. He lay there and took it, and just let them look after him.

The doorbell went. Jo went to answer it. Stu buried his cheek in the pillow, keeping his eyes closed and tried to pretend that he wasn't there. Sam was gently stroking his hand and forearm and that just suited him fine. He idly tuned into Jo in the hall, and a voice. A masculine voice that seemed rather familiar. He struggled to place it, but it was too much for his aching brain. He could hear Jo's footsteps, and despite all the stern warnings he had given himself, he couldn't control the little leap of joy in his heart. He felt so hot and so sick, it was all too difficult to keep it straight in his head.

The door opened, and the masculine voice said "Sam."

Phil.

Stu opened his eyes. Phil was stood next to Sam, and she was looking up at him as though her whole world was right because he was there. And that's the way it always was. He caught Phil looking at him, expecting a smug expression on his face, Stu was taken aback by the sympathy he saw there.

"Phil." he croaked.

"Stu... mate, what have you done to yourself?" even Phil's tone was sympathetic, and Stu relaxed, he could manage that.

"Run in with..." Stu broke off, his stomach was heaving again. "ARGH!" He rolled over and dived at the bucket. Sam caught him and Phil pushed the bucket under his head.

Jo was opening the packet that Phil had got from the chemist. She read the instructions, and shook a couple of tablets out into her hand. "Stu." she sat down on the sofa next to him, "these are supposed to calm the sickness, you need to take these."

Stu looked at the two pinkish tablets in her hand, and wondered how he was going to get them down his aching throat. Even swallowing water didn't help. Reluctantly he took the tablets from her. Struggling to sit up, he leaned heavily against Sam, and Jo held the glass of water so that he could drink from it.

"Don't fuss." he grouched hoarsely.

"Greater love hath no copper for her partner... Thank you Jo, for putting up with me, for letting me lay around on your sofa, for clearing up after me. I am not fussing. Now lie down again before you fall down."

He flopped back against the pillows. Screwed his eyes shut again.

"Yes, mum."

"Less sauce out of you, thank you very much."

"You two row like an old married couple." Phil stuck in his ten cents worth.

Stu's eyes opened, for a nano-second his fevered brain picked up on Phil's comment, and from somewhere a song popped into his mind.

Though Ive tried before to tell her
Of the feelings I have for her in my heart
Every time that I come near her
I just lose my nerve
As Ive done from the start

Every little thing she does is magic
Everything she do just turns me on
Even though my life before was tragic
Now I know my love for her goes on

This was definitely too much to hold in his head. Stu closed his eyes and laid back, and the refrain started playing on an endless loop in his exhausted mind.