A/N: One month, my muse refuses to talk, then the next she refuses to shut up. Typical.


Tina didn't know how long it was that she'd sat with Noah's head against her legs before he began to shiver. She eased him to the floor as gently as she could and put more wood on the still-glowing embers in the hearth, wobbling since her legs had fallen asleep. She went upstairs and got two more blankets, checked on Finn and Summer, and returned to the living room, covering Noah with one blanket and wrapping the other around herself. She pulled him back across her lap and sat rubbing his shoulders to warm him up, humming lightly under her breathy as she did. Absentmindedly, she watched the flames flicker in the fireplace for a long time before she noticed that Noah was still shivering, his teeth clicking in the cold. She frowned and put a hand to his forehead. His skin was searing hot to the touch, and when she took her hand away it was damp from the sweat beading on his face. He mumbled something incoherent, his eyelids fluttering for a brief second. Tina's heart sank and she quickly removed Noah's blanket and eased him to the floor again. She wet a rag from the kitchen with some water from her bottle and pressed it to his forehead. Then she went back upstairs and entered the room where Finn and Summer were sleeping.

Finn, she whispered. Finn! Wake up.

He snorted awake, bleary-eyed and confused. What is it? he grumbled.

You need to come downstairs. Noah's got a fever.

Shit. Shaking the sleep from his head, Finn somehow managed to untangle himself from around Summer's tiny body without waking her and he followed Tina downstairs. He felt Noah's forehead and checked his pulse.

His heart's going fast, he said. He's fighting something big.

You think his leg's infected? Tina asked.

Finn nodded. We need to get his temperature down, and soon.

Okay.

Carefully, they stripped Noah of all his clothes except his pants since they couldn't take them off without removing the splint. He was shaking violently, teeth clattering.

We should get him away from the fire, Tina said.

Finn shook his head. That's not enough. We need to get him outside.

Okay.

Tina went and got the board they'd used to carry Noah earlier and they carried him outside and laid him on the porch. A gentle but freezing breath of wind pressed against their lungs as they inhaled, their breath clouding in the air. Noah's shivering grew more severe.

Daddy! came a scream from inside, and Finn jumped to his feet and ran up to the bedroom.

It's okay, Summer, I just went downstairs. Okay? I'm right downstairs. Go back to sleep.

I'm cold.

Finn covered her with another blanket and then went back outside. I'll stay with him, he said to Tina. You should get some sleep.

Tina sighed and nodded before going inside. Finn sat on the porch step, within an arm's reach of Noah, and stared off into the pitch dark beyond. The only sounds were his own breathing, Noah's chattering teeth, and trees falling in the distance. He listened carefully to the crashes and decided that they weren't close enough to be dangerous. A long while later, Finn turned to see that Summer had come out onto the porch and was standing with her arms clamped around her torso.

Hey. You cold?

She nodded, trembling.

Well, why'd you leave your bed? C'mere.

She climbed into his lap and curled up against his chest. Finn wrapped his arms around her and marveled at how small she was.

Daddy, what's wrong with Noah?

He's sick.

Can we give him a blanket?

No, I'm sorry.

Why not?

'Cause we need to get his temperature down. He's got a fever.

Is he contagious?

No, he's not. He got sick from his leg.

You can get a fever from a broken leg?

Yeah, sometimes. If you're not careful.

I thought you were careful.

He pulled her a little closer. Sometimes it happens anyways, he said.

Summer climbed off of his legs and crouched next to Noah, studying him in the light of the fire from inside. Daddy?

What's wrong?

His lips are blue.

Finn sent Summer to wake Tina up and as the sky slowly turned grey above them, they moved Noah back into the house. Tina covered him with blankets and Finn put more wood on the fire.

Summer, can you do something for me?

Uh-huh.

Can you stay with Noah for a little bit?

She nodded, knowing that she was being given an important task.

Okay, now you gotta make sure that he stays warm, but if he starts sweating again, take his blankets off and then come find me or Tina so we can take him back outside. Okay?

What if he wakes up?

Then come find me.

Okay.

Okay?

Yeah.

Good.

He ruffled her hair and kissed her forehead and then he and Tina went into the kitchen and pulled out all the food they had left and rationed it.

Summer asked me last night what would happen if the food ran out before Noah could walk, Finn said.

What did you tell her?

I didn't tell her anything.


Noah's fever came and went and every few hours they had to move him back out to the porch. He slipped in and out of consciousness and when he was awake he rambled with mixed-up words about nothing. Tina was able to get him to eat and drink a little, and Summer sat silently beside him and didn't move until Finn called her to help him hunt for firewood outside. Tina stayed behind and kept an eye on him and made sure the fire didn't go out, and after an hour of managing both, Noah's eyes scrunched up in the grey daylight filtering in through the windows. Tina was leaning over him the second she heard him groan.

How are you feeling?

Cold...

She tucked the blankets closer and he closed his eyes. Better?

Mm-hm.

Are you hungry?

Hippos.

What?

Hungry hippos.

Against her will and better judgment, Tina laughed at Noah's deliriously definitive statement. I'll see if I can find them later, she told him, pressing the damp rag to his forehead again. You want some food?

Cheeseburger with fries and a milkshake.

She smiled. Well, we're all out of beef. We got pears, though.

He frowned, his eyes still closed. His shoulders trembled in a shiver that lasted only for a moment.

Noah? You still awake?

I'll apologize to Artie when I see him...

Tina's smiled vanished. What?

But Noah's face was completely relaxed, his eyes moving beneath the lids, and Tina knew he'd fallen back asleep. There was a clatter at the door and then Finn and Summer came in, their arms full of dead wood. Did he wake up? Finn asked as they stacked the wood beside the hearth.

For a minute.

Uh, Tina?

What?

You're crying. You okay?

Tina sniffed and wiped her eyes of the tears she hadn't known were there. Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine.

Finn frowned at her. What did he say?

Nothing. He, uh... he wanted a cheeseburger.

It was obvious that Finn didn't believe her, but he didn't press the subject and instead enlisted Summer's help in choosing what to have for dinner. Tina stayed where she was, staring at the wall and trying not to think.


A/N: I turned 18 yesterday. Review.