This was requested by Juliakaze26 for "Jason getting seriously ill and Nico taking care of him." This is loosely based on my father getting mono before he married my mom and they almost had to push back the wedding. So yeah. REQUESTS ARE OPEN!
Here's a lesson kids: don't share water bottles.
Especially not with the Aphrodite Cabin.
…
Basically, when you get mono, you feel like death. Like every movement makes you want to throw up or pass out or a combination of both. It's physically exhausting for me to drag myself to the bathroom or to shower and I don't think I've gotten more down than toast and water for the last couple of weeks.
Will Solace said I should start to feel better within the next week and a half to two weeks, since I was a pretty healthy guy before this whole thing started. I don't even know when the last time I went outside was. My head pounds and I just feel too hot too hot too hot. I think I've lost 20 pounds.
Nico dotes on me. I don't complain and I don't fight it because I appreciate him dealing with me and it's not like I can take care of myself right now. As soon as I started showing symptoms he dragged me to his cabin and made me lie down. His bed is warm and safe and during the bad nights he comes and cuddles me and my too hot skin. He presses kisses to my sweaty forehead and I've become a real fan recently of sponge baths.
"How're you feeling, caro?" He asks in the dark mornings when my rolling stomach wakes me up and I can't do much more than stumble to the bathroom.
"Weak, pathetic." Is what I say, using the two words I usually use to describe myself nowadays.
"You're color looks better today," He says every day.
"Thanks," I respond.
"Come back here and lie down; you look shaky." He orders and scoots over in the bed to make room for me. I press my face into his neck and breathe in the earthy smell of him and the musky smell of his aftershave. His arms come up and rub my sore muscles in my back. The thing about mono is that you might feel perfectly fine for a couple of hours, but if you over-do it in that pseudo window of health, you'll be back to square one the next day, sore and tired and pitiful.
"You're doing great," He tells me, "you'll be get better really soon."
"Ok." I tell him.
He lets me go back to sleep. When I wake up there's some tea with honey and two pieces of buttered toast waiting for me.
…
Some days, I get called into the infirmary for blood tests and general check-ups. Usually, luckily, the appointments are later in the day. I have a feeling that Nico and his predisposition to not be an early bird may have something to do with it.
He helps me into sweatpants that are too loose around the middle and a t-shirt and sweatshirt that used to be too tight around my chest and now fit perfectly. He pulls one of his beanies over my head and ears ("It's cold out, Jason and I swear to the gods if you get even sicker I'm gonna drag Apollo down here by his sunny little ass and threaten to decapitate all his statues if he doesn't heal you.") and kisses my nose before helping me stand up and walk to the living room. Percy stops in to help escort me to the infirmary. Even if I've lost a good twenty pounds, it still wouldn't be fair to Nico for him to have to carry my 180-something pounds of almost dead weight to and from the Big House.
Percy smiles at me when he comes to help take me over. "How ya feelin', Jay?"
"How do you think?" I say. I'm sitting on the couch in the living room of Cabin 13, bundled up in my sweats and a quilt Hazel made for us one Christmas. Percy squeezes my shoulder, wraps one of his arms around my torso and helps me to stand. Nico grabs his keys and opens the door and off we go.
I get strange looks every time I go to the infirmary. Maybe people still can't get over how sick I actually am. I try to ignore it but the looks make my skin crawl. I know I'm making a pained face when Nico takes my hand and squeezes it.
"Ti amo." He whispers.
…
I recline back in the infirmary bed as Will takes the blood sample he just took to be tested. I have a box of apple juice and a muffin in front of me and I don't know whether eating it will be worth the possibility of vomiting it up later. Percy's left to talk to Chiron so I'm left alone with Nico.
His dark hair is tied back in a short ponytail and he's wrapped up in his North Face and leaning on my arm. His hand is clasped in mine, rubbing soft circles on the outside of my hand.
"You're getting better every day," He tells me.
"I know."
"We can always push the date back. It's not like it'll really upset Chiron or whatever."
"I know."
"The most important thing is that you can stand up to say your vows. And that I can kiss you without getting sick."
"I know." I pause, "I doubt the tux will still fit."
"Fuck the tux," He says, nuzzling his face into my shoulder, "We'll get married in jeans in t-shirts for all I care. I just want my name on a fucking piece of paper next to yours by the end of the year."
"Ok." I say. I kissed his forehead and poke the straw through my apple juice box. I'll get better, I tell myself, for Nico and for our wedding.
I'm asleep with my arms wrapped around Nico by the time Will comes back with the results.
Reviews are love, requests are open!