Lois came to the breakfast table, looking somewhat pale.

"Are you feeling alright?" Kal-El asked her. "You don't look so good."

"Gee, thanks," she said sarcastically. "That's what a woman wants to hear first thing in the morning."

Despite her show at sarcasm, not to mention the fact that she had ignored the question, her voice hadn't sounded too strong.

He stood up, "I think you better go back to bed and rest some more."

He could tell she was about to say something else sarcastic from the way her mouth opened, but instead, she collapsed to the floor.

Kal-El got to her first. She was breathing, but it looked as if she had a nice knot on her head from her fall and she wasn't conscious. Jor-El had come over as well. "We had better move her to your bed." Jor-El picked her up by her ankles and Kal-El by her arms, and they carried her into the bedroom.

She didn't wake up during the move to the bed, but now she thrashed around as if in pain. He sat beside her, unsure of whether he should try to still her or let her thrash.

Krypton, or what was left of Krypton, didn't know sickness anymore. They'd had sickness at one point, and you could still find germs in the Phantom Zone, but seeing as how no one had ever yet figured out a way to escape the Phantom Zone, Kryptonian germs had basically been eradicated from existence. Kryptonians died of old age and on rare occasions of grave physical wounds. They didn't die from something so tiny that it couldn't be seen with the naked eye. They didn't suffer like this.

"Do they recover from their sickness?" he asked, the worry in his voice evident.

"Sometimes they do, son."

"And sometimes they don't?" he asked, already knowing the answer. He had known about it from his Earth History class. Thousands of people had been eradicated at one time from things like smallpox and plagues, but somehow it hadn't seemed real, and it had never occurred to him that they could still get sick once they came here.

"Everything is in Rao's hands," Jor-El said, putting his hand on his son's shoulder. "It may just be a simple illness."

"How could this happen? She's not on Earth."

"She no doubt picked it up on Earth or from one of the other brides. Don't worry, you can't catch it. Germs are unique to the location they inhabit."

Kal-El didn't care about himself. He would gladly be sick for her if he could. He couldn't lose her. He hadn't realized the depth of his feeling until now. He couldn't imagine his life without her.

His mother came in with a cold, wet cloth, "I have heard this will sometimes help them in sickness," she explained as she placed it on Lois' forehead. "I hope it is not an old wives' tale. I don't know what else to do."

"Get one of the Earth women," he said suddenly, wondering why he didn't think of it before.

"I'll find someone," Jor-El said, leaving immediately.

The cool cloth had calmed her down and ceased the thrashing. He removed her sweaty hair off of her face. It wasn't long before Jor-El made it back with one of the women.

The woman shook his hand, "I'm Ruth Pearson." She felt Lois' face. "Has she had any other symptoms besides the fever?"

"She looked a little pale and tired, but I don't think so. She hit her head when she fell down, but she lost consciousness before that."

"I am by no stretch of the imagination a medical doctor, but it seems to me that the unconsciousness is from the fever. The cool cloth will help, but I suggest sponging her with cold water. You just have to try and keep the fever down. I have some Tylenol with me. When she wakes up give her one and that should help get her fever down. If that doesn't take care of it, I'm really at a loss as to do."

"Thank you for coming over," Kal-El said.

"You're quite welcome."

Lara had already brought in a bowl of cold water and a sponge before Ruth made it out of the door.

Kal-El started sponging her immediately. His parents left him to the task. He stopped to test her forehead. She did feel a little cooler, but she was still hot. He kissed her burning but wet cheek and continued sponging.

sss

Lois slowly opened her eyes. Kal-El was sitting next to her. He held a glass of water and a pill in his hand. "Take this."

She didn't have the energy to protest. She took the pill dutifully.

Once she got her bearings, she remembered this morning, "I passed out, didn't I?"

He nodded. "You gave us a scare."

"And you've been nursing me the whole day?" she asked, seeing that the artificial light had already been cut off from outside.

He nodded again.

There was something so endearing about Kal-El caring enough to nurse her and being worried about her. She squeezed his hand. "Thank you."