"This SUCKS." Nick groaned from the couch he lay on.

Ellis simply responded with a half-conscious moan from the other sofa in the living room, and Ashley just laughed from the kitchen.

"Here, soup's done whenever you feel like eating it."

She placed two bowls of tomato soup on the tables they had by their makeshift beds.

"Hey, Ashley.." Ellis rolled his head over to face her. "How come you ain't sick?"

Ashley snorted a laugh. "'Cause I am every other day of the week."

Nick tried to laugh but ended up wheezing into the blanket that covered him instead.

It was twelve twenty-three PM, and Ellis, Nick, and Ashley were in Nick and Ashley's living room.

Nick and Ellis, however, were sick with the flu.

Zoey was in New York visiting her grandparents, and the twins were at Rochelle's.

Two nights ago, Nick had shown few signs of not feeling well when Zoey had left for New York, and Ellis had asked permission to crash at their place, since it was late and Zoey had taken the car anyway. When Ashley got up in the morning, both men were sick. She rushed the twins over to Rochelle and Louis' and then returned home to play doctor.

Both men had been rendered basically immobilized from the sickness, whether from fatigue or muscle aches, and didn't disagree when Ashley gave them the orders not to get up from the couches they lay on. All they could eat was soup, which Ashley was quite good at making, as well as whatever pills she handed them every four hours or so.

Ashley felt bad for them as she had, in the past, had the flu before and knew exactly what they were going through.

"How're you feelin', baby?" Ashley sat on the coffee table that had been pulled up next to Nick.

She had a hand placed on his forehead, the other holding his.

Nick simply answered her question with a look of tiredness, annoyance, and plain old Nick style sarcasm.

"Brilliant."

Ashley rolled her eyes, and then laughed a little when Ellis began to snore loudly from the other side of the living room.

"Well, your fever hasn't gotten any worse, which is good. How are your neck and legs?"

"Neck's better, legs don't work." Nick said, head slumped back onto a pile of pillows, eyes closed.

Ashley frowned. "Well, get some sleep, baby." She gently kissed his forehead, and with a squeeze of his hand, headed towards the stairs.

Now that they would both be sleeping, she would have a chance to, as well. Until one of them hollered for something, that was.

Ashley shook her head as she walked into the bedroom.

"Just like taking care of the twins.." she mumbled to herself, slumping onto the bed.

She sighed deeply, wincing at the pain in her chest. She'd been having chest pains and breathing trouble all day, but she didn't want to mention it because she knew the sickly men downstairs would want to do something about it, even in their state of semi-paralysis. Especially Nick.

Well, it's nothing I haven't dealt with before, I'll be fine. She thought to herself as she closed her eyes, wishing for sleep. And soon enough, it came to her.

Two hours later

Nick groaned as he slowly lifted his head, blinking himself awake. His neck, which didn't hurt nearly as much as the day before, now had a crick in it he was trying to work out, when he suddenly heard the sound of choking.

Ashley.

Nick threw the blanket off of him and ran for the stairs, his body soon reminding him that his legs didn't work the way he wanted them to, and the pain from his muscle aches caused him to trip and slam his leg into a bar on the stair rail.

He cursed under his breath and limped as fast as he could to get to his wife.

"Ashley, Ashley, hey, you're okay. You're okay." he reassured her as he dropped down and scooped her up on the bathroom floor.

He frantically shifted sideways until he could reach the nebulizer laying on the counter. He held the mask to her face with one hand and hit the switch with the other.

Soon enough, she stopped coughing, her eyes fluttered shut, and she began to breathe deeply and normally.

After a few moments, she opened her eyes and reached for the mask. "I told you not to get up." she croaked.

Nick just gave her a look and put the mask back over her mouth, and she closed her eyes once more, her head resting in his lap.

Then she sat up, removing the mask, but before Nick could protest, she set it on the counter.

"I'm fine, I can breathe now." she assured him.

Hesitating, he gave her an uneasy look, then flipped the switch off.

He helped her up and the two began to make their way back down to Ellis.

Halfway down the stairs, Ashley noticed Nick was limping.

"Nick, what happened?"

"I tripped," he shrugged. "My legs weren't ready to run stairs but I kinda needed them to."

He made his way to the couch and Ashley propped his leg up for further examination.

"Oh my Gosh, Nick!"

Ellis had now stumbled over to Ashley to see what her exclamation was all about.

"Nick, what happened t' yer leg?" his words slurred from medication induced sleep.

"I fell on the stairs, what's wrong with it, Ashley?"

She had a semi-horrified look on her face and was shaking her head slightly.

"Ashley?"

"Nick, I.. I think it's broken." she turned to him.

Nick's face fell. "You're serious,"

Ashley nodded.

Nick shook his head. "This is not happening."

Ashley frowned sympathetically. "I'm afraid it is, babe.."

Nick threw his head back with a frustrated groan.

"Ellis, can you go get those old crutches out of the hall closet?"

Ellis slowly nodded, but didn't take a step.

"..Ellis?"

His head snapped up to face Ashley. "Hm?"

"Crutches?"

"Right, right." he nodded. "Sorry."

Nick glared at the crutches as Ellis brought them out.

"Come on, Nick, you don't have to stay on them. It's just to get you to the car."

He let out a frustrated sigh and tugged himself off the couch using the two long metal rods.

"I hate everything."

"Okay, Francis, just get in the car.."

Ellis cracked up at Ashley's comment but the crippled Nick only seemed to grumble more.

Ashley helped him up into the Jeep, as his car had not yet been replaced, and Ellis watched them pull out of the driveway before he drug his feet back to the couch and fell asleep once again.

"It's green."

Ashley looked up and set her phone in the cup holder. She didn't text and drive, but occasionally sent a message or two at red lights.

A moment passed, and then Nick wondered. "Who were you texting, anyway?"

"Oh, no one." Ashley couldn't help but smile a bit.

Nick turned to face her. "You didn't!"

Ashley was now full-on grinning.

"Ashley!" Nick groaned. "Now everyone is gonna show up over this!"

Ashley laughed, pleased with herself for having told Rochelle where they were going and that visitation was welcome.