Naruto quietly sat in the chair by Sasuke's hospital bed. The raven was currently taking a nap, the pale face was slightly contorted with what looked like pain. The blonde frowned as Sasuke let out a pained groan.

The blonde sat back in his chair and placed a hand on his large belly. In the two weeks since he found out he was having four kids, it seemed like his belly was growing larger everyday.

Naruto felt his energy start to recover but it seemed like Sasuke's condition was getting worse. Naruto could tell that the raven was trying to hide how much actual pain he was in but the blonde could read Sasuke better than he knows.

Naruto let out a sigh and reached out for Sasuke's hand, giving it a light squeeze. He smiled to himself as he felt a very gentle squeeze back and the pained look on his face turned peaceful.

A light knock on the door interrupted his thoughts. He turned to see Tenten giving him a small smile. "One of the doctors was looking for you. Do you want more time for lunch?"

He smiled back at her before shaking his head. "No, I can get back to work." He started to get up, the weight of his belly causing him to struggle.

Tenten hurriedly walked into the room, offering her assistance. "Are you sure? You're twenty weeks pregnant, we don't want you to overwork yourself."

After standing up, Naruto waved her off. "I'm fine. I have all this newfound energy, might as well put it to work." His grin grew larger.

Tenten giggled. "Alright. Just remember to keep hydrated and take breaks as needed."

"Don't worry, I know." He looked down at Sasuke. "He had his medication almost an hour ago. By the time I'm done with my shift, he should be ready to go home."

Tenten nodded and watched the blonde make his way to the door. "I'll look after him for you. Have a good rest of your shift!"

Naruto replied with a 'thank you' as he made his way to the nurses station.

Sasuke awoke to an empty room. He groaned in pain as he attempted to sit up only to fall back down. He panted as he tried to catch his breath, the little movement causing him to be tired already. "Shit." He muttered to himself as he threw his arm over his eyes.

All he wanted was for things to go back to normal. The constant fatigue was starting to get to him. He wanted to enjoy Naruto's pregnancy, but with the constant sleeping and worrying over any injury that may happen, he felt he was missing out.

He pulled his arm away only to notice a spot on his arm. He narrowed his eyes and held his arm farther away to notice it was a bruise. He frowned and lightly pressed on it, only to his in pain.

"Hey there, Sasuke. What's up?" Sasuke turned towards the door to see Tenten standing in the doorway.

"Uh, hey there, Tenten." He turned to look back at his arm. "Hey, do you know anything about what happened to my arm?"

Tenten frowned. "Your arm?" She walked into room and up to the side of his bed. She lightly grabbed his arm and looked carefully at the bruise. "Yeah, that's a bruise."

"It wasn't there when I got here." He didn't sound accusing, more so a statement.

"Unfortunately, unexpected bruising is a common symptom in aplastic anemia. Just try not to touch it too much and it should begin to heal on its own in a couple days. Make sure to drink plenty of water to help speed up the process."

"Will do. Can you help me, sit up?" Sasuke felt his face heat up at the request. How sad is it that he now needed help just to sit up in his bed? He wanted to pull the covers his head and hide until this was all over.

Tenten made no reaction to indicate she thought any less of him. Instead, she gave him a genuine smile. "Of course, Sasuke." She got closer to him and began to help him up. "Naruto should be done with his shift soon and then he'll take you home."

"Sounds good."

She took a step back after adjusting his pillow to help his comfort. "How's that?"

Sasuke nodded. "It's good, thank you."

"Mhm." Her smile turned into a concerned look as she reached for the chair and brought it close to Sasuke's bed. "I'm concerned about Naruto."

At the mention of his husband's name, Sasuke gave his full attention to the brunette. "What about him? Is he okay?"

Tenten sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "That's the thing, he says he's okay but he's pregnant. He's so good at his job and the doctors rely on him so much, and we know how he is," she laughed nervously. "He can't say no to anyone. He claims he has all this energy, but Sasuke, if he doesn't slow down, he's going to crash and it's not just himself that it'll be affecting." She stared at him intently.

Sasuke's eyes widened at Tenten's concerned confession. "Don't you think the doctor's would notice if they were overworking their nurses? I mean, they're doctors for a reason."

Tenten gave him a sad smile. "You would think that'd be the case, but it's not. Doctors are so busy trying to save their patients lives, they neglect to realize that their nurses are people too. And nurses have the same need to save people just like doctors, that sometimes they forget they themselves are humans too. I just want to make sure Naruto is okay. He's such a kind soul, I'd hate for him to be struggling."

Sasuke looked down at his lap, a small smile on his face as he pictured the blonde's smiling face. "Yeah, he's one of a kind. I'm so lucky to have him." He looked up at Tenten, a determined look on his face. "I'll have a talk with him tonight. I'll make sure he knows he has all the help, love and support that he needs."

Tenten smiled brightly up at him before standing up with a leap. "Thank you, Sasuke. Is there anything you need from me?"

Sasuke shook his head in response.

"Alright then, I'll see you later, Sasuke!" She gave him a wave before leaving.

Sasuke watched her go before frowning to himself. He hoped the blonde would tell him if he was being overworked, but he knew Naruro. Ever since he met him, he knew that the blonde had a hero personality and would sacrifice his needs to help out a person in need. The raven let out a long sigh and ran a hand through his hair. He glanced at the door. He'll make sure to get the truth out of him.

Naruto slowly dragged himself into the locker room. He made his way to the wooden bench that was closest to his locker. He let out a long groan as he struggled to sit down.

Despite his confidence in his energy levels, the second half of his shift was brutal. Apparently during his lunch a few pile up victims were rushed to the hospital. The next four hours were hectic with hardly any breaks, if any.

He let out a breath of relief as he took off his shoes. He lifted his legs to look at his feet which were swollen. He tried to reach forward to rub them but his large stomach stopped him from even being able to reach his knees. He whined to himself as he set his feet back on the floor.

He began to undress from his scrubs and pulled out his clothes. He packed up his scrubs and placed them in his small duffel bag and closed the locker door. He then began to make his way to Sasuke's room.

The walk felt like it took double the time. As he saw the door, he leaned against the wall, trying to catch his breath. After a few deep breaths, he stood up straight and smiled brightly and then walked through the door.

"Hey Sasuke, how are you feeling?" Naruto walked up to the bed as Sasuke turned to look at him. He leaned down and kissed the raven's lips in greeting.

"Honestly, not that great." Sasuke frowned after Naruto pulled away. He watched as Naruto also frowned as he sat down in the chair that Tenten was sitting in earlier.

He was hoping that him being honest with his pain would also encourage Naruto to be honest too.

"What's going on?" Naruto asked, trying to get comfortable in the chair.

"Well," he turned away. It was hard to admit these things. "I'm just getting weaker and weaker. Tenten had to help me sit up. It was embarrassing."

"Aw, my poor Sasuke." Naruto lightly snickered. He placed a hand on Sasuke's side and lightly feathered his fingers on the spot. "I'm so sorry you have to go through this." Naruto's tone turned somber as he began to absentmindedly trace shapes on Sasuke's side.

Sasuke placed his hand on top of Naruto's and gently rubbed the soft, tan skin in reassurance. "You don't have to apologize, Naruto."

Naruto let out a defeated sigh. "I know but it still sucks." He glanced up at Sasuke before doing a double take, focusing on the pale arm in front of him. "What happened here?" He grasped Sasuke's arm, staring at the bruise.

"Tenten said some bruising happens for no reason." Sasuke shrugged it off.

The blonde was silent, staring. Suddenly an overwhelming sadness overcame him and he felt tears begin to sting his eyes. "Shit." He hissed out, letting Sasuke's arm go to wipe at his eyes.

"Hey, don't cry." Sasuke tries to reach for the blonde, only to grunt in pain, causing the blonde to cry harder. "Naruto." The raven frowned.

"I know! I can't help it! It's these stupid hormones!" Naruto pouted, giving a glare to the raven. But with the tears still steadily falling, Sasuke could only chuckle at the look. "Don't laugh at me, teme."

"Alright, alright." Sasuke chuckled once more. "How about we get some dinner and have a nice relaxing night in?"

Naruto nodded. "Okay. Sounds like a plan."

The couple was getting ready for bed after having dinner at a casual restaurant. Afterwards, the two headed home where they watched a movie together.

Sasuke sat cross-legged on the bed, watching as Naruto was finishing his night time routine. "Hey Naruto, I want to ask you something."

The blonde turned his head to look at him, a curious look on his face. "Yeah? What's up?"

Sasuke studied the blonde before taking a deep breath. "Are you doing okay?"

Naruto narrowed his eyes. "Am I doing okay? What is that supposed to mean?"

"You're not overworking yourself, right?"

"Oh." Naruto gave him a bright grin. "Of course not! I'm doing just fine!"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, still not convinced he was telling the whole truth. "Are you sure? The doctor's aren't making you run around? We can afford you not working, Naruto."

Naruto shook his head. He turned off the lights for the bathroom before waddling his way over to the bed. He climbed on and sat next to the raven. "Sasuke, you know it's not about the money for me when it comes to my job."

Sasuke sighed, rubbing his temple. "I know it's not about money."

Naruto gave him a mocking smile. "Then why'd you say it?"

Sasuke gave him a slightly annoyed look, causing the blonde to snicker. "Stop avoiding my first question."

Naruto's grin fell and he turned away. "It's a hospital, Sasuke. And I'm a nurse. There's a lot of running around I have to do."

"You're twenty weeks pregnant, Naruto. With FOUR babies. It's not just about you anymore."

Naruto clicked his tongue. "I know that! I'm fine, Sasuke."

"I'm just saying, to help take the load off, we can hire a house nurse for myself while you're at work."

"Absolutely not. I trust you being taken care of by my coworkers then some stranger I don't even know." Naruto glared, crossing his arms over his chest.

Sasuke could feel a headache coming on. He didn't want to argue. "Okay, just know at any time, when things get hard, let someone know so that we can help, can you promise me that, Naruto?"

Naruto uncrossed his arms. He sighed and nodded. "Yeah. I promise. When I need the help, I'll ask for it."

"Thank you." Sasuke gave him a small smile. Naruto returned it with a large grin of his own. "Now let's go to bed."

The two lied down, Sasuke on his back, Naruto curled into Sasuke's side as best as he could with his belly in the way.

"I love you, Naruto." He kissed the tan forehead.

"I love you too, Sasuke."

oOooOooo

Hey everyone! Hope everyone is staying safe during this crazy coronavirus pandemic. Seems like now I have no excuse to not catch up with my writing anymore, haha.

From this point, the plot will probably be a little slower than the time skips that were in this story so now there'll be a more continuous plotline.

As always, if you liked it, please favorite and review!

~tachiequillsluv