A/N: Word count: 1,245
Tags: Canonverse, Established Relationship, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Sick!Makoto

Back when they were still living in Iwatobi, Haruka's mornings wouldn't be complete without a reached-out hand, a gentle smile and a 'good morning, Haru-chan'. Now Makoto and he were no longer neighbours and their apartments were a train ride apart, this ritual had been replaced by a text to relay the sentiment: a hand and a smiling face emoji and 'good morning, Haru-chan' written beside them. It wasn't quite the same as seeing Makoto in person, but between the distance and their busy schedules, this was the best alternative and Haruka looked forward to the beep of his phone as he sat in the bath every morning.

So when that message didn't come, Haruka frowned. Figuring Makoto must've been in disarray and forgot to send it - although he couldn't imagine Makoto would forget him - Haruka stepped out of the tub and got dressed.

But by the time he was grilling mackerel, his inbox remained empty. This concerned Haruka, since Makoto was otherwise punctual when it came to these sorts of things. But he told himself Makoto probably went to bed a bit too late last night and overslept. To wake him and also to make sure nothing more serious was going on, he decided to ring Makoto. The instant he picked up, Haruka knew something was wrong.

"Hello?" Makoto said instead of his usual 'hey, Haru' and his voice sounded nasally and croaky.

"Makoto," Haruka said, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, I'm just… not feeling so well."

"Are you sick?" When Makoto only grunted in response, Haruka made up his mind. "I'm coming over."

"It's fine!" came Makoto's slurred answer. "It's just a cold, don't worry."

But Haruka did worry. This was the first time Makoto got sick since he started living by himself. Now, he was all alone, without his mother giving him medicine and making him broth. Depending on how bad he was feeling, he might not have even been able to fetch himself a glass of water.

"I'll be right there," Haruka said as he turned off the stove. "I'm going to eat my breakfast real quick and then I'm coming."

Before Makoto had the chance to protest further, Haruka hung up. While the rice finished cooking, Haruka emptied his kitchen in search of fresh ingredients to make soup with. Knowing Makoto, he most likely had nothing but microwavable meals and instant ramen. He was pretty sure Mrs. Tachibana stocked up a drawer of his desk with medicine, but he put a bottle of saline nasal spray and cough syrup in his bag anyway, to join the strip of aspirin that permanently resided there.

Once he had packed everything and scarfed down his meal, he went over to the train station with a hurry in his pace. Meanwhile, he sent Asahi a message to let him know Makoto was sick and they wouldn't be coming to Marron later, and asked if he could tell their coaches he was going to be absent for the day.

In less than a few seconds, he got a reply: 'No worries! I'll take notes for you too, so you take care of Makoto. Tell him to get well soon from Kisumi and me.'

A tiny smile curled Haruka's lips. Asahi was dependable as always.

The day they moved into their apartments, they switched out their spare keys in case of emergencies. They ended up using them quite liberally, so Haruka didn't think twice before he unlocked Makoto's door and let himself in.

"Makoto?" Haruka called to not spook him. He kicked off his shoes and walked in, straight to the bed where Makoto lied, curled up beneath the duvet. As he expected, aside from the small potted plant, the coffee table was empty. He put his bag down on the floor and gently shook the ball of sheets. "Hey."

A mop of brown hair emerged from the pile and Makoto turned around to face him. His cheeks were blazing red and his green eyes hazy, like they couldn't focus. "Haru?"

Haruka carded his sweat-soaked locks from his forehead. "You're burning up. What are your symptoms? Headache, stuffy nose, sore throat?"

"Yeah."

"Did you take any medication yet?"

"No."

"I'll get you some, then."

When he opened the fridge, he concluded his suspicions were right: inside it lied jars with condiments, a couple of bottles of sports drink, cold tea and water, and some easy-to-grab snacks. Not a trace of anything remotely healthy. Once Makoto was better, this required an intervention.

But for now, he grabbed a water bottle and closed the door without any comments. He popped two pills from the strip and put them on the table.

"Here," Haruka said as he helped Makoto sit upright, then he handed him the meds. "Have you eaten anything yet?"

Makoto shook his head and grimaced as he downed the pill. "I hate these."

"I know," Haruka said, trying his best to suppress a smile. Whenever he was sick, Makoto got so mopey, like a child that wanted to stay up past its bedtime despite nodding off on the couch. It was pretty cute. "But they'll help."

"Yeah," Makoto mumbled as he reluctantly swallowed the second pill, too.

"Do you need anything else? Tissues, nose spray, something for your throat?"

"No, thanks."

"Alright. I'll text one of your friends to let them know you're sick so you go back to sleep. If you need anything, just ask, okay? I'll be in the kitchen."

"Don't you have to go to class?" Makoto said, thick eyebrows contorting in confusion.

"I'm staying here; I won't leave you alone when you're like this," Haruka said and he took the bottle from his hands and put it on the table. "I'm going to make you some soup. I'll wake you when it's done."

"You don't have to do that. I can take care of myself."

"Makoto," Haruka said as he crossed his arms. "You have to eat something with these pills and your cabinets are next to empty. That's not very convincing. I'm staying here until you're better."

"I haven't had time to go to the grocery store yet," Makoto said, but they both knew it was a poor excuse. "Really, I'll be fine. Don't you have more important things to do?"

"Nothing that is more important than you."

The words left him without even realising it. If Makoto had been in any other state, Haruka would probably be embarrassed, but chances were Makoto wouldn't remember this later anyway.

"Thanks, Haru," Makoto said with a weak smile. "But what if you catch my cold?"

Haruka shrugged. "Then you can nurse me back to health. Now go to sleep already," he said with an amused huff. When Makoto lied back down, Haruka drew the covers up to his chin. "Sleep well and get better soon. You have well wishes from Asahi and Kisumi, too."

"Tell them I said thanks," Makoto mumbled, "Goodnight, Haru-chan. I love you."

"I love you too," Haruka said, and he pressed a kiss to Makoto's head.

It didn't take more than three seconds before Makoto's breathing grew heavier and he dozed off. Although it was sad to see him so under the weather, Haruka was glad he was here with him. School and swim practice could handle a few days without him. Now, the most important task for him to focus on was to get the soup boiling, and hopefully, Makoto would feel a bit better after eating it.

A/N: Thank you for reading and I hope to see you again tomorrow!