A/N: I didn't realise it had been almost four months since the last prompt was uploaded. My apologies for that, I'll try for it not to take so long in the future. But I do hope that you enjoy this one. It was fun to write. This prompt was inspired by Episode 84 of Dragonball Super where 18 sneezes and wonders if she is getting a cold. I took the idea and ran with it.
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SNIFFLES
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Ah-choo.
"Bless you."
"Thank you."
Sniff.
Sniff.
Sniff sniff.
"Babe?" Krillin tipped his head to look towards 18. She was stretched out on the sofa, Marron curled up against her chest, sound asleep, and there was a warm blanket tossed over them both. It was a heartwarming sight to the young father. "Are you coming down with something?"
"No," 18 scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous, I don't get-" Aaaaaah-choooo. 18 was cut off from the end of her sentence by another sneeze.
"Uh-huh." Krillin grinned, feeling rather pleased with himself. He swooped across the living room, grabbing the tissue box on the way, and plonked himself down on the sofa beside 18. Without a word, or even defeat-admitting eye contact, 18 snatched a tissue and blew her nose. She didn't argue when Krillin pressed the back of his hand against her forehead. "You're a little bit warm," he said, his brow furrowing in sudden concern.
"I'm fine," 18 brushed him off while trying desperately not to sniff again.
"You're not," Krillin pushed back. While it was true that it was extremely unusual for his wife to get sick, it was by no means impossible. She had been unwell during her pregnancy with Marron, and had suffered a bout of food poisoning after a dodgy dinner cooked by Yamcha a few years back. Sure, she may have never picked up the common cold before, but up until a few years ago, they had lived on a very remote island, far away from people and their germs, in the middle of a warm tropical ocean. Of course she wasn't going to catch anything all the way out there.
"Why have you always got to make everything so difficult?" Krillin smiled warmly at his wife and kissed her on her clammy forehead. "You're sick," he tucked some hair back behind 18's ear. "Admit defeat."
"I will do no such thing." 18 sniffed loudly again, which she had to admit, considerably weakened her rebuttal. But still, she wasn't ready to concede just yet. "How on earth would I even catch a cold? That makes no sense, Krillin."
Krillin frowned. "Now you're just being stubborn," he said. "We we're out in the freezing rain all afternoon. Or have you already forgotten about that in your fever induced delirium?"
It had been one of those days today, with one strange turn of events after another. First, Goku and Gohan had shown up while Krillin was at work, then they managed to convince both himself and 18 to enter into the mysterious 'tournament-of-power'. From there, Krillin had managed to ring-out Gohan in a practice spar, and teach Goku a lesson about the power of teamwork. Krillin's body wasn't as young, or as forgiving, as it used to be though, and the aches and pains were beginning to set in now, but he was still floating on Cloud Nine after the fights. He'd never imagined that a day would come where he'd be able to say that he had been victorious against a Saiyan! Now, though, to end this unusual day on a sour note, it really did appear as though 18 was starting to come down with something.
Marron stirred in 18's lap and Krillin gently ran his hand over her soft blonde hair. Hopefully none of 18's germs would be passed along to Marron, because she was absolutely her mothers' daughter and the only thing Krillin wanted to be dealing with less than one sick and stubborn Chestnut woman right now, was two sick and stubborn Chestnut women. "I'm going to go and run you a warm bath ok? And don't even bother trying to argue with me, because I will pick you up and carry you in there myself if I have to." Krillin smiled and trotted off towards the bathroom.
18 sighed and kissed the top of Marron's head. She was starting to feel a little congested, not that she was going to admit it.
...
"Bath's ready."
18's eyes fluttered open, although she was 100 percent positive that she hadn't fallen asleep. The first thing she saw was Krillin's face hovering above her own. He looked properly concerned now. "18," he knelt down beside the couch and gave his wife a quick once over. It was highly unlike her to doze off like that.
"I'm fine," 18 answered his question before Krillin could even ask it. "Stop fussing over me."
"Never." Krillin smiled. He stood up and lifted Marron out of 18's lap, placing her down gently on a big, soft armchair and tucking the blanket around her. She never even stirred. Turning back to his wife, Krillin didn't give her a chance to protest before scooping her up into his arms.
"What are you doing?" 18 asked, but she didn't complain. Instead she draped her arms around Krillin, nuzzled her face into the crook of his neck and sighed contently.
The bathroom was warm and steamy. Krillin had spared no expense for his wife's comfort. Candlelight gave the room a soft orange glow, and there was a stick of incense burning. It was eucalyptus, Krillin explained, as he placed 18 down on a stool and lifted her shirt up over her head, apparently it would help to clear her sinuses. He had set up his phone to play relaxing rainforest sounds. Birds singing, a crashing waterfall and the roll of distance thunder echoed through the room.
"I hope it's not too warm." Krillin said, and reached around 18, expertly unclipping her bra and dropping it into the clothes hamper. He tilted her chin up toward him and gently kissed her.
"You didn't have to do this, you know," 18 said, but there was no stubbornness in her tone. She didn't protest any further as Krillin helped her shimmy out of her jeans, leaving her sitting naked on the bathroom stool. It was probably the warm, dark bathroom that was making her feel so sleepy all of a sudden, not her budding illness. Nevertheless though, she let Krillin lift her into the warm bath, and did have to admit that the warm water, the incense and the calming ambiance of the rainforest sounds was making her feel very relaxed. She closed her eyes and let herself enjoy the feeling of weightlessness.
Krillin squatted down to sit on his heels, and rested his forearms against the rim of the bath. For a moment, he just watched 18, she looked so peaceful in the flickering glow of the candles. So perfect. If this were any other day, he would've been fighting back the urge to climb in there with her.
"I'm going to go and lay out some pyjamas for you, soak in here for as long as you want, and then hop straight into bed. I'll bring you some medicine when you're ready."
"Alright," 18 was feeling worse by the minute, and she no longer had the mental energy, nor the desire to pretend to argue with Krillin.
...
"How's this one, Papa?" Marron held a blob of chicken mince in her hand, proudly showing it to her daddy.
"It's great, firefly," Krillin took the lump of chicken from her and quickly finished rolling it into a smooth, round ball. "You're sleeves are getting all dirty though, here" he leaned over and rolled the sleeves of Marron's jumper up to her elbows. "All better. Now where were we?"
"Makin' feel better dinner for Mama!" Marron chirped and picked up another chunk of chicken, which she attempted to roll into a ball. Meanwhile, Krillin was busy chopping up vegetables, and pressing out dough to make noodles.
"That's right," he said with a smile. "Thank goodness I've got you to help me!"
A happy smile beamed across Marron's face. She surveyed her handiwork. A dozen or so meatballs that varied in size from tiny to enormous, but which were each full of love. "I hope Mama feels better soon," she said, her little voice brimming with concern, "so she can play hide and go peep with me."
Krillin chuckled. Trunks and Goten and taught her that game, and it had become somewhat of an obsession since then. It wasn't unusual for him to have to seek out his daughter from her favourite hiding spots thirty times a day. "I'm sure Mama will play with you when she's feeling better, firefly."
Seemingly content with that answer, Marron let it go. "What are you doing now, Papa?" she asked, changing the subject.
"I'm making mama's soup," Krillin replied as he slid the meatballs, vegetables and noodles into a pot of broth. "Wanna help me stir it?"
Marron jumped up and down on the chair she was standing on, hardly able to contain her glee at being charged with such an important task. "Yes!" she exclaimed.
"Alright," Krillin hoisted Marron up onto his hip and handed her the spoon to stir the soup that was starting to simmer on the stovetop. "But you gotta be careful okay? It's hot."
"Alright, Papa."
Aaah-choo
Surprised by the sudden noise, both Krillin and Marron turned to look over their shoulders to see 18 standing in the doorway, quietly watching them. She was dressed in her warm pyjamas and slippers, and her hair, still damp from the bath was tied up in a knot on top of her head.
Marron's face fell into a frown. "Mama," she began, her voice stern, "why aren't you in bed?"
Krillin had to turn his face away to hide his snickering as Marron gave 18 a thorough telling off. She was a funny kid, obviously she got that from her dad. He turned back toward 18 just in time to see her expression change from shocked amusement into faux disappointment. "I'm sorry, Marron," she said, "but whatever you're cooking out here smells so good, that I just had to come and investigate." It did indeed smell delicious, which 18 found surprising to say the least, considering both her chefs this evening had no noses and therefore very limited senses of both smell and taste.
"Mama doesn't listen does she?" Krillin said to Marron, shaking his head. Her put the small girl down and sent her into the lounge to watch cartoons for a little while, before turning his focus back to his ailing wife. "Why don't you listen?"
"I feel better after the bath."
"No you don't."
18 didn't fight back as Krillin pushed her down the hallway towards their bedroom. He pulled back the covers and dutifully, she hoped into bed. Krillin disappeared for a moment, and when he returned he had the tissue box, a big glass of water and a packet of cold medicine with him. He popped two capsules from the packet and along with the water, handed them to 18 who swallowed them down like the good patient she was, or at least was trying to be.
"How do you feel?" Krillin sat down on the edge of the bed and took 18's hand in his own. "Really?"
"Tired and stuffy," 18 admitted.
"Please, promise me you're going to rest." The look in Krillin's eyes was one of genuine concern for his beloved wife. But there was more to it than that. "The tournament starts the day after tomorrow and I know you didn't believe that nonsense Goku was spouting about it being just for fun."
18 sniffed and Krillin handed her the tissue box. She blew her nose before replying. "Not for a second," she said. "Something bad is about to happen. Why would he want to invite 17, someone he's never met, if the stakes are as low as he says? Something is definitely going on."
"I agree," Krillin's voice dropped to a whisper, he didn't want Marron to accidentally overhear their conversation and start to worry. "That's why I need you to rest, okay. Please," he almost begged. "I don't know what's going on exactly, but I think we're about to walk into something big and I need you at full strength. If anything were to happen to you…" he let the end of the sentence hang between them. It was to awful a thought to put into words. "I just…. I couldn't…."
"I promise I'm going to rest," 18 squeezed Krillin's hand firmly. "And you know these things never affect me for very long. I'm sure I'll be fine by the morning."
That was true, Krillin had to concede. Her morning sickness with Marron had lasted a week at most, and that food poisoning had been and gone within a matter of hours, unlike the days it had wreaked havoc on Krillin's digestive system for. It did seem as though when it came down to it, 18's body was quite good at getting rid of things that weren't meant to be there. But still, Krillin wasn't taking any chances. There was too much on the line.
"Alright," he said, and leaned in and kissed 18. A shiver ran down his spine when he felt her smile against his lips. He couldn't even begin to put into words how much he loved this woman. "Let me fuss over you tonight, even though I know how much you hate it," he smiled. "And we'll reassess in the morning."
"Ok," 18 sighed. She couldn't say no to her husband. He was kind and sweet and caring and his concern for her welfare came from a love that was so deep and pure. 18 knew how lucky she was to have him. Krillin was the best husband and father in the world and she loved him more than she had even been aware that it was possible to love someone. She was grateful to have someone like him looking after her when she wasn't feeling well.
Plus she really wanted some of that soup.
...
A/N: Well there you have it! I hope you enjoyed this little prompt, and I would really love to hear your feedback on what I'm doing right and wrong!
If you'd like to submit your own prompts or follow my writing adventures, please come and join me on tumblr! (link in my bio) we have a lot of fun over there, and we always enjoy getting to chat with everyone!
Until next time,
Big Love
Deadly Beauty
