Verdurous Seas, Cerulean Skies

First Date

"A-CHOO!"

"Whoa, Ledo. You okay? That's, like, the tenth time you've sneezed in the last hour. You're not catching something, are you?"

Ledo sniffled and rubbed his nose before continuing his task. The oil from the old Yunboro parts was rank, but the odor had little to do with his misty eyes and burning nose.

Gargantia was currently above the remains of a sunken cargo ship that the excavation team had looted several times in the past. Bellows called it the "bottomless treasure trove" because every time they came upon the wreckage, her team always managed to find some interesting treasures (and when Bellows said interesting, she really meant expensive). However, as the ship was still in the process of slowly decaying, it was considered too dangerous for new recruits, including Haru, despite having more experience than Ledo, but neither complained as this provided them a very rare opportunity: a week of freedom. But unfortunately, that also meant a week without pay, so Haru thought of a lucrative venture that would occupy them during their free time.

As of two days ago, Haru and Ledo had been hard at work assisting Haru's older brother, Joe. Some of the men who usually worked in the cargo hold were unavailable for a variety of different reasons, so Haru offered on Ledo's behalf to help his big brother.

And although he knew Haru was only teasing, he'd be lying if he said he wasn't feeling a little under the weather. "I think it's just the fumes from the oil."

"You can take a break if you want then." Both young men turned to see Joe approaching them. "I don't want you passing out or getting sick on the job. God forbid you get heatstroke thanks to me." He offered them both water bottles. Ledo was quick to gulp almost all of his down. Noticing the two brothers staring at him, he reluctantly stopped, clearing his throat. "Thirsty much?"

"Yeah, Ledo. You're acting totally weird. Maybe you really are sick."

"I'm fine," he insisted. His nose wrinkled as he felt another sneeze coming on, and he did his best not to let his body betray him. "The smell of the oil is just…"

"Too much?" Joe offered. "Sorry. I thought you guys wouldn't want to use the Yunboros considering you don't have to work for the rest of the week. Packaging just seemed like the next obvious task. I didn't take into account that you might have some sort of adverse reaction to the chemicals in the leftover parts. They're very harmless, but the smell can be too much if you're around it for too long, or if you're not used to it. I can assign you something else, if you want."

"It's no trouble, Joe. Really."

Joe still looked concerned, but glancing down at his watch, he saw that it didn't really matter at this point. "Work day's over, anyway. Good work today, boys."

"Thanks, bro! I'm gonna take this guy home before he passes out," Haru said playfully, wrapping an arm around Ledo.

Joe laughed, tussling his younger brother's hair. "Just don't stay out too late."

After glaring at Joe, Haru dragged Ledo away. Once they were alone, Haru dropped his facetious façade, the worrisome look on his face almost identical to that of his older brother. "Seriously, Ledo, are you okay?"

"Yes, Haru."

"Are you sure?" Seeing Ledo's eyebrow twitch, Haru backed off. "Sorry. It's just that I've never seen you look so under the weather. Do spacemen even get sick?"

Ledo just rolled his eyes. "It's nothing. Like your brother said, I'm just not used to being around those chemicals."

Haru frowned, his arms crossed in an almost serious manner. "Well… if that's the case, we have masks for stuff like that. Next time ask for one. Seriously, Ledo, if something's wrong, you've got to say something. Wouldn't want anything bad happening to you on the job. Joe would never let me live it down, not to mention Bellows would sever my boy goods if something happened to her favorite rookie…" He put Ledo into a headlock, rubbing a fist into his head.

Unfortunately, this only served to give Ledo a severe headache. He quickly escaped Haru's grasp and smiled reassuringly. "I'm sorry I worried you, but I promise I'm okay. I'll see you tomorrow."

"See ya, Ledo!"

Ledo sped away to his apartment before collapsing against the door and releasing the sneeze he was holding in, the sting in his nose intensifying the headache he'd been enduring. The noise disrupted a napping Aria, who immediately hid behind his flute, her bushy tail bristling twice its size. After calming down, the short-eared squirrel perked up when she saw her human companion at the door. She flew over to him, landing on the table instead of his shoulder like she normally would whenever he arrived home. She sniffed his hand and her head cocked to the side as if she were trying to figure out what was wrong with him. He scratched her chin in reassurance, but her tail was still bristling.

"I'm fine, Aria." She still didn't seem to believe him, but he ignored the look she was giving him.

Ledo refused to believe he was sick.

After several months on Earth, Ledo had been exposed to several terrestrial maladies most common on Gargantia. Bebel succumbed to a few of these diseases easily due to his weak immune system, the most relentless being the infamous "common cold", a harmless albeit contagious condition that lasted less than a week, but there were some rare cases. About a month ago, Pinion had fallen ill to a seasonal virus that rendered him basically useless for almost two weeks, infecting him with symptoms such as fever, achiness, and nausea. There were other diseases, some not as brief or mild in some parts of the fleet, but Dr. Oldham assured him as long as he kept to his regular routine, he didn't have to worry about them.

But Ledo wasn't sick. He was confident his advanced immune system would protect him from any diseases, viral or otherwise. Besides, he couldn't afford to be sick; tomorrow was way too important.

Tomorrow, Ledo was going on his first date with Amy.

Ledo was still learning about the social rituals of Earth, but the idea of him and Amy finally spending quality time together without having to hide from their friends was nice. Of course Amy was the one who asked him, though from what Pinion and Haru had told him it was usually the other way around, but Ledo didn't care. He and Amy were a couple now, and he was not going to let anything ruin their first date tomorrow.

So he definitely could not get sick right now.

But he couldn't deny that he was feeling a little below par. But only a little. Seeing as he didn't have enough energy to even make dinner, he decided to go to bed early.

I probably just need to rest.

Five lethargic strides later, Ledo was able to drag himself over to his bed, falling face first onto the weathered mattress and drifting off to sleep. He was confident that he would feel much better after a good night's rest.

Meanwhile, shortly after he had fallen asleep, Aria flew back over to the nightstand and watched over her companion anxiously, sensing that something was very, very wrong…

~VSCS~

Amy couldn't help giggling and blushing as she thought about tonight.

After weeks of shy glances, subtle flirting, and constant teasing from their friends, she and Ledo were finally going out.

They had been an alleged couple for some time now, but Melty, Saaya, and the others thought that they should make it official. Amy agreed, only because she knew Ledo was still oblivious about this stuff and if she didn't make the first move, Melty would do it, and not on her behalf. So to avoid such a catastrophe and taking advantage of his week off, she asked him to meet her at a restaurant. When he agreed, her heart skipped a beat. It wasn't like he was going to say no, but hearing him say yes brought about tremendous relief.

This is the best day of my life!

"She's finally going out with the hottie! I thought this day would never come!"

"You're acting as if you're the one going on the date, Melty."

"I would be if these two took any longer admitting their feelings. But alas, it was not meant to be. Everybody knows that Ledo only has eyes for this troublemaker…"

Amy decided to let Melty have her fun and rag on her. Nothing was going to ruin this date. "Thanks for letting me get ready here, Saaya. I didn't think Bebel would want to be around all this girl talk."

The older girl smiled as she brushed the brunette's hair. "It's no problem. So, are you excited?"

"You bet!"

"Well, don't get too excited," Melty warned, although her tone was anything but serious. "Wouldn't wanna wind up doing something you'll regret…"

"Melty!" Amy's face turned the brightest shade of red. "We're just going out to dinner! We've never even kissed!"

"You haven't?!"

"Ignore her, Amy." Saaya put the brush down and hugged the brunette from behind. "You two don't have to do anything you don't want to. It is your first date, after all. Just have fun."

Amy smiled, squeezing Saaya's arms gratefully. "Thanks, Saaya."

After helping her get ready, Melty and Saaya escorted her to the marketplace. Once they were in front of the restaurant, her friends left her, wishing her good luck, in Melty's case. The eatery where she planned to meet Ledo was a hotspot for young couples, and they served the most decadent dishes on the entire fleet. However, it was also expensive, so this would probably be their last date at this establishment. Since it was the middle of the week, the place was practically vacant; it took Amy no time at all to find a table. She chose a window seat, which provided her the perfect view of the ocean. The sun was barely touching the edge of the water, emitting a fiery halo that stretched out across the horizon. Ledo would love it.

A few minutes after she seated herself, someone took her drink order. Afterwards, she began drawing imaginary pictures on the surface of the table as she waited for her date, glancing at the entrance every so often. She nearly jumped up from the table whenever someone moved through the noren. Unfortunately, it wasn't Ledo. But that was okay. She had only gotten there five minutes ago, and she didn't expect him to be early. There was plenty of time for their date to start before it got too late. However, a few hours and thirteen customers later, it didn't look like their date was going to happen anytime soon. Looking back at the window, she saw that the sun was almost completely engulfed by the sea, its candescent crown fading from the celestial sky.

So much for nothing ruining this date. What's taking him so long?

Amy had a feeling that Ledo's tardiness had little to do with losing track of time. Ledo's mind was like a steel trap, so there was no way he would forget about their date. He was too loyal to bail out on his friends, and he definitely wouldn't bail on her on a night like this. Her gut twisted at the thought of something happening to him—and not having anything to eat for several hours—but she didn't want to jump to any conclusions. At least, not hastily.

Maybe he lost his nerve? …No, Ledo doesn't get nervous about stuff like this… Maybe he got lost on his way to the restaurant? He's still unfamiliar with some parts of the fleet. Or maybe something bad did happen to him. Oh my gosh! What if he got hurt working in the cargo hold! I knew I should have made him work in the mailroom! At least he'd less likely be crushed by tiny envelopes than by giant crates! Or maybe he…!

Assuming the absolute worst, Amy jetted out of the restaurant and began heading home, running into a familiar face on the way. Or rather, a familiar ball of fur.

"Aria?" The little squirrel was chittering up a storm, which Amy immediately translated as a bad sign.

"Oi, Amy! You okay?"

There was no harm in getting a second, human opinion, though. "Haru! Have you seen, Ledo?"

He rubbed the back of his neck as he contemplated. "Mmm… Nope. Sorry, I haven't seen him since I walked him home yesterday. Wait a minute…" A mischievous smirk crawled onto his face. "Aren't you two supposed to be on a date right now?"

"How did you…?" A certain blonde came to mind. Of course Melty would blab to all their friends about the date. It seemed no one in their social circle knew how to mind their own business. "Never mind. Ledo didn't show up. I think something might've happened to him."

Amy was surprised to see how quickly the roguish smirk on the older boy's face turned into a worrisome scowl. He turned away from Amy and began mumbling to himself. "Damn it, Ledo! Should've known you'd lie about something like this…"

"Haru?"

He looked over his shoulder and nearly winced at the desperate look on the young woman's face. "You should go check on him, Amy. I wasn't so sure about what I saw yesterday but… you should definitely check on him…"

Amy's blood ran ice-cold at his ominous words. Haru might've been juvenile at times, but he knew when to stop joking around when the situation called for it. If he was telling her to go home, then she was running the hell home.

She increased her speed as she approached the apartment, running up the stairs in record time and nearly knocking down Ledo's door. What she saw nearly made her heart stop. "Ledo!"

~FIVE HOURS EARLIER~

When Ledo woke up the next day, he felt even worse than he had last night.

As soon as he opened his eyes, they were stung by the light penetrating the jaded curtains. His head was pounding, his vision was fuzzy, his nose was congested, and his throat was very, very dry. As he sat up, an overwhelming wave of nausea washed over him, and he quickly covered his mouth to quell it and allow himself enough time to rush to the bathroom. He barely made it to the toilet before everything he ate yesterday came right up. After a few more seconds of retching, Ledo lied down on the floor, feverish and cold. His already dry throat was now sour with bile and his limbs ached as he shook, each spasmodic movement an explosion of excruciating pain. He curled up into the fetal position and wrapped his arms around himself to stop the tremors.

This was probably the closest he felt to dying (and that was saying a lot considering his former military status).

Despite his nausea, his stomach rumbled angrily now that it was empty, but the thought of food itself made him want to vomit again. The only physical comfort he had at the moment was the cold floor of the bathroom; even though it barely did anything to bring down his fever, moving felt so much worse.

But he knew he couldn't stay on the floor forever. Eventually, the ache in his stomach would overpower his nausea, and if he wanted to show up for his date with Amy on time—

AMY!

There was no way in hell he was going anywhere, especially like this! He could barely move, and whenever he tried his nausea returned. He couldn't let her down, either. He would never forget the smile on her face when he agreed to go on this outing with her. But in this pathetic state, leaving was not an option. Somehow, he needed to tell her, and if not her, someone.

"A-Aria…" It came out as a pathetic whimper, but if the flying squirrel was around, she'd come for him. On cue, Aria swooped right into the bathroom and landed just a few centimeters from his nose. She seemed reluctant to approach him further, which meant she was aware that he very sick. "Aria… find… help…" The little squirrel licked his sweaty cheek before leaving the bathroom, hopefully doing as he had requested.

After ten minutes of excruciating efforts, painful groans, and another bout of vomiting, Ledo finally made it out of the bathroom. Ironically, his stomach was growling ravenously, but he didn't have the strength to make anything. Then he remembered there was some leftover rice in the cabinet from when Amy and her friends had come over and made dinner a few days ago. Unfortunately, the cabinet was over the stove, which meant he'd have to reach up to retrieve it. But first he'd have to get off the floor.

He heaved himself onto a chair and took a moment to catch his breath before struggling to his feet. As soon as he took his first step towards the kitchen, he was back on the floor, having tripped over the blanket he tossed when he had fled to the bathroom. His head landed against the hard surface, jarring him and scattering any comprehensive thoughts he had left. Whatever energy remained inside of him fizzled out, and it wasn't long before he blacked out.

~VSCS~

When he woke up again, he felt something cold and wet on his forehead. Reaching up, he realized he was back in bed as his hand slipped from under the covers, and there was a wet cloth on his forehead. He didn't remember ever reaching the bed before he passed out, not that it mattered at the moment. His fever was lower and his body didn't ache as much when he moved. Someone had obviously hauled his body into the bed, and from the sounds coming from the kitchen, they were still here.

As he tried to sit up, the motion in the kitchen stopped. Whoever was taking care of him must have noticed him moving as Ledo heard harried footsteps coming closer and closer.

"What are you doing? Don't move!" Amy gently pushed him back down on the bed. She removed the cloth from his forehead and replaced it with a cooler one. But Ledo ignored her and sat up again.

"How'd you—?" Ledo barely got those words out before he felt nauseated again.

Seeing the look on his face, Amy pushed him back down. "I told you to stop moving, idiot. You hit your head hard, and you need rest." She went back to the kitchen and returned with a mug full of something steamy and kind of… pleasant. "It's ginger tea. It'll help your stomach."

Ledo took a sip and nearly melted in ecstasy. Granted it was just tea, but it was the only thing he'd consumed in 24 hours. His nausea seemed to have disappeared almost immediately and his throat felt less sore. After one long sip, he asked again, "How'd you know I was here?" His voice was hoarser than usual and his throat felt gritty as he spoke. Amy let him take another sip before she answered.

"Well, I figured something must have happened when you didn't show up for our date," Amy said. "I know you wouldn't have stood me up on purpose, so I was afraid that something bad happened. Aria found me as I was heading here," the flying squirrel chirruped from Amy's shoulder at the mention of her name, "and then I ran into Haru." Ledo grimaced at the mention of his partner. "Ledo, why didn't you tell anyone you were sick?"

"I didn't think I was," he confessed abashedly. "I've never been sick before."

"Really?"

"The Galactic Alliance took extensive measures to make sure that their top-tier soldiers were at the peak of health. The only time anyone's sick is…" Suddenly, an image of his deceased brother came to mind. Now that he thought about it, that was the only time he'd ever been around anyone sick when he'd first became a member of the Galactic Alliance, and whatever his brother had was terminal. Other than that, common colds and influenza were basically non-existent, so Ledo was never exposed to any kind of disease.

"I guess that shouldn't surprise me," Amy said. "But next time something like this happens, tell me. And if you can't do that, tell someone. I mean it, Ledo. You have no idea how scared I was when you didn't show up. If anything had happened to you…" Her voice quivered, tears building up at the corners of her eyes.

Ledo felt a huge wave of guilt. He reached over and took her hand. "I didn't mean to make you worry, Amy. I was also really looking forward to tonight … I'm so sorry I ruined it for you."

Laughing quietly, Amy wiped her eyes and squeezed his hand reassuringly. "I wouldn't say tonight was ruined. We may not be in a fancy restaurant and it's not the most romantic setting, but at least we're alone together. That was all I really wanted." Ledo blushed at the implication of her words, his face seeming to glow tenfold due to his slight fever.

The moment was ruined by the grumbling of Amy's stomach, and then his shortly after. "I-I haven't eaten in a while, so I hope you don't mind that I raided your kitchen." She went into the kitchen and returned with two bowls of rice porridge. "It's nothing fancy, but your stomach probably can't handle anything else right now." Before she could start eating, Ledo held out his hand.

"Wait. Turn off the lights." Amy looked at him curiously before doing as he said. The room was practically pitch dark until Ledo drew back the curtain next to his bed, allowing the brilliant light of the night sky to fill up the room.

Amy couldn't help staring at the young man in awe. The moon illuminated him, making him appear seraphic rather than feverish, his hoary locks a halo and his pallid face luminescent. His mauve eyes, which were now looking up at the sky, were filled with that child-like innocence and wonder that made her fall in love with him a year ago.

Without thinking, Amy joined him on the bed and kissed him whole-heartedly. Pulling back, she rested her forehead against his, smiling as brightly as the stars. This time, it was Ledo's turn to stare. It was their first kiss, and Amy was being so nonchalant about it. Not to mention he was as sick as a dog. "A-Aren't you afraid of getting sick?" he said once she pulled back.

Amy giggled softly and kissed him again, this time lingering a bit longer before drawing back slowly. "So be it."

After a while, Ledo held Amy in his arms and sighed, relishing the coolness of her skin against his. Despite how disastrous this day had started, he never wanted this night to end.

Fever long forgotten and hunger waned, the couple fell asleep under the light of moon, a perfect ending to a luckless albeit wonderful first date.