Written for an anon prompt on my sneezehq tumblr that included the words "a change of clothes, spilled soup, and a humidifier." In my mind this is set v7ish, but really it can be set anytime. Enjoy!
"Here you go, Ruby," Penny calls as she enters the room. "I brought you a change of clothes."
"Thanks, Penny," Ruby says hoarsely, flushing a little at the reminder that her current pajamas are still stained from the soup-spilling incident earlier. "You didn't have to do that, though. I was going to go get some new pajamas in a minute."
"You're right, I didn't have to do it," Penny agrees with a shrug. "But I wanted to. That's something that friends do for each other, right? Take care of each other when they're sick?"
"Well, yeah, they do," Ruby replies hesitantly, glancing around at all the stuff that Penny had brought over to the small dorm room the moment she'd learned that Ruby was sick: boxes of tissues, cough drops, blankets, some of Ruby's favorite books, even a humidifier. "But you've already done so much for me already today."
"Because I wanted to," Penny repeats. "So that I can help my friend when she's not feeling well. Because she's important to me."
"Oh," Ruby says stupidly, suddenly overwhelmed by fondness for her friend. "Well, thanks."
"You're welcome, Ruby!" Penny says brightly, beaming at her. "Now, will you allow me to continue assisting you with your illness?"
"Uh, sure," Ruby replies awkwardly, fidgeting with the blankets on her lap. "I'm probably just going to sleep for now, but you're welcome to stick around, if you want."
"Then I shall be here when you wake up!" Penny announces cheerfully, as if there's nothing else in the world that she'd rather do than hang out with Ruby while she's gross and sick. "Sleep well, Ruby."
Nestling further into her nest of blankets, Ruby shuts her eyes and listens as Penny bustles around quietly in the small room. Perhaps, just this once, she can allow herself to be taken care of.
Thank you for reading! Please leave a review if you liked it.