You know, when I first wrote this fic, I intend to write one-shot only. Now, it's already the fourth chapter. Thank you for all your reviews! You people made me continue writing. I'm forever grateful.

Summary: Kenji and Eiji are sick. Sendoh is staying at home to take care of them. Little does he know, this is the hardest job anyone could have.

Disclaimer: Inoue Takehiko owns Slam Dunk and its character. I only own Kenji and Eiji.

-Start-

Chapter 4: Being Sick

"Achoooooo!"

Upon hearing that, Sendoh quickly put the tissue on Kenji's nose.

"Okay, Kenji. Blow," Sendoh said.

"I don't wanna," Kenji whined, trying to push the tissue away from his nose.

"You have to get the mucus out."

"It's disgusting," the young Sendoh complained.

"But you still have to blow."

"NO!"

Then, coughing sounds were heard from the other side. Sendoh glanced at his other son who's sitting on his bed. His hands were covering his mouth as he coughed louder.

"Papa, my throat is itchy," Eiji complained, holding his throat with both of his hands. He coughed some more.

"Eiji, don't talk so much. Let me deal with Kenji first."

"Papa, I said I don't want to do it!" Kenji gave him the infamous Rukawa glare.

Sendoh swallowed the lump in his throat. His sons can be very scary if they want to. Then, Eiji started coughing again. Sendoh decided to leave Kenji for a while and moved over to Eiji. Kenji quickly threw the tissue on the floor.

"Does your throat hurt?" Sendoh asked Eiji.

Eiji nodded, "Especially when I swallow my saliva."

"You have to eat antibiotics. I'll call Uncle Koshino to buy some…"

"Achooooooooo!"

Sendoh glanced at Kenji. Mucus is running down from his nose and Kenji is rubbing his nose on his sleeve.

"Yuck!" Eiji said when he saw that.

"Kenji, I told you to blow," Sendoh said, his voice getting louder.

"I told you I DON'T WANNA!" came the angry reply.

Sendoh moved back to Kenji's bed.

"If you don't do it, you'll never get better. If you don't get better, you can't eat pocky, ice-cream, pancakes and all your favourite sweets again," Sendoh tried to coax him.

"Why not?" Kenji asked, tilting his head to his side.

"Because sick people can't eat sweet stuff," Sendoh answered calmly.

"NO! I wanna eat sweets! I don't wanna be sick!" Eiji suddenly shouted. Now, his coughing seemed to worsen.

"Eiji, please don't shout," Sendoh pleaded and moved to Eiji's bed again to rub his back slowly.

Sendoh sighed as he reminded himself not to let the twins play in the rain again. He remembered it rained heavily a few days ago. Kenji and Eiji sneaked out of the house to run in the rain. Now, the twins are stuck in their beds, not able to go anywhere. Sendoh had to take sick leave again to stay at home. He bet his boss is going to sack him. He wouldn't be surprised to see the letter when he returned to work.

"It hurts, papa," tears starting to form in Eiji's eyes. He looked terrible - his raven-black hair is in a mess, his eyes are red and he looked paler than usual.

"Okay, I'm calling Uncle Koshino now."

"Papa, this sticky slimy stuff won't stop coming out!" Kenji wailed, still rubbing his nose on his sleeve.

"I told you to blow, Kenji," Sendoh wondered how many times he said that. If you guess four times, you're right.

Eiji coughed louder. Sendoh turned to look at Eiji then back at Kenji. How can he take care of two boys at the same time? He regretted letting Rukawa work today. Rukawa wanted to stay at home with them but Sendoh insist that he can handle the boys. He thought that since the twins are sick, it would be easier to take care of them. Just let them sleep all the way after eating their medicine. He never thought they would complain that much.

"Papa, why is my forehead so hot?" Kenji asked, touching his forehead.

"Let me feel it," Sendoh said and touched their foreheads together. "Hm… you're coming down with a fever."

"I'm *cough* feeling dizzy *cough* papa," Eiji said between coughs.

Sendoh then measured Eiji's temperature, "You've got a fever too."

"Achooooo!" both the twins sneezed this time.

"Papa!" the twins shouted in their already hoarse voice.

"Both of you, please don't shout. You'll hurt your throat."

"See, the sticky slimy stuff is flowing out of MY nose," Eiji pointed at his nose.

Sendoh went into the bathroom to take some more tissue out. He placed it on Eiji's nose, "Now blow."

"NO!" Eiji screamed.

Then, it's Kenji's turn to cough. Sendoh felt his head split into half. How is he going to tend them? Now he wished he had a twin so that the other can help him take care of the boys.

"Okay, both of you listen to me. Lie down and don't get up!" Sendoh said, covering both of them with their blankets. "I'm going to call Uncle Koshino now. So please don't shout, I beg you," Sendoh was desperate.

The twins nodded. Sendoh immediately picked up the phone and dialed Koshino's cell phone number.

"Sendoh, what's up?" Koshino asked cheerfully.

"Koshino, I need your help."

"You sound desperate."

"That's because I am. I need you to go to the pharmacy and buy me some antibiotics, flu and cough syrup."

"Wow, I didn't know you can get sick too, Sendoh," Koshino sounded surprised.

"What does that supposed to mean, Koshino?" Sendoh was annoyed. "The boys are sick."

"WHAT! Why didn't you tell me earlier? I'm coming right now!" and Koshino hang up the phone.

Sendoh sweatdropped. The twins are loved by all their friends especially Sakuragi and Koshino. They practically spoilt them. After that, he went to look for towels in the cupboard. He makes sure they're wet and then placed them on the twin's forehead.

"What's that for?" Eiji and Kenji asked simultaneously.

"It's to cool you down," Sendoh explained.

The twins lie down quietly for a while.

"Papa," suddenly the young Rukawa tugged on his sleeve.

"Yes, Eiji?"

"I want to go to the toilet," Eiji said softly.

"Okay," Sendoh carried Eiji out of his bed and into the bathroom. He pulled Eiji's pants down and let him do his stuff. When the boy was done, Sendoh carried him back into his bed. He wet the towel and then placed it on his forehead again.

"Papa," this time the other one tugged on Sendoh's sleeve.

"What, Kenji?" Sendoh asked kindly.

"I'm thirsty."

"Wait, I'll get water for you," and Sendoh walked into the kitchen to get a glass of water for him. He then returned to the room.

"Papa, I want water too," Eiji pleaded.

After giving the glass to Kenji, Sendoh again went into the kitchen to get another glass. These two are definitely slave drivers. They're so demanding.

"I want to go to the toilet," Kenji said softly after drinking.

Sendoh carried Kenji into the bathroom and let him do his stuff. After that, he carried Kenji back into his bed and placed the wet towel on his forehead. Eiji felt so restless lying so still on the bed. Usually, the twins couldn't stop moving.

"I'm so bored, papa. Can I watch TV?" Eiji asked.

"No, you're supposed to rest."

"But I don't wanna stay in bed the whole day!"

"I wanna watch TV too!" Kenji joined in with his twin.

They repeated the word "TV! TV!" until Sendoh gave up. He sighed in defeat. He then turned on the television in the bedroom for the twins. While watching their favourite cartoon, the boys kept sneezing and coughing.

"Papa, my throat hurts," Kenji complained.

"My nose is so itchy, papa," Eiji complained.

At that time, Sendoh was begging for help. Luckily for him, God heard his prayers and the doorbell rang.

'It must be Koshino,' Sendoh thought. He went out to open the door for him.

"Where are my favourite twins?" Koshino shouted as he slammed the door open, missing Sendoh by an inch.

"Koshino."

"Eiji! Kenji! Don't worry, Uncle Koshino is here to save you!" Koshino didn't even realize Sendoh was there. He entered the house as if he owned it.

"Koshino."

"Eh, Sendoh. What are you doing behind the door? Where are the twins?" Koshino asked.

"In the bedroom."

And Koshino was out of sight. Sendoh was amazed at his best friend's speed. If he could run that fast in court, they would have better results in a game. He followed Koshino back into the bedroom.

"Uncle Koshino!" the twins exclaimed when they saw their favourite uncle but ended up coughing worse.

"Oh my poor darlings," Koshino hugged them one-by-one. 'He sounds so dramatic. Must be influence those chick-flicks that he likes to watch', Sendoh thought.

"Sendoh! The twins need to rest and you're letting them watch TV!" Koshino scolded him when he saw the television was on.

Sendoh was surprised, "They wanted to watch it!"

Koshino choose to ignore him and turned to the twins instead, "Look what Uncle Koshino bought for you. Medicine and…"

"Pocky!" Eiji and Kenji smiled when they saw the tempting box of strawberry pocky.

"Koshino! Kaede will kill me if he sees another box of pocky in the house," Sendoh said while thinking 'I'm doomed'.

"It's okay," Koshino assured him. "I'll explain to him."

'What's there to explain?' Sendoh wondered and then sighed, "Fine. Give me the medicine."

Koshino passed the bag of medicine to Sendoh.

"Can we eat pocky first, papa?" Kenji asked.

"Then we promise to eat the medicine," Eiji continued.

"No. Medicine first," Sendoh said firmly, taking the medicine out of the plastic bag.

"But…" the twins started to complain.

"Sendoh, just let them eat pocky first," Koshino said, siding with the twins.

Sendoh glared at him which made Koshino shut up immediately. Since when did Sendoh Akira knows how to glare? Must be influence from Rukawa.

"Ah, I'll get water for them to swallow their medicine," Koshino said and went into the kitchen.

He returned with two cups of water and handed them to Sendoh. Sendoh pour the medicine in the spoon and decided to feed Kenji first since he's easier to handle compared to Eiji. But that turned out to be wrong.

"Open wide, Kenji," Sendoh said, putting the spoon in front of his mouth. Kenji stared at the dark brownish medicine in disgust. He refused to open his mouth. Kenji looked up at Sendoh with his big sad puppy dog eyes and shook his head vigorously.

"What's wrong?" Sendoh asked.

"It smells weird."

"It's medicine."

"I don't wanna eat it," Kenji decided.

"Kenji, please."

Kenji eyed the liquid for a while. He shook his head again.

"If you don't eat this, you can't eat pocky."

Kenji seemed to think for a while. He's weighing the pocky and medicine in his mind. Finally, he nodded. Sendoh smiled and fed him. Kenji closed his eyes tightly as he welcomed the bitter taste in his mouth. After a few seconds, the liquid is splattered on his blanket and Sendoh's T-shirt. He had vomited the medicine. Koshino was watching everything and trying hard not to laugh.

"I'm not eating that again!" Kenji shouted, pointing at the medicine then sneezed.

Sendoh looked at his shirt for a while then shrugged it off. 'Fine!' he thought. He ignored the cough syrup on his shirt.

"Okay, Eiji. Your turn," Sendoh gave up on Kenji and turned to Eiji.

Eiji looked scared, "Papa, I'm feeling fine now. I don't need to eat *cough*."

"Of course you do. Come on, open wide."

And Eiji cried as loud as he can between coughs.

"I want father!" the two boys screamed simultaneously.

Both Sendoh and Koshino covered their ears. They can sure scream loud even with their hoarse voice.

"Sendoh, shut them up! I'm going to be deaf!" Koshino shouted but was mostly drowned by the boys' cries.

"Okay, okay! No more medicine!" Sendoh too shouted.

The twins immediately kept quiet, tears visible in their blue eyes. They sniffed and coughed at the same time. Sendoh sighed. So, how is he going to do this? Should he wait for Rukawa to come home? But that'll be too late. He'll just have to improvise.

"Hey, Koshino," he pulled Koshino out of the room.

The twins stared at their dad suspiciously. Sendoh closed the door so that the twins couldn't see and hear him.

"I'm going to force the liquid down. You have to help me hold them," Sendoh told him.

"But that's really harsh!" Koshino said.

"I have no choice. If not, it'll take forever to feed them."

Koshino thought for a while, "Okay but do it gently. My heart hurts when I see them hurt."

Sendoh raised his eyebrow. Has Koshino been watching too many romance movies these few days? While the adults are outside strategizing, the twins are inside doing their own discussion.

"I bet papa is going to use force to feed us," Kenji said.

"He's so cruel, doesn't he love us anymore? I wish father is here," Eiji cried.

"Somehow, we must not eat the medicine."

"Okay, he only can feed us one at a time. So, when he's feeding you, I'll distract him."

"And when he's feeding you, I'll do the same."

Outside.

"I know the boys. They'll surely help each other in this situation. So, the best thing to do is ignore one when we're feeding the other one," Sendoh said.

"Are you sure this'll work?"

"Of course! All you have to do is hold Kenji tightly and ignore Eiji," Sendoh smiled confidently.

"But what if I hurt Kenji?"

"Koshino, don't even think of letting go! I have to finish this before Kaede comes back!"

Inside.

"But Uncle Koshino will surely help him," Eiji said.

"Don't worry, Uncle Koshino is on our side. We just have to make a sad face and cry, he'll let us go immediately!"

"Then, I'll jump on papa and then he'll spill the medicine. At that split second, we run into father's study room and lock it!"

"Great plan!"

Outside.

"We have to lock the door. I know the twins will run for it."

"Hey, Sendoh. Since when you become such an expert?" Koshino asked.

"Since the boys were born," Sendoh answered.

Finally, the two adults walked into the room. Sendoh signaled Koshino to lock the door. The twins were getting ready with their own escape. Unfortunately, they didn't see Koshino lock the door.

"So, are you two ready?" Sendoh asked.

The twins nodded confidently.

Eiji and Kenji VS. Sendoh and Koshino – Start!

Koshino grabbed Kenji and Eiji from behind. He held Kenji in his left arm and Eiji in his right. The twins didn't expect this and was shocked. They struggled to get free but Koshino is much stronger than them.

"You think you can outsmart me, I know one of you will save the other," Sendoh said, holding two spoons of medicine.

"That's not fair, papa!" the boys shouted.

"Now, eat your medicine!" and Sendoh force-feed them simultaneously.

Loud cries were heard in the Rukawa-Sendoh household.

"Okay, guys. Five minutes break!" Rukawa told his players. It has been a tiring practice for them. Rukawa immediately grabbed his cell phone and dialed home.

"Hello?" an unfamiliar voice answered him.

"Koshino?" Rukawa asked.

"Ah, Rukawa. Haven't seen you for a long time. How are you?" Koshino replied.

"I'm fine… Uh, where's Akira?" Rukawa asked, wondering what Koshino is doing in his house.

There were shouts of "I hate you, papa!" and "I'm telling father!" at the background together with loud coughing and sneezing sounds. Crashes and bumps were heard too.

Rukawa sweatdropped, 'What are they doing?'

"He's trying to put the twins to sleep. They just ate their medicine. You should have seen Sendoh's face, he was going to burst!"

"Uh, Koshino. Can I speak to Akira please?" Rukawa asked, slowly losing his patience.

"Sure. Hold on, I'll call him," Koshino said.

Rukawa waited for Sendoh to answer the phone. He heard spoons and cups dropping in the background. Then suddenly silence.

Finally, after a few minutes, Sendoh's muffled voice was heard, "Kaede?"

"Akira, how are the boys?" Rukawa asked, worriedly.

"They're getting better. They just fell asleep," Sendoh explained. He was panting, "I'm so tired. I didn't know feeding them medicine would be a tough job. When are you coming back?"

"Soon. What is Koshino doing there?"

"Oh, Koshino bought the antibiotics for them since I can't leave the house."

"Is that so."

Then, he heard Sendoh coughing at the other side of the line.

"Akira, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Sendoh assured him. "Just come home soon, okay?"

"I know. See you later."

Rukawa's still worried about the twins. He wanted to let the team off early today but their practice match is coming and he needs to be there. He only can wish for the time to pass faster.

"I'm home," Rukawa said when he reached home. He rushed home as quickly as he can since he knows the twins are not well. What if they need him? What if Sendoh can't handle them? The crashing sounds he heard on the phone scared him. Rukawa quickly unlocked the door and saw the twins watching television in the living room.

"Welcome home, father!" the pair of twins skipped happily to the door and greeted their father.

"Kenji! Eiji!" Rukawa hugged them tightly. "I thought you boys are in bed. How are you feeling?" Rukawa placed his hands on his sons' forehead.

"We're not sick anymore!" the twins exclaimed. Kids have very fast recovering ability.

"Really? That's good to hear," Rukawa felt relieved seeing them in their normal state again. He was so heart broken when he saw his twins lying on their bed with the 'dying' look on their face for the last couple of days.

"Where's papa and Uncle Koshino?" Rukawa asked. He didn't see them anywhere.

"Uncle Koshino went home two hours ago. Papa's in the bedroom," Kenji said. "He looks weird."

Rukawa was puzzled at Kenji's words. He walked towards the bedroom followed by the twins.

"Akira, what happened to you?" Rukawa asked as soon as he saw Sendoh lying on the bed.

"Kaede, welcome home," Sendoh's voice was weak and he was sneezing.

Immediately, Rukawa rushed to his side and check his temperature.

"Akira, you're having a fever."

"Yeah, together with cough and flu. The twins pass it to me," Sendoh answered, looking at the now healthy boys.

"And I thought you couldn't catch cold," Rukawa gave him a rare smile.

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Sendoh pretended to be hurt.

The twins only smiled innocently while Rukawa chuckled. He wanted to kiss Sendoh when the twins pulled him back.

"No, father! You can't kiss papa, or you'll be sick too!" Kenji said.

"That's right!" Eiji agreed. "You wouldn't want to eat the yucky medicine!"

Rukawa and Sendoh stared at them, dumfounded.

"Don't worry, papa. We're going to do exactly what you did to us today!" Eiji smiled.

He took the cold towel from the side table and placed it on Sendoh's forehead while Kenji readied his medicine. Rukawa smiled at his sons' thoughtfulness.

"Come, let us take care of papa," Rukawa said, taking the spoon from Kenji and feed Sendoh.

Sendoh only smiled as he swallowed the cough syrup. 'I would want to be sick all the time if they can take care of me like this,' he thought.

Meanwhile, in the twins mind, 'Revenge will be so sweet!'

-End-