Disclaimers: I do not own PLL or the characters.
Spoilers: None
Rating: T and under.

Notes: shoutout to Boris Yeltsin and Momma Duck for reviewing the last chapter. I am definitely going to take some time to get emotions in order. I may start doing the Brittana side of this, just depends on how much I struggle with it. If it doesn't come east, then I'll stick with PLL/Sparia, if not, then… Hopefully, it will help!

This is actually three for one since I figured they pretty much went together.

Enjoy! :)

*shoutout to Momma Duck – this one is for you* –– *caring for other while sick – having their hair washed by the other + taking a bath together*

Spencer sighs as she holds Aria's hair back as she loses what little vegan chicken noodle soup she was able to eat earlier.

Having the stomach bug as a kid sucks, but having it as an adult? That really fucking sucks.

"I'm so sorry, baby." She whispers.

She absolutely hates it because right now, Aria is only dry-heaving. And it sounds painful and it's heartbreaking. For just one moment, she would like to trade places with her fiancée to take away this pain and misery.

Aria groans as she finally leans backwards against Spencer.

"I'm sorry," She mumbles. "I know you hate this."

"I only hate it because you are so miserable right now. I hate it because seeing you like this just hurts so much."

They sit there for a few moments, Spencer leaning against the wall with Aria against her front, and running her fingers through her brunette hair. Doing that, a thought comes to her. It is something that her mom did for her and Mel when they were kids, and were sick. It always made her and her sister feel at least a little better.

"Hey, babe, I have a suggestion, but if you feel you are not up for it, just let me know, ok?"

And Aria, god bless her, even now, she smirks, though Spencer cannot see it, and says…

"Spence, you know I love you. But I don't think a hot and heavy makeout session would be the best thing for right now."

Spencer blushes, for all that she tries not to, and ignores her. She breathes in deeply, trying to do it silently, and knows she fails when she feels, and hears, Aria begin to giggle.

"I meant," She pointedly clears her throat. "I could help you into the bathtub for a bath or a shower. It always made me feel better as a kid."

Aria agrees because, what else can they do? Lying in bed, slowly sipping water, eating saltines, and the soup is obviously not doing any good. So, Spencer helps her up. She closes the toilet lid and lets Aria sit.

Then, she gets to filling up the bathtub. She makes sure Aria is ok with the scent of their Aromatherapy – Relax bubble bath soap, and then pours it into the running water.

"Okay, babe, you stay here, and I will go find us something comfortable to wear."

As she leaves, Aria finds that, surprisingly, the scent of the bubble bath soap is not making her nauseous. It is actually helping her. So, she leans back, closes her eyes, and breathes in the smell of the eucalyptus-scented bubbles.

Spencer comes back, and she has some t-shirts and shorts. She turns the water off, helps Aria undress and to get into the tub, and she does the same.

"This feels nice." Her fiancée comments, as Spence lays against the slanted side, so she is lying down but not completely, and Aria moves between her legs. "This smell is actually making me feel better."

Now, that is surprising.

"Really? I figured it would make you more nauseous."

And that is the truth. Spencer knows that when Aria is sick, scents bother her more than they do the young Hastings. This is evident by earlier, when Spencer made one bowl of vegan chicken noodle soup, but had to throw it out because the smell of it made Aria look an even worse shade of green.

The second, much blander in smell, was better, though not in the sense that it made her "all better!"

"I did, too. But it smells nice. Maybe I am getting better already, or maybe my body is just too tired to be nauseous again."

"Well, either way, I am glad it is helping at least a little bit." Spencer places her left hand around Aria on her stomach while she calmly and slowly runs her fingertips of her right hand up and down her arm. "If you want, after we lay here for a while, I could, maybe… wash your hair?"

She says it hesitantly, so Aria looks up at her but does not say anything, knowing that she will explain.

"This always helped Mel and me when we were kids. Mom would help us take a cool bath, and Mel liked to actually play with, y'know, those bath crayons, but I just laid back, and it was comforting with mom being there beside us. Sometimes we would talk, sometimes she would sing. And then after a little bit, she would help me or Mel wash off."

Aria listens quietly as Spencer speaks. She loves Veronica to death, really. Veronica is such a caring and loving and kind mother that, honestly, Aria does not even bother adding the "in-law" to the word "mother". Spence still occasionally calls her "mama" even though they are in their mid-20s, and Aria has stuck with "Aunt Vera".

Aria can't wait until they have kids. She just knows that Veronica would be every child's dream grandma. Of course, Ella and Byron are the same. In fact, she had never seen her dad cry before, not in her entire life, really, until the day, three years ago, that he was holding his first granddaughter, Mike's little girl.

"Anyway," Spence continues. "I never wanted my hair washed because I never felt like drying it. But Mel, well, she did. And she always seemed to be so much better after. Honestly," She kind of laughs. "I thought it was some kind of magic or something. I mean, – shut up."

She tries to hide her grin at Aria's smile and not well-conceived laughter.

"I did, okay?! I mean, here I was, a little kid. My big sister was sick, which means she stayed in her room, or mom and dad's room. Mom or dad usually brought her Sprite, water, or 7-Up with crackers. I was usually outside or reading or watching TV, but Mel never came out of her room. Then, suddenly, there she was – pajamas, wet hair, stuffed animal…"

She shakes her head.

"I knew that when we were sick, we barely felt like going to the bathroom, let alone all the way downstairs. But to come down after a bath, with wet hair, every time? I thought that mom had to be using some kind of magic shampoo on her or something."

Aria full-on laughs here, and it takes several moments for her to calm down. The two lay there in the water, and just talk with occasional moments of silence. Then, Aria tells her she would like her hair washed. So, Spencer moves them to where they are closer to the faucet, lets out some of the water, and grabs a cup.

"Here, let's wet your hair with this," She switches from bathtub to shower so she can use the showerhead. "Just lean back, babe, against my arm… there you go."

Spencer maneuvers so she is sitting on the side of the tub, and grabs the shampoo.

"You feeling ok still?"

"Yeah," Aria sighs. "Well, I'm not nauseous, if that's what you mean. Maybe some saltines and Sprite, I'm not feeling up to actually food."

While Spencer soaps up all of her brunette hair, she states, "Ok. You think you can handle some toast? We can try for butter if you are up for it, then, in a few hours, if we have not fallen asleep, we can maybe try some jelly on the toast."

Aria agrees as Spence begins using the Wetbrush to brush out the tangles while her hair is still soapy.

"This should help for later, if we want to try to dry it. Otherwise, it will be a complete mess." Then she adds, "You've always looked so pretty with long hair."

"Could you braid for me, please? I always love it when it dries curly."

"Of course, I can, if you feel up to it. Getting dressed may sap off of your energy, though, but if you still want me to, I will definitely do it."

They finish up and, fortunately, Aria is still feeling well enough for Spence to braid her hair. Afterwards, she switches the sheets on the bed, while Aria brushes her teeth, and then Spence helps her into bed.

While Aria is finding something to watch, Spencer puts the dirty sheets and comforter into the washer, makes herself a PBJ sandwich, and gets Aria some saltines, two pieces of toast, and some more, fresh Sprite.

The two stay in bed for a while longer. And Spencer is happy to see that Aria makes it the rest of the day without getting sick again.

Maybe a cool bath and washing your hair really is the magic trick to feeling better.

And there is the second chapter! I hope you guys enjoyed. I do have one tiny little chapter for Snapshots of Glee. So I will put that up and explain a little more over there.

Please review and let me know what you thought! :)