are you challenging me?; au

One of the many things Lightning loved about Hope was that he was very reliable in his morning routine, at least on the days they had to leave the house for work. She was the same, and it was nice to have someone like that as well. It was a far cry from growing up with Serah, who'd sometimes want to lay around in bed for an extra ten minutes or hog the bathroom just when she needed it.

This was exactly why Lightning was completely confused when, upon turning to hand over the second coffee mug, Hope wasn't standing there. She frowned a little, setting the mug down and looking around like he was hiding from her. When that turned up nothing, she decided to investigate.

Come to think of it, I didn't hear the shower running as usual… She sighed, heading upstairs to their bedroom. Whatever was wrong, hopefully it wasn't serious. Maybe he was just having an off day. Everyone was entitled to one of those once in awhile.

But when she walked into the bedroom, she was met with the sight of Hope coughing into his elbow, his hair all disheveled and just looking like a general picture of utter misery.

"Are you all right?" she asked, immediately heading over to him. He tried to wave her off, but she stood her ground.

"Fine. I'm fine." His voice came out in a croak that proved he was pretty much anything but. He coughed some more before adding, "Just…allergies."

"Right." She rolled her eyes. "Since when have you ever had allergies?" She grabbed his shoulder and practically pushed him back down onto the bed, much to his immediate protest.

"Light! What the heck are you doing?"

"You're in no shape to be upright. You're taking today off."

"Light, c'mon." Cough, cough, cough. He sneezed into the comforter, and Lightning made a mental note to wash it later. "I have a lot of things I need to oversee at work today. It's nothing."

She stared at him in complete disbelief. "Really? You're going to sit there and tell me you're fine when you can't get through a sentence without coughing halfway through it?"

"Of course I - " He paused, clearly trying to prove her wrong, but the rest of his words disappeared in more hacking.

"Tch. I told you." She pushed his bangs aside, resting the back of her hand on his sweaty forehead. "I bet you have a fever, too."

"I do not," he argued weakly, but the second the words were out of his mouth, he seemed aware that they were a total mistake. Wordlessly, Lightning got up and headed to their bathroom, digging around in a drawer for the thermometer. Without further ceremony, she sat down beside him and jammed it in his mouth. "Mmmph!"

"Hold still," she ordered, ignoring the indignant glare he was giving her, though apparently he didn't have the energy to do more than that since he simply relaxed and obeyed.

When the thermometer beeped, she took it out of his mouth and raised an eyebrow. "A hundred point three. That's a fever."

"What? There's no way - " She showed him the display screen and he relented a bit sheepishly. "…Oh."

Lightning rolled her eyes, her tone making it clear that there was no room for argument. "You're taking today off. I have some things I need to take care of at work this morning, but I'll be home as soon as I can." Her voice softened a little, along with her expression, when she turned to look at him. His bangs had fallen again, so she brushed them away gently. "Is there anything I can get for you before I leave?"

Hope shook his head. "Nah. I'm okay." He punctuated that with a series of coughs, rendering his statement false, but continued to wave her off. "You don't have to leave work early, either. I'll be fine."

"I want to." Though her tone was still soft, there was still no arguing with her. She leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his forehead. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

He sighed. There was no doubt he completely appreciated what Lightning was doing, but he didn't want her to feel obligated to do it. "…If you're sure."

"I am." She stood up. "I'll see if I can pick up medicine on the way home. Try to get some rest in the meantime."

"All right." He sighed again, relaxing fully against his pillows. "Love you."

"Love you, too." He heard rather than saw her smile before the door closed.

Whether it was those words or just from being exhausted and ill, Hope soon found his eyes drooping closed again and fell into a doze. How long he stayed asleep was anyone's guess, but when he opened his eyes, there was a box of cold medicine on his bedside table, along with a tray with a light breakfast…and Lightning curled up at his side, also in a light sleep. He smiled slightly, brushing her hair out of her eyes.

He should've known better than to challenge that quietly caring nature of hers.