This was a challenge that was never fulfilled, is being reworked, and that I intend to finish... and hopefully soon.

Title: Domestic
Author: Ileana A. (babygray)
Main Pairing: Duo/Heero
Disclaimer: Gundam Wing is not mine. This is pure jest.
Notes: This is a 26-part story, made up of noisefics/drabbles/whatever. It's not chronological, but don't worry too much about that. Reworked, but rough and un-beta'ed. Enjoy!

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--Tucked In--

Duo was feeling downright awful that afternoon, the sort of awful sensible, sane people would go to the hospital for. Duo, on the other hand, was at work, fixing Ms. Noventa's iffy transmission with a smile, even as his body was shutting down on him. At some point, he must have fainted or collapsed or succumbed to dizziness, because, one moment he was tightening a bolt and the next he was stretched out on Howard's couch with a damp cloth on his forehead and his boss standing over him, tapping his cheek slightly in an attempt to rouse him.

"You alright, kid?" Howard said peering at him over the rim of his shades for a moment, before pushing the dark sunglasses up.

Duo tried to move to a sitting position, but his arms felt heavy and his eyelids even more so.

"Well, that answered my question, didn't it?" Howard joked slightly as he placed a gentle, but firm hand on Duo's shoulder, keeping him down. "I thought you were looking a bit under the weather. Hilde thought it would be a good idea to call your house and get someone to pick you up."

Duo thought that was completely unnecessary and told Howard so, complete with a self-defeating roll of his eyes and a weak push against Howard's hand.

"I doubt you'll be able to make it through the rest of the day, fainting left and right."

"I only fainted once," Duo said, indignantly.

Hilde popped her head into Howard's office, her short hair pushed out of her face with a bright headband. There was a stray smudge of grime or two on her work jacket. "Heero said he was coming over right away," she said before popping away again.

"You didn't have to call him. I'm fine," Duo protested, trying to call after her. Howard's grey eyebrow rose skeptically. "I just need a nap," he compromised.

Howard's mustache twitched as he gave Duo a smirk. "Just stay put and rest."

About a half-hour later, Heero appeared, barely winded from the bicycle ride down to Howard's garage and still dressed in the tank top and biker shorts he wore when he cleaned house. He looked completely unruffled, despite the flush high on his cheeks and the flash of worry in his eyes as he walked into Howard's office and headed straight for Duo.

"That was fast," Duo said, half-amused as Heero took the cloth off his forehead, replacing it with the black of his hand. His skin felt cool to Duo and he closed his eyes at the pleasure of the sensation.

"You look horrible," was Heero's assessment as his hand drifted downward, palm-down, to the side of his neck.. "You should have stayed home today."

"I have been sick before, Heero," Duo protested weakly, feeling comforted just from the feel of Heero's hand on his throat.

"Hilde said you fainted while you were working," Heero countered. "You could have hurt yourself."

Duo didn't reply, only letting out a sigh as his eyes closed again. Heero's cool hand roamed here and there on his pale, feverish skin, brushing his bangs back and cooling his brow for what felt like a blissfully long time. Cracking a weak smile, he opened his eyes and said, "So you're gonna take me home, Mom?"

"Unless you want to go to the hospital..."

Duo shook his head once at the idea. "I'm not that sick."

Heero frowned at the comment, but he let the idea go, at least for the time being. With another cool brush of his fingers against Duo's fevered brow, Heero stood up and went to speak to Howard.

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The bicycle was sticking out of the car haphazardly on the drive home. Aside from that, Duo couldn't recall for he was half-lucid for much of the ride. He did make his way into the house on his own, mostly to prove a point, but made it no farther than the couch, onto which he collapsed gracelessly, gasping for air.

Heero dragged the bicycle through the house to the backyard, casting a look at Duo as he did so, before busying himself in the kitchen. It wasn't long before he reappeared, first with a bottle of cherry flavored cold/flu relief and a tablespoon, silently commanding him to take some, and then with a mug full of hot tea that smelled suspiciously like lemons and menthol in one hand and a towel dipped in a shallow dish of cool water in the other.

"Drink." He held the mug out at arm's length as Duo stared at the steaming mug as if it held bitter poison. "I put sugar in as well."

"What else is in it?" Duo asked somewhat shakily as he hesitantly took the mug.

Heero did not answer. He stood there instead, threatening to make sure every last drop of the vile concoction was drunk.

And it was vile. The lemons and the sugar helped the flavor, but it didn't mask the faint hint of oregano and the foul taste of camphor and menthol that he knew came from the mentholated cream Heero had melted into the hot water. Desperate to be done with it as fast as possible, he drank the hot tea quickly, nearly choking as a result.

Heero was there in an instant, rubbing Duo's back as he regained his breath and cursed the homemade cure.

"It'll make you feel better," Heero promised as he took the half-full mug out of Duo's hand and placed it on the coffee table in front of them, right by the cold syrup, the used spoon, and the shallow dish.

"Yeah, by killing me," Duo retorted as he hung his head in exhaustion.

Heero eased him back to lie down on the couch and sat on the coffee table opposite Duo's head, setting the shallow dish by his hip. He wrung the excess water out of the towel, folded it into a rectangle, and placed the cool fabric on Duo's forehead. "I knew you should have stayed home today."

"How could you? I wasn't that sick this morning," Duo said, turning his head towards Heero. Heero glared at him. "At least not that much."

Heero shrugged. "Perhaps I'm psychic."

"Ah, of course." Duo's head settled on the cushion and he stared up at the white living room ceiling before closing his eyes again. He didn't even realized he fell asleep until he felt a soft pillow being tucked under his head and a soft blanket thrown over him. Comfortably warm lips touched the edge of his cheek for a brief second, but he was asleep again before those lips drew away.