Thank you to ABEDFAN, Dirtkid123, LRW, X-X-Midnight Star-X-X, and Sarcasmisinmyblood for the reviews! So happy to see that the Adam/S-1 pairing was received well. It might make a comeback on another story sometime in the future, because I really want to try my hand at developing something between these two.
We're a few hours past the time I usually post, but here's the twenty-first entry. Visatoarea10 gave me the prompt of Leo getting sick and his siblings taking care of him at the tenth one-shot where Adam, Bree, and Chase were sick. So, this is going to be kind of like part two of "Sick Duty", which means it's not really a one-shot anymore. XD Thank you so much for the prompt, Visatoarea10!
Also, unfortunately, this is the last prompt I'm taking. The last four entries will be developed from ideas I've had that needs to be written down because they will drive me crazy if I don't. I just want to take the time now to thank everyone who gave me prompts and participated! It had been so fun working with what everyone gave me. Hopefully we can do it again in the future?
Alright. Onto day twenty-one!
/day twenty-one/
Prompt: (from visatoarea10) sick
Featured LR character(s): Adam, Bree, Chase, Leo
"Sick Leave"
It's Adam's, Bree's, and Chase's turn to take care of their little brother after they discover that he has fallen ill after caring for everyone.
Chase gazed around the cafeteria then sighed contentedly. True to their father's words, after the newest update to their chips was fixed and uploaded, everyone in the island felt better. He had been seeing the happiness that came from not being sick anymore reflected on the faces of their students since the flu-like symptoms left them. He knew their first encounter with an illness had been harrowing, and they were just glad that they had gotten over it.
He, too, was happy about that. Being sick was something he disliked with a passion.
Adam and Bree seemed glad to have recovered, too, so much so that a stronger motivation for them to be at their jobs as mentors had been kindled. He guessed illnesses did that – remind a person that there was something much worse than having to deal with heavy tasks on a daily basis.
He sat down at the table with his older siblings, a bit excited about the fact that his lunch today didn't consist of a broth, protein, and vegetables cooked together. He now had something solid. "It's unbelievable how overjoyed I've been about food for the past two days," he commented, his eyes focused on what was on his plate.
Bree chuckled as she munched on her own lunch. "You sound like Adam," she said.
"What's wrong with that?" Adam asked.
Bree shook her head, rolling her eyes as she kept eating.
"Everybody's been very eager on the trainings and the classes. They've been staying longer after school, too," Adam said, ignoring what his sister had said. "It's like they're scared of going back to the dorms."
Chase scoffed. "They probably are. They were locked in there for a while," he said. "Didn't you get tired of seeing the Quarters, too?"
Adam shrugged. "Not really. I was asleep the whole time," he responded.
"Hey, have either of you seen Leo today?" Bree asked, frowning.
"He's not here today?" Adam joked.
Bree swatted him on the arm.
"You know, come to think about it, no," Chase answered, his curiosity piqued. "Was he supposed to go back to Mission Creek today for the flu shot?"
Bree shook her head. "I don't think so. He's supposed to go this weekend," she said, her worry escalating. "Anyone talked to him yesterday? Or the day before that?"
Chase's features wrinkled ponderously. He looked at Adam to see if he had, but his older brother only looked back at him with the same expression. "Well, he did tell Mr. Davenport that he wanted a day off after the upload. He said he was tired, and Mr. Davenport said okay," Chase said. He shook his head. "I don't know what happened yesterday."
Bree sighed. "Seriously? None of us even bothered to see what's happened to him?" she asked rhetorically as she got up from her seat.
"Where are you going?" Adam asked.
"Checking on Leo," Bree said as she walked away.
Chase lightly swatted at Adam's arm, urging him to come with them, as he also got up to follow his sister.
The three of them traveled out of the cafeteria, through the training room, and then towards the hydroloop to reach the part of the island where their brother's room was located. When the doors opened to their destination a few seconds later, the first thing they noticed was how deathly silent it was there. Given, most of the students that travel through there were in the dining area, and Douglas, who also frequented those halls since his room in the island was also located in the same building, was still recuperating from being sick himself, but the absence of any noise, besides the whirring of the machines and the light blowing of air from the vents, did nothing to allay their anxieties.
"Maybe he's gone back home and just didn't tell us about it," Adam offered as they walked through the empty corridor. "I mean, he's not required to give us a report of everything he wants to do."
"We know he's not, but Leo usually says something," Chase said, his mind now running with different possibilities.
When they reached their brother's room, Bree knocked firmly. "Leo? Leo, are you in there?" she called.
They heard shuffling. Then, there came a bark, and another, then another, each accompanied by desperate scratching at the door.
"Queen," Chase said as the three of them exchanged glances.
Now also very worried, Adam knocked on the door, but louder. "Yo, dude. Are you in there?" he asked, leaning towards the door. He knocked again. "Leo, open up."
The sharp barking continued.
"Alright, I'm gonna have to open this door," Adam said, placing his hand on the scanner before Bree and Chase could stop him.
"What if he's sleeping?" Chase asked, cautious of them stepping in without permission.
"Leo's a heavy sleeper, but he doesn't sleep this long," Adam said as the door slid open. "If he is in there asleep, that means something's wrong."
The light streaming from the windows outside flooded in as they came inside. Queen rushed towards Bree, and the girl picked the small dog up with a smile. However, the expression was short-lived as she saw what her brothers saw: Leo curled up on the bed, half-tangled in the sheets, while crumpled tissues filled and littered the trash bin next to his bed.
Out of courtesy, Chase came to his brother's bed to shake him awake and to let him know they were there. However, when he touched him, something worrisome came to his attention. Just to double check, he placed the back of his hand on Leo's forehead. He looked at Adam and Bree. "He's sick," he told them. He gently shook his younger brother as their older siblings came closer. "Leo. Leo," he gently spoke.
Leo's eyes flickered open as he shifted towards them. "Chase?" he said, his voice clogged. He sat up up, but it was obvious through his sluggish movements that his energy was nearly drained to nothing. "Are we late for school?"
"We don't go to school anymore, Leo. Remember?" Bree said, looking at him sympathetically.
"Oh," Leo said. He scooted around Chase to get to his shoes. "Okay. Give me a few minutes. I overslept. I'll be ready in five minutes. Or maybe ten."
"Where are you going?" Adam asked.
Leo stood up. "Training," he said. However, looking up at Adam so quickly disoriented him, and soon, though he wasn't aware of it, he was falling forward.
Adam caught him, while Chase grabbed onto his arm to pull him back. Adam laughed lightly, saying, "No, it seems like the only place you were going to was the floor."
Leo rubbed his eyes as his brothers helped him to sit down. "No, I can do it," he said weakly. He turned away from them as he coughed into the nook of his elbows. "I just need more time."
Chase sighed. "Leo, you're very sick. The only place you'll be going to today is your bed. You need to rest," he pointed out. "And, how long have you been feeling this way?"
"I don't know. Maybe the night when I uploaded the fixed update? I was running back and forth, and I kind of got rained on," Leo said. He coughed again, careful not to do it anywhere near his siblings. "I can't stay here, Chase. I'm okay. I just need to shake it off."
"This is not something you just shake off. You have to stay here," Bree said firmly, having none of her brother's excuses.
"I'm not going to get anybody sick," Leo insisted. "The update had already fixed that."
"And what about you? You're just gonna get worse if you keep going," Bree replied, equally as insistent.
"I can't be sick," Leo said.
"Why not?" Chase asked.
Leo sniffled. "Because no one's going to take care of me," he said.
Adam, Bree, and Chase shot similar looks towards one another; they felt bad because of what Leo had said.
Bree took a breath then released it. "That's not true," she told her brother.
"Yeah. Bree and Chase are going to help you," Adam said. When they glared at him, he held his hands up. "I'm just kidding, I'm just kidding. Of course I'm going to help, too."
"What about your students?" Leo asked.
Bree placed Queen back down to the floor to help Chase fix the blanket on the bed so Leo could lie back down. "We can take turns," she told him.
"Oh."
"Are you hungry?" Bree asked. "When was the last time you ate?"
Leo's features furrowed as he thought. "Um…"
"That means it's been too long," Chase said, his brows raised.
"I'll be back," Bree said, and then she super sped out of the room to go back to the cafeteria.
As Chase stared at their new patient, watching him, he asked, "For how long have you had this fever?" Leo mumbled something, but Chase didn't hear it. "I didn't get that. Say it again," he said with a frown.
"He said he thinks he's had it for two days, Dr. Davenport," Adam said, teasing.
Chase glowered at him. "We need to see what your temperature is," he told his younger brother. "I don't like it that you've had this a while."
There was a quick breeze that rushed into the room. Then, "Alright, I got fruits, vegetables. I got something to make tea with," Bree said with a shrug.
However, no response came.
Adam stared at Leo. He smirked. "He's out," he said.
Bree placed the food down by the table not too far from the bed, slightly disappointed that they wouldn't be able to see him eat. "Should we wake him? I mean, he hasn't eaten for a while," she said.
"No. Maybe we'll just let him sleep for a bit. We can wake him up after the classes are done," Chase said. Looking at them, he said, "Someone needs to stay behind with him. Who doesn't have any classes this afternoon?"
Adam raised his hand. "Don't really have much of a lesson planned today," he said. "If you guys take the bros, I can stay here."
"If you stay here, you better be keeping an eye on him, Adam," Bree said. "And you can't be drawing on his face, either. Leo's sick, and that's not gonna be funny."
"I know how to take care of my brother, Bree," Adam said defensively. "Didn't I just do that a few days ago?"
"Uh, no," Chase said.
Adam frowned. "Oh. I thought I did."
Chase scoffed. Meanwhile, Bree just stared at him unhappily. "We'll be back in a few hours," she said. "Chase?"
"We'll be back in a few hours," Chase echoed his sister as he got up to join her.
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever," Adam said, waving a hand towards their way as the two vanished after Bree super sped them back to the Academy. Once they were gone, he walked a few steps towards the door, and then stopped. He looked back at Leo. Despite Bree's and Chase's accusations, he did feel bad about his little brother. He knew what he had sacrificed for them, and he knew this was a result of him trying to help them when they were ill.
He took out his phone then and dialed a number.
"Hello? Adam, what's wrong?"
"Hey, Mr. Davenport? What do you do to break a fever?"
"Fever? Someone's still sick?"
"Yeah. Leo."
"Leo's sick?"
"Yes. He's been sick for days."
He heard his father sigh over the phone, evidently feeling sorry, too, for his son. "Oh, boy. Okay. This is what you need to get…"
Adam listened carefully as his father listed what he needed. When he finished, he promised Leo, who was still deeply asleep, that he would be back, had the door close behind him, and then walked towards the med bay to retrieve the medicine and the items.
Reviews are appreciated. :)
