Happy Thursday, lovelies! This chapter is just a little bit of filler before Christmas. It's probably not the best I've ever written, but I hope y'all enjoy it anyway! ~Shaymie

Lorin's POV

"You didn't have to stay home to watch me, Lo. I know you were excited to hang out with everyone." Alex coughed as he tried to sit up in bed. I rolled my eyes. Ever since he had suddenly gotten sick yesterday, he had been insisting that he didn't need any help. He wanted me to go over to the Schuylers' house with everyone to make the gingerbread houses, but I refused. I didn't want to leave him alone while he was sick. Knowing him, he would try to overwork himself while I was gone. The gingerbread could wait.

"You took care of me when I was sick, Al. Now it's my turn to return the favor." I took the thermometer from his mouth and frowned. 103 degrees. When I checked his temperature a few hours ago, he had been teetering on the edge of a fever. What if his temperature just kept going up? At what point would I have to call an ambulance? I almost wish that Martha was here, but she had to work. I scrolled through the contacts on my phone, getting increasingly disappointed. Everyone was at the Schuylers' (or in Mama's case, at a doctor's appointment). My finger hovered over Maddie's contact. He got sick a lot. Surely he would know what to do. I debated calling him, but decided to instead send him a text. At least that would be less intrusive.

Me: Alex is sick and I don't know what to do

Me: Please help

I pushed some sweaty hair back from Alex's eyes and dabbed at his face with a cool towel. He was on the verge of falling asleep, but grabbed my wrist. I frowned at how hot his skin was. He opened his eyes a crack and grinned crookedly at me, though it quickly turned into a grimace.

"Don't worry about me, Lo. This isn't that big a deal. I've been through worse."

"Al, you're burning up and just earlier today you were coughing so bad, I thought you were dying. You couldn't even eat this morning. You look absolutely miserable, how could you have gone through worse?" His eyes glazed over at the question, and I could have sworn I saw tears shining in his eyes. He huffed and turned around so he was staring at the wall.

"It's nothing, Lo. I'm a bit tired now. Do you mind leaving me alone for a bit?" I nodded, even though I knew he couldn't see me. I grabbed my phone and left his room quietly, leaving the door open a crack. Dumpling ran over to me, her tail wagging a mile a minute. I picked her up and took her downstairs, smiling slightly when she licked my face. I was worried about Alex. I didn't like the way he had dismissed me so suddenly. Maybe I had overstepped my boundaries a bit? Or maybe his fever was just making him irritable. His entire mood had shifted when he said that this wasn't the worst he'd ever been.

I sighed as I went down to the living room, setting Dumpling down. She ran over to the Christmas tree and started sniffing at the presents curiously. Darcy and I had added a few last minute presents since the things we ordered online came in later than we'd thought they would. Kitty Alexander (I really should have thought about his name more) had already found one of his gifts and was currently sleeping on it. Maybe we should have found a better way to wrap a cat bed.

I started flipping through shows on Netflix and wound up having a bit of a Disney marathon. I texted Maddie throughout it, and he only told me to not worry, and that it was probably just the flu. It eased my worries a little bit, but I still couldn't help but be worried about Alex. Worrying was all I was good at. I fell asleep sometime around the middle of Hercules and was woken up by the smell of gingerbread and someone flicking my nose. I shot up on the couch, making the quilted blanket somebody had draped over me fall to the ground. Darcy grinned down at me and set her gingerbread house down on the coffee table. Somehow she had managed to decorate it in a way that was both sloppy and beautiful. The icing was put on shakily, but the rest of the decorations were perfectly placed.

"What's up, sleepyhead? How's Hamilton doing?"

"Last I checked, his fever was getting worse." I yawned and rubbed my eyes sleepily. I checked the time and blinked. I had been asleep for two and a half hours. I must have been sleepier than I thought. I was still scared to go to sleep, so Alex had to stay up with me and talk until I eventually fell asleep. I was surprised I hadn't had a nightmare during my nap. Darcy frowned and knelt down to pick up the blanket, leaning in closer to my ear to whisper.

"Did you take your medicine this morning, Lori?" I nodded. She was the only one who knew I hadn't been taking my medicine for over a month. Well, her and John. They were constantly checking up on me, asking how I was doing and if I had taken my medicine. I thought that they would be angry at me for not taking it, but they were nothing but supportive. They knew how hard it was for me to admit that I needed help. I wouldn't have come to them if I hadn't been completely desperate. I would have told Alex, but I didn't want to disappoint him. I hated keeping such a big secret from him.

"You're doing great, Lori. I have faith in you." Darcy kissed my forehead and took her gingerbread house into the kitchen. I realized that Gil wasn't with her, but maybe he had stayed over at the Schuylers'. I sighed as I stretched and got up from the couch. Hopefully Alex was alright. I didn't mean to fall asleep like that, but I guess my exhaustion must have caught up to me. Maybe I should start drinking coffee like he does. I went upstairs and saw that Alex's door was open slightly wider than how I'd left it. Had he left his room while I was asleep? Maybe he was the one who put the blanket over me. I peeked in and saw that he was sitting up in bed, reading a book. He looked up as I walked into the room and smiled at me.

"Hey Lo," he said as I took a seat next to his bed. He closed the book and set it aside, along with his glasses. I managed a small smile and rubbed my arms anxiously. He frowned and grabbed my hand. I noticed that he was still warm. He should be resting. "Lo, I'm sorry for having an attitude earlier. I hate being sick and making people worry about me. I know you were just trying to help. I used to get sick a lot, but the last time I was sick was just… awful."

"You don't have to talk about it, Alex. It's fine."

"But I… I haven't told you anything about my past and you've told me everything about yours. That doesn't seem right, Lo." He shifted in bed and furrowed his eyebrows. I kissed his hand and shook my head. While I was curious about his past, I didn't want him to tell me until he was absolutely ready to. For now, I was fine not knowing. It was none of my business, anyway.

"You can take your time, Al. It's okay."

He settled back down in bed and frowned. And then he started crying. Terrible sobs shook his body, and he flung himself onto me, his arms wrapping around my neck. I let him cry on my shoulder and rubbed his back gently. He was speaking rapidly, alternating between Spanish and French. I shushed him quietly and kissed his forehead. He hiccupped and hugged me tightly. I held him in my arms until he eventually fell asleep, his head falling onto my chest. I ran my hand through his hair and smiled sadly when he started snoring.

You can just wait til you're ready, Al. I'll be here for you.