Chapter 10:
Rachel woke up before Finn the next morning. They were lying on the couch in each others arms, Rachel mostly on top of Finn. She placed a soft kiss to his jawline and carefully got up. She felt a tickle at the back of her throat as she went upstairs to the bathroom. She frowned and ran her brush through her hair. As she placed the brush back down, she let out a short cough. Her eyes felt heavy and she was slightly dizzy. She braced her hands against the counter to try and get control of herself again.
As soon as she felt okay again, she made her way back downstairs and found Finn already awake, sitting up on the couch. "Hey handsome." Rachel said frowning at how hoarse her voice sounded.
Finn immediately noticed how hoarse her voice was and gave her a look of concern. "Rach, you okay? Your voice sounds a little rough."
"Oh yeah, probably just need something to drink." She replied waving off his concern.
"Come here, you never sound like that in the morning." Finn replied reaching for her. As soon as she was close enough, he put a hand to her forehead and winced. "Baby, you're burning up."
"No, I'm fine. I have to take care of you." Rachel complained trying to get out of his grasp.
Finn pulled her into his lap and held her there. "No, this is my fault that your sick. Let me make you feel better."
Rachel sighed and rested her head on his chest. "It's my fault for running out of here without my jacket, Finn. I'll be okay, did you need anything?"
"My mom and I already talked about it if you ended up getting sick because of me. I'm fine, you need to rest." Finn replied kissing her feverish forehead. "I'll have my mom make you a nice vegan breakfast and when they go out to the hospital to ask them what happened, I'll have her pick you up medicine."
"What did the police say about the other driver?" Rachel asked him.
"They're still in critical condition at the hospital." Finn replied.
Rachel nodded and stifled another cough. Finn rubbed her back gently until she stopped. She smiled up at him and laid her head back on his chest.
Carole entered the living room and smiled at them. "Hey guys, how did you sleep last night, Finn?"
"It was alright, I'll be glad when I can take this cast off." Finn replied looking up at her. "Hey mom, could you possibly make Rachel some breakfast? She woke up with a fever."
"Oh dear, of course. I'll pick up a fever reducer as well when we go out." Carole replied moving towards the kitchen.
"Thanks mom." Finn said giving her a small smile. His smile grew as he looked down at Rachel with a flustered expression on her face. "What?"
"Your families spoils me too much." She giggled reaching up to run her hand over his cheek.
"They love you. There is a difference." Finn explained pulling her close and placing a gentle kiss to her cheek. "What do you want to watch?"
"I'll watch whatever you want, babe. I'm happy just cuddling here with you." Rachel responded, letting out a sigh as she snuggled into his chest causing him to smile as he picked up the remote.
Rachel fell asleep during the movie and Finn didn't have the heart to wake his slumbering love. He placed a gentle kiss to her head and placed his hand against her forehead again. She was still pretty warm and Finn sighed. Of course she would have got sick when he wasn't able to take care of her properly. He couldn't even carry her to bed, which was where his beautiful woman belonged right now.
Rachel let out a low groan as her eyes fluttered open. Finn rubbed her back gently and waited for her eyes to meet his. "Hey." She said hoarsely.
"Hey, baby. How are you feeling?" Finn asked her gently, kissing her forehead.
"Dizzy and cold." Rachel replied softly. She rested her head back against his chest and Finn ran a hand over it.
"Are you thirsty? Your throat still sounds rough." Finn asked her.
She nodded against his chest. "Yeah, but I'll get up and get something in a minute."
"Here." Finn responded scooting up a little in the chair to reach for something on the end table. He handed her a glass full of ice water and she took a big swallow.
"You didn't..."
"No, my mom left it for you before they went out." Finn smiled at her, tucking a loose strand behind her ear. "I hate that I can't take care of you properly. You should be in bed resting, Rach."
"I'm fine right here, with you." She looked up into his eyes and he could see how glazed they were.
"Rach, you have a high fever. You should be lying down." Finn explained resting his head against hers. "I can see how sick you are."
"I don't want to move. I want to stay here with you." Rachel said. "I'm comfortable and warm next to you, please don't make me move."
Finn gave her a soft smile and squeezed her closer. "Do you want to try and eat something?"
Rachel looked up at him and raised her eyebrow. "What? Are you planning on trying to make me something?"
"Maybe I was." Finn replied sheepishly.
"You are not cooking for me, not while your recovering. I can make some lunch for us. Can you just accompany me to the kitchen?" Rachel asked while moving to get up.
Finn helped her stand up so she wouldn't fall backwards back into his lap before reaching for his crutches. "Of course. What are you thinking of making?"
"I was thinking a tomato and basil soup for me and a turkey sandwich for you? Unless you would like some soup as well?" Rachel asked as they made their way into the kitchen and Rachel helped Finn to the island. She put his crutches close by in order to avoid another fall like yesterday.
"Some soup actually does sound good, especially if you're making it." Finn smiled, snatching her hand as she moved to the stove and placing a gentle kiss upon the back of it.
Rachel gave him her beautiful bright smile and leaned in to kiss his cheek. "Flattery will get you everywhere, mister."
Rachel only made it through half of her soup before dashing for the downstairs half bathroom. She had shut the bathroom door but Finn could still hear her getting sick. He carefully got up from the island, this time with the help of the crutches and made his way to the bathroom door. He leaned on the left crutch while he gently knocked on the door.
"Rach? Can I come in?" Finn asked when he heard silence.
"I'm okay. I'll be back out in a minute." Rachel responded through the door.
Finn turned the knob easily and placed his hand back on the crutch before moving forward. He found her retching over the toilet and she was shivering again. "Oh Rach."
He placed the crutches against the counter while balancing on one foot. He slowly lowered himself to the floor next to her and pulled her hair back for her while he rubbed gentle circles on her back.
Once she felt she was finished, she leaned back against the wall behind her. Finn carefully brushed wet strands from her face and she turned her head to look at him. "You should be resting. Why are you on the floor with me?"
"Because I love you and I hate that I can't help you very much right now. I can do this though. I may be recovering but that doesn't mean I'm helpless." Finn explained, leaning in to kiss her forehead. "Feels like your fever spiked again."
"I'm okay." Rachel said looking up at him. He brushed a hand over her cheek. "Don't worry so much."
"Worrying about you is all I do." Finn replied as he pulled himself back to his feet and grabbed his crutches. He braced one hand on both crutches while he held a hand out for Rachel to take. She hesitated but then took it and he pulled her to her feet. "Come on, let's go wait for my mom to get back."
Rachel was trying not to lean too heavily on Finn, that way so she wouldn't accidentally knock him over. She was still pretty weak after vomiting and just wanted to lay down next to Finn.
Instead of sitting down like she wanted him to do, he turned to her and used his crutches to stand on one foot again. Rachel rolled her eyes as his stubbornness.
"Finn, sit down please. I don't want you hurting yourself trying to help me." Rachel said looking extremely pale and laying a gentle hand on his forearm to stop the world from spinning.
He took her hand from his arm and gently tugged her closer, causing her to stumble. "I'm fine. Let me help you lay down, I know that didn't make you feel any better." Finn replied looking into her glassy, fever filled eyes.
"Finn..." She whined.
"Nope, no more excuses. Lie down, Rach." He pleaded softly. She sighed and let him guide her to the couch while he kept a hold on his crutches. He got her laying down on the couch with a blanket wrapped around her and started to move to his dad's chair when Rachel reached out and grabbed his wrist in a weak grip.
"Where are you going?" She shivered.
"I'm just going to sit over here so you can be comfortable." Finn started.
"No, lay with me please?" Rachel asked him, craning her neck so she could look around the arm of the couch to see him.
"Rach, you need to get some rest. That's the only way you're going to get better." Finn explained, leaning his crutches against the end of the couch and kneeling down next to her on his right knee, which is the knee he happened to not injure in the crash. He gently rubbed her shoulder through the blanket. "I want you to feel better, babe."
"I want you to be better too." Rachel replied quietly.
"I know you do and we'll help each other, okay? My recovery is going to take longer than yours and I don't need to be laying down constantly but I want to be here for you, however I can help." Finn responded before giving her a smirk. "Are you going to let me sit behind you or do I have to lay on top of you? I mean I'm fine with either."
Rachel let out a raspy giggle and sat forward to make space for her giant boyfriend. As soon as he was seated, he pulled Rachel into his side and she snuggled down into his chest. "I love you."
"I love you too, babe." Finn smiled, kissing her head softly.
Carole and Burt arrived home a few hours later with a fever reducer for Rachel, which is what she really needed right now. She noticed that both Finn and Rachel had fallen asleep on the couch while watching a movie. Finn had his arms wrapped around Rachel and his head resting on top of her head. Rachel was curled up in Finn's lap with her head resting on his shoulder. Carole smiled and placed the bag of medicine on the floor next to them before gently shaking Finn to wake him.
His eyes opened slowly and came to focus on his mom. "Hey mom."
"Hey baby, how is she feeling?" Carole asked quietly so she wouldn't wake Rachel.
"She threw up her lunch and her fevers spiked again. I haven't been able to take her temperature though." Finn explained. "She still feels pretty hot but she's shaking."
"You're going to want to wake her then. I bought some medicine for her to get that fever down. She won't get any better until we do." Carole replied. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine mom. I'm starting to get the hang of the crutches and was actually able to help Rachel when she started throwing up." Finn responded shifting Rachel slightly in his lap so he could get some circulation back into his legs. He kissed her head and gently rubbed her arm. "Rach? Baby, I need you to wake up."
Rachel groaned and rolled her head further into Finn's neck. He chuckled and gently rubbed her back. She nuzzled her nose against his shoulder before pulling away to look at him. "Hey."
"Hey baby. My mom bought you some medicine." Finn explained placing a hand on her forehead before pulling it away quickly. "Mom can you grab the thermometer? I want to see how high her temperature really is."
"Sure, honey. I'll be right back." Carole replied getting back to her feet and going upstairs.
"Finn? I don't feel so good." Rachel said right before scrambling out of his lap and running for the bathroom again.
Finn moved to his feet slowly and grabbed his crutches before following her to the bathroom once again. Burt watched him go, noticing how well he was adapting to the crutches.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
This chapter took so much work through. So Rachel got sick (big surprise) but Finn is starting to move around better so things will start progressing a little more rapidly from here. As always please review and let me know your thoughts. Until next time, 'Losers.'