Steven leaned over his laptop with a heavy sigh. The pounding in his head drowned out the hum of the heater in the room. He could feel Wallace's eyes burning into him, but he chose to ignore the worried stare. He wanted to go back to sleep. Over the past few hours, he felt the ache in his muscles worsen and he could feel the rattle in his chest with each breath. Rationally, he knew that his cold was getting worse, but he wouldn't admit it. The stubbornness was fueled by his desire to finish these dreadful reports. Perhaps it was something more than a cold. He was having a hard time remembering the last time he felt this sick. Then again, he was having a hard time getting his mind to work in general right now. He felt a twinge of embarrassment as he glanced at the box of tissues and cough drops that Wallace had brought him. The worst part about the entire ordeal was the cough. It resonated deep in his chest and made his chest burn. Wallace was lounging on the other end of the couch with a book, which at this point he was only pretending to read, and a fuzzy blanket he had long ago discarded. Steven still wasn't sure how Wallace wasn't cold. He was convinced now that the heat in his house was broken, despite being far too hot earlier in the morning. It was set at what Wallace had deemed a comfortable temperature after a few of Steven's comments about the house feeling cold. He suppressed a shutter and tried to read the small print on the paper he had next to him. It was bad enough that he was behind on the paperwork, but now of all times, why did Wallace have to be there? He reminded himself that Wallace lived there too and he would have to get over someone else seeing him sick. He could no longer focus on the task at hand as his mind drifted off every few minutes. He was getting nowhere.
"Would you like some more tea?" Wallace asked idly, his green eyes not straying away from the lines of black text on the page "Also we should probably talk about Sinnoh. I know you aren't feeling very good but the sooner we make these plans the better."
"Sinnoh?" Steven repeated curiously. That was enough to get Wallace's full attention, his turquoise eyes studying him quietly. When had he agreed to go to Sinnoh? He wracked his brain trying to remember. Then it hit him. Last night. This must be what he agreed to. "Oh, right, the Wallace Cup. Sorry." He rubbed the back of his head with an awkward smile "I suppose I'm still tired. When were you wanting to leave?"
"Steven…" Wallace trailed off staring into Steven's eyes, studying him "We don't have to do this. It was only a suggestion."
"No, I want to." Steven tried to sound reassuring but even he could hear how it fell flat. "I promise I do. I just don't feel very well right now."
"Right. Perhaps you should rest for a bit." Wallace sat up a bit and pulled his legs closer to make room on the couch for Steven to lie down.
"I'm fine," Steven mumbled as he stretched. Giving up on getting anything done, he closed his laptop and stood up with a sigh. The world spun dangerously around him as he crossed the room towards the kitchen. When had he started feeling so dizzy? The room was hot again. He could feel his shirt sticking to his skin. He stopped short, stumbling forward, and reached out to grab hold of the nearest object. That unfortunately was Wallace. Steven had not heard Wallace following him.
Wallace held Steven's arm to steady him as he swayed. "Steven?" He searched Steven's eyes for any sign that something was wrong. His normally bright steel-blue eyes were dull and lacking the confidence that was always there, instead replaced with a dull unseeing look of pain and exhaustion. Wallace placed his free hand on his lover's forehead. "You've definitely come down with more than a cold" He murmured, pulling Steven to his chest.
Steven coughed harshly, grimacing at the wet sound, and pushed away from Wallace. So much for not worrying him. Everything hurt, but the last thing he wanted was to get Wallace sick. "I think I'm just going to bed." He honestly felt horrible and he was tired. He was not going to ruin their trip to Sinnoh. He refused to let Wallace down. Maybe if he just slept then he would get over whatever this was.
"Yeah, of course. Do you want anything?" Wallace offered as he followed Steven into the bedroom. He watched helplessly as Steven sat on the edge of the bed with his head in his hands. He pulled the curtains closed in an attempt to darken the room a bit.
Steven didn't move when he heard Wallace disappear into the bathroom. He could hear him looking around in his cabinets, probably trying to find something to bring his fever down. He began keeping a stock of various medications when Wallace first moved in. Steven was so rarely ill that it seemed irrelevant to have anything on hand, but Wallace was another story. He felt a shiver pass over his weakened body and for a moment he thought he could sleep forever. He didn't hear Wallace approach him until the other man had his hand extended with two small white pills in his palm.
"Tylenol for the fever." He said softly and Steven gratefully took the medicine before burrowing into the soft blankets. He felt his cheeks burn, but not from the fever, as Wallace kissed his forehead. "Try and get some sleep, okay?" All Steven could do was nod his head. He closed his eyes obediently as Wallace positioned himself carefully next to him and stroked his head, allowing his fingers to linger as he combed through the gray locks until Steven drifted away into a deep sleep. The familiar touch quelled any feelings of doubt that he had. Wallace was here. Wallace would look after him.
Steven drowsily stirred with a deep sigh after an hour. Wallace sat carefully on the edge of the bed, his hand gingerly brushing Steven's damp bangs from his head. "Feeling any better after the nap?"
Steven weakly nodded. In truth, he did feel better except for the fever and splitting headache. "Mhm," He pushed himself up and stiffly swung his feet off the bed, the hardwood floor stinging his too-warm feet. Slowly he stood, despite the lethargic pace the room still spun, and he swayed, his legs giving out.
"Whoa there." Wallace chided as he reached up to support his lover. "Maybe a bit more rest will do you good." He eased Steven back down so that he was sitting down on the bed. He knew Steven was about to protest, "Whatever work you have can wait."
"I wish it could..." Steven sighed wistfully. He had a deadline coming up for one of the many league reports.
"Drake is finishing the report you are behind on."
Steven stopped dead. If Drake was offering to do any kind of paperwork it only meant one thing "What do I owe him?"
"He didn't say anything about owing him. He just said to feel better and something about you being even now. Whatever that means."
"I have other things to do," Steven argued. He had been saving that favor for something more fitting, but he supposed that not having to beg the league board for an extension was a good enough reason. That would give him the chance to get a head start on the expense report for the month.
"Glacia is working on the expense report. You seem to forget that I did this job once."
"There are still things to do."
"If you are talking about the trip to Sinnoh, then forget it. You aren't well enough right now. We will figure out the details later."
"We can't cancel the trip, Wallace. It would not be fair to you. I promised I would go." Steven felt the desperation growing. He had to keep his promise to Wallace. He just had to. Even if he had made the promise unknowingly.
"Shh." Wallace softly pressed his finger against Steven's lips. "Steven, I'm more worried about you right now. We still have time to make the travel arrangements. I would hate it if we went and you couldn't enjoy yourself because you are ill. We will see how you feel in a few days and then we will discuss it. Okay?"
Steven hesitantly nodded. He would let Wallace have his way for now. He would check on Glacia and Drake to make sure everything was going okay.
"Why don't we watch TV to pass the time that way you can be resting?" Wallace suggested, holding up the TV remote. His smile fell a bit when Steven simply shrugged in response.
Steven was anxious to get up and about, they both knew he was, but for now, he would have to endure the bed rest. If he recovered quickly then he would not make any challengers wait and they would be able to take their trip. He watched as Wallace quietly got up and headed toward the bathroom. Deciding to use the opportunity, Steven stood on shaky legs and went to the kitchen to get some water. He eyed his laptop on the way back and decided to take it to the bedroom. Just in case. Wallace was still in the bathroom when he returned so he made himself comfortable once more and waited. He let his mind drift off as he waited. Wallace had started keeping clothes at his house in Mossdeep City a few months after they started dating. Having given up his role as a champion to make more time for his contests left Wallace constantly traveling. Steven had offered to let Wallace move in with him not long after that. He didn't mind resuming the title of Champion in place of Wallace. He turned his attention back to where Wallace was now standing. He couldn't believe someone as amazing as Wallace would have ever agreed to be with him. Everything about Wallace was perfect. He watched as Wallace gracefully crossed the room and slid under the covers with him, offering his shoulder to lean on. Sometimes it was nice that Wallace was taller. They skimmed through the channels until they found a movie then sat in silence, one of them occasionally commenting on something a character did. Steven tried his best to stifle his cough to not interrupt Wallace, but he couldn't help when a particularly bad fit started. He felt like he was choking, unable to breathe between coughs. His chest ached with a fierce burning sensation. He felt Wallace reach over him to take the water from the nightstand before forcing him to sit. Once it seemed as if he could breathe again, he was handed his water. He put the water back and pressed against Wallace, resting on his chest.
Despite it not being said, Wallace knew this was cheering Steven up. After the movie went off neither of them bothered changing it from Jurassic Park. He thought it was perhaps due to both of them being comfortable. It did not take Steven long to doze off on Wallace's chest. The smaller man liked to put up a front with others, but Wallace knew that despite this he still loved to be close when ill. It was usually the other way around with Wallace being the one who was sick, after all, he has always had a weak immune system, and Steven hovering over him making sure that he was comfortable. It was rare that Steven fell ill, but when he did it was usually bad. Wallace held hope that this was all that would happen, but it just seemed to be the calm before the storm. Once Steven was snoring softly, something that only ever happened when he was sick and congested, Wallace knew it was safe to move him. He slowly slid out from under the sleeping champion and propped him up with pillows before silently exiting the room towards the kitchen to fix lunch and something bland that Steven could eat.
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