The First Time Poppy Took Care of Branch

Branch coughed for what he felt like the millionth time that night. Great. Now he was awake again, another sleepless night. His lungs felt like they were on fire and he started to feel chills meaning his fever was back. His teeth started chattering as he tried to wrap himself up in the blanket. He shuddered when he felt a cool hand on his forehead, it took him a second to register that it was Poppy's hand.

"Branch, you have a fever again."

"Mmmm." It was the only sound he could make.

"I'll be right back."

Branch shut his eyes, his eyelids felt like they were burning. 4 days ago, Branch started coming down with the Troll flu. It was an illness among the trolls that only showed itself every few years. Normally if a troll already got it, they would be immune for a few years after. Branch had been sick before but nothing like this! He never had the troll flu because he lived in the bunker away from exposure for most of childhood and adult life . Now that was living in the general population, he finally caught this awful illness. The first few days weren't that bad, it felt like a cold. He had insisted to Poppy that he would be fine taking care of himself so she could carry on with the village. On the 3rd day, Branch took a turn for the worse, he was bed bound and started running fevers which led him to be dehydrated. When Poppy found him on that day, she was horrified at what she saw and decided she would be staying home to take care of him until he was better.

Branch had not been able to sleep the past few nights. He would wake up every few hours to cough or because his body was fighting off the fever with chills. He knew this was keeping Poppy up and he felt guilty. Poppy could have slept in another room to preserve her sleep, but she chose to be by Branch's side. He was very grateful for it, but he still had some difficulties about letting others take care of him. He did not like to be a burden. Poppy had been super patient since Branch was not the best troll when he was not feeling well. He felt bad every time he was short with her when she offered anything to him. It wasn't that he didn't appreciate it, he just hadn't had anyone take care of him when he was this way in a long time. If Poppy was affected by his coldness, she was doing a good job of hiding it.

"Branch." Poppy said as she shook Branch lightly.

"Mmmm."

"We need to get your fever down. I drew a cool bath for you."

"No…just give me medicine."

"I gave you medicine a few hours ago. It's not bringing it down. Please, Branch, we need to try this."

Branch groaned in response. He knew Poppy was right but he also knew what lying in the cool water would do. It was going to be extreme discomfort. He allowed Poppy to help him up and lead him to the bathtub. She helped undress him and guided him in the tub.

Branch started hollering as soon as the water hit him."AH, AH!"

She rubbed his shoulder. "I know, I know. Try to relax."

"Relax?!" He snapped. "I'm going to get hypothermia!"

She ignored his brash response. "Just a little longer, you'll thank me later. Just try to keep breathing through it."

Branch was shivering, this was so much worse than the fever chills! How could this possibly help?! He started breathing erratically. He was tired, he was cold, he was weak. He just wanted this all to end. He felt Poppy's hand on his chest and he starting to take slow deep breaths. His shivering started to cease and he was starting to cool down much to his and Poppy's relief. She helped him out of the tub and wrapped him up immediately before he got cold again. After helping him redress, she helped him back to bed.

"How are you feeling?" She asked.

"Mmmm…still not great but a little better."

"Do you need anything?"

"No. I just want to sleep, this cough is killing me."

"I can get you some medicine for that."

"No Poppy, it's late. You need to sleep too."

"It won't take me but a second Branch. I want you to be comfortable."

He scoffed. "I don't think I'll be comfortable anyways."

As if on cue, Branch went into a coughing fit. It was a nasty one. The kind where it ached his chest afterwards. Branch flopped back on the bed in defeat.

"I'll be back. Try to get some rest."

He rolled his eyes. "I'll try."

Branch continued to cough up all the phlegm he was producing, he felt disgusting. He stared up at the ceiling, maybe if he stared at it long enough he could drift off to sleep. He tossed and turned, he was starting to feel irritated. The sheets felt like sandpaper on his skin, the blankets were either too hot or not warm enough, and his body was aching. He heard Poppy returning and he was still wide awake, so much for trying to rest.

"Branch?" He didn't answer. Poppy continued. "I got you medicine, it helps with a cough and it has some benadryl in it so it'll help you sleep."

"That'll just make me groggy." He said flatly.

"Oh. I'm sorry I wasn't thinking of that. I can get another one without it!"

"Don't bother, it won't help."

"I'm happy to do it. I could make some tea for you too. I have this really great recipe that-"

She started rambling on more about the different things she could do. Normally he could tolerate this but after a few nights with no sleep, he had had enough.

"Poppy…stop. You're smothering me! I don't want medicine and I don't want tea. The only thing I want is to be alone and sleep!"

Poppy was silent for a moment before she responded. "I'm sorry. I just thought it would make you feel better, but I got the hint now. I'll leave you alone." She put the medicine on the nightstand table, turned off the light and closed the door, leaving him in the darkness.

Branch groaned. Way to go, idiot he thought to himself. When he returned to his normal healthy self, he would never take it for granted again. He couldn't comprehend why he snapped at Poppy. He really appreciated Poppy taking care of him even though he was being a bit of a grump but it felt like too much at the same time? He would make it up to her when he was feeling better. Then, everything started to get blurry, was he falling asleep? He didn't know. All of a sudden intrusive thoughts started filling his head.

"Your girlfriend is taking care of you and you don't even appreciate it?"

"She hasn't gotten any sleep because of you."

"If you keep being a grump she won't want to be with you anymore."

"You're being so weak, Poppy at least showed some appreciation when you took care of her."

Branch started to sweat, his chest started to tighten. It was all true. He wasn't being appreciative towards her, she deserved better. He saw Poppy's face appear, she looked sad. She was saying words but he couldn't hear anything. Was he dreaming? Poppy then took a suitcase and started packing, she was still saying words but he couldn't hear them. He couldn't move. He couldn't do anything. She was leaving! He was trying to say words but nothing would come out.

"No! No! Poppy!"

"Branch? Branch sweetie. You're dreaming, it's ok."

Branch shot up out of bed. He was drenched in sweat and breathing heavily. Then another coughing fit. It took him a second for his eyes to readjust to the light. He turned and saw Poppy in front of him, she hadn't left. He didn't drive her away…at least not yet.

"Are you ok?" She asked so sweetly. He had yelled at her and yet she was still being so kind to him.

"Poppy, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Branch-"

"You're taking care of me and I haven't been appreciative of you. I've been such a grouch. I know when I don't feel good I'm not myself but that's not an excuse. I guess I'm still not used to having others take care of me, but that's something I need to come to terms with on my own. It's nothing for you to fix."

"Branch, I know you appreciate what I'm doing. It's hard to show gratitude when you're under the weather. This is the first time you've ever had the troll flu, I used to be grouchy when my dad took care of me when I had it."

"I know but-" Branch couldn't finish the sentence. He started to cry. It was a combination of feeling tired, guilty, and uncomfortable all at once. Poppy sat on the bed with him and wrapped him in a hug.

"It's ok, Branch. It's ok."

"It's not ok. I feel so terrible. I hate that I'm sick and that you have to deal with me."

"I'm not dealing with you Branch, I'm taking care of you. You took care of me when I was weak, remember? You didn't have to but you wanted to. Just like I am now because I love you, it's ok to not feel ok."

He sniffed. "I just feel so tired. The flu is so awful."

"I know, and I'm going to nurse you back to health even if you are a stubborn pain in the ass. We love each other, so we take care of one another no matter what."

She was right, he thought. Why did he think he was any less worthy of being taken care of? He couldn't answer that right now. Poppy fed him the cough medicine and he allowed himself to relax back in her embrace, eventually falling asleep at last. It was the most rest he had gotten since all this happened. He managed to sleep through the night, unfortunately it wasn't the end of his symptoms.

As the sun started shining through the window, Branch started feeling a wave of nausea. It came out of nowhere. He let out a soft groan which Poppy heard and rolled over to face him. He looked very green in the face. Thinking quickly on her feet, she got up and fetched a bucket. No sooner did she put it in front of Branch, he started throwing up. Poppy thought she would throw up herself after seeing this but she kept the best straight face she could. She focused on rubbing Branch's back to prevent her dinner from last night from coming back up. She focused her attention on the wall and tried her best to tune out the retching. After hearing Branch groaning, she felt it was safe to look now.

"Here lie down Branch, I'll make you some tea."

"I can't even think of putting anything in my stomach."

"The peppermint will help soothe it."

He didn't argue. He laid back and clutched his stomach. It wasn't over though. He threw up two more times when Poppy made the tea. He could smell the aroma of the peppermint from the kitchen, it was twisting his insides even more. Poppy placed the tea cup on the night table beside him. Branch looked at it and felt his stomach churning again.

"Branch, I know your stomach feels bad right now. Can you try one sip at least? It might make you feel better."

When she saw him nod in response, Poppy helped Branch sit up and sip the tea. He was able to swallow it and keep it down. He took another few sips and eventually the cup became empty. His stomach didn't feel so turned anymore and the nausea started to die down. Poppy saw the relief on his face and smiled softly. She placed the blanket back on him and readjusted his pillow, helping Branch fall back asleep.

Branch fell back into a wonderful nap. This time around, he didn't wake up to cough or throw up. Instead he smelled something cooking, something very familiar. It couldn't be…could it? He was still too weak to get out of bed to look for himself, he would have to wait. He went back to sleep for a little bit and awakened again when the scent became stronger.

Poppy stroked his hair as he was coming out of his slumber. "I made you your grandma's soup. I hope that was ok."

Branch's heart felt like it would melt when he processed her words. This was the first person besides his grandma or himself that ever made him soup when he was unwell. He wrapped Poppy in a hug which caught her off guard for a moment but was happy to return the hug to him.

"Hopefully it tastes ok."

He slowly lifted the spoon to his mouth. He felt the warm tingle inside his belly as the soup made its way down. Poppy did it, she perfected it. For the first time since getting sick, he didn't feel grouchy. He felt like himself for a little bit.

"This is perfect. Just like grandma used to make."

Poppy beamed. "Oh I'm so glad! I was worried I would've ruined it."

"Even if it didn't taste exactly the same, you at least tried and that's enough for me. You did great though, I feel pretty good after eating it!"

"Hopefully you'll be good as new soon."

"I know I haven't been expressing it, but thank you for taking care of me."

"I will always take care of you, Branch." She kissed his forehead. "Why don't you get back to your nap?"

"Actually I feel pretty rested now, but maybe you could use one though. You were up all night with me."

"Will you be ok?"

"I promise, I will."

She smiled and gave a big yawn. She got back on her side of the bed and fell asleep instantly. Branch was relieved to see her get rest, but he felt guilty again. No matter how unwell he felt he should not have snapped at her. From now on, he would fully let go and allow her to take care of him the best way she knew how, by being Poppy. The next few nights he ran some fevers again and the coughing fit returned but she was right by his side giving him medicine and using the compresses. With some TLC and more of his grandma's soup, Branch started feeling like himself again. He still had the lingering cough, but eventually started sleeping through the night again.. He started regaining his strength little by little, he retired from lying in bed all day to being out in the living room and was able to help with the chores. With this new energy he had, he thought about what he could to thank Poppy for all she did. A little smirk appeared on his face, he had an idea.

Poppy stirred from a nap . It took her a minute to register that she was in bed, she had fallen asleep. Her disorientation turned into short panic when she saw Branch's side of the bed was empty. Where was he? Though he was feeling better, she still worried he was doing too much too fast. Did he try to get up and fall down?! She shot out of bed, luckily she didn't have to look for too long. She saw Branch sitting at a desk working on something. From where she was standing she couldn't see what it was.

"Branch?"

He jumped a little, not expecting Poppy to wake up from her nap so soon. "Oh, hi. Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah, I slept fine. What are you doing?

"I made this for you."

She got closer and he handed her what looked like a piece of paper. She looked at it, it was a card. It wasn't just any card though, the whole front side was covered in glitter. On that page showed paper cut shaped versions of themselves. The Poppy on the card was tending to the Branch while it was lying in the bed with a thermometer in his mouth with a cool compress on his head. A red heart was glued on the front below the paper shapes of Poppy and Branch. She opened the card and there were more paper shapes of a medicine bottle, a bowl of soup, a bathtub, the paper Poppy hugging and kissing the paper Branch. The next page had big glittery letters of every color that spelled "THANK YOU".

Poppy felt a tear in the corner of her eye. This was beautiful. Though Branch had been short with her at times, she didn't take it personally and knew none of it was directed at her. She knew he appreciated all that she did for him, but there was something about being affirmed for her actions that made her feel so good. He even used glitter, Branch hated glitter. She looked up at him, she didn't have any words. She just smiled and hugged him.

"Thank you, Branch."

This was the most requested First so I finally gave it life! It took me a while to figure out how I wanted to go about it, from what we've seen in the movies Poppy taking care of Branch would be more mental based. So I combined that a little with physical! As you can see it's almost a parallel of when Branch took care of Poppy. I promise Branch is not a monster! Every guy I know is either a baby or grumpy when they are sick and I know Branch would be no exception! We see he made up for it in the end ;) Stay tuned for more and feel free to suggest any firsts!

~Ash