static [joshler]

start of the end

Tyler was the only one in the house. Jenna had insisted on him having his phone by his side at every second just in case he needed something. He obliged to her request, of course, but he wasn't going to do much moving around so it's not like he would fall or anything. Or whatever her concerns were.

His head felt jumbled so couldn't think very well. It took some effort to follow along with the movie playing on the TV, mostly because he was sure he had nodded off at some point.

He rolled over and groaned. The fabric rubbed together as he massaged his stomach. There was a pain in his left side and he attempt sooth it, but it even hurt his arm to move back and forth. So he stopped.

He stayed still, just thinking of Josh.

Why did he have to go back home to his family? Don't they know he needs him here?

Suddenly the front door opened and Tyler gasped. For a second he thought it was going to be an intruder. What would he have done anyway? Probably just let them take whatever they wanted. It's not like he could fight anyone.

But he didn't have to worry about that. It was Josh who opened the door. He had gotten over the "ringing the doorbell and waiting to be let in" bit. He practically lived here now.

"Hey, Josh."

"Hey." He kicked off his shoes and took off the duffle bag to set it down. It was full of clothes and other items he needed to stay here for an extended period of time. "How's it going?"

"Well, pretty sure this guy just got transported to another dimension."

"What?" Josh laughed.

Tyler shrugged. "This movie."

"Oh," He came in and sat next to him. "What is it?"

"I don't know. It was on already. I couldn't find the remote."

"Oh, interesting..." Josh watched the screen for a while, trying to make sense of it but he was just as lost as Tyler was.

The younger leaned himself against his new boyfriend. The older felt him shivering.

"Are you cold?"

"Not really, why?"

"You're shaking."

"Oh." He realized he was.

His body felt warm against him. Josh pressed his palm to his forehead. "You feel hot."

"Thanks." He joked.

"No, Ty-" Josh laughed, then turned serious. "Tyler, you might have a fever. What do you feel like?"

He leaned his head back and looked at the ceiling. "I feel like there's always something wrong with me."

Josh stared him down with sympathy. "...Do you feel sick? Like nauseous or like does your throat hurt?"

He rolled his head to the side to see Josh's eyes. "No, I'm fine with those thankfully. Got a headache though."

"Okay..." He nodded and bit his lip as he thought. "What other symptoms of fever are there?"

He shrugged. "Mhm."

"You're achy, right?"

"All the time, Josh."

"And you said you felt worse a few days ago. Do you still feel like that?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Maybe it's from a fever," Josh got up. "I'm going to go find a thermometer."

Tyler sighed loudly. "Fine."

He left the living room to open every single drawer and cabinet in the house. What seemed like the last reasonable place to look and 10 minutes later, he found one. After washing it off, he sat back down and handed it to Tyler.