The Reaper Child: Book II [Child!Reader Protagonist]

~Chapter 24~

It had been the early hours of the morning when Will received pokes on his cheek from his wife. 

"Wiilll…" Grell whispered. The only response she received was Will twitching his nose and grumbling as he rolled on his side, she gave him an even firmer poke.

"Will!" The redhead’s whisper has become more firm. She grabbed Will’s shoulder and began shaking him. 

"Will! Wake up!"

He grumbled again, but this time he finally opened his eyes. Groggy and confused from being forcefully awakened from dead sleep, Will squinted through the blurry darkness to see the person who had awoken him.

"Grell?" He said,  trying to rub the sleepiness out of his eyes. "What time is it?"

"Never mind that," Grell dismissed him. "It turns out that (Y/N) is ill after all. And you are going to stay home and look after (Y/P)."

"Excuse me?" Will was more awake now. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Of course it is!" Grell looked offended. "This is how it will all begin!"

"Just what makes you think I can care for a sick child?" 

Grell raised an eyebrow. "The real question is: How WOULDN’T you be able to? Remember that time when you took good care of ME when I got sick?" 

"Hmm." Will did remember that. His brief time caring for his sick lover was quite… exciting. "But I have work today."

"So? Just take the day off! Work can wait. I think (Y/N)'s well being is more important here.

Will couldn't argue with that, because he knew she was right. He supposed he could do some work from home. He had a tendency to get withdrawals if he didn't work for a certain period of time. "Alright. I'll do it," he agreed.

"If you do it, I'll let you join me in the shower," Grell added seductively. 

"You don't need to bribe me, Grell. I already agreed to do it."

The redhead executed a mischievous grin and in a cutesy voice said, "So is that a no?" 

Will stared at her. A faint shade of red formed in his cheeks, but fortunately it wasn't very noticeable as the room was still dark. "Let me know when you're about to get the shower started."

Grell nodded. "I'll do so momentarily. I'll be right back to let (Y/N) know real quick." 

"Alright," Will said before Grell quickly left the room. He sat up and glanced at the clock. It was merely ten minutes before it was supposed to go off. He got out of bed and as he was searching for something to wear in the walk-in closet that he and Grell shared, Will heard some shouting that was along the lines of “What the devil has gotten into you, you feral child!?” but when the shouting ended as quickly as it started, he decided that he would rather not get involved with whatever was going on. 

Sometime later, probably an hour after Grell left your room for the final time, you decided to get out of bed when you realized that your bladder was full. It took a lot of strength to drag yourself out of bed, but you managed. 

Just when you were about to open the bathroom door, Will stepped out of his and your mother’s bedroom. 

“Good morning, (Y/N),” Will said when he spotted you. He halted for a moment. “I’ll be helping you today while your mother is at work. I’ll be downstairs doing some work. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to let me know.” You nodded. Will began walking again, passing by you.

“I hope you feel better soon,” he added as he walked down the stairs. You couldn’t tell whether he actually cared or was merely being polite. Regardless, you went inside the bathroom to execute your business. After you were done, you went back to your room. By that time, fatigue had caught up to you again. Within minutes of you laying your head on your pillow, you fell asleep.

After Grell left for work, Will prepared himself another cup of tea to sip on while he worked. He had already called in, notifying his superiors that he wouldn’t be showing up today and was going to work from home instead. Hours had passed. During that time, the ambience of keyboards being pressed filled the living room as Will was rapidly typing away. As long as his hyperfocus stayed strong as it always did when he was going through documents, nothing could distract him except for the growling of his stomach when noon came.

It was around eight in the morning when Grell had left for work, which meant that Will had been working for four hours straight without a break. That was when he realized that you had been silent this whole time, not once coming downstairs. 

Will took his gaze away from his laptop and looked at the direction of the staircase. He came to a disturbing realization that he had been distracting himself from the task he had been assigned this morning by his wife. He supposed that he had been in denial and thus was avoidant. He was no longer going to lie to himself: He was completely uneasy about caring for your sick self and had been feeling this way since the moment Grell announced it this morning though he dared not to express it other than his initial hesitation. He agreed to do this because he knew it would upset Grell otherwise. Fortunately, with his naturally stoic personality, he was able to mask his anxiety.

But it wasn’t just caring for you until you were healthy again, but just being a parent. Grell had mentioned several times since your arrival that she wanted you two to bond. Will knew that she wanted you both to bond, but the problem was that he wasn’t sure what that meant exactly. Looking back at his childhood, he had no memory of having a strong relationship with any adult so he didn’t know what it was like. Sure, he’d seen how parents interact with their children doing activities such as playing in the park. But he hadn’t paid much attention to that. All he had ever cared about in his life was success in his career. Grell was the only thing that he cared for other than work, and really the only genuine connection in his life.

Just how does a man like himself bond with a child who has hardly bonded with anyone in his life? Mere politeness didn't seem to cut it.

That was when he realized he was probably overthinking all this. Perhaps someday he will figure out this whole bonding business. But for now, he had an objective. That objective would be to help you recover from your illness. As long as he did that, he would have a sense of peace knowing that he did take on a parental role in some shape or form, which should be satisfactory to Grell. He didn't want to find out what would happen should he fail to focus on his objective.

Something told him that he should probably check on you. He set aside his laptop, got off the sofa, and went upstairs. The door to your bedroom was slightly open. He paused right in front of it. He hadn't set foot inside there since the day that he finished helping Grell set up your bedroom. Just prior to that, it had been a storage room. He remembered how he had a sense of dread when the more he and Grell transformed that room, that meant that the adoption was becoming a concrete plan after all. 

Will entered your room, seeing that you were deeply asleep, buried under the blankets. You must have been very much unwell if you had gone to bed early the night before, slept all morning, and still remained exhausted. He had seen you awake this morning when you went to go use the bathroom, but that was early this morning.

When he slowly got closer, he noticed that your skin was paler than usual. There were dark bags on your eyes. 

With hesitant motions, Will reached down and lightly placed his hand on your forehead. 

A thermometer was not necessary to know that your fever was concerningly high now. Will silently cursing himself, as he should have checked on you earlier. 

"(Y/N)?" He said your name while softly tapping your shoulder. No response. You were still breathing, but Will knew he had to check if you were responsive. If you were to be in a coma or something along those lines, Grell would tear his head off for his negligence. 

That wasn't an exaggeration, as Will knew and has seen for himself that Grell was beyond capable of ripping someone's head off.

Will tried again, saying your name and tapping you on the shoulder. Still no response.

"Damn it…" Will whispered to himself. He grabbed your shoulder with his hand and started shaking it.

"Come on, (Y/N)... wake up."