Kotlc Oneshots!

Sick (Sokeefe)

(Keefe Pov)

Keefe woke up to the sound of beating on his door. He groaned and buried his face into his pillow. The sound was too much for his aching brain.

Unfortunately, his dad didn't seem to care because the door busted open, and Lord Cassius invited himself into the room.

"I told you to get up ten minutes ago." Lord Cassius crossed his arms.

Keefe lifted his head and squinted in the bright light. "Well, I didn't hear you," he grumbled."

His father stared at him for a moment before saying, "Get dressed. You're going to be late for school."

The door slammed shut, and he winced. He flopped back onto his bed, but the action made him feel dizzy and queasy.

What he really wanted to do was go back under the covers and go back to bed. He was too shivery to go to school. But his dad would chew him out if he stayed home, so he trudged himself out of bed.

He put on an extra thick cloak in hopes it would warm him up, but it did very little to ease the chills on his skin.

He left for school and stumbled into orientation just in time before Magnate Leto officially started the school day.

He took his usual seat next to Sophie. His head felt like it had a giant steel weight in it. He just couldn't keep it up. So he gently leaned it down on Sophie's shoulder. If he was lucky, he could be able to get a good fifteen minutes of extra sleep.

But as soon as he did, Sophie whipped her head around. She gave him a warm smile. "There you are! I was wondering where you were." Her mood shifted from bubbly to worry when she got a good look at him. She frowned. "Are you ok?"

She reached up to cup his face, but he sat up before she could. "I'm fine," he assured her. "I just didn't get much sleep last night. I'm tired, that's all."

All of that was a total lie. If he wasn't interrupted, he probably could've kept sleeping for the rest of the century.

Sophie seemed to believe it, though. She just ruffled her hand through his hair and guided his Keefe's head back to her shoulder.

He must have dozed off because the next thing he knew, Sophie was shaking him awake. He groaned and clutched his head. Sophie noticed and frowned at him, all of her worry and concern, further overloading his brain.

He didn't want her to think anything was wrong, so he twisted his lips into a smirk. He had mastered the art of faking. "See you, Foster." He bolted away before she could question him further.

Even if he was good at pretending to fine, it didn't mean he was. He struggled through Empathy, his headache making sure it wasn't forgotten, pulsing behind his eyes. He nearly fell asleep three times, and his body shuddered from the aches in his limbs.

He had his head cradled on his desk ten minutes to lunch. His teacher noticed and sent him out of class early to head to the Healing Center.

He... did not go to the Healing Center. He went to lunch early, not bothering to go through the line. He probably wouldn't even be able to keep his lunch down anyhow.

Instead, he sat down at his seat and pressed his cheek against the cool table. He nodded off for a moment until a tray was placed on the table beside him. He opened his eyes to see Sophie looking down at him. Her concern blasting at him mixed with the bright lights amplified his headache.

He could definitely tell his cold had gotten  worse over the past few hours. His face was too hot for comfort, while the rest of his body was cold and achy. His eye lids were like lead and could hardly stay open.

So when Sophie asked if he was ok, he didn't pretend this time. He felt too much like vomiting to deny it.

He shook his head and wrapped his arms around his middle. "No. I feel sick."

Sophie's features softened. She pulled him in to rest against her. "Why didn't you stay home?"

"My dad would lecture me to no end if I did."

"Well, here." Sophie stood up and helped Keefe to his feet. "Let’s at least get you to sleep some of this off. I'm sure Elwin would let you crash in the Healing Center  to rest for a bit. I'll come for you before I go home and you can stay at Havenfeild for the weekend while you feel better."

He nodded more than fine the arrangement.

True to her world, Sophie stopped by after her final session to take him to Havenfeild.

"Are you feeling any better?" She asked him.

"Well, I threw up earlier," he muttered. Sophie trailed her hand down his warm cheek in response.

When they got to Havenfeild, Sophie dropped Keefe off on the couch, then went to talk to Edaline. After their conversation, Sophie walked off upstairs.

She came back with a few items in her arms. She draped the quilt over Keefe's shivering body and stuck the thermometer in his mouth. She didn't seem pleased with the result, so she went to the kitchen and came back with a damp cloth. She placed it on his forehead. Keefe sighed in relief. She pulled his head into her lap, rubbing her hand up and down his arms to warm him up and for comfort. He cuddled further into Sophie's touch and fell asleep for a couple of hours.

When he awoke, Sophie was gone. He clutched the blanket. Where was she? He wanted to speak, but a cough cut him off.

Footsteps plodded down from the stairs, and Sophie rounded the corner into the room. She gave him a pitiful look.

He lifted his head off the couch. Sophie felt his cheek with the back of her hand. "Did Elwin ever give you any medicine for your fever?"

Keefe sat up and grabbed a tissue off the coffee table, and blew his nose. "Yeah, a little bit."

She grabbed a vial out of one of her pockets. It had some sort of green liquid it it. She placed it in his lap.

"There's something that should help bring down your temperature, but you can't take it on an empty stomach. Do you think you can handle a couple bites of food?"

Keefe rubbed his eyes. "I think so."

Sophie went into another pocket. This time a box of prattles.

He ate his food, only making it to a few pieces before setting it back down, stomach churning.

She gave him the vial. He uncapped it and downed it in one swing. Which was a good thing, because if not, he would've gagged it back up.

She took the empty vial back from him and set it aside. "It'll kick in in about thirty minutes. She wiped his eyes, which had watered up from all the dry heaving.

Keefe really wanted to be held, but he wasn't going to ask for it. Which made him wonder if she was reading his mind, because she pulled him into a secure embrace. He melted into the hug, starting to feel drowsy again.

She whispered softly into his ear, "You should start feeling better in a little. Just relax for now."

He nodded and snuggled with his girlfriend. He was practically lying on top of her. Sophie didn't seem to mind, though. She just shifted to where they were lying down more than sitting up and ran her fingers through his slightly sweat damp hair.

Keefe buried his face in the crook of her neck. He breathed in the soft scent of whatever perfume she was wearing. It almost seemed to ease his nausea.

With Sophie tracing circles on his back, the darkness of sleep took him back as a welcomed break from the fever.