Forever After All

Sick

War was enjoying his breakfast when he heard a sudden thud coming from the bathroom. Although he usually would have disregarded it, the noise was too loud to ignore. Setting down his fork, he hurried to the bathroom door and knocked.

"Yin?" War called out for Yin, but received no answer. Concerned, he called out again, "Hey, Yin? Are you alright?" Still met with silence, he decided to check on his husband in the bathroom where he could only hear the sound of running water. "Yin, I'm coming in if you don't respond!"

War cautiously turned the handle, feeling a rush of relief when he realized the door was unlocked. The warm steam hit him as he pushed the door open, making him hurry over to the tub. His heart sank when he saw his husband, fully clothed and slumped over.

"Yin! What happened?"

"I just stumbled, no big deal." Yin weakly waved him off, but War wasn't convinced.

"Here, let me help you up."

"Tch."

War ignored the noise and reached out to grab the uncooperative man's arm, intending to assist him. As he clasped Yin's forearm, he was taken aback by how warm it was. The steam in the room was already intense, but Yin's complexion appeared unusually pale and unhealthy. The typically robust alpha appeared to be lacking the energy to stand. War raised his hand and compared the warmth of Yin's forehead to his own. Despite knowing he had a higher body temperature than most, Yin felt even hotter than him in that moment.

"You're not okay, you're running a fever!"

"Let go of me, you brat." Yin grumbled, trying to break free, but War was determined not to give in to the unreasonable request. Despite finding the older man difficult to deal with, he couldn't bring himself to abandon someone who was unwell. He could be quite stubborn when he wanted to be.

"No, you're sick and you need to rest." Turning off the water, he helped his husband to stand up.

"Stay still for a moment." Grabbing a towel, he quickly dried Yin as best as he could. He had to hold back a chuckle at the sight of his husband looking disheveled with wrinkled clothes and messy hair. Supporting Yin's weight once again, War began the challenging journey out of the bathroom.

A brief moment of tension arose, yet War successfully guided both of them down the hallway. It was surprising how much a five-foot three-inch alpha could weigh. Despite Yin skipping breakfast and barely eating throughout the day, the alpha still outweighed War.

Experiencing a moment of hesitation as they stumbled down the hardwood floor, he finally made the decision to take Yin to his bedroom – or at least what he considered his room, since Yin only entered to grab his clothes. It would be more comfortable for Yin to rest on a bed rather than the sofa. What surprised War, however, was that his usually grumpy husband hadn't resisted yet. Normally, Yin would have pulled away from any kind of help or physical contact. Yin must have been much weaker than he pretended, since he didn't resist as they approached the bed.

"Here," War pulled back the edge of the blanket, motioning for Yin to take a seat. He hesitated for a moment, wondering if he should assist his husband in removing his clothes, before finally taking the towel off Yin's shoulders. War was aware of Yin's aversion to anything dirty, and his clothes were drenched. Regardless, War knew that Yin's outfit would end up crumpled and drenched in sweat. "Umm... do you want me to help you undress?"

"Ugh, I'm not that unwell, War." A touch of the healthy, regular Yin returned as pale fingers reached up to unfasten the buttons on his shirt. Even when feeling under the weather, there was still something elegant and lovely about the way Yin's fingers toyed with the buttons.