Prompt: Mitch and shane get sick and Carol and Jasper worries/babies them
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carol and Jasper froze as they heard a coughing fit start up from down the hallway. They slowly glanced at each other.
“Let’s hurry,” Carol said, grabbing two glasses out of the cupboard.
Jasper finished making the boys soup while Carol poured them orange juice and grabbed cough drops for them. They went down the hallway and into Shane’s room.
Shane was propped up against his pillows on his bed. They had set Mitch up on the couch, and he was huddled in blankets, curled up into a little shivering ball of fever and misery.
Carol frowned at her sons. They had come down with fevers yesterday and progressively gotten worse into today. Mitch was the worst, and had been throwing up throughout most of the night. Shane had thrown up only a few times, and then managed to fall asleep.
“Mitch, honey, how are you?” she asked, going over to him and putting her hand against his forehead, feeling his burning skin.
Mitch whimpered and burrowed deeper into his blankets. Carol checked the bucket next to the couch, relieved to see that at least he hadn’t thrown up again.
“Shane, how are you feeling?” Jasper asked, going over to him and checking his forehead. Shane was still burning up too.
“Like death,” Shane croaked. “But better than Mitch. I think he’s going to die. Can I have his iPod?” He coughed hard and sank against his pillows, looking miserable.
They had put the boys in the same room to make it easier to care for them. Shane’s room was right next to the bathroom, which made it easier on both of the boys since they were too dizzy to stand for long.
“Mitch, you have to sit up. We’re going to try to get a little soup into you. You need to eat something,” Jasper said, moving over to Mitch.
“No,” Mitch said, his voice weak. “I’ll throw up again.” He started shivering harder. “I don’t want to throw up anymore. Please don’t make me eat anything.”
Jasper sat down next to him, brushing his hair out of his face. “Mitch,” he said softly. Mitch did not handle being sick well, because he rarely ever got sick. “Mitchy, you have to eat something. It’s just a little soup. You haven’t thrown up in a few hours. I think it’s safe to try.”
He slowly helped Mitch sit up and grabbed a bowl of soup. He slowly moved the spoon into Mitch’s mouth, waiting until Mitch had forced himself to swallow it down before doing it again.
Carol grabbed the other bowl of soup and moved over to Shane. Shane was shivering too, though not as bad as Mitch. Still, it was bad enough that he would spill the soup before it reached his mouth.
“I’m 20 and my mom is feeding me,” he said miserably.
“Shut up and eat,” Carol said, continuing to feed him the soup until it was gone. She smiled softly at him and kissed his forehead. “I’m glad you ate it all. Do you feel any better?”
“Just a little,” he mumbled. “Can you get me another blanket, mom? I’m really cold.”
“Of course,” she said. She grabbed another blanket and draped it over Shane.
“Mitch barely at a third of the soup,” Jasper said with a sigh, standing up and setting the soup down on Shane’s desk.
“I don’t want anymore. Don’t make me eat anymore,” Mitch begged, curling back up to resume his violent shivering.
“Okay, okay,” Jasper said gently, sitting back down next to Mitch and rubbing his back soothingly. “We won’t make you eat anymore. Do you want a ginger ale?”
“No,” Mitch said, squeezing his eyes shut.
“He’s pathetic when he’s sick. He can’t handle illness like a man,” Shane said, watching his little brother. He hesitated. “Dad, can I have a ginger ale?”
“Sure, I’ll go grab you one,” Jasper said, jumping up and hurrying to get Shane a drink.
Carol began to stroke Shane’s hair comfortingly. She hated seeing her boys sick. And Shane was right; Mitch was pathetic when he was sick. It was heartbreaking to watch.
She looked down and realized that Shane had fallen asleep. She continued to stroke his hair until Jasper returned. He set the soda down on Shane’s nightstand and shot Shane a concerned look.
Carol moved over to Mitch, pulling his blankets up to his shoulders and kissing his cheek. He forced his eyes open, looking up at her with a desperate expression that begged for her to do something, anything, to make him feel better.
“Mitchy, why don’t you take a nap like Shane? Tell you what; as soon as you’re better I’ll take you and your brother out to any concert you want to go to,” Jasper said with a comforting smile.
Mitch nodded and closed his eyes again. Carol lightly brushed her fingers over his cheek before standing up. They left the room, shutting the lights off and softly closing the door as they went.
“I like them better when they’re being rude, annoying bastards,” Jasper said sadly.
“Me too,” Carol said, staring at the closed door, concern in her eyes. “Hopefully they get better soon.”
