Burnt Out - Zuko x OC

A Bird With Clipped Wings

***** NSFW *****

I laid on the floor that night without getting so much as a wink of sleep. How could I when there was so much work to be done, so much to keep track of? Like keeping track of Kai's breathing for example. I counted it intensely for hours, syncing mine up with hers so I would know if it stopped. I'd never noticed before then how slowly she breathed. Sometimes it would speed up though, almost to a pant, like she was running. Or maybe she was sobbing.

Kai mumbled a few times, words I couldn't decipher or put any meaning to. "Witch doctor" "Nero" and "Shin" were a few of them. I pulled the sheets off of her to make sure I hadn't missed any burns on her shins, but there was nothing there.

The sun began to rise and sleep was just starting to creep up on me when I sat up with sudden awareness. I thought that maybe someone was coming, that she wasn't safe there. But when I glanced over at my bed, I saw that she'd only kicked the sheets off of her. Her body gleamed with a thin layer of sweat.

"Mm hot.." Kai grumbled through her dreams. Her skin had been a sickly pale shade the night before, now it was tinted pink and she radiated heat.

"That's because you're sweating out the infection." I said, and covered her back up. She'd be uncomfortable, but it protected her dignity. Plus I wasn't about to try to pull a robe over dead weight and hope for the best.

A few hours later a member of the help knocked on the door asking why I'd missed breakfast. I cracked it open and barely left enough room for them to see the irritability on my face.

"Long night." I said and snuck a glance over my shoulder. Kai'd lost so much weight in just a month's time. I knew I wouldn't be able to force feed her, but maybe she'd have the energy to eat something on the off chance that she gained consciousness. "Bring me up a tray of fresh fruits and a pitcher of ice water."

An hour later, it was waiting outside the door. That was one of the things that I refused to feel guilty about having back, food on demand. No begging or stealing, all I had to do was say the word and it was served to me on a silver platter.

Apparently the smell of brunch did something for her, she was stumbling out of bed before I could even close the door behind me. Her legs were still too weak though and they gave out under the pressure of her weight. She folded in on herself, hitting the floor like a limp rag doll.

"You drugged me.." She whispered. The knot in her braid had come loose and her hair was untangling over her shoulders.

"No I didn't." I said. Instead of picking her up, I joined her on the floor with the tray sitting between us. "I told you last night, I gave you a really strong antibiotic. You'll feel like shit for at least the rest of the day, but at least you won't die."

She chugged the pitcher of water. All of it, every last drop, and then began chewing on the ice chips. "You're trying to keep me captive." She said.

While her body was mildly functioning, her mind was still in dreamland. She wasn't conscious at all, may as well have been sleep walking.

"I'm trying to keep you alive, Kai. Now eat." I nudged the tray closer to her and she took notice of it for the first time. Cantaloupe, that was her choice. She scarfed down every slice and then licked the juice off of her fingers before deciding that she'd had enough. Her head started to droop back down against her chest as her body fell back asleep.

When lunch time rolled around, I had to leave her. I fought my departure until the very last second, it wasn't safe, but it would look suspicious if I stayed locked in my room all day. I had appearances to keep up with now, after all. So I lifted her back onto the bed and let her remain uncovered this time, knowing that it would be nightfall before I saw her again.