Work Text:
3:56 AM
Heather woke up in the dark of her room. She was shivering, but too hot. Thirsty, but too nauseous. Tired, but in too much pain to sleep.
Fuck. It was too early for this shit.
She rolled over as best she could, looking at Hector. He was sleeping peacefully beside her and she smiled slightly. She moved closer until she could lay her head on his chest. She tucked herself up to his side, pulling her blankets closer around her. She closed her eyes in the hope sleep would come back to her.
"Heather?" Hector asked, an edge of sleepiness to his voice. She felt his hand rest on the back of her head. Heather nuzzled into him at the sensation. It seemed to calm the throb of her headache.
He brought his other hand up and pressed it to her forehead. "Babe, you're burning up," he told her.
"M' fine," she mumbled, turning her face into his chest.
Hector wrapped his arms around her and she relaxed against him. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying desperately to fall back asleep. She felt Hector kiss the top of her head, and after she finally drifted off.
5:24 AM
Heather realized that she must have fallen back asleep when she woke up to pain everywhere. She couldn’t help but whimper as it hit her all at once.
She clutched her stomach, curling up in bed. She had rolled away from Hector in her sleep, and now was facing away from him. She felt too sick to crawl back to him.
She groaned, curls falling into her face as she dropped her head. Her eyes were shiny with tears and she was definitely sweating from a fever. She coughed a few times before she had to force herself to stop in fear of throwing up.
She felt arms wrap around her. “It’s okay, I’m here,” Hector whispered, moving her hair out of her face.
Heather choked on a sob.
Hector held her, careful not to move her around too much. He let her lay where she was and rubbed her arm, trying to comfort her.
“It’s okay. You can cry, baby. The sun isn’t even up yet. It’s okay,” Hector assured her. Heather started to rock herself the best she could, a single tear falling down her face. Hector held her through it, stroking her hair and whispering sweet nothings. It was all he could do for her right now, but it was more than enough.
Heather buried her face into the pillow, rolling onto her stomach. Hector rubbed her back, massaging very gently. She let out a high-pitched whine in the back of her throat. Tears soaked into the pillow and Heather couldn’t stop them if she tried.
Hector stayed there at her side, never taking a hand off of her body. This was immensely comforting for Heather, and she leaned into his touch as she cried.
“It’s gonna be okay, Kitty Cat, I’m right here.”
5:50 AM
Heather hadn’t fallen back asleep, but after crying, the nausea had in fact gotten worse. So now she was laying on the bathroom floor, trying to rock to self-soothe but only meeting more pain.
“Hey, drink something for me.” Hector kneeled beside her and pressed a water bottle to her lips. Heather whimpered but obeyed, taking a sip and a half of the water. It felt cool on her tongue, it must have come from the fridge. She whimpered and dropped her head back onto the bath mat she was laying on top of. Hector picked up a hair tie and pulled her hair back out of her face. She smiled slightly.
“Th-thank you,” she whispered.
He leaned down and kissed her temple. “Of course, sweetness.”
Heather bit down on her lip as another wave of nausea hit her. She made a low whining noise, closing her eyes as if it would block the pain. She felt Hector stroke her cheek with his thumb. She tilted her face slightly to lean into his hand more.
“Shit,” she cursed, attempting to sit up. She swallowed painfully, her throat burning.
“Oh, here!” Hector helped her sit up and get positioned over the toilet for the inevitable.
She used her arm to lay her head on, whimpering quietly as the sick feeling finally overtook her.
“I don’t feel good,” she whispered.
“I know, I know you don’t.” Hector rubbed her back up and down. “This will make you feel better, I promise.” Hector kissed the back of her neck.
Hector cringed as Heather began to retch and was soon bringing up all of her dinner from the night before. She coughed, tears rushing down her face.
This went on for several minutes, draining Heather of all her energy. She collapsed against her arm. She just sat there, shaking. The tears wouldn’t stop.
Hector didn’t say anything, just reaching for a nearby cloth to wipe off her face and mouth. She moved back into his arms and curled up against his chest, breathing slowly evening out.
She let her eyes fall closed, truly exhausted. Hector rubbed her back and held her close, shielding her from everything else.
And for a moment it was calm.
6:32 AM
Heather woke up back in bed. As she came to her senses, she realized that there was a cold towel on her forehead and the blanket wrapped around her was different from the one usually on her bed. She blinked a few times and whimpered. Everything still hurt.
“Hey, baby,” Hector said, appearing in the doorway. She looked over at him without moving, smiling slightly. He was holding a bottle of some brightly colored liquid and an orange pill bottle.
He walked over and kneeled down beside the bed to be at her level. He opened the bottle. “Here, drink some of this.” He held it up to her mouth. She tried to push it away. Hector sighed. “Come on, we have to replace what you threw up. Drink.”
Heather finally relented, taking a few mouthfuls of the sports drink. She couldn’t really taste much, but it felt good on her throat. She took a deep breath when Hector pulled it away. He ran a hand through her hair, trying to soothe her.
“Do you feel any better?”
“A little,” she said.
"Here, I brought medicine. It should help with the fever and pain."
Heather opened her mouth and he placed two pills on her tongue, then pressed the blue Gatorade back to her lips. She swallowed the medication, coughing a few times after it went down as the pills felt awful on her throat. She let her head fall back to the pillow, exhausted still.
"Poor baby," Hector said as he stroked her hair. She whimpered in response and he leaned down, kissing her forehead.
She glanced towards the clock, but couldn’t make out the numbers. “What time is it?”
Hector moved his hand from her hair down to her shoulder. “Just past six-thirty. Why?”
Heather’s eyes went wide. “I have work!” She attempted to get up but struggled.
“Hey, hey no! You are not going to work today. No way.” Hector gently pushed her back down. Heather’s eyes filled with tears.
“But I
have
to work today.”
“No, you don’t.” Hector shook his head. “You can take a day off, you’re sick. Okay?” He kissed her burning forehead.
Heather frowned and whimpered. "But it's St Patrick's Day, it's gonna be so busy…" she whispered.
"I know it is, but you can't be there."
"I need to help my staff," she argued.
"You want to, but you can't. I'm sorry, baby." Hector wiped the tears off of her cheek with his thumb.
Heather sighed. Hector rubbed her arm gently. "I love you, get some more sleep, babe."
Heather grabbed his hand. "Love you."
And with that, she was back to sleep.
7:41 AM
Heather woke up to sunlight hitting her face. She clenched her eyes shut, shifting uncomfortably. She felt a hand rest on her head and rub gently. She relaxed again and smiled a bit.
She squeezed Hector's other hand, still holding hers. He squeezed back, comforting her.
Hector played with her curls, twirling them around his fingers and brushing through them. Heather still hadn't opened her eyes, and instead turned her face into the pillow more.
She made a few noises of contentment, the pain subsiding in that moment as Hector comforted her. It felt so nice to know he was right there.
Before she knew it, sleep was taking her over again.
Hector saying "It's all going to be okay." Was the last thing she heard before falling back asleep.