Together (30 Rock fic)

[lattelover09]

So... here's another one, because I want to read more, and there just aren't any, so for now....

PART I

The knock on her door woke her up from her stupor. Ever since Liz and Jack had discovered that afternoon that they both had come down with the flu from the shot, and subsequently went to their respective homes, Liz had been laying on the couch in a sort of malaise. All she could do was get out of her jeans and into a pair of pajama pants before she plopped down, not to move again for another two hours until… the knock came again. Mustering up some strength, she flopped onto her feet and scuffed towards the door, pulling the chain and turning the knob to reveal…Jack. He looked awful. Worse than her if that was possible. He wore grey sweatpants and his navy Princeton sweatshirt under a double-breasted wool trench coat that hung open. His hair was a mess, scraggled all over his head. His nose looked chapped, and his checks were flushed with fever.

“Hi, Lemon,” was all he could get out before coughing harshly into his fist, finishing with a strong sniff.

“Jack,” she said hoarsely after clearing her throat, “what are you doing here?”

“Colleen doesn’t want me in the house. She said that she can’t be exposed to illness at her age.” Liz smirked.

“Does she realize she’s staying in New York at the moment?”

“Her bubble is a solid one, Lemon, firm and unyielding.”

“So she literally kicked her sick son out of his own townhouse?” Liz asked, wiping her nose on the sleeve of her hoodie.

“Yes. She took one look at me and shooed me out of my own home. I had only been on my couch for a minute, but I think the sight of me not in a suit scared her to the very core.” Jack rubbed one of his arms up and down. Even in his heavy coat, he was obviously still chilled.

“Well come inside, Jack,” Liz said, pulling him in her apartment. “It’s…heckkshoo,” she sneezed stuffily into her sleeve. “It’s freezing out there.”

“Actually, it's 50 out.” She rolled her eyes at him as she wiped her nose with her knuckle. “But I don’t feel well either.” He smiled, shutting the door behind him. After taking off his coat and dropping it on the floor, he followed her to the nest of blankets she had established on her couch. Curled up in one, she watched him as he turned away to cough into his elbow. It wasn’t a soft cough like when he had walked into her office after she’d faux romanced it up with cheap candles; it was thick and barking, shaking him, like that time they were at dinner and he barely could catch his breath—the evening before his heart attack. When it stopped, his face was red, and he looked positively exhausted.

“Jack, you sound awful. Should I call Dr. Spaceman?”

“No,” Jack asserted, widening his eyes. “Leave Leo out of this. He’s the one who gave us those damn flu shots.”

“Yeah, I know but, “ Liz cuddled tighter into her blanket, “with your heart…”

“I’m fine, Lemon,” he said, stopping her in her tracks. “It’s just the flu, same as you.”

She sniffled, reaching over him to pull a tissue from the box on the end table. “Well, right now is just a cold really.” Moving back onto her cushion, she got a better look at him, noticing the ripples of sweat beading from his brow. “But it looks like you’ve already hit stage two. You’ve obviously got a fever, Jack. Have you bothered to take your temperature yet?” As if he didn’t hear her, he stayed staring out towards the television, which was off. “Jack!” She nudged his shoulder. “Snap out of it.” He shook his head and widened his eyes again, suddenly coming out of his trance. He looked to her finally.

“Huh? Oh, sorry, Lemon. I just….” As he began to speak, his eyelids wilted and he muffled a small cough with his mouth closed. “I’m sorry. I’m just feeling really out of it. What did you say before?” Liz shook her head.

“You look like you've got a pretty high fever, Jack. Why don’t I take your temperature.” As she went to get up, letting her blanket fall behind her, Jack held out his hand, beginning to rise himself.

“No, I can get it.” She ignored his words, blocking him from moving.

“Jack, stay put. It’s my apartment, and I think you might be a lot sicker than me, actually.” He shook his head, smiling gently.

“I don’t know, Liz. I think I just got a bit of a cough from the thing.” As she rummaged in her bathroom cabinet for the thermometer, she heard reminisce of said cough emanating from the living room, and a minute later, a sudden harsh sneeze that was hardly muffled. Coming back into the room, she found Jack holding the back of his hand up to quell a runny nose. He sniffled strongly, attempting to ignore her critical gaze.

“Just a bit of a cough, Jack? He scowled slightly as she put the thermometer in his mouth. He held it there, looking into her eyes with a bemused expression as she rubbed her temples. Obviously she had a headache. She caught his look, shaking her head at his constant need to feel like he had some upper hand of health over her. And honestly, right now, he didn't. The thermometer was still in, still climbing in fact, and a bit worried, Liz touched her hand to Jack’s forehead, feeling the evidence for herself of just how hot his skin was. With her thumb still held to his temple, he closed his eyes suddenly, and pressed his hand to his nose, attempting to stifle a sneeze since he couldn't open his mouth. He was somewhat successful, letting out nothing but a massive squint of his eyes, but as soon as the thermometer beeped, and Liz pulled it out to read the 102.3 that it displayed, Jack shuddered, and sneezed again, pulling a tissue from the box just in time, “Huuckschhoo!” He blew his nose, then finally looked up at her.

“Okay, maybe not just a bit of a cough.”

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PART II

Something was playing on the TV, but neither of them was coherent enough to pay any attention. Instead, they were stuck in a passive aggressive battle over the blankets on the couch. There were two, but only together did they provide enough warmth to feel truly comfortable, and they weren’t big enough to spread over both of them in their respective areas. So for a while, Liz would have most of them, then Jack would slowly pull them over to his end, only relinquishing them when Liz shot him a dirty look. At one point, despite Liz having both the blankets entirely on her side, Jack noticed that she was still shivering. He sighed, gently reaching his hand over to her forehead. “I don’t know what you think you’ll accomplish by doing that,” she remarked. “Your hand is at least as hot as my head. He shrugged.

“It’s my job though to try, isn’t it?” To that affectionate comment, hinting that he was tied to her in some way, she couldn’t help but look puzzled, but her confusion dissipated with another shudder. “Come here,” he beckoned, reaching out to her, inviting her, and the blankets, into the fold of his arm.

“Are you sure this isn’t just a ploy to get under these?” she asked, gesturing to how cuddled up she was.

“As much as I’d like to say yes—no. I just figured, why be freezing and miserable alone. We’re both sick. Why not just ride it out together?”

“We are riding it out together Jack. Remember? You got kicked out of your house and were forced to come over here.”

“Yeah, but…” he beckoned again with his hand, and finally she scooted over, snuggling under his welcoming arm and into his chest, and rearranging the blankets over them both. It was much warmer being next to him. She always had thought of him as a sort of lovable teddy bear—bigger than her, a bit squishy and fuzzy. Once under the blankets, she couldn’t help but attach a bit further, clinging to his sweatshirt like he was some sort of stuffed animal. Suddenly, he pulled away a bit, bringing his fist up, and facing away from her as he took a few shallow breaths before sneezing. “Hehhtchhh! Huukhhshoo!” As he sniffled thickly, Liz reached over and grabbed him a tissue, and he took it gratefully, sniffing more as he crumpled it and held it under his runny nose. He looked back at her to see her staring up at him. “Maybe we shouldn’t be so close though. I wouldn’t want to make you sicker than you already are.” At that, Liz shuddered and released her own sneeze, slightly muffled into Jack chest.

“Heshoo!” She looked back up at him, very much embarrassed, but only saw him grinning.

“Screw it,” he said as he drew her in to a tighter embrace.

[sneezychick93]

i like it! It's a cute story!

[hiyou9]

Oh, gracious, this is just fantastic and wonderful

[Anonymouse]

HOW DID I MISS THIS?! This is so cute. I love their sneezes, especially Jack's. They're so fititng. I also loved the stifle with the thermometer in his mouth. And the cute little fight over the blankets. Love.