Overworked (Free!)(MakoxHaru Friendship)

[JQLovesSneezes]

A/N: Hey, guys! So this is my first Fanfiction on this site, so please be nice to it! I don’t know how many parts this is going to have, but I’ll give you a heads up when it is almost over. This was originally intended to be a drabble on my drabble feed, but I decided that this idea was WAY better suited to be a full Frafic. I’m sorry that this first part doesn’t have any sneezing, but trust me, there is going to be a lot of that soon! J Sorry for any grammar/spelling mistakes, I usually proofread, but it’s midnight where I am and I’m tired. This is all I have written for this fic so far, so if anyone has any requests, feel free to post them!

My drabble thread: http://www.sneezefetishforum.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=56882&st=0

Part 1

Five friends sat beside the calm pool talking about their classes this semester. Four of them had towels draped over their shoulders and chests heaved in exhaustion. The boys had lucked out, for the first time in months there had been a whole week where the weather was flawless. It wasn’t too hot, not too cold, few clouds, and just a slight breeze. It was the perfect weather for swimming outside, and Gou planned on using that to the team’s advantage: longer practices, running laps outside, extra push-ups, the whole nine yards. Even though everyone was a bit grumpier from fatigue, the extra effort seemed to be paying off well because everyone was beating personal bests left and right. Even with all of the accomplishments being made, something seemed…off about Haru, and everyone knew it. He had been the first to get of the pool for the past three days, and now it was beginning to get worrying. Never had Haru been the first person to leave the pool before, and all of a sudden he’s the first for three whole days?! Even though the others were suspicious, no one questioned it; maybe he’d be better in a few days.

“Rei, how could you possibly get a B- on the poetry exam?! How could you not ace a test that was based on such a beautiful topic?” Nagisa hollered.

Rei looked down and shook his head as if the answer were obvious. “Yes, poetry is beautiful, and yes, it’s my best subject, but memorizing authors and dates is most certainly not beautiful.”

“Excuses, excuses!” Gou joked, sending the group into a fit of laughter. Haru cringed in pain at the sheer volume of his friends.

Can’t they be quiet for two minutes?! My head feels like it’s about to crack open! Haru moaned as he let his head fall into his hands.

Mako raised his emerald eyes to see Haru slumped over a few yards away from the rest of the team, and it didn’t take a genius to tell that he was in pain. He looked back to the chattering group before picking up his towel and walking over to Haru. Although he was only a yard away and standing right in front of him, Haru didn’t seem to notice Mako’s presence. Mako placed a hand on Haru’s shoulder, causing him to jump.

“Mako, you just scared the crap out of me…” Haru said softly, relaxing as he recognized his best friend’s comforting touch. Mako gave him a small smile.

“Sorry, buddy, I promise I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m just a little worried. You’ve been leaving practice first for the past few days and you’ve been especially quiet.” Mako said quietly, remembering Haru’s reaction to loud noise a few moments ago. “Is something wrong?”

Haru rolled his eyes. “I’m perfectly fine, just tired from all of the long practices, that’s all.”

Mako stared at his face in silent confusion. Sensing his disbelief, Haru added:

“Trust me.”

Even with his friend’s reassuring words, Mako still wasn’t convinced. This was so unlike Haru. He loved every moment of training, especially being in the pool. No matter what Haru said, Mako didn’t believe him. He knew that something was going on, he could just feel it.

If something’s wrong, why won’t Haru just tell me?

He was pulled back to reality when he heard the sound of wet, desperate coughing. When he looked back, one of Haru’s hands was cupped around his mouth, the other was wrapped tightly around his torso, and his eyes were clenched tightly shut. He sat there for a few seconds completely still before his eyes fluttered open. Without another word, he stood and hurried off to the locker room.

How strange. Mako’s eyes followed Haru until he disappeared into the building.

“So, did you figure out what Haru’s deal is?” Gou asked, walking over to Mako.

He shrugged. “I honestly don’t know, he said he was fine, but he still seems off.”

“He seemed fine to me!” Nagisa chimed in.

“You people are all absolutely clueless.” Rei whispered as he stood from his spot.

Gou scowled as she put her hands on her hips. “What do you mean ‘clueless’?!” She demanded.

Rei exhaled loudly. “Clearly Haru is coming down with something. He pushes himself to the breaking point every day during normal practices, and since we’ve had longer, more demanding ones, he felt like he had to amp it up even more. He must have overworked himself just a little bit too much and gotten sick.”

“Come on, that’s not true! Haru wouldn’t get sick from working out!” Gou protested.

“Well, obviously he did. You guys can believe it or not, but either way, he’s sick and he probably shouldn’t come to practice tomorrow. Better yet, he should probably call out sick from school tomorrow and rest before it gets out of hand.” Rei turned around and left for the locker room.

Mako’s mind began to wonder. What if Haru was getting sick? Was it really bad enough to make him miss school? Haru never missed school. He shook his head and wrapped his towel around his shoulders.

No, he’s fine. Haru never gets sick

[Not_Telling]

OH MY GOD YES CONTINUE CONTINUE CONTINUE HIDING SICKNESS AND OVERWORKED ADORABLE BOYS IS MY FAVEEEEEE!!!!!! :D

[Maus_17]

Oh! Believe me, this is amazing! I love it- I really love the interaction between Mako and Haru already, and your writing style is great! Please continue

[Melody]

LOVING THIS

[Natto]

Aww, this is great! I'm so glad to see more people writing Free stuff, especially you since you're always so nice with commenting on my work. This is adorable. First off, I love how you characterized Rei. I can definitely picture him coming up with excuses for his own failure, even though I'm sure he would have actually tried really hard to get that A. I also think it makes sense for him to be the one who actually realized what was going on with Haru. I could see Makoto being to confused and worried to actually put the information together. Anyway, this was adorable and I'm looking forward to reading more!

[Dylan]

AWWW HARU IS SOO CUTE!!

PLEEASE CONTINUE OMG

[JQLovesSneezes]

@ Not_Telling: Ah, yes, those are two of my favorite themes as well!!

@ Maus_17: I am so glad that you like it so far! I was worried about it when I posted it, so I feel so much better knowing that you like it.

@ Melody: I am so glad that you’re liking it so far!

@ Natto: I’m so glad you like it so far! Free!, Hetalia, Kingdom Hearts, and Ouran HSHC are my favorite fandoms when it comes to SFF Fanfiction! There seriously can never be enough of them! Rei is one of my favorite characters in Free! and I thought it would fit him well if he made excuses about not being perfect, and I’m glad that you thought so, too.

@ BringVerityTheHorizon: I’m so glad you like it so far! And believe me, there will be at least three or four more parts, and maybe even more if I feel like it won’t make the story drag.

I’m so glad that you guys like the story so far! I just finished writing out the outline for part two and it should either be up before I go to bed tonight, or sometime tomorrow afternoon!

[BlobOfGodness]

So. Cute!

Very in character, also, really nice pacing. Not too slow or too fast, just right. And everyone's in character. Can't wait for more!! (I also appreciate your photo- thing, love that series.)

[JQLovesSneezes]

@BlobofGodness: I’m so glad to hear that you like the story so far! And yes, Corpse Party is the best!!!

A/N: Sorry! I swear this was supposed to be posted a while ago, but I have been writing a half-hour play for a class project. I promise the next part will be out sooner. If anyone has any suggestions of where they want the story to go, feel free to let me know!

Also, these next two chapters were originally supposed to be one, but I decided that since it was pretty long, I’d split it up into two parts. And I promise that the next part will be out tonight, I SWEAR!

Part 2

Mako ran down the sidewalk in the rain, a heavy backpack slung over his right shoulder. The teen’s brown hair was messy, and dark circles hung under his dulled green eyes. This was the first day this school year that Makoto was running late. Usually either he or Rei were the first of the group of friends to arrive at the school. Practice last night really took a toll on him, not to mention the fact that almost all of his teachers decided that Tuesday would be a great day to load up their students on a ridiculous amount of work. Mako looked down at his watch: 7:30. He slowed down as he realized how much time he had made up by running. He still had a half hour before school started.

I wonder how Haru is doing. Yesterday Rei was pretty sure that he was coming down with something. I sure hope he’s okay. Mako thought as drops of water dripped from his hair, threatening to fall into his eyes. This wasn’t the first time since yesterday that he had questioned Haru’s wellbeing. Ever since he got home from practice, he couldn’t stop thinking about Rei’s warning: You guys can believe it or not, but either way, he’s sick and he probably shouldn’t come to practice tomorrow. Better yet, he should probably call out sick from school tomorrow and rest before it gets out of hand. What if Haru really was sick? He never called him last night to make sure he had gotten home safely, what if he had collapsed and never made it home?!

Guilt and worry washed over Mako as all of the worst possible scenarios played through his head. He felt his heart racing faster as his anxiety rose. He stopped dead in his tracks, taking in a deep breath and reminding himself that he was getting worked up over absolutely nothing.

…

It was 7:40 when the warning bell rang, and Haru still was nowhere to be found. The poetry class was rather feisty that morning. On most days, Mako was one of few that weren’t half asleep before 9:30 in the morning, but today, it looked as though everyone had drunk an entire pot of coffee as Mako sat at his desk, quietly gazing out the rooms large windows.

“Rei, you need to improve on your basics before you can even think about improving your times!” Nagisa chirped as he reached into his backpack for a notebook.

“I’ve told you a million times, I’ve got the basics down, what I need is some better techniques for racing.” Rei tapped his pen on his desk as he became more and more frustrated.

“You two really need to chill out, you’re starting to sound worse than Haru. Concentrate on techniques when you’re at the pool, not in class.” Gou teased with a smile.

Nagisa smiled back. “I guess you’re right, Gou.” Nagisa peered over Gou’s shoulder as he realized that Mako had joined them. “Hey, Mako, how’re you doing? And why are you so quiet? I didn’t realize you were there for a second.”

Mako turned to his chipper blonde friend, and through his exhaustion, was able to send a smile back. “Oh, hi there, Nagisa. Sorry about that, I’m just so tired, I was up really late last night doing homework.” Mako rested his head on his hand as he spoke, looking back out the window beginning to dose off.

Mako felt his whole body jerk as a loud sound emanated from the front of the classroom. As he started to come to, he saw the poetry teacher picking up a large teacher’s edition textbook from the ground. Mako sat straight up in his seat, not moving his head an inch as his eyes darted to the clock: 8:00.

“Come on, Makoto, don’t go falling asleep on me before I even start my lecture.” Mr. Naito scolded as he turned to face the chalkboard.

“Yes, sir…” Mako blushed as his eyes retreated from the board to Haru’s desk. His eyes did a double take when he realized that Haru was sitting at his desk, fully awake, with all of his classwork out. His whole body relaxed as he saw his friend safe and sound.

“Now,” Mr. Naito picked up the yardstick on his desk and tapped it against the writing on the board. “it is imperative that everyone gets these notes down, because I am going to be testing you on this material next week.” The whole class groaned. Mako turned back to Haru, who was slouched over in his seat, his cheeks and nose a light rose color. As if sensing Mako’s gaze, Haru turned to look at him, but when his mouth opened to speak, he cupped his hand to his mouth as his chest convulsed, trying his best to stifle a coughing fit. The more Haru coughed, the brighter his face grew. Mako’s heart wrenched as he imagined the pain Haru was feeling.

Mr. Naito gave Haru a concerned look before mouthing, “Are you okay?” To which Haru gave a tired nod, blushing even deeper before burying his nose in his notebook as an attempt to avert any attention away from him. The teacher turned back to the chalkboard to continue the lesson on Shakespeare, but didn’t seem to have been fooled.

When the teacher stopped lecturing to give his students some time to catch up on writing down their notes, Mako peeked back over to Haru, whose face was contorted and partially hidden behind a cupped hand. His eyes fluttered and his chest heaved like crazy. It was obvious that the boy was doing everything in his power not to sneeze.

“Hhhh…hhh…hhheeeee…” The black haired boy hitched desperately, eyes beginning to water. When he couldn’t take it anymore, he raised his sleeve to his mouth and released three wet sneezes. “Hhhh… hhhIIii’x…hhIIshoo…iiIIshoo!!” he blushed at the wetness and intensity of his sneezes.

Mako felt tears well up in his eyes as a wave of guilt washed over him. The longer he sat next to Haru, the more he started to think about all of the signs that were right in front of his face that he hadn’t even noticed. He shook his head, refusing to get worked up.

Those sneezes were probably just from some dust floating around the room. And that blush, well Haru always gets embarrassed sneezing in public. Yeah, that’s it.

When he looked down to his notebook, on the corner of his desk he found a neatly folded piece of lined paper. He picked it up and opened it, revealing a short message written in purple ink:

If that’s not sick, than I don’t know what is. We both know that he should be resting at home right now and not sitting here being miserable in this classroom.

Although he had a pretty good idea of who passed him the note, he still turned looked around just to make sure. His suspicions were confirmed when he met Rei’s violet eyes staring back into his.

“You know I’m right.” Rei whispered just loud enough for Mako to hear.

“Hhh…ichi! Ichiiii! HhhhAA’thcii!” Haru sneezed again, as if emphasizing Rei’s point. Rei’s face wasn’t mocking or I-told-you-so in the least, but it was full of concern for his friend. Mako sighed.

No matter how much I wish he was wrong, Rei’s right. I’ll have to talk to Haru after class.

[A-Place-To-Be-Me]

I love how adorably concerned Makato is... And yet, he's rather in denial at the same time XD

No doubt it will be difficult (if not impossible) for them to keep Haru away from the pool...

Thank you for continuing this!

[Maus_17]

MY FEELINGS. THIS WAS SO GREAT. I love this~!

[BlobOfGodness]

:3 I'm loving Makato's reaction to this. Please update soon!

[JQLovesSneezes]

@A-Place-To-Be-Me: I’m so glad that you like it!! I love when men are in denial about their illness, so I thought that it would be really cute if the caretaker would be in denial, I haven’t seen anyone write it that way before, so I thought I’d give it a try and see how well it goes over. And yes, Haru is going to be itchin’ to go swimming

@Maus_17: I’m so glad that you like it!!!

@BlobOfGodness: I’m glad you like it!!! And I’m just starting the third part now, so it should be up before I go to bed.

[Not_Telling]

THIS IS BRILLIAAAAAANT I LOVE IT HARU IS SO ADORABLE OMG And I love their concern too, it's so sweet!!

[JQLovesSneezes]

@Not_Telling: Yay!! I’m so glad that you’re liking it!

A/N: Be proud of me guys, this is literally one of the first times I actually posted something on time! The next chapter should be out by Wednesday or Thursday, but no later than Friday.

Part 3

At 9:40 the bell rang, and in seconds, the poetry room was cleared save for Mr. Naito and the swim club. As Mako began packing up his things, he felt a hand grab his shoulder. He turned around to see the tall freshman looking down at him.

“Come on, Mako, we have to talk to Haru.” He said in a stern voice. Mako looked at the ground and sighed. He knew that bringing this conversation up would embarrass Haru, and that was the last thing Mako wanted to do when he knew his friend was feeling under the weather.

“Haru, can I speak with you for a moment?” Mr. Naito asked Haru, gesturing to the hallway. Haru reluctantly stood up, but followed the teacher out of the room anyway. Nagisa pulled on Rei’s sleeve, brown eyes wide.

“Rei, what did Mr. Naito want with Haru?”

Rei shrugged his shoulders. “How should I know? I’m not his keeper.”

“But you’re supposed to be the smart one, Rei!!” Nagisa whined, giving a childish pout and crossing his arms.

Gou walked over to the boys a grabbed Nagisa by his shirt collar and began dragging him out of the room. “Come on, Nagisa, let’s go on ahead. We can meet up with Rei and Mako later, we’re going to be late to history if we don’t hurry!” As the two freshmen left, Haru and Mr. Naito walked back in.

Haru walked over to his desk to collect his things, his face still flushed. When he had his backpack over his shoulder, Mr. Naito called all three boys over.

“Mako, Rei, would you mind escorting Haru to the nurses’ office, I’m afraid he’s unwell.”

“Sir, I’b berffectly fide edough to walk byself dowd to the dur…durses…hiiiitttCHHiii!... durses office.” Haru desperately wiped his dripping nose on the back of his hand, fearing it would start running like crazy if he didn’t.

“I think you’ll be just fine, too, but it’s just a precaution. Mako, Rei, grab your things and escort Haru to the nurses’ office, please.”

“Yes, Sir.” The tall boys said in unison.

…

The walk to the nurses’ office was more awkward than Mako had imagined. The first few minutes, everyone was silent except for the sound of Haru’s now throat tearing coughing fits. Then when Rei or Mako asked Haru if he was okay he would only blush and look away, refusing to answer any questions regarding the state of his health.

The three swimmers quietly walked into the nurses’ office, not wanting to disturb anyone that may be resting, but to their surprise, the only person in the room was a bored looking young nurse reading People magazine.

“Ub, excuse be, biss?” Haru mumbled as he approached the desk. The blonde woman -her name tag read Ayame- peered up from her magazine and looked Haru up and down, clearly annoyed that he had interrupted her reading.

“What seems to be the problem?” Ayame answered thinly, magazine still in her hands.

“Ubb…” Haru blushed, looking down, running his fingers through his black hair. Mako noticed his friend’s embarrassment and quickly interjected.

“Our teacher Mr. Naito wanted him to come by, he thinks that he’s sick.” Haru’s embarrassment turned to sourness, sending Mako a sharp glare.

“So there’s nothing wrong with you two?” Ayame asked, pointing to Mako and Rei with the now closed magazine.

“No, ma’am, just Haruka.” Rei answered politely.

“Okay then, follow me, boys.” The nurse stood from her plush chair and lead the boys over to a row of freshly made hospital cots, the clicking of her heels causing Haru’s head to pound. “Take a seat on this bed, Haru, I just need to get a few things, I’ll be right back.” Ayame turned on her ridiculously high heels and went back to her desk. Within moments, she was back with a thermometer in her right hand and a clipboard under her left arm. Without a warning, Ayame popped the thermometer into Haru’s mouth.

“Just give it a minute, Haru, and then you can take it out.” The nurse pressed a few buttons before turning to her clipboard, reading through Haru’s medical records. Without warning, Haru’s nose began to twitch and his face screwed up.

“Hhhh…hhhhhh….” Haru’s breath began to hitch. In an instand, Ayame’s finger fell right below Haru’s nose, gently applying pressure to help relieve the tickle. It seemed to have worked, as Haru’s face relaxed, but his eyes were still firmly shut.

After a minute, the thermometer beeped, and Ayame released her finger from under Haru’s nose, and grabbed the thermometer, and began writing something on the clipboard.

“HhhiiichhhII” Haru sneezed wetly into his hand, earning a glare from Ayame who quickly pulled a bottle of hand sanitizer from her pocket and dumped some into his snot covered hand.

Ayame tsked. “Mmm… 37.72 degress, seems like you have a fever going.” To Haru’s discomfort, Ayame sat down on the mattress right next to him, placing a cold hand against his steaming forehead, sending a chill down his spine. “Yup, that’s definitely a fever.” Mako cringed at the word ‘fever’. Fever meant flu, and flu meant hospital trip. “There’s no way that you can go back to class with a fever like this.”

“But Biss Ayabe, hxtt…hixxch!...hiiichxmm…HHHIIIchhhoo…”

“No ‘but’s, Haru, I’m just going to call the main office and get you dismissed. Is there any way that you can get home?”

Mako answered before Haru even had time to respond. “I can take him home, Miss Ayame. Can you come Rei?”

Rei shook his head and gave a small, apologetic smile. “I wish I could, but I have to take a very important history test today, but I can come check on you two after school.” Ayame nodded.

“Okay, then, I’ll call up Mr. Naito and get your information and have you dismissed as soon as possible. Rei, you may return to your class now.” The nurse gestured toward the exit and picked up the phone on her desk.

Rei put his mouth and whispered into Mako’s ear, “Take care of Haru, I’ll come by with the rest of the swim club later to check on you guys and drop off some supplies. Good luck.” With that, Rei disappeared into the hallway.

Haru began another fit of painful sounding coughs into the back of his hand while holding his other hand to his chest. Mako’s eyes grew as he knelt down next to Haru and grabbed his shoulder.

“Haru…Haru?! Are you alright?!” Mako asked desperately. Haru tamed the fit by holding his breath for a few seconds and rolled his eyes when it was over.

“Mako, I’b fide.”

[Maus_17]

I love how Haru calls Makoto 'Mako'. It's a secret way of showing endearment! Awesome! :3

[BlobOfGodness]

That was so freaking amazing! *Girl squeals* This blob is enjoying!!

[Not_Telling]

oh my gooooood this is all too perfect and Haru is just being all like 'I'm fide' and the fever and his coughing and sneezing fits and evacsioulkdbvialjksdbcioquwlbcsnieavcl so ADORABLE ooo i hope he goes swimming hehe

[this_is_not_me]

Poor Haruuuu... Mako is so adorable, looking out for him. I hope there will be more!

[JQLovesSneezes]

@Maus_17: I’m so glad that you like it! Honestly, I usually write his name ‘Mako’ because I always call my friend Makoto ‘Mako’, so it’s kind of a force of habit, but I thought that it would be cute if he called him that, too.

@BlobOfGodness: Yay!! I’m so glad that blob is enjoying it!

@Not_Telling: I’m so happy to hear that you like it! And yes, Haru is going to be a stubborn little brat pretty soon here. :3

@this_is_not_me: I’m so glad you’re liking it so far! And yes, there is plenty more on the way

Hey, guys! I know that I promised a new chapter a few weeks ago, and I’m so, so, SO sorry that I haven’t updated it yet! L I could make an excuse about how I’ve been really busy or something, but I’ve honestly just been very lazy and watching let’s plays on YouTube in my free time rather than writing.

About a month ago I got my anxiety medication changed, and one of the side effects is lack of interest and trouble focusing, so I haven’t been able to just sit down and write. BUT FEAR NOT, the side effects are slowly starting to fade away, so even if I have to write for only ten minutes at a whack, that’s what I’ll do to get this bad boy rollin’!! So thank you guys so, so much for being patient, and I’ll try to get this next chapter out ASAP!

[BlobOfGodness]

It's totally fine! Update when you can and you're feeling up to it. Even so, I bet it'll be worth the wait!

[this_is_not_me]

My anxiety medications have done that to me with my writing, too... it sucks and I totally understand.

[AnteatersOnParade]

This is fabulous so far, I love everything about it!

[Maus_17]

We all understand, friend! No worries! And oh man you have a friend named Makoto? Lucky. XD I would call him that too.

[JQLovesSneezes]

@BlobOfGodness: Thank you so much for your kind your words, your understanding, and your patience! I appreciate it so, so much!!

@this_is_not_me: Aw, I’m so sorry that you have to deal with that, too. L There are some times when I feel like it isn’t worth it to take the medication because of all the stupid little side effects it’s given me, but the last time I did that my anxiety became worse than it ever was before, so I’ve decided to just ride it out. I hope that your meds aren’t giving you those problems anymore. *hugs*

@AnteatersOnParade: I’m so glad you like it!

@Maus_17: Thank you so much for understanding!! And yeah! She’s a girl though xD I always tell her how jealous I am of her name though, especially because Makoto from Free! is one of my favorite anime characters of all time <3

A/N: I’m so sorry that this took so long to update! This may not be my best chapter yet, there may be some spelling and grammar mistakes. I just wanted this thing up because I know you guys have been waiting so patiently for it! I hope you all had great holidays!!!! <3

Part 4

The train ride was awkward and quiet for the two teens. Mako could tell that Haru’s throat was bothering him, for every few minutes he would give his neck soothing rubs with his middle finger and thumb. He didn’t want to make the sick boy talk if he didn’t have to.

The talking, Mako could prevent. The lung burning hacking and explosive sneezes on the other hand, he couldn’t.

“Hii…hiiiii…” Haru stuck his tongue to the roof of his mouth and closed his eyes, concentrating on breathing and struggling to ignore the burning tickle in the depths of his stuffed-up nose. Even with his eyes clamped firmly shut, he could feel the looks of disgust fall on him as his breath continued to hitch for what seemed like the tenth time in the past fifteen minutes.

“…hii…hAAA… hi’TTchm!! Urrr…” Haru growled as he let out a weak sneeze. An elderly couple gave the sickly boy disgusted looks before standing up and moving as far away from the germs as possible. A young woman who looked to be in her late twenties scoffed at the rude act of the couple. She turned to face the boys, her amber eyes warm and full of sympathy.

“You alright there? You don’t sound too good.” Haru jumped as he felt her gentle hand touch his knee, realizing that she had been talking to him.

“Y-yes, sorry to w…worry…hh…” Haru trailed off, the back of his hand hovering over his mouth, his bright blue eyes fluttering shut. Mako placed a comforting hand on Haru’s shoulder, offering support before flashing the kind woman a smile of thanks.

“He’ll be fine, he just overworked himself a little during our spring training, it’s not contagious.” The smile that had formed on the woman’s face didn’t falter as the brunette explained the ill boy’s situation.

“Heh…hihhhhhh…hii…” Haruka’s breath hitched as the relentless tickle refused to either let up or put him out of his misery. Hot tears dampened his long eyelashes before trailing down his flushed cheeks and onto the hand clamped firmly around his mouth. Mako frowned, carving small circles into his friend’s back with his thumb.

“Aw, poor thing!” The woman cooed. “Oh! And by the way, my name’s Megumi.” Mako smiled, elated to be talking to someone so caring. It was a great change of pace compared to all of the nastiness the boys had gotten already.

“It’s nice to meet you, Megumi. I’m Makoto, and this is Haruka.” Haru nodded, face still strained with anticipation and buried in his hand.

“Id’s… d-dice…to…tooo… hiIIK’SHIEEEew! *sniffles* Id’s dice to beet you, too.”

The rolling fields faded to buildings as the train pulled into the station. Right as the boys began to walk away from the screeching of train wheels, Megumi’s voice echoed toward them, telling them to wait up.

“Hold up there, Haru! I’ve got something for you.” In her hands was a half a bottle of dark red liquid that appeared to have the same consistency as honey. “It’s not much, but it should take the edge off that nasty cough.” She added with a wink. Haru’s eyes fell on the bottle of cough syrup dumbly, feverish brain having a difficult time piecing the correct words together in his head. A soft blush of embarrassment bloomed across Megumi’s cheeks as she placed the bottle in his hands for him. “My niece was sick last week, and I didn’t want to just throw the rest of it away.”

“T-thank you. You’re so kind.” Haru stuttered awkwardly, clutching the bottle tightly so that it wouldn’t slip through his sweaty hands.

The three said their goodbyes and went their separate ways. Haru couldn’t help but think how similar Makoto and Megumi were. Did they know each other before the train ride? Were they related? He swore that he had seen her before, but he had no idea where. Maybe she lived neat them, or even taught at Iwatobi.

Haru pondered the woman for the whole, hazy walk home, practically crashing into his locked front door. He fumbled around for his house key, nearly dropping the bottle as he searched. Makoto noticed the struggling and grabbed the glass before it toppled to the ground.

“Haru, do you need help finding your keys?” Haru shook his head ‘no’, only to explode into a fit of coughing so harsh that Mako was surprised that he wasn’t coughing up blood. “Here, Haru, let me get it.” Mako said softly, grabbing Haru’s backpack and reaching into the side pocket where Haru normally kept his keys, and sure enough, there they were, jingling as they clinked up against his metal dolphin keychain. Mako smile when he saw it, not realizing that Haru had still kept the souvenir Mako had brought back with him on his family’s vacation to the United States

Mako quickly unlocked the door and held it open for his feverish friend, who could only give a half-hearted nod before stumbling into the living room and plopping down on the couch, shoes and jacket still on. The house was plain and pristine as usual: a few picture frames in the living room, a small table surrounded by a few chairs, but not much else.

“M-Mako…c-can you pa…pass…” Haru pointed to the box of tissues on the end table by his feet, nose wriggling like crazy, flaring a fiery shade of red. Mako sprinted across the room, scooping up the box and holding it out for Haru to pluck out a handful and bury his nose into the soft material with a muffled “Iii’shew!!”

“Bless you…” Mako said with a frown.

“Nnn…” Haru nodded his thanks, even the small amount of noise revealing the hoarseness in his voice.

Mako placed the blue box of Kleenex on the side table next to the sofa before retreating to the kitchen to retrieve a glass of water and a small cup of Megumi’s cough syrup. His face cringed as the infamous smell penetrated his nostrils. As he reentered the living room, he found Haru sitting up now, his right hand cupped over his strained eyes. Mako took a seat next to his pained friend, reaching over him to place the full glass down next to the box of tissues (that was now surrounded by disgusting soiled ones) and rested the back of his left hand against Haru’s smoldering forehead, keeping the small cup of red liquid steady in his other hand. The sudden rush of cold to his face caused his eyes to shoot open in shock, but upon seeing his friend’s warm emerald green eyes, he realized just how nice it felt, and nuzzled his face into the warmth.

“Oh, Haru,” Mako whispered softly, removing his hand, much to Haru’s dismay. “it feels your fever’s gotten worse in the past hour.” Haru slowly reached for the cup, and grimaced before he downed it in one swig.

“H…hiii…hhiiii…” Haru’s breath hitched quickly out of the blue. Just as Mako had arrived at his nose with a fresh wad of tissues, Haru sighed in frustration as the tickle vanished just as quickly as it appeared. He groaned loudly, pawing at his dripping nose while blindly searching around for a tissue. Mako noticed the predicament and pushed his handful into his friend’s hand.

“I’b so sorry Makot- Xx’ch!!” The sneeze caught him off guard, not even giving him enough time to cover the spray. He didn’t seem phased by the outburst in the slightest, he simply drained his nose into the tissues (although it did little to relieve the pressure that had built up behind his eyes) and tried to start his sentence over. “I’b so sorry ‘bout this Bakoto. I hodestly didd’t feel this crappy ad school… I jusd dod’t dknow how this cabe od so fasd…” Haru could only apologize so much before he was overcome by a tickle in his lungs. “ICH’AA!!” Another sneeze, much harsher than his normal ones. Haru didn’t even know it was possible for someone to sneeze when they were so deep in such an extreme coughing fit.

Mako’s heart ached with sympathy as he watched Haru convulse on the couch, a balled up fist pressed against his chest, trying his best to alleviate the sharp pain and stress on his lungs. While Haru was getting his fit under control, Mako went to the bathroom to grab a face cloth, running it under cold water and bringing it back to Haru. In the minute it took Mako to get the cloth, Haru’s forehead had become glazed over with feverish sweat. As Mako wiped the moisture from Haru’s face, he was surprised to see that Haru didn’t open his eyes this time, he just hummed with pleasure as Mako left the towel over his eyes.

“You have nothing to apologize for. It’s not your fault that you’re sick! I should be the one apologizing. I saw you acting strangely and failed to believe that it was bigger than being a little tired. If I would have done something about this earlier, then…” Mako was cut off by a soft sound coming from Haru’s lips. It was the faint sound of gentle…snoring.

A smile crept across Mako’s lips as he saw the peace painted across his best friend’s face. A chill racked through Haru’s body as he curled his knees to his chest, struggling to stay warm. Mako took the dolphin-print blanket that Haru always kept draped over the back of the couch and rested it gently over his friend, tucking the blanket up his sides so that no cold air could touch his blistering skin.

“ii’tch!” Haru sneezed weakly into the air, a growl-like yawn washing over him. “T-Thank you…” was all he could manage before he fell into a deep, blissful sleep.

A/N: This part wasn’t supposed to end here exactly, but like I said, I just wanted to update at least something for you guys to read! I promise that this next part is going to be better, and with a lot more sneezing!