Shower (TUA, Diego, illness)

[Sitruuna]

Short drabble kinda thing feat. Diego with a cold or a sinus infection or something like that (you decide! feel free to tell me what your conclusion is lol). Messy. Like... Explicitly messy. I guess.
Unedited. Sorry.

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It was late when Diego got home. He was exhausted, both because he had had a long day and because he was four days into a cold that, instead of starting to get better, was kind of kicking his ass. Not that Diego was willing to admit that. He was just a little congested and a little exhausted. Had a bit of a headache. And maybe a bit of a fever. No big deal.

Regardless Diego had exactly two things on his agenda for the night: first shower and then a good night’s sleep. Admittedly he’d planned on the latter since night two of this cold but hadn’t really been managing it, waking up exhausted morning after morning and losing sleep to his symptoms. That didn’t stop him from trying though.

But first shower. Diego stripped off his layers as he walked, dropping his belts and clothes on what was conveniently on his path. He turned the shower on, adjusting the temperature so high it bordered unpleasantness at first until he got used to it. Then it was bliss; it helped him relax and it lessened his headache. The warmth and the steam helped with the congestion and the sinus pressure, and had sleeping in the shower been an option, Diego wouldn’t have hesitated to go for it. But it wasn’t an option. Instead Diego would opt to waste as much of the building’s hot water as he could, regardless of how angry that made his neighbours and how inadvisable that may have been when you already were feverish.

His nose started itching not long after he got in the shower. Despite the intensity of it he only sneezed twice, neither sneeze leaving him feel satisfied. The itch had been quelled but his nose felt irritated and like the sneezes hadn’t met their purpose. All they did was dislodge some of his congestion, but that was enough to make him grateful. Diego scrunched up his nose and wiggled it, trying to reignite the itch. His irritated, currently very sensitive nose was happy to comply. Diego looked up as he waited for the sensation to intensify, felt it spread through his nose, turn his breathing shallow and make his eyes water, until it reached the limit of tipping him over the edge.

“Hh-tsho! hhrsho! Hh..! Hetsho!” He may have needed to coax out the first sneeze but it easily turned into a fit. The sneezes stumbled out of him with a few hitching breath in between like all the sneezes he had suppressed throughout the day had been waiting for a release. Diego lost count after the first five. How ever many sneezed there had been, the fit was exhausting and he had to grab the water tap for support. Even so there was something satisfying in finally abiding to his afflicted body’s demands after a long day of doing his best to ignore them. 

It was a little gross as well, Diego had to admit. He had instinctively brough one hand up to cover the sneezes and could now feel the thick mucus running down his palm with the water, between his fingers and still dribbling out of his nose. He pinched his nose and wiped of the mess with his fingers, washing his hands and torso. The sneezes had eased the pressure in his head but his nose was still so full he couldn’t breathe through it and, with the “damage” already done, Diego blew his nose into his hands. He rather did that and enjoyed the rest of his shower with a clearer head than got out to deal with the loosened congestion.

Diego got out of the shower when the heat started getting to him. It was probably the potential fever he may have had that really caused it, but after a while he started feeling a little light headed. He turned off the shower and stepped out, shuddering as the cool air hit his heated skin. He dried himself carefully and pulled on a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, grabbing a roll of toilet paper just in case he didn’t have enough tissues for the whole night. He felt relatively comfortable for a time after getting into bed but soon the air felt too dry again, he couldn’t really breath through his nose and his sinuses ached the same as before. Diego buried his face into his pillow in frustration. He could already tell this was going to be another poorly slept night.