Fic: Feeling The Heat
Title: Feeling the Heat
Author: Merlin7/Clark angel
Disclaimer: Not mine. I wish David had a clone I could have though.
Pairing: Group. David centric with Carly and Michael on the side
Rating: T to be safe language wise.
Summary: This is for ROO who introduced me to DC. I would not have this obsession without her. So this is Cookie sick with a fever and surrounded by his friends. Takes place after DC won and the gang is on tour. It’s really just a short bit of fluffy whump.
Feeling The Heat
Two days off. They had two whole days off. Only two weeks into the tour and everyone was as excited as a kid at Christmas to have two days off. The concert last night had gone well and everyone was excited to be on tour, but it was surprisingly taxing, especially to those who had never done this kind of thing before.
David had never played venues this big, but he had done the traveling from show to show route and he knew how exhausting it could be. Which was why everyone had been so happy to sleep in a hotel room last night, instead of on the bus. He’d been pretty happy about it himself.
Now they were all gathered in the dining room of the hotel, being treated to a private breakfast buffet. It made David happy to see his friends so happy and chattering about what to do today. He was glad for these two days as well. They were the only two days off he was really getting. Once the tour started up again, he would start work on his album, so he would spend his days recording, his nights performing and in between there would be the extras of interviews and photo shoots for things to come and the like. It was going to be extreme, but he loved what he was doing so he would embrace it all with a smile.
“What do you want to do today, mate?” Michael asked, as he sat down next to David. He had a plate full of food and a mug of coffee.
“Haven’t thought that far ahead,” David replied as he toyed with his glass of orange juice. He’d woken up with a headache and a general feeling of blah. A hot shower had helped the blah feeling somewhat, but the headache was still nagging him.
Michael started to dig into his food, but stopped when he noticed David didn’t have a plate. “You eat already/’
David shook his head, making a face. “Not hungry. I’ll grab something later.” Way later, maybe, because right now just smelling the eggs on Michael’s plate was making him a bit nauseous. “I’m gonna go for a walk,” he announced, pushing back his chair. “Come find me when you’re done and we’ll plan the day.”
“Will do,” Michael replied, waving goodbye with his fork in hand.
As he walked out, David greeted various other tour mates, until finally escaping outside. Though it was fairly early in the morning, the sun was warm and bright and it felt good against his skin, somewhat chasing away the chill that had plagued him in the air-conditioned dining room.
There was a pool to his left, which they had all indulged in last night after the concert. They didn’t get to stay in a hotel often. In fact this was only the second time, the first being the fourth of July. So David headed for one of the lounge chair and stretched out, closing his eyes.
It was always hard to fall asleep after a performance. The crowd was so receptive to him, and feeling the love and support of the people who had voted for his win was like an adrenaline rush. David loved being able to pay them back by giving them his best. Which meant putting on a show and working the stage and interacting with them, and he loved every minute of it. But coming down from that high was exhausting
Relaxing in the sun felt good. He was starting to feel blah again and he couldn’t seem to shake the damn headache.
“Sugarfoot.”
It took David a moment to realize Carly was calling him. He peeled his eyes open and squinted up at her. “Hey, Tater. What’s up?”
She nudged him over so she could perch on the edge of his lounger. “You feeling all right, David? You look a bit pale.”
He had to laugh at that. “I’m always pale, you goof. You know my color range. White, pink, red, back to white.”
“You look extra white today,” she replied, not looking amused as he had meant her to be. “They push you too hard, sweetie.”
“I’m tough,” David drawled, winking at her. “I can take it.”
Carly finally smiled. “I know you’re tough, for all you’re mushy inside.” She leaned in to give him a hug and he sat up into it. David always welcomed a good hug and Carly gave great ones.
“Thanks for caring,” He mumbled into her hair.
“You make it easy to care, David.” Carly eased back, ruffling his hair for a moment before pressing her cheek to his forehead. “You feel awfully warm. Are you sure you’re all right?”
“I’ve been baking in the sun for the past…” David broke off to glance at his watch. “…twenty minutes. Of course I’m warm. It feels good.” He still felt a bit chilled inside, not that he shared that fact. Carly had a *mom* complex that got over active at times. Like when he’d had his blood pressure scare. She had watched him like a hawk and mothered and smothered him for over a week after the fact
Carly didn’t look convinced, but she nodded and let it drop. “Michael’s looking for you. He wants to know if you’re interested in hitting the shops. There’s supposed to be some cool vintage places around.”
David had some money to burn, so he was a bit intrigued. “Vintage what?”
“Everything,” Carly replied, grinning. “Instruments, music, clothes, jewelry.” She hooked one of his many chains with a fingertip and teased, “Not that you need anymore bling.”
“Hey!” David protested, unhooking her finger and patting the chain back into place. “I can’t help it if people give me jewelry.”
Carly snorted. “Doesn’t mean you have to wear it all at the same time.”
David pouted at her. “You’re being mean,” he whined, because it was the kind of teasing they did with each other. The kind of teasing he had missed after she had gotten booted off the show. He had missed her so damn much, especially with Michael already gone. So having them back with him now was like living a dream. It was going to suck when the tour ended.
“Come on, let’s go grab Michael before he eats round three,” Carly said, standing up and grabbing David by the hand to haul him to his feet. And she was strong enough to do it.
“You coming shopping with us?” David asked, as they headed inside.
Carly nodded. “Brooke and Rami and Kristy are going makeup and clothes shopping and I’ve had enough of that for now. I’d rather hang with my boys.”
David one-arm hugged her. “I’m so glad we’re back together.” He knew she would get that he meant the three of them.
“Me too.” She hugged him back. “And I’m so glad you won, David. You worked your ass off to get here and you deserve it. I knew from the day I met you that you’d win. Did I ever tell you that?”
“No.” David was surprised to hear her say that. “You didn’t really believe that.”
Nodding decisively, Carly stated, ”I really did. I told Michael you’d win after you did Hello. The moment you put yourself out there for all the world to see, I knew it would be you, Sugarfoot. And I was rooting for you all the way, almost harder than I was rooting for myself.”
David felt inexplicably humbled by that. By her faith in him. He blinked hard, not wanting to cry in front of her because she made fun of him enough about that as it was. “I wish it could have been the three of us at the top. Not that Archie and Syesha aren’t awesome, because they are. I thought Archie had it from the get go, and for sure at the top 2.”
“You do know Simon wanted you to win, right?” Carly reached out and swiped the pad of her thumb under David’s eye, smearing the tell tale wetness. But she smiled fondly at him as she did it.
“We talked about it after I won,” David confessed. “He said a lot of really nice things. He’s a good guy with a bad reputation.”
They both laughed at that, linking arms as they stepped inside and moved down the hallway to the dining room. Where they ran into Michael, who was muching on a danish.
David shook his head at his friend, wishing he could eat like that without gaining an ounce. He was working hard right now to turn his one ab into six, and it was hell. “You have glaze on your nose,” he said, helpfully pointing out the spot to Michael.
Who went cross-eyed trying to see it. He swiped at his nose with his sleeve then held out the half eaten danish. “Want some?”
“Pass.” David suddenly felt nauseous again and, to add to the misery, he got hit with a sudden hot flash. He felt his skin prickle as he broke out into a sweat.
“David?” Carly had noticed his reaction and gripped his arm tighter. “You okay?”
He wanted to tell her yes, but suddenly the floor was tilting under his feet and he felt himself falling. He didn’t hit the ground because hands caught him and eased him down, but everything was shading to gray then swirling into black.
OoO
“David?”
He heard his name being called even as he felt a tapping on his cheek. Both things were annoying and he wanted to be left alone to sleep. Why was someone trying to wake him up anyway? He really wanted to sleep.
“David! Come on, mate! Wake up!”
He knew that voice very well. Michael’s accent always got thicker when he was worried. David couldn’t imagine what he would be worried about. The show was over so they didn’t have to stress about being kicked off or anything. He really just wanted to sleep a bit longer. “G’way,” he mumbled, slapping at the fingers that were tapping on his cheek again.
“Open your eyes, sugarfoot.” It was Carly pleading with him this time.
David wondered if it would make them leave him alone. If opening his eyes would appease them so he could go back to sleep, then open his eyes he would. Although it wasn’t as easy as it should have been. He had to pretty much peel them open then blink rapidly to bring fuzzy faces into focus.
Both Michael and Carly were staring down at him. Michael was the first to speak.
“How are you feeling, mate?”
“Kay,” David whispered, because his head ached and talking loud would make it hurt more. He was sure of it.
Carly pushed Michael aside, leaning in closer, her eyes wide with concern. “The doctor is on his way, David. Just stay with us, okay? And please don’t scare the shit out of me like that again!” She sounded angry and relieved at the same time.
David frowned at her. “What?” he asked, because he was confused. Why was Carly pissed at him for sleeping. Although it hit David, in that moment, that he wasn’t lying in a bed he was lying on the floor with Carly and Michael kneeling beside him. So he tried to sit up.
“Lie still,” Michael ordered, pressing hands to his shoulders to keep him down. “The hotel nurse said you’re to stay put until the doctor arrives.”
“What happened?” David’s tongue felt thick in his mouth, but he got the words out clear enough to be understood. He hoped.
It was Carly who replied. “You passed out, sweetie. Scared the hell out of me and gave me about a thousand gray hairs.”
David was sure he hadn’t heard her right. “I…I passed out?” He thought back to the events that might have led up to that moment and he suddenly remembered walking with Carly to meet up with Michael and something vague about a danish.
“Turned a whiter shade of pale and just collapsed like a house of cards,” Michael confirmed.
“Sorry.” David hated the fact that he had worried his friends. However, what he hated more was lying on the floor and feeling like a freak show attraction. Because there were people lingering around, watching. “I’d really like to get up now!” he hissed, trying to push Michael’s hands off him.
But Michael wouldn’t budge, but it didn’t matter because a stranger with silver-gray hair was suddenly kneeling beside him. David guessed he was the hotel doc.
He was and he introduced himself as Dr. Benton. He was polite and all business, taking vitals, conversing with the nurse lady, asking Michael and Carly what happened and pretty much ignoring David, until he tried to sit up again. Which he almost managed to achieve, until a major headrush made him list to his left and then Michael and Dr. Benton were pushing him back down again.
Things got kinda hazy after that. David felt nauseous, his head ached, his vision kept graying out and the next thing he knew he was in his hotel bed and Carly was sitting beside him, reading a book.
“Hey,” David croaked at her.
“Hey you,” Carly replied, looking relieved. “It’s about time you woke up.”
David frowned at her. “I was sleeping?” Cause the last thing he remembered was lying on the floor in the hallway. But maybe he’d just dreamed that whole scenario.
Carly reached out, smoothing David’s hair off his forehead. “You’ve been in and out of it for a bit,” she allowed. “Long story short, you have an inner ear infection. Dr. Benton gave you a couple of shots and he said you should feel better in a few days.”
“A few days?” David pushed up against the pillows, but regretted the motion when it made him feel vaguely sea sick. “We have a concert tomorrow. Right? I can’t be out of commission for a few days.” There were fans to perform for. It was his only way to say thank you to the people who had spent time and money voting for his win.
“The dates we had to cancel have been rescheduled,” Carly replied. “Don’t worry about it. Just rest.”
David felt tired and ready to sleep for a week, but he had a pressing matter to take care of first. “Need the bathroom,” he whispered, feeling his face flame with embarrassment.
Carly chuckled and patted his arm. “I’ll call Michael. That’s his department. Do you feel up to eating something? I can grab some soup if you’re hungry”
“I’m not.” Even the thought of food made his stomach twist into knots.
“Okay. I’ll go get Michael.” Carly gave him a smile, slid off the bed and exited the room.
The moment she was gone, David shoved the covers back, feeling a bit weirded out to discover he was wearing sweat pants and a t-shirt that someone must have dressed him in. He didn’t even want to think about who it might have been.
Inching off the bed, he stood up on wobbly legs, but damn if he wasn’t capable of going to the bathroom by himself. However, the first step he took he ended up on all fours on the floor, panting through a wave of nausea.
“Idiot,” Said a familiar accent next to his ear and David kept his eyes closed as he felt Michael lift him to his feet.
“This sucks,” David whispered, as he was guided across the room. He was grateful that Michael was big and strong because he knew he wasn’t pulling his own weight much. His legs felt like rubber and he was pretty much just stumbling along.
The arm that was looped around David’s waist gave him a gentle squeeze. “I bet it does,” Michael allowed. “But the Doc said you should feel better in a couple of days.”
David risked slanting his eyes open and he was relieved to see they were at the bathroom. He took things into his own hands for the next five minutes, then they made the slow trek back to the bed.
Carly was there, waiting to tuck him in. David felt so crappy, he welcomed her ministrations. Once snuggled back under the covers, he did accept a glass of water and took a few sips, then he curled up on his side and closed his eyes. “Thanks guys,” he whispered. He would take them out to dinner when he was feeling better, for a proper show of appreciation.
“You’re welcome, hon,” Carly replied, pressing a kiss to his cheek. “Sweet dreams. You’ll feel better when you wake up.”
David believed her. So he let his thoughts drift away as warm darkness gathered him into her sweet embrace.
THE END
Author: Merlin7/Clark angel
Disclaimer: Not mine. I wish David had a clone I could have though.
Pairing: Group. David centric with Carly and Michael on the side
Rating: T to be safe language wise.
Summary: This is for ROO who introduced me to DC. I would not have this obsession without her. So this is Cookie sick with a fever and surrounded by his friends. Takes place after DC won and the gang is on tour. It’s really just a short bit of fluffy whump.
Feeling The Heat
Two days off. They had two whole days off. Only two weeks into the tour and everyone was as excited as a kid at Christmas to have two days off. The concert last night had gone well and everyone was excited to be on tour, but it was surprisingly taxing, especially to those who had never done this kind of thing before.
David had never played venues this big, but he had done the traveling from show to show route and he knew how exhausting it could be. Which was why everyone had been so happy to sleep in a hotel room last night, instead of on the bus. He’d been pretty happy about it himself.
Now they were all gathered in the dining room of the hotel, being treated to a private breakfast buffet. It made David happy to see his friends so happy and chattering about what to do today. He was glad for these two days as well. They were the only two days off he was really getting. Once the tour started up again, he would start work on his album, so he would spend his days recording, his nights performing and in between there would be the extras of interviews and photo shoots for things to come and the like. It was going to be extreme, but he loved what he was doing so he would embrace it all with a smile.
“What do you want to do today, mate?” Michael asked, as he sat down next to David. He had a plate full of food and a mug of coffee.
“Haven’t thought that far ahead,” David replied as he toyed with his glass of orange juice. He’d woken up with a headache and a general feeling of blah. A hot shower had helped the blah feeling somewhat, but the headache was still nagging him.
Michael started to dig into his food, but stopped when he noticed David didn’t have a plate. “You eat already/’
David shook his head, making a face. “Not hungry. I’ll grab something later.” Way later, maybe, because right now just smelling the eggs on Michael’s plate was making him a bit nauseous. “I’m gonna go for a walk,” he announced, pushing back his chair. “Come find me when you’re done and we’ll plan the day.”
“Will do,” Michael replied, waving goodbye with his fork in hand.
As he walked out, David greeted various other tour mates, until finally escaping outside. Though it was fairly early in the morning, the sun was warm and bright and it felt good against his skin, somewhat chasing away the chill that had plagued him in the air-conditioned dining room.
There was a pool to his left, which they had all indulged in last night after the concert. They didn’t get to stay in a hotel often. In fact this was only the second time, the first being the fourth of July. So David headed for one of the lounge chair and stretched out, closing his eyes.
It was always hard to fall asleep after a performance. The crowd was so receptive to him, and feeling the love and support of the people who had voted for his win was like an adrenaline rush. David loved being able to pay them back by giving them his best. Which meant putting on a show and working the stage and interacting with them, and he loved every minute of it. But coming down from that high was exhausting
Relaxing in the sun felt good. He was starting to feel blah again and he couldn’t seem to shake the damn headache.
“Sugarfoot.”
It took David a moment to realize Carly was calling him. He peeled his eyes open and squinted up at her. “Hey, Tater. What’s up?”
She nudged him over so she could perch on the edge of his lounger. “You feeling all right, David? You look a bit pale.”
He had to laugh at that. “I’m always pale, you goof. You know my color range. White, pink, red, back to white.”
“You look extra white today,” she replied, not looking amused as he had meant her to be. “They push you too hard, sweetie.”
“I’m tough,” David drawled, winking at her. “I can take it.”
Carly finally smiled. “I know you’re tough, for all you’re mushy inside.” She leaned in to give him a hug and he sat up into it. David always welcomed a good hug and Carly gave great ones.
“Thanks for caring,” He mumbled into her hair.
“You make it easy to care, David.” Carly eased back, ruffling his hair for a moment before pressing her cheek to his forehead. “You feel awfully warm. Are you sure you’re all right?”
“I’ve been baking in the sun for the past…” David broke off to glance at his watch. “…twenty minutes. Of course I’m warm. It feels good.” He still felt a bit chilled inside, not that he shared that fact. Carly had a *mom* complex that got over active at times. Like when he’d had his blood pressure scare. She had watched him like a hawk and mothered and smothered him for over a week after the fact
Carly didn’t look convinced, but she nodded and let it drop. “Michael’s looking for you. He wants to know if you’re interested in hitting the shops. There’s supposed to be some cool vintage places around.”
David had some money to burn, so he was a bit intrigued. “Vintage what?”
“Everything,” Carly replied, grinning. “Instruments, music, clothes, jewelry.” She hooked one of his many chains with a fingertip and teased, “Not that you need anymore bling.”
“Hey!” David protested, unhooking her finger and patting the chain back into place. “I can’t help it if people give me jewelry.”
Carly snorted. “Doesn’t mean you have to wear it all at the same time.”
David pouted at her. “You’re being mean,” he whined, because it was the kind of teasing they did with each other. The kind of teasing he had missed after she had gotten booted off the show. He had missed her so damn much, especially with Michael already gone. So having them back with him now was like living a dream. It was going to suck when the tour ended.
“Come on, let’s go grab Michael before he eats round three,” Carly said, standing up and grabbing David by the hand to haul him to his feet. And she was strong enough to do it.
“You coming shopping with us?” David asked, as they headed inside.
Carly nodded. “Brooke and Rami and Kristy are going makeup and clothes shopping and I’ve had enough of that for now. I’d rather hang with my boys.”
David one-arm hugged her. “I’m so glad we’re back together.” He knew she would get that he meant the three of them.
“Me too.” She hugged him back. “And I’m so glad you won, David. You worked your ass off to get here and you deserve it. I knew from the day I met you that you’d win. Did I ever tell you that?”
“No.” David was surprised to hear her say that. “You didn’t really believe that.”
Nodding decisively, Carly stated, ”I really did. I told Michael you’d win after you did Hello. The moment you put yourself out there for all the world to see, I knew it would be you, Sugarfoot. And I was rooting for you all the way, almost harder than I was rooting for myself.”
David felt inexplicably humbled by that. By her faith in him. He blinked hard, not wanting to cry in front of her because she made fun of him enough about that as it was. “I wish it could have been the three of us at the top. Not that Archie and Syesha aren’t awesome, because they are. I thought Archie had it from the get go, and for sure at the top 2.”
“You do know Simon wanted you to win, right?” Carly reached out and swiped the pad of her thumb under David’s eye, smearing the tell tale wetness. But she smiled fondly at him as she did it.
“We talked about it after I won,” David confessed. “He said a lot of really nice things. He’s a good guy with a bad reputation.”
They both laughed at that, linking arms as they stepped inside and moved down the hallway to the dining room. Where they ran into Michael, who was muching on a danish.
David shook his head at his friend, wishing he could eat like that without gaining an ounce. He was working hard right now to turn his one ab into six, and it was hell. “You have glaze on your nose,” he said, helpfully pointing out the spot to Michael.
Who went cross-eyed trying to see it. He swiped at his nose with his sleeve then held out the half eaten danish. “Want some?”
“Pass.” David suddenly felt nauseous again and, to add to the misery, he got hit with a sudden hot flash. He felt his skin prickle as he broke out into a sweat.
“David?” Carly had noticed his reaction and gripped his arm tighter. “You okay?”
He wanted to tell her yes, but suddenly the floor was tilting under his feet and he felt himself falling. He didn’t hit the ground because hands caught him and eased him down, but everything was shading to gray then swirling into black.
OoO
“David?”
He heard his name being called even as he felt a tapping on his cheek. Both things were annoying and he wanted to be left alone to sleep. Why was someone trying to wake him up anyway? He really wanted to sleep.
“David! Come on, mate! Wake up!”
He knew that voice very well. Michael’s accent always got thicker when he was worried. David couldn’t imagine what he would be worried about. The show was over so they didn’t have to stress about being kicked off or anything. He really just wanted to sleep a bit longer. “G’way,” he mumbled, slapping at the fingers that were tapping on his cheek again.
“Open your eyes, sugarfoot.” It was Carly pleading with him this time.
David wondered if it would make them leave him alone. If opening his eyes would appease them so he could go back to sleep, then open his eyes he would. Although it wasn’t as easy as it should have been. He had to pretty much peel them open then blink rapidly to bring fuzzy faces into focus.
Both Michael and Carly were staring down at him. Michael was the first to speak.
“How are you feeling, mate?”
“Kay,” David whispered, because his head ached and talking loud would make it hurt more. He was sure of it.
Carly pushed Michael aside, leaning in closer, her eyes wide with concern. “The doctor is on his way, David. Just stay with us, okay? And please don’t scare the shit out of me like that again!” She sounded angry and relieved at the same time.
David frowned at her. “What?” he asked, because he was confused. Why was Carly pissed at him for sleeping. Although it hit David, in that moment, that he wasn’t lying in a bed he was lying on the floor with Carly and Michael kneeling beside him. So he tried to sit up.
“Lie still,” Michael ordered, pressing hands to his shoulders to keep him down. “The hotel nurse said you’re to stay put until the doctor arrives.”
“What happened?” David’s tongue felt thick in his mouth, but he got the words out clear enough to be understood. He hoped.
It was Carly who replied. “You passed out, sweetie. Scared the hell out of me and gave me about a thousand gray hairs.”
David was sure he hadn’t heard her right. “I…I passed out?” He thought back to the events that might have led up to that moment and he suddenly remembered walking with Carly to meet up with Michael and something vague about a danish.
“Turned a whiter shade of pale and just collapsed like a house of cards,” Michael confirmed.
“Sorry.” David hated the fact that he had worried his friends. However, what he hated more was lying on the floor and feeling like a freak show attraction. Because there were people lingering around, watching. “I’d really like to get up now!” he hissed, trying to push Michael’s hands off him.
But Michael wouldn’t budge, but it didn’t matter because a stranger with silver-gray hair was suddenly kneeling beside him. David guessed he was the hotel doc.
He was and he introduced himself as Dr. Benton. He was polite and all business, taking vitals, conversing with the nurse lady, asking Michael and Carly what happened and pretty much ignoring David, until he tried to sit up again. Which he almost managed to achieve, until a major headrush made him list to his left and then Michael and Dr. Benton were pushing him back down again.
Things got kinda hazy after that. David felt nauseous, his head ached, his vision kept graying out and the next thing he knew he was in his hotel bed and Carly was sitting beside him, reading a book.
“Hey,” David croaked at her.
“Hey you,” Carly replied, looking relieved. “It’s about time you woke up.”
David frowned at her. “I was sleeping?” Cause the last thing he remembered was lying on the floor in the hallway. But maybe he’d just dreamed that whole scenario.
Carly reached out, smoothing David’s hair off his forehead. “You’ve been in and out of it for a bit,” she allowed. “Long story short, you have an inner ear infection. Dr. Benton gave you a couple of shots and he said you should feel better in a few days.”
“A few days?” David pushed up against the pillows, but regretted the motion when it made him feel vaguely sea sick. “We have a concert tomorrow. Right? I can’t be out of commission for a few days.” There were fans to perform for. It was his only way to say thank you to the people who had spent time and money voting for his win.
“The dates we had to cancel have been rescheduled,” Carly replied. “Don’t worry about it. Just rest.”
David felt tired and ready to sleep for a week, but he had a pressing matter to take care of first. “Need the bathroom,” he whispered, feeling his face flame with embarrassment.
Carly chuckled and patted his arm. “I’ll call Michael. That’s his department. Do you feel up to eating something? I can grab some soup if you’re hungry”
“I’m not.” Even the thought of food made his stomach twist into knots.
“Okay. I’ll go get Michael.” Carly gave him a smile, slid off the bed and exited the room.
The moment she was gone, David shoved the covers back, feeling a bit weirded out to discover he was wearing sweat pants and a t-shirt that someone must have dressed him in. He didn’t even want to think about who it might have been.
Inching off the bed, he stood up on wobbly legs, but damn if he wasn’t capable of going to the bathroom by himself. However, the first step he took he ended up on all fours on the floor, panting through a wave of nausea.
“Idiot,” Said a familiar accent next to his ear and David kept his eyes closed as he felt Michael lift him to his feet.
“This sucks,” David whispered, as he was guided across the room. He was grateful that Michael was big and strong because he knew he wasn’t pulling his own weight much. His legs felt like rubber and he was pretty much just stumbling along.
The arm that was looped around David’s waist gave him a gentle squeeze. “I bet it does,” Michael allowed. “But the Doc said you should feel better in a couple of days.”
David risked slanting his eyes open and he was relieved to see they were at the bathroom. He took things into his own hands for the next five minutes, then they made the slow trek back to the bed.
Carly was there, waiting to tuck him in. David felt so crappy, he welcomed her ministrations. Once snuggled back under the covers, he did accept a glass of water and took a few sips, then he curled up on his side and closed his eyes. “Thanks guys,” he whispered. He would take them out to dinner when he was feeling better, for a proper show of appreciation.
“You’re welcome, hon,” Carly replied, pressing a kiss to his cheek. “Sweet dreams. You’ll feel better when you wake up.”
David believed her. So he let his thoughts drift away as warm darkness gathered him into her sweet embrace.
THE END