Two Worlds among the Stars (G/t) OLD VERSION

Care

The next morning Noah felt awful. His throat felt scratchy, his muscles were sore and he had a painful headache.

... he was sick.

'Great... this is exactly what i needed' thought Noah bitterly as he closed his eyes again, trying to concentrate on something else than his aching body.

All he wanted to do was to lie back down and sleep this off, but he knew he couldn't do that.
He could, of course, but not without John noticing something was wrong.
And the last thing he wanted was John to find out he was sick. He was sure that would earn him a comment like "deserves you right for running away", allthough John didn't seem like the resentful type of person. No, Noah wouldn't take the risk.
.... even though John would be right. It was his own fault that he was sick, so he should deal with it on his own too.
If he was lucky, he could hide his sickness from him.
Noah pulled himself into a sitting position and just this slight movement made him dizzy. He rubbed his face to get rid of the blurriness in his eyes, just as he pulled his hand away John entered his vision.

"Morning sleppy head, yesterday took its toll on you, hmm?"

"Huh, what... what time is it?" asked Noah, still a little dizzy.

"It's already noon, i let you sleep in. Come on, let's get you something to eat. I'm sure that will help you to regain your strength" John send him a gentle smile and stretched his hand out for the boy to climb on.

The sick teenager stood on shaky legs, the uneven surface of the pillow made it even harder not to fall, but after stumbling once or twice he managed eventually to take a seat on John's hand. He tried to come in contact with the flesh underneath him as little as possible, so the man wouldn't feel his rised temperature.

John brought him to the table where he quickly hopped off. As the giant turned away to get him some food he made his way to his little table, where also a matching stool stood now. A small smile crossed his face as he saw this. He sat down and slumped over the table, burying his face in this arms.

He only realized he dozed off, when something poked him in his side, he shot up and looked into the concerned face of John.
"Are you ok?" questioned the man in a hushed tone.

"I'm fine, why do you ask?" lied Noah, putting on a fake smile. Though it looked more like a grimace.

Unfortunetly, John didn't look convinced.

"Oh, i can see that. If you are fine, i'm sure you won't mind to come closer and proof it to me." He tapped on the table with his pointer finger and looked at him expectantly.

Noah really didn't want to, but knew he had to, if he wanted to convince John. He walked on wobbly legs towards the edge of the table, where John waited. A wave of dizziness hit him and made him fall over.
Before he could hit the hard surface, warm hands caught him. The boy tensed as a thumb was gently pressed against his forehead. Then he heard a hiss.
"When were you going to tell me, that you have a fever?"

"Um..." Noah couldn't come up with a lie fast enough, before he heard the man sigh.

"Noah you have to tell me things like that." said John with a firm but gentle voice.

"Look i didn't want to bother you, besides it's not like i haven't dealt with a fever on my own before, i can take care of myself." argued Noah.

"I know, but i want to help you, ok?"

John pulled the small child close to his chest and walked over to his bed. A small part of Noah wanted to lead into the warmth of John's body, but he didn't want to come off as clingy, so he resisted the urge. He was too old to act like that anyway.