DC One Shots (Mainly Dick Grayson)

Love is a Helping Hand (even if you thought you'd never need it)

Whumptober 2021- day eight
Coughing up a lung
pneumothorax, exotic illness, 'definitely just a cold'

Slade gets injected with an Illness designed just for him, and Dick looks after him.

Dick looked up at Slade from his place at the kitchen table. He was going through some kind of paperwork, a pen in hand and his comfortable hoodie that he wore whenever he was working on cases Bruce had sent him- it had stopped being Slade's hoodie almost a year ago. Slade didn't bother to answer the inquisitive look as he continued to the spare room in the apartment where he could dump his gear. He returned to the main room, gave Dick a kiss on the temple and headed to the kitchen to pour himself a drink.

"Okay I have to ask," Dick said, finally giving in with a sigh, "why is there a shady looking syringe on our kitchen table?"

Slade took the chair next to him at the table, "I need you to sneak it into the cave somehow and get it scanned."

"Right," Dick said, still looking at him with that unimpressed expression, "and why is that?"

"because your current equipment won't be able to pick up on everything," Slade said. When Dick continued to watch him with the dry expression that clearly meant 'answer the rest of the question asshole' he continued with, "I was injected with it during the fight."

"Slade-"

"I know what it is," Slade said before Dick could start, "and it's harmless. I just need it scanned so I know what's in it."

"and what is it?" Dick asked.

"It's an illness designed especially for me," he said, taking a sip of his drink. Dick pinched the bridge of his nose, "my contractee mentioned that I'd been discovered, the scientists knew I was closing in so they started adapting the illness they were creating so that it'd work against me. This got sent over from their abroad labs as a test version, prototype one, they already knew it wouldn't work but they needed their people here in the states with the better equipment to look it over."

"and you got injected with it in the fight."

"yes."

Dick was silent for a moment, then said, "so it's harmless, but you need it scanned. You want to know what's in it- is that as a way to deduce where their abroad labs are or do you want to make an antidote in case?"

"bit of both."

"the second one will be harder than the first."

"I'm sure you'll manage it."

Dick sighed, already thinking of how annoying it was going to be to sneak it past everyone in the cave and do the necessary scans without anyone noticing or leaving any clues, "I'd have to be lucky."

Slade took the hand loosely holding the pen. He put the pen on the table then raised the hand to his mouth and kissed it, "you'll figure it out."

Dick levelled a dry look on him, "don't think I don't know what you're doing."

Slade smiled into the skin of Dick's hand, "I haven't a clue what you mean."

"You've been tracking down that lab for three weeks and now you're back," Dick said, "resorting to flattery? Slade, why don't you just go the direct route if you're that desperate?"

Slade laughed and kissed the inside of Dick's hand, "you can't tell me..." he trailed his lips down Dick's arm, leaning out of his chair so he could stand against him and get his mouth at his neck, where he knew Dick always melted, "that it isn't working."