Jay Halstead wasn't sure why he was awake at 5am, his small body was hot and yet he could feel himself shivering. Sitting up, the 2 year old sniffled and coughed, letting out a small whimper as it made his head pound. In his mind, he couldn't understand why he felt like this, and all he wanted was his daddy.
"GRANDPA" Jay cried loudly, coughing wetly
Hank Voight woke with a start hearing his grandson, his husband Antonio Dawson also jumped in surprise. The elder man climbed out of bed, grabbing a hoodie as he walked out of the room towards the bedroom. Opening the door, Hank's heart clenched as he took in the state of Jay; the toddler was shivering yet sweating, and he had clearly leaked through the nappy he was wearing.
"Oh buddy" Hank sighed, grabbing Jay and holding his small body close to his chest
"Icky" Jay cried, shoving his feverish head into Hanks neck
"I know, let's get you changed" Hank soothed, stripping Jay out of his sleep shirt, leaving him in just his nappy
"Grandpa" Jay cried, large tears tolling down his face
"I know buddy, it's ok" Hank soothed, rubbing Jays belly gently as he taped up a fresh nappy, deciding to leave the toddler in just that as he was clearly running a fever
"Pappy" Jay mumbled through his tears, reaching for Hank who gladly picked him up
"Need to take your temperature first buddy" Hank soothed, grabbing the little thermometer that was in the drawer under the changing table
"No, pappy" Jay cried, trying to push the thermometer away from his ears, but Hank was of course stronger and was able to take the toddler's temperature
"You're ok buddy, shush" Hank soothed, taking the device when it beeped, sighing when he saw how high the boys temperature was
Jay was now laying limply against his fathers chest, crying softly and feeling completely rubbish. The toddler always seemed to get a high fever when he was sick, none of Hanks children had ever got this sick.
Erin and Will, were 17 year old twins and had been sick twice if that; and the toddlers father, their eldest child 22 year old Justin had probably only ever had the sniffles. It was always Jay that seemed to have the worst symptoms when he got unwell; grabbing Jay a new dummy, Hank walked back into the bedroom he shared with Antonio.
"Pappy" Jay cried, reaching for the other man
"Hi muffin" Antonio whispered, taking the small toddler into his arms and holding him close
"Jay is icky" the toddler cried, coughing as he worked himself up
"Calm down muffin, you'll make yourself sick" Antonio soothed, sitting up slightly with the boy in his lap
"I want mama" Jay cried, not calming down in the slightest
"I'll get Justin" Hank said quietly, leaving the room quickly, checking on his twins, both of whom were fast asleep before walking into his eldest sons room
Hank walked over to Justin who was fast asleep, the man having been out for the evening with some his colleagues. The older man didn't want to wake Justin, but he was the baby's mother and could always calm the child down.
"Justin" Hank whispered, shaking his sons shoulder
"Dad?" Justin groaned as he woke up
"I'm really sorry, Jay is sick" Hank said, stepping back as Justin stood up quickly
"Where is he?" Justin asked, not bothering with a tshirt
"Your papa has him" Hank said, following Justin as he sped into the room his fathers shared
Jay must have felt the new body enter the room, as he turned round and new tears began falling when he saw his mama. The toddler reached for Justin who was quick to take the baby into his arms, and cradled him softly.
"Mama" Jay cried, wriggling to be closer to Justin
"I've got you baby boy, no more tears" Justin soothed, swaying gently as he patted Jays nappied bum
"Icky mama" Jay cried, hiding his head in Justins chest
"I know baby, come on, let's leave gramps to sleep, mama's medicine always works a treat" Justin whispered, wishing his fathers a good night as he walked back into his own bedroom
Jay had slowly calmed down as he was warm in his mother's embrace; his thumb had snuck its way into his mouth and he was suckling to self soothe. Sitting on his bed, he covered Jay with a soft blanket, grabbing the bottle of baby calpol and gently giving his son the small recommended dosage.
"Icky mama" Jay whimpered, gagging at the bitter taste of the medicine
"I know baby, you'll feel better soon" Justin soothed, cradling Jay close
"Milkies mama?" Jay whispered, yawning as he begun to get tired
Justin only nodded, standing back up with Jay cuddled closely to his chest, walking down the stairs into the kitchen. He grabbed a empty bottle, filling it with milk and placing it in the microwave to warm it up. Jay was now silent, his head resting on Justins shoulder, watching his mama fill his bottle up.
"Here we go little one" Justin said softly, guiding the nipple of the bottle into Jays mouth, smiling as Jay latched on and suckled softly
