Headspace family

Day 5 : The brat's cold

I wake up to the sound of the voices, television and laughter. I can already tell something is not normal, I am always the first one up. Or rather, Niall is and he wakes me up by crying. Ever since I came here, I never had the opportunity to sleep in even once. Quickly, I make my way to the living room and see that everyone is up and watching a Disney movie. Niall is on Liam's lap, Harry is sitting beside him and Louis is on the other side.

"Good morning Ava," greets Liam, smiling up at me from the couch. "I couldn't sleep anymore, so I went to get Niall when I heard him wake up. Did you sleep well?" he asked, earning a small slap from Harry, who couldn't hear the movie because of him.

Sliding my hand through my hair, I nodded and sat down beside Louis. Instead of protesting or pushing me away, he leaned against me and stayed quiet, his eyes focused on the television. Even Liam seemed surprised of this and looked at me with an eyebrow raised.

"Louis, are you alright?" I asked, looking down at the brown haired boy. His cheeks were a bit red, and his gaze seemed unfocused. He hummed as a reply, probably saying that he was fine. However, I wasn't so sure of it. So I raised my hand onto his forehead and frowned. "You have a fever. You're really warm, you should go back to bed."

"Don't wanna," he protested, moving my hand away. "I'm fine, don't bother me."

Sighing, I stood up. "Get up. I'm going to give you some medicine for the fever and you are going back to sleep," I repeated, crossing my arms over my chest. It might have been a small fever, but if we did nothing it would get worse. I didn't want him to be in pain, or for it to worsen so much we had to bring him to the hospital.

After a while of protesting, a yawning Louis accepted to go back to sleep. I first gave him his medicine then followed him and made sure he was completely covered by the blanket, leaving a bottle of water on his nightstand in case he got thirsty. "I'll tell Libby to make something light and warm for lunch so you can eat it," I informed him.

"Alright, alright. Now leave me alone," he replied, turning around so his back was facing me. Sighing, I walked out of his room and closed the door, heading for the kitchen. Libby was getting ingredients out of the fridge, humming quietly. She seemed to be in a good mood. I hoped it wasn't because she really liked what she had planned to cook, because she would be disappointed.

"Hi Libby," I greeted her with a smile, helping her by grabbing two or three things from the mountain she held in her hands. "What are you making?"

"Hey Ava! I was thinking of some of my special mac n'cheese. The boys usually like it and you haven't tried it yet," she replied, putting everything down onto the counter. I slid my hand in my hair, trying to find a way to tell her to do something else.

"Mmmhh... That seems like a good idea Libby, but Louis is sick so... I know it's a lot of work but can you also make some soup for him? It will be easier to eat," I decided to say, knowing that there was no problem with us eating it. "Oh and, if the boys like it so much, could we keep some for Louis when he feels better so he won't be sad?"

"Of course! Poor little guy, is he okay?" she asked, concerned. I nodded.

"It should be fine with rest. It's just a light fever," I explained. "Thanks Libby!" I added, making my way back to the living room. Looking around, I frowned, my eyes stopping on a light brown haired boy, sitting in front of the television. I hadn't even seen him pass by the kitchen on his way out of his room. "Louis..." I called, frowning and crossing my arms over my chest.

"But I'm bored! There's nothing to do laying down in bed," he replied, looking up at me. I felt a thug on my shirt and looked down. Harry was sitting down on the floor next to me and held the corner of my shirt.

"What is it?"

"Why can't I play with Lou? I want to. Ni is sleepy and Li is taking care of him, so nobody is playing with me," he said, pouting. I explained to him that Louis was sick and that was the reason he couldn't play, but Harry did not want to hear it.

"Alright, what if you guys watch a movie, but in Louis' room? That way he can say in bed and you can be with him so nobody is lonely. Is that okay with you two?" I said, knowing it was either that or they wouldn't budge from the living room.

"I wasn't lonely but whatever, I don't mind," Louis agreed, quickly followed by Harry, who was already up and running to the bedroom. I grabbed a few movies and unplugged the DVD player, following them. I installed everything into Louis' room, that already had a television, and tucked them both in the bed.

"I'll come see you guys when it's time to eat," I informed them before starting the movie and leaving the room, closing the door. When I walked into the living room, Liam was talking with Niall.

"No Ni, Lou isn't gonna die. He just caught a cold," the oldest said, looking down at the blonde.

"What a col?"

"It's huh...you feel really warm and your head hurts. You don't have energy so you want to sleep a lot," Liam tried to explain, but Niall didn't seem to get it. "I'll explain it to you again when you have one okay?" Liam said, giving up.

Later on, I went to eat with Louis while Harry was having lunch with the others in the kitchen. I didn't want Louis to feel bad because he was eating by himself in his room. When we were done, Harry came back and they watched another movie. They did that the whole day, so at least Louis did not sneak out again. Hopefully, he would be better tomorrow.

It was around Niall's bedtime when he asked me to read him a story. Well, more like he pointed at the book repeatedly until I understood what he wanted. So I laid down in my bed with the little guy and read until he fell asleep. It didn't take long, as usual. He likes to hear stories, but he never gets to the end. Smiling, I closed the picture book and put it down on the nightstand. Yawning, I rested my head on the pillow.

-Louis-

Harry was asleep in my bed, I could hear Liam in the living room, but there was no trace of the babysitter and Niall. Grinning, I took the opportunity and walked out of my room, looking around. I was kind of sleepy and I still felt sick, but I wanted to move a bit. I didn't want Liam to spot me so I stayed in the bedroom hallway, walking towards the further end of it. The babysitter's door was opened and I peaked in, seeing her asleep with Niall, the lights still on. They seemed very comfy, and I walked inside. On my tiptoes, I stepped up to the bed. It really looked comfy, so I got in it and nuzzled under the blankets, falling asleep.

-Ava-

When I woke up the next morning, Louis was in bed with Niall and I. Of course, as soon as he was up, he pretended to have been sleep walking. I didn't say anything to oppose it, knowing it would upset him. When Niall woke up though, things got problematic. The little guy had caught Louis' cold, and I soon found out that it was the case of everyone else too...

Hi guys! The next chapter is finally out! I want to thank everyone who voted (a lot of you did!) and commented. And, of course, everyone who read! We have reached the 5k reads and I'm quite surprised of this, though very pleased. Thank you all for your support and I hope you liked this chapter.