If there's a fire

15.

The dorm director reluctantly let the elderly black woman through- she had a large purse, filled with everything she thought she would need to help her little baby Thomas.

The room door opened, and Nanny smiled.

"Gable!" Thomas smiled, wrapping his arms around her. Nanny hugged Thomas back, before pushing her way into the room.

She saw a small boy- probably 16 or 17- laying on one of the beds. He was asleep, and Thomas seemed worried about him.

"So, tell me what's wrong, dear."

"I came home from class- he was sick, so he didn't come to class with me, and I came home to find him on the ground, he was in the bathroom passed out. I called you- he woke up and threw up and then I led him to our- to his bed." Thomas corrected himself. Nanny smiled sweetly.

"Your boyfriend?" She asked, walking towards the boy and resting her head on his forehead. He was burning up.

"Kind of."

Nanny just nodded, still smiling as she took James's temperature.

"102- too high. Get me an ice pack, deary."

Thomas stood.

"Oh, Thomas! You don't have ice packs? Fine, just- frozen peas."

Thomas came back with frozen green beans and a rag to wrap it in. Nanny rested it on James's head.

"Oh, it seems he's just got a little old stomach flu." Nanny sighed, covering Thomas with a blanket. "Some over the counter things will help- as well as some pain killers, let me write these down..." she grabbed James's beside notepad, which was covered in crude drawings and writings the two had done one night at two am when they were bored. She ignored them, as well as hearts with the twos name in them, scribbling down some over the counter drugs.

James stirred awake, sneezing and sitting up. The ice fell off of him, and he sighed, grabbing it and putting it back over his head.

"It's so hot, Thomas, turn the AC on." He groaned, either not seeing or just plain ignoring Nanny.

Thomas pulled James's blanket off, resting a hand on his cheek.

"You're burning up, let me turn the air on." Thomas asked, going to grant James's wish.

"No. He needs to sweat this off! I'll make some soup."

"Nanny, we don't have any soup." Thomas frowned. Nanny rolled his eyes, smiling devilishly. She pulled her hair up into a tight bun and lowered her glasses.

"What is a nanny, if not prepared?" She asked. Nanny pulled a can of soup from her purse- more like duffle bag- before she walked to the kitchen, making herself at home.

"Who is that, Thomas?" James whispered as Thomas sat on the bed.

"My old Nanny."

"Your grandmother? Your nana?" James asked, groggily.

"May as well be." Thomas smiled at James. James beamed back, before laying back down with a sigh.

"I'm cold. How did I end up here? I remember coughing a lot and then not coughing and then- throwing up, maybe?- and then I don't remember."

"Well- you were passed out on the floor when I returned from class. I was going to call an ambulance, when you suddenly started stirring. I called the second best thing." Thomas shrugged. Nanny coughed, glaring at Thomas from the kitchen.

"You sayin' I'm not as good as, if not twice as good as, the ambulance?" Nanny snapped. Thomas chuckled, shaking his head.

"I wouldn't even dare to imply it!" Thomas called back. James giggled, reaching out for Thomas. Thomas grabbed James hand and pulled him to his chest.

Not even five minutes later, Gable came out with a large thing of soup. She gasped, setting the soup down quickly.

"No canoodling! You two are cute, but Tommy, you wouldn't want to get sick too, would you?!"

Thomas was silent, sheepishly letting go of James. James stifled a giggle, and Thomas blushed.

"Well, would you?!" She snapped again, her hand on her hips.

"No, Nanny Gable, I wouldn't." Thomas blushed. James finally laughed, pushing Thomas off of his bed.

"Be gone. No sickness for you." James laughed.

Thomas walked to his bed, laying down.

"Oo, a Violin?" Nanny asked, picking up the case of James's instrument of the week, and setting it down on the bed.

"No, Nanny don't-" Thomas began, but Nanny was already pulling it from its case.

"Can you play for me?" She asked James. James nodded with a smile, catching the bow that was thrown his way. She handed him the violin, and he put it under his chin.

He played the first thing that came to mind- a piece he wrote not long ago, the bow violently crossing the strings, his fingers moving slowly compared to the rest of it.

"That was incredible!" Nanny cried after not even a minute of James's playing. James had to stop, the high pitch giving him a headache worse than before.

"Thank you, Nanny. Do you play anything?" He asked.

She sighed.

"Oh, nothing, just the guitar, banjo, I dabble in accordion, it's been a while, but the cello, and saxophone." She said, all in one breath.

James's eyes widened. Thomas giggled.

"So- nanny, are you staying for very long?" James asked.

"Well. Originally I didn't plan on it, but you guys have a spare bedroom and a sick boy. So maybe a couple days wouldn't hurt." She smiled, pushing a stray piece of gray hair behind her ear.

James smiled, but Thomas couldn't help but groan.

"What? What's so bad about Nanny?" James asked, and Thomas sighed, chuckling.

"You'll see."