"Is there a reason you're naked in my bed?"
Piper was exhausted. She'd had to go into work extra early to help with a field mission crisis and she'd spent the morning on a bad connection with an agent in Cape Town trying to sort out a problem that could have been prevented had the operations agent in charge been doing their job properly. Sometimes she got flack for having moved into her position as a junior agent in O branch so quickly (mostly because no one knew what she actually did for this organization) but no one could argue that she'd earned her title today.
She'd had to clean up the mess for the rest of her shift, working right through lunch and then through dinner, digging into her stash of crisps that she kept in the bottom drawer of her desk for sustenance. Now it was nearing ten and she just wanted to go to bed and collapse in it. The lights were off across the house — Louis and El must be out for the night. Piper wasn't complaining. It meant she could go to sleep undisturbed.
Except that when she got into the bedroom, there was a large man taking up all of the bed, his limbs spread out at his sides as he lay there on his back. He was also completely starkers.
"Is there a reason you're naked in my bed?" Piper asked with an aggravated huff. "If this is some attempt to seduce me, it's failing. Big time."
Harry rolled his head slowly toward her and Piper could see that his face was flushed red, much redder than Harry usually got. His eyes were bloodshot and a bit hazy and when he licked his dry lips, he had trouble swallowing.
"'M so hot," he mumbled. "Had t' take m' clothes off."
"It's like the arctic in here with how high Louis has the AC," Piper muttered to herself as she dropped her bag and crossed over to the bed. "Are you feeling okay, Harry?"
"Fine," he muttered but Piper could tell just by the way he was acting, all sluggish and dozy, that fine was not the right word. She got a knee up on the bed and reached over to place her hand on Harry's chest to steady herself.
His skin was burning hot.
"Christ, Harry, you're burning up," she said as she touched her palm to his forehead. Harry leaned in toward her hand like her cooler skin was giving him considerable relief, his eyes fluttering shut. "Have you felt like this all day?"
"Uh uh," he mumbled. "Just tonight. Very hot."
"I know," she said as she leaned over to press a kiss to his forehead, his skin warm and dry against hers. Not a good sign. "Stay here. I'm going to get a thermometer and then I'm going to call Niall."
"'M okay."
"You're certainly not okay," Piper said as she pushed off the bed. "Don't move a muscle."
She jogged over to the bathroom and began throwing drawers open in the vanity, looking for a thermometer. She knew where it was supposed to be but everything flew right out of her mind as she searched. She was too worried about Harry to concentrate at all. It meant that she had to pull open every drawer before she found the thermometer right where it was supposed to be.
She carried it back into the bedroom in shaky hands, trying her very hardest not to panic. It wasn't going to help Harry if she was inconsolable with worry — she had to keep her head on her shoulders. So she bit right through her lip in an attempt not to start crying and took deep breaths in through her nose to try and calm herself down.
She sat down on the bed beside Harry, reaching up to run her hand through his curls and push them out of his face. "Still with me, Harry?" she asked him, her voice shaking as she did. He turned his head toward her and tried to smile.
"Right here."
"I'm just going to take your temperature," she told him as she pressed the end of the thermometer to his closed lips. He cracked an eye open to see what was going on and when he put it together, he opened his mouth and let her slip it under his tongue. "Just hold that there for a moment," she instructed as she stroked his hair gently.
Harry did as he was told, lying there with his tired eyes on her as they both waited for the thermometer to beep. She forced a small smile, trying to be a bit reassuring, but it slipped away when Harry's gaze became a bit unfocused and his eyes fluttered. "Hey, baby, stay awake. Stay with me."
"Sorry," he mumbled around the thermometer. "Trying."
"I know you're trying. You're doing great." The thermometer beeped and Piper plucked it from between Harry's lips, reading the number.
"How bad?" Harry asked.
"38.7."
"That's high," he muttered.
"Yes it is." Piper shuffled on the bed to pull her phone from her pocket and unlocked it, dialling Niall's number immediately. "I'm just calling Niall," she told Harry when she saw the furrow in his brow, "to see what he suggests we do."
Niall picked up with a gruff "what do you want?" and Piper guessed that she'd interrupted date night.
"Niall, Harry has a bad fever," she said hurriedly. Her voice must have come out sounding as panicked as she felt because Harry shifted his arm on the bed until his hand was resting on her knee. He gave it a supportive squeeze and she forced a smile on for him as she patted his shoulder reassuringly. "I don't know why and I don't know what to do."
"How high?" Niall asked, his voice becoming more serious as he slipped into his medic mindset.
"38.7. And he seems very sluggish and dazed."
"Is he showing signs of confusion or delirium?"
"No, he's pretty present. Just very lethargic."
"I think I know what it is. Harry got a typhoid vaccine today — routine stuff — but he combined it with a Hepatitis vaccine too. Usually he takes it separately. I think it's a bit too much for his immune system."
"Is he going to be okay?" Piper asked worriedly.
"Should be but I'm going to come over and check him out just to make sure."
"Okay," Piper said as she blew out a shaky breath. She stroked her hand gently over Harry's shoulder in a soothing motion, studying his face for a moment. He'd let his eyes shut once more and his cheeks seemed redder than before. But he was breathing evenly and without a struggle and that had to count for something.
"Don't worry to much, alright Pips? Just keep him comfortable for now. If you can, get a flannel and sponge him down with some tepid water."
"I can do that."
"I'll be there as soon as I can."
They said their goodbyes and then Piper put the phone down on the side table. She rose from the bed but before she could take a step, Harry grasped her wrist loosely. "Am I gonna be okay?"
"You'll be fine, Harry," Piper said confidently. If she said it that way, maybe the universe would make it true. Leaning over, she cupped Harry's cheek tenderly and kissed his other cheek gently. When she pulled back, there was a little smile tugging at his lips.
She went into the bathroom to retrieve a wet flannel like Niall had instructed. She wasn't sure what 'tepid' constituted so she just made the water about room temperature, not too cold but not too hot. On the way back to the bed, she detoured into the closet to grab a pair of light boxers for Harry.
After folding the flannel and setting it gently on his forehead, which made him sigh with relief, she fit the boxers around his feet.
"No," he whined as she started to pull them on. "Too hot."
"It's just pants, Harry, I promise." She yanked them up past his thighs and then shimmied them under his hips until the waistband rested comfortably there. "Niall's coming to check on you."
"He's seen me naked before."
"Yes, but we don't have to repeat the experience." She sat by his side again, taking the cloth off his forehead so she could sponge it down on his neck and shoulders to try and cool him off.
"That's nice," he mumbled, his eyes still shut, as if opening them would take too much effort. That was fine with Piper because this way he couldn't see how stricken she looked or the concern clear in her eyes. He didn't need to see that now.
"Just relax, baby," Piper murmured to Harry as she continued to sponge tepid water on his hot skin. "Everything is going to be fine."
They were quiet until Niall arrived, Piper keeping Harry comfortable while he dozed. When Niall got there, he came in with a quiet knock instead of being his usual boisterous self. He gave Piper a sympathetic smile as he crossed to the bed.
"Harry, mate, how are you feeling?"
"'M fine," Harry insisted and then frowned. "Too hot."
"I bet," Niall said as he took up Harry's wrist and pressed two fingers to his pulse point. He looked at his watch for a moment and then let his wrist go. "Have you got a headache?" Harry nodded slowly and Piper tsked, her hand immediately curving over his forehead gently, her thumb smoothing out the furrow in his brow. "How about stomach pain?" Niall asked, to which Harry shook his head.
"Okay, you're going to hate me for it but I'm going to make you sit up." Niall looked over at her. "Give me a hand Piper?"
She nodded, copying Niall's motions as he slid his hands under Harry's shoulder and back, and the two of them hoisted him upright as a pained groan slid from between Harry's clenched teeth. "Sorry," Piper said hurriedly even though she knew it wasn't really her fault.
"'S okay," Harry insisted, looking over at her with bleary eyes. "I'm sorry I'm sick. You had a long day —"
"Harry, don't be silly," Piper said as she brushed her hands through his curls, her other hand resting gently on his outstretched thigh. "You come first — always."
"Deep breaths, Harry," Niall interrupted, his stethoscope pressed to Harry's back. Harry did as he was told, taking deep breaths as Niall checked his lungs.
Piper was surprised when Harry took her hand off his thigh, holding it in both of his own instead. "You'll stay with me?" he asked, his voice surprisingly quiet when he did. There was something in his expression that just seemed very scared which was strange for Harry. Then again, he wasn't often sick and he certainly didn't like it.
"I'm staying right here," she told him as she leaned in to press her lips to his gently. "Okay?"
He nodded, his hands squeezing tighter around hers.
She kept her promise, staying by his side as Niall finished his examination and concluded that his earlier guess was correct and that these were side effects of his vaccinations. He took Harry's temperature once more before he left and assured the two of them that as long as it didn't rise, Harry would be fine. Piper had instructions to monitor him for any new symptoms and to keep an eye on his temperature. With that, he reminded them he was always available if they needed him and then took his leave.
Piper took her role as Harry's nurse very seriously and only left his side to change out of her work clothes. After that, she spent the rest of the night at Harry's side, getting him to drink some water and keeping him calm and relaxed whichever way she could. He slept fitfully, waking up every once in a while with a groan, asking for water. She stayed awake by his side, keeping a diligent eye on him.
It was inevitable that she would fall asleep. As much as she wanted to be awake for him, she was already exhausted. She dropped off some time near one and didn't wake until around four, startling awake suddenly. She looked around, trying to gain her bearings, and then felt Harry's fingers shuffling against hers until he was able to pull her hand into his.
"Did I wake you?" Piper asked him as she turned her head to the side. His gaze looked clearer when his eyes met her and Piper let out a huff, relieved. When she smiled at him, he smiled back.
"I think I woke you," Harry said. "I just wanted to hold your hand."
"You did? Why?"
"Because I love you," Harry told her, chuckling when a delighted grin snuck onto her face. "And I'm not used to us sleeping in the same bed but so far apart. I don't like it."
Usually she was plastered to Harry in her sleep but he was running even hotter than usual so her body, even in sleep, had stayed far away from him. "I don't want to make you warmer," she told him when he tugged on her hand a bit.
"I know but I think I'm cooler," he insisted, pulling her hand up to his face with a lazy motion. With the back of her hand resting on his forehead, she had to agree that he felt cooler than before but not back to normal yet. "Please, petal, I really want a cuddle."
"We shouldn't," Piper said but even she knew she was fighting a losing battle. Plus, she missed her Harry. Without much of an effort on Harry's part, she rolled toward him and fitted herself to his side. "Promise me you'll tell me to move if you get too hot."
"Won't need to," Harry insisted as his arm circled around her shoulders and dragged her closer so she was resting on his chest. "'M feeling better already." He pressed his lips against her forehead gently in the same tender kiss she'd been giving him all night. Piper let out a pleased sigh. "You're the best medicine, petal. All I need is you."