Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

He shouldn’t have even bothered coming into work that day. He felt absolutely miserable. He was the most stubborn person on the face of the earth, but getting sick knocked all the walls down, which is the main reason why he wanted to stay home.

Hondo called him at noon, giving him orders to come in for a new case. He couldn’t just refuse. It was his team!

So that’s why he was coming into work even though he was ten minutes late, red-nosed, shivering, and coughing every two seconds.

He had on his S.W.A.T. uniform shirt hidden somewhere underneath his black hoodie and leather jacket. His feet were shoved into fuzzy socks and boots to keep what heat he had inside his body. Hopefully, today was the day they just interviewed people and dug up information because he didn’t feel like taking off all his layers.

Blinking his eyes in an attempt to alleviate his growing headache, Street pushed through the front doors and stumbled down the hallway. He was so concentrated with keeping upright and not tripping over his feet again—he’d fallen up the stairs earlier—that he ran straight into Rocker.

“Woah! Watch where you’re going, Rookie.” Rocker grumbled, pushing Street off him before stalking off.

Street nodded barely taking the time to acknowledge the man before continuing towards the meeting room.

Seeing the room up ahead on his left, he took a deep breath and walked in. Maybe they wouldn’t notice?

“This group is well-organized highly trained, so we have to be careful.” Hondo finished, glancing up at him when Street stepped up to the table. “You’re late. Where have you been?”

Street was about to answer when a nasty coughing fit hit him. He coughed into his elbow so hard it made his chest ache. After a few seconds, he cleared his itchy throat and rasped, “Slept late, sorry.”

His team looked at him with concern.

“You okay, Street? You look horrible.” Tan asked, leaning further against his side of the table to get a closer at the kid.

“Yeah, you don’t sound too good either,” Chris added.

Street glared at his friends, “Thanks, you all really know how to make a guy feel special.”

Luca reached forward and pressed the back of his hand to Street’s forehead.

Once his sluggish brain caught up to what was happening, Street pushed his friend’s hand away from him. “Guys I’m fine. It’s just allergies.” He cleared his throat and pointed towards the screens. “So, what’s the case over?”

Hondo scrutinized him for a minute, making Street shift awkwardly from foot to foot. He felt like a scolded child underneath their parent’s gaze. Of course, he’d only had that relationship with Buck and now Hondo, so it still made him uncomfortable.

Thankfully, Hondo nodded, letting the matter go, albeit hesitantly. “If you start feeling worse, let us know.”

Street’s eyebrows scrunched together in confusion before he nodded as well, which seemed to be all the encouragement Hondo needed from him.

Hondo continued with the details of their case. Street breathed a sigh of relief at being out of the spotlight and attempted to listen.

During the lecture, he could still feel eyes on him every time he made a noise or moved an inch, but for the most part, he could ignore it. Instead, he focused all his attention on listening and trying not to cough. His throat felt raw from how much he’s coughed in the last two days.

At one point Street’s mind wandered for a bit, which was where his team made eye contact with each other, silently instructing each other to look out for their youngest teammate.

By the time Street finally jumped back in the conversation, Hondo was designating jobs.

“Okay, Chris and Deac, you guys talk to the witnesses. Find out any information regarding Rodriguez or his workers.” They nodded and left the room.

“Luca, you and Street can check out the bank and talk to the owner. Tan and I will go search for the gun-store that sold Rodriguez and his crew their weapons and report back.”

With one last glance towards Street, Hondo left with Tan.

The tickling in his throat grew worse, causing Street to violently cough into his elbow. Thankfully, Hondo was gone, so he didn’t see his little coughing spout.

“Hey, kid,” Luca stepped up next to him, “If you want to stay here that’s fine. I’ll run and tell Hondo. It’s no prob— “

“Yes, it is a problem,” Street argued, breaking to cough again. “You guys need me, and I can’t just bail because I have a cough.”

Luca turned Street towards him, “Buddy, you sounded like you almost coughed up a lung. Just stay here and when we need to bust the guys then you can come with us, but this is just recall. Sit this one out.”

Street hesitated. Staying here did sound nice, but then what would he tell the team when they got back and he was here? Hondo would surely bench him for the rest of the case because he couldn’t go on a little recall mission. Nope. He had no choice.

Street shook his head, “No, I’m fine. Let’s go, before we lose any more time.”

Luca gave him a concerned glare, “Street…”

“Drop it, Luca. If it gets worse then I’ll come back, but until then let’s work.” Street cut his friend off again and started walking towards the exit.

“Hey Street!”

“What?! I said— “

“You going out there like that?”

Street paused and looked down at his clothes. He face-palmed himself. No wonder his team was so worried. He had on Captain America pajama pants and three layers of shirts on his torso. He couldn’t go out like this. Crap.

Sighing, Street turned back and headed towards the locker room to change. He flipped Luca the bird as the older man laughed behind him.

—//—

Street shivered and crossed his arms to conserve heat. Seriously, why did he think this was a good idea?

Currently, Luca and he were surveying the robbery site, which happened to be inside the coldest building ever—or at least that’s how it felt to Street—the bank.

Five guys had stormed into the bank, stolen a bag load of money, and fled before the cops were even notified. They need to be on their toes if they were going to catch his group.

“There were five of them. They seemed like they were professionals.” The bank owner stated, readjusting his red tie.

“What do you mean?” Luca asked. Any little detail could help them catch the group, however trivial it may seem.

The man shifted, obviously uncomfortable, “They had on black gear and they were fast, cohesive.”

“Okay, and apparently the alarms didn’t even go off?” Luca questioned.

“Yes! We just had our alarm system checked last week! I don’t know why it wouldn’t work.”

Street was about to say something when he was overcome with another coughing fit.

This one left his head spinning. He already had a headache and it spiked at the sudden movement. His vision was starting to blur at the edges, so he was relieved when he felt a steadying hand on his arm.

A second later the same person wrapped their arm around his back, allowing Street to lean all his weight on him. He heard Luca sharing a few more words with the bank owner before leading him out of the bank.

Street trusted his friend to guide him to the car, so he just concentrated on not stumbling over his feet. When did he close his eyes?

“Come on, Buddy. Just a little further.” Luca assured, lifting the kid up more so he didn’t trip over the last stair.

Finally, they stopped and Luca helped Street get inside. A second later they were moving. “How are you doing, kid? What’s going on? Talk to me.”

Street licked his lips and tried to open his eyes, “I just feel…horrible.”

Luca scoffed, “Yeah that’s not vague at all. Kid, you practically just passed out on me. I need to know what exactly feels horrible. Do we need to take a trip to the hospital or what?”

Street gasped as Luca turned sharply. The gasp quickly escalated into another coughing fit.

“Sorry,” Luca grimaced and slowed down.

Street took slow, shallow breaths as he fought to keep from coughing again. He swallowed and grunted, “No. No hospitals.”

“Then talk to me, J.”

“Umm…” Street paused to sort his thoughts then continued. “My throat has been… hurting for the last two days, my head is killing me, and my…my stomach…uhh—“ Street gripped the leather seat until his knuckles were white.

Luca glanced over at him, “What?”

“Pu-pull over. Now!”

Luca swerved the car to the side of the road. Street barely waited until the car was stopped before throwing himself out the door and gifting his breakfast to the grass on the side of the road.

Luca fumbled to put the car in park, and practically he flew over the car hood in order to keep Street upright. The kid was pale and shaking. Luca honestly doesn’t know how the kid made it this long.

“It’s okay, get it out, bud.” Luca supported Street’s dead weight.

After a few minutes, Street collapsed backward onto Luca. “S-sorry.”

Luca rubbed Street’s arm trying to offer some comfort, “Don’t apologize. Are you at least feeling better?”

Street paused, “The truth?”

“No, lie to me.” Luca rolled his eyes. Sarcasm practically dripping from his words. “Yes, Street.”

Street sighed, “I’m kind of feeling…worse?” He grunted as he shifted to get more comfortable, “It wasn’t this bad yesterday.”

The two sat in silence for a few minutes until Luca decided to break it. “You ready to get back in the car now? Or do you need a few more minutes?”

Street assessed his stomach, and once he was pretty sure that he wouldn’t hurl again, he nodded. “Yeah, I’m ready.”

Without another word, Luca helped him upright and got him situated back inside the car. Luca got behind the wheel again, and they were off again, “Let’s get you home, kiddo.”

“What about the case?” Street mumbled, resting his scalding forehead on the cool surface of the window.

He didn’t want to leave the team hanging. He also didn’t think he could be of any assistance right then. He was teetering on the edge of what seemed like the flu and a small migraine, so he’d probably just endanger them more. But he needed to know they would be all right without him. He couldn’t imagine one of them getting hurt because he wasn’t there to watch his or her back.

“Don’t worry about the case. I’ll talk to Hondo about it.” Luca quickly assuaged the younger’s fears and dug in his pocket for his phone. “Just relax and enjoy the ride.”

Once Street nodded and seemed to accept his answer, Luca hit the speed dial on his phone.

“What’s up Luca?”

“Hondo, it’s Street…he’s….”

“Street is what? What happened? Is he all right?”

Luca sighed, “He’s in pretty bad shape. Almost passed out at the bank, and he threw up soon after. Also, he has a pretty high fever and a headache to top it all off.” He rambled off the kid’s symptoms as he turned down the next street.

“Of course, he does,” Hondo muttered sarcastically. Hondo paused for a minute then asked, “You taking him home?”

Luca ran a hand through his blonde hair, “Yeah, I guess. Though, he really needs someone looking over him because he can’t exactly take care of himself right now.” Luca turned away from Street and whispered, “I’m really worried about him, Hondo. I’ve never seen him like this, so…vulnerable.”

“Don’t worry, we’ll take care of him. Just bring him to headquarters. I have an idea.”

“Okay, boss. I guess we’ll see you soon.” Luca turned at the next intersection and heading back to S.W.A.T. Headquarters. He ended the call and re-pocketed his phone. “How are you doing over there, J?”

Street grunted, giving him a shaky thumbs-up sign before closing his eyes again.

Luca stepped on the gas pedal a little harder. He hoped that Hondo had a good plan.

—//—

As soon as Luca parked the car, Hondo and Tan were there. Chris and Deacon must still be interviewing witnesses inside because they were nowhere to be found and they surely wouldn’t miss this.

Luca quickly exited the car and rounded to the passenger side. “What’s the plan, boss?”

“I tried to get our case moved to another team, but the director wouldn’t sign off on it. That means that Street’s going to have to stay here until the case wraps up.” Hondo sighed, rubbing his face in worry.

“But that could take hours!” Luca argued. He was officially pissed off now.

“I know,” Hondo agreed, “I knew it could take a while, so I’ve asked Dr. Hudges if Street could stay in her office until we finish, and she agreed. We’re just waiting for a lead on the group, then we’ll bust them and take him home. Okay?” Hondo offered.

Luca groaned, “Fine. Let’s get him inside.” He spun around and gently tapped on the window to wake Street up since he’d been dozing against the glass.

Street blinked and looked around in confusion. He rubbed his eyes to gain some clarity. “Luca?” He asked, trying to remember what was happening.

Luca cautiously opened the door and crouched down. “Hey, buddy. We made it to headquarters, now we need to get you inside. You up for it?”

Remembering what happened at the bank, Street nodded. “Yeah, I guess.” Sluggishly, he unclipped his seatbelt and swung his legs out of the car.

In one swift motion, Luca leaned in and helped Street out of the car. Almost immediately after his feet hit the concrete, his legs crumpled underneath him.

Hondo jumped into action and caught Street’s other side while Luca remained a steady support on the other. The two wrapped Street’s arms around the back of their necks to hold him upright.

“Woah, kid. I didn’t realize you were like Bambi.” Tan commented, trying not to show how concerned he actually was for his friend.

Street groaned and chose to ignore the flippant comment in favor of trying not to puke again. The world swayed around him, and his head pulsed with the heat of the sun blaring it down overhead.

“Street? You ready to move?” Hondo questioned, noticing the kid’s pasty white complexion turn slightly green with nausea then start to fade.

Swallowing, Street gave a slight nod.

Carefully, Hondo and Luca began carrying their teammate inside while Tan led the way and opened the doors for them.

On the trek inside Street tried to help, but his feet just wouldn’t cooperate. They felt like lead weights, which was quite concerning for him. Hondo and Luca didn’t seem to have any trouble carrying him inside though, so he wasn’t complaining.

Somehow, during their journey inside they avoided coming into contact with any of their colleagues, which were all suspiciously absent. Hondo and Tan probably had something to do with that for which Street was incredibly grateful.

By the time they laid him down on the couch in the therapist’s, Dr. Hudges, room, the nausea was rearing its ugly head again. “Luca...” Street blurted, covering his mouth with his hand.

In rapid time, Luca snagged the trash can and plopped it in front of Street just as he couldn’t hold it back any longer.

Tears poured down his face as the sickness overcame him once again. He felt hands hold him upright. He was so going to have to thank them later.

“When you said he was sick, I didn’t think he was this bad.” Dr. Hudges exclaimed as she entered her office. Chris and Deacon hot on her heels.

“Yeah, I know right.” Luca shook his head, “Kid never gets sick, so when he finally catches a bug, it hits him hard.”

Chris crossed the room and flanked Street’s other side, rubbing light circles on his back. “Must be one tough case of the flu, Shrimp.”

“I know one thing,” Tan started, “we’re making sure he gets his flu shot when it’s offered again next month.”

Hondo shed a small smile, but it quickly morphed into a frown when his phone went off. He motioned for Luca to take over his spot holding up Street.

“Yes?” He asked into his phone. Hondo sighed, “Okay, we’ll suit up and meet you there. Can you page Mumford? Street’s down and we need another man…Okay.” Hondo pocketed his phone and turned to his team.

Street finally stopped throwing up and he laid back on Luca, while Chris wiped off his forehead with a wet cloth. He looked horrible.

Hondo hated to do this, but he had orders. “Police spotted Rodriguez and his group hiding in a foreclosed house, so we need to leave and bring them in. It shouldn’t take too long if we leave now.”

The team hesitated and shared glances. No one wanted to leave their youngest in his state, but they couldn’t just neglect their job.

Deacon was the first to nod, “Okay, I’ll call Annie and see if she can watch over him while we’re gone. The kids are spending the night at their grandma’s anyway. And she’s used to taking care of sick kids.” He chuckled and pulled out his phone, quickly dialing his wife’s cell phone number.

Luca carefully scooted out from behind Street and helped situate the kid horizontal on the couch. “Don’t worry, buddy. We’ll be back before you know it.”

Chris laid the cool cloth on Street’s forehead and got up as well, “Try not to cause too much trouble until we get back, okay?”

Street offered a shaky smile, “Go take care of business.”

The team smiled and left the room. Hondo patted Street on the shoulder, “Get some rest.” And with that Street and Dr. Hudges were left alone to wait for the team’s return.

—//—

It didn’t take long for the team to incapacitate the group. It was probably the fastest time they’ve ever taken down a group of this size, but no one was complaining.

It was an hour later that they got back to headquarters, and as soon as they stepped foot in the building, they were running towards Dr. Hudge’s office.

When they got there the sight was just too adorable. Street was curled up on his side with his head in Annie’s lap and a giant S.W.A.T. blanket was thrown over his body.

Sometime while they were gone, he must’ve changed clothes because he was back in his pajama pants from earlier and his sweatshirt.

“I’m definitely taking a picture of this,” Tan whispered, pulling out his phone.

Deacon rolled his eyes fondly and entered the room. He softly padded over to his wife and leaned down to kiss her, “Hey, how’s he doing?”

She ran a hand through her blonde hair, “Better. Wendy and I finally managed to get some medicine in him thirty minutes ago. He’s been sleeping ever since.”

Hondo stepped over to Dr. Hudges’ desk, “Thank you for keeping an eye on him.”

She swayed her hand at him, “It was nothing. Just make sure you watch over the poor kid tonight and we’re even.”

Hondo smiled, “Deal.”

Chris, Luca, and Tan silently made their way to Street’s side. He looked so much younger when he was asleep. They didn’t get too many chances to see him like this. The night owl always tried to stay awake the longest or until everyone else had fallen asleep—it was probably instinctual.

It was a shame that they had to wake him up now.

Chris knelt down and gently shook Street, “J? It’s time to go home.”

Street groaned and started to stretch when he suddenly gasped and curled into his side.

“Street? Kid? You okay?” Luca asked, worried at the pained reaction from his friend.

Worried, Hondo came over to join his teammates hunkered around Street on the couch.

Lazily, Street opened his eyes and stared at his teammates. “Hey,” he rasped, “you’re back.”

“Yeah, we just got back.” Tan echoed, patting Street on his leg.

“Any trouble?” Street asked, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He started to slowly push himself up to an upright position, wincing as he did so.

“Nope,” Luca answered, “Now, let’s get back to you. Why are you acting as if you’re in pain?” He motioned to Street’s abdomen where the kid had wrapped an arm around.

Street rolled his eyes, “Nothing gets past you guys, does it?”

“No.” The team answers simultaneously.

Hugging, Street raised his eyebrows. “Well, I’ve been coughing a heck of a lot today, so my stomach is sore, okay? Geez, nosy neighbors.”

Everyone laughed partly at his comment and partly in relief. They were so worried about what they were going to do if he was worse that they didn’t even think about what they’d do if he’d was better.

“It’s not funny!” Street argued, which just made the team laugh more. Even Annie and Dr. Hudges chuckled at his words. “All right, next time one of you is sick, I’m going to laugh at your pain.”

His friends lapsed into chuckles and giggles again—yes, giggles.

Street just rolled his eyes and laughed too. Being sick wasn’t as bad as it used to be, not that he was praying be sick again soon. No, he was ready for one of them to be sick. Maybe Luca or… Tan. Now, that would be entertaining.