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Published:
2024-01-22
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1/1
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oh to have a love written in the stars

Summary:

Henry is sick and Alex takes care of him because he loves his idiot who lacks all survival skills.

Excerpt: "“But you’ll make me better. You’re Alex...And he adores me.”

 

Oh. There it was. God—that unshakeable faith Henry placed in him. He was practically out of his mind with fever but here he was, utterly convinced that his Alex would be able to fix it for him.

 

“Sure baby. I’ll make you feel better.” Alex whispered in that soft voice that was reserved only for one Henry Fox-Mountchristen-Windsor."

Notes:

sooo i definitely got rejected from a graduate school this week🤭. One day i'll look back at all the notes for my fics and laugh so hopefully i can look back at this one and laugh. But anyways i wrote this because hell if im not gonna get comfort I may as well project onto my favorite boys.

(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Work Text:

Sick as he was, Henry barely acknowledged Alex when he slipped into their room. He’d had a long day of teaching but apparently Henry had had an even longer day. He seemed fine when Alex had left right? A little subdued maybe. But not anywhere like he was now.

 

He tossed and turned fitfully. His usually neat blonde hair was matted. Stepping closer, Alex flicked on the lowest light in the room.

 

Oh Henry.

 

The sheets were soaked in sweat and something that looked suspiciously liked vomit.

 

Reaching down, Alex pushed sweat-dark hair back off of his husband’s forehead. “Hi Hen,” he said quietly. “Oh my God, you’re burning up, my love.”

 

He hadn’t expected an answer. But Henry—being the man he was—tried to mumble out something coherent. It was garbled and scratchy.


It sounded excruciating.

 

Like his throat was so tight and sore not even a flake of milk-sogged cereal would have gone down it easily.

 

Alex didn’t try to tell him to try being quiet. Instead, he wrapped his arms around Henry and lifted him carefully, placing him in the armchair. “I’ll be right back sweetheart.”

 

There was a horrible rasping sound coming out of Henry and it pulled on Alex’s heart so hard he thought it might crack wide open. Bleed all over the carpet.

 

“P’lse. Don’t leave. Do—”

 

A fit of coughs cut him off and Alex rubbed a hand up and down his back soothingly.

 

“I’m not leaving, baby. But these sheets—They need changing. And maybe,” Alex cupped Henry’s cheek gently, “maybe you'd like me to rub some Vicks on you later? You sound like you’re having trouble breathing. ”

 

A soft, tired sob broke the otherwise silent room. Henry leant forwards and pressed his face into Alex’s stomach and nodded his head. “Awww, I know H.” Alex said softly. “I’ve got you, I’ve got you.”

 

 

Henry was shivering in the armchair when Alex got back.

He must have gotten up because he had pulled on Alex’s thickest down winter coat from their walk-in closet. The zipper was pulled up all the way and still Alex could hear his teeth chattering.

 

Quickly, he pocketed the Vicks he’d found and threw a pile of clean sheets he'd grabbed from their laundry room onto the bed. Then he crossed the room to kneel at his husband’s side.

 

“Henry look at me. Look at me my love.” Alex said and he placed a hand over his husband’s.

 

Henry’s head twisted back and forth. His eyes were hazy, unfocused. But when he looked at him Alex almost imagined they cleared.

 

“I’m s-so cold, ‘Lex. F-freezing. Christ.”

 

“Yeah?” Alex said encouragingly as if it weren’t obvious to him that his husband was totally out of it. Henry hated to be patronized though. He may have thought the coat was helping but in actuality it was making him sweat more and that was making him feel colder.


Depending on how Alex relayed that to him it would either make things easier or worse.

 

“Yeah,” Henry repeated and he sounded pained. Lost. Alex felt that familiar tug on his heart again.

 

“But you’ll make me better. You’re Alex...And he adores me.”

 

Oh. There it was. God—that unshakeable faith Henry placed in him. He was practically out of his mind with fever but here he was, utterly convinced that his Alex would be able to fix it for him.

 

“Sure baby. I’ll make you feel better.” Alex whispered in that soft voice that was reserved only for one Henry Fox-Mountchristen-Windsor.

 

Standing up, Alex leaned downed to slowly, unzip the jacket. Henry moved back making a soft and desperate sound. He stopped immediately and flattened his hand against Henry’s chest. He bought up his other hand to Henry’s neck, holding him there tenderly.

 

Gazing up through dark curling lashes he waited until Henry was looking at him. And maybe it was unfair but he stroked his thumb up and down the side of his husband’s neck; cause yeah--it made him putty in Alex’s hands.

 

“Hi baby. Alex here. If I take your coat off I promise I'll make you so warm.”

 

For a second he was worried nothing he said registered but then Henry nodded and Alex reached back up to unzip the love of his life out of his winter coat.

 

“Don’t zip me.” Henry mumbled. Alex held in a laugh knowing how unappreciated it would be. “Course not baby. Always careful with you,” he murmured.

 

He unzipped the coat and slipped it off Henry. He put it off to the side for the time being now that it was full of Henry-germs.

 

In the walk in closet were two thick Costco throws. Pulling one down he came out and placed it on Henry. He groaned appreciatively and Alex smiled tiredly.

 

Minutes later he stripped the sweat soaked sheets off of the bed and remade it. Henry was shivering less. His eyes kept fluttering open and closed. God knew the man needed some rest.


When he lifted him up again to put him back in bed Henry curled into Alex. He was still too warm but he no longer felt like an inferno.

 

He climbed in after his husband. Getting an arm around him, Alex braced Henry against his chest.

 

There was an unopened bottle of water on the nightstand and he unscrewed it.“Drink,” he said gently.


Henry opened his mouth obediently when Alex held the bottle to it. It was a slow process getting him to down just a little bit.


From how he was wincing it was aggravating the sore throat he had. There was also Tylenol on the nightstand and Alex frowned slightly.

 

“Hey,” he shook two pills into his hand and broke them up into four smaller pieces, “did you know you were sick when I left Henry?”

 

Henry cringed at the question while gulping down the medicine. An involuntarily guilty sound escaped his lips. It was all the confirmation needed to know he had already been sick.

 

“D’spise worrying you.” Henry rasped out eventually.

 

“You shouldn't worry about my worrying over you. That's not how this works, love.” His hand slipped under Henry’s shirt and he squeezed his hip. “God you’re an idiot” he murmured, “My idiot though.” He pressed his lips to Henry’s head, not giving a damn that it smelt like sick person: stale, oniony, and maybe a little like something sweet and rotten.


“I fucking love you, Hen. It’s a need not a want for you to get that through that thick head of yours.” He tapped said head with a fond gentleness.

 

Henry tilted his chin up, trying to see Alex’s face. When he couldn’t he settled on tangling a hand in Alex's instead.

 

“I was promised Vick’s, wasn’t I?” He said it quietly, saving his voice

 

Alex laid his cheek on Henry’s head and smiled because Henry hadn’t even been able to speak only hours before.


The relief running through him was overwhelming in its strength. Of course he hadn’t freaked out on Henry but also he had never left his phone too far away from him. The Uber app was ready—it’s destination set to the nearest urgent care.

 

“Yeah I did say that didn’t I.”

 

 

Henry laid back against Alex. He had been wiped down with soap and water while shivering in the bathroom like David after he and Alex both tried to get him in for a bath. He was in fresh pajamas that smelled piney and smokey just like Alex.

 

The jar of Vicks was open on the nightstand. Alex dipped his fingers into it, unbuttoning Henry’s pajama shirt with his other hand. “Here you go,” He said and kissed his shoulder tenderly. Henry let out a soft breath of gratitude Alex would never ask for.The sharp minty smell of Vicks ointment burst into both mens’ nostrils as Alex massaged his hand up and down Henry’s chest.

 

“Thank you...thank you.” Henry kept saying over and over again and they both ignored how his voice was a little broken, a little healed, and a lot wet.

 

“Not necessary baby.” Alex hummed a relaxing tune while he swiped his hand up then down one more time; he squeezed his husband’s chest lovingly. Finally, he buttoned his pajama shirt back up so the vapors from the ointment could work properly.

 

“Anything else I can do for you darlin?” Alex wrapped his arms around Henry, letting his hands rest lightly on his stomach.

 

“Don't go far from me,” Henry said his voice suddenly vulnerable, pleading.

 

"Wouldn't dream of it baby." Alex stroked his husband’s side, hand caressing the outline of his ribs. "I've got you; no take backs."

 

Notes:

I love to chat with my readers. I hope someone enjoyed this and thought it wasn't too silly! In case anyone was wondering though Im sure no one was--Hahaha the coat thing happened to me when i was a teenager. i was so fucking sick and so goddamned cold i put my coat on and my mom MADE me take it off 😭. Anyways thanks for reading loves 💗.