Unwell
Another Randall/Sulley drabble inspired by the OTP prompts tumblr (I’m not listing the prompt itself here since it gives away part of the story, but it’s at the link).
“You are the first four contestants on The Price is Fright!” announced the television set. “And now, here’s your host, Drew Scary!”
Draped in a blanket with a box of tissues by his side, it almost was like Sulley was a kid again: home sick on a couch in front of the TV, watching daytime game shows, and having someone on hand to look after his every need...except it wasn’t his mother taking care of him this time. Instead, it was his husband; once it became apparent that Sulley would be too sick for work, Randall had taken a personal day to care for him. At present, he was in the kitchen of their apartment preparing Sulley some soup.
As he watched the contestants on TV vying for prizes, he heard an odd yet familiar sound coming from the kitchen. The blanket still wrapped around his massive frame, Sulley got up and headed over to the adjoining room. There he was presented with the sight of his husband, leaning over the kitchen sink and crying.
Sulley immediately figured out what was going on. He’d seen it before: Randall was having one of his flashbacks. The lizard monster had been an absolute nervous wreck upon his return to Monstropolis, plagued with constant flashbacks of both his banishment and the events that lead up to it. Therapy had reduced their frequency, but Sulley knew from firsthand experience that Randall was still prone to having these episodes at times.
“Randall...honey...” Sulley said sympathetically, letting the blanket fall to the ground and heading over to Randall with his arms extended.
“Huh? Jimmy, what’s going...gah!” he exclaimed as he suddenly found himself enveloped by a surprisingly strong embrace.
“We’ll get through this, I promise,” said the blue-furred monster as he rested his head on Randall’s shoulder. “The doctor says you need to stay grounded when you get like this, and I know you’re strong enough to...”
“James!” he protested breathlessly, cutting Sulley off mid sentence.
“Yes, honey?”
“All I was doing was cutting up onions for your soup!”
“You mean...you weren’t having one of your flashbacks?” asked Sulley as he backed off.
“No!” he replied, pointing towards the tray of chopped-up onions on the counter. “See?”
“Oh jeez,” muttered Sulley, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. “First you miss work so you can wait on me hand and foot, and now here I am, bothering you like this...I feel like such a nuisance...”
A smiling Randall gave his husband a quick hug before turning back towards the pot of soup and dumping the onions in.
“I know a thing or two about working for bad bosses, and you’re not on the list, Jimmy,” said Randall as he stirred the pot. “Now if you want to stay off the list, let me cook in peace, wouldja? Seriously, I’m fine!”
Smiling back, Sulley wordlessly picked up his blanket, went back to the living room and settled down on the couch. But the smile faded as a nagging thought entered his mind and refused to leave; after all their time together, after all the years of therapy, and even with the proof lying in front of his very eyes on the kitchen counter, he still wasn’t entirely sure of whether Randall was doing “fine” or not.
