More sick!reader cause I'm still recovering, title from Fever by the black keys
Steve was a bit of a hands-on lover. He did his best not to be overbearing, and he could, relatively comfortably, be separate from you and not think it was a big deal. He was always safe in the knowledge that both of you understood how much you loved each other. He could proudly stand across a room from you at a party, admiring you as you made the kids laugh, or spoke briefly with the adults. He didn't feel like he really needed to have a hand on you at all times (even though he'd most certainly like to)... Until today.
You'd been sick for a few days, under the weather in a way that sucked, but wasn't as bad as it could have been. A high fever, a migraine, body aches, etc. In your condition, you swore to stay away from Steve, not wanting him to get sick after taking care of, and being in close proximity to you.
It had been a challenge, for both of you. Generally, he was alright with space, because at the end of the day, he knew he'd have you in his arms, anyways. But this, days of almost no physical contact, it was getting to him. Even when he managed to place a warm hand against your lower back, he'd feel you melt only for a second before pushing away, telling him you didn't want him to catch whatever you had.
Tonight, he reaches his limit. You're both in the living room, his knee bouncing as a tape plays on the TV. He glances over at you on the other sofa again for the 5th time in the past few minutes, taking in your tired expression, and pajama clad body that is drooping into the cushions beneath you. You look a little miserable, but in a way that makes his heart squeeze in his chest.
You get up, grabbing a new box of tissue, and before you can sit back down, he breaks, "Come over here."
You pause, looking at him, "No, Steve. I don't want to get you sick."
"You're not going to get me sick."
"You don't know that."
"What color is your snot?"
"Ew-"
"What color?"
You sigh, blowing your nose as softly as you can and checking the tissue.
"It's clear."
"And you haven't had a fever for two days?"
You nod, remembering the normal temperature on the thermometer you had in your mouth just a few hours ago.
"Then I'll be fine. You're not contagious anymore. Come here."
You hesitate, lips pressing into a thin line.
"Please?" He softens, arms out as he looks over at you.
You stare for a few moments before your shoulders droop a little, and your socked feet carry you over to him, dropping into his embrace and melting into him as your eyes close automatically, relishing the warmth that wraps around you, and the faint scent that is so distinctly Steve, which you can smell even through a runny nose.
"My sweetheart," he coos, hand rubbing up and down your back like a cat greeting him upon his arrival home.
You hum as his fingers gently scrape along your spine, along your lower and upper back in circular motions that make goosebumps rise across your skin.
"Missed you," you hum against his neck.
He presses a kiss into your hair, murmuring a gentle "Missed you, too."
Steve helps you adjust in his lap, so you can rest against him comfortably and see the TV. He rocks you gently, as softly as he can until he feels you growing heavier in his lap, until your eyes close and he can turn the tape off, contented to have a nap with you on the sofa, listening to the sounds of your slightly labored breathing as you rest, recovering from the illness that has kept you from his arms for the past few days.
please please do a Steve x reader where they are parents to four girls!!!!!
Hello! I'm so sorry I never saw this! Thank you for your request and I hope that this is satisfactory :) I'm going to try and keep it as gender neutral as possible, which might include some blanks for parental titles on readers behalf :)
~~~
You held back a smile, the brownies you picked up fresh from the bakery sitting safely in a paper bag in your hand.
You'd gotten off of work early and decided to pick up the Harrington household favorite to surprise everyone.
You unlocked the front door, taking your shoes off as quietly as possible before setting down your work bag, making sure to keep a tight grip on the brownies.
It was suspiciously quiet upon entry, prompting you to tip toe through to the kitchen, where dirty plates sat in the sink to soak. Everyone must have just eaten lunch. It only took a little snooping around to work out that they'd had pasta for lunch, which... if you knew anything about your family (and you did) meant that you'd find them all asleep somewhere-
You stop in your tracks as your eyes land across a heartwarming scene. Steve, sprawled out across the futon, Jessie, your eldest daughter tucked under his arm, his chin resting against the top of her head where its tucked into his neck. You remember when she could fit on a pillow, and now she was growing at a rapid speed, she was going to be tall, but like you've told her a million times before bed, she'd never be too big to hold.
Underneath his other arm, your twin jades, the middle girls, the spitting images of Steve, with freckles in all the same places, Willow and Olivia (affectionately dubbed Olive) and finally, laying between his legs, her little head resting on his tummy, Rory. She was almost four now, and she loved Steve more than anything.
You lean against the door frame, warmth filling your heart. You didn't always think you'd end up here, with such a beautiful family. When you and Steve first got together, you weren't even sure about having kids. You knew he'd wanted them, and had quietly expressed that you were what was most important to him, and if you didn't want kids, then he'd manage. It wasn't that you'd never wanted any, you just didn't want to feel like a kid raising kids.
Steve made it easy. He made it so easy it was ridiculous. There were so many nights of chaos and crying and not being able to get anyone into bed until 1 am, but in the quiet of the night, when you were both almost too exhausted to sleep, staring at the ceiling if only to appreciate the rare quiet moments... He'd roll over, brush his fingers across your cheek and tell you that he'd have as many as you were willing to give him. He'd assure you that this is everything he's ever dreamed of.
He was a phenomenal dad. He was patient, loving, and so, so safe. There was nothing that could get to your girls as long as he was around. There was nothing to worry about, not really. With his love and yours, your children shone bright. They were clever, and goofy and had inherited all of Steve's best traits.
Before you cry tears of joy, you quietly step away, wrapping up the bag of brownies safely before washing the dirty dishes. When that's done, you make your way back out into the living room, where Steve's eyes are barely open, his hand brushing through Jessies hair affectionately. He struggles sometimes, with the idea that one day, she won't need him anymore. That one day, she might not want to be held or cuddled, that she might decide that she doesn't want to be his little girl anymore.
You round the sofa, and his eyes widen a little at the sight of you.
"Hey," he whispers, tilting his head upward.
"Hi." you whisper back, leaning down to meet him in a soft kiss.
"Post pasta nap?" you ask softly, hand coming up to brush some of his hair back.
He smiles, easy, loving and nods. You smile down at him. He rests his head back against the sofa, letting himself gaze you over. It's a quiet minute later when his eyes widen a little, as he whispers, "Don't worry about the dishes, I'll get them-"
You shake your head, leaning down to press a kiss to his warm temple. "I took care of it."
He turns his head, nose brushing yours, tempted to lean in and capture another kiss as he goes, "There's leftovers. I could make you a plate,"
You smile, letting out a breathy chuckle, pressing a kiss to his lips that isn't near long enough before backing up.
"I'll grab some."
He gives you the sheepish smile that you know all too well, and you pad softly back into the kitchen, opening the fridge to find the left overs.
You eat quietly at the kitchen isle, and it isn't long before Jessie pads in quietly, pausing as she sees you in the kitchen.
She glances up at the clock on the wall, then back at you, blinking a few times as if she might be dreaming.
"Hi pretty girl." you call softly, setting down your bowl.
She smiles, bright and beautiful, skipping once as she makes her way over to you and right into your arms. She squeezes you as you rock her back and forth.
"_____, you're home early." she says, backing up to look at you, as much as she can with her arms still wrapped around your neck.
"Yes I am." you smile, pressing a kiss to her cheek.
She laughs, and it makes your heart ache for a moment, with how much she sounds like you.
You pull her in, and she sets herself in your lap, looking into your bowl.
"Can I have a bite?" She asks.
"Of course you can."
"Even though I already had some?"
You chuckle softly, "Yes."
She opens her mouth, and you feed her a bite.
"Dad made it really good today."
"He did! It tastes really yummy."
"Is that what I think it is?" Jessie asks suddenly, spotting the paper bag on the counter.
"It might be." Her grin widens, eyes going a little wild as she clambers out of your lap, heading to the other side of the counter to grab the bag.
She pauses just before she reaches it, looking at you before going, "Can I?"
You pretend to mull it over, "I don't know, Jes. I think everyone would like to eat it together... But..." Her eyes widen even more, hanging on your every word. You smile and she mirrors it without even thinking. "You can have a little piece before everyone gets up."
She squeals, slaps her hand over her mouth and looks towards the doorway, then to you before you both laugh quietly. She brings the bag over to you and opens it, breaking off a piece of brownie. She pops it into her mouth and melts into your side. "Yummy," she drags out, holding herself up with your chair as she leans back.
~~~
It's Steve who enters the kitchen a little later, his hand warm against your lower back as he appears at your side, washing off the twins little plates for their brownies later.
"Finally awake?" you tease, leaning into him.
"Yes." he replies, wrapping his arm around your waist as he hooks his chin over your shoulder.
"I brought a treat for you."
"Oh?"
You gesture to the counter, where the bag stands.
"Are those what I think they are?"
"What do you think they are?" you ask.
"Brownies from Tollmans."
"Brownies from Tollmans." You repeat, laughing when he cups your cheeks, pressing a kiss that bends you backwards to your lips.
"Are the girls up?" You ask as he parts from you.
"They're waking up now."
"Should we bring them out?"
"In a minute." He replies, pressing another kiss to your lips.
You smile into it, wrapping an arm around his neck.
"Missed you today," he murmurs against your lips.
"I was gone for four hours." you reply, kissing him back.
"Too long." he says, tightening his grip around your waist.
No matter how long you've been together, you never get tired of moments like this with Steve. You'd heard so many nightmare stories of people getting married and their significant other just giving up, feeling like they no longer needed to put in any effort now that they got what they wanted, but that could never, in a million years be Steve. He loved you just as much if not more and reminded you of it daily.
"Okay," you speak in between pecks, "We should-" kiss "Dish up the-" kiss "Brownies."
"Bownies?" a soft voice calls out, and you part to see Rory standing in the kitchen doorway, swaying softly as she struggles to stay awake.
"Rory!" You call softly, squatting down to her level. Upon seeing this, she kicked into gear, propelling her tiny body towards you, her striped shirt all mussed up from napping.
She walks directly into your arms. "Hi, baby!" You coo softly, kissing her cheek.
She rubs her eye, focus entirely on the brownie bag that she's already familiar with.
"I missed you," you coo gently to her, bouncing her in your arms a couple times. Her focus is unwavering, so you lean in and blow a raspberry against her neck, causing her to erupt in giggles as she pushes your chin away with her hand.
You go to do it again and she squeals, reaching for Steve to save her. You turn her sideways in your arms and she laughs, "Daddy won't save you!" You lean down, blowing a raspberry against her tummy, and she shrieks, laughter bubbling from her wriggling body.
"Enough!" She squeals, and you immediately stop, turning her back upright. "Okay, okay. I will stop." you smile, pushing her hair back.
"Good job setting boundaries." you say, and she nods, smiling at you.
You bring your hand up for a high five, and she smacks it with all her might.
"Honey," you look at Steve, who immediately melts at the term of endearment like he always does. "Can you take care of the milk?"
He kisses your cheek, "I'm on it." then, just because he can, he kisses Rory's cheek.
~~~
By mid afternoon, you're seated on the sofa, Willow and Olive sitting on the floor at the coffee table, offering one another bites of their brownies to see which one tastes better though they're definitely the same. Occasionally they lean back against your legs, which you wiggle back and forth against their backs to shake them a little. They always make the same noise, a dramatic "Woahwoahwoah!" as if they were on a roller coaster.
Jessie is sitting next to you, eyes fixed to the tv as she takes bites of her brownie, and Rory is in Steves lap, a significant amount of the brownie on her face, and even against her shirt.
It's the ideal setting for all of you, until Willow flinches, her hand flying over her mouth. Olive stops what she's doing, dropping her fork as she turns and looks at her twin.
Steve perks up a little, leaning forward and gently moving Rory's hand from his chin as he tries to look at Willow.
Willow makes a scared sound, her shoulders tensing.
"Willow? Baby, what happened?" His voice comes out a little strained.
Olive raises her hand to Willows, prying it away from her mouth.
Willow makes another sound, and you tense.
"Sweetheart, are you okay?" You ask.
Suddenly, Willow spits into Olives hand, a tooth.
Olives eyes widen, "Ew! There was a tooth in her brownie!"
"No, there wasn't, sweetie, look at me, please." You comment, hand touching her shoulder.
Jessie drops to her knees on the floor, turning her sisters head and looking into her mouth.
"It's not her front tooth but the side one,"
"Her canine came out?" Steve asks. "Willow, can daddy see?" Steve asks, handing Rory off to you as he slips onto the floor too, having her open her mouth tentatively.
"Yup, it must have been loose." Steve observes.
Willow closes her mouth, the corners of her lips turning down as they do just before she cries.
"Hey, okay, deep breath," Steve speaks softly. "It's just a missing tooth."
She nods, her breath shaky. "Did it startle you?" he asks, and she nods, sniffling.
"Okay, that's valid." he softly consoles her.
"Is she crying?" Olive asks, her own voice a little watery as she peaks over Steve shoulder.
"Do you want a hug?" Steve asks her, and she nods, pushing herself into his chest. He wraps his arms around her warmly, rubbing her back gently.
"Don't cry," Olive says, climbing over Steve's leg as she hugs her twin.
Jessie scoots in, too. "Willow it's okay, I lost teeth before, too. The tooth fairy came."
"The tooth fairy?" She asks, voice small as she looks over at her big sister.
"Yea, she'll bring you a dollar for your tooth tonight."
"Really?" she asks, suddenly less upset.
You laugh, Steve turning to look at you, eyes wide in disbelief.
You shake your head, adjusting Rory in your lap as you watch the scene in front of you.
It's a chaotic household, but one that you wouldn't trade for the world. You know that one day you'll miss all of this, and you're determined to enjoy every moment of it while you have it here.
