stay with me
Title: stay with me
Word Count: 1,619
Summary: Yoongi is feeling sniffly and Namjoon notices.
A/N: hope today is a better day than yesterday 💜
Yoongi needs a break. Desperately.
The thing is, he’s not going to take one. No matter how long he’s been sitting here in his studio, staring at these damn lyrics, he can’t make himself do anything. He can’t write. He can’t think. He’s just frozen, unable to move forward but unwilling to take a step back.
Concentrating on his work has not been easy, and it doesn’t help that his sinuses are pissed off today. This morning he’d woken up with a slightly stuffy nose, but now that it’s the evening it has turned into a much heavier congestion. There’s so much pressure it’s like his entire head is stuffed with soggy cotton balls.
He’s blaming it on the rain, for now.
A soft knock on the door makes Yoongi jump. He looks up, his neck aching at the movement after being in one position for so long, and clears his throat. “Come in.”
His voice doesn’t quite come out right, a little raspy from disuse, but the doorknob turns anyway.
“Hey. Still working?” Namjoon closes the door behind him and looks down at Yoongi. “Why are you on the floor?”
“Couldn’t think anywhere else,” Yoongi mumbles, leaning back against the sofa. He starts gathering up his notebook and all the torn out pages surrounding him.
Namjoon laughs and jumps onto the sofa. He positions himself right behind Yoongi and spreads his legs out on either side of him. His hands come up to Yoongi’s shoulders, absently massaging.
“Surely not much thinking can be done sitting on the floor, though?”
Yoongi doesn’t respond, too distracted by how good Namjoon’s hands feel on him. He can’t help but lean back into the touch, and Namjoon gets the memo right away, digging his fingers into Yoongi’s shoulders more firmly.
When Namjoon kicks his legs out a bit, his foot comes to rest right next to the tissue box that’s on the floor next to Yoongi. Yoongi quickly grabs it and sets it on top of his pile with his notebook, bracing himself for Namjoon to mention it. But Namjoon doesn’t seem to notice. He just keeps massaging Yoongi’s shoulders, moving to the back of his neck until Yoongi feels like he’s going to melt right into the floor. He wants to tip his head back, but then it would be resting right on Namjoon’s crotch and it would make it harder for Namjoon to work, so he decides against it and keeps his head to his chin.
For a few minutes, they just sit together in silence. Since he’s letting his guard down, Yoongi doesn’t notice his nose starting to run until it’s too late. He sniffles, quickly swiping the cuff of his hoodie sleeve under his nose, but the sound is horribly loud and wet and noticeable.
Namjoon hums.
“What?” Yoongi mutters, already defensive.
“Nothin’.”
Yoongi twists around and looks up at Namjoon’s face, lit up with amusement and something else he can’t identify.
“What?” He hates how desperate he sounds, but he needs Namjoon to be more direct with him sometimes, because–
“You feeling okay?”
Blinking up at Namjoon, Yoongi can feel his face start to heat up.
“You’re all sniffly.”
Well. Maybe he doesn’t need Namjoon to be that direct.
“It’s the rain.”
“The rain?”
Yoongi sniffles. “Mm-hmm. It’s cold and damp outside.”
“Sounds like you have a cold,” Namjoon replies. His hands are still on Yoongi’s shoulders. His expression is still amused.
Then, Namjoon leans down, until he’s practically back-hugging Yoongi, and reaches for the box of tissues still sitting between Yoongi’s legs. He plucks out a tissue. For one horrifying second, Yoongi thinks he’s going to wipe his nose for him, but Namjoon just holds the tissue in front of him until Yoongi reaches up to take it for himself.
“I think you should be in bed,” Namjoon whispers, still wrapped around him, his cheek pressed against Yoongi’s. “And not sitting on the floor working overtime.”
Yoongi wipes his nose with the tissue. He doesn’t dare blow his nose with Namjoon’s face so close to his.
Before Yoongi can even lower the tissue, Namjoon wraps his arms around his chest, and a second later he’s being swept off the floor.
“Aghh!” Yoongi yelps, embarrassingly loud.
Namjoon steadies him, making sure he’s on his feet, keeping his arms tightly around him.
“The hell, Namjoon?”
“I’m taking you home.”
“I could have stood up by myself!”
“Would you have, though?” Namjoon squeezes him gently and then lets go, his hands brushing against Yoongi’s waist for a second before he pulls away.
Begrudgingly, Yoongi starts to gather his belongings. He turns off his computer and his equipment. Namjoon helps himself to Yoongi’s mini fridge before they leave, grabbing a bottle of water for each of them.
“You don’t have to look at me like that,” Yoongi grumbles after he sneezes harshly into the crook of his arm when they’re in the elevator.
“Bless you,” is all Namjoon says in reply.
When they get to the parking garage, Yoongi hesitates. He’s just about to ask Namjoon if he’d already called for a car when Namjoon reaches out and cups the side of his face. His thumb smoothes back and forth across Yoongi’s cheek, a comforting gesture that makes Yoongi’s face feel warm again.
“Hyung,” he smiles. “I’m taking you home. Your home. So you have the whole ride there to decide if you would like me to just drop you off, or if you would like me to come inside and tuck you into bed. Don’t make the decision now,” he says, holding up one hand. “Think about it on the ride and make the decision when we get there.”
“That sounds like you’re going to be yapping the entire ride home, then,” Yoongi says, rolling his eyes. “Wait, you’re driving?”
“I’m a very good driver now.”
Namjoon turns and starts walking towards his car.
Yoongi doesn’t even remember what Namjoon’s car looks like. He’s only ridden with Namjoon once, and they were in a company car. He’s only a little surprised when Namjoon stops behind a Hyundai Tucson and opens the trunk.
“Very sensible,” Yoongi whispers under his breath as he tosses his stuff into the car.
He doesn’t get to find out if Namjoon is a good driver or not, because despite the fact that Namjoon starts talking almost immediately, Yoongi is hit with a sudden wave of exhaustion and ends up falling asleep with his cheek pressed against the window.
He wakes to Namjoon combing his fingers through his hair. “Hey, wake up.”
Yoongi inhales sharply and makes some kind of embarrassing, congested sound in the back of his throat, and then sneezes. He hears Namjoon laughing as he gets out of the car and walks around to open Yoongi’s door.
“Bless you.” Namjoon unbuckles him. “C’mon, don’t make me carry you up.”
Scrubbing his sleeve over his face, Yoongi stumbles out of the car and allows Namjoon to guide him to his front door. He notices Namjoon is carrying both of his bags, but can’t make himself protest or try to take them himself.
“Why do I feel so much worse?” Yoongi complains as he fishes his keys out of his bag. “I was feeling a little shitty, but then you showed up and now I feel a lot shitty.”
“Ouch.”
Yoongi looks up, mouth falling open. “Wait, no, I didn’t mean it like that–”
“It’s okay, hyung, I’m kidding. It’s because you’re getting a chance to rest now,” Namjoon says. “And your body is making sure you take it.”
Once Yoongi unlocks the door, Namjoon opens it and they go inside. Namjoon sets Yoongi’s bags down in the front entryway and toes off his shoes, and Yoongi is glad he’s staying without having to say his decision out loud.
“Do you have any real medicine you can take?” Namjoon asks, already heading down the hall to the bathroom. “Cold meds?”
“Yeah,” Yoongi responds, even though he knows Namjoon already knows the answer.
He follows Namjoon to the bathroom, takes the pills that Namjoon pops out of the blister pack for him, and then shuffles into his bedroom.
“Don’t judge me, Joonie, but I’m not going to wash up tonight,” Yoongi says around a yawn. “I feel like I’d collapse in the shower.”
“I absolutely would not judge you for that,” Namjoon scoffs.
With Namjoon standing there in his bedroom watching, Yoongi sheds his clothes and puts on his pajamas. He doesn’t care if Namjoon sees him naked. He only cares that he can get into bed as soon as possible. And he’s hopeful that Namjoon wasn’t just joking when he said he’d tuck Yoongi into bed.
“Do you need anything else?” Namjoon asks, lifting a corner of the comforter and motioning for Yoongi to get into bed.
“No. Just wanna sleep.”
After he climbs in, Namjoon nudges the box of tissues on Yoongi’s nightstand all the way up to the edge, within easy reach. And then Namjoon literally tucks him into bed, and as he’s smoothing the comforter out of Yoongi’s chest, Yoongi huffs out a sleepy laugh.
“Thanks. Comfy.”
“Good.” Namjoon beams down at him.
“Are…” Yoongi turns his head to the side, glancing at the side of the bed left intentionally empty.
“Yeah,” Namjoon whispers. He leans down and presses a kiss to Yoongi’s forehead. “Just gonna take a quick shower first. I’ll be back very soon.”
Yoongi tries to nod, tries to reply, but he’s already falling asleep. As he hears the sound of the water turn on, he smiles to himself, knowing that he'll be out before Namjoon even washes his hair, but that he’ll wake up with Namjoon beside him.
