As soon as the curtains are pulled, Aaron lets out a hiss and covers his head with the blankets. “Come on, Aaron, baby,” James says, trying to pull the blanket off. “You need to get up.”“Oh, fuck off,” Aaron murmurs, turning around to lay on his side. “In a second, James, please.”“Now,” James insists. “If you get to work late Alexander will definitely notice.”Aaron groans. “This is blackmail.” He gets up anyway, legs shaky as he puts slippers on and goes to the bathroom. Of course, his face isn’t pale, but he looks sickly anyway.
He’s about to pull the shower curtain when he’s overridden with nausea. He clutches his stomach as he doubles over, bile leaving his mouth as he spasms. The taste is so fucking bitter it makes him feel even sicker. “Aaron?” James says after a few seconds, as he hasn’t started showering yet. “Aaron, are you okay— oh Jesus Christ.”“Well, now Alexander will notice I’m sick,” Aaron murmurs, getting up even though he can barely stand. “You’re not going to work like this, you fuck.”Aaron pulls a face. “And have Washington fire me?”“Sick leaves are a thing, Aaron. You’re sick and you need to rest.”“Says you of all people.”James shakes his head and laughs. He takes a plastic bag and hands it to Aaron. They walk to the bed, and he tucks Aaron inside it, the bag at his side. “We can go to the hospital later, alright?”“Probably was the chicken I ate last night,” Aaron murmurs. “Tasted kinda weird.”“Did you eat it all?”Aaron sighs. “I was hungry.”“We have more things to eat than a fuckin’ bad chicken, love.”“Do I look like I care?”James smiles weakly, shakes his head again. “Considering you’re shaking and just threw up, yes.”“Okay.”Silence spreads over them for a few seconds, and James isn’t exactly worried for his husband. He’s the more sickly one of them, anyway, and he’s always been fine. Caught a bunch of illnesses, but never had something too severe. It wouldn’t be the case with Aaron either. After a while, James says, “I’ll go call Washington.”“Okay.”The call is short and to the point. As much as James is George’s something-removed cousin, he doesn’t care much about the man. He’s just sort of a weird uncle to everybody in his company, except for Alexander, who everyone is aware he has a thing with. “Hey, George,” James says once George picks up. “Hi, James. What do you need?”“Just wanted to tell you Aaron is sick, which is why he isn’t going to work. He probably has food poisoning from some chicken he ate yesterday.”“He’s as good with self-care as Alexander,” George mutters, chuckling. “But noted.”“Alright, thank you. How’s your boy toy?”“He’s not my boy toy, Jemmy,” he replies, sounding offended. Now James laughs loudly. “But he’s great.”“Good in bed as always?”George lets an incredulous huff out. “I haven’t ever commented about my sex life with him to you.”“I mean, I don’t know why you’d keep Alexander around except for that.”George sighs. “You two were good friends years ago. What happened?”“Doesn’t matter, Greg.”“That’s not my name.”James raises a brow and insists, “Greg.”“Okay, whatever. See you around, Jemmy.”“See you around, Gregory.”George starts speaking, but James cuts the call before he can hear him. Laughing hard, he gets up and goes to see how Aaron is doing. Aaron is beneath the blankets, eyes lidded and fingers hooked around the bag. He’s trying to sleep, so James goes to the living room to find something to watch. An hour or so after, he hears footsteps. Aaron is in the bathroom again— he knocks on the door. “Are you okay?”“No,” Aaron replies loudly. “This is the worst case of food poisoning I’ve ever had.” James hears the toilet flush, and then flush again. “Why did you eat that chicken again?” James asks with an amused smile when he opens the door, an exhausted look in his eyes. “Because I’m an idiot. Now let me sleep again.”“Of course, babe.” James plants a kiss on his cheek and Aaron kisses his forehead as a reply. Afterward, he trudges to his room and tucks himself in again. “Sleep well. Hope you feel better soon.”“Thanks. Night, fuckass.”James chuckles and turns the lights off.
