Sicktember day 12: "You're adorable when you're sick"
Sickie: Yoongi | Caretaker: Hoseok
Words: 846
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“Is Yoongi hyung avoiding us?”
Hoseok, in the middle of washing the dishes after dinner, blinks at Jimin. “What do you mean?” Then his expression changes, levelling a teasing smile at him. “Did you do something to piss him off? Is that why you’re worried?”
Jimin’s ears flush red. “No! I mean, Yoongi hyung was kind of spacey today, then after dinner he just… went back to his room? He usually hangs out with us at least a while in the living room after dinner.”
“Oh…” Hoseok tilts his head, considering. Yoongi had been especially avoidant of them today, but he had assumed that the older rapper was just tired. But if he thinks further back - on the fact that Yoongi had been looking extra lethargic for days, the packs of tissues that had mysteriously disappeared from their kitchen cabinet recently and the flu bug that had been spreading around the company lately… Hoseok might have a good idea of what was going on now.
“Don't worry, angel.” He smiles, poking Jimin in the cheek. “I'll take care of it. And whatever you did to piss him off, too.”
“I did not piss him - hyung!”
Hoseok leaves the kitchen with a cackle, grabbing a thermometer, a bottle of water and a tangerine along the way.
~~~~~
Hoseok knocks gently on Yoongi's door, pushing the door open when he hears a rough “come in”.
Yoongi is lying facedown on the bed when Hoseok enters, but he obligingly turns over when he feels Hoseok sit on the edge of the bed. His hair is mussed up and there's a flush sitting high on his cheeks - Hoseok's smile is fond as he brandishes the thermometer at him.
Predictably, Yoongi's eyebrows drop into a scowl. “I don't need that.”
Hoseok laughs. “Try again, hyung. Do you think you can fool any of us at this point? And it was Jimin who figured you out first, not even me.” Still grinning, he taps the thermometer against Yoongi's cheek. “Now open up.”
Yoongi mutters something under his breath that sounds suspiciously like “brat”, but grudgingly opens his mouth for Hoseok to put the thermometer in.
Hoseok starts peeling the tangerine as they wait, humming cheerfully. The younger rapper is full of good cheer, clearly ready and eager to care for him - which was usually a trait he found endearing, but currently as sick as Yoongi was, unfortunately grates on his nerves.
“Sh't up, you'r hummin’ too loud.” He grumbles around the thermometer, just as the device beeps.
Hoseok pulls it out of his mouth, glances at the reading with a soft “hmm”, and offers him a tangerine slice. He stops humming, but there’s a tiny smile curling at the corners of his lips.
Yoongi accepts the slice without complaint, chewing absentmindedly as he watches Hoseok meticulously peel away the pith from the fruit - the way Yoongi prefers it, since he hates the white stringy texture on it.
They continue on like this in silence for a while, Hoseok peeling the tangerine and occasionally offering Yoongi a slice. He starts to feel a little guilty for snapping at Hoseok, until he opens his mouth for another tangerine and Hoseok coos while feeding it to him.
He closes his lips around the fruit and glares poisonously at the younger, while Hoseok quickly holds his hands up in surrender. “I’m not laughing at you, I swear! It’s just that, well - you're adorable when you're sick.” Hoseok says, grinning. “Not that I want you to be sick, but you're really cute when you are, hyung.”
Yoongi swallows his tangerine to retort, “And you can fuck off.” But the words carry no heat in them, and from the way Hoseok is smiling, he knows that too.
He finishes the tangerine eventually, and Hoseok makes him drink half of the bottle he brought with him before letting him lie back down under the covers. He had been nursing a killer headache earlier during dinner, but resting in the cool darkness of his room for a while and Hoseok’s comforting presence is slowly but surely lulling him to sleep. Hoseok huffs a quiet laugh, and says “I’ll let you get some rest, hyung,” but is pulled back by Yoongi’s tug on his wrist.
“Stay.” Yoongi mutters. “It’s getting late anyway.”
Hoseok blinks down at him, before his face goes all gooey and fond and - eurgh, Yoongi can't look at him when he has that expression on his face.
“Okay.” Hoseok agrees softly.
~~~~~
Minutes later, cuddled up under the blanket, Hoseok mumbles into Yoongi’s sweatshirt, “I’m probably gonna catch this, just so you know.”
Yoongi snorts. “Fine, fine. I’ll return the favour if it happens. Now shut up and go to sleep.”
Hoseok let out a sleepy giggle. “Fine."
And the next morning, when Yoongi wakes up feeling more refreshed, while Hoseok sneezes himself awake with bleary eyes and a runny nose, Yoongi only smiles, tucks the blanket more securely around the younger rapper, and heads down to the kitchen to make breakfast.
He's got a favour to return, after all.