Be Careful What You Wish For
Fandom: Stranger Things, (Streamer AU)
Summary: Steve and Eddie get invited to a corporate Christmas party. When Eddie complains because steve got sick and gets out of it, steve offers to give Eddie his cold. (Both have the kink)
“Noooooo! No no no no!” Eddie yelled dramatically as he ran down the apartment hallway with the mail.
“What?? What happened?!” Steve asked, panicked.
“Murray’s Christmas Party invite came in.”
“Jesus Christ Eddie, you made it sound like something was on fire! What’s so bad about Murray and a Christmas party?”
Eddie shot Steve a look, “It’s the corporate Christmas party. The one where we’re supposed to mingle with executives and other ‘influencers’?? I don’t want to go to that.”
Steve sighed, coughing into his shoulder, “Ugh, I don’t either. When is it?”
“Friday night.” Eddie rolled his eyes.
“That’s like… days away?! Thanks for the short notice Murray.”
“Did you really expect anything different?”
Murray, their talent manager, was great! He always hooked them up with the best gigs, promotional events, and knew how to interact with fans. His methods, on the other hand, we’re sporadic in nature and very spontaneous usually.
“Does it say anything about a dress code?” Steve asked. “I don’t want to show up under or overdressed.”
Eddie flicked the card, smiling annoyedly, “Not a damn thing, sweetheart. We can call him tomorrow I guess.”
Steve woke up to a persistent tickle in his nose and a sore throat. He sniffled to try and relieve the itch, but ended up having the opposite effect.
“HAESSHIEW!” Shit he didn’t want to wake up Eddie. He clamped a hand over his nose, “HNGSSHUU!”
Eddie’s eyes shot open and he immediately rolled over to face Steve, his interest piqued. He tried to hold back a lustful smirk as he asked, “You getting sick Stevie? Those didn’t sound like your regular sneezes.”
Steve sniffled thickly, “I feel a bit sick, yeah.”
“Aww. Poor baby.” Eddie dramatically pouted, poking Steve’s nose. “I’ll make you some tea!”
The older man got out of bed and made his way to the bathroom to brush his teeth and pee before putting on some water to boil.
Steve took it upon himself to call Murray and ask about the dress code while Eddie was putting around in the kitchen.
Eddie wasn’t a huge tea person himself, but he knew what kind Steve liked when he wasn’t feeling well. He smiled to himself as he leaned against the counter, waiting for the water to boil. He could hear Steve’s muffled coughs and sniffles from the other room.
A few minutes had passed, the water boiled and the tea was steeped. Eddie carried the mug back towards the bedroom. Steve was propped up in bed now, on his phone.
“Thanks Eddie.” He said as he took the mug from his partner. “Murray says you should wear nice pants, a sports coat and preferably some kind of nice shirt.”
“Ughhh gross- wait. What about you? What are you wearing?”
Steve hesitated for a second, “I’m not going. Murray said he doesn’t want me there if I’m sick because it’s gross.”
He waited for his boyfriend to pick his jaw up off the floor. “Are you serious?? I certainly don’t want to go alone!”
“Chrissy and the girls will be there too!” Steve tried to offer.
“No it’s not the same.” Eddie mumbled, swinging open their shared closet to browse. as he rifled through the clothes he complained, “You’re so lucky you don’t have to go Steve. You always get sick. Just this once I wish it was me…”
Eddie turned around, “What?”
Steve blushed a little, “I could give you my cold…if that’s what you want. I feel pretty sneezy today anyways…”
A huge grin plastered itself to Eddie’s face. “Aww does your nose tickle?”
“Mmhmm. Can you hehh hand me your hih sweatshirt?”
Eddie grabbed the hoodie that was hanging on the back of a chair and passed it to Steve. The younger man grabbed it just in time to hold it in front of his face.
“H’iTZsssiew! … isssHIEW! TSHuhEW!”
As the sneezes tumbled out of him, he rotated the sweatshirt so that he made sure he got most of it.
“Bless you!” Steve handed the hoodie back to Eddie who graciously accepted, putting it on immediately.
Steve closed his eyes, hand fanning his face, “Wait come here!”
Eddie jumped onto the bed next to Steve, who grabbed Eddie by the collar as he pitched forward aiming at Eddie’s stomach.
He froze, a few droplets of mess dripping from his nose into Eddie’s lap. The long haired man gently used his left hand to lift Steve’s chin, using the sleeve of his right hand to wipe away additional mess from his nose.
“You’re so hot Steve.” He said, pulling him in for a kiss. Eddie could feel Steve’s damp nostrils rubbing against his cheek as they made out.
After 30 seconds or so, Steve had to pull back, nostrils flaring. Without even trying to cover, he turned his head slightly to the side.
“H’eTSHuhew!” Eddie twitched as he felt the mist land on the side of his neck.
“Don’t turn away Steve. I’m trying to catch this, remember?”
Steve, who was pretty sure this was all just a wet dream, closed his eyes as Eddie leaned in close using his pointer finger to gently tap at Steve’s nose.
“Sneeze on me Steve.” He whispered.
Steve moaned, half out of pleasure and half from the buildup to the impending sneeze. Eddie positioned himself right in front of Steve, watching the man’s red and glistening nostrils flare with irritation.
“Eddie I Hihh I’m gonna H’ESSSSHiew! Hi-KSHTew! iiSSSHuhew!”
Eddie leaned back, moaning with desire as Steve misted his face and neck. He licked his lips and kissed Steve again.
Steve pulled a handful of tissues from the table on his side of the bed and gave a crackling nose blow. Eddie smiled, staring at Steve as he cleaned himself up, his face suddenly going slack.
As if suddenly realizing, Steve grabbed Eddie’s pillow from behind him and pressed it to his face. “HEH-IKSHEW! … h’MPTCHiew!!”
Sniffling soupily, he held the pillow out to Eddie, damp spots covering it. Eddie grinned and put the pillow down, laying his face on it.
The younger man lay down as well, snuggling up close to Eddie. He rested his head on Eddie’s arm. The sneezing fit had loosened some congestion and made his nose run. Every few minutes, Eddie would reach down with his bare hands and wipe away the mess gathering at the corner of Steve’s nose.
When the sniffling became more persistent, the younger man would nuzzle into Eddie’s chest, wiping his nose on his shirt.
They lay together, sharing Steve’s tea and watching tv until Eddie had to get up to make them lunch.
Eddie was feeling pretty good that evening. He was almost certain to catch Steves cold, which is exactly what he wanted until Steve trudged into the kitchen that evening while Eddie was making soup.
“Eds?” He rasped, “I don’t think this is just a cold. I feel like shit.”
Eddie turned around. Steve was in pajama pants and a white tee. It was the flushed cheeks that caught Eddie’s attention. the older man touched his forehead and then moved his hand down to Steve’s cheek. They did feel a little warmer than usual.
“Shit. I think you’re right.” Eddie frowned, pulling Steve into a hug.
“I’m sorry Eddie.” Steve mumbled into Eddie’s shoulder.
“Don’t be sorry. Why are you sorry?”
“Because I already probably gave you whatever I have.”
Not wanting Steve to feel bad, he put on a smile. “It’s okay Steve. That’s what I wanted. Maybe I’ll get lucky and avoid it after all.”
Eddie wasn’t stupid. He knew that was a blatant lie. He was bound to get this bug eventually. While it seemed like a bad cold for Steve, Eddie also knew that he didn’t get sick nearly as often as his partner. If he ended up getting it, he was sure it would knock him on his ass.
Come Friday, Eddie had his answer. It was 4am when he woke up, throat aching, head pounding, and stuffed up. He padded to the bathroom, turning the light on only after the door was closed so he wouldn’t wake Steve.
A shiver ran down his spine making him rub at his arms. He took a moment to look at his reflection in the mirror, a pale and tired version of himself staring back.
“IxxCHU! NxxxT! NG’xxTCH! guh…”he blew his nose into some toilet paper and washed his hands before heading back to bed, waiting for sleep or illness to overtake him.
Steve was up and about by 9am. He made himself some toast and eggs while he checked emails on his phone. By the time ten o’clock rolled around, he realized it was odd for Eddie to not be up yet.
Some muffled but harsh sounding coughs coming from the bedroom had Steve on his feet in no time.
Eddie was still laying on his side, eyes closed. He looked paler than normal. Steve knelt down next to the bed and ran a gentle hand through his boyfriends hair, pausing and frowning at the heat radiating off him.
“Eds? You feel really warm. Are you okay?”
The older man didn’t open his eyes - only shook his head no.
Eddie opened his mouth to answer but instead barked a cough that he tried to cover. “Throat hurts. Achy. Cold. SNF sneezy.”
“I’m sorry baby. I’m going to grab the thermometer really quick.”
Eddie nodded. Steve got up and rummaged through the bathroom cabinet. He took the cap off the plastic instrument and rinsed it off before bringing it back into the bedroom.
When he got back, Eddie’s nostrils were flaring.
“H’iKSHT! Heh-itSCHU! ehhTSCH! Snff iiKSHuh’ue!”
Too tired to move or cover, he sneezed openly across his pillow case. He lifted the collar of his shirt up and used it to pinch away the tendrils of mess that were previously there. Steve grimaced, “Eddie… there’s tissues right there.”
“Too far…” he groaned. Steve’s frown deepened. He hadn’t ever seen Eddie this out of it.
He passed the box to his boyfriend, who cradled it like a teddy bear while steve slipped the thermometer in his mouth. The younger man dialed a number on his phone.
“Hey Murray. Yeah sorry, Eddie’s not going to make it either. He woke up sicker than me…… Mmhmm fever and everything.”
The device beeped and Steve took it out. “101.5°. Yeah he’s down for the count…”
It was at this moment, Eddie let out a particularly wet and sick sounding sneeze. “H’iiKSHuhew! snlorff.”
There was a pause while Steve listened to Murray on the other end of the line.
“Yeah that was him; bless you Eddie.” He said, covering the phone to bless his boyfriend. Eddie just nodded, wiping his nose along the back of his hand.
“So sorry! We’ll be at the next one. Okay bye.”
Steve hung up the phone. “So good news is we don’t have to go to that corporate party tonight!” Steve tried to seem cheery. “Do you want anything to eat?”
Eddie shook his head, “N’do. Just wadda lay here forever. Can we just cuddle?”
Steve softened. “Yeah baby, we can cuddle.”
He crawled under the sheets, sitting up while Eddie rested against his chest. His soft congested snores punctuating the cooking show Steve had put on for himself.
After three episodes of Master Chef Jr, Steve must have dozed off because next thing he knows, it’s 4:30pm. He blinks away the sleep and looks around.
The tv is on the “are you still there?” screen and Eddie is still sleeping, cheeks flushed and a sheen of sweat on his forehead. There’s a small damp spot on the pillow where his nose is undoubtedly leaking without his knowing.
Another buzz reminds him why he woke up in the first place. His phone is ringing. He picks it up and sees Chrissy’s picture illuminating the screen. FaceTime.
He clicks the green answer button and suddenly the screen fills with his face and hers.
“Hey Chrissy.” He says in a hushed voice, looking over at Eddie who started to stir.
“Hey, Robin told me you guys aren’t coming to the event tonight? I was just going to ask what you were wearing so I could color coordinate.”
Steve coughed to the side, “Yeah sorry, we’re both sick - Eddie more so than me at this point.”
Chrissy frowned as the brunette turned the phone around to show Eddie. Suddenly, his face scrunched up as he pulled the blankets up to cover his nose.
“iiTCHuhew! H’eKSHTiew! snlrff H’MPTscht!”
“Bless you bub.” Chrissy said sympathetically.
The older man looked up from behind the (now slightly damp) blankets, “Hi Chris. Sorry about m’bissi’g tonight.”
“It’s okay! You sound awful. Probably for the best you two stay home and rest. Have you been like that all day?”
“Pretty m’buch.” Eddie coughed into his sleeve before rolling over to blow his nose.
Steve turned the phone back towards himself while Chrissy virtually took him to the closet. “So I’m wearing this red dress. Do you think white fluffy sweater or black overcoat?”
“Fluffy sweater definitely.” Steve nodded, giving her a thumbs up. “Eds?”
Eddie turned to look, tissues still pressed against his nose. “SNF I agree. Fluffy sweater- ih’GTCHuu! snorff Christ!”
“Okay, thanks boys. I’ll let you guys rest now.”
The rest of the evening would be filled with texts from Robin, Nancy and Chrissy about how Murray got a little drunk and started dancing the Macarena to Last Christmas as well as tipsy photos from them as they made their way through the night talking to other businesspeople.
“Maybe next year we should just go.” Steve mentioned to Eddie as they looked at the pictures together.
“Couldn’t agree more.” Eddie said, “This bug sucks. Guess I’ll have to be more careful what I wish for.”
