Well you guys lucked out!! š just word vomited this whole fic in 2 hours 𤣠idk how it just kept going! Guess these little prompts are helpful or something š¤
Iāll take more if you guys still have some you want to seeā sorry I havenāt gotten to them all yet in my inbox š I am going off vibes, and this one is one of my favvvvorite tropes š„¹ because yes it is cannon TO ME that Mack says this to Will š
Will knows something is off before Mack can even say anything, if he would even say anything at all. It wasnāt in Mackās nature to complain or look for comfort, especially not in the locker room surrounded by their teammates.
But Will knows, and Will also knows not to bring it up then, when Mack will just shrug him off or give him an annoyed look. Heāll file it away to be brought up later or let Mack come to him first.
Mackās been more open lately, in that realm. Heās pretty sure heās had him wrapped around his finger since Dev camp but even then Mack liked to keep his feelings and pains and anything that could be classified under ācomplaintsā under wraps unless a situation becomes dire.
Heās whiney and loves comfort once itās out in the open but until it comes out heās always kept things at bay. Will gets it. Heās the same way, maybe even worseā but that doesnāt mean he doesnāt hate that Mack lets his emotions or how heās feeling get slid under the rug.
He wants Mack to need him. Not in a weird overbearing way, just that he wants Mack to know that Willās there and heās always going to be there as a shoulder to lean on or cry on or whatever else he needs.
āDo you want to grab food here or get something on the way home?ā Will asks when Mack comes back from the showers, sitting heavily on the bench next to him.
Mack seems to pause and think for a second before he starts to pull his clothes on that he wore to the game. He shrugs, ādonāt care.ā Is the minimal response he gets and Will finishes getting dressed himself, not really knowing what to say back.
Will watches Mack carefully, trying not to make it too obvious that heās trying to read whatās going on but Mack notices the way Willās eyes are tracking his every move. Mack tries to ignore it, keeps getting dressed in silence among the noise of the locker room after a win.
It hurts Mackās head the way voices are piling over each other and the pulsing in his temples that syncs up with his heartbeat isnāt comforting in any way. It makes him nauseous and he knows heās probably pale and Mack knows Will can read him like a book so itās only a matter of time before Will catches on that heās not okay.
āWe can go home if youāre tired..ā Will starts and he almost slips in a āare you feeling okayā but he chooses not to at the last minute as he just lets the statement hang in the air between them.
Thereās no reason for Mack to be being shy, itās not like their teammates are going to hear if he quietly just tells Will he doesnāt feel very good but he just canāt. He doesnāt want it to become a thing right now, and Will will definitely say he should stop by the trainers and then the team will see and know something is wrong with the āGolden Boyā and then it becomes a thing.
āYeah thatās fine.ā Mack is quick to agree to going home. Itās what he wanted to say when Will had asked if he wanted to stay at the rink for food but if Mack made the decision instead of just agreeing with Will, itād be different. Agreeing with Willās idea to go home was somehow better.
āAlright, letās go.ā Will clapped his hands on his thighs as he stood up as he got the green light from Mack that he wanted to go home. Will knew if Mack was agreeing to veto food at the rink to go that something was for sure off. Mack always liked to hang around with the guys.
As they got outside, Will slid into step beside Mack, shoulders bumping just enough to be comforting and not enough to make whatever was going on with Mack worse.
In the car, Will keeps the radio a notch quieter than they normally would, but he can tell Mack appreciates the thought.
Will is sort of waiting for Mack to finally say something, anything really and when he hears a small, āthink Iām getting sick maybe.ā come from the passenger seat, he doesnāt hesitate to reach a hand out to rest gently against Mackās thigh.
He looks over at him when they stop at a red light, squeezing softly at his leg, āyeah? Not feeling good?ā He asks, looking at the younger boy who has made himself as small as possible in his seat, arms wrapped around himself protectively.
āI feel weird⦠I donāt know.ā He mumbles back to Willās question, keeping his eyes closed as he feels the car start moving again toward their place. Really Willās place, the Marleauās, but it still felt like theirs.
āWeird how?ā Will prods as he keeps his eyes on the road, following the same drive back that he could do blindfolded by now. Heās moved his hand from Mackās thigh now, sliding it between the headrest to rest against the nape of Mackās neck, pressing into tense muscles as Mack drops his chin to his chest to give him better access.
His necks warm, not overwhelmingly, but definitely warmer than normal. Heās already trying to remember where he left the Tylenol last time Mack took them. He knows thatās the only medicine that will touch his fevers.
āHeadache.. feelā¦ā Mackās voice is barely a whisper and he doesnāt finish his sentence, just waves a hand in a dizzying motion in front of his bowed head.
Will looks over at the motion of Mackās hand, his hand still a steady pressure against his neck.
āOkay.ā He nods and turns onto their street with one hand, āweāll get some meds in you and some food. Hopefully sleep it off.ā Will continues and Mack doesnāt have to say anything, just hums an agreement. He knows Will will handle everything, take care of him.
When they finally pull up to the guest house, he doesnāt mean to make Will have to open his door for him and help him out, but itās like heās getting worse by the minute now that the game's over and he can finally collapse. When he grabs Willās hand to stand up, he has to stop and grab the door of the car and take a steady breath, his stomach shooting up into his chest.
āYou okay?ā Willās asking, trying to glance at Mackās face in the dark. He canāt see much but his eyes are definitely squeezed shut, a small sound coming from his throat and then a clicking sound, like heās swallowing around a lump in his throat.
Mack canāt even attempt to reply and feels Will wrapping an arm around him to try and just get him inside, but Mack bends at the waist, hand bracing on the door with a weak gag.
āHey, hey.ā Willās voice raises slightly as his grip on him tightens, āyou gonna puke?ā He asks worried as Mack squats down, Will letting him go down when his legs canāt hold him up anymore.
Mack retches dryly over the concrete, shaking his head against the feeling. He hates throwing up, hates the nausea curling in his stomach, and hates that nothing's coming up but dry gags even more. Heād be embarrassed by the sounds heās making as his throat works to try and get up something if he didnāt suddenly feel so bad.
āOkay baby, just breathe, youāre okay.ā Willās voice is soothing and heās joined Mack, squatted right next to him as he rubs a hand up and down his back. Mack lifts his head up, still gripping the side of the car door, open mouth gasps of air filling his lungs.
He should be glad he didnāt actually throw up, but he still feels so bad and he just wants it all to stop. He feels woozy and heās swaying on his heels and he still thinks he might throw up if he moves.
āCan you get inside? I want to get you laying down, babyā¦ā and Willās voice is so reassuring that Mack just agrees and lets him pull him up slowly. Will doesnāt complain when Mack leans his weight onto him and just gets him in the door as quickly as possible, guiding him to lay on the couch right inside the door.
Mack feels worse as soon as heās laying flat, feeling like everything is spinning around him. He can feel the color draining from his face, and weakly pushes to sit up, hand coming up to his mouth as he starts to gag again, belly in turmoil with the dizzying feeling.
āShit, hold on.ā Willās gasping but it doesnāt come out harsh and heās racing to grab the trashcan in the kitchen. Heās back fast and shoving the bin between Mackās legs, pushing the coffee table out of the way.
Mackās folded fully over the trash, arms braced around the edges and whatever was in his stomach finally decides to come up. The rounds of sickness are coming quickly and his shoulders are shaking as he starts crying because itās all justā so much. Itās coming out his nose and heās pretty sure heās literally whimpering and probably sounds like a kid whoās getting sick for the first time but he canāt help it. It hurts so bad.
āW-Willā is all Mack is able to gasp out between the rounds as he spits out the horrible bile that clings to his tongue and Will is right there, hand on his back, talking right in his ear. He didnāt even realize that Will was there the whole time, pressed into his side, whispering encouragement because his ears were ringing.
Willās voice is soft when he starts to come back, the gags and retching finally slowing, but he doesnāt know if heās safe to move away from the trash can yet. His breathing is erratic and his heart is feeling like it might pound out of his chest as the adrenaline starts to fade.
āIām here babe, I got you.ā Willās hand is just the right amount of pressure as it rubs across his back and Mack focuses only on the way his hand is moving and trying to get his breathing under control. He knows he needs to relax or itās gonna start up again.
āCan you sit up?ā Will asks gently and Mack nods once and lets Will pull him up, hands guiding him to rest back against the couch, keeping pillows behind his back to keep him elevated. āKeep taking deep breaths okay? Iām gonna grab you water.ā Will says and stands up.
Mack knows heās gonna come back but he feels scared when Will gets up. He keeps his eyes closed, head back, reminding himself that heās fine and heās going to be fine. Heās just sick, and yeah it sucks but itās not going to last forever, he needs to not spiral.
āHere baby, rinse first.ā Will is back quick, and Mack opens his eyes with a sigh of relief. He slowly sits up to take the bottle of water and swishes it around to spit into the trash can quickly so he doesnāt catch a glimpse of what he just threw up. Itāll make him sick again if he sees, just knowing itās sitting right there by his feet is already making him nauseous.
Once he feels like his mouth is mostly clean, he takes a couple small sips. Just enough to get the stinging from the bile out of his throat. He can feel Will watching him like a hawk. Probably watching if heās going to start puking again.
Luckily he doesnāt, and the nausea is slowly fading. He wants to think it was just something upsetting his stomach but the way his head is pounding and his skin is prickling with a fever, he knows heās actually sick. Probably some sort of stomach fluā itās not rare that people spread stuff around on the team easily but it still sucks.
āAre you okay..?ā Will asks as he reaches to press the back of his hand to Mackās forehead and then his cheeks which are flushed so red. Mack hands the water back to him when his hand starts shaking and lets his head fall back against the back of the couch, blinking slowly up at the ceiling, resting his hands on his sore stomach.
āI-Iā he stutters and his voice cracks and he has to stop and clear his throat and Will sits next to him, a hand rubbing at his forearm as his brow furrows like a worried mother. āIām sick I think.ā Is what Mack finally lands on and slips his eyes back closed.
āYeah, I think so baby.ā A small sound like a chuckle comes from Will at the bluntness of Mack and he canāt help but reach up to push the hair off his boy's forehead. Every part of him is itching to fix, make Mack better. He wishes he could magically make the illness go away.
āIām sorry youāre not feeling well⦠Iād take it if I could.ā Will pouts and gently moves Mackās hands off his stomach to rub his hand gently over his belly like his mom would do when he was a kid and was sick. He hoped it helped Mack like it did him back then.
Mack lets out a small sound of discomfort, not because Will is hurting him, but just at the feeling of his belly rolling uncomfortably under hands that he knows just wants to make it better. He also wishes Willās hands were magic and could take it all away.
āTummy still hurt?ā Will asks softly and Mack nods with a sniffle, a tear slipping out unguarded. He just really hates not feeling good. Heās supposed to be a machine, itās what heās built through the years and he wishes his body would never betray him like this. But unfortunately nobody is spared from never getting sick.
A few minutes pass in silence as the adrenaline wears off from being sick, Mackās breathing slows and he thinks he might fall asleep when Willās hand moves off his stomach and the uneasy cramping comes back almost instantly. Mack whines and blindly reaches for his hand, but comes up empty and has to blink awake to see where Will has gone.
āJust gonna get rid of this,ā he gestured to the door with the trash can heās holding and Mack nodded once, ādo you wanna go get in bed?ā Will asks as he ties off the bag and slips on his slides to take it outside.
āYeah,ā Mackās answer is short and when Will slips out the door to throw away the bag, Mack doesnāt move. His stomach is still aching in that hollow way, muscles tight from puking, and heās frustratingly still nauseous. Heās gonna have to wait for Will to even attempt to move, scared heāll start throwing up again if he tries to get up.
His eyes startle open when he hears the door open again, ādidnāt even try to get to bed hm?ā Will teases slightly and Mack blows out breath, one forearm going to cover his eyes, other hand hesitantly palming over his tender stomach as his lips curl into a grimace.
Will sees it all and realizes Mack is definitely still not feeling good, like at all and doesnāt tease him further. He goes back over, bending down slightly to rub his hands up and down Mackās thighs comfortingly, āyou gonna be sick if I help you up? We can wait if you need to.ā Will asks in a tone so sweet Mack could cry.
Mack shook his head, arm falling from his eyes and started to sit up slowly, testing to see how his stomach would react. Will followed his movements, hands hovering, ready to grab him. With deep breaths he was able to stand up, though his legs felt weak and shaky, but Will wrapped an arm around him and they made it to the bedroom and to the edge of the bed before he could start puking againā so it was a win.
When he felt Will ushering him onto the bed, he went willingly, though his head swam again with vertigo when he was seated. He hung his head loosely between his shoulders, feeling his heart beating way too fast to be normal and tried to take even breaths in through his nose.
Will, thinking ahead, made sure Mack was seated before grabbing the trashcan from the corner of the room and bringing the small receptacle over and sat it down gently on the nightstand. He brought a hand to the back of Mackās neck again, using his other hand to push hair away from his forehead to palm at his forehead again.
āFeeling pukey again?ā Will asked quietly but didnāt get a response aside from loud breathing and a tiny nod. He made a small noise and sat beside Mack, pulling him into his side slowly, letting Mackās head fall to his shoulder.
āF-feels l-likeā like Iām sp-pinning.ā Mack finally whimpered out around tears that started falling because he simply couldnāt hold them back anymore. He didnāt care if he was acting like a baby, he felt so bad and his head hurt and it was making him so sick.
āBaby,ā Will whispered with sadness as he pulled him closer, rubbing his back softly up and down, āwhat can I do?ā Will asked.
āRub my b-belly again, Iā it helped.ā Mack whined out and was already reaching to try and grab at Willās free hand.
Will placed his hand against Mackās shirt that covered his middle instantly. Heād do anything to help. Mack let out a content sigh when Willās hand slipped beneath his shirt, and Will smiled softly continuing the soft passes of his hand over his belly.
Will realized the heat quickly and without a word started to undress both him and Mack, pausing his belly rub only briefly with each piece of clothing gone. Mack was definitely starting to burn up, fever hot skin beneath Willās fingertips, which was likely the reason his boy was feeling so off kilter.
āI have to grab meds, Mackie. Iāll get a cold towel too, okay?ā Will had basically manhandled Mackās larger frame until he was laying back against the headboard. He didnāt wait for Mackās complaints about him leavingā he needed to get him cooled down if he wanted to feel better.
When Will came back in record time, he slipped the cold towel over his forehead, beads of water dripping down Mackās face, he shivered against the cold but it was instant relief. He felt considerably better with the cold rag over his head and eyes.
āHere, baby,ā Will offered two Tylenol pills, holding them to Mackās lips before slipping them in, already having a bottle of water ready to wash them down.
When Will finally climbed into the bed beside Mack, Mack curled up to him right away, head finding the spot against his neck, his forehead pressing the cold towel up against Will, making him shiver as well.
āYouāre lucky I love you.ā Will giggled and let Mack squeeze him closer. Mack dragged Willās hand down between them to his belly again, and Will started rubbing his tummy again without wordā whatever to make his boy feel better.