Home (female, F/F)

[Chanel_no5]

***Note***

So I wrote this a while ago as a fanfic gift for a friend who’s been sick with the virus-we-shall-not-name, but I quite like how it turned out so I thought I’d tweak it into original and post.  

I’ll probably be too focused on NaNoWriMo to write fetishy things for a while (except that fic I've promised, you know who you are. It's in the works). But me and focus are not very good friends. ANYWAY. Here goes.  

(should probably add that this is more of an illness/caretaking fic than a sneezefic. So there.)

 

*** 

Savannah woke up to a headache, a really bad one, and a fatigue that was so overwhelming that she just lay there, staring up at the ceiling, wondering how she’d even manage to get out of bed, much less go to work. She had no patient meetings scheduled for this week, only paperwork and research, which was a blessing. She did have the remarkable ability to almost leave herself out of the equation while working; it was as if she could ignore anything going on with herself as long as she had a task in front of her. But when she was this tired, she worried that she wouldn’t be clear-minded enough to properly do the task in front of her.

Neither the headache nor the fatigue were really surprising; she’d been up all night reading through old research, and she’d worked overtime the whole week so she could take a long weekend, four whole days in a row. She couldn’t remember the last time she was off work that long. She and Linda had plans, their first trip together in the whole year they’d been dating.  

Sitting up felt like a whole endeavour, and as she sat on the edge of the bed, mentally preparing for the next endeavour; getting dressed, the morning congestion shifted slightly in her sinuses. She tilted her head back a little as she wrestled with the urge to sneeze, then took a deep, sharp breath and snapped forward, not bothering to cover.

“HehhISSSSHHH!”

The spray fell like rain all over her lap, misting her naked thighs with droplets.

“Ugh,” she groaned, shook her head, and reached for her clothes. She felt chilled, which wasn’t that surprising; she was sensitive to the weather, and it was almost Halloween, meaning it was grey, chilly, and rainy.

Black pantyhose, black pencil skirt, a blue blouse tucked into the skirt… she was about to reach for the blazer that usually wrapped up the outfit, but then hesitated. She was actually freezing. Not just generally ‘just woke up’-chilled. So instead of the blazer, she grabbed a warm knitted sweater – elegant enough to wear to work, but warm and comfortable enough to feel good – and put it on.

Feeling slightly more comfortable, she went to get ready for work. Her head was pounding steadily, and the congestion hadn’t eased up the way it usually did, so before putting on makeup, she grabbed a tissue and blew her nose.

It was like trying to move a brick wall.

“This is not good,” she told her reflection in the mirror. A reflection that showed her that she wasn’t looking any better than she felt. Dark circles around her eyes – and her eyes looked irritated too – face slightly swollen from the congestion, an ashen complexion. Now, Savannah was used to looking pale, but this was more than pale. She looked…

“Don’t go there,” she told herself, but her brain didn’t care.

… sick.

It was cold and flu season, and several staff members at the hospital were out sick with it, but to her knowledge she hadn’t been around anyone who was sick.

Even if she was coming down with something, she wasn’t feeling that sick, she could probably pull off this shift, and with a little luck (and lots of tea), whatever virus she’d picked up might even change its mind about getting her sick. At least silently buzz off without making a big scene.

***

Two hours later, she was in her office, warming her cold hands on a cup of steaming tea, and trying to read a patient’s file but constantly having to start over because she couldn’t focus. The headache was still pounding behind her eyes, and there was a droning ache that seemed to come from deep within her very bones. Her whole body felt like one big bruise, and even the sensation of her clothes brushing against her skin was painful. Her eyes hurt too, they watered and felt generally sensitive. The congestion remained, but now her nose had started to run, as well. Thin, watery liquid that she first sniffled back, then dabbed away with a folded tissue. Her throat was sore, too. Really sore. It almost came out of the blue, yeah, sure, it had felt uncomfortable and scratchy since she left the house, but now it felt like razors criss-crossed the back of her throat in haphazard patterns.

It hurt.

And she was freezing even more, so bad her teeth chattered, in fact.

This is the flu. No doubt about it.

She had an hour’s drive home. Was she willing to push through the rest of her shift, steadily getting worse, and then get in behind the wheel?

The answer was; yes, if she had to.

But today was thankfully not a day of emergencies; even with a few staff members out sick, things appeared to run smoothly. But it was only a matter of choice for so long; a little while later she almost felt like she was underwater, with how slow her movements were and how muted all sounds appeared. Her thought process felt fuzzy.

This is not going to get better, only worse. I should go home, she thought.

So she did.

The drive home was a blur, and honestly, so was her arrival home. She went inside, locked the door, then wrapped herself up in a blanket and lay down on the couch. She had brought the phone with her – something she didn’t really remember doing – and now she called Linda at work to let her know that tonight’s date was off. As was the trip.

Luckily it was Linda who picked up, and not her colleague. Upon hearing her voice, Savannah nearly started crying. She hated how weak she felt, how embarrassing it was, but she couldn’t help it. She could deal with others being sick, but she had no caretaking instinct left in her for herself. That’s just the way she was.

“Hi Lin, it’s me.”

“Annie? You sound awful. What’s wrong?”

“I caught the flu.” She cleared her throat and winced at the pain. “I’m sorry, there’s no way I can make it to our date tonight.” She cleared her throat again, blinking away tears of pain. “Not the trip either. I’m sorry.”

“Oh, baby,” Linda sighed. “Don’t apologise, it’s not your fault. Are you home?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m coming over.”

“No, I’m probably really contagious and I don’t want to get you sick too.”

“Annie. I don’t care. You hear me, babe? I don’t care. I’m coming over.”

Savannah choked back the tears that threatened to overtake her.

“Okay,” she said in a thick, raspy voice. And then, in a smaller voice; “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it, silly,” Linda said affectionately. “Keep warm, and I’ll be right there.”

They hung up, and Savannah laid back down. She felt really feverish and tired, and decided to just rest her eyes for a moment.

She was out like a light within two minutes.

***

She had no idea how long she had been out, but she came to when someone very gently stroked her hair. Opening her eyes, she looked up at Linda, who sat on the armrest of the couch.

“Hi, sleepyhead.”

“Hi.” She tried to swallow, and winced in pain.

“You’re burning up,” Linda said, frowning. “Have you checked your temp?”

“No.”

“You’re not very good at this whole doctor thing when it’s about yourself, are you?” Linda joked, but the hand resting on her lover’s forehead was cool and gentle. “It’s alright. I’ve got you, baby. I’m gonna look after you.”

“You’re gonna get sick too,” Savannah warned.

“Maybe, maybe not.” Linda slowly stroked her thumb across Savannah’s hairline. “That’s not really the topic at hand right now, though, is it?” Her voice was so soft and soothing, Savannah almost dozed off again at the sound of it. “Come on, Annie, let’s get you to bed,” Linda said, prompting a feeble objection from the other woman who really didn’t want to move at all. Linda didn’t budge, however, and Savannah found herself leaning on her lover with almost all her body weight to get into the bedroom. She was too dizzy and exhausted to walk on her own, which scared her a little.

Once seated on the edge of her bed again – thinking back to the early signs of illness that she had ignored that morning – Savannah made a move as to just lay back down, but Linda grabbed her by the shoulders before she could.

“Not so fast. You’re still in full work attire, you know that?”

Savannah looked down at herself and realised why it had been so uncomfortable laying on the couch; the belt buckle was digging into her abdomen whenever she bent her body just a little bit.

Linda began undressing her, not in the seductive way she usually did it, but in a gentle yet practical way. Sweater, blouse, belt, skirt, pantyhose, leaving Savannah shivering in just her bra and panties while she went through the closet for something warm and comfortable.

“You actually own flanell PJs?” Linda said, holding them up.

“W-w-winters here are ch-ch-chilly,” Savannah stuttered.

“Alright. It’s not your style, but really cute,” Linda teased her and handed the plaid sleepwear to her lover, who quickly put it on. “Now, you can lay down,” Linda said. “I’ll be right back.”

Once more, Savannah nearly dozed off while Linda was away, and then roused back to some kind of hazy half-consciousness when Linda sat down next to her with a thermometer in her hand.

“Open up,” Linda whispered. Savannah obeyed, still a bit embarrassed about all this fuss, but also very grateful for her girlfriend’s presence. A prickle began to spread in her nose, and she struggled to hold it back, but it was quickly getting out of her control.

“NGTXTHhh!”

She sneezed still keeping her lips closed around the thermometer, and the obvious happened. Mess shot out of her nose, and even through the fever fog she felt mortified, begging the ground to swallow her whole.

“Whoa, bless you,” Linda said, reaching for a tissue and began wiping her girlfriend’s face.

“I’b so sorry,” Savannah mumbled around the thermometer, sniffling thickly.

“Oh my God, stop apologising for things you can’t help,” Linda sighed, discarded the used tissue, took another one, and wiped some off the blanket. Savannah’s face got even redder when she realised that the sneeze had been so explosively snotty she’d gotten mess everywhere. “It’s okay, Annie. Don’t fret over it.”

Savannah was too tired to argue, so she just sank back against the pillows and waited for the thermometer to announce its verdict.

When it did, Linda sucked in air between gritted teeth.

“103.1. That’s not good.”

That explained why the whole world seemed to almost have its own pulse. While also being padded in fuzzy cotton. Savannah groaned.

“I’ll get you something for that fever,” Linda said. “I know sleep is probably the best thing for you right now, but I don’t like those numbers at all.”

After being stuffed with some fever suppressing medication, Savannah was finally allowed to huddle up under the blankets and rest. Part of her wanted Linda to join her, wanted to be spooned and held, but the responsible part of her hoped Linda wouldn’t, to at least slightly reduce the risk of catching this.

Linda leaned in and placed a kiss on her fever-flushed cheek.

“I’ll make some chicken soup that we can warm up later. Then I’m gonna join you in bed and keep you warm, baby. But don’t wait for me. Just go to sleep. You need that. Okay?”

Savannah mumbled something in response, but she wasn’t sure if she was awake or asleep when she did. All she knew was that she was home, she was safe, and she was looked after by someone who loved her.

But that seemed to be all that mattered.

 

Edited November 1, 2022 by Chanel_no5

[Dgrayman]

Wow! I am hooked. What a great way to handle caregiving. Do I sense a spreading flu 😜

[SleepingPhlox]

This is cute as heck and I love it.  Also, you write some of the best turns of phrase I've seen not just in fetish fiction but in any writing.  The idea of a thermometer "announcing it's verdict"? Freaking love it.

Have fun doing NaNoWriMo, although selfishly I have loved seeing so much of your writing on the forum lately!

[sneezemeister]

This was great!