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Maverick winced as he looked up from the magazine he had been flipping through on the king sized bed in his hotel room and looked to the bathroom. Despite the water running in the shower, he could hear the distinct coughs from within. Although it wasn’t all that uncommon as coughing had just become a part of his day to day life living with Iceman, he didn’t like the sound of these. They were thick, filled with congestion, and Maverick worried that it may even upset Ice’s stomach if he continued trying to force his lungs to expel the tickle.
Maverick had thought it was a little strange the way that Ice had awoken fairly early and insisted on taking a shower instead of cuddling with Maverick for a little while. They had planned on doing some sightseeing later depending on Ice’s energy levels as the rounds of chemo and radiation often depleted his energy levels. They had gotten lucky on this trip that Ice seemed to be keeping up fairly well with everything that Maverick had planned, though neither of them wanted to cause a crash and that’s exactly what Maverick feared was happening.
He promised himself he wouldn’t hover no matter what he wanted. So, he kept half of his attention on the magazine he was reading and half on the bathroom. It didn’t help his concentration to be focused on two things at once and soon his magazine fell by the wayside as he couldn’t stop worrying about his husband.
Five precious minutes later, Ice emerged from the bathroom behind a cloud of steam. He had on a fluffy white robe that was tied loosely around his waist. Maverick tried not to stare as he recognized the faint flush to Ice’s face and the slightly pinkish nostrils. He swore that he hadn’t looked like that the night prior. Could he really get sick that quickly? Then again, it was Ice and that was just apart of being him.
“Hey there, handsome.”
Ice jumped slightly at the sound of Maverick’s voice, eyes blinking quickly. “Mav, I-I didn’t know you were awake.”
Maverick waved him off as he pushed the magazine aside and swung his legs over the side of the bed. He made to stand with arms outstretched as he ventured over and rested his hands on Ice’s waist. He held him close as he smirked, coming to kiss Ice lightly on the lips. Ice pulled away hesitantly a moment later, which had Maverick frowning.
“Not in the kissing mood today, huh,” Maverick asked sympathetically.
Ice’s eyes widened. “S-Sorry.”
“Hey, there’s nothing to apologize for. Boundaries are okay at any point. Thank you for telling me.” Maverick allowed his hands to fall from Ice’s hips as he continued to smile. He understood when Ice needed his space, when his skin didn’t even feel right and any added pressure just could be so unbearable. It had taken a while for Maverick to understood where Ice was coming from, but they had been together for so long now it’s like second nature.
Ice’s lips pressed tightly together as he started to cough, the air forced harshly against the back of his throat. It was sheer agony and nothing else, though he tried to keep Maverick from noticing. The only problem was that Maverick had become almost an expert in Ice and was’t about to let these things slide so easily.
A hand found its way to Ice’s forehead, stray silver hairs brushed aside. “Hmmm, a little warm, sweetheart.”
“Mav,” Ice began until he was forced to cough again.
Maverick wiggled a finger in his direction to cut off whatever he was about to say. Instead, he took Ice’s hand and pulled him forward. “Come lay down with me. No kisses required.”
Ice stopped dead as he looked to the clock on the opposite wall. The time was already creeping toward 8, and why not late by any means, Ice still liked to be up and out by now even if he wasn’t at work. His routine was really something special that wasn’t to be broken, no matter if they were on vacation or not.
“Maverick,” Ice continued.
“Honey, please. I could hear you coughing from the bathroom. When were you going to tell me that you’ve come down sick,” Maverick began as he continued to tug Ice until the taller man promptly followed.
Ice sat down slowly on the bed, trying not to wince at what the movements did to his sore muscles. He looked to Maverick with teary eyes as he sniffled deeply. The sniffling didn’t do much as his breath caught dangerously and he lifted a hand to cup over the lower half of his face. “Hish! Hish! Hish! Hish! Tsh! Itsh! Tsh! Tsh! Hish! Hish!”
Maverick giggled, barely able to refrain himself from laying a soft kiss on Ice’s temple. Instead, he grabbed him the box of tissues and watched as Ice took a handful and blew his nose softly. The vibration sent pain through his throat and he winced as he set the tissues aside of later, knowing that he would need them sooner rather than later. He rolled back onto his side, robe tightened around his skinny waist as he pulled the covers up over himself. A shiver racked his spine as he sunk into the soft pillows. It wasn’t nearly as soft as his bed back home, but it would certainly do.
“Do you need anything,” Maverick asked as he sat down back in his normal spot beside Ice.
Ice looked up at him, eyes tinged with fever. “No, I’m okay. I promise.”
The eased Maverick’s mind a little. He smiled as he watched as Ice began to fade into sleep rather quickly, which should’ve told him just how awful Ice was feeling. The older man wouldn’t dare say it, which was certainly common. No matter how Maverick tried to coax him to talk about it, he could never quite pinpoint just how much pain or discomfort Ice was in. He understood as he had the same tendency to be a little cagey about those sort of details, but after the year that the two of them had been through, Maverick wanted nothing more than to really know what Ice was feeling.
He wasn’t given much time to ponder as soft snores filled the room. Maverick turned to look at Ice to see his mouth open and nostrils flaring as he struggled to breathe in his sleep. His body gave a violent shiver as well, to which Maverick felt himself immediately feel a flash of worry. Sure, fevers weren’t uncommon for them, but for Ice to develop one so quickly was slightly worrying to say the least.
“Ice,” Maverick whispered as he reached out to stroke Ice’s stubble streaked chin. Ice gave no answer, didn’t even react to the touch, even as Maverick added a slight more pressure. When he still didn’t awaken, Maverick reached out to grab his cellphone and began to furiously type questions into Google.
Sick after chemo.
Caught a cold during cancer treatment.
Serious side effects of chemo and radiation on the respiratory track.
All of them gave him vastly different answers ranging in severity. Alarm bells sounded through him as he threw the phone aside on the nearby bedside table and turned to look at the still sleeping Ice. He seemed as peaceful as he could be, breathing heavy with a distinct rasp, but he was breathing. Still, that hardly seemed to calm Maverick after what he had just read. He leapt to his feet almost instantly and reached for the t-shirt he had worn the night prior, as well as his keys and wallet. Part of him didn’t want to leave Ice, but the internet had been clear that there were somethings that he could try to help Ice that wouldn’t mess with the rest of the medication still in his body. It was worth a try at least.
Wordlessly once Maverick had found socks and shoes, he left the room quickly, intent on coming back before Ice woke up.
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Ice awoke some time later to find a cold compress on his forehead. His eyelid opened, nose wrinkled as he looked to the man hovering over him. “Mav?”
“Shhh,” Maverick chided as he moved the compress from his forehead to the front of his now exposed chest. “Your fever is a little high and the internet said that can be exceptionally dangerous with chemo.”
“The internet?”
“Yeah, you know, Google?” Maverick dismissed him with a wave of his hand as he picked up a glass of water. “It also said to keep you hydrated. It warned away from medication for the fever as it could interact with your chemo and that’s the last thing we want. So, water?”
Ice shook his head tiredly. “M’fine.” He suddenly broke off into a coughing fit that left his body crunched forward, abdomen spasming. It was painful to say the least, and judging by Maverick’s reaction, he could most definitely tell.
“I can see that. Damn, this might be the flu. I knew we shouldn’t have even risked this trip with your immunity so low. What the hell was I thinking?!” Maverick drew back from the bed and kicked the edge of the couch, immediately wincing as his toe struck something hard. He hissed in pain, foot lifted into his hands and knee pressed against his chest as he held the now swollen digit.
Ice rolled his eyes and waved his wrist weakly, motioning Maverick forward. Maverick winced as he hopped over on one foot, body splayed over the bed as he flopped over Ice’s side on the bed, moaning into the thick pillow his face found his way against. That was certainly a shock to his dignity that he didn’t need. He was just glad that Ice hadn’t made a big deal about it or made some joke about it.
Now that Maverick was head level, Ice leaned over to kiss Maverick’s brow. “Relax,” he whispered, voice hoarse and scratchy. “It’s just a case of the sniffles.”
“It’s never that simple anymore, Tom,” Maverick protested. “You have fucking cancer!”
“So I’ve been told.” Ice cleared his throat harshly even though it did little to no good in making him anymore understandable. “Mav, you don’t need to go overboard. I’m sorry I got sick when we’re supposed to be on vacation, but I’m not as fragile as I seem. I promise.”
“I never thought of you as fragile! It’s just the internet said—“
Ice quieted him with a shake of his head until Maverick finally stopped his train of thought. He lifted his gaze to look at Ice as Ice grabbed Maverick’s hands in his own cold ones, giving as powerful of a squeeze as he could muster. “I don’t care what the internet told you. It’s just a cold; nothing to worry over.”
“You know I always do no matter what. I just want to make sure you’re okay.” Maverick felt himself squeeze back Ice’s hands, not nearly as strong so not to hurt him as he hesitantly looked to Ice, searching his face for permission. Ice finally bowed his head forward and Maverick almost squealed in excitement as he pressed a solid kiss to the top of Ice’s head. He let his lips linger there for a moment, wishing he could stay that way forever until Ice broke off to duck his head around into his pillow, sneezing seven times in quick succession.
Maverick had the tissues at the ready and grabbed a handful, passing them over. Ice scrubbed roughly at his nose, not even bothering blowing as he feared that it may trigger another coughing fit as it so commonly did. Instead he slumped back on his pillow and sighed heavily.
“Can I get you anything?”
Ice’s eyes opened slowly as he saw the man practically breathing distance away from him. “Mmmm, you?”
“Now that I can do!” Maverick wriggled even closer and draped a leg over Ice’s middle to pull him closer. The taller pilot’s head was pressed against Maverick’s chest where he could hear the familiar strong heartbeat. It was how they tended to sleep now, both holding each other for dear life until there came a time when they no longer could. It was a thought neither one liked to express, but it was always there.
The two stayed close together for the remainder of the day, and although Ice may protest to it, Maverick wouldn’t have changed anything.