Work Text:
Viktor knew the moment that he woke up that something was off.
He was used to the ever-persistent nausea that came along with the state of his dying body, but this nausea seemed a bit deeper. That wasn't even mentioning the ominous feeling he had in the lower part of his stomach.
Still, he brushed it off. He had work to do. He couldn't afford to waste the day away lying in bed just because he didn't feel well. He never felt well, and it's not like he had an abundance of time to spare. Besides, he was probably fine.
So, he got up, albeit a bit more sluggish than usual, grabbed his crutch, and hobbled his way to the lab.
Once he got there, he set a pot of coffee to brew and did his best to ignore the way that the smell made him twice as nauseous, instead turning his attention to getting out the various tools and notes he'd be using that day while the coffee brewed. Nowadays, he could never be sure when Jayce would show up to the lab, if he did at all, so he made sure to set out all of his tools right from the start so he didn't have to worry about spending extra energy pulling stuff out later in the day.
The coffee finished brewing and he sat down with a fresh, steaming mug in front of his work desk. The growing nausea in his stomach and throat grew even worse as he swiftly downed the entire thing but, still, he brushed it off. He had work to do, after all.
Minutes dragged by like hours as he tried to focus on his work, but his physical state greatly hindered his ability to focus. Worse, he had begun shaking and everything felt far too cold, but a touch to his forehead told him that his body temperature was actually very high. He had a fever, and the nausea grew worse with each agonizing second, but he couldn't be sick. No, that would put him out of commission for at least the rest of the day, and he couldn't afford such a time loss.
Just as he'd finally managed to get a few messy scrawls of probably useless notes written out, his stomach twisted horribly and he suddenly gagged. In a panic, he grabbed the small bin next to his desk and hovered his head above it. The bin was primarily used for scrap paper, but it was the closest thing he could use and he didn't exactly have the time to search for something better, especially as he gagged again, then retched painfully.
After a moment of painful dry-heaving, he finally got something up and puked a slurry of stomach acid, coffee, and yesterday's dinner into the bin. There was so much of it, and it burned his throat as he continued to puke everything in his stomach.
The pressure of puking sparked a sharp cramp in his lower guts, and he suddenly felt a horrible fullness in his lower half. He set the bin back down, though he was still retching, and quickly got up off his chair to run to the bathroom.
He was in such a rush, though, that he completely forgot to grab his crutch and, after only a few painful steps, he tripped and collapsed to the ground in a miserable heap.
As if that wasn't enough torment from the universe, though, he puked again, the sick liquid spewing all across the ground, the pressure of which made him completely lose control of his other issue, and he grimaced in disgust as he felt his lower half expel.
He wasn't sure if it was minutes or hours that passed with him lying there on the floor, helpless as his body continued to expel from both ends, but he eventually heard the door open, followed by a pair of footsteps making their way towards him.
He saw the outline of someone kneeling down in front of him, but fever, exhaustion, and dehydration had made his vision blurry, so he wasn't quite sure who it was until he felt the cool, familiar hand of Jayce touch his forehead.
"Oh, Vik..." Jayce muttered before he gently picked up his partner, bridal style, off the ground and out of the lab. He didn't comment on the smell or the mess, nor did he think less of the man for it. No, he was mostly just concerned.
Viktor felt himself curl up, leaning his head against Jayce's chest as he began to fall into a feverish sleep.
He came to just as Jayce sat him on the toilet and stripped him of his soiled clothing. Viktor felt his body expel more, though thankfully into a proper place for such things this time, and Jayce returned soon after, presumably from throwing out the clothing. He gingerly took Viktor's braces off, which relieved a lot of pain and discomfort for the ill man.
No words were exchanged between the two of them, as Viktor was too weak and delirious to speak any words, and Jayce was more focused on making sure Viktor was taken care of.
Viktor was too out of it to process the embarrassment of the situation, something which became especially helpful as he felt Jayce clean off his body (even the more sensitive areas that he only would be comfortable with Jayce seeing because nobody else knew) with wet wipes and then pick him up and set him in a bathtub full of cold water.
Viktor shivered uncomfortably at the feeling. It felt far too cold, and the shivers made him sick again, causing him to puke in the tub. Jayce didn't say anything as he drained the tub and filled it again, making sure that the water was more of a lukewarm temperature this time. He wanted to get Viktor's body temperature down, but he also didn't want to make Viktor feel so bad in doing so that he threw up.
He wasn't sure how much time had passed before Jayce touched his forehead again and promptly began to drain the tub. He pulled Viktor out, patted him dry, and wrapped him in a robe, then carried him back to his bedroom. He left for a moment then returned with a large bucket, which he placed next to the bed.
Viktor felt a kiss on his forehead, followed by the weight of the other man getting into the bed next to him, then he fell asleep.
When he awoke the next day, his stomach felt less horrid, though he still wasn't 100% back to normal. More surprising to him was the feeling of the man next to him in bed. He turned over and saw Jayce sitting up with a book in hand, which he set aside when he noticed Viktor looking at him.
"Hey, Vik" Jayce said, a gentle concern in his voice. Viktor groaned as he tried to sit up, only to find that he was far too weak to do so. "I put a glass of water on your bedside table" the man gestured. Viktor turned over to see a large glass of water, as well as his crutch leaned against the wall. He shakily grabbed the glass and promptly drank the entire thing, then turned back to Jayce.
"What happened?"
"You got really, really sick" Jayce said softly. There was no judgment in his voice or facial features. "It's okay, though"
"That is... Rather embarrassing"
"It happens" Jayce shrugged. "How are you feeling?"
"Better" Viktor nodded, then settled back down into a lying position. "Not great, though"
"Well, there's a bucket beside you if you get sick again" Jayce informed. "And I'm not leaving today. I'm gonna take care of you"
"I'm not a child"
"I know" Jayce nodded. "You're my partner, and you're sick, so I'm going to take care of you"
"...Thank you, Jayce"
"No need"