A/n: A request from bashfulkayla. Reader is suffering from hanahaki disease. I'm sorry if I missed details from your request. Love you all!!!
~✨Celestial✨~
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~(Y/n)'s POV~

A month had passed since we departed from the Crown City. The five of us were currently resting around a campfire at Telghey Haven that was located near Alstor Slough. At the request of Gladio, Ignis gave him the first-aid kit because of a few minor injuries I had sustained from our hunt. The shield wanted to clean my wounds because they were too small for a potion but too big to leave untended due to infection. I tried to shoo him away, but Gladio sat the first-aid kit down and grabbed both of my wrists in one hand. With his free hand, he pulled what he needed from the kit and tended to the wound on my cheek.

I winced in pain the moment the rubbing alcohol made contact with the gash on my face. I gritted my teeth and tried to break free from Gladio's hold, but he refused to let me go. "Y'know, you're a big baby when it comes to cleaning wounds," he chuckled.

"It hurts!" I defend, a slight blush tinting my cheeks at his close proximity.

"Almost done. Just give me a few more seconds." As promised, he was done and all that was left was a band-aid on my cheek. When I reached to tear it off, Gladio had stopped me. "Don't you dare, (Y/n)."

"I don't need a band-aid on my cheek," I pout.

"Just leave it there. You can take it off in the morning."

I sigh and cross my legs. Ignis was tending to dinner in silence while Noctis and Prompto were too occupied with playing King's Knight on their phones. Since they were distracted, I decided to speak to Gladio. "Thank you for helping me earlier, Gladio."

"What're friends for," Gladio smiled.

I bit my bottom lip, trying to keep it from quivering. "Yeah..." The one word that wounded me on a deeper level than I could've imagined. "What're friends for..." I repeat his words in a hushed voice. Feeling tears starting to surface, I excuse myself and head to the tent for the night without dinner.

When I was able to prevent my tears from escaping, I laid down and curled into a ball. When I closed my eyes to welcome sleep, they immediately flew open due to a violent coughing session. Hunched over, I felt something fall out of my mouth. When I recognized it as a flower petal, I knew exactly what was happening to me. I pick up the small pink and yellow petal and felt a tear slip from my eye.

"Hanahaki disease..." I held the petal tightly in my hand, crumpling it into a small ball. "I'm surprised it's only starting now." I return to my position and wait for sleep to come. Luckily, after a few tears had sprung free, I was able to fall into a deep slumber.

-Next Morning-

When Ignis handed me a plate of food, I thanked him for his hard work but denied the meal. My words caught everyone's attention and now all eyes were on me.

"Are you feeling sick, (Y/n)?" Prompto worriedly asked.

"I'm just not hungry," I simply reply.

When my (e/c) eyes met with a piercing amber gaze, I knew I was caught in a lie. "Bullshit. You didn't eat dinner last night. Something's wrong and you're refusing to tell us."

"Gladio, just drop it. I'm not in the mood for an argument," I calmly state.

"Too bad. We're not goin' anywhere until you tell us what's wrong."

"Enough, Gladiolus," Ignis snaps. Caught off-guard by the strategist's snippy words, the shield fell silent and got to his feet. Finished with breakfast, he excused himself and left the haven. I felt horrible for lying, but I couldn't worry them with my condition.

"So, where to?" Noctis changed the subject for my sake. I mentally thank the prince and smile in his direction.

With the campsite all packed up, we depart the haven and head to Old Lestallum. The ride in the Regalia was painful for I sat between Noctis and Gladio. The entire drive was silent except for a few words exchanged between the two younger boys of the group.

The moment we arrived in the small town, I rushed to a nearby restroom as I felt the telltale sign of the disease erupting in my chest. As I coughed, flower petals poured from my mouth and scattered all around me. If it weren't a sign of unrequited love, the petals would've been beautiful. For me, it was a curse upon my heart and a disease I would surely perish from.

I left the restroom and regrouped with the others who were waiting for me in front of the Crow's Nest. I felt eyes on me and glanced at Gladio. When I caught him staring, he quickly diverted his attention to something else. Ignis was about to speak, but his words fell short when his eyes landed on my stomach. Confused, I looked down to see a flower petal had latched onto my shirt. Ignis pulled it off my shirt and examined it.

"Where'd the flower petal come from? I don't see anyone around here selling anything like that," Prompto wanders as his eyes fell upon me.

"I ran into a little girl who was carrying flowers when I left the restroom. A petal must've fallen off and got stuck to my shirt," I said, lying through my teeth once again. Luckily, the boys had fallen for this lie unlike earlier.

We entered the diner to see what hunts were available due to our low amount of gil. We were in need of curatives and had no way of paying for them. Noctis picked a couple of hunts and we left the diner. The sound of a dog barking caught our attention and we knew exactly who the companion belonged to. "Well, if it isn't my favorite group of hunters! How y'all been?" Dave asked.

Chatting with Dave put a small smile on my face until I felt the urge to cough again. I placed a hand over my mouth and tried to push down the cough. Suddenly, I was grabbed my the arm and pulled away from the others by Gladio. Out of sight from the others, I couldn't hold the cough back. The amount of flowers petals were increasing and I choked on a few. He patted my back, loosening the petals that were lodged in my throat.

After my coughing session, Gladio stared down at the petals by our feet. "What is this?"

"You don't know about the hanahaki disease?" I ask in return.

"Never heard of it."

"Good..." I felt my vision falter and my knees give away from underneath me. Before I could hit the ground, Gladio had wrapped an arm around my waist.

"You're not fine, (Y/n). Why lie to us? We can help you." Gladio's voice was tinged with concern.

"You can't help me with this. I already signed my death certificate the moment the first petal fell from my mouth," I mumble with a raspy voice.

"(Y/n)..." I turn to see the others had secretly followed us. Prompto was the one who muttered my name sadly.

Seeing their melancholic expressions shattered my heart. Even though I knew I shouldn't've lied, I still did. Now, I hurt each and every one of them. "I'm sorry for lying this morning. I... I didn't expect it to be so bad after only an hour."

"How are you faring as of now?" Ignis asked, his eyes glued to the large amount of petals.

"Honestly, I feel like death. My vision isn't clearing and I can barely walk," I admit.

"There's got to be a cure," Noctis said, determination in his sapphire eyes.

Ignis picked up a petal and stared at its eerie beauty. "The hanahaki disease. There is only one cure at this point in time."

"What is it, Iggy?" Gladio asked, his arm around my waist pulling me closer to his body.

"The one she loves must reciprocate her feelings."

"T-Then, who does she love?" Prompto inquires.

Before I could answer, an immense pain shot through my chest. I began choking on petals and the coughing was too painful for me to even speak or mutter a syllable. My vision worsened and I couldn't keep my eyes open. I felt Gladio's other hand cup the back of my neck and cradle my head against his chest. I could hear his voice shaking as he shouted desperately for me to stay awake. Sadly, I could no longer chase off unconsciousness and accepted the darkness in my mind to consume my entire being.

~3rd Person POV~

Gladio tried to awaken (Y/n), but she was unresponsive. Dread took over his entire body as the thought of losing her wouldn't evade his mind. Prompto wanted to burst into a tearful mess and Noctis was pacing back and forth, running his hands through his raven locks.

Ignis picked up a single petal, examining it closely. He searched his memory for any hint to what flower this certain petal was from. As he was trying to think, Gladio shouted out to him. Ignis jolted back to reality and took in (Y/n)'s state. Her skin was sickly pale, her body completely still. "She's stopped breathing. What do we do?!" Gladio bellows.

"Gladio, I-" That's when he finally remembered what flower he had seen those petals from. "They're gladiolus petals..."

"What're you mutterin' about?"

"You are the one she is infatuated with, Gladiolus. These are gladiolus petals," Ignis states, showing the petal to the shield. He was completely bewildered. The tactician noticed, snapping him back to the situation at-hand. "The only way for (Y/n) to survive this disease is if you confess your love to her."

"Is that all?"

"Your feelings have to be genuine. If they are, you will liberate her from her deathbed. If not, she will perish in your arms."

Gladio gritted his teeth in silence. He had feelings for (Y/n), but now he was doubting himself if he truly loved her enough in order to save her from the hanahaki disease that was consuming her life right in his arms. Pushing past the negativity, he leaned down and pressed his lips against (Y/n)'s cold ones. As he passed his feelings to her, he prayed the Astrals would bring her back to him.

The kiss was long and full of love. Pulling away, Gladio stared down at (Y/n). His grip on her tightened when he realized she wasn't waking up. He checked her pulse, feeling it slowly beginning to spike. A few minutes flew by and the girl flew up, gasping for air. The sudden sharp inhale caused her to cough roughly and crumple against Gladio's chest.

Prompto's tears ceased as he saw her skin return to its original color. Noctis smirks in relief along with Ignis as Gladio helped (Y/n) to her feet. She was shaky, but the shield supported her body with his own. The young woman places a hand over her chest. "Now my chest hurts from all that coughing..."

"Need a potion?" Gladio offered.

(Y/n) shook her head. "No, I'll be fine with just a pain pill. No need to waste a potion on chest pain."

"Welcome back, (Y/n)," Noctis smiled.

"Great to be back. How did you..." All eyes then fell onto Gladio, answering her question. "Ah, I see..." (Y/n) mumbles, a little disheartened.

The others picked up on her mood and dismissed themselves so she could talk to Gladio alone. (Y/n) stepped away from the brute, putting some space between them. The shield crossed his arms with a slight glare. "What's up with you all of a sudden?"

"I'm grateful you saved my life, but..."

"'But' what? If you wanna ask something, don't hesitate, (Y/n)."

She sighs. "Nothing. It's something stupid. Forget about it."

(Y/n) turned on her heels, heading to where the others had headed. Before she could take a single step, Gladio grabbed her arm and pulled her back towards him. "What's bothering you? I'm not letting you go until you tell me."

"I know the only way to cure the hanahaki disease is through true love or surgery. You saved me and... and I have doubts."

"About what?"

"We've been friends since we were five, Gladio. All these years, we've only been friends and nothing more. There's... this strange feeling in my chest saying all this was just to save my life and you really don't love me. All you see me as is a friend, which... which hurts..."

Gladio's heart ached as he saw the melancholic expression on her face. What hurt him the most was that she didn't believe his feelings for her were genuine and were just some ruse to bring her back from the clutches of death. "What can I do to prove to you that it wasn't fake?"

(Y/n)'s eyes widened slightly at his question. "W-What?"

Gladio moves his hands to her shoulders. "What do I need to do to prove I love you more than any other person on Eos? Hell, I'll pick a fight with a damned god to prove how much I love you."

Frozen in her spot, (Y/n) couldn't move from his proclamation of love. Gladio saw and released her arm. Instead of stepping away, the shield stepped closer and cupped her cheeks in his hands. Leaning down to her height, he pressed his lips to hers in an intoxicating kiss. (Y/n) was taken aback at Gladio's actions, but she kissed back with the same intensity.

The shield broke the kiss, noting how far behind the others had left them. "I ain't done with you yet, (Y/n)."

"You better contain the beast that's clawing out of you. I'm worn out from all that coughing and my whole body hurts," she said. "You're only gettin' kisses until I'm well-rested."

Gladio grins. "What about-"

"No."