"Achoo!"

Stephanie sneezed for the tenth time in the past half an hour. Grabbing another tissue from the box by her side, she blew her nose noisily before turning back to her work – her nose red from the cold that was wracking her body. Matthew looked up from his script, frowning at Stephanie who was trying to work on some payment spreadsheets. Her skin was paler than usual, her nose red and running. Every so often she would cough heavily, a painful one that sounded as if she was hacking up her lungs. It was clear that she wasn't able to focus on her work, her gaze sliding to the side every minute or so.

"Do you want to stop for some lunch Steph?"

Looking up from the spreadsheet in front of her, she saw her husband staring at her from across the room with a concerned look on his face. They both knew she was coming down with something but they also both knew that there wasn't really any time to spare to illness. Deadlines were looming and if they wanted to have time off, they needed to sign off on several projects as well as dealing with the usual research and planning for Game Theory and Film Theory. Jason and Chris were already voluntarily working overtime, something that both she and Matthew had objected to. Eventually, they had reached a compromise that they could stay and work extra hours but they had to let Stephanie and Matthew pay for lunch to make up for it.

"Yeah, that'd be nice. You go get Chris and Jason; I think they're in the live stream room setting up the Switch."

As Matthew jogged up the stairs to find Jason and Chris, Stephanie stood up from her chair – having to pause for a few moments as a wave of dizziness swept over her. Once the spots in her vision disappeared, she staggered into the bathroom and splashed cold water on her face. Pulling open the medicine cabinet, she downed a couple more cold relief tablets and decongestants, wanting the cold to just leave her alone. There was too much to do, she couldn't afford a day off right now. If she told Matthew how horrible she was feeling at that moment, he would cancel all of his meetings just to take care of her. They'd had these plans in place for months, she couldn't ruin them now.

Knocking on the door of the live stream room, Matthew walked in to find his two friends sitting on the floor, tangled up in various cables and wires that were clearly meant to be attached to something important. The room went silent for a moment as Chris and Jason made eye contact with Matthew before they all burst into laughter. Together, they managed to untangle the wires and plug them back into the right place – although it did take half an hour to do so. Soon everything was in place and ready for the live stream in a few hours. However, there had been no sign of Stephanie in that time. They'd all noticed it; they just hadn't voiced it aloud until Chris broke the silence:

"Where's Steph? Normally she's up here getting us to hurry up because she's hungry and wanting tea."

Jason and Matthew looked at one another knowingly, they both knew Stephanie well enough to know that she was unwell but was trying to hide it for their sakes. She was so selfless that it drove Matthew up the wall sometimes, she never wanted to be a bother or to interrupt any pre-made plans, even when it was her health at stake. He jogged back down the stairs, grabbing his jacket from where it hung on the bannister and looked around the house for his wife. Each room he walked into was empty. Soon he walked into the living room and caught a glimpse of something moving out of the corner of his eye. It was Skip.

"Meow."

His cat walked up to him and weaved through his legs, rubbing his big fuzzy head against Matthew's calves in greeting. Leaning down to pet his buddy, Matthew smiled softly as Skip strained to reach his fingers, desperate for affection. Skip tended to be more affectionate with Stephanie so he always appreciated these little moments with his cat. However, Skip quickly walked away from Matthew once he had been pet, turning back to look at the confused man. Striding to Skip's side once more, Matthew spotted Stephanie. She was slumped on the sofa, her chest rising and falling steadily. Her hair covered part of her face but she looked peaceful and calm, something Matthew hadn't seen on her face in a while.

Walking over to her side, Matthew gently moved her hair out of her face – tucking it behind her ears. He looked at his wife for a moment, just taking her in. This beautiful, talented, kind-hearted and selfless woman had chosen him. She had married him, suffered through poverty and endless trials with him. All because she loved him, more than anything in the world. She was his light, his salvation, his hope in the darker days and his joy in the brighter ones. Every moment he spent with her made him feel like the luckiest man in the world. Sitting carefully on the sofa, Matthew pulled his sleeping wife into his chest, smiling as she instinctually cuddled into him – her head resting against his heart. He stroked her hair softly, just enjoying the feeling of having her close to him. Every so often, she would cough and struggle for breath, making Matthew's heart pound but she would soon settle again.

The sofa dipped slightly as Skip jumped onto it, clambering across the cushions and settling himself in Matthew's lap. Smiling, Matthew scratched Skip behind his ears and chuckled quietly when his cat purred in contentment. Resting his head on his paws, Skip quickly fell asleep in Matthew's lap – leaving him little room to move. With his head in Matthew's lap and his legs stretched onto Stephanie's stomach, the cat was not going to be moving for a good couple of hours and neither were the Patrick's. Kissing the top of his wife's head, Matthew allowed his eyes to flutter closed for a few moments, only planning to rest for a few minutes while Jason and Chris got ready to go for lunch. However, tiredness soon got the best of him and he fell asleep, his heart full of love for his family and friends.

"Matthew? Stephanie?"

Chris and Jason rounded the corner, their calls falling silent as they saw the couple asleep on the sofa. Smiling at one another, the two friends walked quietly back into the kitchen and grabbed the car keys – planning on heading out themselves and bringing back lunch for the sleeping pair. Halfway out the door, Chris turned back around and raced up the stairs to grab a blanket from one of the bedrooms. He placed the blanket over the sleeping couple, gently lifting Skip up and placing him on top of the blanket so he could still sleep with Matthew and Stephanie as his little cat heart desired. Jason patted his co-worker on the back and locked the house behind them, leaving his bosses and best friends to some well-deserved rest. They both worked themselves too hard, often ending in one of the pair getting ill. At least they were resting now. The live stream and the work could wait, the health of his best friends would always come first. That would never change.

A/N

A little cute story that I wrote to remind everyone of how hard Matthew, Stephanie, Chris and Jason as well as all of Team Theorist work to provide us with amazing content every day.

Hope you all enjoyed <3

Much love,

Caitlin