Harry stood in the shower for a good hour and a half, alternating between standing up and sitting down when he got dizzy. His head was hurting, and it had moved behind his eyes now; his fever had gone down a little, but was staying steady at 102.1, and his stomach was in bits, but at least the boner was gone, because that had been really embarrassing.

God, I feel so sick. He thought, even the voice in his head a moan.

Part of it, of course, was the way he'd been thinking about Sadie. The things he wanted to tell her--everything from his favorite color to his long-ass bucket list and all the things he wanted to do; the way he felt about her and how much it scared him because he had never even loved Eliana the way that he loved Sadie, because he had never dreamed about moving into a nice place with a huge yard before, but now he was because a yard was essential for children to play in with some dogs, and he had never been this nervous around Eliana and yet so comfortable at the same time. Harry didn't just love her, he was in love with her, and those are two very different things.

He sat for another few minutes, both glad and annoyed he had asked Sadie to leave. He wanted so badly for her to stay, but he knew that if she did, if she didn't go back to her own house, things would be pretty different right then, and he was too sick to handle that.

The water started to run cold, and Harry stood up, rinsing out his hair one last time before shutting off the water and wrapping a towel around his waist. He'd text her, he decided, and tell her that he was glad she had stayed when she could've gone home. He didn't want her to be upset with him, and he was terrified that he was going to say or do something to make her leave and find someone else, which was yet another thing that hadn't quite happened with Eliana, whereas with her, that's exactly how Hayden had felt.

Harry shivered a little and wrapped the towel a bit tighter, shutting off the bathroom light and padding down to his bedroom where he flopped back onto his bed and scooped up his phone.

Hey

Hi :)

You got home safe?

Yeah, I did. :) Nice and warm, showered and in comfy pjs.

Lol, that's good.

I'm sorry I told you to leave

No worries :) I kinda embarrassed you there.

No kidding -_-

Sorry XD

I CANNOT GET OVER THE FACT THAT YOU ARE USING 'XD' NOW OMG

Wow, my head really protested that thought--too loud. *pained wince*

If I was there I'd rub your head for you. :0 :/ :)

I know :(

If you had stayed things would be different now though.

What do you mean?

I mean that right now I am lying on my bed in my towel and I'm all alone in my room.

So?

So if you were here, I might not be alone. And I may not have showered alone either.

Really?

Yeah. Because when I was telling you to stay but then telling you to leave, I really, really, really wanted to ask you to come shower with me.

Why didn't you?

First off, my parents are in the house. It's their house. Second, I'm sick and I don't know that showering together would be the best thing, because that usually leads to sex, and sex while I'm this sick might not be a good pairing.

True :(

YOU USED A FROWNY FACE.

Yes, I did. *awaits response in confusion*

DOES THAT MEAN YOU WOULDN'T HAVE COMPLAINED?

If you asked me to shower?

And if we had sex?

YES

No, I wouldn't have complained at all.

I'm sure you noticed, I was pretty aware of your *cough*

Just say it, silly XD

Your dick. There, I said it. I noticed your dick.

I know you did XD

Your ears were red XD

My face felt like it was on fire *facepalm*

What you're saying though is that if you weren't sick, you'd have liked me to stay?

If you hadn't given me a boner, yeah, I'd have wanted you to stay and take care of me. You made me feel a lot better being here the past day and a half. I really appreciate it.

Of course :) I'll always be up for taking care of you.

Same :)

Thanks but I think I know you want to take care of yourself. After all, I mean, you had to take care of yourself a little bit when I left. Or at least, the big bit.

OMG -_-

Can we not talk about my penis?

It's fun though ^_^

You're enjoying yourself over there, aren't you?

Yes sir, I am. ^_^

You're cute.

Why thank you :)

And don't pretend like you weren't eyeing my breasts. ;)

Something tells me you're the kind of girl who just speaks her mind without caring what someone thinks about it. *insert pondering face here please*

Oh really, however did you know? *insert identical pondering face here if you please*

Haha

I'm guessing it had something to do with my talking about your penis.

You would guess correctly, ma'am.

I'm smart ^_^

Yes, you are. :)

So how are you feeling?

I felt better when you were with me.

Awww

I'm being serious haha

Awwwwww

Did you really just double the w's to show that you think I'm being cute?

Maaayyybeee. ;)

I repeat, you're cute. XD

I know ^_^

Ooooh, someone's confident today.

I'm always confident :)

Liar

Well, I usually am. ^_^

Good, you should be. :)

I love you, Muffin.

Aw :)

I love you too, Buttercup.

Hmm. If I'm Muffin, I wonder if that makes you the Stud Muffin.

O_O

I never thought of that.

Tell me about it, stud.

YOU ARE NOT SANDY, DO NOT BE SANDY.

That means you're Danny Zuko though.

YOU ARE SANDY, BE SANDY.

You're hilarious, babe. XD

I know I am LOL XD :) ^_^ :P :D :*

Oh wow, all the emoticons. XD

That's not all of them but okay. XD

What are you doing, baby?

Sitting.

-_-

Texting you.

Double -_-

Lmao, babe, I'm just watching TV.

Okay, what show are you watching?

Grey's Anatomy.

Why?

Because that's my go-to show when I'm on my period.

Ooh fun XD

So you can watch even more blood . . . that makes sense.

Don't tease me. I'm having a good time sitting here watching chaos in an ER and McDreamy making an elevator horny with McBitchface as I call her.

Oookaaay. . .

I am McConfused

You don't watch it?

Not really.

Then don't make fun of my go-to show when I'm on my period. Got it?

Got it, baby.

Hey wait, what was fun? What did you mean by 'ooh fun'?

My period? Because that can't be right yet that's all I can see in that sentence.

No dumb-ass. -_- I was being sarcastic.

Oh

Oh! I get it now. *facepalm*

No, don't facepalm, abby, you'll make your pretty skin oily. :(

I don't know an Abby actually. ^_^

I meant BABY duh

Baby Duh? That's an interesting name. ^_^

SADIE -_-

Sorry XD you're funny even when you're not trying.

Here I am just trying to picture my beautiful girl and figure out if she's as bored as I am, and I'm getting bullied.

Alright, sensitive, alright, alright. I'm sorry, lovebug, I'll be serious now.

Lovebug?

SENSITIVE?

I'm still being bullied. -_-

For your information some girls find it attractive when guys are in touch with their emotions. I personally hoped that you might be one of those girls. ^_^

I love you XD

Yes, you are my lovebug. ^_^

And I do find it attractive. :) many men hide their feelings, it's much more manly to show them.

I agree.

You realize that lovebugs literally just cling to each other and mate all day, right?

Yes, of course I do. Because they're in love.

They're also creepy and ugly.

-_- here I was trying to give you a cute name and you go and ruin it.

I prefer Buttercup anyway. ^_^

That's a flower -_-

Flowers are sweet and pretty and smell nice.It's a cute loving pet name don't bash it.

I only bash pinatas. . .

-_- SADIE -_-
        -_-

Ooh, you circled my name in them! :) why not the top?

Because that's a gateway, so you can escape the dungeon of -_-'s.

That's . . . a bit morbid.

This conversation just got very depressing. Why do you want me in a dungeon?

-_-

True though :(

I don't :(

I just made myself sad, Sades :( I was trying to make a joke.

It was a joke?

It was a . . . WHAT? OF COURSE IT WAS A JOKE. JESUS SADIE.

Sheesh, it's because I didn't like the number four and so I made three instead. Duuur.  

I'm not Jesus, Harry.

OMSTP

What does Tom Petty have to do with this conversation?

YOU REMEMBERED OMG

I OFFICIALLY AM IN LOVE

CRAP I JUST SAID THAT

IGNORE THAT

FORGET I SPOKE

You're adorable XD

You're supposed to say you're in love, too -_- :(

I'm in love, too.

Yay! ^_^ :)

Are you still wearing your dress?

No, I got home and showered.

Ooh, we probably showered at the same time. ^_^

Maybe so :)

Are you wearing sexy pajamas?

If you mean flannel pants and a sweatshirt then yes. XD

Oh, cool. Probably looks cute on you.

I'm just wearing my towel right now, I'm too lazy to get up and find clothes. XD

I thought you didn't like texting naked?

I didn't.

That's changed now?

I don't mind texting YOU naked.

Sweet XD

I'm very sweet :)

Babe, you should probably get some sleep. Go watch television with your mom. :)

Ooh, getting rid of me, are you?

No!

I'm kidding, baby. :)

Oh

I like when you call me baby. :)

Yeah so do I which is why I call you baby. XD

You're funny

So I've been told XD

By who?

You XD

What the actual fuck, Sades.

This was you yesterday.

How the fuck did you get that?

I was at a stoplight?

You knew that was me? Were you stalking me? Wtaf babe that's kinda creepy.

Okay, full disclosure, I was taking a picture of the lady walking her cats, but when I went through my phone I zoomed in and you were there. XD

Nice to know that the cat lady was more attracting than I was. ^_^

Aw, my brother probably threw that shirt out. :(

It had vomit on it, Harry.

Only a little. It can be washed.

I can't deny this.

I know you can't, that's why I said it. ^_^

Go get dressed, silly.

Okay, lovely.

But I know you'll think about my dick anyways.

HARRY -_-

What? *innocent smile and little shrug that makes me look ten times cuter than I already must be to attract a girl of your caliber*

Aren't you the charmer?

Yes, actually, yes I am.

That response reminded me of Phineas & Ferb.

I used to love that show omg

Damn I wanna binge it now.

Omg you would XD

I'll take that as a compliment.

You're cute XD

Wanna see the sweatshirt I'm wearing?

What, no actual pictures of YOU?

Nope

*pop the p*

*always popping the p*

lmfao

Cute

But you should be wearing this

OMG

Like it?

Well

Yes but

I KNEW IT

I CAN BUY IT FOR YOU

SERIOUSLY I DON'T MIND

LIKE

AT ALL

Omg -_- *shakes head with hand over face*

What?

I was going to say I'm nice and warm and comfy in this duck shirt.

I figured.

And that I would not wear that alone.

Duuuh

And that

Wait

"Duh?"

Yeah, duh, I'd be with you when you wore it. ;)

Omg

Okay, I'm going back to watching these annoying 'doctors' try to 'fix' people.

I'm gonna need proof you're in actual clothes by the way.

Have fun, baby XD

Harry was just sitting up when there was a knock at his door, and he heard his father's voice calling, "Harry? Buddy, can I come in?"

"Yeah, daddy." Harry croaked, slowly standing up and wincing at the ache that was returning to his muscles.

His father entered the room and watched for a minute as Harry went to his dresser drawers to pull out some clothes. Harry felt his eyes on him, and he heard his father's footsteps as the older man went to sit down on the bed.

"How you feeling?" his father asked as Harry shimmied into his boxers before removing the towel from around his waist.

"Sick, but better." Harry shrugged, using the towel to dry his hair a bit more. "Thanks, for helping earlier. I know you don't usually have to."

"Anytime, kiddo, you know that. I meant what I said in there." Mr. Peterson said as Harry pulled on a pair of fleece pajama pants and a sweater. "I've always been there for you, whenever you need me. That's not stopping, you're my son. I love you."

Mr. Peterson entered the bathroom to find his heart completely and officially breaking. Harry was clinging to the toilet bowl as though it was the only thing he had, and just as the man entered, Harry shoved his head in threw up loudly, the only other sound being his sobbing.

"Daddy," he groaned, sounding almost whiny. He lifted his head and stared at his father, not quite meeting his eyes. His body was white as paper and he was shaking like a leaf, hair damp and plastered to his face with sweat. Saliva was on his lips and chin, and his eyes were bright and dull at the same time--dull from illness but bright with tears.

"Harry, son, look at me."

"I can't," Harry moaned, shaking his head.

"Why not?"

"You're not supposed to see me like this." Harry sobbed. "I'm always causing problems, you didn't deserve this."

Mr. Peterson got his knees and carefully sat down, wincing at his aching joints. Damn, he was getting old. "The day we brought you to our family, kiddo, your mom and I made a promise to look after you, through anything, good or bad. What would you call this?"

"Bad," Harry groaned. "Very bad."

Mr. Peterson sighed as Harry lurched for the toilet bowl again, gripping it so hard his knuckles were white. He placed his hand on the back of Harry's neck, inwardly grimacing at the sounds his son was making and at the way his muscles were visibly contracting.

"Maybe you--better--out me--" Harry gasped through sobs and heaves.

"No, Harry, don't say that. If you weren't so worked up you wouldn't think that." his father said sadly. "Your mom and I love you so much, kiddo, and so does Hayden."

"Jor'an 'idn',"

Mr. Peterson stayed silent for a moment as Harry gagged again, unsure how to respond to that. He could understand Harry there, and he wouldn't voice his agreement aloud, but it was so easy to think that what his son said was true.

"Harry, you stuck this family together, kid." he finally said.

Harry sat up on his heels, trying to catch his breath.

"Daddy, Sadie's mad at me, isn't she?" he asked, swallowing hard as he kept gasping for breaths.

"No, Sadie isn't mad at you. She was just distracted is all."

"But how do you know?"

"I can see it in her eyes. She loves you, that girl."

"Yeah? Because I l-love her, daddy, I love her s-so m-much." Harry tried to smile, but it was watery and tired. "I d-didn't know you c-could l-love someb-body th-this much."

"I think you should tell her that," Mr. Peterson smiled sadly at the sight of his panicking child, and silently leaned forward to flush the toilet.

Harry was wheezing now and his eyes were growing wide in fear. "I can't breathe, daddy, I can't breathe."

Mr. Peterson wasted no time in opening a drawer on the vanity to pull out his son's inhaler. It wasn't often used, but both he and his wife knew the drill from several experience in the past. As per usual, Harry's hands were too shaky to hold the little object, even though he tried to grab at it desperately, and so Mr. Peterson gently slid it in his mouth for him and pressed the button. Harry sucked the medicine in greedily, and after a few moments he gently pried his dad's hand off and used it himself, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath in before shakily lowering his hand, clutching the object tightly.

"Thank you," he croaked, being cut off by a small cough.

"Don't thank me for taking care of you," Mr. Peterson chuckled.

"Daddy?" Harry's voice wavered.

"Yeah?"

"Hold me?"

Mr. Peterson obliged, knowing that Harry only did this on occasions where he felt especially unwell or upset, and right now, he was both.

"Why would Sadie love me?" Harry breathed out.

"The better question might be, why wouldn't she love you?"

"I know you did, daddy. I love you, too." Harry smiled weakly.

His father sighed and pat the bed beside him, and Harry hesitated a minute before crossing the room and sitting down beside him.

"Did I ever tell you about the day your mom and I adopted you?" his father asked.

"I mean, I remember it, but you never told us what you guys thought of that day." Harry shrugged.

"Well, to put it simply . . . we adopted you boys because your mom spotted you across the room. She saw Hayden bringing you upstairs, and felt bad because you looked upset. When Jordan told Mrs. Marsh that you were unwell, your mom jumped right in and told him that she was a nurse, and could she see you?" Mr. Peterson said, clapping his son's knee and resting his hand there as he took a new breath in to continue speaking. "The minute we saw you and your twin together we knew we wanted you. When we took you lot home, we looked at each other and we both thought the same thing--our lives are complete now. You completed us, Harry, and this family would not exist without you."

"I love you, daddy." Harry smiled, stifling a yawn and giving his father a hug.

"Love you, too, kiddo."

"Can I go watch TV with mom now?" Harry yawned.

Mr. Peterson laughed loudly. "I enjoyed the talk, too, son. No time for your old man? You've always been a mama's boy though, haven't you, kiddo?"

Harry blushed, slightly embarrassed but knowing his father was only teasing him. "I'm really tired."

"I'm only teasing," his father chuckled, wiping at his eyes while standing up and heading for the door. "Yeah, go watch some television with your mother, I'll make you some soup. Think you could keep it down?"

"Maybe a little," Harry agreed.

"Good, and I'll try and find some pepto for your stomach."

"Thanks, daddy." Harry smiled as his father gave him a smile and left the room.

Harry yawned widely before scooping up his phone and stumbling his way to the living room, where he found his mom sitting on the couch with a blue blanket--a blanket they had dubbed their 'sick blanket' and it was only used when a Peterson was sick and needed some 'safety and comfort' as Harry had once put it, though admittedly at the time he was only five and had the chicken pox.

"Hi," Harry yawned again, plopping down on the couch.

"Aw, baby, you look so sick." his mother cooed, brushing a hand against his cheek to feel for a fever. "You don't feel quite as hot as earlier. . ."

"Shower probably helped," Harry shrugged.

His mother nodded. "Sadie's very nice."

"Yeah, she is." Harry smiled a little, too tired to smile wider. "She's pretty, too."

"She's beautiful," his mother agreed. "You like her a lot, hm?"

"I love her," Harry corrected, and paused when his mother frowned. "Really, mama, I do."

"Oh, I believe you." she said slowly. "I just don't want you getting hurt, Harry."

"Mama. . ."

"I'm your mother, Harry, I'm going to worry, and I'm going to wish I could stop things from hurting you but I can't. All I can do is warn you and help you when you need it."

"And love me," Harry laughed a little.

"Yes, I can always love you." his mother laughed. "But you thought you loved Elianna, too, and look where that got you."

Harry frowned a little. "Mom, Sadie is nothing like Elianna. I loved her, but I'm . . . I'm in love with Sadie. I think there's a difference, isn't there?"

"Yes, there is. I loved several men before your father--I even dated him once in high school, before we tried again--but your father . . . your father's the only man I fell in love with." Mrs. Peterson agreed slowly. "Do you really think Sadie's the right girl? Is she--and excuse the cheesy cliche--is the one?"

"Yeah, mom, I think she is." Harry said, not sure why he was getting emotional. "I really think she is."

"And . . . what makes you think that?"

"Because I . . . I want things with her, things I didn't ever think about with anyone else. She makes me so happy even when I thought things were falling apart. She's here for me, no matter what. She calms me down when I'm so far gone nobody else can do anything. She's seen me cry, she's seen me sick, she's seen me worried--she doesn't care, she's still there. She makes me laugh so hard I can't breathe and every time I see her I get these little butterflies in my stomach, and when she touches me my skin tingles and it feels like lightning went up my spine." Harry's voice shook a little, but it was strong, and he couldn't remember a time he had been more sure of himself. He felt his eyes tearing up,the little smile pulling at his lips, and little tingling sensations danced in his stomach. "I can't help but smile when I see her or when I hear her voice, it seems strange to not tell her every little thing. I can picture us together, growing old together. When she laughs it makes me so happy, it's literally like music, and her voice is mesmerizing. I've never met somebody like her, someone who doesn't want to run away or forget or shove me aside. She makes me feel special, needed, wanted. She makes me feel loved, mom, in a way that nobody else ever did. I'm in love with her."

His mother did something very strange then--she started crying, and Harry had never been more confused in his life. Oh, he'd seen his mother cry before, of course he had, but it had always been fairly obvious why she was crying, and now there was no apparent reason and it was making him feel sicker than he already felt.

"Did I do something wrong?" he asked shakily, his voice sounding like gravel. He tried to clear his throat, only to erupt with harsh coughs that had his whole body shaking.

"No, no, no you didn't do anything wrong." his mom said quickly, wiping at her eyes with the backs of her hands. "I've never seen you this sure of something before."

"I am sure." he rasped. "I'm in love with her."

"I know you are," his mother smiled, pulling him in for a hug and lightly patting his back. "My baby boy's in love."

"Mama," Harry groaned weakly, not really understanding why this made her so sentimental.

"I know, I know," she sighed, making Harry giggle at her obvious reluctance. "I just want you to be happy, and this girl seems to do that for you."

"All the time," he agreed, biting his bottom lip hard.

"Alright," His mother sniffed, pulling back and picking up the television remote. "What do you want to watch?"

"Phineas and Ferb," he answered shamelessly, and she laughed loudly as she flicked the television on and her husband entered the room.

"Harry," he said softly, holding out a steaming mug of soup. "I know you might not feel like it, but I need you to at least try and have some of it, once it cools off a little."

Harry grinned. "I know, thank you."

"Oh boy, this show?" his father chuckled as the show finally loaded up. "You used to love this show, watched it all the time."

"There's a hundred and four days of summer vacation," Harry hummed softly, not at all embarrassed to say that he had remembered all of the words to theme song, and quite proudly so.

His father laughed loudly, and his mother smirked a little but still rolled her eyes despite this.

"Discovering something that doesn't exist or giving a monkey a shower," Harry's voice was hoarse and quiet, still not really caring that he was being silly but wondering slightly how Sadie would have been reacting to his sudden childish display of behavior. "Surfing a tidal wave, creating nanobots or locating Frankenstein's brain. . ."

His father was now howling with laughter, Harry's grin almost painfully wide and his throat protesting as he sang louder and in goofy tones, but he couldn't remember the last time he'd had this much fun with his parents, just him and them, nice and peaceful in front of the television and laughing until it hurt.

"You're such a child," his mother laughed loudly as the episode finally began to play. "You used to run around this house singing that song at the top of your lungs with Hayden."

Harry giggled and hiccuped, watching as his father wiped away several tears from his face and caught his breath. Harry hummed in satisfaction as he took a sip of the warm soup broth, cradling the mug carefully in his hands and enjoying the way it warmed him up.

A few more sips later and he felt very full, not really wanting to risk more and growing very tired as he watched the television. Harry yawned and rubbed at his eyes with his fists, hunkering down into his blanket and allowing his father to take the mug from his slightly trembling hands.

"Thank you, daddy." he whispered with a small smile, trying not to fret too much about how his father's hands were also trembling.

"Course kiddo," his father smiled, standing up from his perch on the armrest and bending forward to press a kiss to his son's warm forehead. "Goodnight Harry, I'll see you in the morning. If you're up to it, I'll make you some blueberry pancakes."

Harry hummed appreciatively, hearing his father's footsteps fading from the room as he felt his eyelids growing heavy and beginning to slide shut. He was just entering a hazy state somewhere between being awake and being asleep when he felt a buzz by his head, and he fumbled tiredly for his phone.

Hey :(

Hi ^_^ Why are you pouting?

You never texted me back :(

I forgot :(

I'm not that upset, silly, I just want to make sure you're okay.

I'm fine, love :)

Ooh, 'love' is it?

Well, you are my love, so yeah.

Plus, it just sounds simply dripping with sugar when it rolls off the tongue of a Brit, wouldn't you agree? ^_^

Okay hotshot, did you get dressed?

What, you think I'm just walking around naked?

Ew gross, your parents are there.

Which is why I'm not naked.

Please, you wouldn't be naked anyway.

True, it's awfully cold right now and I think it'd be a bit too breezy if I weren't dressed.

OMG HARRY

What, I can't be funny?

Just answer the question, LOVE.

DAYUM BOI

HOW THE ACTUAL BLOODY FUCK

WHY ARE YOU SO HOT RIGHT NOW

YOU'VE BEEN SICK FOR ALMOST TWENTY-FOUR HOURS NOW

YOU'VE BARELY MANAGED TO EFFING KEEP WATER DOWN

SO I REPEAT

YOU

HOT

NOW

HOW

?????

Whoa Muffin, calm down LOL

I'm not hot, I just told you I'm cold ;)

HARRY BEAR

Harry Bear?

Yeah, I'm bein' cute. :)

Okay cutie, whatever you say.

Seriously though babe, you look really good.

I want to kiss you.

Thanks and I want to kiss you too, sweetheart.

Awwww :*

Just ONE? I can do better than that, baby.

:* :* :/

:/!!?!?!?!

THAT WAS A TYPO

:*

I LOVE YOU

I love you too ridiculous monkey you

Okay now this is just getting weird XD

I know ^_^

YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO USE "XD"

I SHAN'T USE "XD"

YOU JUST DID HAHAHA I WIN

Win what? What did you win? We weren't competing?

That's one too many question marks, love. ;) ^_^

Oh whatever -_-

Are you feeling any better?

Yeah a little

Especially now that I'm talking to you ;)

What are you doing?

Watching TV with my mom :)

What show?

Phineas & Ferb. ^_^

OMG seriously? -_-

Yeah I love it ^_^

You would

I remember the song ^_^

Again, you would

And I sang it proud ^_^

Again again, you would.

What, that doesn't turn you on?

I repeat, you monkey.

But you love me

*sigh* I do

Ooh ah ah

THIS IS WHY I CALL YOU A MONKEY, YOU APE

Apes are very intelligent creatures so I will take that with a bitter laugh and as a compliment. ^_^

Goodnight Buttercup, I'll talk to you in the morning. :)

Goodnight Muffin :) :*

:-*

It's becoming apparent to me that up until now we have omitted their noses :/ *pondering face*

You're adorable XD love you babe

Love you too baby :)

Harry grinned happily, albeit tiredly, as he set his phone down and crossed his arms over his chest, absolutely exhausted as he closed his eyes to sleep, listening to the calming sounds of Phineas telling a delivery man that he was indeed too young to be building a ginormous contraption.

"I remember the last time we watched television like this," his mother chuckled.

Harry laughed a little. "Yeah, me too."

"Mama," Harry groaned from the couch as his mother entered the living room.

"Yes, dear?" she hummed, sitting down on a small couch and opening up her gardening magazine.

"Mama," he pouted, crossing his arms over his chest and fixing her head with an attention demanding stare.

"Yes, Harry?" she asked, not looking up.

Harry sniffled a little, and she looked up. He'd been up sick all morning, and he'd been lying on the sofa for the past few hours, exhausted, cold, shivery; his head was pounding and his stomach still ached, though it wasn't churning or threatening to send anything up anymore. His skin was pale and he had dark circles under his glossy eyes, his face flushed reddish pink at his cheeks due to the fever he had. His eyelids were heavy but he was keeping them open, his somewhat chapped lips leaning into a sulky pout, his hair a mess at the top of his head. Needless to say, Mrs. Peterson felt bad for him.

"Aw, baby, what is it?" she asked softly, her voice on the verge of a motherly coo.

"Feel sick, want cuddle." he pouted, looking close to tears. "Hayden's not home, need loving. Daddy's not home either and you're ignorin' me."

Mrs. Peterson frowned and stood up, going to the sofa and bending slightly to press a kiss to his forehead. "I'm not ignoring you, baby, I've been here all day."

"But I wan' cuddles," Harry pouted. "I'm cold and tired and sick."

Mrs. Peterson laughed loudly as he drew out the word 'sick,' and she rolled her eyes. "This is a bit ridiculous."

Harry cheered hoarsely as she ignored her own words and sat down on the sofa. He kicked weakly at the blanket until it had come off, and he wriggled around on the couch until he was lying down with his head on her lap.

"Play wi' my hair," he murmured sleepily. "I' feels good, y' use' 'o do 'at when I wa' little."

"Harry, you're nearly seventeen now." his mother chuckled, but she listened and began to comb her fingers through his hair.

Harry sniffled, his nose bothering him and he absently brought a hand to his left arm.

"Harry, be careful." his mother warned, and his stomach twisted as he felt the scar that rested there, unused to its presence and hating that it was there.

"I'm sorry," he croaked, trying hard not to start crying or throw up.

"Honey," his mother sighed, her fingers slowing down in his hair and coming to a stop. "I can't tell you not to be sorry. I can't . . . darling if Hayden hadn't been there, I don't know what any of us would of done or where we would be right now. Your father hasn't been home in days, he took that so hard."

"I don't know why . . . I just . . . I don't want to die, mama, I just . . . everything . . . 's so hard right now and I can't . . . I can't d-do it."

"Well, you know that we've already spoken to the doctors, and we're going to speak with them again soon, remember? And we're going to bring you back to the therapists, and you're not dealing with this alone. Your brother is here for you, and your father and I."

"I know," Harry croaked, swallowing back bile. "Every t-time I th-think about it I f-feel so sick, mama, I can't even r-rememb-ber wh-what m-made me . . . I . . . mama."

Mrs. Peterson sighed as Harry started crying. "I love you so much, baby, you know that, don't you?" Harry nodded meekly. "And your father and brother, too." Another barely recognizable nod. "And we'll help you out, and we'll get through this, right?"

"I l-love you t-too, mama."

Mrs. Peterson took a shaky breath. "Don't ever leave, you got that? We care about you too much for that."

"I w-won't," Harry hiccuped. "Mama, I feel sick again."

"Alright, go to the bathroom, and I'll come in a minute."

"N-no, you can st-stay here." Harry sniffled, wiping his eyes as he stood up with a wince of pain at his stiff joints. "P-pick a sh-show to w-watch and I'll w-w-watch it w-with you."

"What do you want to watch?" his mother asked. For the past week they had kept an incredibly close eye on him, and they had decided it was safe for them to not follow his every move so long as they knew where he was. They didn't want to take any chances, though he was adamant that he wouldn't ever 'be as stupid as that' again, because it 'hurts his heart to see everyone scared because of him' and 'he loved them too much and wants to stay with them.'

"I don't care, I'll probably fall asleep." Harry mumbled as he shuffled off, one hand on his stomach.

"Okay," his mother hummed, a bit worried at how rapidly his skin was losing its color. She heard him gulp and sighed as he ran off, shutting the bathroom door loudly.

Picking up the remote she scrolled through several channels and the list of recordings they had before finding something that was both boring and intriguing to watch--The Bachelor. She didn't hear her son coming back into the room, but he soon came into her line of sight, looking more exhausted then ever and his hand still resting protectively over his stomach.

"What'd you pick?" he croaked, sitting down carefully and moving slowly into a comfortable position, head back on her lap.

"The Bachelor," she hummed, playing with his hair again as he pulled the blanket to his chin. His fever was significantly higher, the heat on his skin painful against her fingers, but she didn't say anything about it. "Did you get sick?"

"Mhm," Harry nodded weakly, his eyes closing. "Don't think I can anymore, nothing left. Why are we watching some womanizing man give roses to a bunch of sluts?"

"Because we can get angry and throw insults at them without being snapped back at." his mother chuckled as she pressed the play button. "It's fun to watch this kind of show every once in awhile. It makes you grateful that you aren't petty or desperate like some of these women. It's sad really, most of them have very nice jobs and yet here they are, having some man kiss thirty girls at once while licking whipped cream off their bodies."

"Gross,"

"It's a bit ridiculous if you ask me, throwing yourself at some guy who is essentially rating you and leading on twenty-nine other women. And it's a bit strange watching it with your child . . . you should still be watching innocent things. . ."

"What's ridiculous is the fact that they all sob when a fucking rose is handed to somebody else and they have to leave."

"Language, mister."

"I'm sorry, but it's true." Harry shrugged, closing his eyes again. "Goodnight."

Two minutes later, his head snapped up. "SHE SAID WHAT!? DON'T PICK HER!"