The Pack and Sidemen Oneshots

Poofless- Mother Knows Best

Preston's P.O.V.

"You just can't shake that cough, huh." I said, running my hand over Rob's forehead. He was burning up, his face both red and ghostly pale and there were drops of sweat sliding down the edge of his neck, even though he was shivering.

He moaned quietly and leaned into my cool hand, barely even reacting to my words. He was feverish and delirious but ultimately harmless, he could barely even raise his hand and simply wanted to sleep, ignoring all food and water until he was better.

"How are ya feeling?" He groaned.

"Like shit." He said lowly, his voice hoarse and I was actually barely able to hear him.

"Where's that thermometer gone? I need to check your temp again, hopefully it's gone down from yesterday." He nodded, gesturing to the bedside table which was covered in medication, tissue boxes, throat lollies and finally, in an empty mug, the thermometer.

The day before his temperature had been up in the 104 degree range, worrying and almost terrifying because Rob was normally the one with the calm head who knew what to do, and he wasn't anymore. I had to work out what to do on my own, and it was scary.

I placed the thermometer in his mouth and waited a couple of minutes, while running my hand through his sweaty and greasy hair. He hadn't had a shower for a day or two because he had felt so bad and although it probably didn't help his health, I felt terrible dragging him from bed when he could barely stand.

105.1

Well shit. I thought, holding the thermometer in front of my face. I was panicking, what to do, what to do? I didn't know how to deal with a fever, I wasn't my mother, and this was edging into dangerous territory. I wasn't my mother.

My mother!

"I'll be back in a second." I whispered hurriedly to Rob, but he was barely responsive.

I dashed down the stairs and snatched my phone from the bench, desperately scrolling through my contacts list to find my mums number. I called it, hoping she'd be away and around, after all it was only half past 7 in the morning.

"Preston? This is unusual, why are you calling?" I sighed thankfully, leaning heavily against the kitchen bench.

"Oh thank god." Normally I wouldn't say something like that, so my mother knew something was wrong.

"What's happened?" She said, her voice sharp and worried.

"So... ummm Rob's got a really high fever, like it's 105 and he's delirious and really warm and I just don't know what to do." My voice was really panicked, and she could tell. "I'm actually really scared, I don't know how to deal with it."

"Ahhh, high fever. Coughing? The sniffles?"

"Yeah, both." I mumbled, pulling the phone away from my ear only to hear Rob coughing his lungs out up the stairs. With my mum still on the phone I went back upstairs, slipped into our bedroom at sat down on his bed, rubbing his back gently while Rob gasped and tried to stop coughing.

"Okay, I know he's not going to want to, but you need to get him out of bed and into the bath. Run it lukewarm, not cold because that'd be horrible for him, but so he can cool down. Once he's out just dress him in a t-shirt and shorts and get him back into bed, under a blanket or two. No duvet or anything, you need to keep him cool even if he's shivering."

She paused and I moved my attention to Rob. He looked miserable, sweaty and shaking, eyes flickering and leaning heavily up against me, relying completely on me for support.

"Make sure he drinks a lot of water even if he refuses it and check his temp every hour. I've dealt with a lot of fevers with you kids before, it works 99% of the time."

"Who was the 1%?" I asked, trying to keep the mood light even when I was scared.

"You actually, you're the only one I've had to take to hospital because of something other than broken bones and knocks to the head. You were about 2 and your fever hit 106, so I took you to the hospital because it was dangerous for someone so young."

"Well, that wasn't really my fault." I said, giggling.

"Alright, Mr smart alec, go get your boy sorted and call me back once he's back in bed."

"Thanks mum." I hung up, turning my attention to Rob. "Alright babe, let's get you sorted."

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It took almost an hour to drag Rob from bed, run the bath, get him into it and then get him back into boxers and a new t-shirt. He complained and whinged and tried to cling to me, but I fought through all of his whining and bundled him back into bed after stripping the sheets, tucking him under the light blankets I had been recommended.

He passed out almost as soon as his head hit the pillow, and that gave me an opportunity to call my mum back while at the same time I pushed the thermometer into Rob's mouth.

"Hey mum, thanks for that." I sighed, a lot more relaxed now that Rob was asleep.

"Is he asleep now? What's his temp gone down to?" I checked the thermometer.

"Yes he's asleep and his temps down to 102, which I'm happy about." I gently massaged Rob's head, feeling his slightly damp hair from his time spent in the bath.

"That's good, I'm glad it worked." There was silence for a few seconds. "Mother knows best. I'm just happy that you had the sense to call me."

"So am I, I don't really trust the internet for health issues so... yeah. Mother does know best." There was a laugh on the other side of the phone and a happy sigh.

"Call me sometime soon Preston, when he gets better. I'd love you have you two around again sometime soon, I'm surely Keeley and your brothers would like to see you as well."

"I will mum!" I laughed. "I'll sort it out when Rob's better. Love you!"

"I love you too." And with that I hung up the call, sliding down the bed so I could lie down properly and cuddle with Rob. Even in his sleep he cuddled into me, his arms snaking around my waist tightly, and I just cuddled back.

He wasn't as warm as before but he was still like a personal hot water bottle, a cuddly, happy hot water bottle that didn't want to let me go.

"Sleep tight Rob." I whispered to myself, pressing a light kiss to his forehead. "Hope you feel better in the morning."