Orion

Fevers

"Laaaaaance are you getting up?" Allura knocked on her brothers door to get ready for the school day. He stirred in the bed but didn't wake up.

"Lance get up, we have school," she walked over to shake his shoulder.

"Whoa your really warm," Allura pulled her hand back when she touched his bare shoulder.

"Don't feel good, go away," lance mumbled and Allura felt his forehead.

"Lance your burning up, when did you get a fever?" She gasped a little and went to the bathroom to get him a cold washcloth and a bucket.

"I wasn't feeling good but I thought it was just a cold," lance laid on his back and stuck one of his feet out from the blanket feeling warm now. 

"Maybe you should wear your hood up at night patrols then, I'll pick you up some soup and crackers on my way home from, text me if you need anything or need me to come home," Allura kissed the side of his head then placed the cold cloth on his forehead before leaving to head to school.

Lance inhaled deeply sinking under his covers feeling a shiver run down his spine, he pulled his other blanket over him trying to keep himself warm with the cold cloth on his skin. He fell back asleep after a few minutes not bothering to fight his own body that begged him to sleep.

"Shit you need to watch it!" Lance snapped at Allura as she was on the ground from where she was almost clawed by the shadow they battled.

"I almost had it, are you okay? It was close to getting you," Allura got back to her feet as lance helped her up with a grunt.

"I'm fine, you go right and I'll take left, we can corner it," lance motioned ahead as police sirens started to circle. Each night the cops get closer and closer.

"On it," Allura nodded taking off as lance wobbled a little holding his side, he hissed feeling blood soak his black clothes from the deep claw slashes on his side, three gashes on his ribs to his hip. Blue blood staining the clothes. He panted a little knowing it would've been worst if his sister was hit.

"wait up!"

Lance groaned as he opened his eyes as he laid in bed, he whimpered sitting up and got to his feet. Dragging himself to the bathroom feeling dizzy, he flinched at the light when he turned it on, lifting the side of his take too seeing blood soaking through the bandage and cloth. He hissed pealing the bandage off his skin and could tell he had an infection, he was just to exhausted to fully clean the big wounds last night.

Lance broke out in a heavy cough as he leaned against the counter covering his mouth. He inhaled deeply and groaned in pain.

"S-shit," he rasped grabbing a kit they kept in almost each room, he sat on the toilet to clean the would and bit back his screams of pain. Cold sweat ran down his body as he shakily patched himself up again with a gauze on his side, he grabbed a tee shirt from the pile of dirty clothes he kept in the corner.

He slowly walked down the stairs gripping the railing as his side throbbed, he grunted letting go and went to the kitchen to find the pain killers for it. He stumbled a little holding his sweaty forehead but he felt like he was freezing.

Lance whimpered sitting on the couch and laid down shivering. He was so cold but the sweat was so uncomfortable.

Knock knock knock

Lance froze and rolled off the couch panting to get back to his feet. He turned his hair back to brown from its natural white.

Lance covered his mouth trying to hold in his cough but leaned against the door coughing harshly, he breathed raspy trying to catch his breath as he opened the door.

"Wow you look like shit," Keith looked at him amused.

"What the ... fuck..?" Lance blinked confused as the shorter boy stood in front of him.

"Why..?" He trailed off but coughed into his hand again.

"Someone said your sick, we have a big ass test tomorrow so here's the notes," Keith rolled his eyes and handed lance the papers.

"I..." lance sniffled a little as he couldn't focus.

"You look pale, you okay?" Keith noticed he wasn't really able to keep his head straight.

"Mm no, I'm just tired, I have a cold," lance waved it off as he went back inside, he didn't bother with the door but Keith walked inside to make sure he didn't pass out.

"Is your sister home?" Keith asked as lance laid on the couch with his eyes closed again.

"No.. lura left," lance huddled his body together as he shivered.

Keith went to the kitchen annoyed as he grabbed a cup from the sink and fulled it with water. He dug through some draws and found a thermometer and pain killers.

"Here dumb ass," Keith walked back as lance was almost back asleep. "Take this then these before you go back to sleep,"

"Why does it feel like I'm hallucinating again?" Lance mumbled sitting himself up on his side with an arm propping him up. He gasped holding his side as his arm shook under him.

"What's wrong with you?" Keith rolled his eyes as he handed lance the thermometer to take his temperature.

"My body hurts," lance mumbled as he waited for his temperature.

"If you have a fever you probably feel achy, or sucks," Keith nodded and heard a beep, taking the thermometer back.

"Dude you have a 103.1 fever, you need a cold bath to break it or something," Keith told him a little concerned.

"Later, I'm tired," lance shook his head. "I'm already cold,"

Keith pursed his lips and saw a blanket on the couch behind him, he grabbed it and threw it at the other teenager. Lance snuggled under it as he buried his nose in the blanket closing his eyes. Keith looked at him a little softly seeing how lance was so relaxed as he could tell the boy was exhausted, stressed, there was so much on his plate. There was a cut on his cheek that wasn't there yesterday when they left school.

He knew lance wasn't abused at home, it was part of the reason he came unannounced one more time just to make sure. No warning for lance to clean up anything. But no one was home, it didn't add up. No one was here to help him seeing lance could easily get worst.

"Can You stay?" Lance whispered as keith snapped out of his thoughts to see blue eyes staring at him.

"What?" Keith didn't believe what he heard.

"It's to quiet, please stay," lance mumbled into the blanket.

"I'm afraid they'll find me like this... I don't want them to hurt you too..." he huffed as keith sat on the coffee table raising a brow.

"Youre nice," lance hummed a little with his eyes closed.

"Uh sure, okay.. who are you worried about?" Keith asked but lance was already asleep again.

Keith made a face seeing the kid had bags under his eyes, seeing him up close like this it was easier to see his facial features. His freckles across his nose and rosy cheeks that were flushed from the fever, and a small scar under his eye brow, he did seem a lot paler rather than his sun kissed Cuban tan. He didn't look good but that could also be the fever. For a wimp, he didn't seem like the worst.

"Yea Lances sister told me he was burning up before school, could be with everything going on that stress catching up to him," pidge told hunk as they walked down the hall.

"I'm worried, he's been loosing more and more sleep lately, especially with everything like you said, plus taking care of his sister," hunk agreed as they passed keith in the hall.

"He never gets sick, probably with those birth defects with his dna and all, so when it's bad it's bad," Pidge pursed her lips shaking her head.

Keith raised a brow at that as he knew lance had asthma and all but the daily beatings, and whatever happens in his personal life, was it getting that bad? He pursed his lips with a scoff a little, it wasn't his problem, why would he care? He wouldn't care even if he was his friend, not like he'd go out of his way to skip school and check on the dumb ass nerd.