Feverish

Cushioned by the grass, Zhang Han's fall wasn't extremely loud, and yet Vaien heard it. His ears been secretly listening in for any signs of Zhang Han calling him back over with apologizes and pleads against his own will.

He had heard none of those, and only the sounds of a fallen body and shallow breathing.

"..." Vaien stopped in his tracks.

He scowled.

Then he scowled even harder. Three distinct wrinkles appeared on his forehead.

He swiveled around and went back towards Zhang Han's unconscious body.

...

It was dark. Zhang Han felt a heavy clamminess lingering over him, weighing down his forehead and body. So hot...and uncomfortable. His stomach and chest ached to the very bone. Cold sweat coated his brow.

He gave a small groan, assuming that nobody would be nearby to hear it, anyway. Then he closed his eyelids again, too exhausted to keep them opened.

Right, he got injured. Vaien left on his own.

He lost consciousness next to the rubble of the cliff.

Zhang Han knew he should stand up and try to find safety before he was eaten by something. In fact, he thought he heard small rustling noises in the grass nearby him. When his eyes were closed it was impossible to tell where or how far such a creature was from him.

...right now he just didn't have the energy to open them.

He kept his eyelids closed, his eyelashes trembling gently and breaths shallow. His forehead felt like it was boiling.

An unknown amount of time passed as he slept thinly, until he felt some odd sensation pressing against his lips. Zhang Han was mildly confused and was able to muster the strength to crack his eyes open, but they were glazed and bleary, unable to see much of the source.

Red flashed in his vision.

"...Vaien?" he mumbled weakly.

There was a pause. "...yup."

Something tender and soft pressed against his lips again, prying them open. Zhang Han did little to prevent it now that he was aware of Vaien's presence. He didn't really understand nor care about his intentions, and was too sick to bother pondering on it.

Thus, he was unsuspecting when cold and refreshing water entered his mouth and slipped down his throat. It even had a slightly bitter and herby taste, as though infused with medicines. But it was a good thing. The only vague thought that went through Zhang Han's head was how dry his throat had been before, and how much the liquid revitalized it.

Thanks for at least doing something right, Vaien.

Zhang Han sighed, then closed his eyes to fall back asleep.

…

Some time later, there was a light chirping sound. It was the same sound the white deer made every morning as they gathered their herd together after rest. They'd pull their tall necks up high and chirp in a high-pitched, melodious tone. Soon that tone would decrease in volume to a strange gurgling squeak.

Zhang Han still felt feverish, but he opened his eyes wider this time, more lucid, and stared at the scene in front of him.

Fern leaves several feet away blocked out all but a few spots of dappled sunlight. They were broad and yellow-green leaves with white dots on the underside. He was lying underneath this tall fern plan, like when he and Vaien had hidden from the goliath killer.

These were the plants that grew in the forest across the grassland.

Zhang Han wiped the sweat off his brow and stared down at his body.

He was covered with three layers of furs...so it was no wonder he was so hot and sweaty all the time, it compounded with the fever to make it unbearable. He inched his hands against the furs, ignoring the soreness in his chest, and pushed them all to the side.

Better.

A number of other items also laid about under the fern. A large satchel that was dusty and torn in one spot, even his laser gun and bow. A few other essential items were strewn about, too, such as a brush and his instalight.

He paused.

...huh. Weren't these all lost in the landslide wreckage of the cliff side?

They certainly were. Zhang Han unconsciously lifted his hand up to brush over his lips. So...yesterday, he didn't imagine Vaien coming over and feeding him water?

Guess not.

So that means Vaien had also searched for some of their items in the rubble?

Zhang Han lifted up his laser bow and saw that it was relatively undamaged. As much as he'd expect from Yiritanium metal, the strongest alloy mix in the galaxy.

He coughed lightly and rubbed his temple. Ugh. He felt sick. Sometimes people who get wounded develop fevers afterwards, so that must have been the case with himself. He did, however, feel slightly better compared to yesterday when it felt like he could scarcely breath. There was only a dull and painful ache every time he used his lungs. He was no doctor, but knew that this bruising wouldn't heal for quite some time.

But why did Vaien come back for him?

Just as Zhang Han started to think about it, the man himself lifted up a fern leaf from outside and stepped into the natural shelter.

Vaien looked a bit tired, there were even bags under his eyes, but for some reason his expression seemed to lighten when he saw Zhang Han staring at him from the ground.

That was because Zhang Han had been ill with a fever for two days. Vaien had been -grudgingly- worried that he'd die and didn't even take the time to sleep in order to keep watch outside and check up on him. Feeding him water and medicine by mouth...bandaging his cuts and bruises....

Vaien knew that was stupid after they argued and all...but what could he say? He'd developed a soft spot for Zhang Han and there was nothing he could do about it. He realized that there was no point denying it. Although he wasn't really sure what that meant entirely, or what it would entail in the future.

But these past days he even missed the fact that Zhang Han would always wake up at sunrise to work on his projects. He missed how Zhang Han would tussle his unruly black hair until it stuck up in places when he was frustrated. And most of all he missed that tepid but tolerating look that Zhang Han would always give him. Oh, yeah, and he missed the sex.

But he had to be honest, it wasn't just about the sex anymore…if it was only about the sex, then that would be easier. More straightforward.

Despite everything Vaien thought when Zhang Han was sick, now that the man had awoken he felt like a tongue-eating frog had got him. He didn't know what words to say after their dumb argument the other day.

"..." he averted his gaze from Zhang Han, his arms full of edible fruits making his intentions more obvious, however.

There was an awkward silence.

In the end it was Vaien who lost.

...Zhang Han was simply too stubborn, refusing to utter a word!

Vaien forced a smile and said, "You...you're awake! Good. I was waiting around for you for so long."

Zhang Han stared at the fruits, then he lowered his gaze.

"...yeah."

"These are obviously for you," Vaien added, bringing over the fruits. They were the circular and soft skinned ones with the pink inside that was sweet and mild. "All of them."

Such a food was about right to pad Zhang Han's starved stomach, not too heavy in a way that would make him feel sick again. Plus he was naturally starving. Three of them were rolled into Zhang Han's lap and he sat up more with a wince before lifting his hand over to grab one. His fingers were shaky and tense after clenching them during his fever.

He sighed.

Then Vaien plucked one off his lap and pressed it against Zhang Han's lips.

"You-" Zhang Han began to object, but the soft fruit was only pressed further into his mouth and his voice muffled. "..."

"Eat." Vaien said persistently. "Eat a lot so that you get better...it was my fault about what happened to our home. Okay? I admit it. So I went back to search through the rubble and gather up what I could find."

Zhang Han furrowed his brow, then opened his mouth and took a bite off the fruit. The soft sweetness filled his mouth with flavor. Zhang Han chewed a bit more before swallowing, then took another bite. But on the third bite, he stared past the fruit shoved up to his mouth to sneak a look at Vaien's expression.

The man had a toothy grin, eyes crescents as he fed Zhang Han. He was watching closely, too, as though each bit Zhang Han took was of great interest.

Now Zhang Han just wanted to roll his eyes. There's nothing sexy about eating a fruit, right? Why would Vaien care...but at some point he forgot about that, zoning out on his mission to consume food and the inherent drowsiness of being injured.

That was when he nibbled on something that wasn't part of the fruit, but the tip of Vaien's finger.

Vaien purred, lifting his finger to his red lips and licked off the wet traces of saliva and fruit juice.

"Here, I'll feed you another one," he said.