Work Text:
a hard, gruff sigh left Buildermans mouth. Clockwork still wasn't done with the paper work he gave him 3 three hours ago! 3! it couldn't have been more than registering a few new hackers files that'd recently been sent to the Banlands, God he was so tired of his team sometimes. his ears pinned back in annoyance, rubbing his temples to soothe the growing headache he's had since lunch. he took a deep breath before opening his mouth.
"listen, just.. hand em over to me. they gotta be registered by midnight, and I hate to pick up extra work, but Im sure as hell you ain't finishing them by then. be lucky I don't let Roblox give ya another write up."
his voice rasped, throat slightly aching at the words. with that, clockwork thanked him, setting two overflowing folders. this was gonna be a long, long night. he told his husband he wouldn't stay at work too late tonight, he felt a little bad at the fact he had too. he himself desperately wanted to go home, his body ached and he started getting chills, assuming he was developing something small he could work through. Nothing sounded better than curling up in his bed with a warm blanket and his spouse at his side, but he was stuck here. he knew he'd need to sacrifice some personal wants when he got promoted as a head admin, it was his responsibility to take on extra work diligently to keep things running smooth! at least it wasn't something like roblox requesting help around his farm again, he remembered how sore he felt. He felt sure he could power through a bit of illness, that was no setback! a sneeze came out right after that thought.
--
tired eyes blinked at Buildermans computer screen. his eyes flicked to the time, 6pm, he was meant to be home 2 hours ago. the sun outside his window started setting, the bright light only amplifying his now pounding migraine. any symptoms he felt beforehand seemed to have multiplied by 100x. the slight roughness he felt in his throat now ravaged him, making it tough to even swallow his own salivia. his head was foggy and he couldnt keep focus, exhaustion taking a hold of his body, but he needed to get this done. He was just about through with the first file, which meant if the next one took the same amount of time he'd be home by.. 9pm. that was fine. he ignored the way that deeply upset him in a way it usually didn't, his head falling weakly at the thought. God, he missed his husband.
the was the worst time to be stuck at the office, during one of shedletskys "mental health weeks". he supported his husband in taking care of himself, really, but he wished he were here to bother him like usual. it'd make his so far miserable work day so much better. realizing he was zoning out, he tried hard to type into his keyboard with his shaking hands before a ringing came from his phone. it was shedletsky! he picked it up with no hesitation.
"hey..cough darlin!"
"I thought you- are you okay?!"
he didn't realize his usually smoother voice got so.. hoarse over the last couple hours, or how much extra strength it suddenly took to speak.
"yeah, yeah. I'm.. doin' alright."
"you don't sound alright, did you go in sick?"
a slight scolding tone fell into the chickens voice, naturally Buildermans demeanor changed slightly.
"no.. Ill be home soon enough honey I just-"
a coughing fit interrupted his sentence, each exhale agitating his head more than before.
"I'm picking you up."
the phone clicked before Builderman could think of a response, his eyes burning in his head from the now so much worse migraine despite how cold he felt under his jacket. he tried his best to keep working, he needed the work flow to keep flowing smoothly, but he wasnt sure how much longer he could hold out til his husband was here. he doubted if anyone was left in HQ other than Roblox himself, maybe doombringer, and the janitors. he started to consider calling roblox to ask for extended time on the files, he knew shedletsky would drag him out by the ear if he refused to cooperate, but everything felt so.. heavy. his arms fell weak as he went to pick up his phone as he just did, he figured he'd just call him the next morning. all he could do was sit in misery.
no more than 10 minutes could've passed before he heard the door knob to his office jiggling to open, ears perking up ever so slightly. it was hard to see with the lights off in his office other than his computer screen, but he could recognize those wings anywhere, shedletsky! a dopey smile crossed his face as he looked towards his spouse and waved with the strength he had.
"darlin'!"
his voice was quiet and torn, he tried really hard to express how happy he was to see him, but it was really hard when it felt like he was being drained of his life force.
"cmon sickass, I already spoke to bossman, whatever work you have is on hold for now."
shedletsky spoke with a commanding, yet sweet tone. Builderman let out a pleased grumble as he took a few attempts to keep his balance, stumbling a few times as he stood. his vision blurred a bit and he was so dizzy.. he just wanted to lay down. he opted to wrap his arms around his bird and use him for balance as they walked, tail stupidly wagging as his husband reprimanded for staying so late, especially while he's ill. he was just happy to leave and to be with him. as they exited the building into a dark parking lot, they beelined for his car. it was so cold, to Builderman at least. falling into the passenger side, Builderman had never felt such relief from the familiar scent of his leather seats.
--
mucus filled coughs came out Buildermans mouth as his husband waited for the thermometer to tell him his temperature. he kept himself wrapped in way more blankets than he needed, but it felt so nice. he didn't even bother to change out of his work clothes, they were uncomfortable and rough on his skin but he didn't know if he had the strength to do that if he barely had the strength to keep his own balance, and he didn't want to ask shedletsky for help. every other time an illness got him, he forced himself to be independent, rufusing his husbands help, but it seems all of that came to bite him in the ass.
"102.5F, if that goes up we're going to a hospital."
Builderman tried to give a protest, but by this point he completely lost his voice, resorting to whines or grunts as communication. a long whine came out at the suggestion, he hated doctors. they smelled weird to him, and they were always too touchy.
"too bad pup, if it's something serious then your gonna get help, for now I'm running you a shower and cleaning you since can barely stand and I'm not sleeping with an already sick dirty dog."
he laughed a bit ending the sentence, a louder whine than before came out. he didnt even give him a choice to try on his own! it was so unfair. he heard the water start running, tallons clicking the floor as he walked from the bathroom back to their room to grab over sized pajamas for the both of them, guess shedletsky was showering too. it'd make sense for him to kill two birds with one stone.. or.. two bacterias with one soap? how many bacteria do birds have? the fever started impacting his mind.
right as he lost himself in a very deep train of thought about various animals and how much bacteria each had, at very least coming to the conclusion he had 83 and shedletsky had 75, his husband came and got him for their shower. unwrapping his very warm blanket, exposing him to the cruel cold of their room, he got up using the bed for support.
even with shedletskys help, he still stumbled a bit towards the bathroom connected to their bedroom. shedletsky thought about letting him strip himself, but that was thrown out the window as he watched him pitifully fumble, having to hold in a giggle for his partners sake.
"Sit. Stay. Ill do the work, you sit there and look pretty."
the warm steam lightly caressed the man's shivering body, impatiently sitting on the edge of their toilet lid. looking over to his spouse undressing, it wasn't anything new but he loved to see it. his lean figured covered in feathers looked so good to him.. his gorgeous face ever so slightly covered by long curls reaching down his back, he could just take a bite out him. Builderman half lidded stared and zoned out in love despite the state of misery his body was in, tail wagging wildly without realizing.
"stop thinking whatever your thinking, builder"
the comment snaped him out his daze and put him back into his uncomfortable reality. he didn't realize the man had moved to directly in front of him, he was able to see the scars on his chest in full detail. how did he know he was thinking? his head tilted with a curious hum as he looked up to his birdy with confusion.
"you always give me the same expression when your head wonders off, and that stupid tail you forget about gives you away, idiot."
he said it with a teasing tone that almost made him forget about his headache, but his state kept him grounded down. he let out a playfully dismissive him with an eye roll, earning a flick to the forehead. shedletsky started stripping him as he stared at his lover the whole time. he felt so cold bare, even though his body was covered head to toe in hair or fur. he shivered in the humid air as he slowly stood up, hand in hand with shedletsky. dizzily stepping into the hot water, his whole body relaxed. it felt so nice against his shivering skin, his migraine persisted, but he'd gotten used the feeling by now. he leaned up against the wall and did nothing as he waited for his husband to follow suit, remembering his words of sit there and look pretty.
within a minute or two the chicken came in, cleaning rags in hand. after getting Builderman soaped and bubbly, his husband felt his body up and down, "to ensure it was all rubbed in.", though he didn't complain, as long he wasn't as cold as before. shedletsky felt from his collar to his thighs, drinking in the sight while Builderman sat and smiled innocently. Builderman had some fat built up mainly on his stomach and thighs, he tried losing it to many times but it never went away fully, and his husband loved it. he liked to squeeze at him, grab his thighs or his ass, it wasn't really meant to be sexual, he just enjoyed touching his partner. Builderman knew that, but that didn't stop his body physically reacting, even if he himself didn't feel much at the moment, though, he ignored it.
despite how nice he felt with his partner, his illness pervaded his joyful shower. his head started throbbing harder than ever and his nose stuffed up, deadly combo. after a few minutes of suffering half zoned out as his spouse ruffled his feathers over and over under the water to get them cleaned just how he liked, Builderman leaned forward into the bird. wrapping his arms around his torso, he leaned his head into his shoulder with a high pitched whine to indicate he was ready to get out.
"alright, alright ill finish up."
shedletsky looked down at the poor dog, whining and sniffling on his shoulder. he gave him some pats on his back before turning off the water, the cold air instantly greeting and infiltrating Buildermans skin, shivering once more. in better news, his dizziness went away.. for now. his tail tucked between his legs as he attempted to rush drying, starting by half ass shaking the water on his body like usual, though with his weakness it didn't help much. he didn't bother with boxers, his slightly damp legs slid into this pajama pants, not caring to wear the shirt his husband so kindly got him. throwing his work clothes into a basket, he b lined for his bed.
"I'm gonna get you some medicine when I'm dressed."
his husband called out but he tuned out. immediately hopping into it, melting into the blankets, his shivers persisted but it was so much better in warmth. feeling as if he could dissolve in it, his tail wagged heavily in the confined space under his body weight. soon, his feathered companion returned with a few pill bottles, two water bottles, and an extra blanket for them.
"swallow whatever you thinks gonna help, I know your too sore for food, so drink."
they set the items on the bed in Buildermans reach as started fluffing and organizing his side of the bed, a nightly routine for the bird. he sat up in bed reluctantly, grabbing some Tylenol and drinking up two pills. one caught the back of his throat swallowed causing him to violently gag but nothing else. he tried to force the water down, but it hurt too much, he'd consider it more if he were awake when the medicine kicked in.
he set the bottles on a night stand, turning around to shedletsky right as he decided his bed was adequately ruffled just as his feathers were. the single blanket he brought for himself covered his lower half as he sat up, finding some shitty tv drama to watch before he fall asleep. as he did so builderman weakly crawled to lay his head in his lap, coughing like he had pneumonia, quite frankly he felt like he had it. the dog curled against him, attempting to breathe his scent in despite how congested he was but it just made him cough into the birds lap. a hand lightly stroked the top of his head scratching his scalp slightly as it did, instantly making him more tired than it should. sniffing as he rubbed his face against the cloth attempting to get comfortable, his eyes closed as he eventually dozed off, his snore amplified by the fact he couldn't breathe through his nose.
he should've just left work when he got that damn headache.