SUE: Soup Fixes Everything (Odion)

[Lani Hunter]

Lani hadn’t heard from Odion recently. He’d promised to cook for Odion but never gotten around to making an official date. Odion had initiated the last time and Lani should do this time. It was a little after lunch and Lani was done with classes for the day and as a bonus it was Friday. His classes were challenging and he was loving it. It was fascinating, math was hard and abstract, and physics was going into things that his power couldn’t feel and sense and he was having a hard time wrapping his head around it, but he loved the challenge of it, he was reading more and going to class, because he actually couldn’t understand it without help. His other classes were equally interesting, Hammel wouldn’t even know it was Lani if they caught onto how much he’d been going to class. He was taking a few physical training classes and an educational psychology class and it was a blast.

He’d talked to someone about being a trainer at Hammel and they’d set him up with the right classes and this semester was already going better than the last. It was warm and Lani was starting to run more outside and he loved nothing more than to take the trails over by the lake. Taking the ones that avoided being too close of course. He was feeling better than ever and working out had also translated to more jobs. He’d gotten through a streak of challenging and successful robberies and his funds were well replenished and more and more he was finding that solo work was so much better than working with his boss. Not only did he have the ability to say ‘no’ but he could also choose how much he wanted to do and how much he was able to do. He wasn’t killing himself racing over rooftops from one heist to another. He was actually starting to enjoy it again as he felt the rush over and over again.

He pulled out his phone and texted Odion. Want to come over for dinner? He’d have to figure out what he wanted to make first off and then it was a matter of getting all the ingredients and then not screwing it up before Odion got here. It was probably best to have a few take out menus handy just in case. Lani himself was hungry and so he started scavenging for snacks in his fridge as he waited for Odion to text him back. He huffed impatiently. Normally Odion didn’t take this long to text back, maybe he was in class. Lani shrugged and started nibbling on the piece of bread he’d dug up and went to start searching for recipes online. LJ jumped up on the couch and started making his search difficult when the cat started rubbing his face on the screen. “You’re such a menace,” he said affectionately, scratching the cat’s head and getting a purr out of him. He was glad that LJ had warmed up to him at least a little bit. Granted if Odion were in the room, it was basically like Lani didn’t exist, but that didn’t matter.

[Odion Martins]

Odion’s cold virus hadn’t gotten better, but nor had it gotten worse. But Odion’s opinion, he would rather just get the damn thing over with and be on with his life. As it was, the virus was putting quite the damper on his routine, something he needed if he hoped to keep time around him in check. And also because he had slight OCD, but he wasn’t going to admit that aspect of his schedule to anyone. A mixture of Tylenol and Benalyn was keeping him comfortable, and the sniffles to a minimum. But Odion hadn’t really been sleeping, and that was the key to getting better faster. He simply hadn’t been able to shut his mind down even though his body was exhausted – he missed Lani too much.

At least most of his classes were over by now. He couldn’t say whether he had enjoyed the semester or not, but his professors seemed impressed by his grades considering he hadn’t attended classes regularly. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to, but this year had been hellish. And in his opinion, he should be receiving some kind of medal for having gotten such good grades considering he couldn’t remember where he was some days, or what he was doing others. Between trying to remember and trying to kick his addictions, there was little room for studying, and Odion had relied heavily on his excellent memory, and common sense. He supposed now with final examinations out of the way, his body had finally given up and given in to whatever strain of the virus was going around town.

So when Odion finally had found a perfect spot to rest and was nearly asleep his phone would vibrate with a text alert. He moaned, his head feeling fuzzy as he fumbled trying to take it off of the night table. When it fell to the floor, Odion cursed like a sailor. He may have been menacing if it weren’t for his stuffy sounding voice. It was times like these he wished he had Lani’s telekinesis, though he doubted it would work in the state he was currently in. Reaching over the bed instead (and nearly falling out of it), Odion nabbed his phone and settled back into bed. There would be no rest for the weary tonight.

Smiling slightly as he read the text, his face immediately fell. I don’t think that’s a good idea for tonight. He had accidently sent it before finishing off what he meant. Sighing, Odion wondered if Lani would assume the worst as he carried on typing a new message. You know that virus going around town? Yours truly has it. I would probably throw up even if it was the best meal I’d ever had. Feeling extremely sad inside, Odion hated his cold now more than a few moments ago, and he didn’t think that was possible. He got to spend the last week or so entirely alone, and he was going stir crazy.

(OOC: Today’s inspirational song: Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked)

[Lani Hunter]

Lani was googling different recipes and vetoing one after another when either it had too many ingredients or if he sounded too complicated. Wasn’t there something easy he could cook? His phone finally buzzed and Lani blinked in surprise. What was that supposed to mean? Doubts and crazy theories started racing through his head as to why that might not be a good idea. It could be anything from Odion had other plans, to Odion had other plans with someone else who he couldn’t tell Lani about. Lani was staring at the words and started painting the worst case scenario. Though they’d been working through it, and their date had been great, amazing actually, but alone it was easier to remember that he was supposed to be keeping himself from falling in love. Occasionally the thought did pass his mind that he should have done what Adrianna had done to Venn, he immediately shook his head deciding that that wasn’t the answer.

But then he got a text message like this and his mind was swimming. Even as his mind entered the death spiral, taking his heart in its claws and folding its wings, he got another text message. Ah… Odion was sick, that made a whole lot of sense. More sense than anything that he was concocting over here with his insane mind. Sadly, Odion being ill was never an option that crossed his mind. He mildly wondered if Odion was lying and he quickly shook his head and it off. It was a sad testament to how much his trust had been broken. He could love Odion and have a blast with him but if he didn’t trust him they didn’t have anything, but Odion had shattered that trust and Lani wasn’t going to give it away again. Looking through Odion’s memories were helping on both sides, Odion could figure out where he was and Lani could see the vulnerability that Odion was trusting him with and Lani was banishing the dark fantasies that he’d made up on his own. Trust was small, but it was there, Lani was prepared though, prepared for Odion to leave and his heart was guarded against that.

All thinking aside, he could only take this one step at a time, he was working blind and without a plan. All he could do was keep fumbling his way forward, but he wouldn’t take that step until he trusted that there was solid ground beneath his feet. He smiled sympathetically and texted back. I’m sorry, I hope you feel better soon! He sent it and tapped his phone against his lips, maybe he couldn’t cook something fancy for Odion but sick people needed soup, he’d made soup tons of times for Caroline when he was little. That was easy, pour the can in the pan and wait for it to be hot. He was also a lot more focused back then but oh well. He went into his pantry, he wasn’t sure what Odion had at his place but he packed a can of chicken noodle and crackers into a small bag and thought about texting Odion but decided he wanted to surprise Odion.

He started walking, he hadn’t been to Odion’s place yet, but that didn’t mean he didn’t know where he lived. Just like Odion, Lani had his own ‘friends’. There were a lot of people and cars out, traffic was bad, Lani smiled. He knew a faster way. He made his way to the roof and traced his way between the buildings. He landed on solid ground again outside Odion’s apartment complex and slipped inside, finding Odion’s number, he wondered absently if Jared was there and silently hoped not as he knocked the sequence for “Shave and a hair-cut.” He then waited with a silly smile on his face, he wasn’t sure if he would have to wait a while or if Odion would ignore him and he would have to just have to keep knocking.

[Odion Martins]

Thank you. Odion texted back, faintly wondering if Lani honestly meant that. Yes their date had gone extremely well, but they were both still on guard, and Odion had pushed for any answers. They hadn't even brought up going back to see old memories, which Odion was dying to know. But right now, his mind and body called for sleep. It was nice to know that Lani was at least thinking of him, even though the sentiment was bittersweet in that Odion couldn't actually be with him. There would be other days, and besides, he would die with embarrassment if Lani saw him now, disheveled and unshowered, unshaven...

Drifting off into an unsettling sleep, Odion dreamed of a past forgotten. Of yelling and hateful words, and a stormy day on an otherwise beautiful landscape. He dreamed of what he could have said instead of what had been said, and he dreamed of feeling anything other than this self-inflicted torture inside. He even dreamed of a family, his mother with hair as red as his own, his father still a mystery. But they were happy the lot of them, and that was more than Odion had ever known in his reality of what family had been like.

But nothing of that was remembered as Odion startled himself awake. He swore he had heard knocking at the door. In a cold sweat, Odi listened carefully, pulling himself out of bed, the comforter wrapped around him. If someone was in the apartment, they wouldn't find him very intimidating. Especially since his nose matched his hair. Approaching the door carefully, Odion looked through the peephole and nearly had a heart attack.

Unlocking and unlatching the door, Odion opened it slowly and didn't bother trying to appear put together. "What are you doing here?" He asked through sniffles, wondering if Lani had come just to make sure he hadn't been lied to, or if he had nobler intentions at heart. Odion glanced down at the bag in Lani's hand, an eyebrow raised. "I take it you'll chance getting sick," Odion said, a half smile on his face. Lani himself said he couldn't cook worth a damn, and yet here he was. Odion was willing to give the blond the benefit of the doubt.

"Usually Jared would've made something by now, but I told him to fuck off for once and leave me alone to wallow in my filth." Odion was still grinning - evidently this was how he showed care for others.

[Lani Hunter]

Swaying a little as he waited for Odion to come to the door Lani toyed with a loose string on his concert tee. It was starting to get warm and Lani had finally broken and started wearing shorts and a pair of sneakers. It was simply not fair that Pilot Ridge got both mounts of snow and heat up into the eighties in the summer. It was like living in a freezer that for a short span of the year decided to turn into a furnace. The sun was far from falling but it was well into the afternoon, another flaw of living so high in latitude, no sun in the winter and now it seemed like the sun wasn’t going to set until much later. It was very annoying and the sudden change in the weather wasn’t making things any better for people with allergies. He knew the cold that Odion was talking about, Caroline said something about it going around school too.

Lani immediately felt a twinge of sympathy for his friend as he hoped the door and showed his miserable and unhappy face. Opening his mouth in a greeting he was caught in a laugh and he pointed a thumb over his shoulder. It wasn’t that he didn’t expect that kind of reaction, but Odion, Odion looked like he would have been happier to eat a burger if that meant that he would get better. “Yes, I will,” he said and wiggled his way into the apartment, past Odion, not waiting for an invitation. “You see, I know you,” he pointed a finger at Odion, “And I know you’re gonna just find someplace comfortable and wait it out, so I’m here to make sure you eat something and work on actually getting better.” If Lani knew Odion as well as he thought he did, he figured Odion would have found a place to sleep a more or less wait out the illness.

He took a quick look around Odion’s apartment, it was immaculate. Just like what Lani imagined, well, there was a little more clutter, but that was probably all Jared. Otherwise, everything was in place and everything was neat and tidy, the complete antithesis of Lani and Adam’s apartment. So Lani put his bag on the table and looked at Odion when he mentioned Jared. “Well, lucky you,” Lani said with a smile, “’cause I’m making you dinner anyways. My mother always said the best way to get over a cold is lots and lots of soup.” Now Lani wasn’t as good as his mother to be making his own soup, so he was going to heat what came in the can. And in his own selfish way, Lani also figured that Odion was probably not socializing while he was sick which made him the perfect captive to keep Lani company.

The telekinetic turned on Odion and gave him a sly smile. “So I’ve got chicken and rice and chicken noodle, some beef stew, I didn’t know what you’d want so,” he paused and gave a shrug. He was obviously not going to leave, Odion was going to have to deal with that. He was also going to make Odion soup, Odion was also going to have to deal with that. It was nice and simple, soup was definitely something that couldn’t be messed up. It was a simple matter of heating it, no addition of ingredients, nothing at all, nothing could go wrong. Lani smiled at Odion, poor Odion looked absolutely miserable and Lani could only hope that he was going to make things better not worse.

[Odion Martins]

Lani wouldn’t have to fight too hard to get into the apartment, or to stay. Odion had been lonely for a couple days now. Yes he had told Jared to go away, but that didn’t mean he didn’t want other people around, which was an oddity for him. A weak smile passed Odion’s face – he really didn’t want to make Lani sick, and this virus was most likely air born. “That sounds about right,” Odion said, not wanting to fight. He shrugged the blanket closer to himself, over his shoulders. He didn’t like being so pathetic, but Lani was right. Whether it be sickness of the mind, body, or heart, Odion didn’t try to make it better, he just waited. Time seemed to be the only thing he thought he could control.

Bleary eyes danced over Lani’s form momentarily, a sleepy and amused Odion behind the actions. “Lucky me…” He repeated, remembering that the only time he had ever felt lucky, was when he was with Lani. And even then, it had mostly been Lani. Letting himself sit on the couch while Lani was still talking also wasn’t something Odion would normally do, what with it being rude and all, but he was sick, and he would rather sit and think and speak, than pass out on the floor. “How is your mother?” Odion asked, glancing sideways over his shoulder.

Odion’s face scrunched as he tried to remember the list of what he assumed were soups. “Uh, the first one?” He hadn’t really meant it to be a question, but he wasn’t entirely sure if contents would even matter right now, so long as it was hot. He ventured smiling at Lani and didn’t bother telling him where everything was in the kitchen. It was a kitchen, and Lani had eyes, surely he could figure it out. “I haven’t slept in a couple days,” he said randomly, hoping that maybe Lani wouldn’t ask anything too thought provoking or expect anything intelligent coming from him.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani was working under the assumption that he had an amazing immune system. He hadn’t been sick all through Hammel, well besides a few sinus sniffles and what not, he didn’t think he would get hit by this cold, besides Odion was the only person that he knew who had it, well, Caroline had been talking about it but last he saw her she didn’t actually have it. Lani was banking on not getting sick, he had far too much to do to slow down for a cold. The classes he was taking this summer semester were challenging and he couldn’t afford to miss and things had been going well with his power training, more or less, and he was overall on an upward slope. He was going to destroy the cold that tried to wiggle its way in and ruin that. Lani smiled at Odion and breathed out a short laugh, well if Odion’s disheveled appearance didn’t give away the fact that he was sick, the lack of sarcastic quip certainly did.

The fact that Odion was sitting on his couch was about as normal as Lani could think it to be, he didn’t have the kind of etiquette that Odion did so he didn’t think anything of it. Odion being rude was the last thing he would have thought about, even if Odion had been one hundred percent. Lani dug through his bag and shrugged. “She’s doing well,” he answered simply, she was asking about Odion, apparently someone related to him had decided to inform their mother that Odion was back and she was so happy, she kept asking Lani when he was going to bring Odion back. It hurt honestly, not being able to tell her what happened and why talking to her about Odion was painful, but she had definitely picked up on Lani being evasive. Lani supposed it made sense that his mother had the tendency to read him better than anyone, but it was still a little scary.

“Okay,” Lani said grabbing the chicken and rice and making his way to the kitchen but Odion’s statement stopped him. He smiled warmly at Odion. “Lay down and take a nap, I can figure things out and wake you up when the soup’s ready.” He suggested and went into the kitchen. Goal number one was to find everything he needed, which would be a spoon, a bowl and a pot. Thank goodness someone had gotten smart and made opening cans a possibility without a can opener, really it was brilliant and he couldn’t figure out why it had taken so long. It took a little bit of cabinet opening and closing and while he was at it Lani went ahead and made note of the organization of Odion’s kitchen. Why? He wasn’t sure, but any information was information that could be used. He finally dug out what he needed and after an experimentation with the stove got it on and heating. He dumped the soup into the pot and set the can on the counter. Really this place was immaculate, even Lani felt compelled to clean.

In his mind he stirred the soup and the spoon repeated the action, Lani himself ventured toward the door to check and see if Odion had taken his advice or if he was still sitting there looking off into space. He needed to be quiet, Lani was very good at being quiet, but he was also a very messy cook, so he needed this process to be quiet. The last thing he needed was Odion deciding to check on Lani and feeling the need to clean up. There was a faint sound of popping bubbles and Lani turned back to see a few popping up in the soup, that wasn’t good, he was supposed to heat it not boil it, right? He turned the heat down and stirred, he knew the canned soup always said not to boil, but was it really that bad to boil soup? Hopefully Odion wouldn't have to find out.

[Odion Martins]

Seeing as Odion had only recently recovered from putting his body through another layer of hell, it only made sense that he was crashing now. And he was too stubborn to take precautions, or buy into superstitious bullshit, like believing that Vitamin C could stave off all illness, or that drinking green tea would turn him super human. Although now that he was ill and suffering, he was tempting to go back in time and remedy all this, seeing as he was superhuman after all. But with Lani here now, well, Odion was curious to see how things would pan out, even though he would probably end up making a fool out of himself in the long run.

Odion only nodded upon hearing that Lani’s mum was doing well. Of course he craved for more details than that, but he didn’t have the spunk to fish said details out of Lani today. Besides, they weren’t technically together anymore, were they? Lani wouldn’t have to tell his family anything about their past if he didn’t want to. The thought made Odion a little sad, but he was pretty sure they hadn’t been anywhere close to telling Lani’s parents what was truly happening. That was a fight Odion was no longer ready for – Lani had to be the one who wanted to share, Odi wasn’t going to force that. And as it was, that wasn’t on the near horizon anyways.

Odion chuckled at Lani’s offer. “That’s what I was trying to do you know. Just now, before you came by.” It was all said very pleasantly, since Odion wasn’t annoyed that Lani was here now, not in the slightest. He would forego sleep if it meant Lani taking care of him in some capacity. Maybe he did trust Lani still, maybe he did want him around… Zoning out while Lani poked around, Odion focused on the noises in the kitchen. The cupboards opening and closing, the flick of the stove nob. He would know in his sleep if someone was fucking around in the kitchen, not that that would be the first place a robber would go. But still, Odion knew every sound of the apartment, he was his own surveillance.

Snorting loudly, Odion hadn’t realized he was nodding off until it felt like his head was going to fall off his body. He was on his way to lying down before remembering he wasn’t by himself. “What?” He said, more to himself than to Lani, standing over a boiling pot of soup. Odion glanced at the can, and back to Lani. “You did add some water, yeah?” Otherwise, it was going to be a very small amount of soup. Even Odion knew that, and he didn’t know very much about cooking to begin with.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani guess it was to his benefit that his mother was all about doing things to support the immune system. It was probably why he kept his health more often than not. That wasn’t to say that he didn’t get sick, he did, he got hit with some sinus infection at least once a year or so, but he also was prepared with home remedies that his mother did. Granted his mother would make her special Avgolemono soup and hot cocoa and well, being sick wasn’t so bad when he got to stay home from school and put his robbing on hold to stay home and relax. It wasn’t something he was good at. As he got older it got harder for him to stay put and his stubbornness got in the way of his wellness and his mother had to pretty much sit on him to keep him from doing things that he thought couldn’t wait.

His mother wasn’t here though, and when he got sick he went to class and forced himself through the day as best he could because he couldn’t admit that he wasn’t at one hundred percent. Acting like that had bitten him in the ass more than once. Lani turned away into the kitchen and breathed a sigh of relief when Odion didn’t press the issue. He really didn’t want to talk about his family, things were complicated and if they had been working up to telling Lani’s parents about them before the Europe trip, but as close as they were they were at least twice as far now and Lani hated it. It felt strangely lonely. Not being able to talk to Odion because they weren’t together and not being able to talk about the problems with his parents because he well, he wasn’t sure what he was bit it obviously wasn’t completely straight. At least he had Caroline but she was a heavy supporter of Odion and there was also Adrianna but she was a heavy anti-Odion supporter.

“Oh,” he turned and gave Odion an apologetic smile, “Sorry.” He wasn’t really sorry, well maybe he felt a little bit bad, but Lani felt right in his thinking, Odion probably would have slept with nothing to eat. He could focus on cooking now, this was good. So far, so good. No fire alarms and no burning things. He looked over at Odion in surprise. “Uh… I didn’t say anything…” He trailed off a questioning look in his eyes. Lani smiled and shook his head. Well, it appeared that Odion got sick and when he got sick he got loopy just like everyone else. Odion was so strong and sure of himself most of the time, Lani was jealous. He smiled to himself as he stirred the pot.

He looked over to find the redhead looking at him and then back at the can. He looked it over, was this one of those add water one? Or did they all have to have water added and Lani had never done so. He plucked it off of the counter and filled it with water and poured it in. It was then he noticed that there was a ‘Do not add water’ note on the side of the can. Oops… He glanced at Odion and then down at the pot. Well damn, and here Lani thought he’d been making soup wrong all this time. Maybe he could strain it or something? He set the can aside unwilling to admit to his error. How could he fix this? He shrugged, and turned up the heat, theoretically if he boiled it then it would evaporate out. Theoretically. He tossed a look over his shoulder and grinned at Odion. “I thought you were going to take a nap.”

[Odion Martins]

Odion was no strong and sure of himself, not at the moment anyways. It was days like this that caused him to hole up and not see anybody. He didn't like people seeing him in this state, but he supposed it only made sense that Lani would invite himself over now. Just how much pushing had Odion done? Maybe it was a good thing Lani was pushing back.

Watching Lani's movements with interest, Odion wasn't so daft that he didn't noticed the irritated look cross Lani's face after the water had been added. He cringed, "Sorry." Lani was just trying to help after all. Help, and butt in. It meant he cared, or he wouldn't bother being here in the first place. Odion took a little breath and decidedly let his walls stay down.

Odion shook his head, grinning stupidly. "Too noisy now." But he wasn't complaining about it - Lani was here. And, he didn't really trust Lani's cooking skills if their prior conversations said anything. Falling into a fit of coughing for half a minute, Odion felt like his head was going to pop off. Finally, his body gave in to gravity and he flopped over onto the couch, his blanket fitting snugly like a cocoon. "You're going to get sick," he said through a plugged nose. God he hated sounding like a well spoken child...

[Lani Hunter]

It was about time that Lani started pushing back as well, he could only coast for so long and slowly he was starting to realize this. He could be pushed until he fell and was run over. As much as he liked to think himself stubborn and strong willed, he often times let people decide things for him. He let his boss push him over and he’d let his power push over him as well. Odion had showed him time and time again that he could be better than what he was. Lani might not be completely convinced but like everything maybe if he started acting like it it would start to be true. As he watched the watered down soup start to boil he swallowed, he wanted to be the person that Odion thought he could be.

He smiled and shook his head. “No worries, I can fix this,” he said with a confidence he didn’t feel. His only goal was to not poison Odion and make his condition worse. He might be failing in that regard. He stirred and made a face, it really was his fault, he should have paid more attention and not followed so blindly. It was extremely watery, but that wasn’t really a bad thing was it? It was soup after all it was supposed to be well, soupy. Well, it wasn’t the first time Lani had blundered in his cooking endeavors. At least this time he didn’t set of the fire alarm, though it was still early and the boiling might have bad ramifications.

“Sorry,” Lani said giving Odion a wicked smile, clearly no more apologetic than before. He did make an effort to stir more quietly but the but there was only so much he could do with it boiling. He wasn’t completely sure that that was okay but he figured he’d just let it go. Lani raised a brow and watched Odion sympathetically as he coughed. Poor guy, being sick was the worst. “You don’t have any cough medicine?” He asked digging around and finding a cup in the cabinets. Filling the cup Lani walked over to Odion where he was snuggled adorably into the blanket. Lani smiled with sympathy and held out the cup. “I’m not gonna get sick,” Lani claimed with no explanation as to why he wouldn’t get sick. He reached out a hand and felt Odion’s forehead with the back of his hand. “You’re burning up.” He signed, his brow creasing with concern. He turned back into the kitchen and grabbed a rag. Running it under cold water he rang out most of the dripping liquid. Folding the rag as he walked he gently pressed it to Odion’s forehead. “Soup’ll be done soon.” As soon as it boiled off the excess water.

[Odion Martins]

Odion just nodded. He couldn’t say the soup smelled any good, he couldn’t smell. Lying didn’t seem like a good idea right now, and he wasn’t about to complain over someone taking care of him. The soup would be hot, that’s all that mattered. It didn’t matter what kind it was, it was the heat that killed the germs.

Closing his eyes on Lani’s sorry, Odion took a deep breath. Maybe if he focused on mentally pushing out his sickness, he would get better sooner. Alas, one could not play mind games with a foreign parasite in the body. “No medicine,” Odi said a little too quickly. He hadn’t meant to get defensive, but he had managed to even abuse that while on his downward spiral. Cough syrup was legal, but in large doses and taken all at once, had quite the effective high. Sensing Lani close by, Odi’s eyes flicked open.

“What’s in the cup?” He asked, paranoid for no other reason than that was his initial reaction. He didn’t want medicine if that’s what it was, though he wouldn’t mind some water. Odion looked up at Lani after the blond had checked his temperature. No one had ever done that for him before… Odion feigned coughing again and glanced at the back of the couch, willing his silly tears away. He was wrong to have been suspicious and emotional, but he couldn’t help it. This must’ve been akin to what women went through every month… Why did such a small action mean so much to him?

Laying quite still as the towel went over his head, Odion closed his eyes in relief. That did feel a lot better. “You need anything?” Odion asked, barely above a whisper. He didn’t know what else to say or how to say it in this state. Though in the depths of his heart, he wished he could just tell Lani he wanted to give him everything. Except his cold. Odi wanted everything good he had for Lani. Sometimes it was hard to feel close to those you felt closest to.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani raised a brow and shrugged. “Okay,” he agreed, for now, but sometimes medicine was necessary to combat the colds. Maybe Lani’s opinion was screwed up because of his dependency on painkillers. Medicine was like a gift from god. He never thought about medicine to get high though, Lani honestly would be surprised that was a thing, he was very unaware of that kind of thing. Lani didn’t have a problem with medicine because he didn’t have a problem with overtaking them, which was at least what he liked to tell himself, it was normal for him to take so many pain killers he needed that many. It was innocent and he was just looking for relief from the eternal pain, who could really blame him. So maybe he might take a few more than he needed every now and again but if two was good well, four must be great right?

Letting out a small laugh Lani pressed it into Odion’s hands. “Relax, it’s water.” He smirked at the redhead. “If I wanted to poison you I would put it in the soup,” he added jokingly just to tease Odion a little further. Lani really shouldn’t tease Odion, he wasn’t feeling well. His expression sobered as he felt Odion’s forehead, he was not looking too well. As Lani let his hand linger on Odion’s forehead he found himself willing to do anything to take away the suffering. He swallowed, it was like when Caroline was sick. He felt so helpless but he had to do something. Lani frowned as Odion fell into coughing again. Lani couldn’t help but feel pity, but he also wanted to help him feel better, even if he got sick in the process, it was worth it to get Odion on his feet again.

A chuckle escaped Lani’s surprised lips. “No, I don’t need anything,” he said with a soft smile patting the towel over Odion’s forehead gently, “Except for you to get better.” Going back to the kitchen, Lani frowned at the soup, it did look very watery. He took a spoon and dipped it into the soup and sipped it a bit. Okay, it was definitely hot! He left the spoon in the sink and turned off the heat fanning the top of the bubbling liquid with his hand. He needed to let that cool a bit before he gave it to Odion, but while he was waiting on that, what if he did dump a bit of the water? He grabbed a lid and more or less drained bit of the liquid, but he didn’t want to lose too much. He scowled and realized he was probably making a lot of noises with his under the breath cursing and unhappy snorts.

He dumped it into a bowl, it was mostly hot broth with a few chunks of chicken and vegetables. He grabbed another spoon and carried the hot soup to Odion. “Eat,” he ordered gently putting the bowl down on the table. “You can go back to sleep after.” He added, touching Odion’s shoulder.

[Odion Martins]

The mentality Lani had about medicine was the same Odion had had – it was why he gave Lani such a hard time about it. Neither of them were communicating their thoughts very well to one another. Odion too, sought relief from life’s misery through drugs of all kinds. Just one more wouldn’t hurt, and if a couple felt great, then double that would feel amazing. It was a real bloody miracle he hadn’t dug himself an early grave from everything he put his body through. Periods of intense cleanses, followed by poisoning himself. No wonder his immune system was shot.

Taking the cup, Odion set it to his lips and gave a couple quick nods, like they were actually discussing this seriously. “Not like I can taste either,” he added, since his nostrils were full of mucus. Odion looked over Lani, taking small sips of water. No, if Lani wanted to kill him, he would’ve done it differently. Like turning his apartment into a pig sty and cackling as Odion died from a heart attack. Odion sniffed and let the thought die. Things were morbid enough as it was without adding his probably death to the mix. If Lani did get sick from all this, Odion hoped Lani knew the favour would be returned. Assuming they weren’t sick at the same time. God forbid.

Odion smiled, his eyebrows hidden under the towel. “I’ll try,” he said in earnest. It was just like him to give Lani another thing to worry over. But in his defense, he hadn’t tried to do it on purpose this time. Letting his eyes close again, Odion only smirked to himself as Lani did… well, something, in the kitchen. At first it sounded as though he might be washing his hands, but there was too much cursing and not enough water running for that to be happening. But Odion found that he didn’t really give a damn what was going on. His brain was too fuddled to care. Was this was being laid back felt like? Huh…

Glancing at the soup bowl, Odion watched the steam coming off of it. “Fine,” he said, hauling himself into a sitting position. Never before had be broken a sweat from such a small amount of effort. Being sick was exhausting. He gave Lani what he hoped was a thankful look. “But just one alright?” He didn’t need to make things worse and go vomit everything again. Odi plucked up the spoon and stirred the watery soup, a half smile on his face. “What? Are you just going to watch me eat it then?” Odion glanced up at Lani.

[Lani Hunter]

Part of the problem was probably that Lani didn’t see the similarities, he saw Odion’s abuse of drugs that were not for pain relief, therefore it was completely different. Though he failed to realize that it was all a way to get away from some sort of pain. It wasn’t a topic that Lani liked to talk about, he didn’t understand why Odion didn’t understand that his head hurt him all the time. The longer that Lani could avoid that argument the best. Besides, Lani didn’t have a problem, not at all, he could stop anytime he chose. So he told himself so much he believed it. Either way Lani wasn’t here to argue that. If Odion didn’t want medicine he didn’t want medicine and Lani would respect that because he respected Odion. He might not agree, but now was not the time to have that argument.

“All part of my master plan,” Lani said with an impish grin. Come to think of it, Lani wouldn’t kill Odion that way, not at all. He knew the redhead too well and if he wanted to kill him he would do something like steal half of his shoes so that there wasn’t even one matching pair. Lani smiled faintly, that would be what killed Odion, forget poison, knowing Odion he would find some way to survive it. Odion was often too clever for Lani to keep up with, but that just gave him more reason to keep trying. Knowing Odion he could figure his way out of something like that. But that also wasn’t why he was here, though it would be rather easy to make Odion’s life hard right now. Given anyone else and Lani would have taken advantage but Odion was different, he’d always been different.

Lani smiled affectionately down at Odion. The telekinetic put his hand gently on Odion’s head and brushed his hair back before he pulled back his hand upon realizing what he was doing. Thank goodness he had soup to deal with. Lani winced as he started making too much noise. The last thing he needed was Odion getting curious and deciding he needed help. He glanced over at Odion on the couch and breathed a sigh of relief, it looked like Odion was quite content with not moving, Lani’d have to make sure to actually clean, just in case Odion got it into his head that his kitchen needed to be immaculate. “If by one you mean the whole bowl, then yes,” Lani agreed, there was only a little bit left anyways. He could save it and Odion could have it later or he could throw away the watery mess.

“Yes,” Lani replied smoothly with a joking smile on his face. The telekinetic slipped around the table and sat on the couch and watched Odion with eagle eyes. “There are crackers too if you want them, they can be a big help in settling your stomach.” He reached forward and nudged them closer to the sick time turner. “Eat up,” he smiled grabbing a cracker and nibbling it himself. Lani was overly confident about not getting sick, probably very stupidly confident but well, the way Lani saw it was that he had no problem with cold medicine and now bad could it be? No sickness ever seemed as bad as one felt. If their positions were reversed Lani probably would be very convinced that he was approaching the end.