#lomilesy

He had never really gotten over how stunningly beautiful she was--not when she was wrist-deep in bees with her hair falling into her face, not when she was standing down the aisle in white, not when she was naked underneath him.

And not now, with her face lined by the years and their very first grandchild cradled in her arms.

He pressed two knuckles to her shoulder, and she glanced over at him, a bottomless fondness making her eyes bright.

“She’s got her dad’s nose,” Nilesy commented, tickling the baby’s chin.

“Oh, don’t be rude,” Lomadia admonished. “She’s beautiful.”

“I never said she wasn’t beautiful, just that she had her dad’s nose.”

“One day,” she sighed, rolling her eyes, “you’ll get over the fact that Becca married a testificate.”

“One day? I’m over it. I’ve been over it for six years.”

“You wouldn’t talk about her nose like that if you were.”

“It’s a fine nose. Powerful.”

The baby made a squalling sound and reached grasping hands towards Lomadia’s hair.

“Oh, yeah?” she asked. The child grabbed a fistful of greying hair and pulled, forcing Lomadia to tilt her head far to the side. Nilesy laughed.

“Oh, but she’s got her mum’s hands, hasn’t she, and her nan’s big strong arms.”

A tinge of pink rose to Lomadia’s cheeks. “Flatterer,” she accused.

“It’s not flattery if it’s true,” he said. “You could still chuck me across the room if you wanted to.”

“Good thing I don’t want to, then, although I might be persuaded.”

He put an arm around her shoulders, a motion so comfortable it was like breathing. The baby was chewing on Lomadia’s hair.

“Aw, look, she’s giving you a haircut,” he remarked. “And you didn’t even have to make an appointment.”

“You won’t be laughing when she’s chewing on your hair.”

“Unlike you, I’m wise enough to keep it in a ponytail when there’s babies around.”

“She’ll ring it like a bell-pull.”

“I’ll ring you like a bell-pull.”

at light... It's too bright... Turn it off.

“Come on Xeph... Wake up for me, please...”

What... Who's talking to me? My head... I can't focus... My eyes, they won't open. Why won't they open? What's going on?

A cool, damp sensation was felt, and his body forced a pleased hum.

It's hot. Really hot... It shouldn't be this hot... But I'm chilled to the bone.. Maybe.... Maybe if I go back to sleep. Sleep is nice...

“No, come on Xeph, pl.... st...y aw....k... X....”

Silence. Darkness. Peacefulness.

He felt better already.

~.~.~

“Shit.” Lalna's heart pounded in his chest, watching Xeph's body go completely limp once again. “Xeph, come on baby...” No response. Not like he'd expected anything else.

Lalna mentally scolded himself for not noticing sooner. But even if he had, Xephos still would have tried to play it off as fine. The weight loss had never been this bad, the chills Xephos got at night were far beyond his own, and yet, he was still trying to do everything. How could someone so strong and smart be this stupid about his own health? Lalna sighed sadly, glancing at the sweat-soaked body of his love. Was it his fault? Did losing his job take a toll on Xeph's fragile being? Until Xephos woke up, Lalna would never know.

The sound of a knock and a shout alerted Lalna, sending him crashing back into reality. “Door's open, Lomadia.” The paper mask he wore slightly muffled his voice, and just that terrified him. It just made the situation he was in seem that much more real.

“Oh, Lalna...” Lomadia made her way into the bedroom carefully, a paper mask over her own face. “Has anything changed?”

“Nothing.” Lalna's head hung low. “Still waking up for brief periods and then passing out again...” He shook his head, glancing back up at her. “What brings you here? Does Nano have anything for us?”

“Nano wants us to move Xephos into the hospital so she can keep a better eye on him,” the blonde admitted. “I know you don't want to, but...” Lomadia's voice trailed off, her eyes transforming into something sad.

“But what, Lomadia? What are you not telling me?”

Lomadia sighed. “Honeydew refused to go to the hospital, no matter how bad he got. It just kept getting worse, but Nano couldn't move him by herself...”

Lalna's heart shattered. He knew where this was going. “Don't tell me...”

“Honeydew passed away last night, and Nano doesn't want that to happen to Xephos..” She carefully avoided Lalna's gaze. “Nilesy's in her care as well. He seems to be doing better. She thinks Xephos will get better with proper care-”

“Are you suggesting that I'm not taking care of him?!” Lalna hissed. “Because I'm doing all that I can to-”

“Lalna, stop! That's not what I meant!”

Lalna took a deep breath, allowing the red-hot anger to clear from his vision. “I know... I'm sorry.”

Lomadia smiled under the mask. “No, you're stressed. I understand. But seriously, Lalna. He could die without proper care. Please.”

“...okay. But only because Nano's going to be looking after him...”

The hospital was worn-down and old, but Lalna was grateful for the immediate admittance of Xephos. He hadn't seen Nanosounds yet; he was sure she was swamped, but other than Lomadia, he couldn't see anyone else he knew in here. Which, he figured, was a good thing. He didn't wish illness upon anyone.

It was only an hour of staring into the stained white walls that Lalna heard his name. He saw Nanosounds emerge from the hallway, a flat look on her face. It wasn't sad, so Xephos was okay, right? “H-how is he?”

Nanosounds shook her head. “He's alive, that's the only good news I have. He must've been doing this to himself for some time now.”

“Doing what?”

“You mean you don't even know?” The female shook her head. “A healthy weight for someone Xephos' height is around 69* kilograms. A little more or less, give or take. He weighed in at 37. His fever was around 40* degrees, which, for a person at a healthy weight, would be normal. Due to the fact he was already weak, it could have been fatal if you hadn't gotten him here when you did. We have it at about 38 now. We haven't seen any signs of brain damage yet, but that all counts on him waking up and being completely lucid.”

Lalna's heart skipped, but he felt like there was something Nanosounds was hiding. “Did... did you find anything else?”

“I didn't want to say it right away, but...” Nanosounds looked Lalna right in the eye. He could almost throw up seeing the sympathy that was held in them. “Xephos has polio, Lalna. I'm sorry.”

~.~.~

The next time Xephos opened his eyes, he was grateful for the dimmed lights. His body felt heavy, making his attempts at moving nearly useless. His fingers were responding with just the slightest twitch, but he couldn't feel any movement from his legs at all. He needed to get up. Needed to make sure Lalna got something to eat-

“Xephos, stop moving.”

The stern voice was familiar, but it took him a moment to put a name to it. “Nano?” He was shocked at the weak sound of his voice. “What-”

“You don't remember, do you?” The lights brightened, causing Xephos' headache to come back with a vengeance. He didn't close his eyes again, however, until he saw Nanosounds' familiar face come into view. “You've been in and out of consciousness for almost a week now.”

Xephos groaned, covering his eyes with his arms. “What are you talking about? I have stuff to do, and the jokes aren't-”

“I'm not kidding, you stubborn mule.” Xeph couldn't see her face, but he could tell she was unhappy. “I'm honestly surprised you're not dead right now.”

“But I'm-”

“Xephos, you're a disaster! Over the past few months alone, you've lost nearly seventy pounds, your stomach has shrunk to the size of a baseball, and you have polio on top of that. The only good thing right now is that you seem lucid, which is a good sign.” She gently pried Xephos' arms away from his eyes, earning a groan of protest. “I know it's bright in here, but I need to examine you, so cooperate with me, here.”

Xephos shook his head. “No. Go away.”

“Don't make me get Lalna in here.” Her voice was enough to prove to Xephos that she wasn't kidding. “Do you realize how upset he is?”

He went to respond, but a stabbing pain seared through his head, causing him to whine. “'t hurts...”

“Shh, it's okay.”

“I need to see Lalna... Need... to say sorry...” Against his own will, he struggled to sit up, fighting against Nanosounds the entire time. “Nano, please...”

“No Xephos!” Nanosounds gripped at his shoulders, trying to push him back onto the bed. “You need to rest! I'll go get Lalna!”

Xephos ignored her, using the last of his strength to push past her. His feet touched the floor, and he remained upright for just a few moments before collapsing to the ground.

Luckily for him, Nanosounds caught him right as he was about to connect with the smooth tile. “I told you to rest! I'll go get Lalna.”

Xephos hung limply in her touch, his energy drained. It was so strange. “Nano... Why didn't... My legs... They're so heavy, and they hurt... What's wrong with them?”

“You're exhausted.” A lie. She put a hand on his forehead. “Your fever is spiking again...”

Xephos' eyelids felt heavy as he was helped back into his bed. “Lalna.. I need.... Lalna...”

“Okay, Xeph. But I need you to stay awake, okay?”

A moment of silence passed. It was nice. Xephos didn't even notice that he was beginning to fall back asleep. But the pain was disappearing, and that was good.

“Xephos, w...e ...p!”

“Nano.... I...”

“X....os! W...... do.....or n....w!”

He felt a hand on his forehead, and he leaned into the touch. The ice-cold sensation was soothing to him, and then, suddenly, nothing mattered.