#plotty stuff

Thad's back stiffened. "And how do you propose he go home when I was the one who drove him here, mother?" he said icily. 

"Well surely someone can come and get him and bring him back to his house."

"No. They can't." Thad slammed the cupboard door shut with a snap, turning to level a stare at their mother. "We're five hours away from home. No one could come get him."

"Well I just think if he's so sick then he shouldn't be here. His parents or someone should come get him."

Thad's eyes narrowed to a glare. "Let me make this very clear: If JB leaves, I will be leaving with him."

"Oh but Thaddeus you can't leave! We're going to have a lovely FAMILY Christmas!"

"So JB can leave, but not me. Thank you for explaining so fully," Thad said quietly. 

"And what about Audra? If JB should go, shouldn't Audra go as well, for our FAMILY Christmas?" Theo chimed in. 

"Oh no no no. Audra IS family," Mrs. Tenbusch said, patting Audra's hand fondly. 

Audra quickly pulled her hand away, her face reddening. 

Theresa did not acknowledge this. "It's only because Thaddeus's friend is sick. I just don't want him getting anyone else sick."

"And what about Bella?" Thalia said quietly, her knuckles white on the edge of the table. 

Mrs. Tenbusch didn't reply, but returned to her cereal, which was all the reply anyone needed. Thad stormed out of the kitchen and stomped upstairs, clutching the Tylenol bottle in a clenched fist. 

He slammed the door to his bedroom open a moment later, waking JB from his latest fever nap with a jump. Thad yanked their suitcases over and began throwing all their belongings in willy-nilly. 

"We're packing up and leaving, babe. I won't stay under the same roof as that homophobic bitch another minute," Thad spat. 

JB struggled to sit up, coughing as he did. "Wait, Thad. Don't do anything you'll regret. I feel like running away isn't the best option here."

His voice was hoarse and strained, nothing like his usual lovely baritone, and Thad couldn't help but go to his side to kiss his hot forehead in sympathy, handing him the Tylenol. "Well what do you suggest?" Thad asked. "She essentially said she doesn't want you and Bella here. Again. I refuse to stay where we're not welcome, Christmas be damned."

JB swallowed a few pills, then leaned his head against Thad's side. "She's still your mother. I would rather you try to reconcile with her this weekend, if nothing else for the sake of the season." Here he had to stop to cough, rubbing his chest. "But more than that, I feel like absolute shit and I don't want to spend five hours in the car on Christmas Eve. There's a warm bed right here, and at this moment that's all I have the capacity to care about."

"Ever the pragmatist," Thad chuckled, which turned into a soft cough of his own. 

"Which is one of the reasons you love me," JB murmured around a yawn. 

"Keep telling yourself that," Thad said, pressing his lips to the other man's hair. "But if you're really feeling that bad, I guess we can stick it out. As long as I don't have to be in the same room with her for very long."

"Nope. And we'll never come back here again if you don't want to," JB mumbled, drifting toward sleep again. 

"Thank gods," Thad said emphatically, which turned into another barking cough. 

JB cracked an eye open, frowning. "You better not be getting sick too. Then we'll really be in trouble."

Thad waved a hand dismissively. "Don't worry about me." He kicked off his shoes and slid into bed beside his partner, wrapping him in his arms as JB had begun to visibly shiver. "You just worry about getting better." 

The pair spent much of the day in bed together napping on and off. Thad only left the room when JB required medications or water. The eldest Tenbusch sibling was only reluctantly coaxed out of the room later that evening by the other two for the most sacred of holiday traditions: the decorating of the family Christmas tree. 

Theo and Thalia were waiting with their parents in strained silence when a headachey Thad arrived, scrubbing at his face and yawning, having just woken from another nap.

"Where's Bella and Audra?" Thad rasped, glancing around at the assembled company.

"Bella chose not to join us. She didn't want to interrupt the FAMILY tradition," Thalia said, shooting a glare over to her parents. 

"Audra felt the same way," Theo said quietly, staring at the ground.

Theresa smiled, pretending she hadn't heard. "Now that we're all here, we can get started! Thom dear, fetch the angel. Oh I'm so happy we're all together this year!"

The siblings elected not to reply, keeping the peace for the time being. They fell into the familiar rhythm of decorating the tree together, not speaking much. Thad had developed a nasty cough over the course of the day, eerily similar to the one JB had had the night before, and at first everyone tried to ignore that, too. Finally, compassionate Theo couldn't take it any longer. 

"Are you okay, Thad? You don't sound so good," he quietly said after Thad had turned away to cough for the dozenth time.

"I've definitely been better," Thad said thickly.

"Oh this is just perfect," Thomas Tenbusch said, throwing his hands in the air. "Now he's gone and gotten Thaddeus sick for the holidays. He shouldn't have come with you."

"Who exactly is 'he'?" Thad asked, turning to level a black stare at his father.

"You know who I mean," Mr. Tenbusch grumbled, jerking his head toward the ceiling. "Him. Upstairs."

"You wouldn't be referring to JB would you? My partner, my boyfriend, the man I'm going to marry someday? Because if you were talking about him, I would hope you would use his name." Thad's voice was deadly quiet, daring his father to continue.

"Don't say that. He's your roommate and nothing more," sniffed Mr. Tenbusch. 

"And why exactly shouldn't I say it if it's true?" Thad said. 

"Because– because if you're going to marry a man, it would be better if you were never born!"

A shocked silence hung over the room, with everyone frozen in place. Thad glared at his father for a long moment. Then, with slow deliberation, he released the hold on the ornament he was holding, one of their mother's favorite blown glass bulbs, and let it fall to the ground, never breaking his father's gaze. Mrs. Tenbusch gasped as the glass shattered into thousands of shards. Thad then turned and left the room without another word. 

He stormed up to his bedroom just as he has that morning. The suitcases were where he'd left them, half packed. He knelt in front of them again and resumed packing, even as tears rolled down his face. 

"Thad? Wuz wrong? Wuz happ'ni'g?" JB croaked, startled awake once again. 

"We're leaving. Now. I'll get your stuff together for you." A painful, stabbing coughing fit prevented him from elaborating further. 

JB slowly sat up, trying to shake off sleep, and thoroughly confused by the sense of deja vu from that morning. "Thought you said we could stay?"

"Not anymore. They made their choice." 

The dangerous intensity in Thad's voice told JB there was no point in protesting. The sick man slid to the edge of the bed and carefully stood, gripping the headboard for support during the initial rush of dizziness. Once his head cleared, he slowly began to collect his clothes and pull on extra layers, preparing to go to the car without question. Thad shot him a grateful look, but didn't slow, trying to pack as quickly as possible.

Just as the pair was almost finished with their preparations, Theo, Audra, Thalia and Bella appeared in the doorway of their bedroom. Thad forced himself to look at them, tears still streaming down his face. Thalia pushed past the others and ran to him, falling to her knees and crushing him into a hug, her own tears starting to flow. Thad hugged her back just as fiercely. 

"Jesus, Thad, you're a furnace right now," she laughed through her tears as he buried his face in her neck. 

"I know, I'm sorry. You should probably be keeping your distance, Lee. I'm gonna get you sick," he mumbled, half-heatedly pulling away. 

"Like I give a f*ck," she shot back, hugging him all the tighter.

"I'm so sorry, Thad," Theo said softly. "I'm so sorry they said that."

"You're not the one who needs to apologize. And even if they apologized, I wouldn't forgive them." He gently pulled away from Thalia and stood with a chesty cough, hefting both suitcases with a glance at JB, who sat huddled on the foot of the bed in a feverish daze. "We're leaving right now, and we're never coming back. We'll drive home through the night. JB is too sick to be anywhere besides home."

"I don't know if you should be leaving right now with how feverish you look, though," Theo said hesitantly. "Are you sure your mind is clear–"

"Bella and I are leaving right now, too," Thalia said sharply.

"We're ALL leaving right now," Audra cut in, leveling a glare at her husband before turning back to Thad. "You're our brother. And they've proved that they no longer want to be your parents. So we're sticking with you."

Thad's eyes filled with tears again. "That's not necessary–"

"Yes, it is," Audra interrupted. "They made their choice. We're ALL leaving tonight." 

Her unknowingly repeating Thad's own words convinced Thad that they meant what they said. Thad heaved a tiny sigh. "Okay. If you're sure."

"... We'll just need a few minutes to pack, then," Theo said with a small sigh. "Would you be okay waiting until we're all ready to leave? That way we can stay mostly together."

Thad nodded. "It'll take us a few minutes to get settled anyway. We'll wait." He turned again to his sick partner. "Sit there for a bit, love, while I get the car warm for you. I'll be right back to help you downstairs." 

JB nodded, arms clenched around himself as he coughed and shivered miserably.

Thad stepped past everyone carefully, still carrying both suitcases. As he emerged from the dim bedroom into the light of the hallway, Audra surveyed him and frowned at what she saw. 

"Are you really sure you're okay to drive, Thad? I can see you shaking." 

Thad tried to smile. " Don't worry about me. I already slept most of the day. I'll be fine."

Theo and Audra gave each other a quick look as he turned away, but let it rest for the time being. 

True to their word, the others immediately began to pack as Thad loaded up the car and got JB settled in the backseat, bundled under three blankets. He didn't see his parents as he went in and out. He heard them in the living room, apparently still decorating the tree. 

In no time the others also began to emerge from the house and load up their cars. Once they were ready, Thalia and Theo went to Thad's window. He rolled it down, coughing harshly at the breath of cold, dry air. 

"Do we want to meet at our usual gas station just outside Chicago to regroup in case we get separated?" Theo asked.

Thad raised an eyebrow. "I didn't realize we were staying in a group. 

"Why wouldn't we? We're all going to roughly the same place," Theo said. 

"I mean not really. But okay, if that's what you want to do," Thad said, too tired and crummy-feeling to argue. 

"Good. Rendezvous there in about three hours, then."

"Over and out," Thalia said, turning on her heel and getting into Bella's car. The pair started off immediately. 

Theo lingered a moment longer. "You're sure you're able to drive all night? I'm really worried about how tired you're looking."

"I'll be fine. I've driven further feeling worse. We'll get there. I'll get a hotel if it's too much, I promise."

"You better," Theo said, stepping away from the car at last.

 With a firm nod, Thad rolled up the window and put the car into drive, rolling out of the driveway of his childhood home without a backward glance, though he couldn't keep a few last stray tears from falling. 

~~~

Around midnight, the trio of cars arrived at their predetermined meeting place to fill up, stretch their legs, and regroup. Thad pulled up next to a gas pump and staggered out of the car in a weary haze, struggling to get the gas pumping due to the shaking in his hands. JB didn't stir when they stopped, and remained sleeping against the car door, his fever-hot face making a halo of condensation on the window. 

Lost in his own misery, Thad jumped in surprise when Theo and Audra appeared at his side. 

"How are you holding up?" Audra asked tenderly. 

Thad shrugged. "I'm surviving." The nasty cough that followed his statement belied it however, as did the wracking shudder that followed the cough. Seeing all this transpire, Theo and Audra exchanged a brief nod, then Theo intervened. He grasped the pump handle and forced his brother to relinquish his grip on it. 

"Get back in the car, Thad. I'm driving you guys the rest of the way," said the professor gently, zipping his coat up higher against the cold night air. "You're in no state to do anything except sleep."

Thad sputtered in protest. "I'm– I'm okay. I can drive. You don't have to… you should stay with Audra."

"Audra is perfectly capable of driving the last few hours on her own."

"I prefer driving on my own if I'm being honest," she laughed. "Then I can listen to MY music. Besides, I'm not the one running a fever."

Thad still hesitated, though exhaustion was clear in every inch of his frame. "You of all people shouldn't be driving us, Theo. You're going to get sick."

"I was probably going to anyway after you coughed all over everyone while we decorated the tree. Might as well speed up the process. The sooner I get it, the sooner I get over it."

Thad shook his head, a tiny smile creeping across his face. "You're an idiot. But I don't know what I'd do without you." He gave his brother an awkward, one-armed hug, then shuffled to the back door opposite of JB, climbing in and immediately cuddling against his partner, heaping blankets over both of them. JB stirred with a soft whimper but didn't wake. Soon Thad was snoring against him. 

The pair didn't move from their pile of fevery cuddles for the rest of the trip. In fact, they had to be shaken awake when Theo pulled into the driveway of their condo, closely followed by Audra and Thalia and Bella. Thad was quite disoriented upon waking up to find everyone in his driveway, unloading bags and talking and laughing merrily. 

"What's goin' on?" he croaked, trying to rub the sleep from his eyes. "Why is everyone here?"

"You didn't think we were going to just drop you off and leave, did you?" Theo asked, popping the truck and unbuckling his seatbelt with a yawn and a stretch. "It's still Christmas and we're still family. We're gonna spend today and the rest of the weekend together, just like we planned." 

Thad ran a hand through his hair wearily. "We don't have any food or anything, though," he mumbled. "We didn't even decorate. And there's not enough guest rooms–"

"Thad. It doesn't matter. We're going to make it a great Christmas no matter what."

Thad could only reply with an exhausted smile before Theo hopped out of the car, coughing in the dry air, and began to unload his brothers' bags. 

The next hour or so was rather chaotic as the six of them got themselves and all their bags into the small condo and decided what to do for food and sleeping space. Since he hadn't had any medicine in hours, poor JB was too feverish to be of much help, groggy and sluggish as he was. They found him medicine right away and got him set up on the couch with plenty of blankets, where he tried to be helpful by feebly directing traffic, though he dozed off immediately anytime there was a moment of silence. 

After weighing the pros and cons of all the options for sleeping arrangements, it was decided that they would have a giant sibling sleepover in the living room, at least for the first night. They pooled together every blanket and pillow they could find, changed into pajamas, made hot chocolate and popcorn, put on a Christmas movie, and settled in for the night. JB and Thad claimed the couch while the remaining four spread out on the floor cheerfully. They didn't talk much beyond coordinating everything, but they didn't need to. Everyone was exhausted or sick or emotionally wrung out or all of the above, so no one minded the lack of conversation. 

Though he was physically miserable, Thad couldn't help but smile as he looked at the faces surrounding him in the candlelit room. JB sleeping in his arms, roastingly warm the touch, yet somehow still shivering; Theo propped up against the couch, already coughing and sniffling more than Thad liked and Audra leaning against her husband's shoulder and rubbing his back; Thalia and Bella reclining against a stack of pillows, their limbs tangled around each other. This was it. These were his people. Tonight clearly marked the end of one era of their lives and the beginning of another. He knew they would always think of this as the last Christmas, for better or for worse. 

And for better or for worse, the lovely weirdos surrounding him had chosen to stick with him, to have his back. Gratitude was too small a word for what he was feeling. Whatever else happened going forward, he still had a family. Tonight, that was all that mattered.