#stitchersss2017

… you and me, forever more

Hey Stitchers family!! 

I was just wondering the other day if a secret santa was happening, which turned into me running a secret santa for 2017. Plus I feel like we could use some cheering up with the cancellation of our favorite show. 

The Secret Santa will be run by myself, @xoheatherkw and @e11evenseggos It’s an online gift exchange- so fanfiction, gifs, manips, videos, playlists, icons, etc. 

Want to join?

Fill out this form

Make sure your ask is open and anonymous is turned on (so both the admin and your assigned secret santa can contact you) 

Reblog, reblog, reblog to get the word out! 

Applications will be accepted until November 25, 2017. After that, we will assign everyone a secret santa by the end of November, and contact you with your giftee. 

After you receive your giftee, you can begin working! Feel free to contact them (anonymously!) to get to know them better, or for any additional questions regarding their gift. Please post your gift by December 25, 2017, and tag with #StitchersSS2017 so we can reblog it! 

CHLOE (@cameron-goodkins-wife)!  I’m your Santa. Sorry I got down to the wire. I kind of did every prompt you gave me? Oops? Hope you enjoy it and have a very Merry Christmas. Special thanks to @xoheatherkw and @e11evenseggos for hosting this event. You ladies are the best. Heather was also my ever wonderful beta and cheerleader. 

It was the look Camille game her that tipped Kirsten off. The arched eyebrow and slight quirk of the mouth always meant Camille was feeling smug. The brunette gestured at what was going on across the diner table from her.

Cameron was in the process of scooping the whipped cream from his milkshake to Kirsten’s. She had already moved her maraschino cherry over to join his. Her fork hovered in midair with a pickle hanging off of it. There was an extra tomato on her burger that she hadn’t noticed Cameron move over. An equal number of french fries and onion rings sat on both of their plates.

This wasn’t the first time they had eaten at this diner before. Over time they had slowly learned how complimentary their likes and dislikes were. It seemed so natural, trading food with Cameron. Camille’s smirk made it feel weird.

Kirsten shifted closer to the inside of the booth, trying to tell herself that she didn’t miss the warmth of Cameron’s shoulder.

“Why didn’t you turn on Sunset?”

The question was a little premature. Cameron had barely passed the entrance to the turn lane when Kirsten asked him about it. They sailed through the light as it shifted from green to yellow.

“Worried you’ll turn into a pumpkin, Pumpkin?” he joked.

There wasn’t a tell that Kirsten could see - a twitch or a wrinkle - that would make her think he was anything but calm.

And yet.

“Camille drove me from your place the other day. We took Sunset. She said it was the fastest route between light cycles and traffic.”

Cameron’s fingers gripped the steering wheel a little tighter. “I like driving by the park.”

“The view of the park is worth an average of ten minutes?” There was a part of Kirsten that genuinely wanted to know. Time isn’t a commodity she’s used to dealing with. “It just seems like you shouldn’t waste your time like that.”

It was as though her words were a pin and Cameron’s body a balloon. He slowly deflated, curving into his seat.

“Some things are worth the time,” he told her gently.

The next time they drove together, Cameron’s eyes dart toward her just before they reached Sunset. He made a point to slow down and take his time with the turn, giving her a moment to intervene. When they reached her house, Kirsten recognized just how much they managed to fit in that commute.

It was one extra conversation about nothing and everything all at once.

It was three extra songs to hum along to.

It was five extra references she didn’t get.

It all added up to ten minutes worth of time with Cameron she had lost.

And she wanted it back.

Kirsten had never understood Cameron’s impulse to quote things. She had an ironclad memory, but that didn’t make her want to relive the dialogue from every movie she had ever seen.

Not that there were a lot of those anyway.

It came as a shock to her when she finished a line for Cameron. They were walking around her neighborhood in an effort to get some much needed sunshine. The stray cat Camille left food for was wandering around. She spotted Cameron and sauntered up to him, rubbing against his ankles.

“I know you,” he crooned to the cat.

There was something about the cadence of his greeting to the cat. A song popped up in Kirsten’s head, urging her to sing along. “I walked with you once upon a dream.”

It had been years since Kirsten had watched Sleeping Beauty, but it was literally the only movie she would watch willingly. There was something about seeing her favorite fairytale play out over and over again that was mesmerizing. This moment was like getting to experience that again.

She got it.

A slow smile pulled at Cameron’s mouth. “I know you. That look in your eyes is so familiar a gleam.” He tilted his head down, waiting for her to continue their duet.

Despite the fact that she was outside where there was no shortage of it, Kirsten felt like she had run out of air. Her lungs were trying and failing to pull in oxygen. The intent look on Cameron’s face didn’t help. He moved slowly, gingerly around the cat.

Her voice was rusty; her words rushed and slow at the same time. “And I know it’s true that visions are seldom all they seem.” There was some sort of weird relief she felt when she finished the line.

“But if I know y-”

Kirsten’s phone cut off Cameron’s words. They both looked to her pocket. She could hear the phantom next lines of the song as she dug out the device.

I know what you’ll do.

Maggie’s face was on the screen, which meant she really had to answer. Kirsten’s eyes darted up to Cameron’s. His travelled slowly from the phone to her face. They stared at each other as Kirsten answered the call.

“Hey Maggie.” Kirsten hated how breathless her voice sounded.

As Maggie updated Kirsten with their latest mission, she walked back to her house with Cameron at her side. Her attention was only half on the conversation. The other half was focused on finishing the song they had started.

You’ll love me at once.

The way you did once,

Upon a dream.

They had been poring over files for hours and getting nowhere. Kirsten folded her legs up on the couch and rested her head in her hands.

“We’ll figure it out, Sherlock.” Cameron leaned over the arm of his chair toward her. “Maybe we’re just thinking too hard.”

“Is that really a thing you can do?” Kirsten rearranged the papers again, hoping to see something she missed.

“Let’s take a break. I’ll make you a drink,” he offered, already rising out of his chair.  

Kirsten rubbed at her eyes with the heel of her hand. “Sure. Nothing alcoholic though. I’ve got to drive later.”

The answering laughter from Cameron made her chest constrict in the way it always did around him. That development was still strange and new. She tried not to dwell on it. A loud clanging brought Kirsten’s attention back to Cameron’s task.

“How do you feel about cocoa, Stretch?”

“I love it.” Kirsten rose from her spot on the couch. “I prefer six instead of eight ounces of water in mine.”

Cameron huffed. “Water? You think I’m going to make you cocoa with water?”

It seemed like a reasonable enough request, but Cameron was acting she’d slapped him. Kirsten shrugged at him. “Is that not how you make cocoa?”

And that was how Kirsten ended up with a lesson in cocoa making.  First was the best way to melt the chocolate shavings. It was important to use shavings so they melted evenly and quickly.

Then came the whisking. One had to whisk briskly and often so as not to scald the cream. He didn’t have enough half and half so he cut it with milk, which still wasn’t water.

Once the melting and mixing were done, then it was time to ladle everything into an oversized mug. That left room for marshmallows. Cameron kept large fluffy marshmallows in his pantry for emergencies like this.

The final touch was a kitchen torch. Cameron let the torch just kiss the top of the marshmallows, toasting them to a golden brown.

The resulting cocoa was rich and delicious. Its warmth slid through Kirsten’s veins, heating every inch of them.

Much in the same way Cameron’s smile did.  

The tires of Camille’s car screeched as she pulled away from the entrance to the ER. Kirsten stood on the curb, watching. She wasn’t sure whether she should wait inside or not.

Cameron had arrived at the hospital not long before Kirsten had. Ayo rode in the ambulance with him, filling in the paramedics on the way. There was a lot of badge flashing to override the secretive parts of Cameron’s problem. All they needed to know was that his heart had stopped and how.

And that it was beating again.

So was Kirsten’s. Her heart had beat triple time when they first tried to revive Cameron. The adrenaline that flooded her system in that moment was starting to wear off. Weariness had begun to sink in. There was no way they were going to let Kirsten anywhere near Cameron. No amount of badge waving had let them near Fisher until he had been admitted. Even then they had been limited in what they were told.

Then Kirsten got a call from the nurse’s station.

Cameron’s medical records listed her as an emergency contact. They’d let her in, keep her updated as soon as she arrived at the hospital.

Relief nearly crushed her. She thought back wondering when Cameron would’ve amended the records Ayo kept.

Then it hit her.

After their brief quarantine, Maggie made everyone update their contact information. She hadn’t wanted to, but it seemed like the best time. Everyone had been making lists in their head of who to say goodbye to. Cameron made some remark about adding her, but Kirsten hadn’t taken him seriously.

She wanted nothing more than for him to wake up so she could list every single reason why he was a complete idiot for doing what he did.

Then tell him that if the situations were reversed, that he would’ve received a call too.

There was something she wasn’t telling him.

Cameron noticed just about everything where Kirsten Clark was concerned. There was her serious thinking face, where her eyebrows drew together. It meant she was mulling things over and over until she solved whatever problem she faced. The opposite of that was her discovery face. She looked so surprised and determine when she finally found whatever answer she sought.

And so he knew this face as well: it meant she was hiding something.

The far off look in her eye was a giveaway. There was also the way she would open her mouth to speak, then blurt out something completely random.

Three days went by before Cameron learned what the problem was. Kirsten had seemed fine, great even, at dinner. They had visited Amanda and Camille’s new place. It was afterward on the ride home that Kirsten became quieter. The reason was so obvious that Cameron was surprised it took him this long.

She missed Camille.

Cameron didn’t push. He let her have her silence. They arrived at Kirsten’s house and went inside. Kirsten flopped down on the couch and toyed with the hem of her sweater.

“They’re really happy,” she said. “Camille and Amanda.”

Cameron sat down next to her, shifting Kirsten’s legs into his lap. “They are.”

Kirsten didn’t say anything for a moment. “This house is so big. It gets kind of lonely here.”

“We could find you a new roommate,” Cameron offered.

There was a pause as Kirsten regrouped. She seemed thrown by his suggestion. “I don’t want a new roommate.”

Cameron pulled her in closer, wrapping his arm along her shoulders. “It kind of sounded like that’s what you were getting at.”

A distressed smile flashed across Kirsten’s face. She took a deep breath and released it. Her hands strayed from the throw to the base of Cameron’s neck. “I don’t want a new roommate.” She repeated in exasperation. “I want you to move in with me.”

Her words were soft, but they knocked Cameron squarely in the chest.

“Oh.”

“I’ve been thinking about it for a while. We’re always together at night whether it’s here or at your apartment. We’ve waited so long for us to happen.” Kirsten closed her eyes. “I hate how much time we’ve lost.”

At Cameron’s awed silence, Kirsten moved to withdraw her hands, but Cameron grabbed onto them, held them in place. He tried to come up with something pithy to say about a security deposit or background check, but he figured that the simplest answer was best.

PART 1

Kirsten finally let the tears roll down her cheeks. Seeing Cameron, her Cameron, with his wet and puffy eyes, but still trying to be nice to her after she broke his heart, broke hers right back. She couldn’t believe she had done such a thing to him, after everything they’ve been through. After he died for her, after she got trapped in her memories for three days, she thought they were finally out of big trouble. She knew she wouldn’t be able to cry at home because Camille would still be here, but at least Camille would move out soon and Kirsten would have all the time she needed to mourn her old life.

“I will NEVER forgive you for what you’re making me do to him.” Kirsten said harshly after Cameron left the break room.

She waited for an answer, waited for the shadow to move into the light now that they were alone.

“Well that, Miss Clark, doesn’t bother me in the slightest way. If you do as I say for once, nothing will happen to your team.” A voice answered.

“I was the one who got you kicked out. Don’t you dare drag them into this.” Kirsten let out angrily.

“I know you worry about Dr. Goodkin but I won’t have to drag your lover into this if you just do as you’re told.” The voice said.

Kirsten was astonished. How would THAT person know about her and Cameron?? She was going to deny it and pretend nothing was going on between her and Cameron but the voice beat her to it.

“Don’t try to pretend you aren’t in love with Dr. Goodkin, because I already know all about your relationship. I have eyes and ears everywhere.”

Kirsten felt sick. She felt violated. Her relationship with Cameron was something way too beautiful and way too special to be even mentioned by this disgusting person.

“Mention him again and I’ll make you regret it.” Kirsten answered, not even trying to hide her anger.

“You shouldn’t be so cocky with me, he’s still just a few steps away and I can reach him so easily.” The voice was taunting her.

“How did you even get into the lab? I thought all your credentials had been removed.” Kirsten asked, trying to change the subject.

She had to make him stop talking about Cameron and she had to stop thinking of him. It didn’t hurt a little, it hurt so goddamn much and she couldn’t afford to think about her pain.

“You underestimated my abilities and my connections. Even Admiral Decker cannot stop me from keeping in touch with those loyal to me.” The unpleasant voice answered again.

“Are you saying someone inside the lab is your mole? That one of the team helped you get in?”

Kirsten was stunned. Could somebody really help this person after everything they did and almost did to the team?

“Now, now, I have never said such a thing, have I? But I haven’t said the opposite either.”

To say Kirsten was mad was an understatement.

“I see you haven’t stopped your little mind games with me. But just so you know, I don’t regret anything I did to get you out of the stitch lab and I won’t hesitate to do it again.”

“I know that, Miss Clark, and this is why I am making you fake amnesia, because I know your loyalty to your team is your most valuable quality, and your worst flaw. You will do anything to protect them, and so I will make you do anything I want.”

.@towalkinyourlight​ This is for you. Hope you like it!

       Kristen walked in to the apartment and paused on the threshold. She smelled smoke. But Cameron was cooking and Cameron wasn’t prone to burning anything. In fact, she couldn’t remember the last time that had happened. Of course, with the holidays fast approaching, Kristen could understand, at least somewhat, that Cameron was nervous. Kristen had left today to give him some space and to buy him a gift, which was supremely easy, even though he had virtually everything, he didn’t have what had yet to come out. Which was why she had gotten him a subscription to big comic book companies. Among them: DC and Marvel and a few other ones that she wasn’t familiar with. The giant nerd was going to love it. She hoped that he would like it as much as she thought he would, at least. Sometimes she couldn’t tell.

       After what had happened in the stitch lab that last time, where she had to pretend that she didn’t know him to save his life, she had sensed that he pulled away a little. To be expected, for sure. In fact, most everyone was feeling left out by Kristen but she couldn’t explain it to them fully. She could only give them vague details and she hated it. But if she expanded on anything then they  would all be in so much danger that Kristen would hate herself for getting them stuck in it. “Oh. Hey! You’re back! So, did you get everything you needed? What were you going out for anyway?”

      Kristen wasn’t going to tell him about gift shopping for him. She may not fully understand emotions; she was still processing a lot of them; nor did she get time, at all, but she did understand the element of surprise even if she couldn’t get surprised. Kristen was determined to not tell Cameron about what she had gotten him, even though before, she would have told him and given it to him right off the bat. She reached out and grabbed Cameron as he came closer. Turning up her face, Cameron greeted her with a sweet, soft kiss. Kristen loved the fact that he was able to look past the lies she had had to tell. The terrible things she had to tell him: she didn’t recognize him. Kristen thought that was the hardest thing she had had to go through in her life. Not knowing about Ed or her mother didn’t even come close. She had known that they were dead or almost dead.

     But to not be able to experience the new feelings that had been lurking in the background. Cameron had suffered but Kristen had felt like she had died when his face had fallen after she had told him all the lies. The horrendous black smoke distracted them from taking the kiss any further. Though, as she passed the bedroom door, she thought she might convince him to maybe do something later. After the kitchen had been extinguished.

     Cameron turned to her sheepishly and asked her to go wait in the living room. Though, since the design was loft-like, she could still see into the kitchen, she didn’t really understand why she had to go wait in the living room. But Kristen shrugged and turned towards the living room, opening her mouth to start asking him what had gone wrong. Before she could get a word in, the alarm sounded. The beep-beep-beep sound pierced the air and made it impossible to think, much less speak. The smoke had finally reached the alarm that had been placed on the highest point in his apartment and it was making it hard to see. Kristen turned around, eyes squinting, towards the kitchen and couldn’t see Cameron. The smoke was that dense and that dark. She shook her head and went to look for a stool. Finding one in a nook, she climbed on top and turned off the alarm. The deafening silence was jarring and hastened her descent from the stool.

       Cameron emerged from the black fumes as Kristen got closer. “Thanks.” Cameron said with a shake of his head.

       “What is going on?” Kristen turned around and went to open the windows to air out the apartment and waited on Cameron to answer her.

     “Well. Um. So I wanted to make a special holiday dinner for you since it’s our first as a couple and would set a precedent for the rest of our holidays but uh… apparently I can cook anything but mashed potatoes.”

        Kristen had been smiling gently until the last bit. “Wait.. All of this smoke was from mashed potatoes?” She started chuckling and couldn’t stop. The chuckling turned to belly laughs which turned to guffaws. Cameron just looked on in astonishment. He didn’t think he had ever heard Kristen laughed like this. And he was sort of glad he was the reason. Even if it was at his expense.

      “Sorry. OK. You don’t have to make a special dinner. It’s us, Cam. Not to sound cheesy but we make it special all by ourselves.” Kristen said as she drew in more breaths to try to calm down. She drew closer to Cameron and wrapped her arms around his waist. “Right?” She questioned, her eyebrow ticking up.

     “Yeah,” Cameron whispered, “you’re right.” He enveloped Kristen in his arms and they just stood there, in front of his windows, the very ones that they had once looked out of to save a bunch of girls from a human trafficking ring, gently swaying as the smoke cleared out.

     The next day started out much the same. Cameron, telling her this time, tried a second time to get mashed potatoes edible and Kristen went out to finish shopping. Christmas was the next day. She was terrible when it came to things like this. To begin with, since she hadn’t “had” feelings, she couldn’t really tell what people seemed to like or get excited about and besides, she hadn’t understood the emotions and giddiness that seemed to surround the holiday season. And she had had temporal displaysia so she couldn’t accurately keep track of the time. By the time Christmas day would arrive and she would attempt to buy a gift to someone, usually Camille, if she would buy a gift at all, the stores would all be closed and she couldn’t do anything about it. Being with Cameron, however, and regaining her feelings and being able to tell time, helped. A lot. And she was going to make an effort. Since Camille was dating Amanda, Kristen thought to give them both something. But she would have to invite them over and she wasn’t sure when it was suitable. Most people, she knew, would be having parties tonight and tomorrow but she was sure that Camille and even Linus, seeing as how it was the first holiday season without his dad, had their own plans and she didn’t want to intrude. And she wanted to be alone with Cameron for a little while longer. They had been in a sort of little bubble and she didn’t want to pop it yet.

    Ivy and Kristen weren’t ready to spend the holidays together so that was out of the question. Kristen wasn’t sure what to do on that front. She took one last look around the shopping center and decided that she had had enough and would go home. As long as Cameron hadn’t burned it down.

      By the time she got to Cameron’s apartment, He had finished not doing dinner. As soon as the door opened beneath her touch, she could smell the smoke. Shaking her head, Kristen came in already coughing. “Cameron! Maybe you should stop trying to make mashed potatoes!” She waved her hands in front of her face in an attempt to dispel the plume that was coming from the stove top.

     “It wasn’t the mashed potatoes this time! It was the cranberry sauce! And the turkey got burned and the stuffing came out like oatmeal! I don’t know what happened!” Cameron’s shouts were coming from behind her. When she turned around she saw him with a fire extinguisher. A fire extinguisher! It hadn’t been that bad yesterday! Kristen was surprised Cameron didn’t usually mess up this much.

     After the fire was extinguished with a whoosh and they had, once again, opened all the windows and set up fans, since this one was worse than last night’s, she turned toward Cameron, her hands on her hips and a bewildered expression on her face. Her hair was sticking to her neck with the heat that remained in the apartment. Cameron’s usually fluffy curls now lay in a mass of sweat as he paced on the threshold of the kitchen. Kristen looked on from the other side of the room. “Cameron, are you OK?” Maybe she had missed something in the chaos of the holidays. She remembered how she wanted to take things into the bedroom last night and thought maybe that’s what they needed. Some alone time doing what they did best.

    Just hanging out.

   She went into the kitchen, interrupting Cameron’s path and seemingly confusing him. “What are you doing, Stretch?”

     “What does it look like I’m doing? Cam, we don’t need to have a traditional meal to celebrate Christmas together. We will act like it’s just another normal day. OK?”

     Cameron wasn’t convinced. “I don’t know, Betty. I kinda wanted to make a big deal about it.”

    “Yeah I got that Jughead. But I don’t want you to make a big deal if it means you are going to burn down your apartment. Now, I am going to get your gift, you get mine and then we are going into the bedroom. Got it?”

   Cameron smiled wryly and nodded, heading off to the hiding place where he had put her gift. It was a new software he had developed just for her. Kristen was already waiting in the room, with her phone in her hand, like she had just hung up on somebody. “Hey, you call somebody?”

    “Yeah. Since dinner is inedible, and we do need to eat, I called the Chinese place. They are going to deliver and we can just stay in. Now we exchange gifts and then we watch a movie.”

    “What movie?”

     “Like I’m going to tell you.”

     Cameron, smiling brightly, handed over the flash drive containing the software, relishing the look of confusion on Kristen’s face. Her eyebrows scrunched as she tried to figure out what was in it and, when she gave up, she looked up at him and asked, “What is this?”

     He smiled and told her, watching her face as she smiled and came closer to him. He enclosed her in his embrace and tightened his arms around her. When she had told him that she didn’t recognize her, his heart shattered. But when she told him it was all a lie to protect him  and that they still had to keep up appearances in the real world, he started to heal a little. Not so much, since he couldn’t take her out on dates and they had to sneak around but at least he had her. And they were all working together to make the problem disappear permanently so that everyone could relax again.

   She pushed away and gave him his present. He didn’t want to tell her he had already signed up for the subscription because she seemed so damn happy about a present that he would like. So he didn’t ruin it and just hugged her again. They were getting settled and Kristen was putting the movie in; she wouldn’t tell him what movie they were watching. The doorbell rang and Cameron got the food.

    By the time he returned from getting the food and paying, Kristen had cued up the movie. They had laid down on the bed and started eating, putting sustenance over entertainment. When they were almost done with everything, Kristen hit play on the movie and a familiar theme started playing.

     His jaw dropped and he looked at Kristin. “This is my favorite movie.”

    “I know.” Kristen smirked.

     They stretched out on the bed and got comfortable and watched the movie. By midnight, the pair was fast asleep, cuddling each other while the movie played on.

***********************************************************

   Cameron woke up with a smile on his face and his favorite person in the world in his arms. She awoke soon after him and the two didn’t leave the bed the entire weekend. Not even to get food. After that first hour they built a nest and spent Christmas Day watching their favorite movies on repeat.

Hi Cambron! @breakfastfoodclub It’s your Stitchers Secret Santa. I wrote a sick fic where Kirsten takes care of Cameron. I hope you enjoy it! 

Thanks to Laura @e11evenseggos for co-hosting this with me, and my cheerleader/beta Jenn @your-stitcher-thursday (and she helped with title suggestions). 

Read on AO3 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 It was all Camille’s fault.

 She had to come into work sick, insisting that she was completely fine to help with their new case. Camille had used all of her sick days for the year, and with her upcoming vacation with Amanda planned, she didn’t have the spare vacation days to take off of work.

 She was barely able to brief them on the case, before Maggie ordered her to go home. The slight sway of her body and the sheen on her forehead didn’t help her case, when she tried to convince Maggie that she could finish out the day.

 That’s how Cameron found himself, sniffling and coughing with the flu just a few days later. His current predicament was alternating between being too hot and too cold. He put on layers and snuggled underneath a comforter, only to find himself sweating fifteen minutes later and taking great effort to escape his comforter.

 He must have dozed off, because he woke to the sound of a knock at his door. He groaned and pulled the blanket over his head.

 Kirsten pressed her ear against the door, listening for any sign that he was awake. Hearing nothing from the other side, she dug her key from her bag and opened the door. 

 She tiptoed inside and shut the door quietly. She kicked off her shoes, set down her supplies in the kitchen that she brought to nurse him back to health, and went to check on him. 

 He was laying on the couch, bundled up in a hoodie and cocooned in a fluffy comforter. She placed the back of her hand to his forehead. He was really warm and was likely running a fever. 

 Not wanting to wake him, she tugged his comforter up a little and returned to the kitchen. 

 She unpacked the nearly overflowing bag. She wasn't sure what he needed, so she got nearly one of everything; decongestant, cough suppressant, fever reducer, cough drops, and a handful of combination drugs. She may have gone overboard, just a tad. She knew that he'd likely want something when he woke up, so she left everything on the counter. 

 Reaching the bottom of the bag, she unpacked the few cans of soup she got. Cameron had most everything else in his well stocked kitchen, but he typically made soup from scratch. And Kirsten didn't have the skills for that. 

 She retrieved a pot and a can opener, and started heating up chicken noodle soup. 

 When Cameron woke, the first thing he noticed was that annoying message on his TV; the 'are you still watching this show?' message on Netflix. He was sick, and other than sleeping, of course he was still watching. 

 He heard a gentle clang coming from his kitchen. He shifted so he was partially upright. "Kirsten?" He asked. 

 "You're up! How are you feeling?" 

 He extracted himself from his very comfortable covers, that were now too hot. "Other than feeling like I'm in an oven, just peachy." He tore off his hoodie, which took a great amount of effort to keep his glasses on straight. 

 "I'm making you soup, it'll be ready in just a minute." She turned back, stirring it with the spoon she had out. 

 He padded over to the kitchen and took a seat at his island. "What's all this?" He pointed as the assortment of drugs that she must have purchased. 

 She turned back to face him, catching the sight of him in a navy tank top and disheveled hair sticking up in every direction. "Well I wasn't sure what you wanted..." She trailed off and sent him an apologetic smile. 

 He reached across the counter to take her hands in his. "Thank you, Stretch." 

 She smiled warmly and patted his hands before returning to his soup. It was now a slow boil, so she turned off the burner. She got out a bowl, poured some of the soup, and set it in front of him. 

 He selected one of the boxes marked 'for cold and flu,' quickly read over the instructions, and popped two capsules out of the foil package and into his mouth. 

 Kirsten grabbed two waters from his fridge and passed him one. He chased down his medication with water, and nearly drained half the bottle from thirst.

 "Care to join me for some Netflix?" He asked with a half-smile. 

 She extended a hand to help him up and juggled their waters with the other, while he picked up his soup. "So, what were you watching?" 

 "Stranger Things," he replied with a slight duck of his head. 

 She bumped his shoulder with her own. "I can't believe you started it without me." Stranger things season two was their next show they were watching together, once they had free time. Nothing like getting sick to force you to have free time. 

 He collapsed on the sofa, shoving his comforter aside to make room for the two of them. "In my defense, I was rewatching season one... And I didn't exactly pay much attention. I remember seeing the restaurant owner call the social worker about Eleven, and woke up to two and a half episodes later." He sipped a tentative spoonful of the soup, finding it to be the perfect temperature. 

 "I know it's not your famous homemade soup, but I was hoping you'd still like it," she said shyly. 

 "It's great Kirsten, really. You didn't have to do all this for me. We could have just ordered in," he suggested.

 She leaned in to press a kiss to his cheek. "Of course, I did. I think it's in the job description," she joked. 

 "If you say so, girlfriend." Not wanting to share any more germs with her, he regrettably couldn't kiss her. So instead, he winked. 

 She blushed lightly and picked up the remote. "So, are we starting back with season one?" She was already clicking up a few episodes and selected play on the very first. 

 "Whatever you want, Cupcake." 

 She leaned into him a little bit, bringing her arm through his.