Here it is, right on time, as promised: the conclusion to the fanfic. Hope you enjoy it because I had a hell of a good time writing it. ^_^

As always, I'd like to thank some supportive and faithful readers:

Thank you to IDEOMANIA for your thank you and you compliment. It really does mean a lot.

And a thanks to POLLYCRACKERS for loving an unkempt Marshall as much as I do ^_^

Get a Flu

Chapter 4:

Light bombarded Mary's closed eyes. She gave a start as the comforting darkness of sleep was shredded by the intruding light. She opened her eyes blearily to see that a streak of bright sunshine had conveniently filtered through a window to splash merciless against Mary's face.

She groaned in protest and pulled the blankets over her head in an effort to ward of the sunlight. She snuggled against the warm bedding and was prepared to drift back to sleep when a thought popped into her head.

When did I get into bed?

The question forced her awake and she peeled back the blankets. The sun hit her with her shield gone. She shied away and closed her eyes tightly. She turned onto her side so that the sun could warm her back instead of fry her retinas.

She opened her eyes and the first thing she saw was her hand clenched in a weak fist. She opened it, wondering if she had sub-consciously been holding onto something. It was empty although she could have sworn that she had been holding something earlier. Something warm.

Mary looked past her hand and her eyes widened in shocked surprise.

This wasn't her room.

Which meant only one thing…

This wasn't her bed.

Mary practically flew out of the bed, landing gracelessly on the floor with a loud thunk as her foot caught in the disheveled sheets and sent her tumbling head over heel. It was no longer just an expression. She actually tumbled out of the bed and across the floor to smack headfirst into a dresser, sending the contents on top to come showering down upon her. Mary shielded her hea as best as she could. There was a cacophony of sound as a variety of objects and trinkets collided against Mary and shattered on the ground. Luckily, there was no glass but the action did cause quite a ruckus.

Nothing hit her hard enough to cause serious injury but it was still quite a surprise.

Before the clatter could calm around her, she heard another sound that was becoming increasing closer, and quickly. It sounded like footsteps running across a wooden floor.

And sure enough, the owner of the footsteps skidded into view; grabbing the door frame to prevent from sliding across the floor. A frantic face targeted on Mary and stared at her with wide eyes.

Wide eyes sparkling like the deepest ocean or the most precious sapphire.

"Mary," Marshall sighed in pure relief, relaxing visibly as he sagged against the doorframe.

"Marshall?" Mary asked, her mind still moving slower than she would have liked due to her abrupt – and rather shocking – awakening. "What are you doing here?"

Marshall released another sigh as a relieved smile crossed his face. He shook his head sadly with a chuckle. "Don't scare me like that," he said, brushing his fingers through his hair.

He pushed off the doorframe and walked across the floor to stand before Mary, his condescending smile still making his eyes sparkle. She watched him, mouth stupidly agape, as he bent down to kneel in front of her.

"Hate to break it to you," he said sympathetically, "but I live here."

That single fact processed in Mary's mind and then everything clicked; coming together like a puzzle.

She remembered coming over to Marshall's house to take care of him while he was sick. But he didn't look sick anymore. He didn't look sick at all. In fact, there was no lingering proof that he had ever been sick.

He sat on his knees with renewed strength and a straight back. The color was back in his face and his brow was dry. His hair was also dry and had been combed back into his usual style. He had changed into a more refined attire – and more mature with the absence of tiny planes – with a fresh black tanktop and loose jeans that nearly swallowed his bare feet.

"You don't have to look so surprised," Marshall laughed aloud. "You didn't think I'd be sick forever did you?"

Mary wasn't quite sure how to respond. So she just stared open-mouthed at Marshall. She really wasn't a morning person. And the quick succession of happenings since her awakening was still processing. Like, how she ended up in Marshall's bed in the first place. From what she could dimly recall, she had been sitting on the floor. She didn't sleep with him did she?

"What… happened?" she asked uneasily as her stomach churned anxiously.

"Hmm? What do you mean?" Marshall asked quizzically. His eyes performed a quick examination of Mary's current condition and then trailed back to the bed. A wry smile slid across his lips. "Oh."

Mary almost glared at him. Almost.

"Don't worry," Marshall said reassuringly, waving his hands in a sign of innocence. "Nothing happened. When I woke up, you were sleeping on the floor. I just put you in bed so you could sleep and not wake up with a stiff back. That's all."

At Mary's suspicious stare, Marshall smiled sincerely. "I promise."

Mary released a sigh heavy with relief. "Good," she grunted, adjusting herself out of her jump-and-run position on the floor. She leaned back against the dresser and appraised Marshall with scrutinizing eyes.

"Well, glad to see that you're no longer a sleeping zombie," Mary scoffed, trying to regain some dignity even though she was surrounded by a litter of trinkets and still sitting on the floor. "But if you don't mind, I'd like to get up now. I think I'm sitting on something and it's becoming a real pain in the ass."

"Literally," Marshall finished for her smugly.

"You doing a good job of taking its place," Mary snapped.

Marshall shrugged with a chuckle and rose to his feet. He extended a hand down to Mary and she took it without a shred of hesitance. With seemingly little effort, Marshall pulled Mary up from the ground and onto her feet. She swayed for a moment before straightening with a calm composure.

"Thanks," she said.

"No problem," Marshall replied nonchalantly. "Now let's see the victim."

"What?" Mary asked, but Marshall was already picking up one of the trinkets off the floor. A trinket placed near the spot where Mary was sitting. He lifted it up for Mary to see.

"Hey," she shot back. "I'm the victim here. If it wasn't for this elf, I wouldn't have – "

"He's not an elf," Marshall interrupted. "He's a Vulcan and he has a name: Spock. Well, he's half Vulcan. His father married a human woman so Spock is also half human. He served on the USS Enterprise under the command of – "

"Marshall," Mary interrupted before things could get worse. "He's just a toy."

"This is more than a toy," Marshall said, offended. "He's a limited edition collectible. Do you know how long I had to wait in line for this?"

Mary rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

Suddenly, a new scent wafted to Mary's nose. She inhaled deeply and her mouth immediately started to salivate. Her stomach rumbled eagerly at the delicious smell.

"What's that," she asked dreamily.

Marshall followed her gaze and sniffed the air. Realizing what it was, he gave a start and a curt stream of curses under his breath.

"That's breakfast," he answered. "And it's burning."

Without warning, he pushed the Spock collectible into Mary's hands and sprinted out of the room and down the hall. Left alone once again, Mary looked down at the Vulcan in her hands.

"I still say you're an elf," she said and tossed Spock back onto the dresser. Then she trailed after Marshall, or rather, the smell that he had followed.

The scent led her to kitchen where she saw Marshall frantically trying to cool a frying pan with unknown contents with his hand. Two other pans were simmering on the stove, popping and crackling with a delectable sound.

Marshall sensed that he was no longer alone and glanced over his shoulder to see Mary. He offered her an apologetic smile.

"Sorry," he said, moving the pan to the cool countertop. "I was able to save most of it but the edges got a little burned. Hope you don't mind you omelets crispy."

"Omelets?" Mary asked, stepping closer to peer into the pans.

"Yeah, and pancakes and bacon," Marshall replied, flipping a pancake and rotating the bacon expertly at the same time.

The smell was absolutely amazing. The combined scents of buttered pancakes, crispy bacon, and the omelet stuffed with what looked like peppers, ham, and some other green ingredient created a symphony of smells. It even sounded good. The bacon spitting grease and frying angrily next to the bubbling pancakes. Toast popped from a toaster beside the completed omelet and the butter, jam, and syrup were already at the table complete with plates and silverware.

Wait a minute.

Mary had to push through the inviting smells of cooking food – actual home-made food – to focus. Marshall was making what looked like a breakfast banquet. And the sun was gleaming brightly in the windows.

"What time is it?" Mary asked.

As if on cue, the clock in the living room chimed ten times.

Marshall tilted his head to listen. "Sounds like ten o'clock," he answered coyly before turning back to scrape the cooked bacon onto a plate.

"Of the next day?" Mary asked.

"Seeing as it's about the same time as when you first entered my front door, I'd have to say yes. It's the next day."

"Don't be a smartass," Mary hissed with annoyance.

"Ok, let's just say you slept though a day. You came in the morning of yesterday and now it's morning of the next day: today. And I am currently making breakfast since I woke up around nine and was starving. I figured you would be too so I made plenty. Guess we both needed the extra sleep huh?"

Marshall flipped the last pancake onto a plate stacked high with fluffy pancakes and took both the plate of pancakes and the bacon to the table. An omelet had already been prepared and was waiting to be eaten on a plate stationed before a chair. Marshall placed the second – considerably crispier – omelet on the plate across from Marshall's seat.

"Any other questions?" he asked as he put the pans in the sink and wiped his hands clean against his jeans.

"Now you're just being an ass," Mary replied.

Marshall grinned at her and moved to the table. He stopped at Mary's designated chair and pulled it out for her.

"If you're finished insulting the gracious cook, breakfast is ready."

Mary didn't need any other prompting. She eagerly took her seat in the chair and waited anxiously for Marshall to sit in his own chair. He passed her a gallon of orange juice to fill the empty glass beside her plate. She didn't bother. She picked up her knife and fork and dug into the omelet.

Marshall watched her for a moment as she scarfed down the omelet and reached for the pancakes and bacon. Delicious.

Satisfied that his cooking was sufficient enough for Mary's tastes, Marshall started eating his own omelet although his gaze didn't stray far from Mary. He smiled at her excitement.

"Hey," he said suddenly, distracting Mary from the pancake lathered in syrup on her plate.

"Yeah?" she asked, all annoyance gone now that Marshall had served her a banquet.

"Thanks for all your help," he smiled. "I'm really grateful for you taking care of me."

Mary smiled back sincerely but then her grin turned malicious. "You owe me big time. And I don't mean buying me an occasional coffee."

"So cruel," Marshall sighed, never losing his smile. "How about I drive you back to work?"

"That's a good start," Mary said, feigning deep thought. "Next you can buy me a massage and a car tune-up."

"That's going a bit far isn't it?"

"Hey. You're not a light feather you know. I had to lug your Frankenstein of a body to bed. And I fed you a grape for chrissake."

"How 'bout this," Marshall bargained. "I'll wait on you hand-and-foot when you get sick."

"If I can get that in writing, it's a deal," Mary agreed with a coy smile.

Marshall laughed and the two continued their breakfast, enjoying the other's company to the fullest extent.

Until Mary sneezed.

---

I'm sensing more…

Sequel anyone?

Of course, there's a sequel. But now it's Mary's turn to get sick and Marshall will be the innocent bystander to get caught in her affair. And she'll make him suffer. Bwahahaha.

Well, that's the end and completion of Get a Flu. I hope you enjoyed it and keep an eye out for Get a Flu 2 or whatever I'm going to call it. As I've said before, I had a lot of fun with this fanfic and I plan to make it even better when it's Mary's turn.

Oh, I still don't know Marshall's cooking experience but I always seem to make him out to be a masterful chef. That's just me. And I say it's all delicious.

Until next time,
Hobey-Ho