This is an extremely fluffy Rei/Nagisa piece. I'm sorry! They are just so cute.

Rei should have questioned why Nagisa was late to meet him at the end of class when usually he was running down the hall in enthusiastic excitement for swim practice. He also probably should have questioned why the blond hardly said anything to him aside from a mumbled hello when he did show up. Rei was at first pleased with the silence but eventually grew concerned from the complete lack of mindless babbling.

"Are you alright, Nagisa-kun?" he asked as the two boys were changing into their swimsuits.

Nagisa blinked, as if distracted, but still offered Rei a cheerful smile. "Yeah, I'm fine, Rei-chan. Maybe a little tired." Nagisa grinned again and scampered off toward the pool, although without the usual hop in his step. Rei eyed the boy uncertainly but decided to drop it. He'd figure out what was bothering his friend later.

Everything seemed normal until Nagisa had finished a lap twenty seconds slower than his usual time and Makoto got worried. "Nagisa, is something wrong?"

Nagisa leaned back against the pool and shook his head, but Makoto simply raised an eyebrow at him and he relented. "Well... I kind of have a bit of a headache...and I'm a little dizzy," he sighed.

Makoto's eyebrows scrunched together in concern as he reached out to steady the blond who was now wobbling in the water. When his hand touched the boy's skin he hissed in surprise. "Nagisa, you're burning up!"

"I can keep swimming, Mako-chan," Nagisa whined but Makoto quickly dragged him out of the pool.

Kou ran forward to offer Nagisa a towel while Rei swam over to see what was going on. Haru floated nearby, indifferent to whatever was happening.

"Why didn't you tell anyone you were sick?" Makoto chastised as he gently wrapped Nagisa in the towel.

Nagisa sniffled. "I didn't want to miss practice. The tournament is so soon."

Makoto shook his head. "You need to rest. If you push yourself you'll only get hurt. We need to get you into some warm clothes and you need to sleep."

Nagisa continued to whine as Makoto half dragged him back to the changing room. After the boy was safely changed Makoto set a hand on his head.

"You have a really high fever, Nagi. You need to go home and sleep."

Nagisa shut his eyes and leaned against the wall as Makoto wrapped an extra sweatshirt around him. "I think I might sleep here, Mako-chan. My legs feel really heavy now."

"I'll take him home," Rei offered. "We take the same train anyway. It shouldn't be a problem."

Makoto bit his lip. "He's really sick... maybe-"

Rei held up a hand. "I'll take care of him. It's not too far of a ride and I'll make sure he gets plenty of rest."

Makoto sighed but relented. "Well... alright."

…

It took some work to get Nagisa all the way to the train station. The boy was slipping further into a fever-induced haze and Rei had to practically drag him. When they finally arrived Rei allowed Nagisa to rest his head on his shoulder.

"Rei-chan, do you think I'll have to miss practice tomorrow?" he asked softly.

"I would assume you have the flu. You'll probably be out for a few days at least," Rei answered bluntly.

Nagisa whimpered and looked up at his friend, pink eyes sparkling with disappointment.

Rei sighed and gently patted Nagisa on the head in what he hoped was a comforting gesture. "Don't be like that, Nagisa-kun. Everyone gets sick sometimes."

From the bench beside them he heard a group of three girls break into a squeal of high-pitched giggles. Rei glanced at them without thinking to see they were all looking at him and Nagisa. He raised an eyebrow at that, but decided to ignore it.

When the train did arrive Rei dragged a half-conscious Nagisa inside.

"I'm cold, Rei-chan," Nagisa mumbled. Rei examined the boy to see him visibly shivering despite the heat outdoors and how he was already wearing Makoto's sweatshirt. Nevertheless, Rei dug into his bag to find his own jacket and carefully wrapped it around the smaller boy's shoulders. He tensed when Nagisa snuggled into his chest, but awkwardly wrapped his arm around his teammate, trying to will his blush away.

The girls from earlier burst into giggles again. Rei glanced over toward them. "Is something the matter?" he asked coldly.

When he acknowledged them the two of the girls looked away, trying to quiet their giggling. The third merely smiled at him. "Sorry. We just find it so adorable that you let your boyfriend cuddle you like that."

Rei sputtered as his face grew bright red. "What? No! We're not... He's just sick!" He continued to sputter with embarrassment as he tried to find words to explain the situation. If he was thinking more logically he might have explained that Nagisa was affectionate to everybody. However, all he could really form was some unintelligible mumbling.

The girls merely squealed and giggled without listening to anything he had to say.

Rei sank a little into the seat, trying to hide his face. Nagisa nuzzled farther into his chest and Rei chanced a glance to see if his friend had caught any of the conversation. Thankfully, he seemed to be totally unaware of his surroundings, the fever helping him to fall asleep almost immediately. He looked so adorable and innocent that Rei had to literally resist the urge to brush a strand of blond hair from his face. These thoughts only mortified Rei further as his face turned a darker shade of red. He spent the rest of the train ride trying to ignore the three girls behind them and the sick boy cuddled up to him.

When they were about to arrive at Nagisa's stop he gently pushed the boy's shoulder. "Nagisa-kun, we're here."

Nagisa moaned as he turned his head slightly, but otherwise didn't respond.

Rei sighed. "You have to get up," he said quietly.

"You smell... like a fuzzy penguin..." Nagisa mumbled against his chest. Rei half-smirked at his teammate as Nagisa continued to mutter unintelligibly about penguins. The blond's face was flushed with fever and Rei found he didn't have the heart to keep trying to wake him up.

So, when the train stopped he carefully untangled himself from Nagisa, threw both their bags over his shoulder, and picked the boy up with some difficulty. It wasn't that Nagisa was heavy, but it was awkward to carry two school bags and a full-sized human being. Nagisa hardly reacted to being removed from the train seat, but did turn his face so it was further buried in Rei's shirt.

Rei tried to leave the train without making eye contact with the girls from earlier but he still managed to notice their smirks through his peripheral vision. His face colored as he realized they were probably right. He wouldn't carry just anyone home, no matter how sick they were. What was it about the mischievous little blond that made him feel so... well, there were really no logical words to describe it aside from insane.

Rei attempted to ignore the strange looks people gave him as he lumbered by with Nagisa held tightly to his chest. Maybe he should have thought about what he was getting himself into before he decided to carry his teammate over a half-mile home. Nevertheless, he continued at a rather quick pace. Nagisa felt very warm against his chest and Rei grew concerned that the fever was still rising. He reminded himself logically that normal, healthy people didn't usually die from something as inconsequential as the flu, but couldn't prevent himself from worrying.

He continued along in silence until he felt Nagisa stir. He looked down to see his friend's pink eyes blink open.

"Rei-chan... where are we?" Nagisa mumbled sleepily.

"You're almost home," Rei answered. "Just rest, you're really sick."

Nagisa reached out and lethargically rubbed his eyes. "I-I can walk...," he murmured softly as he feebly squirmed to free himself.

Rei struggled to resist the urge to smile at how cute he was. "It's fine, Nagisa-kun. I don't mind," he breathed. He felt his cheeks heat up again and focused his eyes in front of himself instead of on his companion. Nagisa fumbled a bit more before once again falling asleep, snoring quietly against Rei's chest.

When they finally arrived at Nagisa's house the boy's mother appeared from nowhere and ushered Rei inside while he awkwardly explained the situation. Then, he hurried to Nagisa's room where he gently tucked his friend under the covers.

Nagisa mumbled inaudibly when he was set into the bed and hugged a stuffed penguin to himself, which caused Rei to have to cover his own face to prevent himself from doing something rash like kissing his friend on the cheek. Why did the kid have to be so cute? Flustered, he made to leave quickly when Nagisa weakly called out to him.

"Rei-chan, stay here."

Rei froze where he stood near the door. "I can't. I have to study," he responded coolly.

"I don't want you to go," Nagisa whined.

Rei smirked and shook his head. "You need to sleep."

Nagisa whimpered in response and Rei sighed. "I'll visit tomorrow."

"Promise?" Nagisa mumbled as his eyes closed.

Rei smiled. "Of course."

"I love you, Rei-chan," Nagisa breathed in reply. Rei's hand froze on the handle of Nagisa's door as his cheeks heated up.

"Uh..." He turned back around to see his friend asleep again. Of course, Nagisa had said that as an automatic response and while in a fever-induced haze. His friend wouldn't remember saying anything the next day and it really didn't mean anything. Yet, Rei couldn't ignore the butterflies dancing in his stomach.

Hand shaking, he reached up to push his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Feel better, Nagisa."

Oops. Yeah, I really can't stop writing fluffy Free! oneshots. But Rei and Nagisa have to be my favorite. They are just adorable.