When Aoba woke up the next morning, he couldn't find it in himself to get up, and he yawned lightly snuggling into the sheets even as the light continued to stream into the room through the half closed curtains.

He could feel his beloved partner beside him, the mop of white hair snuggled against his arm, and he smiled reaching out to brush Clear's hair back. The white haired male's forehead was warmer than usual.

"Morning, Clear..." He whispered gently, smiling a little as Clear awoke as he called him. It never failed to make his chest feel light and fluffy when his lover responded immediately to his voice, especially now when his power was already mostly under control. It only went to show that Clear wasn't responding to Scrap, but him, and somehow, that very thought made little sparks of happiness erupt from within him.

His good mood further improved when the white haired male simply snuggled closer to him, while opening his eyes. "Good morning, Master..."

But he froze mid-greeting, his eyes wide as he stared at Aoba, unmoving. It was slightly disconcerting, Aoba thought, to be stared at so intently, and Clear behavior seemed slightly odd, so he spoke up hesitantly.

"Um... Clear...? What's wrong?"

Clear looked like he was dazed (perhaps he was still half-asleep), and his gaze flickered a little as he stared at Aoba. "There's something wrong. My heart is beating so quickly..." He murmured almost inaudibly, so softly that Aoba thought he must be mishearing things. "And my temperature is rising rapidly... I feel dizzy, I feel like throwing up... Could it be...?"

"...?" Aoba frowned a little, biting his lip as he pondered what Clear had to say. Could it be that... because of how cold he'd been yesterday, out in the rain... "Clear, it sounds like you've caught the flu-"

Before he could complete his sentence though, Clear had interrupted him with a gasp of triumph.

"It must be love!" Clear declared, suddenly sitting upright on the bed. eyes shining so brightly and looking as if he had found the solution to the most difficult question in the universe.

Aoba thought that it was the most abstract answer he had ever heard in his entire life. "What...?"

"Master, don't worry about me!" Clear puffed his chest out proudly, before nodding confidently, "I have heard of such an illness! Yes, these symptoms definitely point towards the notorious illness called 'lovesick'ness! I can't be wrong!"

Lovesickness...

Aoba could feel a headache coming on, and as much as he felt obligated to correct his lover's misunderstanding, he suddenly felt tired. "No, Clear, I assure you that you're not being lovesick in any way." It's a flu, Aoba thought to himself, and it seems pretty bad too. He reached out a hand to touch Clear's forehead, and he could definitely feel a temperature there.

How worrying... What should he do...? Well to start off, he could probably try to emulate what Baa-san had done whenever he got ill. It was all his fault that Clear was sick in the first place, so... he would make sure that his lover would turn out alright.

He was about to get out of bed and find a wet towel to cool Clear down... until the white haired male grabbed the hand he had placed on his forehead, and gazed up at him with sparkling eyes.

"Oh, Master! I never knew being lovesick was such an agonizing experience! This must be what they mean by 'loving someone to death'! I'm so glad that it's you, Master!"

There were so many things wrong with the sentence he'd just said, but any rebuttal Aoba had thought of were blown out of his mind the moment he heard the brazen confession. Heat began to rise to his cheeks, and he began to blush furiously. "I... Let go of me Clear! You're probably having a fever, and we have to hurry and get you cool quickly or..." He trailed off when Clear snuggled into his arm, the soft white locks brushing against his bare skin.

"Why, Master? Don't you love me as well?" Clear's voice was pleading and soft in all Aoba's weak spots, and he melted, feeling extremely guilty.

"I-I-I do... B-But... Clear!" Aoba tried, his voice weak, and he moved his arm half-heartedly, trying to escape Clear's grip, which was surprisingly strong for a person who was ill.

"No, you have to say it for it to really count!"

The white haired male hung onto his arm, refusing to let go, and finally, Aoba acquiesced, his cheeks burning red in embarrassment.

"I... I love you, Clear." As the confession left his lips, he averted his eyes from Clear's sparkling ones, and resisted the urge to bury his face into his arms. Clear's grip had tightened onto his arm almost painfully, but he looked so happy that for a moment, Aoba forgot all about his embarrassment and focused on his lover's brilliant smile.

If Clear would make that kind of face, maybe he should say it every day from now on...

...or so he thought, until Clear let out a strange noise which sounded halfway between a cough and a sneeze, and he covered his mouth with his hands. Aoba snapped out of his musings and lay Clear back down on the bed, any fluffy thoughts forgotten.

"Clear, you're definitely sick! Wait here, I'll get you some warm water and medicine!" The words came out in a rush, and Aoba turned to hurry away, determined to help his most important person in the world.

There was a tug on his shirt though, and Aoba sighed softly, turning back to Clear. As expected, the white haired male had gripped onto the edge of his shirt, a small pout on his lips.

"...don't want you to go..." Clear mumbled, suddenly looking much more vulnerable, his violet eyes clouding over slightly. Aoba's heart clenched at the sight.

"But if I don't, you won't get better..." He bent down and gathered Clear into his arms gently, before giving his lover a chaste kiss on his forehead. Clear's cheeks lit up, and whether it was from the fever or not, Aoba didn't know, but he smiled at the adorable sight, and slowly unwound his arms from Clear. "You'll be good and stay here while I get your medicine, right?"

At this, Clear nodded reluctantly, his cheeks still bright, and he settled back on the pillows obediently as he watched Aoba turn away.

"Master," he spoke up, voice still a little weak. "This ailment... Lovesickness... It's curable... right?"

Aoba gave him a tender look, before nodding reassuringly. "Don't worry. Clear. I'll make sure you get better!"

The last thing he saw before he left the room was an indecipherable look in Clear's eyes.

When Aoba returned to the room a while later, he found Clear lying on the bed, eyes closed and breathing slightly even as if he were asleep. He shook his shoulder gently, and called out hesitantly, "Clear? It's time for your medication..."

Clear mumbled a little before he opened his eyes, blinking away the sleep from his eyes. He stretched a little, before he smiled as he spotted Aoba in front of him, looking concerned, and stretched out his arms expectantly. Aoba stared back at him bemusedly though, and merely looked confused, so he cleared his throat and spoke up. "Hug?"

The response he got from Aoba was funnier than expected, and he would have laughed if not for the burning sensation at the back of his throat, and the throbbing of his head. Aoba was looking rather shocked and embarrassed, but he bent down towards him and embraced him obligingly. The warmth from his Master was especially comforting today, and Clear relaxed in his hold.

"Master?" He breathed softly into Aoba's shoulder, and smiled a little as he felt the other shrug a little in response, wordlessly questioning. "If I eat my medicine, will I recover?"

There was a slight shift against him, and Aoba nodded slightly. "Yes, you will, don't worry."

Aoba ran his hand through Clear's hair; could it be that Clear was afraid since it was probably his first time getting ill? It seemed that Clear still looked slightly dissatisfied though, for he pondered for a little while before speaking up again.

"Then, I won't take it."

The only thing that ran through Aoba's mind was confusion. Why wouldn't Clear take his medicine?

"Don't you want to recover...?" Aoba asked, trying not to sound desperate. Honestly, if Clear didn't recover, he didn't know what he'd do...

"But if my lovesickness is cured," Clear continued softly, pressing closer to Aoba, "That means I won't be able to love Master as much! I don't want that to happen!"

Aoba froze, before he burst out laughing, his body trembling slightly as he chuckled. Really, how very like Clear to come up with such a strange reasoning. Clear didn't seem amused, just slightly confused, and he parted slowly from Aoba's embrace, violet eyes wide and questioning.

"Master...?" He inquired, looking very confused. "Why are you laughing?" Do you really not care if I don't love you anymore? His eyes seemed to whisper, and Aoba straightened up quickly.

"No, Clear... Don't worry! Our love won't be affected by this illness at all!" Aoba assured him, before a gentle smile lifted his lips. "I love you, and you love me... That fact will never change, even if your 'lovesickness' is cured." The confession came easier this time, and he could see Clear's cheeks brightening in happiness, and the white haired male nodded enthusiastically.

"…Okay! If Master says so... Then I believe you!"

Thank god, Aoba found himself thinking, now Clear will take his medicine and he'll recover and all will be well!

The sense of relief continued until he realised that Clear wasn't taking his medicine, and was staring at him expectantly.

"Umm, if you feed me, Master, I have a feeling I will get better faster!"

And at this, Aoba's blush deepened by a thousand fold, while a small smile slid onto Clear's lips.

It seemed that getting lovesick wasn't that scary at all- not if he got to see many more of Aoba's cute blushes.

And thus ends my incredibly rainy mood for the day I hope. The rain's finally stopped!

Thanks for reading! :)