Rusty felt a lot better when he woke on Friday morning. He had barely gotten out of bed since returning from the doctor on Wednesday, but today he found that he was less congested and his chest hurt less. He wasn't coughing as much, either. Sharon was still asleep beside him. He thought it was weird that he was awake before she was, but then he saw that it was only 6:30 in the morning. He didn't know exactly what time he fell asleep the night before, but he knew he had slept for at least eleven hours. The thought of spending another day in bed made him want to scream. Now that he was feeling a little better, he was getting major cabin fever. There was no reason he couldn't make it through a day of school. Rusty made sure Sharon was still sleeping, and slipped out of bed and went to take a shower.

Sharon woke a little before 7:00, alarmed at first when she saw that Rusty was missing. She remembered that he had fallen asleep before 7:00 the night before, so he was probably in the bathroom. She got up and went into the kitchen for coffee and breakfast. She was reading the paper at the bar when Rusty crept in, dressed in his uniform, book bag over his shoulder. He was startled to see Sharon sitting at the bar in her nightgown. He had been prepared to leave her a note that he was feeling better and had gone to school.

"What do you think you're doing?" Sharon asked, looking at him over her glasses.

"I'm fine now. I'm going to school."

Sharon shook her head. "You still have a fever, you haven't been cleared by Dr. Leary to return to school, and you haven't been cleared by me to return to school...need I continue with everything that's wrong with this picture."

"I don't have a fever," Rusty persisted. "Please, Sharon, I'm dying of boredom."

"Oh, really? I seem to recall you having that same complaint about school not so long ago," Sharon said, walking over to Rusty and putting her hand on his forehead. She was relieved at how cool he felt, but she still detected a little fever.

"Because I didn't know this level of boredom even existed," Rusty whined.

Sharon sighed. "I'll make you a deal," she said, knowing this would be faster than arguing, and Rusty needed to get back in bed.

"You and your deals," Rusty grumbled.

"You may go to school today if your temperature is normal. By normal, I mean 98.6, and not a tenth of a degree higher. It's against school policy, since you were still feverish last night, but I'm willing to overlook that." Sharon knew there was no way his temperature was normal. Close, yes, but not normal.

Rusty thought about it for a moment. He didn't feel cold or achy like he usually did when he had a fever. "Deal," he said. "You're going down, Sharon."

"We'll see," Sharon said patiently before sitting Rusty in a chair and retrieving the thermometer from her room. She returned and held the thermometer under his tongue. "98.9. Back to bed," Sharon said, showing him the thermometer.

"How do you do that?" Rusty asked in awe.

Sharon smiled. "Lots of practice. Although, a lot of it came from my other children attempting to feign illness."

"Did they ever get away with it?"

Sharon tilted her head. "What do you think?"

"Not a chance. Do you ever get tired of being right all the time?"

"Well...No. Now, put your pajamas on and get back in bed."

Rusty shuffled back to his room and changed back into his pajamas before climbing in Sharon's bed. Sharon came in shortly after with a glass of water and gave him his Tamiflu and antibiotic, both of which would be gone after today. "Do you want some Tylenol or cough syrup?" Rusty shook his head. "All right. Let me know if you want some later," Sharon said, kissing his forehead. Rusty spent the morning watching TV while Sharon sat beside him, working on her computer.

After lunch, Rusty had a headache, he felt cold, and his head felt heavy. Sharon didn't say a word. She tenderly placed her hand on his forehead, made that sympathetic "hmmm" sound she always made when she didn't like how warm he felt, and handed him two Tylenol without asking whether he wanted it.

"Don't say it, Sharon," Rusty muttered, shivering, as he leaned into her open arms. Sharon smirked at him as she wrapped the covers more tightly around him.

"I don't think I have to," Sharon said, brushing his bangs back from his forehead.

"I'm sorry. All I've done is whine."

"That is not true. You've been pretty tough through all of this. I can't imagine how badly you've been feeling, and I don't blame you for being a little grumpy. You've earned it. I'm actually pleased to hear you whine a little. It lets me know that you trust me to help you and take care of you."

"Did your children whine when they were sick?"

Sharon rolled her eyes. "Like you wouldn't believe."

"Even at my age?"

"Especially at your age. The older they got, the more they complained. They were never nearly as sick as you have been, yet, you haven't whined nearly as much as they did."

"Wusses," Rusty murmured, snuggling against Sharon's shoulder.

"No arguments here."

"Thanks for taking care of me," Rusty said quietly. "I can't imagine being this sick without you."

Tears came to Sharon's eyes as she looked down at her new son. "You don't need to thank me, honey. I will always take care of you." Sharon lay back against the pillows, still holding Rusty close to her, and softly stroked his forehead, humming softly, as they both fell asleep.