It had started with a cold.

As usual, it made the rounds through the Matsuno household fairly quickly. Though they hadn't been completely able to point fingers at the source, it had gone from something like Todomatsu to Osomatsu to Choromatsu to Ichimatsu to Juushimatsu to Karamatsu. And then they'd gotten better—Juushimatsu then Todomatsu then Choromatsu then Ichimatsu then Karamatsu.

But not Osomatsu.

This stupid cough-fever-chills whatever had only gotten worse in the days since everybody else had recovered. His chest hurts, his throat hurts, his body hurts, and—perhaps worst of all—this asshole cough is driving everyone around him insane.

"Shut up, Osomatsu-niisan," Todomatsu whines, sleepily trying to smack him with his pillow. Osomatsu would have a totally cool and witty response to that if he wasn't currently trying to cough up one or both of his kidneys.

Choromatsu is at least a little more sympathetic. "You have to go to the doctor tomorrow, okay? This isn't normal."

So he agrees, because what other choice does he have? He feels like garbage anyway, and he's certainly not gaining any popularity points by keeping them all awake at night. Plus he's kind of pissed that he's the only one who isn't better yet, and he really would like to have some kind of explanation.

Choromatsu insists upon coming to the doctor's with him—whether out of worry or just general nosiness Osomatsu isn't sure, but it's not entirely terrible to have a traveling companion, either. He's never been that great with directions, so it's comforting to know he at least isn't going to get lost on his way to the clinic.

They wait and wait in the office for what seems like forever before he's finally called back—though he makes Choromatsu stay in the waiting room during the actual examination. It's bad enough he'd been forced to wear a mask out in public ("It's the polite thing to do, Osomatsu-niisan!") so no way does he need his little bro to hold his hand while the doctor checks out his gross phlegm.

It's a short visit with a short conclusion—there's much more temperature-taking and chest-listening and throat-checking than there is actual talking, and he's back out in no time.

"Well?" as soon as he steps out of the back room.

"It's bronchitis!" he announces, giving Choromatsu a thumbs up.

"That's—" the third brother sputters, "—that's not something to be happy about!"

"Yeah, but…" he reflexively reaches to swipe a finger beneath his nose, forgetting about the mask he's wearing, "it could've been way worse. Like, I dunno, pneumonia or something. I don't even have to take a prescription."

Choromatsu sighs. "Aren't you even a little bit concerned? You're going to have to take it easy for a while—it's no wonder you sound so terrible. Do you want to stop by the drug store and pick anything up?"

"Nah, it'll be fine. The doc said it'll be gone in a week or so."

And that's not such a big deal, right?

So everybody knows the minute they get home, because Choromatsu informs them all like it's some big revelation. He gets one sympathetic look (Karamatsu), one confused blink (Juushimatsu), and two blank stares (Ichimatsu and Todomatsu).

It's about what he expected, which is okay by him. After all, though he doesn't mind being pampered once in a while, it's not the eldest's job to make his younger brothers worry about him all the time.

Since it's already gotten pretty late in the afternoon, he opts to laze around with everyone at home and re-read a magazine for the remainder of the day. He doesn't really feel like going out again at this point (plus the cold air hurts his chest anyway), and some part of him really does enjoy the time when they all just hang out at the house. Even if they're not doing it for the sake of spending time with each other, it still invokes faint memories of when they were kids and did absolutely everything together.

That's one thing he does kinda miss. Choromatsu likes to point out how he's the one out of all of them who's done the least growing up—and who knows? Maybe he's right.

Dinner is uneventful, bathtime is uneventful, and they're all dressing for bed when Choromatsu pulls this—thing—out of the back of the closet. It's white with some kinda blue thing on top, trailing a cord behind that indicates it's supposed to be plugged into the wall in order for it to do…whatever it does.

They all stare for a moment before Ichimatsu voices what they're all wondering. "What the hell is that?"

Choromatsu hefts it into his arms, "It's a humidifier. Don't you guys remember? Mom bought it for us like…last year, when we all caught the flu. It puts moisture in the air to make it easier to breathe…" Blank stares all around. "…Maybe you were all too sick to remember it. I don't know. Anyway, I'm gonna clean it out, fill it up, and plug it in."

Osomatsu frowns, suddenly disliking the feeling of his younger brother going to all this trouble just for him. "You don't have to—"

"It'll be good for everyone," Choromatsu interrupts him, "It's been pretty dry in here anyway since the heat's been on, which is bad for your skin, among other things. Plusif you sleep any better, we'll all sleep a little better."

He really can't argue with that.

So he tries to sleep better, for everyone's sake. Except he's awake, again, because bronchitis sucks and everything sucks and he's so tired he honestly wants nothing more than the sweet embrace of unconsciousness. His brothers all seems to be sleeping, though, which is good, because he's struggling—so—hard—to stifle these stupid coughs into his sleeve for their sake. His chest aches, and he wonders briefly if it's possible to die from coughing alone. Someone's probably done it somewhere. Maybe he'll be the second.

Of course, despite his best efforts, some people just happen to be lighter sleepers than others. "Nngh, Osomatsu-niisan…" Todomatsu mumbles around 2:30, face smushed into his pillow. He lifts his head, hair an absolute mess, to scrutinize his older brother. But instead of the host of complaints Osomatsu expects to have hurled his way, he asks, "Doesn't that hurt?"

Osomatsu gets in a gasp of air before his head jerks forward with another series of badly-suppressed coughs, but he manages to nod somewhere in between. There's no sense in lying about what must already be incredibly obvious.

Todomatsu stares at him for a few more seconds before wordlessly wiggling out from beneath the covers, sliding the door open and tiptoeing down the hall.

Osomatsu considers all the place he might be going—especially when accounting for his fear of the dark. He has to put that thought on hold, though, since thinking requires getting oxygen to the brain, and he's already having a hard enough time just doing that.

Todomatsu's gone for long enough Osomatsu briefly wonders if perhaps he'd gotten lost, but he eventually hears returning footsteps and the gentle thump of the door closing. He doesn't have the energy to turn around and look, but he can hear Todomatsu rustling around, apparently trying to juggle several things at once. Sure enough, something hits the floor with a dull thump, and then Todomatsu comes to kneel behind him. Warm hands are suddenly beneath his shoulders. "Can you sit up for a minute?"

He's exhausted and he certainly doesn't want to, but it seems like Todomatsu may have his best interests in mind so he does as requested. The youngest rubs his back until his coughing quiets down and he's finally able to catch his breath.

Next, Todomatsu offers him a plastic cup. "It's just water," he whispers, "You sound like your throat must hurt, so I thought it might help. And you should probably stay hydrated, anyway."

It's such a thoughtful gesture that, as he takes a sip, he's startled when his youngest brother also plops an extra pillow on top of his.

"I read somewhere that sleeping on an incline can help you rest better when you have a cough," he explains, sounding uncharacteristically unsure of himself. "If you're done with that, I can take it…" he retrieves the cup from Osomatsu, placing it far enough behind himself that the contents aren't in any danger of spilling.

Osomatsu slowly lays back, though he's immediately discontented when the extra height pushes his neck into an unnatural position.

"Oh no, not like that—here, sit up a little," Todomatsu slides the top pillow down more so it supports his shoulders and props his head up higher. "Is that better? You can get rid of it if it's uncomfortable, I just figured it was worth a try."

"No, it's—" he wiggles a little to find the optimal arrangement, "it's great, Totty. Thanks."

He sees Todomatsu smile in the dark. "You're welcome, Osomatsu-niisan." He scoots back down into bed, nestling up to his brother a little closer than is strictly necessary, "If you need anything else, you can wake me up. I won't be—well, I probably will be mad for like, fifteen seconds, but after that I won't be mad, okay?"

He nods, and with that, Todomatsu is out—arm flopped lazily across Osomatsu's middle as if the eldest brother hadn't been the bane of his sleeping existence for the past week and a half.

Osomatsu falls asleep with a warmth in his chest that has nothing to do with bronchitis.

He's the last one out of bed the next morning, and it takes a good ten minutes of brushing his teeth and washing his face and combing his hair before he's even remotely prepared to be awake. He'd slept better last night than he had in a while, but it's pretty obvious that it's going to take some time before he feels entirely like himself again.

After breakfast, Choromatsu is insistent upon getting him settled in on the couch, pillow and all. He jams a thermometer in his mouth with almost zero warning, which earns him a glare Ichimatsu would be proud of. When it beeps, Choromatsu removes it, frowning at the screen. "It's 38.5, so it's not anything to really worry about unless it's bothering you. Do you want to take something for it?"

"Nah," Osomatsu replies, "they say it's better to leave it alone unless it gets crazy high, right?" A badly-timed shiver somewhat discredits his statement.

"Are you cold?" Choromatsu's frown deepens. "I can get you something, if you—"

"No, no, I'm good!" Osomatsu tries to reassure him. "It's fine, I can pull a blanket out of the closet or whatever if I need it. No big deal."

Choromatsu hesitates for a moment, but drops the issue. "Well, anyway, mom asked me to do some grocery shopping. Is there anything you want?"

Osomatsu considers. "Juice, maybe…? Something that's good for being sick. I don't know. You're better at this than me."

Choromatsu sighs. "Okay, how does orange juice sound?" A nod. "Alright. I'm going then. You can text me if you think of anything else. Oh—do you want someone to come sit with you for a while? Ichimatsu's home, and so is Karamatsu, and I think Juushimatsu…"

"No, I don't need—don't get everybody all worried about me, okay? I'm fine. I'll promise not to do anything but sleep and cough while you're gone."

"But—"

"Go."Jeez. He marvels at Choromatsu's retreating form—it's like the third brother thinks he's a kid in need of a babysitter or something. Not that he'd mind company—being sick is boring as hell, after all—but he doesn't have to be looked after. He doesn't want his baby brothers to feel obligated to hang around and waste their own days just because he's got nothing better to do with his.

It's with this resolve in mind that he begins to flip through a magazine—it's the same one from yesterday, but what does he care? Everything's kind of a hazy blur, and what he really craves right now is the extra sleep he'd missed out on last night. But he somehow feels too restless to do that, which leaves his body in this sort of unpleasant middle ground between exhaustion and actual willingness to go to sleep.

He turns pages for about fifteen minutes or so before he hears footsteps coming slowly upstairs. He lifts his head to greet, "Hi, Karamatsu…plans for today?"

The second brother flashes a grin. "Well, I was going to play guitar on the roof. Juushimatsu intends to join me, as well…but first," Abruptly, there's a mug of tea right in front of his face.

He jumps, a quick inhale that results in a couple painful choked coughs. "How did you—"

"Choromatsu mentioned you were cold."

That sneaky— He still accepts the cup, though, secretly relishing in the warmth that spreads from his fingers to his hands and down his arms.

"I also brought you this," a dark blue blanket appears out of virtually nowhere, and Osomatsu has to wonder if this is just an excuse for Karamatsu to show off some elaborate new magic tricks. Making shit appear out of thin air. Goddamn unbelievable. Still, it's hard to pretend to be cranky when your brother is gently wrapping a blanket around your shoulders, carefully trying to avoid spilling the tea he'd prepared especially for you.

To add to the situation, he hears another set of feet bounding up the stairs, and he has no doubts about who this could be.

Sure enough, Juushimatsu comes bursting through the door, holding…a hot water bottle?

"Oh, you guys, I'm not—I'm not that cold, you didn't have to—"

Karamatsu shakes his head, stepping aside to allow Juushimatsu to explain. "It's not for being cold! It's for your, um…lungs and stuff! It goes on your chest and makes everything relax and feel better so it doesn't hurt so bad when you cough."

"Oh…" that sounds like pretty logical reasoning, and Karamatsu's nodding too so they must have at least looked it up. He sets the tea on the end-table and scoots into a laying-down position so Juushimatsu can maneuver the bottle beneath Karamatsu's blanket. He starts a little at the sudden change in temperature, and Juushimatsu pulls away.

"Is it too hot? Karamatsu-niisan helped me fill it up, so it should be okay…"

"No, it's fine," he shakes his head, "it was just surprising. You can put it back."

He does, and Osomatsu takes a deep breath to get acquainted with the feeling. It's heavy and warm—almost uncomfortable? But he lets it sit there for a minute before he realizes the ache in his chest is actually beginning to subside. Juushimatsu and Karamatsu must notice some change in his expression, because they glance at each other and smile.

"Do you need anything else?" Karamatsu asks, eager to be of use.

"No, this is awesome, you guys. Thanks." Osomatsu tucks the pillow behind his head, deciding he might just be able to sleep after all.

"Okay! We'll be outside if you need us!" Juushimatsu tells him—and with that, they're gone.

He falls asleep to the warmth spreading throughout his body and the melodic plucking of guitar strings coming in through the open window.

When he wakes, the hot water bottle is decidedly not hot anymore, so he sits up and places it on the end-table next to his forgotten tea. It's long since gone cold, but he takes a sip anyway because his throat is dry. The music from the roof has stopped, and Karamatsu and Juushimatsu are nowhere in sight—but a peek around the room reveals he has been joined by the most elusive member of the household, so that's something new.

Although Ichimatsu seems to be paying next to no attention to him, of course. He's leaning up against the wall, eyes staring at some far-off point in the distance—strangely, though, none of his usual furry friends are in sight.

What's even more strange is that, just as Osomatsu is pondering this, Ichimatsu seems to shake himself from whatever trance he'd been in and stands up (Osomatsu can hear his knees crack from across the room and cringes, wondering how long he'd been sitting there.) He approaches the couch, flopping down next to his older brother in a way that is probably intended to be nonchalant. Then there is silence.

"Hey," Osomatsu begins, once it's pretty clear Ichimatsu isn't going to start a conversation. "How's it going?"

"…S'okay," Ichimatsu replies. "And…you?"

"I'm good," Osomatsu half-laughs, but it backfires and turns into a hacking fit instead. Ichimatsu stiffens, as though wondering whether to move or not, but relaxes when the fit subsides. Osomatsu draws a full breath of air, relieved, and cocks his head towards his younger brother. "No cats today?"

Ichimatsu looks uncomfortable, but Osomatsu can't pinpoint why. "No…" he's slow to respond, "…well, there was one, but I…never mind."

Osomatsu doesn't have enough mental alertness to solve riddles today, but this evasive behavior only makes him want to know more. "You what?" He shudders beneath the blue blanket, wondering when it had gotten so damn cold in here.

"I…gave her a treat and sent her out." A pause. "Because…I don't know, I mean I know you're not allergic to them, but maybe it's a little better if they're not inside when you're sick?"

A beat of silence. "You did it for me?"

Ichimatsu colors slightly, then realizes he's blushing and blushes harder. "Of course, stupid. You're scaring everyone with that freaky cough. So stop it and get better already."

Osomatsu laughs again, coughs again. "I'm doing my best."

"I know."

It's earnest, and a little surprising in a way that makes Osomatsu unsure of how to respond. He shivers again and tries to subtly pull the blanket a little tighter around himself.

"Are you cold?" Though it's a question, it sounds more like a statement.

"Ah, a little, yeah, but it's not a—" and then Ichimatsu scoots over, pressing himself into his older brother's side.

A pause, in which Osomatsu has enough time to get over his initial shock and to realize that Ichimatsu is warm. "Is this okay?" Ichimatsu sounds kind of unsure—obviously, this had not been in his original game-plan.

"God, yes." Osomatsu doesn't even care if he sounds overly-eager. Being up against so much warmth has only solidified the fact that he is absolutely goddamn freezing, and there's no way he's passing up this opportunity. "You wanna come under the covers? Here," he untangles the blanket from around himself and drapes it over the both of them. "Are you comfortable?"

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" Ichimatsu mutters, but he's got this weird little look on his face Osomatsu suspects might be the beginning of a smile. Osomatsu has no problem at all dropping his head down onto Ichimatsu's shoulder, nestling into as much of that warmth as he can possibly get to. And, after a moment of hesitation, Ichimatsu settles his own head on top of Osomatsu's.

I have some good little brothers, sometimes, is Osomatsu's final drowsy thought before succumbing to the alluring pull of sleep. Eventually, apparently assured of his brother's comfort, Ichimatsu follows suit.

Todomatsu has pictures up on Instagram by the next day. Neither really minds, in the end.