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Tobias loves his boyfriend.
Really, he does and quite a lot actually.
But sometimes he could be a bit... difficult.
Of course, a relationship isn’t a relationship if it’s flawless, no matter if it’s a platonic one or a romantic one as in their case. He considers himself to be pretty patient regarding Francis and naturally his loyalty lies with him - the thought of leaving him would never even cross his mind or anything worse than that. However, he knew what he signed up for so sometimes he just needed to show him that extra reassurance.
Sometimes it went at the cost of his own sanity.
Tobias knows the scientist better than he knows himself. He was mildly aware of his hypochondriac tendencies even before they started officially dating. Although, he wasn’t aware of just how often it could get out of hand and how much it actually took to put the man’s mind at somewhat ease. There was also no pattern to when Francis would have a more serious ‘episode’ and when he just did it a few times in a day.
Unfortunately, today seemed to be one of those days.
The two were in their house enjoying some rare time off work together. Tobias was cooking lunch while Francis seemed to be furiously typing away on his laptop, completely focused. At first, the manager thought that he might be doing some research despite having the day off. “Science doesn’t have holidays.” the younger would often say, but this time he seemed more worried.
“Is the deadline soon?”
“What?”
“You seem really worried, I thought you might be writing some last minute theories...”
“O-Oh. No... It’s not that.”
“Oh. Then... what’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong... yet...”
“...okay?”
Tobias sets the table waiting for Francis to continue, but the other seems to take it as the end of their conversation, resuming his attention on the laptop. “Babe?” the man jumps. “Y-Yeah?” he sets their meals on the table. “I thought you were gonna tell me more. Lunch is ready.” the scientist clears his throat, setting the device aside to join him at the dinning table.
“Thank you.” he says quietly and the older has to resist the urge to ask about the subject again. Luckily, Francis finally offers more than a few words. “I... was feeling for lumps, pain, you know the usual stuff and I felt something on my neck. Tobias, I think I’ve got cancer.” he quickly concludes. The manager smiles in sympathy, releasing a small huff upon the distraught look on his partner’s face.
“Francis...”
“I know, I know, but it’s actually there this time!”
“Baby-”
“Here, you can even feel it for yourself!”
The younger suddenly grabs his hand, startling Tobias for a moment. His boyfriends guides it to his neck and the man himself almost gets flustered. “Right... there.” and Francis was right, there was a small bump. The manager studied it with his fingers gently brushing over it. “That doesn’t automatically mean it’s cancer. It could be a mosquito bite or maybe enlarged lymph nodes or perhaps it’s just a lump.”
“I was searching online and the most common out of all of it was cancer.”
“The internet shows you the worst ones first. Doctors know better than that.”
“Actually, I’ve already been to the doctor.”
“And?”
“...and?”
“What did he say?”
“Well, he said that I shouldn’t worry about it.”
“See-”
“-but he didn’t say that it’s not cancer! What if I only have a few days left so he said not to worry because there’s no point and he wants me to enjoy the little time I have left to the fullest and unaware?”
“FRANCIS!”
The said man flinched when he yelled. “I-I’m sorry I shouldn’t have shouted.” Tobias sighs. “Look, I know it’s hard, but if the doctor told you not to worry then it’s obviously fine. He can’t legally lie to you about a diagnose.” he tries to sooth, voice softening. The manager gets up to go around and sit next to him, gently taking his hands in his own. “If you don’t trust him then trust me.”
Francis still looks at him unsure then finally nods. “You’re right.” The older smiles, pecking his cheek. “Let’s eat, otherwise it’ll get cold.”
***
It’s the middle of the night when Tobias wakes up feeling cold. He lazily opens his eyes to find out that he’s alone in bed. As the man becomes more alert to his surroundings, he notices a dim light underneath the bedroom door crack. When he goes to check the living room, he finds his partner sitting on the sofa with his laptop. “Francis, what’re you doing here?” the manager asks, groggily.
The said man jumps at being caught. “I-I thought you were sleeping.” the manager yawns, tiredly. “Come back to bed.” he leans his head against the door frame, willing the younger back. “I’ll be there in a need. Let me just finish reading this article.” he answers, breaking eye contact. “Is this about the lump...” his boyfriend frowns and the scientist doesn’t answer. “I’ll just kiss it until it disappears, come on.”
“Tobias!” his face flushes and it’s clear that he can’t concentrate anymore. “A-Alright. I’m coming...” he closes the laptop and the older waits for him, smiling. He waits for Francis to pass him then wraps his arms around his waist, planting a kiss to the back of his head. “S-stop, we’ll catch a cold here.” he pulls his partner back in bed and they comfortably settle into each other’s embrace.
“And don’t kiss it, it might be infectious.” the scientist states seriously. “...’kay.” Tobias is too tired and just wants to snuggle back into sleep with the younger by his side. “You’re fine, baby. You’re not sick, okay? Just relax.” he mutters. Surprisingly, Francis seems to listen to him after a while, his body slowly relaxes. “I love you.” the man whispers. “I love you, too.” the manager replies, starting to doze off again.
It’s never easy to make a hypochondriac stop worrying. Every time Tobias is successful, if only for a day, to keep his boyfriend’s mind at ease, it’s already a huge achievement. He wishes he could somehow help him defeat it completely, but step-by-step every day, the manager thinks or at least likes to think that they’re handling it together. After all, love wins all, right?