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Being sick during the summer was definitely one of the worst things ever. Especially for Blade, who hated being sick and not being able to work. But he couldn’t hide his terrible cold from Maru, and now he was grounded, stuck in his hangar, under a blanket despite the ninety degree weather outside. He was horribly shivery, and had no energy to get out of bed at all. He would never admit that, but he was glad he had Maru and Dusty fretting around him, bringing him food and drinks.
“How are you feeling?” Dusty nosed the door open and rolled inside.
“Awful…” Blade grumbled and coughed, his engine making a horrible noise.
“Do you need something? I brought you a fruit salad, if you want.” Dusty set a small bowl in front of Blade. He looked at it and licked his lips slightly. He could use something to eat, and he hasn't eaten strawberries this summer yet… He slowly moved forward on his pillows and slowly started picking through the salad in the bowl. “Do you want anything else? Some tea maybe?”
“Mhm.” Blade hummed, picking out the strawberries from among banana and kiwi slices and pomegranate seeds, to leave them for last. They were really tasty, he was sure they were from Dipper’s garden. Store bought strawberries were nowhere near as good. Blade was glad he hadn't completely lost his sense of smell and taste to this cold, because he could now enjoy his favorite fruit.
Dusty caught himself staring at Blade. He was very cute when he was eating, he had a habit of picking out his favorite bits and eating them last. Somehow, it fit his perfectionist, meticulous demeanor. Dusty decided to not stare at him any more tho, and looked around the room. He spotted some neglected paperwork on the desk, and then some more next to Blade’s bed.
“Weren’t you supposed to rest?” Dusty teased.
“It’s just paperwork… But well, my head hurt too much anyway.” Blade muttered into his fruit salad.
“I’m gonna get you some tea.” the crop duster stated.
“Could you get me some Advil while you’re at it?” Blade asked shyly. Dusty just bobbed his front in confirmation, and left Blade alone to finish his meal in peace. Before he made it to Maru’s hangar, a fire alarm rang. But Dusty managed to pass on Blade’s request to the mechanic while he filled up his tanks with fire retardant.
So Maru appeared at Blade’s door after some time, with a mug of hot tea and a bottle of medicine. The chief just gave him a tired look, and settled into his pillows more. Maru noticed the papers on the ground and frowned slightly. But Blade was clearly not working now, so was it worth it to scold him?
“I brought you cough syrup too.” Maru said.
“I’m not a kid, Maru…” Blade rolled his eyes, but coughed like his body was trying to prove that he in fact did need the syrup.
“Yeah, kids aren’t the only ones who need cough medicine, as you can see.” Maru sighed at the stubborn helicopter, handing him a plastic cup with the cough syrup. Blade just mumbled something under his breath, but politely took the medicine. Oh it definitely wasn’t for kids, he shivered at how disgusting it tasted and took a sip of the tea right away. He never understood why no one could make all medicine taste good, he was already feeling like shit, he didn’t need to be further tortured with disgusting medicine. “There’s your Advil.” Maru set the bottle on the floor.
“Thanks.”
“Do you want more of the fruit salad?” Maru offered, noticing the empty bowl by his bed, it was literally licked clean. Blade visibly perked up at the mention, even his rotors twitched upwards despite being folded over his tail. “Pffft, gotta give it to the kid, he knows all your buttons.” Maru laughed.
“Champ made it?” Blade cocked an eyebrow at the mechanic.
“Yeah.” Maru confirmed. Blade just smiled slightly, it would explain why it was that good, despite being literally just chopped fruit. Making food with love made a difference. Well, Blade wouldn’t know, he couldn’t cook for shit.
“Can’t wait to praise him when he's back.” Blade smiled proudly, nuzzling the stack of pillows on his bed. He felt slightly better, less shivery and he had a bit more energy now that he had a small snack.
“Sure. I’ll tell him to come see you when he’s back.” Maru smiled and turned around to leave the hangar. Blade just closed his eyes and settled down, maybe being sick wasn’t that bad after all, if it meant getting fruit salads from Dusty…