sick days
According to Bruce, it's a persistent cold that should clear up after at least a week.
However, if you look at Bucky, you'd think he has the plague and will die in the next twenty minutes.
It also turns out that Bucky becomes a very histrionic person when he's sick.
Five days have now passed and Bucky spends most of the time sleeping.
And when he doesn't sleep, he spends his time complaining about being sick.
It's almost sweet. Nobody ever thought it was possible to get sick with the serum. However, it is only a 2.0 version of the original and of course it has its weaknesses. It was only a matter of time before a loophole was found in the mixture and apparently rhinoviruses are immune to the serum.
For five days now, Clint has been trying his best to nurse Bucky back to health and more than once, he was on the verge of just taking Bucky to Steve. Bucky is not only histrionic, but also a very whiny patient. "I'm too warm", "I'm too cold","The cough syrup tastes disgusting", "Can I have lemon tea instead of peppermint?", "The soup tastes strange", "Will you read something to me?", "Inhaling doesn't help" "Can the essential oils have a different smell?” "Clint, can you-"
Clint loves Bucky more than anything. If it were possible, he would take the viruses from Bucky. However, he cannot take the viruses from him. All he can do is support Bucky as best he can and help him with the means at his disposal. However, it is also the case that Clint's nerves are slowly fading. He hopes that Bruce is right and that this cold will go away and get better soon.
“How is the sick chicken?” Nat asks and Clint puts his phone on speaker so he can talk to her while he makes some more soup. “He’s still alive,” Clint replies, adding another portion of carrots to the pot. At the last soup, Bucky gently pointed out that there weren't enough carrots. Nat giggles on the other side of the phone. “I miss the days when he was healthy,” Clint sighs, stirring the soup. “You only appreciate something when you no longer have it,” says Nat, amused.
“I also don’t understand why Wanda or Strange can’t just...magic him back to health. What's the point of all that magic if you can't even use it for something normal?" Clint complains. “Well, that’s a very good question. Does the medicine I sent you help?” she asks and Clint looks at the small brown vial.
The small vial came neatly packaged with a “get well soon” card and a dosage recommendation. “It works wonders. I always put a few drops in his tea,” Clint explains, filling a bowl with the soup. “Glad to hear it helps-” Nat says with an audible grin. “My target is moving right now. I'll get back to you tomorrow." “Be careful,” Clint warns. “Always,” Nat says and ends the phone call.
Clint takes the vial and drips a few drops into the already cooled lemon tea. Armed with the soup and tea, he makes his way to the upper floor of the loft. Bucky lies wrapped up under the blanket and looks at him expectantly. “You’re the best,” Bucky says in a rough voice. His nose is red from constant nose blowing and his skin is slightly pale. However, Clint may imagine that the color is slowly coming back. Fresh air and sunshine would be good, but Bucky constantly complains that he's too cold to get out of bed and the brightness of the sun would make the headache worse.
“I just want you to feel better,” Clint says, handing Bucky the bowl. He puts the cup on the bedside table. “I’m trying really hard to get better,” Bucky murmurs and begins to eat the soup. “It’s very tasty,” praises Bucky. “I added extra carrots.” “You’re the best,” Bucky repeats and Clint grins at him.
“I'm going to take Lucky for a walk. Do you want me to bring you something?” Clint asks and Bucky nods. “Tissues,” Bucky says and Clint looks at the still full box of tissues lying on the bed next to Bucky. “There are still some,” Clint points to the box. “They’re not soft enough,” Bucky explains. “Okay,” Clint sighs. “I'll be back in an hour. Finish the soup and drink the tea” “Yes sir,” Bucky grins.
Clint enters the bedroom with a bag of soft tissues. Bucky lies in bed snoring. "Isn't he cute when he sleeps?" Clint asks Lucky, who makes a noise that Clint takes as confirmation. He changes out the tissues and picks up the used dishes and looks at Bucky again.
“I’m almost sorry that I’m giving him sleep drops.”