"Ah-choo!"

Maki Oze sniffled. Her allergies had taken hold on her, and they had advanced into a cold. She had a mask on, but she felt that it was making everything worse for her. She reached over and grabbed a folder off of the stack next to her.

"Maki, why don't you take a day off?" Takehisa Hinawa suggested. He was sitting across from her at their desks and was looking at her worriedly.

"I don't need to take a day off for the cold," Maki said.

"A day of rest would probably help you feel a whole lot better," Shinra said.

Maki thought it over. She didn't feel like being at work right now; as she went to stand up, she felt herself getting dizzy. She grabbed the desk for support.

"Are you okay?" Hinawa asked.

"I'm just a little dizzy," she said.

"Let me help you."

"I got it," Maki insisted.

Hinawa raised his hands in defeat. Shinra waited until Maki had left before saying anything to the Lieutenant.

"It's so obvious," Shinra said.

"What?"

"You like Maki."

"I care for her wellbeing, same as the rest of Company 8," Hinawa lied. "Speaking of, where is Arthur?"

"Probably off crafting more mini-Excaliburs," Shinra said.

Hinawa sighed as he stood up. "I'm going to check on Maki; you go find Arthur. And don't get in a fight."

"Yes, sir!"

As Shinra left the office, Hinawa pushed his chair back and gazed at the ceiling. Damn, he's a perceptive brat, he thought.

He stood and walked into the kitchen, where he found Maki sitting on the floor. He walked over to her and squatted down.

"I thought I told you to go lie down," he told her.

"I was on my way to my room, but I got thirsty and wanted a glass of water," Maki said sheepishly. Hinawa looked down and saw an empty glass clutched in her left hand. "I guess I should have asked for some help anyways."

"Let me take your temperature," Hinawa suggested, taking the glass from her.

He reached into a cabinet and pulled out a first aid kit and began to empty its contents in search of the thermometer on the counter. As he searched, Maki started to nap on the kitchen floor. He looked over at her and sighed.

When he finally found the thermometer, he squatted down by Maki and lifted her head. She moaned softly.

"Let me take your temperature," he told her gently. "Then I'll take you to your room."

Maki opened her mouth, and Hinawa inserted the thermometer under her tongue. As he waited for the results, he filled her glass with water and got two pills from the bottle of the fever reducer he had found while searching for the thermometer.

"It's done," Maki told him.

"What does it say?"

"37.7° C," she said.

"You have a fever, as I thought. Take these, and I'll help you to your room," Hinawa said, proffering the two pills and the glass of water.

Maki made a face as she picked them up. She tossed them into her mouth and took a drink of water.

Hinawa crouched down in front of her, his back to her. "Hop on."

"I don't need help to my room," she told him.

"Those pills will make you even more tired than you already are."

Maki stood up and wrapped her arms around his neck. Hinawa hooked his arms under her legs and lifted her onto his back.

"Comfortable?" he asked her.

"Y-Yeah," Maki stuttered.

"Okay, let's go."

As they walked down the hall, Maki rested her head against the back of Hinawa's, who smiled inwardly. He enjoyed spending time with her, no doubt. He shook his head to clear his mind. He felt Maki slipping and hoisted her up higher onto his back.

Maki roused as she felt herself being jostled around. She hooked her arms in front of Hinawa's chest and sighed in content. She knew that Hinawa would help take care of her.

"Okay, we're here," Hinawa said, opening the door to her room.

"Thanks, Lieutenant," Maki said as she slid off of his back. She sniffled as she began to lay down in bed.

"We should have a humidifier around here somewhere," Hinawa mused.

"Don't worry about it," Maki told him. "The only reason I'm sick is because of that job the other day."

"The one in the rain?"

Maki nodded. "I should be better soon."

She rolled over, her back to Hinawa. He took that as a sign to leave, for now, so she can rest. He shut her bedroom door behind him.

A few hours later, after everyone had eaten their dinner and the dishes had been cleaned, Hinawa stayed in the kitchen and made Maki some soup. He ladled it into a bowl and placed it onto a tray for Maki.

"How is Maki doing?" Obi said, poking his head into the kitchen.

"She's resting, for now," Hinawa told him. "Her fever may have gone down some in the past few hours."

"Good. I look forward to having one of my top fire soldiers back in action soon," Obi said, and left.

Hinawa picked up the tray with Maki's soup on it and carried it to her room. He set it down on her bedside table and picked up the thermometer he had placed on the tray. He removed the cap and leaned over to put it in Maki's mouth.

"Lieutenant?" she mumbled, waking slightly.

"I was trying not to wake you up," he told her. "Can I take your temperature before you eat?"

Maki opened her mouth wide enough for him to insert the thermometer under her tongue. As they waited for the telltale beep, Hinawa busied himself with preparing her soup.

"You didn't have to do all of this, really," Maki said, holding the thermometer in place in her mouth.

"It's okay," Hinawa said. "I don't mind doing it."

When the thermometer beeped a few seconds later, Hinawa pulled it out and checked Maki's temperature. "37.2° C. It's coming down," he told her.

Maki pushed Hinawa out of her room. "I'd like to eat by myself," she told him.

"Fine."

Hinawa sat down outside her now-closed door while she ate. He rested his head against the wall behind him and closed his eyes. He napped there for a few hours while waiting for Maki to let him back inside her room.

"Lieutenant, why are you sleeping outside my room?"

Hinawa stood up and stretched. "I was just wanting to make sure you were feeling better before I left."

"Yeah, that soup made me feel loads better. You're such an amazing cook, Lieutenant!"

"Thank you, Maki," Hinawa said.

Maki smiled as she brought her tray out of her room. "You're welcome."

"Here, let me take that."

Hinawa carried the tray into the kitchen and began washing the dishes. Maki joined him a few minutes later, drying the dishes as he handed them to her.

"I'm glad you're feeling better, Maki," he told her.

"Me too," she said. "Now, I can focus on my work."

"You should be focusing on your work anyway."

"I'm always focusing on my work since you're sitting across from me."

Hinawa blushed. "Just help me finish these up so we can both go back to bed."

"And this time, you'll be sleeping in your room, right, Lieutenant?"

"Yes, Maki."

Maki set her dish towel aside as Hinawa turned off the water. "Goodnight, Lieutenant."

"Goodnight."