The next morning, the phone rang at 7 a.m. John rolled over in his bed, groaning. Mark had stayed on the sofa. He had slept so soundly and seemed to be in a lot of pain, which is why John had let him sleep on the sofa. The nest of pillows in which Mark was lying was more comfortable than John's old bed anyway. When the phone rang again after five minutes, John got up, groaning. He went into the hallway where the phone was hanging and held it to his ear.

"Illsley." He mumbled sleepily and rubbed his eyes.

"Hello John. This is Lea." John bit his lower lip. Not good. Lea was Josephine's mother. And Josephine was Flora's friend, with whom she had stayed overnight. "I'm sorry to wake you up, but the girls have had a fight and just won't make up, no matter what I try. I think it would be best if you came and picked Flora up. Is that okay with you? Or should I bring her over?" John sighed deeply.

"I'll come pick her up. Sorry for the inconvenience, Lea."

"Don't worry." The woman giggled. "You know them both. Within a week they'll be best friends again." John giggled. He hung up and quickly changed in his bedroom. As he was about to go down the stairs to the shop, he noticed movement out of the corner of his eye. John turned around, only to see Mark. The smaller man stood on shaking legs in the living room doorway. His neck was swollen and looked like he'd been stung by a swarm of bees. Mark rubbed his eyes tiredly. He was still wearing the gray sweatpants and white shirt he'd worn the night before. His hair was messy.

"John?" Mark croaked before grabbing his neck in pain. John looked at him sadly. "Where are you going?" John walked over to him and gently took his hand.

"I'm picking Flora up. Apparently she had a fight with her friend, so she's coming home earlier than planned." Mark bit his lower lip.

"I'll be gone before you get back, okay?" Mark croaked and tried to turn around, but John stopped him in shock.

"Baby no! You're staying here!"

"But Flora will see me and..."

"I don't care, Mark. You have the worst tonsillitis I've ever seen in my life. Damn, your whole throat is swollen." John gently placed a hand on his forehead. "And you still have a high fever. I won't let you be home alone in this condition. And that's exactly what I'm going to tell Flora." John led Mark back into the living room. Mark sat down on the sofa, shaking. John got him a glass and a bottle of water. "Here. Go to sleep, okay? It'll be a while before I get back. Do you want to watch TV?" Mark shook his head weakly. "I'll give you the remote anyway." John said, pointing to the remote on the coffee table. Mark slowly lay back on his pillow nest. John smiled gently at him. "Rest, okay? I'll make sure Flora is quiet when we get home." Mark smiled gently at him.

"Thank you, John."

"Of course, honey. I love you." Grinned the taller man.

*

"And then she said I was stupid for not wanting to play with her dolls!" Flora shouted, upset. John was on the way home with his daughter. The little girl was carrying her backpack on her back and waving her hands in the air angrily. "Dolls are stupid, Dad! Cars are much better, but she didn't want to acknowledge that and then we had an argument!" John giggled a little.

"Don't worry. She'll notice that cars are great."

"Do you think so?" Flora asked, looking at the floor. They turned into their street and soon they were standing in front of the shop. John rummaged in his trouser pocket and looked for his key. Flora looked around the street before she saw a green VW Golf with wide eyes. Right on the side of the street. Wasn't that Mr Knopfler's car?

"Are you coming?" John asked and waited patiently for his daughter. He stood in the doorway of the shop. Flora nodded quickly and ran inside. John locked the door behind him. "Honey, I want you to be quiet and not scream, okay?"

"Why?" Flora asked in surprise.

"Just do it, please." John sighed. The two went up the spiral staircase and soon they were in their apartment. They took off their shoes and jackets. Flora ran into her room and John ran into the living room. He smiled when he saw Mark's blond head lying on the sofa. The younger man was asleep again. John grabbed the door handle and closed the door quietly before going into the kitchen and starting to make breakfast. Toast with eggs and bacon. He also turned on the kettle. Shortly afterwards Flora came back into the kitchen.

"How long will it take until breakfast is ready?"

"Ten minutes, I suppose. The bacon takes the longest."

"Okay! I'm going to see a movie!" She called enthusiastically and jumped up from her chair. Flora ran into the living room.

"Wait!" John called after her in shock, but it was already too late. Flora stood in the middle of the living room, astonished, and stared at the figure of her English teacher, who was stretched out on the sofa, sleeping. John ran into the living room.

"Why is Mr Knopfler here?" Flora asked in surprise, looking at the man.

"He's not very well. He has a bad case of tonsillitis and a fever. I spoke to him on the phone yesterday and because he was so bad, I offered him to stay with us until he got better." John said, biting his lower lip. Technically, he hadn't lied, right? He had just left out a few details. Flora nodded. Her shock quickly faded and she was only worried about the man who was both her school teacher and her tutor. "You're welcome to play here, but please stay quiet and let him sleep, okay?"

"Okay, Dad." She said quietly. John smiled and kissed her forehead before going back into the kitchen to get breakfast ready. Flora sat down on the edge of the sofa so that she was sitting next to Mark's legs. The blonde was lying on his side, his face turned away from the girl. Flora saw the medicine boxes on the living room table and picked one up. She tried to read what was written on them, but she didn't understand most of it, so she pulled out a tray. They were oblong tablets. Flora pushed a tablet out of the tray and giggled when she saw that the tablets were pink. Suddenly a hand landed on her shoulder. Flora turned around in shock before realizing that it was just Mark. Mark was lying on his side and looking at her. He had turned around.

"Put that back, Flo, please." He croaked, pointing to the tablet. Flora nodded, ashamed, and put the box back on the table, as well as the pink pill.

"What's this for, Mr Knopfler?" She asked quietly. Mark smiled gently at her.

"Antibiotic." He breathed in a weak voice.

"Dad said you weren't feeling well." She said worriedly, turning to face him. Mark smiled weakly.

"Don't worry about me."

"Your throat looks very swollen." Flora murmured, slowly sticking out her small hand. Mark winced as her cool, small fingers stroked his swollen throat. Mark grinned crookedly at her before groaning in pain. "Wait, I'll get Dad." Flora said quickly, jumping up to run into the kitchen. Shortly afterwards, John came into the living room with a tray full of breakfast and Flora. He smiled gently at Mark. John put the tray on the table before helping Mark sit up.

"How are you?" John asked worriedly.

"Throat's swollen." Mark croaked weakly.

"I can see that. Can you swallow?" Mark shrugged. John handed him a cup of steaming tea.

"I put honey in the tea. Maybe that will help." Mark smiled at him gratefully. Flora started eating her breakfast, just like John. Mark kept sipping his tea. When John was finished, he tore a piece of toast into small pieces and handed them to Mark. "Here. You should eat something."

"Can't...swallow." Mark croaked and pulled a face. John sighed sadly. Mark took his medication and shortly afterwards he was lying on the sofa again. John was in the kitchen washing the dishes. Flora ran into her room and came back shortly afterwards with a large box. She sat down on the floor in front of Mark and pulled a few model cars out of the box. Mark watched her with a slight smile.

"Look, Mr Knopfler! That's my favourite car!" She called excitedly and handed Mark a small model car. Mark took it in his shaking hand and looked at it.

"Let him sleep, Flora!" John called warningly from the kitchen. The girl rolled her Hazel eyes, which made Mark giggle.

"What's your favourite car, Mr Knopfler?" She asked quietly so John wouldn't hear her.

"Jaguar E Type." Mark croaked quietly. "Have you ever seen a car like that?" Flora shook her head. Mark smiled a little. "A man in the neighbourhood where I grew up had a car like that. Sometimes he took us with him and drove us around town."

"That's cool." The girl marvelled. Mark smiled gently. His eyelids slowly became heavy. The painkillers were starting to work. He was getting tired. "Can I braid your hair?" Flora asked excitedly and clapped her hands. Mark looked at her in surprise. "Dad never lets me braid his hair. Can I try yours?" Mark giggled a little.

"Have fun." He mumbled before yawning quietly and falling asleep.

*

Mark woke up to a hand rubbing his shoulder. He opened his eyes sleepily and let out a small yawn.

"God, you're cute when you're sleepy." Mark heard a male voice say. He stretched a little before turning onto his back and looking at John. The taller man stood over him and grinned at him. Mark rolled his eyes.

"Where's Flora?" Mark croaked in surprise. John sat down next to him on the sofa.

"In the bathtub. It's already evening, Mark." John giggled a little. "It's already 8 p.m."

"I slept all day?" Mark asked with wide eyes. John nodded, grinning.

"But your body needed sleep. Are you feeling better?" Mark nodded a little. "I made you soup. Heat is supposed to help with tonsillitis better than cold. At least that's what I've heard." John helped Mark sit up. The younger man slumped back into the pillow nest. John smiled as he stuck a spoon into the soup bowl and scooped out the hot liquid. He blew a few times before holding the spoon to Mark's lips. The younger man sniffed the soup a little. John started to laugh. "This is just normal chicken soup. Do you think I want to poison you?" Mark shrugged before slowly opening his mouth and letting the soup flow into his throat. Mark squeezed his eyes shut and let out a soft groan. "Does it hurt?" John asked worriedly. Mark had a few tears of pain in his eyes. "I think you shouldn't have talked so much this morning. Do you want some more soup?" Mark nodded silently. John smiled and let the soup flow down Mark's throat so that the younger man didn't have to swallow. Soon the soup was finished. Only the noodles and the pieces of meat were still in the bowl. John had only given Mark the broth so that he didn't have to swallow. John leaned forward and kissed Mark's forehead. The smaller man blushed a little. But you couldn't notice it because of his fever. John gave Mark painkillers and antibiotics. "Do you want to sleep in my bed tonight? I have a double bed. It's big enough." John said. Mark shook his head weakly and nudged the sofa with his index finger.

"Flora could see us." He croaked. John nodded silently before getting up and taking the bowl back to the kitchen. Mark also got up.

"Where are you going?" John asked in surprise.

"Toilet." Mark croaked.

"That's not possible, honey." John giggled. "We only have one toilet and it's in the bathroom. As I said, Flora bathes in the bathtub." Mark bit his lower lip. "Is it urgent?" An energetic nod was the answer. "Wait, I'll get her out. She's been in the tub for thirty minutes anyway." Mark dropped down on the kitchen chair and waited. Soon Flora came out of the bathroom. She was wearing a small red bathrobe. Her damp hair curled over her shoulders.

"Mr. Knopfler!" She called excitedly and ran towards him. Mark smiled gently at her. "Are you feeling better?"

"A little." Mark croaked before he grabbed his throat and had to cough. Flora looked at him worriedly.

"Don't worry, darling. Mr. Knopfler has to go to the toilet. In the meantime, you can choose a film for tonight. Does that sound good?" John smiled. Flora nodded excitedly and ran quickly into the living room. Her bare feet slapped against the wooden floor. Mark smiled gently after her before slowly pushing himself up again and going into the bathroom. When John heard the toilet flush shortly afterwards, he entered the bathroom himself. Mark washed his hands, shaking. John looked at Mark worriedly and rubbed his back gently. "Do you want to put on another shirt? This one is soaked with sweat." John said when he noticed that Mark's shirt was soaking wet. Mark shook his head silently. "Your cold will get worse if you leave that shirt on. Do you have another one with you?" A shake of the head. John sighed. "You can have one of mine if you want. It'll probably be too big for you, but that doesn't matter. Is a T-shirt okay for you? Short-sleeved?" Mark bit his lower lip. John waited for an answer and gave him time.

"Can I have a long-sleeved shirt, John?" He croaked weakly.

"Honey, you don't have to be ashamed. I know your forearms are scarred. Flora saw it too, but she thinks it's from an accident. No one in this house will laugh or talk to you about it." Mark closed his eyes tightly.

"Please?" He croaked. John sighed.

"Okay. Wait here. I'll be right back." Mark sat down on the closed toilet lid and sighed deeply. He ran his hand through his hair, or at least he tried to. He was shocked to see that Flora had braided his hair into small, complicated plaits. Mark had to giggle. Soon John came with a large green shirt. He gave it to him and then left the bathroom. Mark got changed with a sigh. He left the first three buttons undone and let the shirt hang over his waistband. It came down to his knees and covered his entire thighs. Mark giggled softly. Soon he was back on the sofa in his nest of pillows. John had made him a tea and was sitting next to him. They were watching a children's film. John was still quite engrossed in the film when he suddenly felt a head on his shoulder. John looked around in surprise before smiling. Mark had slumped with his back against John's chest. His head was resting on John's shoulder. The younger man was lying between John's legs. John smiled gently and held him close before suppressing a laugh. Flora was lying on Mark's chest. Her head was resting on his chest and she was also lying between his legs. John smiled gently and kissed Mark's feverish forehead before stroking his chest through the light green silk shirt. God, he loved this man. Maybe they would share their first kiss soon.