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Amelie wasn't up yet.
Félix tensed as he looked around the living room, as if he expected his mom to suddenly materialize in front of him.
If she had to leave the house early for any reason, she would usually have left him a note on the counter or fridge saying so.
But there wasn't anything saying she had left.
Feeling nervous, Félix went to check her bedroom.
"Mom?" He called out.
Again, he got no answer.
The idea of barging into his mother's bedroom unannounced felt wrong, but Félix was starting to panic.
"I'm going to come in."
He didn't know what the point in telling her was exactly, seeing as she hadn't responded to anything else he said.
Part of him just wanted to reassure himself she was actually in her room.
Félix opened the door, quiet and carefully as he could.
Amelie was still in bed.
But something was clearly wrong.
She was pale, and sweat lined her forehead.
Suddenly, all Félix could see was Aunt Emilie, encased in that box that kept her body preserved.
Félix was at Amelie's side in an instant.
"Mom!?" He shook her shoulders gently.
Amelie groaned, and he moved his hands away, watching her like if he turned his head away she would fall apart.
"...Félix…? What time is it, Love?"
"Twelve PM, you didn't wake up on time, I was worried." He explained.
A look of guilt flashed across Amelie's face. "Oh, I'm sorry, Sweetheart."
With no warning, Amelie broke out in a massive coughing fit.
Félix wasn't stupid, he knew the basic symptoms of an illness, and considering the fact that he had been sick not too long ago either, it was obvious his mother had fallen sick.
"You're sick, Mom."
Amelie cupped the side of his face and smiled. "I know, but you don't have to worry, I'll be fine."
Her smile was as bright and wide as it always was, but it was clear she was only trying to stop Félix from worrying.
He shook his head. "Of course I do. You're my mother. I'm not just going to sit idly by whilst you suffer like this."
He placed the back of his hand against her forehead.
She was far too warm.
"You have a fever, Mom. You need to rest."
Amelie sighed fondly.
"You're so sweet."
"Do you know if we have any medicine left over? You know, from when I was sick."
She shook her head.
"I think I used the last of it for you."
So he would have to go to the store then.
"I'll go to the store and get some. You won't get better without it."
"Oh, Félix. You really don't have to, Dear."
"But I want to, Mom. You take care of me all the time, so why can't I take care of you for once?"
She kept on looking at him with the same fond look in her eyes.
"Okay. But please try to be quick. It's cold outside, and we don't want you getting sick again too now don't we?" She laughed.
Sometimes Félix wondered how she always managed to be so positive.
"Okay, I'll be back soon, I promise."
He leaned down to kiss her cheek, before heading back to his room to change out of his pajamas.
***
"Dusuu? Are you up yet?"
The Kwami looked up from their bed Félix had made from spare throws and pillows. "Félix!" They exclaimed, their usual cheerful grin on their face.
They flew over to him, taking a seat on his bedside table.
"Oh, are we going somewhere!? You're dressed!"
Félix nodded, before frowning. "Mom's sick, I need to go get her some medicine."
Now Dusuu was frowning too. "Amelie's sick!? Noooo! What a disaster!"
"Are you coming with me? You'll have to hide in my pocket."
Dusuu nodded so enthusiastically, Félix thought their head would fall right off.
They climbed into the pocket of his waistcoat, hiding low so they wouldn't be seen.
"We'll have to hurry, it's cold outside, and like Mom said, we don't want everyone to get sick."
And Félix really didn't want to be sick a second time in a month anyway.
He made sure he had remembered everything he needed, before quickly rushing out the house before he missed the bus.
***
Amelie had been right.
It was absolutely freezing outside.
Even the inside of the pharmacy felt like enough to turn him and Dusuu into blocks of ice.
Maybe it's some kind of trick to get customers sick so they'll buy more medicine. Félix thought to himself as he looked around for the medicine Amelie needed.
Truthfully, he felt somewhat responsible for her sickness. He had been the one sick a few weeks back, meaning he had spread it to her.
He bowed his head in shame, as though he had done it on purpose.
His guilt was quickly forgotten when he found the medicine he was looking for.
Félix grimaced at the memory of the taste. He would have to make her some food to have with it when they got back so she wouldn't be stuck with that horrible taste in her mouth.
Once he'd paid, he hurried back to the bus stop, not wanting to miss the bus back.
Thank goodness he didn't have to deal with any more of these for the day.
***
Félix wondered if Amelie had gone back to sleep whilst he was gone.
It would probably be a good thing. She needed all the rest she could get after all.
"Does Amelie have the same thing you had a few weeks ago?" Dusuu inquired.
"Probably." He answered as he poured hot water into two cups of tea.
The tea would make it easier for Amelie to take the medicine. Félix still shivered at the thought of the aftertaste.
He wanted to make her something to eat to, but he wasn't as good at caring for people as Amelie was, and he didn't really know any good recipes other than that porridge she had made for him when he was sick.
He blinked.
Porridge was easy enough to make, wasn't it?
***
Surprisingly, Félix didn't have any problems making the porridge whatsoever.
It only took about ten minutes to make at most, and all he had to do was quickly heat up the tea he had made once it was done.
He placed everything onto a tray, still carrying Dusuu around in his pocket as he walked back upstairs, trying his best not to drop or spill anything.
"Oh you're back!" Amelie smiled as he entered her room.
He placed the tray down on the bed, making sure Amelie couldn't accidentally knock it off.
"Aw, look at you, my little nurse." She cooed. "You even brought me food!"
The appreciation was shining in her eyes, even though Amelie looked as pale as a ghost still.
Thinking of ghosts made Félix think of Emilie again.
He tensed.
"...How are you feeling?"
Amelie took a spoonful of the medicine, almost making just as bad a face as Félix had.
"Well, I still don't feel very well right now, but I'm sure this will help."
He had to admit, whilst she looked frail, she looked nowhere as bad as he had been. (She was actually able to feed herself for one.)
"The porridge tastes really good, Dear! You did a great job."
His eyes lit up a little. Amelie complimenting him wasn't exactly a rare occurrence, but it was always nice when it happened regardless.
"Thank you, Mom." Félix took a sip of the tea he had made for himself.
He was only just realizing how stiff his clothes felt. The feeling was more than uncomfortable.
"I'm going to go change my clothes. I'll be right back."
"Okay, Love."
***
The relief of changing back into his pajamas felt incredible after he had been sitting in his cold and stiff clothes for so long.
"Do you think Amelie will be okay!?"
"I'm sure she will be. It's just the same sickness bug I had a while back, so it'll be over with soon."
It was then Félix realized Dusuu probably hadn't ate anything yet.
"Aren't you hungry, Dusuu? I can get you some food."
"Yay! You're going to feed me!" Dusuu cheered.
Dusuu always cheered at the offer of food. And if Félix were honest, it was really concerning.
"Go back to Mom's room. I'll bring you something."
Dusuu did as Félix said, which gave Félix a small amount of time to himself.
Taking care of a sick person felt almost as weird as being taken care of himself had. Seeing his mother in such a weak position was honestly a bit scary. He was so used to looking up to her as a strong person who never fell ill or injured. Seeing her so sick was so alien-like.
In a way, he felt a bit stupid for believing that now.
Well, the one thing he could do to make up for it was take care of her the best he could.
Félix grabbed a pack of various fruits for Dusuu to eat from the fridge and poured them out into a bowl before heading back to her room.
"Hey Mom. Here's your food, Dusuu."
Dusuu sat in front of the bowl, clearly overjoyed as they munched on the fruits Félix had brought them.
"You're just taking care of everyone today, aren't you?" Amelie chuckled lightly.
"Are you still holding up okay? Do I need to get you anything?"
She took his hand. "Darling, trust me. I'll
be absolutely fine." She assured him.
Félix nodded and sighed. "I just…I wanna make sure." He sat closer to Amelie. "...You mean a lot to me, Mom. I hate seeing you so sick like this! And I know you got this sickness bug from me, and I feel bad for passing it onto you when you were taking care of me."
He looked away from her.
"...Oh Sweetheart…"
Amelie sat up straight, pulling Félix close.
"It is not your fault that I'm sick. Not at all."
He could feel her fingers running through his hair.
"You can't control whether or not an illness passes on. It's natural. You didn't mean to make me sick."
"..."
Félix leaned into Amelie, pressing his head into her neck.
Amelie began rubbing circles into his back. "And you've done such a good job taking care of me, I might even be able to look past you passing your germs onto me." She laughed.
Félix smirked.
He always found the way his mother could cheer him up regardless of how upset he was to be amazing.
They both stayed leaned into each other for what felt like hours on end.
Félix could feel himself starting to grow tired already.
"...Mom? Is it okay if I sleep here?"
Amelie giggled lightly. "Of course, Sweetie."
She let out a soft sigh.
"You're so amazing, Love." Amelie held Félix's hand in her own.
"He's such a Mama's boy!" Dusuu chimed in, smirking at Félix.
Félix pouted whilst Amelie laughed again.
It felt nice to hear her laugh though, especially after she had looked so ill not that long ago.
"...You're already starting to sound better, Mom."
"It's because you've done so well looking after me! Dusuu's right, you know, you really are a Mama's boy."
"I am not!" Félix smirked.
He was starting to relax. He was sure by now that Amelie would definitely be better by tomorrow.
He stretched and yawned again, for some reason, he always felt ridiculously tired when he had been cuddled with his mom.
Dusuu flew down to the end of the bed and laid down like they were going to go to sleep themselves.
Félix then laid down himself, still holding onto Amelie.
"...I love you Mom…" He murmured.
He could feel her hand on his back.
"I love you too, my Darling. Sleep well."
Félix couldn't even bring himself to sleep until he was sure Amelie was.
Once he was sure Amelie was perfectly okay and asleep, he allowed himself to go to sleep too.
And he had to admit, it felt nice to be cuddled up with his family like that. Moments like these had become so rare for Félix just as much as they had for Amelie, and he honestly wouldn't have traded it for anything.