Work Text:
"I'm going to die."
"You're being dramatic bubs. You're not going to die."
"But what if I die?"
"You're not."
"I could actually die. You could be leading me to my death. Oh my god, stop the car. What kind of a girlfriend are you?"
"One that's slowly losing patience. And we're already here, so..." she turns the ignition off, "car stopped," she smiles.
Aiah doesn't look the least bit amused. She actually does look a bit scared. Aiah doesn't get scared. Apparently this was a little more serious than Jhoanna initially thought.
"Bubs, you're going to be fine. I promise." She grabs Aiah's hand over the gear shift, intertwining their fingers, hoping it offers her some assurance. "People do this all the time."
Aiah huffs, "At one point people thought the world was flat. So yeah, people are dumb. I don't trust people."
Jhoanna smiles at her emphasis on the word 'people,' as if it was some kind of a disease she didn't want, rather than something she actually was. "You're people bubs. I'm people."
The crease in Aiah's forehead deepens and becomes a full fledged scowl.
"Besides," Jhoanna squeezes her hand, "I'll be there to hold your hand."
"I don't need you to hold my hand bubby." Aiah abruptly pulls her hand away.
Jhoanna briefly wonders if she should be offended, but just as quickly as the thought comes, it vanishes, another coming to mind. "I know you don't," she starts, unbuckling her seat belt. "But I want to," she continues, opening the door. "You know," she kisses Aiah hard on the mouth. "In case you die," she smirks, getting out of the car.
"...oh my god. I'm going to die."
"...ohgodohgodohgodohgod..." Aiah has been repeating this mantra for the last ten minutes. The previous ten, Jhoanna had spent doing all she could to calm her girlfriends nerves - kisses, a back rub, breathing exercises, and as a last resort, promises of a reward - all to no avail. Whether consciously or not, Aiah was blocking her out. At least she was letting her hold her hand.
"Bubs, will you please re-"
The door suddenly opens, interrupting her attempt to, yet again, calm Aiah nerves. An older man walks into the room, the light bouncing off his head doing weird things to his sad attempt of a comb over. If his white lab coat wasn't a dead give away that he was the doctor, Aiah death grip on her hand was pretty revealing. She obviously knew who he was.
"Aah, Aiah, it's been a while," he smiles. "How are you?"
"Fine. Great. Honestly never been better Dr. Santos."
Jhoanna looks down at her hand in Aiah's lap. It's an angry red and she can't really feel anything. Her poor hand has definitely seen better days, but she doesn't say anything. Aiah seems to need it more than she does right now and Jhoanna finally feels like she's helping. She has to bite her lip though when the feeling in her hand comes back long enough for her to feel Aiah's nails digging into it. She might need to make an appointment later.
Jhoanna turns to look at the doctor, hoping his words will distract her enough to ignore the pain in her hand. He's already looking at her. Crap. Was he talking to her? "I'm sorry?" she asks.
He chuckles and confuses Jhoanna even more. "Are you not Jhoanna?"
"Oh no, I mean yes, I am. Do I, um...have we met before Doc?" She glances at Aiah, but her girlfriend is too lost in her own thoughts to offer any help.
"No, no. Dick and Malou are always raving about Aiah's beautiful girlfriend." He looks down at their hands and smiles, "I just assumed. It's nice to meet you."
Jhoanna is so pleasantly taken aback, that all she can do is nod.
"I have to apologize for the delay. A few nurses called out, so we're a little behind." He clasp his hands together, "but I'm here now. So, if you could just remove your jacket Aiah, I can give you the shot and you can be on your way." He smiles again - which unnerves even Jhoanna at this point. She's not sure she's ever seen anyone smile so much in the span of a few minutes.
Aiah does as she's told, only letting Jhoanna's hand go for a second, quickly grabbing it again once her jackets completely off. She's chewing on her bottom lip and Jhoanna can tell she's still a bit nervous, so she rubs Aiah's arm with her free hand, hoping it brings out some of the Arceta courage she's so used to seeing.
The corners of Aiah's mouth curve upward slightly and if Jhoanna squints it would look like a smile. She takes it as a win and smiles back.
"Are you ready?"
And the pseudo-smile is gone, replaced by a very obvious frown.
Jhoanna turns and sees Dr. Santos with the needle. Turning back, Jhoanna scoots closer to Aiah, their shoulders touching and whispers in her ear, "people eventually figured out the world was round."
"Oh god."
Dr. Santos asks Aiah again, if she's ready. Jhoanna thinks he senses her unease because his voice is a little softer and he calls her by her first name instead.
Aiah just nods at him, looking at Jhoanna.
"I'll just do the right arm, since your left," he glances and their hands again, "seems to be occupied." He looks at Jhoanna, seemingly asking a question she doesn't know the answer to, let alone the question itself. Whatever it was, he seems to have found it, his eyes back on Aiah. "You know Aiah, flu shots are fairly common. There's really nothing to worry about."
Aiah's face shoots up, "I'm not scared, if that's what you're implying."
He laughs, "not implying anything, simply stating my opinions on the matter. You want to know another one?"
"Doc I don't really...ow! Oh."
"You're all done."
"But it didn't hurt."
"I could get one that does."
Jhoanna laughs, breathing a sigh of relief that this was all over.
Aiah stands up, bringing Jhoanna with her. "Love to Doc, but my girlfriend here hates needles."
Jhoanna scoffs. Her girlfriend was something else.
"So we'll just be going," Aiah says, pulling Jhoanna out the door and into the hall.
"Way to lie yourself out of a room Arceta."
"I would never Robles," Jhoanna smirks, throwing her arm around Jhoanna's neck.
Jhoanna intertwines her fingers with Aiah's hand hanging over her shoulder. "So next time you won't need me here to tell you you're not going to die?" Her tone playful and joking.
Aiah stops them suddenly, jerking Jhoanna. "Oh god bubby. What if the death effects take time? What if...oh god," Aiah looks up. "My vision is blurring."
"Maybe you shouldn't stare directly at the ceiling lamp," Jhoanna nudges Aiah's head back down. "And I'm pretty sure the effects of death...is death. You're very much alive."
"For now," Aiah shakes her head and looks at Jhoanna. "Oh, bubby-"
Jhoanna kisses Aiah, lingering for second, mostly for herself and pulls away. "Aiah Arceta, I love you. So. Much. But baby-bun, please shut up."
"I was going to say thank you," Aiah kisses her. "Baby-bun? New pet name?" She asks, raising an eyebrow.
Jhoanna grins. "It seem to fit."
"Whatever you say hunny-bun," Aiah mocks.
"Oh no."
"Actually, I think you're on to something my little chickie." Aiah grabs her hand, continuing their walk down the hall.
Jhoanna stops, completely horrified at what she may have started. "Bubs, no. We're not one of those couples."
"I know," Aiah smiles and points a finger at her. "But we should be," she finishes, tugging at Jhoanna's arm.
Jhoanna frowns. "Oh god."
"Oh yes."