Work Text:
The sound of the rain outside her classroom was slowly lulling Mikha to sleep. She checks her phone again.
8:45 AM. Just halfway through her class and she desperately wanted to go home already.
It didn’t help that it was too early in the morning, and she didn’t get a good morning text from Sheena. If anyone asks why the girl was sulking so much, it was definitely because she was up before 10 AM. Not because she was a clingy girlfriend who was wondering what was so hard about replying with a simple “good morning”.
She should be awake by now. Sheena always got up at 8 AM on Thursdays because her classes started at 10 AM.
45 minutes have passed and still, nothing from Sheena.
She doesn’t love me anymore, Mikha thinks as she scribbles lines and loops on her paper.
She glances up at the powerpoint her professor was presenting, but the words feel too jumbled up to understand.
She doesn’t love me anymore.
Her pen digs too deep into the paper and rips, making her seatmate look at her.
“Sorry,” she mumbles, ripping off the piece that tore fully and placing it in her pocket.
“Ano ‘yan?” Stacey whispers, looking at the notebook page that was just full of lines. “Hindi ka na naman nakikinig tapos hihingin mo na naman notes ko.”
“I’m sleepy,” Mikha whispers back.
Stacey hits her head with the pen she was holding. “Sleepy ka diyan, sumbong kita kay Sheena!”
“Go ahead, she doesn’t love me na.”
Mikha doesn’t catch the look of disbelief on Stacey’s face, sighing before she lets it go. “Mamaya na kita kakausapin.”
8:52 AM. She immediately sees the time when her phone lights up as notifications from Sheena pop up.
She unlocks her phone under the table to check the message and her heart immediately stops.
From: sinta
good morning mahal kooo
jwu am sick huhu di muna ako papasok today
wag ka mag alala sakin, kumain na ako skyflakes tas uminom ng gamot
i love u makinig ka sa class oki?
Mikha mentally slaps herself. Here she was whining about not getting her good morning text when her girlfriend was home sick.
To: sinta
oh nooo do u need anything? :(
gws pls
From: sinta
nooo im oki pero baka ‘di muna ako makareply :(
sleep muna ako, medyo masakit ulo ko eh :’)
To: sinta
okay i’ll go there after my class
Mikha groans when she looks at the time. 8:56 AM. Still a little more than half an hour left.
She sends a quick text to her classmates in her afternoon classes to see if they had any quizzes. When they reply that there was none, she tells them she’ll be out.
She had to go take care of her girlfriend.
As soon as they’re dismissed, Mikha immediately runs out of their room, leaving a confused Stacey behind.
She fumbles with her keys a little as she walks to her car, almost dropping them.
She needs to calm down. But how could she when the love of her life was sick?
She opens the glovebox of her car where a small purple pouch containing all of Sheena’s essentials and important keys are stored. A sigh of relief escapes her when she sees that her condo keys are there.
It takes her 15 minutes to get to Sheena’s condo. Another 10 to buy her medicine, snacks, KoolFever and gatorade from a nearby pharmacy.
When she finally gets to Sheena’s unit, she notices everything that was left untouched.
There were no dishes drying on the rack. Her cats weren’t roaming around the living room like she usually let them when she was awake. The soil of her plants sitting on her windowsill were still dry.
Her couch was still tidy. It had been untouched from the night before. The pillows were still neatly lined against the armrest and the cushion covers were straightened out the way Sheena always left them at night before going to bed. Sheena liked taking her breakfast on the couch where she could watch TV, which usually left wrinkles on the covers when she left.
She had been too weak to even get up this morning and it was breaking Mikha’s heart that it didn’t even cross her mind that the girl might be sick.
The door to her room seemed almost daunting now. She could almost feel herself start to tear up.
When she finally works the courage to open the door, she does it slowly. She tries not to move so much when she enters so the paper bag she was holding doesn’t make too much noise. It’s a careful balance of tiptoeing and still balancing the bag she was carrying and also making sure the door doesn’t creak.
Mardi immediately jumps off the bed to greet her once she was inside, pawing at her leg. Mauve, on the other hand, doesn’t bother with greetings. He immediately runs past Mikha and out the room.
She crouches down to pet Mardi then lets him out, not closing the door fully when he’s out so she doesn’t have to worry about the doorknob making a sound when she opens it again.
The moment she looks back, she immediately sees Sheena wrapped in her blankets. Only her head was peeking out and you could see the blanket bunch up where she’s holding it close to her.
16°. It was too cold in her room. The remote was still sitting on its little shelf near the door. She was probably too tired to change the temperature.
The room was only dimly lit by the light peeking through Sheena’s curtains. She carefully walks to Sheena’s desk where she knew she had a lamp.
She pats the table, trying to figure out where it is. When her hand reaches its base, she taps the center once so it turns on at its lowest brightness.
A warm glow lights up the room. Just enough so Mikha could walk without stumbling into furniture.
Mikha sets her paper bag down on her bedside table. There’s a pad of medicine and an empty pack of Skyflakes on the table. Next to it was her water bottle which was still full.
She frowns. Sheena was supposed to be drinking more water because she was sick.
Mikha shakes her head. It’s fine. She’ll remind the girl to drink more water once she’s awake.
The cold starts to bother Mikha so she immediately walks to the door to adjust the temperature. There was no way Sheena’s fever was going down when she was shivering under her comforter.
There’s enough space between Sheena and the edge of the bed for Mikha to sit down. When she does, she carefully removes the hair covering her face. She gently places the back of her hand to check her temperature. Definitely too hot.
Her eyes start to water a little at the sight of her girlfriend looking so pale and tired.
Bawal umiyak, Mikhs. Your girlfriend is sick. Take care of her.
She’s about to take the KoolFever out of the pack when she remembers her mother’s advice when she was younger. Using a cool towel is better so you can monitor the temperature better.
Mikha thinks about where to get the items she needs. There’s a small basin in the cabinet under the kitchen sink. There are small towels in her bathroom cabinet.
Kailangan ba ng ice?
She quickly takes her phone out to send a text to her mom asking if she should use ice when treating a fever. The reply is almost immediate. Five panicked texts from her mother asking if she was okay and if she needed to come over.
She reassures her mom that she was fine, that it was Sheena who was sick. That doesn’t seem to calm her down as she sends a string of messages asking how the girl was, if she’d drunk her medicine, if she’d eaten.
Mikha sighs. She places a gentle kiss on Sheena’s forehead before exiting the room to call her mom.
Her mom’s panicked voice immediately comes right after two rings. “Mikha! Hindi mo nireplyan yung messages ko, how is she? May kailangan ba siya? I can drop by after work. Nako, ibinilin pa naman ‘yan ng lola niya sa atin. Bakit ba nagkasakit? Is she staying up too late? Kumakain ba siya?”
“Mom, calm down,” Mikha cuts her mom off so she could answer the questions she was asking.
“Anong calm down?! Parang anak ko na rin ‘yan! Are you not worried about your girlfriend?”
“I am worried! That’s why I’m here nga, eh.” Mikha sighs. “I came as soon as class was over. Kumakain siya and she sleeps, I make sure. Siguro it’s the weather or she caught something, I don’t know yet. Ang init niya, though. I can’t check her temp yet because she’s clinging to her comforter, but I checked her forehead kanina and halata naman that she has a fever.”
There’s silence on the other end, then she hears a click of a ballpen. “Don’t use ice, masyadong malamig. Just check that the tap water is cool enough, anak. Replace the towel on her head every few minutes. If she gets up, wipe down mo arms and legs niya, make sure the water is cool. Check mo kung masakit when you wipe, baka may muscle pain din. Ask her what time siya uminom ng gamot then dapat every six hours. Track it, anak. Message me whenever she drinks so I know. What’s her condo again?”
“Same lang kami, mom. Nasa kabilang tower lang siya. Tower 2.” She hears her mom writing it down before she responds again.
“Alright, I’ll have lugaw delivered. Do you want anything for lunch? Have you eaten, anak?”
“I’m good, mom. Lugaw is fine. I can buy if I want something else.”
“Sige, you take care of her, ha? If you need anything, just call. I’ll message her lola.”
“Alright, thanks mom. Oh, can you ask the resto if they can take out the luya when they’re done cooking? Or have them sliced thick so I can take them out. She doesn’t like that.”
“Sige, sige,” Mikha hears her mom writing again, which makes her smile. It’s cute that her mom loved Sheena just as much as she did. “Oh, go na. I’ll place the order na. Take care, anak. I love you.”
“Love you, mom! I’ll update.” She ends the call then places the phone in her pocket. She has work to do.
The basin and face towel are right where Mikha expected them to be. She checks the temperature of the water, making sure it wasn’t too cold before filling the basin a quarter full.
Sheena had moved since she entered the room earlier. The blanket was no longer covering her entire body. She was facing the ceiling now. One of her arms was folded, her hand just barely under her pillow. Her other arm was resting just above the blanket, hand still clutching the blanket near her waist.
Mikha moves the side table a little closer to her before she sits down. She takes her right arm first, gently pulling it out of its folded position. Her eyes never leave Sheena’s face, scared that she might wake the girl up.
When she doesn’t move, Mikha sets her arm down beside her. She takes the towel, dips it in the water, then wrings the excess off.
She takes a deep breath before she takes Sheena’s arm again. Please don’t wake up yet.
She carefully wipes her arm down from her shoulder, lifting the sleeve of Sheena’s shirt a little. She pulls the cloth down the girl’s arm, repeating the motion until she’s wiped around the circumference. She then moves down to Sheena’s hand.
She dips the towel in the water and wrings it out again before gently wiping the back of Sheena’s hand, then her palm, then her fingers. She had never been so delicate before.
The silence does nothing to calm the worry Mikha was feeling. She wasn’t used to Sheena being this quiet. It hurt her heart all over again to see how helpless her girlfriend looked.
She stands up, taking the basin and towel with her, then moves to the other side of the bed. She repeats the same pattern, still careful not to wake Sheena up.
When she’s done, she moves up to Sheena’s face. The girl groans when the wet cloth touches her forehead, but she doesn’t wake up. Mikha’s breathing stills, all her movements stopping for a moment.
She counts to ten. When Sheena doesn’t move, she continues. She traces the girl’s brows, then outlines the curves of her cheek from the tip of her nose. She carefully wipes down her chin, following its slope down her neck, then comes back up to wipe her ears and the skin behind it.
It wasn’t like she hadn’t seen Sheena asleep before. She’d woken up next to the girl countless times before. But as she stood back up, looking at how peacefully she slept despite her fever. God, she looked beautiful. And it hurt all over again to know that she wasn’t feeling well.
Mikha decides to take a new wash cloth to place over her forehead. She walks back to the bathroom to take a fresh face towel, then wets it. Once she’s wrung it out, she doesn’t bother with the basin anymore. She walks straight out of the bathroom to fix it on Sheena’s forehead, fixing her hair so it wasn’t all tangled.
She then walks back to the bathroom to fix up. She empties the basin then uses it to wash the cloth with soap. She hangs it on the rack to dry then exits, making sure not to make a sound when she closes the door.
There’s a beanbag in the corner of Sheena’s room, so she carries it near the bed, settling into it as she watches Sheena shift her position again.
Sheena’s eyebrows furrow, a frown settling on her face when she moves. Mikha mirrors the same frown as she adjusts the cloth on her forehead.
Her girlfriend was sick.
Mikha bites her lip as she feels herself start to tear up again. It was just a fever, but Sheena was starting to look uncomfortable in her sleep. She scoots a little closer to the bed, taking Sheena’s left hand to hold with her own.
Somehow, that was enough to ease the expression on the girl’s face. Like Mikha’s touch was enough to relieve her.
Mikha can’t help the tear that falls down her cheek when she remembers this morning. She was whining about her girlfriend not loving her anymore when the girl needed her. Seeing the way she settled at her touch made Mikha feel guilty all over again.
It definitely didn’t help that she could feel how warm the girl’s hand was. Her tears start flowing freely and she lets them. She leans her free arm on the bed, resting her head on top of it as she continued to watch Sheena sleep.
Her heart ached with every change in her expression. All she wanted was for the girl to get better.
A few minutes later, Sheena wakes up, a little startled to see Mikha sitting beside her. She blinks a few times to get rid of the sleep in her eyes then looks back at Mikha.
Mikha sits up immediately, wiping her tears then adjusting the cloth on the girl’s forehead. She should probably re-wet that.
She’s about to take it when she feels Sheena’s hand on her cheek, wiping her tears away. “Mahal ko, bakit ka umiiyak?”
When she sees the concern in Sheena’s eyes, Mikha’s eyes start to water again. Sheena was sick and she was still worried about her. Her lips start to tremble as she feels Sheena squeeze her hand.
Mikha takes a deep breath, then answers. “Sinta, you look so kawawa, it’s making my heart hurt. Tapos this morning pa, I was making reklamo na you didn’t love me kase you didn’t reply sa good morning ko,” Mikha pauses, her voice craking a little. “Tapos you were sick pala.”
Sheena continues wiping Mikha’s tears, letting go of Mikha’s hand so she could use both hands. She laughs a little, the concern in her eyes replaced by a soft look. “Hay, ang cute cute talaga ng mahal ko. Gusto kitang i-kiss kaso mahahawaan ka.”
Mikha stands up, wiping her own tears. The thought makes her chuckle. “Edi sana you get better soon so you can kiss me na.”
She takes the towel off of Sheena’s forehead, a teasing grin on the girl’s face when she does. “Asuuus, gusto rin ng kiss.”
“Duh,” Mikha replies as she walks to the restroom. “Ay, sinta, what time did you drink your medicine pala?”
“Nung nagreply ako sa’yo… Hindi ko napansin yung oras.”
“Okay, I’ll check na lang.”
She washes the cloth with soap before rinsing it out and wringing it. When she walks back into the room, Sheena is sitting up and drinking water. She waits for the girl to lie back down before placing the towel back on her forehead.
“Thank you, mahal ko,” Sheena says, her eyes starting to droop again.
Mikha smiles in response. She’s about to sit back down on the beanbag when her phone vibrates in her pocket. She checks and sees her mom’s contact calling her so she immediately accepts, glancing at Sheena to see that she was still awake, waiting for her to answer the call.
“Mom?” Mikha says as soon as she accepts the call.
“Anak, nandiyan na raw yung food. Can you tip the rider? He’s been waiting quite a while na pala anak, I didn’t realize na number ko yung nilagay ko instead of yours. I’ll send you money na lang mamaya.”
“No, it’s okay, ma. No need to send, I’ll handle it,” Mikha replies to her mom. She then turns her attention to Sheena. “Sinta, I’ll get our food lang ha? Mom ordered lugaw, nasa baba na raw si kuya.”
Sheena nods, “pasabi kay tita, thank you.”
“She’s awake na? How is she? Did you check what time she drank her meds? Nako, tell her if you’re not taking care of her properly, she tells tita so I can come over and take care of her.”
Mikha laughs at how fast her mom’s questions come. “She’s fine with me, mom. She drank at around 8:50 kanina. I’ll check her temperature when I come back pero mainit pa rin siya.”
“Okay, go get the food na, anak. ‘Wag kalimutan ang wallet! Give kuya 100.”
“Alright, thanks mom! Baba na ako, bye.”
Mikha grabs her wallet then heads down. It’s a quick trip since most of the condo’s residents were students still at school. She hands the rider a two hundred peso bill, thanking him for waiting. The rider tries to return her money, saying it was too much, but she waves him off, telling him to use it to buy food since it was already lunch time.
She checks to see if Sheena was still awake as soon as she arrives back at the girl’s condo. She peeks through the door to find the girl scrolling through her phone.
“Sinta, I’ll prepare your food lang, ha. Don’t fall asleep muna,” Mikha says, earning her a smile from the girl.
Sheena turns her phone off then closes her eyes. “Okay, sleeping.”
Mikha laughs, closing the door again so she can fix the girl’s food. She takes two plastic containers out of the paper bag, smiling when she sees that one of them was labeled “no luya”. Still, she checks as she pours the contents of the container into a bowl, making sure that there was actually none.
When she’s done sifting through it, she adds the boiled egg, which was placed in a separate container. She takes a spoon and walks back into the room, careful not to spill or trip.
She sets it down on the side table before walking over to Sheena’s desk where she knew there was a lap table hidden behind. She grabs it, then fixes it over Sheena’s lap.
“Can you move a little?” Mikha asks, a bowl of lugaw and a spoon in each of her hands.
Sheena nods, moving a little and adjusting the table when she does. Mikha sits next to her, then places the bowl down. She takes the spoon and dips it into the lugaw then raises it to her lips. She blows on the soup for a few seconds before offering it to Sheena.
“Mahal ko,” Sheena starts after swallowing the spoonful of lugaw, to which Mikha hums in reply. “Hindi mo naman ako kailangang subuan, kaya ko sarili ko.”
Mikha shakes her head. “Let me take care of you. You need to get all the rest you can get.”
Sheena doesn’t argue anymore. She takes every spoonful Mikha offers, grateful that she had someone to care for her.
It was probably Mikha’s first time taking care of someone sick. Growing up, she had been her parent’s youngest child. She was used to being the one being cared for. Part of her was scared that she didn’t know how to care for someone, but then she realized, she had all the best examples growing up.
Whenever she got sick, her mom would always stay home to take care of her. It didn’t matter how little or how big the pain, her mom would always be there. She’d hug her until she fell asleep, check on her constantly, make sure she was comfortable. Her mom was her biggest source of comfort growing up, and she was glad that even at 21, her mom would still drop everything to take care of her.
Then there was her dad who would always bring home plain vanilla ice cream for her, telling her she could choose whatever she wanted to top it with and daddy would make it happen. It always got her to finish her food and drink her medicine because being sick wasn’t nearly as bad when she had ice cream. On days when ice cream wasn’t allowed, her dad would carry her to their bedroom and let her watch movies with them on their TV.
She might not have had experience taking care of other people, but she knows how to be cared for. All she wants is for Sheena to feel the same.
In between bites, Mikha notices Sheena having a hard time with keeping the towel up on her forehead, so Mikha takes it from her. She stands and takes a sheet of KoolFever, opens it, then places it on Sheena’s forehead.
She fixes the girl’s hair, tucking it behind her ears like this was all just second nature to her. She just goes back to feeding her girlfriend as soon as she’s done with that.
When Sheena finishes her food, Mikha cleans up then hands the thermometer to Sheena so she could check her temperature.
38.6
Mikha sends a quick text to her mom then sets an alarm on her phone. She looks back at Sheena once she’s done. “Sinta, I’ll wash lang your bowl and spoon then I’ll eat muna here outside para ‘di na amoy lugaw diyan.”
“Dito ka lang,” Sheena pouts. “Gusto kong nakikita ka, cute mo kasi.”
A blush creeps up Mikha’s cheeks and she laughs it off. “Sige, anything for the love of my life.”
She quickly washes the bowl and spoon, leaving them to dry on the rack. She doesn’t bother transferring her own lugaw to another bowl anymore, just adds the egg in then brings a spoon with her to Sheena’s room.
The girl is still up when she returns, browsing movies on her iPad. Mikha moves the beanbag aside then rolls Sheena’s office chair over so she wasn’t sitting so low.
By the time they decide on a movie, Mikha is already done eating. They settled on Tangled so that it was light as opposed to a Marvel movie which was thrilling, not very ideal for Mikha’s sick girlfriend who had OA reactions.
“Tapon ko lang ‘to, then let’s watch na,” Mikha says as she stands up. She didn't check for Sheena’s response anymore, she was coming back anyway. She washes her hands before going back in, checking her shirt to see if it smelled like the food they ate. It did.
She walks over to Sheena’s cabinet then takes out a sweater she had left there, quickly changing out of her shirt. She decides to change into shorts too, borrowing one of sheena’s so she wasn’t in jeans anymore.
“Arte naman,” Sheena teases when she sees Mikha folding her shirt and placing it in the laundry basket in the restroom.
Mikha walks back and smiles at the girl. “Mas maarte ka. Now move.”
Sheena moves again, and when there’s enough space, Mikha slips in next to her under the blanket. Before Sheena has time to react, Mikha pulls her against her chest, taking the iPad into her own hands.
“Mahawaan ka!” Sheena slaps Mikha’s thigh, but adjusts to a more comfortable position anyway.
Mikha lets go for a second, but only to reach over the drawer on the bedside table where she knew Sheena had face masks stored. She takes one then wears it. “Ayan, I’m good. I don’t get sick naman, eh.”
She pulls Sheena closer, their eyes meeting when she does. Sheena glares at her and she smiles, making the girl give in. She leans her head against Mikha’s chest then wraps an arm around her waist.
“Okay ka na?” Mikha asks, one arm around Sheena, and the other keeping the iPad steady in front of them.
“Okay na.” Sheena confirms.
Sheena falls asleep a few minutes into the movie. Mikha lets her, busying herself with giving the girl head scratches.
She doesn’t really know when she falls asleep too, but the next thing she knows, her alarm is ringing.
3:00 PM. It was time for Sheena to take her medicine again.
“Sinta?” Mikha says, her voice low so she doesn’t startle the girl.
Sheena groans, her hand clutching Mikha’s sweater as she snuggles closer to her. Their position was so comfortable that Mikha almost didn’t want to move, except she had to.
She had to make sure that her girlfriend would get better.
“I’m so sorry, sinta. Kailangan mo muna uminom ng gamot, balik ka na lang sa tulog ulit after, hmm?” Mikha rubs her arm, helping the girl up.
Mikha gets up. She realizes that it’s been a few hours since their last meal so she checks Sheena’s drawer to see if she still had snacks there. She opens a pack of Fita, then hands it to the girl.
“Kain ka muna para may laman tiyan mo.”
Sheena doesn’t argue. She takes the pack and eats the biscuits silently, still a little groggy from just having woken up.
She lets Mikha check her temperature as she eats, the girl’s eyebrows furrowing when she sees that Sheena’s temperature hasn't gone down.
When she puts the thermometer down, Mikha notices that Sheena’s water bottle was almost empty. She takes it outside then washes it.
Anyone watching Mikha would think she lived there with how familiar she was with the place. She knew exactly where Sheena stored her bottles. The overhead cabinet, second door from the right. How could she not when she often stopped by Sheena’s place to pick up things for the girl whenever she left something.
She takes a fresh bottle and fills it up with water from the pitcher in the ref. She refills the pitcher before putting it back in so it’s cold the next time she refill’s the girl’s bottle.
Sheena is done eating when she walks back in the room. She opens the lid then hands it to Sheena. Mikha takes a tablet of medicine then hands it to her, taking back the water bottle once the girl is done drinking.
“Sinta, punasan ulit kita bago ka matulog ulit, okay lang?” Mikha asks.
Sheena nods. “Sige.”
Mikha does the same routine as she did earlier, except this time, she starts with the girl’s face, taking off the KoolFever and throwing it in the nearby trash can. She wipes down her arms and legs, then has Sheena change into a fresh set of pajamas and underwear.
When she’s done, she immediately gets back into bed to cuddle with Mikha. Before they could settle in, Mikha takes another sheet of KoolFever then places it on the girl’s forehead.
“Hindi ka na pumasok,” Sheena says looking up at Mikha who’s tracing patterns on her shoulder.
“Even if I went to class, ikaw lang iisipin ko. Wala naman kaming quiz or exam, so it’s okay. I want to take care of you. Plus, it’s either me or mom. I think we’d rather have me here,” Mikha chuckles.
“I love you.”
Mikha plants a kiss on top of Sheena’s head. “I love you.”
“I want to kiss you,” Sheena looks up, then returns to her original position.
“I won’t stop you.”
“Ayokong may mask. Kapag magaling na ako.”
Sheena hugs her tighter and Mikha returns her embrace. There was nowhere else she’d rather be.
They spend the rest of the day cuddling. Mikha orders ramen for dinner at Sheena’s request and they watch another movie as they count down the hours until she has to drink medicine again.
Mikha takes her temperature again after she drinks her medicine, smiling when she sees it’s finally lowered down. She helps Sheena to the bathroom when the girl asks to take a bath, then takes a shower herself.
Sheena is in a hoodie when she gets out, her hoodie in particular.
“Akin ‘yan, ah,” Mikha says as she takes the clamp off her hair. She had put her hair up so she didn’t need to wet it since she wanted to lie down already.
“Smells like you. I like it.”
Mikha takes a fresh face mask then gets into bed next to Sheena. “Yung hoodie lang?”
“Ano pa ba?” Sheena asks, giggling as she does.
“Ah, gano’n. Sige, I’ll go home na lang kase you don’t like the owner naman.” Mikha pouts, crossing her arms against her chest.
Sheena pulls her by her arms, enveloping her in a hug. “Ang cute cute mo mahal ko! Nakakaiyak gusto kitang lamutakin. I love you, okay? I love you so much, sobra sobra pa sa like lang.”
“Sus, you’re just saying that because I’m taking care of you.” Mikha tries to break free but it’s no use when Sheena clings tightly to her.
“Mikhaela Janna Lim, mahal kita. Kahit ‘di mo ‘ko pinuntahan ngayon at pumasok ka, mahal kita,” Sheena says, planting a kiss on top of Mikha’s head, which finally makes her stop struggling. “Kaya buksan mo na yung pinto kase naririnig ko na katok ni Mardi, miss na niyan kama niya.”
Sure enough, when Mikha opens the door, Mardi is sitting in front of it, happy to be let in when she opens the door. She has to go get Mauve from the cat tower. To her surprise, the cat doesn’t protest and lets Mikha carry him to the room.
The two cats settle on their beds and so does Mikha next to Sheena.
The rest of the night is uneventful. The two of them just scroll through Tiktok until Sheena falls asleep again. Mikha stays up until 3 AM to make sure she doesn’t sleep past the alarm and Sheena drinks her medicine.
She’s still asleep when Sheena wakes up to her 9 AM alarm. She checks her temperature to find it’s finally back down to normal. Still, she eats a pack of Skyflakes then drinks her medicine to be safe.
Mikha wakes up an hour later to the smell of corned beef being cooked outside the room. She panics when she sees the time, immediately getting up to check on Sheena.
The girl was outside, wearing her headphones as she transferred the corned beef into a bowl. She had already showered, a good sign that she was feeling better.
Mikha walks up behind her, wrapping her arms around her waist and placing a kiss on Sheena’s shoulder. “Are you feeling better na, Sinta?”
Sheena takes her headphones off then pulls Mikha’s mask down, kissing her cheek. “So much better, mahal ko. Kain tayo? Pasok na ko mamaya, hirap dumami ng absent.”
“You sure? Rest ka kaya muna.”
Sheena shakes her head, bringing the food to the table. “Ginalingan mo na mag-alaga sa’kin, okay na ako. Isa lang naman class ko this afternoon. Rice, love?”
Mikha nods. She takes out two plates and two pairs of utensils, then scoops rice for the two of them onto each plate. She brings them to the table where Sheena was already sitting. “Sige, hatid na kita, I have no class naman.”
“Dun mo po nalaman na si mommy yung gusto mong pakasalan, mama? Nung inalagaan ka niya kase sick ka po?” Mikee asks, her eyes wide as she patiently listens to her mama.
Sheena strokes her hair, pulling her closer to her on the bed then adjusting the blanket so it was covering her better. “Hindi pa.”
“Edi bakit yun yung kwento mo po?”
Sheena laughs at the expression her daughter makes. Mikee definitely got that from her.
“Nalaman ko nung nakauwi na ako mula sa class ko. Sinundo niya ako ta’s pagpasok ko ng kwarto, naglinis siya. Wala na lahat ng kalat tapos pinalitan niya na bedsheet, pillowcase, at comforter ko. Dinala niya pati mga damit ko sa laundromat sa baba ng condo.” Sheena smiles as she recalls the memory.
She remembers the way the room smelled of Mikha’s perfume the moment she entered because the girl had sprayed it on her pillowcase and blanket.
“She did all that without me telling her to. Gano’n magmahal ang mommy mo. Kita mo, tuwing may sakit ka, siya ang unang uuwi palagi sa’yo. Nagkataon lang ngayon na may trip si mommy kaya si mama lang muna.”
Mikee nods. Her whole life, both her moms had cared for her and her sister like they were the most precious things in the world. If there was nothing important to do at work, they’d always make sure they were both there for milestones and sick days.
“Love ko po kayo ni mommy, mama. ‘Pag big na ako, take care ko rin po kayo.” Mikee says, hugging her mom by her waist.
“Hindi mo pa kailangang isipin ‘yan, ate. Si bunso lang ang kailangan mong intindihin at sarili mo. Mommy and I can take care of each other while you’re growing up, okay?”
“Okay po!” Mikee exclaims, followed by a cough, reminding both of them that she was still sick.
“Sleep ka na, baby. Gigisingin ulit kita mamaya para uminom ng gamot, ha?”
Mikee nods, adjusting her position on her bed.
She’s just fallen asleep when the door opens, Mikha peeking through the gap.
Tulog na? Mikha mouths.
Sheena nods, then walks towards Mikha. She exits the room, carefully closing the door. As soon as the door is closed, she wraps her arms around Mikha then gives her a quick peck on the lips. “Bukas ka pa dapat ah?”
Mikha hugs her back, resting her head on Sheena’s shoulder. “Alam mo namang ‘di ako mapakali kapag may sakit isa sa inyo. I got the earliest flight I could. ‘Di na rin naman ako makakatulog so I just came home.”
“Pahinga ka na, mahal ko. I’ll get your things, go wash up na.”
It doesn’t take long before they find themselves in bed, catching up over the last couple of days like they hadn’t already talked about what happened over the phone.
“I missed you, sinta,” Mikha says when they’ve run out of things to say.
“I missed you, too.” Sheena smiles. Years later and still, next to Mikha was the most comforting place she could ever find herself. “Tinanong ako kanina ni Mikee kung paano ko nalaman na ikaw gusto kong pakasalan.”
“Oh? Ano sabi mo?”
“I told her there’s no one else I’d rather spend my life being taken care of than her mommy.”
Mikha blushes, like this was the first time she’d ever heard Sheena say that string of words. “There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”