august 6th, 2018
SCARLETT
BABYSITTER : CHECK.
Restaurant reservation : Check.
Outfit : not check.
What the fuck am I gonna wear on the hottest day of the year? I have no clue. I could wear a cute dress, or just a nice shirt and pants. Both options sound nice, which isn't helping.
I look through my closet at all the options that I have and nothing. I don't feel like wearing any of my clothes. Great. That's exactly what I needed right now.
Before I can think further, my phone rings and my thoughts were interrupted by the familiar ringtone. Whoever is calling me, now is not the time. I let it go to voicemail once... twice. On the third call, I finally pick up, or it'll never stop.
incoming call...
The Flower Garden
accept | decline
I quickly accept the call, not even thinking twice. "Lita, he–"
"Scarlett, you need to come here." Leah panicked voice reaches my ears. That was already weird on its own, but the ruckus in the background is very suspicious. The shop has always been a pretty calm place. Oh my–
No, I can't think of the worst.
"Why? Did something happen?" I also start to panic against my will, but I'm in the dark here. Fortunately for me, apart from the ruckus, there doesn't seem to be anything else happening. No loud noises, no screams at all.
"You need to pick Lita up. She just fainted." Leah gets out, and I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding in. A wave of relief washes over me. And even if I would rather have Lita healthy, this is way better than what I'd imagined.
"I'm on my way." I hung up, and with a speed that that could rival Quicksilver's, I leave my room and I gather my things. My big hesitation about my outfit was long forgotten by now. In the first bag I see, I chuck my keys, my glasses, wallet as we never know, and my phone.
My keys... Car keys. Where are my fucking car keys?!
They're not in my pockets. Maybe in another bag? Nope. Coat? Stop that Scarlett, you haven't worn one in months. They're not in my kitchen, or on my coffee table. Where the fuck are they?! I swear it's like glasses, when you are looking for them, they're right in front of your nose... or in that case on your nose I guess. I digress!
Oh here they are, in a wooden key box, hung on my wall in the entrance. Obviously.
I take them, lock the door behind me and rush to the car. I just made sense to drive when I heard Lita fainted, but right now I regret that decision because of the New York City traffic. I could've already been there with her if it weren't for "losing" my keys and add the traffic to that but no. What a loss of time!
I find a parking spot right by the shop which is great, it'll be easier for both Lita and me when we get out. I run inside, the shop is empty, but Leah pops out of the office after she heard the bell. She beckons me inside and I break at the sight.
Lita was laying there on the couch, a damp cloth on her head to keep her cool I assume. "She woke up, and I got her to drink a bit, so don't worry. I'm sure she's just exhausted now." Leah squeezes my shoulder before leaving us alone and closed the door behind her. I crouched down in front of the couch, and immediately let my fingers run through her crazy hair.
"Oh Lita." I sigh. She looks peaceful like this, though it pains me to know that she is not okay. "You never know when to stop, do you?"
"What are we going to do with you hm?" I whisper to her. I take in the scene in front of me, her legs are elevated so that's good, but she's wearing tight clothes. I begin helping by loosening her clothes, undoing her belt and and unbuttoning the collar of her shirt. Her breathing and her pulse are normal, calming me down a little bit more.
I continue to let her sleep as I tiptoe around the room and gathered her things, letting them rest by the door. Now I have to wake her up and get her home.
I move the cloth just a little bit to press a soft kiss to the top of her forehead before gently stroking her cheek. Her skin feels clammy, almost damp under my touch. I continue to try to wake her up gently, and whisper sweet nothings to her. "Come on Lita. Lita? Darling, can you wake up for me?"
She makes a noise of discomfort and confusion as she slowly comes around and stirs awake. She mumbles something and reluctantly opens her eyes.
"Lita, hey!" I whisper when her eyes land on me. She goes to sit up but my hands on her shoulders prevent her to do so, and I lightly push her back down.
"Scarlett? What are you doing here?" Her voice is laced with fatigue as she asks.
"Slow down. You almost gave me a heart attack." I breathed out before handing her some water. I sit behind her and help her sit up, making sure she was leaning on me for support. I try to get her to eat something small, all I could find in her drawers were biscuits she keeps for the kids which is better than nothing. Getting her to actually eat them is tricky because she wont' let me. But lucky for me, and unfortunately for her, she's still pretty weak, so I eventually manage to get her to eat a couple of them. It seems to help her be a little be more awake, that's nice to see. "How did that feel?"
She hums, closing her eyes again. And as much as I wish I could let her, I can't. She needs to stay awake for me. "I need words darling."
She sighs but still refuses open her eyes. "Better but... What are you doing here?"
"I'm here to take you home. Leah called me, she said you fainted and needed to be picked up. I think she's right, you should go home. You don't look well, and you're way too warm sweetheart."
"No, I'm just tired. It's nothing." She dismisses, making me let out another heavy sigh. She lets her head fall on my shoulder and relaxes completely. I push her off me and hold her up in front of me. She whines, and I can understand why. I move us, so she can see me and I look into her deep brown eyes that I love so much.
"But you're not just tired Lita. Are you?" She looks down, almost as she's ashamed. I lift her chin up, and the poor thing can't keep herself awake. "Just let me take you home and take care of you, please?"
"But work–" She protests.
"How on earth are you going to get better if you keep pushing yourself? Not to be mean, but you can barely keep yourself awake right now. Just give in and let me take care of you. You do everything for everyone, you deserve some rest too."
With the slightest nods, she agrees finally. I bring in a hug and let her lean on me. I only push her away when I need to get up, but a second later she's back in my arms anyway. I grab our bags and link my fingers with Lita's, I lead her out of the office and then out the door. We slowly walk to my car under the Leah's concern gaze and I buckle Lita safely in the car, on the passenger seat next to mine. I get in and drive to Lita's apartment.
Work can wait. Our date can wait. All I care about now is taking care of her, like every time she did it for me, and remind her that it's okay to take time to look after herself.
In sickness and in health. Right?
The minute we get there, I rush her into bed. She's in no shape to protest and lets me lie her down on top of the covers. It is still pretty hot outside, and Lita's still a bit too warm for my liking. I close the curtains, so the sun doesn't get in and start removing all unnecessary clothing like her socks, I completely unbutton her shirt hoping she'd cool down more. I set water by her bed, then all we have to do is wait for her temps to go down.
Whilst Lita sleeps, I try to keep myself busy. I phoned the babysitter to hear from Rose, and it sounds like they're having a lot of fun. We talked for a good forty-five minutes until they had to go, Rose was getting a bit too excited and are going to go to the park to get some energy out.
I look around Lita's flat looking for something to do. There's a bit of a mess I could clear out. Books scattered around, paperwork, cups and mugs everywhere... Let's start with the easy stuff : the books. I pick them up, going into every room to gather them all. She has these big bookshelves in her living room, so I guess they somehow all fit in there. Some seem older than others, some are annotated and others are just intact. Taking a look at her annotations you can see clearly some of them were annotated from school and have silly little doodles in them, you know the one you do out of boredom? Most of them are pretty good, some are even funny.
I put the books on the shelf in no particular order. I'm just trying to make it look pretty and hope Lita likes. I even go as far as doing the dusting. I put all her papers in piles on a piece of furniture that I think she uses as a desk. Underneath her mess, I find a journal I don't bother opening. For all I know it's a diary. Moving up to the dishes, I grab everything and dump all the cups in the dishwasher. I know she doesn't like using it, but I don't feel like doing the dishes by hand.
"What are you doing?" A groggy voice makes me jump as I close the dishwasher. I turn it on, and turn around to see Lita leaning against the doorway, with sleepy eyes.
"Nothing. What are you doing? I thought I told you to stay in bed!" I rush to her, firstly feeling her forehead that seems fine now. Then, snaking an arm around her waist to make her lean on me for support. "Come on, back to bed now."
"What? Nooooo. That's boring! I want to stay on the couch instead." She pouts and honestly, whatever she asks me I know I won't be able to tell her no after today. I nod slowly, and I watch the smile on her face grow. I just hope she won't be her stubborn self and actually stay put instead of roaming around when I'll have my back turned.
We slowly walk to the couch together, the minute she sits down I make sure she's comfortable. I give her cushions and bring her water and snacks. I leave her and come back one last time with a thermometer. She raises an eyebrow when I lift it up to her lips, and pouts when she understand I won't let it go. "Oh don't pout like that."
I stay by her side the entire time, my fingers running through her hair as she leans on me, the both of us waiting for the thermometer to bip. I take it out of her mouth when it does and quickly peck her lips before checking. Her temperature is back to normal, but she still has to take it slow for now. I don't know if she fainted because of dehydration, or maybe because of hunger and heat...
With a content smile, I set the thermometer down. "It's getting late, so how about I make us dinner, and we can watch whatever movie you want tonight?"
"Alright let me hel–" She pushes herself up. But before she could stand completely, I slowly push her back down. She doesn't know how to rest, does she?
"No, you stay here." I say, using kind of the same mothering tone I use with Rose. I think that should do the trick, and it will be all it takes for her to listen to me. She huffs, like an angry toddler about to have a tantrum because she didn't get her way. "It's either the couch or the bed." I keep a stern look on my face, she won't win. She eventually cave and mutters fine, that's when I know I can leave for the kitchen. I tuck her in under a light blanket though, she doesn't need it obviously, but maybe that'll give her comfort whilst I'm not there to provide any.
Now, I've never been in Lita's kitchen alone... Let's hope I can figure out how everything in here works because obviously it's very different from my kitchen. Opening the fridge, I'm working my brain to from us something to eat tonight. And we might be in August, but what's more comforting than soup? I guess that's what we're making tonight then.
I grab everything I need and get to work. Firstly, by letting the mushrooms soak in water. I look through the cabinet for a large pot and let half a stick of butter melt in there before adding onion, celery, carrots, salt, and pepper. I stir occasionally until the vegetables are soft and tender, then I add some barley and wait until everything is lightly toasted.
"What are you making?" Lita speaks loudly from the couch. I turn around, she's still tucked under the blanket which is a good thing.
"You'll see." She huffs and throws her head back, which makes me laugh.
However, as much as I'd love to give her all my attention, I have something cooking on the stove and that would be dangerous, so I shift my focus back to the food. To my vegetable I add in flour before pouring the mushrooms and their soaking liquid and vegetable broth. I bring it to a boil and then reduce the meat and let everything simmer. I toast some bread on the side waiting for everything to cook.
Lita did call me a few times, asking me to get her a book, so she can keep herself occupied, or the remote. I appreciated that instead of her getting up to get her stuff herself.
Twenty-five minutes later, I walk back into the living room area with two bowls on a tray, spoons and glasses. I make one last trip fetching a bottle of water and towels. "Comfy? Need anything?"
"Nope, I'm fine." She simply smiles at me, and I subconsciously smile back. She pats the spot next to her, but I just need to fetch one last thin– "Hey!"
I look to my right to look at Lita who just wrapped her arms around me and yanked me backwards, so I'd sit with her. I want to be mad, but she's not feeling well, and well, I'm not coldhearted. "You were taking too long." She says proudly, not letting me go.
So I get comfortable next to her. She shares the thin blanket with me, throwing it over my lap. I let her lay her head on my shoulder and listens as she comfortably sighs. I grab the remote, finally taking a look at the movie we're watching tonight, which happens to be Singing In The Rain.
"Well... At first, I wanted to be mean and make you watch We bought a zoo with me. But I chose that instead." Lita shares with me with a sheepish smile. Honestly, even though I'm not one to watch myself, I wouldn't have said a thing. She's had quite a day, and like I said... I'm not coldhearted.
We make about fifteen minutes into the movie until I deem the soup must be cool enough but still somewhat warm for us to have it now. I pause the movie, and very much like Rose when I tell her she watched enough cartoons for the day, Lita whines. Add the fact that I moved us from our comfy position... Yeah, she's not happy. Despite all of that, I still hand her the tray with a bowl of soup that she places over her lap. Meanwhile, I sit down by the coffee-table, I couldn't find a second tray for me and I don't want to spill it all over the couch. So, the coffee-table it is.
Lita is the first one to try the soup, the dips her spoon in the warm liquid and bring it up to her lips. She swallows, and judging by the way her face lit up, it's good and she likes it.
Phew.
I was scared for a second, and release a breath I didn't know I was holding. I allow myself to relax and begin eating, following her lead. We eat mostly in silence, the movie playing and the both of us focusing on it. That is until Lita pauses it, and I hear the sound of her spoon against the bowl. The screeching noise is filling the silence as she musters the courage to say what she wants to say. I watch as she opens her mouth, as if she was about to finally do it, but closes it a second later.
"I'm sorry I ruined our date." She blurts out.
Oh.
I swiftly place my bowl on the coffee-table and stand up. I'm by her side on the couch in a matter of seconds, and bring her into my arms. I let her head rest against my chest, and she lets me play with her hair. I hold her close, and tell her softly, "You didn't ruin anything."
"But I di–"
"No. Look, I had dinner with you, just like I had planned." I hold up her bowl and she nods slightly. "You didn't ruin our date, I had a lovely time with you."
Leaving Lita alone, I unpause the movie hoping it'll distract her. I don't know if it's working for her, but it's definitely working for me. Singing the songs, I almost forget I'm watching the movie with Lita and not Rose. I can feel her eyes on me but neither of us comment on it.
We're almost done with the movie when Lita starts to shift around. When I look down, her face is scrunched up in discomfort. I take the initiative of moving us, and I ended up laying down on my back, and Lita just lies on top of me. "When did I become your pillow?" I ask as she lies on my chest.
"Shh it's safe here." She says. "You keep me safe." She replied before she lets out a huge yawn.
"Yup, bedtime. Let's finish the movie and then we'll head up to bed." I know she listened to me even though she made no sign of showing me she did. When the credits roll, she makes no effort to move. I sigh, knowing I have to physically moving her off of me. I stand in front of the couch, looking at Lita laying there, I hand out my hand for her to take and help her stand as soon as she pulls herself up. "Come on now, up you get."
I smile as she interlocked her finger with mine. I gently pull her towards me and move slowly towards the bedroom. I let her sit down on the bed while I look around for clothes to sleep in. I throw a random shirt and short at her, and grab some for myself. In the bathroom, Lita tells me there's a spare toothbrush in the cabinet under the sink. I change in there and do everything I need to do before heading to bed.
"Y'know, I heard cuddles can fix anything." Lita says when I come back. She's ready to go to bed, and sat against the headboard. She holds her arms out with a pout on her face and I just crawl under the covers next to her.
I raise an eyebrow and don't hold back a smirk, "Is that so?" She hums, nodding her head rapidly.
"Well we better check if that's true then."
AUTHOR'S NOTE
heyyyy
i know, i know... i disappeared for a little bit but... i got a bunch of exciting news this week and couldn't focus long enough to finish that chapter
anyway it's finally ready and here it is, i hope you enjoyed
have a good day/afternoon/evening or night
alexa :)