LILY
My whole body aches and I can’t move my legs because of the pain. My womanhood feels a sting in between. I can’t even count how many times Arlo and I went at it last night. Even when I was already drained of energy, he just kept going. It was as if there was no tomorrow for the two of us. Despite that, I don’t regret giving myself to him.
I love him, even if it’s unlikely that he’ll love me back the way I love him. I just hope he remembers everything he said to me. I wanted to get up, but my body couldn’t handle it. There’s something strange I’m feeling throughout my entire body. I touched my forehead and neck—they were sweaty, sticky, and hot to the touch.
I glanced at Arlo, who was sound asleep and softly snoring. I didn’t want to disturb his peaceful rest. I removed the blanket covering me because I was feeling too warm.
Could I have a fever? Slowly, I closed my eyes again. No matter how much I tried to go back to sleep, I just couldn’t ignore the discomfort I was feeling.
“I’m thirsty,” I whispered to myself.
It felt like my body temperature was rising even more. I was drenched in hot sweat. I couldn’t make sense of what was happening to me.
“Mommy, Mommy,” I called out weakly to my mother.
Without realizing it, I was already crying. Thoughts of Mommy filled my mind. I miss her. Whenever I got sick, she’d always be by my side, panicking and taking care of me.
Until I heard someone calling my name, they were waking me up, but I couldn’t respond because of the jumble of sensations I was feeling. Earlier, I felt hot, but now my body was cold—from my feet to my neck.
“I feel hot and cold,” I muttered to the person who was holding me and trying to wake me up.
“Where am I? I need Mommy,” I rambled incoherently.
Then I felt someone lift me up, though I didn’t know where they were taking me. I also felt a kiss on my forehead.
After a few moments, I felt lighter, as if I were floating on water. I realized someone was bathing me. I could feel the heat in my body gradually subsiding.
I slowly opened my eyes. The first thing I saw was Arlo wiping my body with a wet towel.
“Where am I? What are you doing?” I weakly asked.
“Shhh…” he hushed me, not allowing me to say more.
When I came fully to my senses, I noticed I was inside a jacuzzi. I had no idea how I got there.
“Why am I here?” I asked again.
“You had a high fever. Don’t worry; I already called a doctor. How are you feeling now?”
“I’m better,” I replied.
“Thank God. I was so worried earlier; I didn’t know what to do with you because your fever was so high,” Arlo said to me.
“Have I been in here long?” I asked, wanting to get out of the water.
“Almost 45 minutes. The doctor told me to keep you in the water until your fever goes down,” Arlo explained.
“I’m cold now, and I’m thirsty,” I said. Arlo quickly got up and grabbed a large towel.
He helped me stand and wrapped the towel around me. As I was about to step out of the jacuzzi, Arlo suddenly carried me. I didn’t protest because I still felt weak. He gently laid me back down on the bed.
