Sick days

Emery: Ugh.

Nia: Hasn’t gotten back to you either, huh?

Emery: No…

Nia: Haah, well crap.

Nia and I sat on a bench just outside the school grounds, staring anxiously at our phones as we contemplated the situation.

Despite the plans we made, neither Nia nor I had seen Rina since Sunday. This on its own wouldn’t necessarily be cause for concern. After all, when the two of us reached out she told us she simply wasn’t feeling well. The problem was that, while that explanation settled us at first, it began to satisfy less as the situation developed.

On one hand, we had the way Rina normally conducted herself when sick. She rarely fell ill in the first place — I could count the amount of times on one hand — and when it did happen she was always quite…I suppose I would call it “conciliatory”. Last time I helped the girl’s basketball team with their work, Rina gave us a play by play practically every hour. It was almost like a report. We ended up scolding her about it so she could rest properly. This time, in stark contrast to that prior behavior, Rina has barely spoken to us at all. This coming on the heels of her own recommendation to utilize the group chat more made it doubly strange. Of course Rina could just be incredibly sick, but that was a worrying thought in its own right. And this was assuming she was actually sick at all.

Which brought us to another concern: a skepticism stemming from what had occurred on Monday morning. After the base sexual thrill of the situation ran its course, the whole thing struck me as strange. At the time I figured she was getting off to what happened the night before and wanted to taunt me about it, but that didn’t pass the smell test the more minutia I considered.

The way Rina acted throughout, what sounded like guilt in her tone; it gave me the impression of it all being a big accident. She didn’t really try to tease nor sexually entice me, I just got excited by the situation after figuring out what she was doing. Rina said she was exercising too, presumably to cover for her noises, which made it seem like she didn’t want to be found out. Honestly I wouldn’t have if she hadn’t lost her cool towards the climax.

Some heat returned to my face as I remembered the dirty details of the situation, the tone of Rina’s voice, and the mental imagery I’d conjured alongside it. I tried to shake it off, focusing instead on the late summer breeze as it danced around me.

Even if everything I assumed was all true, it didn’t answer the fundamental questions. Why didn’t she just stop once I called her? Why not tell me she was too busy to talk? Was she really sick, or was she avoiding us? These were things I couldn’t understand without asking her, an action I could not take at the moment.

So here we sat — early Wednesday afternoon with our classes behind us — pondering how exactly we were going to approach this issue. I sighed and leaned against the back of the bench, looking up at the sky. All this thinking and I wasn’t any closer to a solution. I turned to Nia, my better, more decisive, half, hoping for answers.

Emery: Maybe one of us should send her another message?

Nia: Nah, don’t wanna text her more. She’s been leaving us on read anyway, so spamming her feels creeper-y if it turns out nothing’s super duper wrong. Also, and maybe it’s just me, but I dunno if just trying the same thing’ll really help any.

Nia leaned against my shoulder and the back of the bench, rubbing her head as she hummed and hawed.

Nia: …Why don't we just cut the shit and go to her place? We were supposed to have the sesh today, and she technically didn’t cancel on us, soooo…might as well.

I blanked. That was definitely straightforward, but something about it didn’t sit right with me.

Emery: I don’t know about that hun… What if she’s really just sick? Wouldn’t we be bothering her?

Nia: We can just let her know we’re headed over when we’re on our way. If she really doesn’t want us to for some reason then she can say so. That’s more than enough warning.

Emery: She could easily be asleep though. Missing her window to say no and waking up to us knocking wouldn’t be very courteous.

Nia: C’mon Em, you know she doesn’t act like this. What if she’s like, really sick and not “just sick”? She could be having trouble taking care of herself. Hell, forget being asleep, she could’ve even passed out.

Despite the gravity of what she was implying, I couldn’t help but smile at her insistence. I’d no doubt many spouses would have written Rina off in this circumstance, perhaps rightfully presuming the worst, but not Nia. When I told her about this on Monday, she was far less perturbed than I anticipated — which was quite the surprise, considering I already figured she wouldn’t be too sore about it. No, instead she was, in some ways, even more worried for Rina than I was. Whether it was a testament to Nia’s love of her friends, or to our ability to communicate calmly, I couldn’t say; I just knew that, above all, it made me truly appreciate how caring a person she is.

Of course, she could merely be motivated by petty grievance, but I knew her better than that.

Emery: Heheh, and you call me a worrywart. Your inner big sister is showing.

Nia pouted at me, a mixture of both playful and genuine impatience coloring her face.

Nia: Is not! …and I just don’t see why we shouldn’t. The worst that happens is she’s fine and says she doesn’t want to talk right now. Not that big a thing, and in some ways the best case scenario. What’s the issue?

Emery: Well…I have to admit, I think you’re right. I just…I don’t know.

Nia: Seriously hun? It sorta feels like you’re looking for reasons to not go. Not to be mean, but you’ve got that vibe right now.

Oof, perhaps she had a point. Her jab resonated with me, and not in a good way. I wasn’t sure how else to convey what I wanted to say…but maybe I wasn’t sure what I wanted to begin with. I didn’t know what to do, but it did seem like I was more preoccupied with poking holes in Nia’s idea than proposing my own…

I bristled at myself, feeling like a bit of a hypocrite. If I was so keen to tout the idea of being communicative then I should practice what I preach. Reality was rarely so straightforward, unfortunately — taking advice when it mattered was a lot harder than giving it.

Why was I feeling like this? I had to do better wit - hhng~!

I started as a sensual pinching jolted me from my reverie. Nia was grabbing my nipple, gently twisting it between her forefinger and thumb as she shot me a fed up look.

Nia: Helloooo, space cadet? Earth to Emery?

Emery: Ey, you spooked me hun. Don’t do that.

Nia: You weren’t answering, you goofball. Pay attention when we’re talking and I won’t have to.

She leaned close to my ear and cupped her mouth, a smug smile developing as she drew near.

Nia: Besides, hehe, I heard that cute little squeak you made. S’not like you hate this sorta thing~.

It was my turn to pout, shuffling as I blocked her access to my now erect nipples. I knew Nia was mostly teasing to lighten the mood, and she wasn’t wrong either…but now wasn’t the time. Well…maybe I was just taking myself too seriously again. Her easy-going approach helped distract me from my navel gazing…and that did feel nice…

Rather than retort, I closed the remainder of our distance before suddenly pulling Nia into a big hug. I exhaled heavily as her warmth met mine.

Emery: Sorry love, I know I’m being difficult.

She rubbed my back as she responded, her comforting action contrasted by the condescending tone her voice still carried.

Nia: Aw, don’t sweat it Em. You’re not any worse than usual, hahaha!

I pouted further, a smidge of incredulity sinking in this time.

Emery: Alright, take it easy chef. Let’s figure this out first, then you can keep roasting my ass afterwards if you really want.

Nia: Hehe, I’ll have to take you up on that cutie. Just follow my lead, I think I’ve cooked up something we can meet halfway on.