A Pinch of Cinnamon

Nick’s POV

I awoke to the sound of a congested sounding cough. You know one of those ones where you are clearing your lungs of tons of mucous. I glance down to the toddler still sleeping contently on my chest. It wasn’t him. My eyes adjust to the dark room and glance at my watch. 3 am. Too early for chores and my alarm to go off.

I hear footsteps moving around upstairs followed by more muffled coughing, the culprit trying to keep quiet. I frown. I knew she would overwork herself. I carefully slipped Jayden off my chest and stood up with him in my arms. I walk upstairs quietly to his room before I tuck him into his bed.

I go across the hall to what I’m assuming is Spencer’s room. Knocking quietly, I can hear her tell me to come in.

She’s on her side, facing the door and was bundled in a thick comforter. I could tell from here, she was shivering. She raises up slightly when she sees me.

“Is Jay ok?” Her rough voice fills the room. I walk over to her and sit on the side of her bed, gently pushing her to lay back down.

“He’s fine. But you clearly aren’t.” I frown feeling her forehead. She’s burning up. Her wide eyes watch my every move. Sighing, I head to her bathroom and wet a washcloth with cold water. I gently place it over her burning skin. She sighs with temporary relief.

“You’re running yourself ragged, sweetheart. You can’t keep doing this.” She covered her mouth with the blanket, coughing more.

“I’ll be fine. I just need some sleep. I’ll do chores a little late so I can get a few hours in.”

“Don’t even think about it. I’m turning off your alarm and I will do the chores. You are staying in bed and sleeping until you are better.”

“Bu-”

I growl in frustration and cut her off. “I’m not hearing it. You need to take care of yourself. And, since you clearly won’t, I will have to make you.” My aggravated voice comes out low and threatening as I glare at her. She sighs in resignation. I know this is hard for her. But she needs to put herself first for once. I take her phone from the nightstand and turn off her alarm before putting it back.

“Why are you doing all this?” Her timid, defeated voice cut into me.

Does she really not know? Does she not see how I am with her?

Well, given that her last relationship clearly didn’t know how to treat her, maybe she didn’t realize I was totally serious about her; us. The thought of her being with that useless waste of space quickly fills my body with rage. I’ve been trying to take it slow since she seemed so embarrassed and timid about it. Maybe that was the wrong thing to do.

I cup her face, stroking it gently with my fingertips. Her skin feels so soft beneath my hand, almost like silk. I wonder what the rest of her would feel like.

Not the time.

I take the washcloth off her head and lean forward, gently pressing my lips to her cooling forehead. I feel her sigh and relax slightly. I pull back to look her in the eyes.

“Because I care about you, Spencer. More than you can know, but I will show you in time. I care for Jayden and I want to be someone you can turn to. Let yourself lean on me. You don’t have to go through everything alone, baby.” The term of endearment slipped easily from my lips, causing me to pause. Spencer continued gazing at me before a slight twitch of her lips turned into a soft smile.

Her eyes began to drift closed as I rubbed her cheek with my thumb. “Ok....just this.... once.” Her head rolls to the side a bit as she falls into the clutches of sleep. I kiss her forehead once more before placing the washcloth back where it was and softly closing the door.

Well. Since I’m up I may as well do chores early.

******

A small hand shakes me awake from my spot on his bed. After chores, I decided to try and catch a little more sleep. Wanting to stay close to them in case they needed me, I nestled into Jay’s bed with him. Which was a little uncomfortable since it was a toddler bed. I finally figured it out by sleeping sideways a bit with my feet on the floor.

“Nick.” The shaking resumed. Opening my eyes, I blinked the weariness away, and focused on Jay. His hair stuck up every which way and he looked tired still. His clothes were rumpled, and he clutched a stuffed teddy bear.

“What’s up bud.” I sit up carefully.

“What’s for breakfast?” I chuckle at him as his tummy growls. I glance at my watch, showing it’s almost 7:30.

“Well, what do you and your mom usually have? What’s your favorite?” He tilts his head adorably as he thinks.

“Spider-Man waffles!” He excitedly shouts. I laugh and try to quiet him.

“Try and use inside voices Jay, your mom doesn’t feel too good so she’s sleeping.” He casts a worried glance towards her door.

“She’s ok. She just needs rest. Why don’t we go make breakfast and I’ll wake her up later?”

Once Jay was done eating, he changed his clothes and I turned on cartoons for him. Spencer still wasn’t up, so I decided to make a bowl of oatmeal to bring her. It should be smooth enough for her throat. She was coughing even in her sleep most of the night.

Jay watched me intently from his place on the couch. “Cinonem.” I look at him quizzically, not quite understanding what he said.

“What’s that, Jay?”

“Cinonem. Momma says a pinch of it makes everything better.”

Cinonem? Oh......cinnamon!

"A pinch of cinnamon, huh?” It couldn’t hurt.

I bring the bowl upstairs and gently knock on the door. Not hearing an answer, I assume she’s still asleep and walk in.

She’s still wrapped up in her blanket, but her cheeks aren’t as pale as they were. Crumpled tissues lay on the nightstand beside her.

I set the bowl down and dispose of the used tissues before coming back to Spencer. A cute pout is fixed on her face. It’s almost as if her body knows it’s time to wake but she is fighting against it. Lord knows she needed the rest. It’s almost ten now though, so it should be safe to wake her.

I brush a brown wisp of hair back behind her ear. Gently rubbing her cheek, I start trying to wake her.

“Spencer, you need to eat a little. You can go back to bed after.” She mumbled incoherently and began to shift. Her eyebrows furrowed as she fought to remain asleep. I chuckle at how adorable she is. I lean in and cage her in my arms.

“You. Have. To. Wake. Up.” I lay a kiss on her after each word. I start on each cheek, grazing my nose over her skin as I move to each portion of her face. Her forehead, her eyelids, her nose. I had just laid a tender kiss on the corner of her mouth when her eyes fluttered open.

The slight red tint to her cheeks was definitely not due to her illness. “You’re going to get sick.” Her broken, rough voice whispered softly. I smile at her concern. I figured she’d be hightailing it from bed in embarrassment by now.

“Nah.” Her eyes fluttered closed at the feeling of my finger against her cheek as she leaned into it. “I don’t get sick.” It’s true though. Ever since I was a teen, I never really got sick. Even if I was around someone contagious. I must have a good immune system, which is great for this situation because now I can be close to her and she has no excuse.

“I made you some oatmeal. Eat and then you can go back to bed.” I helped her sit up and handed her the bowl.

She takes a bite and her eyes close as the food hits her tongue. She smiles a fraction.

“Cinnamon.” She whispers it so softly I almost don’t hear it.

“Jay said it makes everything better.” Spencer nods and continues eating but something is off. Her eyes are unfocused, and she has a sad smile on her face. I can almost see a glimmer of a tear in her eye before she blinks it away.

Why is she sad?! She was fine a second ago.

I begin to panic. She’s already sick and I go and make her sad now too. Unintentionally, but still.

“Baby...” I whisper. Spencer blinks up at me, almost like she’s realizing I’m still in the room. She shakes off my worried gaze.

“It’s delicious, thank you.” A fake smile gracing her lips. She finishes eating before handing me the bowl and burying back into her covers.

I hate that she is going back to sleep sad. But, not knowing the cause, I don’t know how to fix it. She gives me a soft, real smile when I kiss her forehead one last time before letting her go back to sleep. I desperately want to kiss her for real, but I doubt she would be happy if we had our first kiss while she was hacking up a lung. She’s a mystery that I desperately need to figure out.