This chapter is dedicated to @that_dam_tribute ! Go give her a follow, along with me! :)

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I wake up with a sharp pain in my lower abdomen.

Great.

Masons not in the bed, he must be downstairs.

I get out of bed, trying to ignore the shooting pain.

Surprisingly there's not a stain. Thank God.

"Fück" I mumble, dragging myself into the bathroom, ransacking the medicine cabinet.

"Leah? What are you doing? Are you okay?" Ellie asks, seeing my pained expression.

I shake my head. "Can I borrow a pad and some Midol or something?" I lean against the sink.

It's never been this bad.

"Yeah, sure" Ellie nods, running to grab the stuff.

"I don't have any Midol, I have Advil though" She holds the pad out to me.

"No, that's fine. Thank you" I take it from her and quickly change only to see there's nothing to change.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Ellie asks from the other side of the door.

"What's wrong?" Mason's panicked voice asks.

"I'm-" I start before a horrible feeling overcomes me.

Soon, I'm doubled over the toilet.

"Oh my gosh," Mason rushes over to me, holding my hair back, his hand gently caressing my back.

"You're okay" He coos, making sure I'm okay.

A few minutes after my stomach is emptied, Mason helps me up and back into bed.

"If you need anything, call me. Feel better Le" Ellie gives me a small smile.

"Are you okay?" Mason asks, eyebrows furrowed.

The pain has passed and now I just feel sick.

"Yeah, I just don't feel great" I can't help but ignore the uneasiness in the pit of my stomach.

"Can you hand me my phone?" I ask.

I quickly open my app, checking to see if I'm late.

"Do you think, maybe you're-" Mason struggles to get the words out.

"Pregnant? I don't think so" I sigh, happy to see I'm not due for another day.

"You aren't late?" He looks at my phone.

"No, thankfully I'm not" I lean back.

"Thank God" Mason's shoulders immediately ease.

"You don't look good Le" Mason places his hand on my forehead.

"I'm fine Mason" Her forehead is on fire.

"Don't tell me you're fine when you just got sick and you're burning up. Give me a second, I'm getting the thermometer" I kiss her forehead, grabbing the thermometer from the medicine cabinet.

I quickly take her temperature, 102°.

"Shįt Le" I curse, grabbing some medicine.

"What?" She groans.

"Your temperature is high" I wet a rag with cold water and tell her to lay down.

I gently fold it and place it on her forehead, hoping to bring her temperature down a bit.

"Mason, I'm fine" She yawns.

"No, you aren't. Is your stomach bothering you?" I notice her arms wrapped around it.

"It's fine. I'm okay" She ignores my question.

"Babe, come on. Just talk to me, stop being stubborn" I brush her hair out of her eyes.

"Okay, fine. It is. It went away a couple of minutes ago but now it's back" She mumbles.

"I can get you a tum, that might help" I scratch my neck, not knowing what to do.

"It's fine. Just weird" She shakes her head.

"What do you mean?" I take her arms off and replace them with my hand, rubbing small circles on her stomach.

"It's like pains. Sharp pains" She whimpers as she sits up.

"Lay back down," I say, seeing the pain in her face. "Is this emergency room worthy?" I ask, getting worried.

"No, no. I'll be fine" She takes the rag off, playing with it in her hands.

"Leah, what's going on?" I ask, feeling like she's hiding something from me.

"I don't know. I thought it was just cramps but it's not. They've never been this bad. Like they're usually bad but not to the point where it makes me sick. It could just be PMS but something tells me it's not" She says, rubbing her eyes.

"Okay, it's okay. We're going to get you all better. I can call Scarlet" I pull her into a hug, rubbing her back.

"I'm sorry" She pulls away.

"Shhh, it's okay, come on. Let's cuddle" I get into bed next to her and pull her into my arms.

I pull the covers over us and gently rub her stomach like I was previously.

"Do you want some Motrin to help your fever go down?" I ask, kissing her head.

"I'm okay. Thank you though" She closes her eyes, shaking.

"Are you cold?" I pull the covers up.

"A little" She smiles.

"Here, I'll get you another blanket" I grab one for her, kissing her forehead.

"Thanks" She relaxes a bit.

"Take a nap. It'll be good for the fever" I run my fingers through her hair, careful not to hurt her.

"Shįt, I have work today" Her eyes pop open.

"You aren't going in Le, it's fine. I'll call Sydney for you. Just take a nap, you look exhausted" I calm her down.

"I need the money" She shakes her head, getting up.

"There's no way I'm going to let you go in like this Leah" I shrug.

"Mason, I'm fine" She stumbles a bit, grabbing a black hoodie.

"Babe, stop. Please, lay back in bed. You can pick up a double shift another day if you really want. Just rest and then you'll get better" I rub her arms.

"Fine, but I'm picking up a double tomorrow" She mumbles, getting her phone out and sitting on the bed.

She quickly makes a call to Sydney and cancels.

"Fück" She curses, quickly getting out of bed and going right into the bathroom.

I follow, holding her hair back, and gently rub her back.

She rests her forehead on her arm.

What's going on?

I wrap her hair in a ponytail with the scrunchie on my wrist. "Thank you" She breathes out.

"Of course babe" I dial Aunt Scarlet's number.

"Hey, aunt Scar. Can you come over here? Leah's really sick" I say, trying to soothe Leah.

"Of course hun. I'll be over in a bit" She says.

"Okay, thanks so much. The doors open" I say and hang up, putting my attention back on Leah.

"I'm fine. It's probably a little stomach virus" She yawns.

"It's not fine, I'm worried about you Le" I help her up and back into bed.

"You're just a worrier" She smiles, knowing it's the other way around.

"Haha, I know that was a joke" I shake my head.

"Yo, Mas. Practice tonight at 6. Its only 3 hours today" Brooks knocks on the door, peeking his head in.

"Woah, is she okay?" Brooks asks.

"Yes, I just didn't put makeup on Brooks" She rolls her eyes, a smile on her face.

"No, she's sick. Okay, I'll talk to coach. I don't think I can make it" I sigh, hoping coach isn't getting tired of this.

Two years ago a family member could die and I wouldn't miss a practice. Now with Leah, she can stub a toe and I'll miss practice to make sure she's okay. She's making me soft.

"Mason, go. I'll be fine. It's ridiculous to miss a practice because I have a possible stomach virus" She crosses her arms.

"This is your future Mason" She interrupts me.

"She's got a point" Ellie appears next to Brooks.

"Plus, I'll be home. She's fine Mason. Keep my boyfriend company and out of trouble tonight" Ellie smiles.

"I'm here" Scarlet interrupts.

"Oh great, thanks so much for coming over" I hug her, giving her a kiss on the cheek and she starts checking over Leah after we get downstairs.

"Everything looks fine. She has a small fever which we can keep down with some Motrin. Try and eat light foods, toast, or soup is good. You need liquids, water is the best. Chill today and tomorrow and you should be better. Hopefully, this will pass in a day or two. It seems like a little stomach virus, nothing to worry about" She explains to Leah.

"Okay, thank you so much Ms. White" Leah thanks her.

"Now, time to chill" I kiss Leah's cheek, placing a glass of water and some Motrin in front of her.

She smiles, thanking me, and quickly sips the water and Motrin down placing her head on her arms.

I rub her back, practically burning my hand in the process.

"Come on, let's go back into bed" I help her up, holding another glass of water.

My head is pounding, the sunlight is way too bright and my vision is fuzzy. All I want to do is take a nap.

"There you go" Mason whispers, trying to keep his voice low.

My ringtone blares, causing me to cringe, the pounding in my head getting stronger. "Can you take it?" I hand it to Mason.

"Hey man," He answers. Who is it?

"Yeah, she's right here. She's really sick, about to take a nap" He says through the phone. "Of course, take care. Bye," He hangs up.

"It was Luke, he wants you to call him later" Mason places my phone back on the nightstand and gets back in bed.

"Did he say why he called?" I question, closing my eyes, attempting to stop the pain.

"Nope, didn't ask" He laughs, kissing my temple.

I roll over, placing my head on the pillow, next to Mason, not wanting to cause him to overheat.

"Come on" He pats his bare chest, wrapping his arms under my legs to pull me over to him.

"I don't want you to get too hot" I blush, laughing.

"Babe, I'll be fine. I'm in shorts, come on" He frowns.

"Fine" I laugh, resting my head on his chest, his arms wrapping around me, securing my body close to his.

He plays with the hem of his t-shirt that I'm wearing, his hands gently rubbing up and down my bare thighs, comfortingly.

He places a quick kiss on my forehead and reaches over for the remote, flicking on Legally Blonde.

"Why are you watching this?" I laugh.

"Why not? I know you like this movie, and it's not the worst" He smiles down at me.

"Take a nap, you need the rest. I'll wake you before I go to practice" He kisses my temple.

I nod, letting myself drift into a deep sleep.

A few hours later I wake up to an empty bed.

I hear rustling, resulting in me opening my eyes.

I'm met with a half-naked Mason digging through his drawers and shoving stuff into a bag.

"What are you putting in there? Packing a bag to sneak out?" I laugh, standing up.

"I can't find any of my football gear" He opens his closet, rummaging through it.

"Okay, let me have a look" I stand on my tippy toes, struggling to reach his cheek.

"No, Le. Go back to bed. You're sick" He smiles, walking me back towards the bed.

"Just let me look. I'm not going to drop dead on the floor Mas" A laugh falls from my lips as I shake my head.

"Fine" He steps back, letting me look.

I thank him, knowing exactly where it is. I remembered seeing it in the laundry room last time I had thrown in a load of Masons wash.

I walk back into Mason's room, his gear in hand and a smirk on my face.

"Where did you find it?" He stares at me, eyebrows furrowed.

"Now, why would I reveal my source?" I place my hands on my hips.

"Thank you, babe" He kisses my forehead, taking his equipment from me and placing it in his bag. He throws on a hoodie and adjusts his shorts, flashing me a sloppy smile.

"Good luck. Have fun and be safe, please. Text me when you get there" I kiss his cheek, a light blush on my face.

"Okay, I will. Text me if you need anything or feel sick, please. I love you" He hugs me like his life is depending on it.

"White let's go" Brooks calls.

I follow him out, turning to go into Ellie's room.

"How are you feeling?" Ellie asks, patting the spot next to her.

"No, I don't want to get you sick. I'm going back to Mason's room" I smile.

Ellie rolls her eyes, patting the spot next to her. "Don't be ridiculous"

The rest of the night is filled with trips to the toilet and Grey's Anatomy episodes with Ellie.

Hello, angels! Happy Holidays and my best wishes for the new year. I think we can all agree that 2020 was a disaster! Really hoping for a better 2021. Thank you for the endless support. Remember, I'm always here for anyone and everyone! Love you all lots! Don't forget to like, comment, and vote!

If you like this book, make sure to go check out the other one on my page, It's a Thin Line, Darling.

Question: How were your holidays? Did you get any good gifts?

Answer: My Christmas was good! It was small due to covid. My favorite gift I received was a guitar. I was inspired by a show to pursue my want to learn. I also got a penny board so my best friend and I can finally learn!

12 votes and 50 comments?

Word count: 2239

~Leah