stay ➵ OSCAR DIAZ [1]

chapter five.

WHEN OSCAR GETS BACK AND SEES THAT HIS EARLY RISER GIRLFRIEND IS STILL IN BED, PANIC STARTS TO SET IN.

"You sure you don't want me to take you to the urgent care, Meli?" Oscar asks one afternoon.

He gently sits on the edge of the bed near Melina, brows knit together as he takes in the sight of her. She's laying on her side in the bed, body covered by the thinnest sábana they have. She's pressing a damp rag against her forehead. Once scrunched to house ice cubes, it now lay flat against her warm skin. Oscar can see small pieces of hair sticking to the nape of her neck. Her eyes are screwed shut but she's still awake, he can tell by the way she's trying to regulate her breathing.

"Hey," he gently nudges her leg when she doesn't answer. "You sure you good?"

Melina mhm's in respone, a mix of annoyance and pain. It's the most she can muster when it feels like someone is hammering at the side of her head with an icepick. Oscar sighs.

The migraine had come out of nowhere the day before, hitting Melina at full force with no mercy and practically leaving her bedridden for the rest of the day and the next morning. She isn't new to the feeling, last one happening a few years ago, but god, this one was bad.

With the changes in Junior's behavior, worrying about Cesar, and the bickering over the tiniest shit between her and Oscar, she supposes it was only a matter of time before her body gave out on her. People can't be under constant stress and not walk away without some form of havoc wrecked on their wellbeing.

Plus, her stress relief is basically nonexistent now. Oscar and Melina haven't had sex in almost two weeks. It's nothing to some, but they both went from a four year drought to going at it at least once a day. It only adds to Oscar's irritation and Melina swears she's going through withdrawals. Now with Junior being insistent on sleeping in their bed, Oscar barely being home, and them fighting and ultimately ignoring each other when he is home, she feels like she's withering away as the days pass by.

The plastic bag Oscar brought with him crinkles as he digs into it, the sound making Melina wince. "Sorry," he apologizes, making sure to keep his voice low but audible. "I got your medicine, though. So sit up."

Melina takes her sweet time propping herself up, terrified to make any sudden movements that might anger whatever the fuck is using the inside of her head as a punching bag. She has to have missed one too many months of church for God to strike her down like this, she thinks. The rag peels off her forehead and falls into her lap, making her pout, and strangely also makes her feel like crying.

Oscar drops the medicine in her waiting palm. She mumbles a 'thank you' and he watches as she pops two Advil in her mouth, taking the glass of water from him after and chasing the pills down with a sip. She offers the cup back to him after, still full, and he shakes his head.

"Drink it all, last thing you need to be right now is dehydrated."

Melina gives him a look, wanting to just lay back down and wait for the medicine to kick in, but she obeys anyways after he returns her look. She knows he's right and she's too tired to fight.

They sit in silence in the dim room as she takes slow drinks, Oscar having re-folded the rag and is holding it against her forehead now. They make brief eye contact here and there, eyes darting elsewhere when one catches the other. It feels almost uncomfortable to look each other in the eyes after a week of not so nice words and glares. But they'd be lying if they say they don't miss each other.

Hesitant at first, Melina places her hand on his outstretched arm and holds on. She strokes his skin with her thumb and keeps her gaze down, staring into nothing as her head continues to pound.