Everybody Gets Sick

Maya returned home after a long day at work feeling extremely run down. The twelve hours of her shift seemed to drag on, even though it wasn't a very difficult day when it came to the calls. It was actually a complete change of pace compared to yesterday's shift.

The moon was already out, it being around dinner time. It was the second week of January and the frigid wind of Seattle shook the trees. Maya was surprised to see that there was no snow on the ground.

It had been light on the amount of snowstorms this winter. December had a few snowfalls, but nothing major. It's not like she was complaining, no snow definitely made her life better, especially work.

She pulled out her apartment key as she made her way up the steps to her front door. She placed the key in the lock, turning it and allowing herself to enter. 

Her heart beat happily, excited to see her wife. They've had opposite shift schedules recently, making it challenging to see each other. It's been four days since they've been home together and Maya was looking forward to not having to make dinner for one or sleep in a lonely bed.

Carina's smile and the sparkle in her eyes is the first thing Maya notices when she walks through the door. She was in the kitchen, hips swaying as she prepared dinner. The red sauce being made in the pot hinted that Maya was in for one of her wife's amazing Italian delicacies.

Maya took off her shoes by the door, peeling off her thick winter jacket and hanging it up on the hook. She sauntered over to Carina, placing a kiss to the side of her head as she continues to stir the noodles. 

"How was your day?" Carina asks, flashing her a smile.

"It wasn't very busy but i'm somehow exhausted," Maya answers with a sigh. She grabs two wine glasses from the cabinet, filling them up with their favorite red wine, setting the glasses on the dinner table.

"Maybe it's because you've been working a shift everyday this week. It's a lot of stress," Carina states and Maya hums in response. 

"What are you making?" The blonde asks curiously, even though she has her guess. She wraps her arms around Carina's waist, taking a look at what's in the pot below.

The brunette involuntarily leans back into her her wife's touch, still stirring. "Spaghetti. It should be done soon," she replies.

"Looks delicious," Maya nods, regrettably releasing her arms from around her wife. "I think i'm going to run on the treadmill."

Carina spun around, giving Maya a questioning look. "But aren't you tired?" She knows that has never stopped Maya before. Running is something that she loves to do and Carina usually wouldn't stop her since it seems to have a good effect on her mental health, as long as she was using it in a healthy and non-detrimental way.

"A short one, I promise. How long 'till dinner?" She wonders, wanting to time herself so the food won't get cold. Maya grabs a water bottle from the fridge, not bothering to fill a metal one up.

Carina glances at the time on the oven. "About thirty minutes."

Maya silently nods and heads downstairs to where the treadmill is. The basement wasn't finished, making it the perfect atmosphere for her gym equipment, especially the chilly temperature.

While she preferred to run outside, the weather of Seattle is often unpredictable and cold in the winter, making it too uncomfortable to run outside.

She runs three and a half miles within thirty minutes. Definitely not her best, but like earlier, she's still tired. The achiness of her body more apparent than usual.

Reentering the dining room, the delicious smell hit Maya immediately. Carina could turn a simple dish into something amazing. She truly is a fantastic cook.

She sat down at the table where Carina had already set her plate down before she even came up the stairs. The brunette took a seat at her own designated place at the table as well.

"How was your run?" Carina wonders, picking up her fork and starting to dig into the spaghetti, Maya doing the same.

"It wasn't as good as normal, but i'm just really tired today," she says, coincidentally yawning. Carina frowns at that, and even though Maya already admitted to her exhaustion earlier, she didn't realize how tired she actually is.

She wracks her brain, searching for anything that could be stressing Maya out, knowing that when she's anxious, she struggles to sleep.

Seeing the crinkle of Carina's brow, Maya answers the question that she knows her wife is about to ask. That's the kind of person Carina is. Extremely caring. "I slept good last night. I don't know why i'm tired."

"Was it a hard day at work? Did you get a lot of calls?" Carina questions with a sip of her wine, the dark beverage glistening under the overhead lights.

"No, only one call all day and it was short and simple," Maya answers.

She felt herself begin to slow down until she eventually stopped shoving food into her mouth. Maya ate about half of the food on her plate, which was odd. On a normal day, Maya usually went up for seconds before calling it quits. Maybe she was having an off day.

"That's just how I like it," Carina deadpans. Any day that Maya isn't put into much danger is a good day. It definitely lowers her stress levels knowing that Maya's safe.

"How was your day?" Maya asks. The brunette didn't have to work today so she spent most of her time at home relaxing. It felt like millions of babies were being born everyday. Who knew January was a popular month for birthdays. 

"It was good. I spent most of the day doing nothing, which normally I would hate, but it felt nice to not have to be on the go," Carina explains and Maya nods.

"No jumping from room to room for all the births," Maya points out, aware with the seemingly increase of babies recently. Her wife would often come home exhausted and would complain of her feet being sore from standing all day.

Maya yawning catches Carina's attention. "Are you still tired?" She questions with a chuckle, already knowing the answer.

It's still somewhat early in the evening and to see Maya this tired was a little unsettling. 

"A little," Maya answers, shrugging it off. She picks up her plate and washes the remaining food off and into the sink, placing it into the dish washer. Carina does the same, however her plate is has no remaining food.

"How about we watch a movie on the couch before going to bed?" Carina suggests as she wraps her arms around Maya's body from behind.

The blonde turns around, cupping Carina's face with her hands as she stares into those gorgeous brown eyes. "Sure. But I get to pick," she says with a smirk.

Carina drops her hands from Maya's waist as her face contorts into a pout. "You picked last time. And the time before that."

"Please," Maya begs. There wasn't anything wrong with Carina's picks, but she did normally tend to choose a lot of Italian movies, which Maya barely understood. If she did happen to pick an English movie, it was almost always romance and that just wasn't Maya's cup of tea.

"Fine," Carina playfully rolls her eyes as Maya smiles. 

They make their way to the couch, the firefighter grabbing the remote while Carina got comfortable on her back. She was caught by surprised when another body practically laid on top of her.

"Maya," Carina laughs, wrapping her arms around the blonde. 

It wasn't that they never cuddled they actually did quite often, but it sometimes took a little convincing from the Italian before Maya just jumps into her arms. However, Maya was tired and that usually resulted in cuddles. Carina definitely isn't complaining.

Maya put on a movie, one that they both have never seen before but had good reviews. Carina wasn't too keen on the pick, but she agreed to it.

One hand rubbed the blonde's back and the other played with her hair. Maya naturally sinked into Carina's touch.

The exhausted woman finds herself spacing out. They were thirty minutes in and she couldn't tell you what the movie was even about. Her eyes were barely open at this point.

By the end of the movie, Carina was thankful that it wasn't extremely long. "My pick would've been better," she playfully gloats. Truthfully, the movie wasn't that bad, but Carina would've preferred something in a different genre. Mystery just isn't her thing.

When she receives no answer from her wife, Carina angles her head down to see Maya's eyes shut tightly. It was nearly ten at night, which for Maya to be sleeping is strange as she normally doesn't fall asleep until two hours later. 

And sometimes she takes medicine to help with her insomnia.

The brunette decides to turn on the news, given that she's not really tired yet. They were calling for a huge snowstorm that's supposed to hit that night.

Grey Sloan was preparing for it and Carina would be working in two days, not wanting to drive tomorrow unless it's completely necessary since it's supposed to be dangerous. The day after isn't calling to be the safest either, but Carina knew she would have to go in if the pile up is bad enough.

She has heard from Maya that the station is opening up for any civilians to stay if needed. C shift was running it tomorrow and Maya wouldn't be going into work until two days later.

Carina stayed awake for another hour, Maya not moving an inch within that time. When her eyes grew heavy, she decided to call it a night. The only problem is that she has to get her stubborn wife into bed.

"Maya, bambina, wake up," Carina whispers softly, lightly shaking her shoulder. It didn't take long for blue eyes to make an appearance in small blinks, trying to adjust to the light. "It's time to go to bed," she adds.

Maya nods and slowly stands up and off of Carina, allowing her to get up from the couch as well. She grabs Maya's hand, practically leading her towards the bathroom as she's barely awake.

Maya silently changes into something more comfy, having not switched out of her workout clothes from earlier. She brushes her teeth, climbing into bed and under the warm covers as soon as she finishes, waiting for the woman she loves to join her once she's done showering.

When the Italian finally emerged from the bathroom, hair still wet but ready for bed nonetheless, she was met with Maya already fast asleep with the bedroom lights still on, having lost the fight of waiting for her.

Maya seemed off all night. She was more quieter than usual, besides taking the opportunity to make fun of Carina's movie choices. 

Carina hasn't seen Maya as tired before, unless she was having a bad mental health day, which she hasn't had one in a while, so it was a little off putting to see her sleeping so much.

The lights got turned off, Carina sliding into bed shortly after. Maya was asleep on her stomach, per usual, right in the middle of the bed, making it difficult for Carina to sleep in her normal spot. She squeezed in, making do with what little room she was offered.

She closes her eyes, falling into a deep sleep almost instantly.

In the middle of the night, not exactly sure at what time it is, Maya woke up with cold chills, causing her to pull the blankets higher up to help with the shivers shooting throughout her body.

Although, the blanket didn't help much, allowing her come to the decision to go into her closet, grabbing the nearest sweatshirt and pulling it on, hoping it would help warm her up. 

Maya swallowed for the first time since she woke up and her throat burned. Her first thought was maybe she was coming down with a cold.

She also grabbed a few extra blankets, knowing that she might need more blankets to supply more heat than just the one on her bed.

Climbing back into bed, Maya migrates closer to her wife's body, searching for her warmth. Carina unconsciously pulled her closer, causing her to smile and shut her eyes.

Carina was the first to wake up, surprising herself since Maya is normally done with her run by now, it being close to eight in the morning. 

Looking over her shoulder, she sees Maya covered in blankets, some that were packed away in their closet. Shrugging it off, Carina decides to go make breakfast, giving her wife more time to sleep, thinking that she probably just got cold from the snow storm overnight.

Passing by the window on the way to the kitchen, Carina takes a second to look outside. They weren't kidding when they called for a major snow storm. 

There's already multiple inches of snow completely covering the green grass and it appears to still be coming down. The front door looked to be snowed in, causing her to sigh. 

Why did they have to live in Seattle?

She spends a few minutes of her morning preparing her french toast recipe that's been passed down through generations in her family. Carina figured that breakfast in bed would help cheer Maya up if she's struggling mentally.

While she doesn't know if that's truly the case, there were signs pointing in that direction and Carina would do anything in her power to make it a good day.

Once it's all finished, she places the plate on a tray, along with some orange juice, and brings it with her into their bedroom. Opening the door, she was met with Maya still heavily asleep underneath the mountain of blankets.

She sets the tray onto the bedside table, allowing her hands to be free, as she goes to Maya's side. Carina's aware that rest is good for her wife and the more she can get, the better, but she also put some work into making her breakfast and she doesn't want it to get cold.

Carina rubs circles on Maya's back, given that she's sleeping on her stomach, noticing how she's out cold since she would usually be woken up with the smallest of touches.

"Wake up, bambina," Carina whispers softly, her hand that was previously on her back going to push stray blonde hair behind her ears.

Maya wakes up with a groan that is quickly cut off with a harsh cough, causing her to sit up. Only then does it hit Carina that Maya is sick. The exhaustion, the chills. She mentally curses herself for not realizing sooner.

She sets her hand on Maya's forehead, frowning at the heat. "Oh Maya. How are you feeling?" She asks as the blonde lays back down, this time on her back, the aches in her body more present.

Maya goes to open her mouth, only for her to cough again. "My throat hurts," she whispers, feeling pretty miserable. Between her burning throat, cold chills, pounding headache, and nauseous stomach, Maya felt awful.

Carina momentarily left the bedroom, stepping into the bathroom in search of a thermometer. She didn't get sick very often. Being a first responder in a hospital, she was always subjected to diseases, which in turn gave her a wonderful immune system.

Maya would get the occasion flu or cold but because of her childhood, she usually tried to push through. 

As a child, Maya was never allowed a sick day. If she complained even once about being sick, it would only cause for more punishments, usually by running, from her father. Over time, she learned to push through, no matter how sick she felt, because the consequences would be worse than the sickness itself.

Grabbing the medical device from the bathroom cabinet, along with some Tylenol to help with the fever she already knows her wife has, Carina makes her way back into their bedroom, finding Maya in the same position looking absolutely miserable, breaking her heart. 

Silently, Carina checks her temperature, the thermometer flashing a bright red, reading 101.5°F (38.8°C), making her sigh. Definitely a fever.

"What is it?" Maya whispers, her voice croaky, breaking Carina from her thoughts.

"A fever, unfortunately," Carina answers, flipping the thermometer around to show Maya, the blonde groaning as she closes her eyes once again. "I made some french toast. Would you like to eat?"

Maya shook her head no and Carina allowed her to skip breakfast today, but knew she would have to have lunch to put something into her body.

Carina places her hand on Maya's shoulder, lightly rubbing in circles to help provide some comfort. "Can you take this medicine? It should help bring your fever down," she states, gesturing to the pills in her hand 

Maya was never one to take medicine. Again, growing up in the Bishop household, those who took medicine were seen as weak. She was taught to push through through and to embrace the pain.

On some days, it seemed like a chore for Carina to get Maya to take medication to help her feel better, but she understood the reason behind Maya's apprehension. She was patient.

"I don't want to," Maya manages to get out, her voice raspy and just about gone from the sore throat. It's taking a lot of energy to even talk.

"I know tesoro, but it will help," Carina offers, wishing she could just take away her wife's pain.

Maya nods in agreement and Carina hands her two pills. The blonde sat up in bed, Carina offering her the orange juice, which she took with a shaky hand.

She places the pills into her mouth, adding a sip of the juice to help wash it down, but as she goes to swallow, her throat has other ideas. 

The burning was too much, causing her to spit everything back into her cup, pills included, as tears welled in her eyes.

"Hurts," Maya whimpers in between coughs.

"To swallow?" Carina confirms, taking the glass out of Maya's hand, and setting it back down on the table next to her breakfast tray. Maya nods at her words and the doctor in Carina thinks that it's possible that Maya has strep throat.

"Okay, we can skip the medicine for now, but if your temperature increases, we'll have to find a way for you to take some," Carina explains and Maya absentmindedly nods, her eyes slipping back shut as Carina frowns.

It's been a while since the last time Maya was sick, this being the first time since before they were married. She's only known about Maya being sick a total of four times throughout their relationship and she's still learning how to help her wife through her sicknesses.

"What can I do?" The brunette questions softly, feeling a little out of her depth, not knowing what will make her feel better.

"Lay with me?" Maya asks quietly, coughing some more. They were deep, chesty coughs that only made her throat hurt more. The pain is almost unbearable.

"Sure, let me just get you some water," Carina says. At the very least, Carina knows that staying hydrated is one of the most important things Maya can do to get better.

"No," Maya groans, dragging out the word, not wanting Carina to leave. The brunette smiles at her silliness, turning around once she reaches the bedroom doorway due to Maya's protests.

"I'll be right back, bella," Carina assures before walking out of the room.

The firefighter flops her head back on her pillow, almost falling asleep by the time Carina returns. Her eyes and body are just so tired and begging to be allowed to succumb to her exhaustion.

As Carina reenters, she offers a glass of cold water to her wife, only for her to deny. "You need to hydrate, Maya," she warns.

Reluctantly, the blonde sits up once again, taking the cup with trembling hands. While she goes to take a sip, Carina goes to the bathroom, wetting a cloth to hopefully help bring down Maya's fever since she doesn't have any medicine in her system to help with that.

She hears Maya wince from the other room, allowing her to pick up her pace. Carina walks straight back into their bedroom, seeing Maya with tears in her eyes that are threatening to spill.

"Bambina, what's wrong?" Carina asks gently, going right to her wife's side.

"My throat is burning," she cries, the tears only making matters worse. "I don't feel good."

Carina's aware that sicknesses bring Maya a lot of anxiety as it's unfamiliar and goes against her want of control. Her unhealthy childhood revolving around viruses and sickness also don't help.

Maya doesn't really know how to be taken care of when she's not feeling good and that also adds to her nervousness.

"Let me hold you," Carina says as she climbs in bed behind Maya, laying an arm protectively against her side, but her wife has other plans.

She turns around and lays her head on the Italian's chest, the heat of her body easily being detected by the brunette now that they are within close proximity.

"I'm sorry you are feeling bad," Carina states sadly, hating that Maya's sick. She places the cold cloth on her forehead, pushing blonde stands out of the way. 

"Cold," Maya shivers, trying to pull away from the wet cloth, but Carina keeps it there, knowing that her fever needs to come down.

"What can I do? Do you want to watch a movie?" Carina asks, wanting to do something to help take Maya's racing mind off of the fact that she's not feeling well.

Maya merely nods, leading Carina to grab the remote off of the bedside table, switching on the tv. She finds a random channel that's playing a movie that looks somewhat interesting. 

Carina places the remote back in its original spot, wrapping her arm back around Maya's body and holding her close, practically feeling the heat radiating off of her like a furnace.

It isn't often that the blonde gets sick and usually when she does, it's short lived and not too bad where Maya wasn't able to push through the day.

Much to Carina's dissatisfaction, Maya would normally insist that she goes to work if she's able to function, even if she's truly not feeling good.

To see Maya not even question getting out of bed, tells Carina everything she needs to know.

Maya's really not feeling well.

Carina continued to use one hand to hold the cool towel against Maya's forehead, moving it to the back of her neck every now and then. Her other hand made a habit of running her fingers through the blonde strands, lulling Maya into a fitful sleep.

Carina found it endearing that Maya snores when she's sick or really tired. It's comforting to listen to the proof of her wife getting the rest she desperately needs.

The movie playing on the tv didn't really have much of Carina's attention. She'd rather watch the movie right in front of her. The woman laying on top of her.

Once Carina's sure that Maya's in a deep enough sleep, she attempts to climb out from underneath her body, getting out of bed. 

Before leaving the bedroom, Carina pulls down the bed sheets a little, hopeful that it will help cool her wife's body that's definitely overheating with the fever she has.

She heads for the kitchen, deciding to make Maya a smoothie, knowing that although her throat is too painful for any solid food, the liquid of the smoothie might be easier to eat.

Carina nearly gags at the green color of the liquid in the blender, wondering how Maya could possibly enjoy consuming something like this.

Pouring it into a cup, Carina grabs a straw, aware that the straw might help Maya drink the smoothie easier than having to worry about spilling it with her shaky hands.

Upon reentering the bedroom, Carina sees baby blue eyes cracked open as Maya stares at the wall, looking absolutely miserable.

"You're awake," Carina points out, noting that she didn't sleep for very long. "I made you a delicious smoothie," she says with a more convincing tone.

She knows that Maya and food have a complicated relationship ever since her childhood, but it's especially complex amidst her most vulnerable moments. 

Particularly when she's sick.

"I'm not hungry," Maya practically whispers, her throat still too sore to speak any louder. 

"I know, tesoro, but you need to eat. It might make you feel better," Carina replies, taking a seat on the side of the bed, watching as Maya sits up, leaning against her pillows.

She hands Maya the cup, the blonde taking it with trembling hands. Carina gently grabs Maya's  free hand into her own, rubbing soothing circles on the back with her thumb as she begins to drink.

"It hurts to swallow," Maya admits and Carina nods.

"You probably have strep throat," Carina states. "Do you know anyone who has it? Anyone at the station?"

Maya shakes her head no, not being able to recall any of her friends having strep, or even being sick recently. 

"Maybe one of our calls," Maya supplies. "Someone could've had it and we didn't know," she shrugs.

Maya removes her hand from Carina's, shuffling her body over to put more space between the two. "Maybe you should go. I don't want to get you sick. You stay here, i'll go stay in the guest room," she rambles as she attempts to stand up, her body swaying as she's instantly hit with a dizzy spell. 

Carina is quick to jump up, grabbing her by the arm to stabilize her. "I don't care if I get sick. I just want to be with you," she reassures, slowly guiding Maya back into bed.

Maya notices that the blankets are pushed to the end of the bed and as a familiar chill makes it's way through her body, she reaches for it, looking for the warmth the covers will provide.

Carina sets her hand on Maya's shoulder, causing the blonde to look her way. "Your body is too hot and you have to bring your fever down," she says softly as Maya feels frustrated tears well up in her eyes.

"But i'm cold," Maya argues quietly, attempting to put a stop to her tears, not wanting to cry. 

She doesn't even know why she's upset.

"I know," Carina sighs. She goes to their closet, finding one of their thin, linen sheets, offering it to her wife, knowing that it's more breathable than their main bed blanket. 

Maya covers herself with the material, her body still shivering as the sheet isn't the best heat insulator. 

"Can you cuddle me?" Maya asks quietly, still not overly comfortable with showing her vulnerability in her weakest moments, even if the person seeing it is only Carina. 

There's still that voice that says it's weak. That asking for anything is weak.

"Of course," Carina smiles softly as she climbs into bed, wrapping her arms around her body similarly to this morning. 

"I feel guilty," Maya whispers in admission, closing her tired eyes and trying to focus on the amazing, calming feeling of Carina running her fingers through her hair, lightly scratching her scalp. It's comforting.

"Why, my love?" Carina gently asks, placing a kiss to the top of Maya's head, hoping the sweet gesture will combat any and all dark thoughts that she knows her wife is experiencing. 

"I feel lazy for just sitting here. I need to be moving. There's a snow storm, i'm sure people need my help. They need-" she mutters, but is quickly interrupted. 

During her confession, Maya tries to work her way out of Carina's embrace, starting to feel uncomfortable with all the love and safety she's being shown in a moment of vulnerability. 

"You're not lazy. You're sick and that's not your fault. You're doing everything you're supposed to be doing," Carina explains. "Resting is the best thing for you right now."

Maya's whole body ached as chills ran up and down her spine. Her eyes are beyond exhausted, but her mind is spinning and won't allow her a second of peace.

She only managed to drink half of her smoothie, handing the cup to Carina, who placed it on the bedside table for later in hopes that she will be able to convince Maya to drink more.

A few hours pass by of Maya falling in and out of sleep. However, even in her sleep, she's restless and it's filled with uneasy dreams and nightmares. 

Around lunch time, Carina whips up a bowl of soup, bringing it back to bed, the blonde so sick that she doesn't feel stable enough to get out of bed, much to her dissatisfaction.

The warm liquid soothes her throat, although the pain is still very much present every time she swallows. It's scratchy and raw, enough to make Maya lose her mind with not being able to even breathe without the pain.

She places the bowl down on the nightstand closest to her once she's finished, sliding down into bed as she lays on her side, back facing the brunette.

As Carina goes to grab a book, she notices how Maya appears to be turned into herself as her body shakes, the sight breaking her heart, wishing there was more that she could do to help her favorite person feel better.

"Oh bambina," she sighs sadly as she places her palm against Maya's forehead, almost wincing at the heat that has surely gone up since the morning. "Are you feeling any better?" Carina asks, even though she already knows the answer. 

"Nauseous," Maya manages to mumble, fearing that if she talks any louder, she might lose everything she put in her stomach earlier. 

Carina wordlessly reaches for the thermometer that's laying on the table next to Maya's smoothie, bringing it to her wife's burning forehead.

The screen reflects a bright red, the number almost making Carina's eyes pop out of her head. 

103.4 °F (39.6 °C) is a huge number in Carina's eyes. She knows that Maya tends to run high fevers, but she will have to keep a close eye on it, aware that the number presented can be dangerous if things go south.

"I'm going to run you a bath, bellina. We need to get your fever down," Carina declares as Maya simply nods, all of her energy completely gone.

The sight is enough to scare Carina. She normally has to hold Maya down to get her to rest, so to see her not move a muscle, laying completely still, sends up a million red flags.

Carina pulls her eyes away from her wife, trying to calm herself down. She's beyond worried, but she has to remember that Maya's just sick. However, it doesn't make the situation any less unsettling.

Getting out of bed, Carina heads for the bathroom, turning on the faucet of the bath as she puts a finger underneath, testing the temperature of the water.

She chooses a temperature that's a little cooler than warm, recognizing that Maya needs to be subjected to something cold in order for her internal heat to diminish. 

Grabbing a towel from underneath the sink, Carina places the folded towel on the toilet seat as she turns off the running water, deciding that the tub is filled enough.

"Okay, Maya. The bath is ready," she announces tenderly as she bends down to her knees in front of Maya's side of the bed, setting a small kiss to her wife's cheek while she pushes stray blonde hairs off of her forehead.

Looking into red, bloodshot eyes, Carina wishes she could wrap Maya up in her arms and that would be enough to heal her. She feels this overwhelming urge to protect her and she knows she's being dramatic.

Maya's just sick. Everybody gets sick.

But Maya isn't everybody. She's her Maya, her wife, and she knows that sicknesses are intricate for the blonde and that Maya would rather do anything else than take a sick day.

And looking at her Maya, she knows just how terrible she feels. 

"Can I help you get out of bed?" Carina asks as she stands up, regrettably pulling off the small sheet that Maya was using to help keep her warm, causing her to groan, showing her disproval of the action. "I'm sorry," she offers.

She helps Maya sit up, taking her hand as she slides out of bed, the cold hard wood floors biting against the bottoms of her feet. Carina leads them towards the bathroom, moving at a much slower pace as Maya focuses on her footing, not wanting another dizzy spell threaten to knock her down.

The brightness of the bathroom is a complete contrast to the darkness of their bedroom, causing Maya to crack her eyes closed, adjusting to the light. 

Carina watches as she stands frozen, unmoving in the center of the room and she decides to jump into action. 

"Can I?" Carina wonders as her fingers linger on the bottom of Maya's shirt, the blonde nodding as she croaks out a small please, leading the brunette to pull the sweatshirt over her head, leaving a tank top underneath.

Carina goes to remove the top, sliding down Maya's pants and undergarments shortly afterwards. The soft hold of her hand helps drown out all of Maya's thoughts about how upset her stomach feels as Carina helps her step into the tub.

Maya practically jumps at the freezing temperature, causing her to quickly step back out onto the floor of the bathroom. "It's too cold," she states, not wanting be forced to sit in there.

"It's only cold because you have a fever, bambina. It's a warm temperature," Carina explains, though that does little to convince her. "Do you want me to join you?" She questions, seeing Maya's hesitation.

Maya silently thinks about her offer, all while the voice in her head tells her she's being weak for even considering it. She doesn't need help. She's fine.

"No," Maya answers quietly as she shakes her head. She slowly steps back into the water, whimpering at the feeling as she lowers her body down to sit.

Bringing her legs to her chest, Maya wraps her arms around her body, trying to do everything in her power to warm herself up. 

Carina sits down next to the tub, her hand still held tightly in Maya's. With the brightness of the bathroom, she can easily see how pale Maya is. 

Her complexion is usually pretty light compared to her own, but Maya's so white that she looks like a ghost. It makes her eyes pop.

Those bright blue eyes that are filled with tears, threatening to be spilled and Carina's heart aches at the sight. 

Not only does Maya have a tough relationship with food, Carina's aware of all the mornings where Lane would throw water over her to wake her up, soaking not only herself, but her bedsheets.

The cold bath only has to be making those old memories more apparent, which Carina assumes is very triggering for her.

Without a second thought, Carina stands up, removing her hand from Maya's, earning a glare in response.

The expression on her face softens as she watches Carina strip her clothes from head to toe, quickly climbing into the bath behind Maya as she pulls her back into her front.

That's all it takes for Maya's tears to fall over the surface, tears turning into sobs. She feels the arms around her waist grow tighter. 

"I don't...I don't know why i'm crying," Maya says amidst sobs, trying to zone in on the sensation of Carina peppering kisses to her shoulders. 

"Shhh," she soothes, placing one last kiss to the back of her neck, noticing all the sweat layering against the skin, showing that despite Maya claiming that the water is freezing, her body is on fire. "I'm here," Carina adds, not wanting Maya to feel alone.

Because no matter how awful she feels, she's here. Here to provide love, care, and all the kisses in the world to help calm her wife down.

After making a deal with Maya that if she wears a tank top, she will be allowed to have a blanket, given that the bath was successful with bringing her temperature down a little, Carina pulls their main blanket from their bed over top of her wife, tucking her in as Maya battles with her fight of staying awake.

"Are you sure you'll be okay alone?" Carina questions nervously as Maya forces her eyes open. 

"I'll be fine," Maya assures and Carina manages a nod.

"Okay," she sighs. "I'm just going to run to the store and grab a few things. I'll be back in a couple of minutes."

With the snow storm only getting worse and the Deluca Bishops starting to run out of the proper food to help aid Maya's sickness, Carina has a small window to leave the apartment before the snow starts to pile up, making it impossible to leave.

"Mhm," Maya nods, the delirium starting to fade in as she's in between consciousness and unconsciousness. 

"Ti amo tanto," Carina says softly. "Stay in bed and rest."

Maya doesn't respond and Carina figures that she's almost asleep by now, causing her to sneak out of the bedroom, leaving the apartment through the front door.

Snow flakes fall from the clouds and if it weren't so cold outside, it would be beautiful. There's already piles of snow, including the one covering her car, making it almost unrecognizable.

Carina groans as she uses the scrapper to wipe all the fluffy snow off of her car, cursing herself for ever choosing to live in Seattle in the first place.

After almost slipping on a patch of ice and wiping the snow completely off of her car, Carina pulls out of the apartment complex, heading to the store that's five minutes away.

Hoping that Maya's doing okay without her.

Awaking with a gasp, Maya throws her hand to her chest, trying to breathe normally again, calming down from another fever driven nightmare.

Maya whimpers as her uneven breathing did a number on her painful throat, causing a few rough coughs to escape. 

She lays back down in bed, attempting to calm her racing heart, all while her mind runs wild.

She can hear his voice.

Telling her that she shouldn't be laying around doing nothing. That despite her high fever and achy body, she should be up and moving. Running.

The voice is tempting to listen to. It battles with another voice that sounds surprisingly similar to Carina's. 

She knows what one she wants to listen to, but she also knows which one is winning.

People could be dying. The roads have to be bad with how much snow they got overnight. Citizens need her help. 

People are dying while she's laying in bed, being lazy.

It's selfish.

Winners don't rest. They get up, even if it's hard, and push through. 

And Maya Bishop is a winner.

Forcing her stiff body up into a sitting position, Maya dangles her feet off the side of the bed. She listens carefully, hearing nothing but silence, hoping that Carina isn't home to witness what she's about to do.

Carina would be so disappointed, but she's torn between what her dad would want and what Carina would want.

She doesn't want to let either one of them down.

Yet her mind is racing, running with so many thoughts that it's beginning to make her anxious and the only way to take that feeling away, to suppress it, is to run.

So running is what she will do.

Maya stands on shaky legs, walking slowly down the stairs to the basement where her treadmill lays in the corner of the room like a prize. 

It's so alluring, so appealing.

She's already dressed in a tank top and shorts, it's like a sign that she's doing the right thing. That this is what she's supposed to do to help herself feel better.

Even if it goes against her racing heart at the idea of disappointing her wife.

That other voice in her head, the one that's been present since childhood, tells her that this is what's right.

She needs to run.