Page 59 of Between Love and War
A groggy voice floats out: “You can’t see me like this.”
I exhale in relief and step closer. There’s a trash bin next to her bed and a half-eaten banana on her nightstand. I gently lift the blanket and see a mess of curly hair covering her face.
“Go away,” she says.
“What happened?” I ask, taking strands of her hair out of her face so I can see her. She’s pale.
“I think…” she groans, “I think I got food poisoned by an experimental tofu empanada.”
I blink. “That’s… specific.”
“It was in the fridge too long. And I was hungry.”
I just stare at her, still in her pajamas. I’m trying not to laugh, but it’s hard when she’s pouting like that.
I scan her room, and somehow I feel honored to be here. The walls are a muted purple, covered with mismatched photo frames—kids from her class grinning toothlessly, Polaroids with her friends, a blurry shot of fireworks from New Year’s. Shelves are mounted on the wall, uneven: romance novels stacked sideways, children’s picture books crammed between them, a half-burnt vanilla candle balanced on top. There’s a string of fairy lights hanging crookedly over the window, half the bulbsburnt out, and next to it, a corkboard cluttered with pastel sticky notes and to-do lists written in loopy handwriting.
And then, there’s a shelf full of tiny teddy bears.
She peeks out from under the blanket. “Don’t you dare laugh.”
“I would never,” I say, sitting gently at the edge of the bed. “How bad is it?”
She closes her eyes. “I’ve emptied that bin three times over the course of the evening. Haley suggested I go to the hospital, but Ryan said I just needed to hydrate and pack up on vitamins.” Ryan really is the neighborhood doctor.
“Is that why I couldn’t find you at all yesterday?”
She narrows her eyes and props her elbows so she can sit up. “Why were you looking for me?”
I blink, unsure of how to answer that. “I, uh, I wasn’t,” I say. “It was Polly.”
“Okay…” she says. “Well, tell Polly I couldn’t fulfill my princess duties because I was betrayed by soy.” She sits up, groaning, as she ties her hair into a bun. She’s still in her pajamas. A matching set with cupcake prints.
“You want me to tell a six-year-old you got taken down by tofu?”
“Maybe say it was poison. Like a fairytale curse for the princess. Less embarrassing.”
I smile, and without thinking, reach for the sports drink, cracking it open. “Here you go, Princess. Sip. Slowly.”
She accepts it, her yellow-painted fingernails wrapping around the bottle, and our fingers brushing for a second. “Thanks,” she says, quieter now.
“Your family left you alone?” I ask, clearing her bedside table.
“Haley wanted to stay, but I told her she couldn’t stop her rehearsals. My mother went out to get some medicine, but I suspect she’s going to be distracted by someone along the way.”
“Do you need anything else?”
She shakes her head. “I’m fine. Ryan said not to eat anything oily. So I’m stuck with my crackers and fruits.” She gestured to her nightstand.
Before I can respond, something orange and white blurs past the doorway and launches itself at me. I flinch, knocking into the side of her desk with a dull thud.
“Oh! That’s Siopao—my cat.”
I stare at the offender now rubbing against my leg like he didn’t just try to assassinate me. “Siopao? That’s what you named him?”
She shrugs, amused. “It’s not cruel. It’s a reminder that I rescued him from getting turned into street food.”
I squint at her. “You’re aware that’s the exact rumor, right?”
