Silent Night
He was woken from an uneasy slumber by someone gently shaking his shoulder.
"I've made some tea. It'll do you good."
Jane mumbled something close enough to 'thank you' and closed his fingers around the steaming teacup. That cold was really killing him, no matter how querulous this made him sound.
"How're you feeling now?"
"Like a wreck."
Teresa smiled affectionately. "You're going to survive, you know."
"I know."
A few sips of hot tea mercifully eased the pain in his throat, at least to some degree. And he secretly enjoyed Teresa fussing over him because he was sick.
Angela had used to tease him about how helpless he looked on the rare occasions he didn't felt well. That was probably because little Charlotte had always put on a brave face on illnesses, as opposed to her father.
"Do you feel like eating something now?"
He realized that he'd dozed for the better part of the evening, though that didn't mean he was well rested at all. He really hated how weak he felt right now.
"Don't want to get up."
"You can eat in bed. But only for today."
"M'kay."
She disappeared downstairs and came back a few minutes later with a bowl of chicken soup.
"I'm not going to spoon-feed you, Patrick."
"I'd never ask you to."
He ate in silence, then placed his bowl and spoon on the nightstand.
"You should've gone to your brother's instead of staying at home to babysit me."
"It's our first Christmas as a married couple, I think we should spend it together. Besides, no one else was willing to babysit you tonight."
"Very funny. This isn't the way I intended to celebrate our first Christmas together anyway."
Teresa snuggled up to him on the bed. "It doesn't matter. I like it."
Spending Christmas Eve cuddled up together didn't sound a bad idea after all. He put his arms around her and buried his head in the crook of her neck.
Perhaps he was going to feel better tomorrow morning.