The thing which woke Matilda the next morning wasn't the fact that it was nearly an hour past when they should've been out the door, but the too hot sensation, as if she was sleeping on a furnace. When she opened her eyes, she was surprised to find she was almost in the exact same position as last night, only higher up, with her head resting in the crook of Miss Honey's neck. Only now, instead of the pleasant warmth of their shared body heat, Jenny felt like a piece of metal that had been left out in the sun.
Oh no, Matilda thought, slowly lifting herself up to eye level. Jenny was whimpering softly in her sleep, and a strained look Matilda couldn't quite place, somewhere between fear and anger.
"I'm sorry," Matilda heard in between nonsensical babble, followed by something that sounded a lot like "bull". It was obvious who she was dreaming about, and Matilda knew there was no such thing as a pleasant dream if that woman was involved.
"Jenny," she whispered softly. "Jenny, wake up." She pressed a hand to her forehead and frowned. She was burning! Matilda had gotten her sick after all. She quietly chastised herself. Why couldn't she just leave her alone and stay on her side of the bed! Or even better, slept on the floor! Or stayed at Hortensia's. There was no hope for them after what Matilda had done over there, anyway.
Miss Honey was moaning now, before a wet gurgling sound escaped her lips. Matilda could see yellowish bile running down the corners of her mouth. She was going to choke! Matilda jumped off her and pushed until Jenny was on her side, head over the side of the bed. She forced open Miss Honey's mouth and let it drain onto the bare wooden floor below.
Jenny began coughing and opened her eyes, they were glassy, and her gaze unfocused, but Matilda breathed a sigh of relief. At least she was awake. Jenny tried to sit up, but Matilda stopped her.
"You're sick." Matilda said. It seemed to take Miss Honey a minute to register the room she was in and why one of her students was in bed with her. Her eyes went from panic, to confusion, and then finally settled on understanding.
"What time is it?" Jenny asked. She rubbed at her pounding temples.
Matilda looked up at the clock before answering, "8:30."
"Shi-" Miss Honey gasped. She threw the covers off and sprang up, stepping in the puddle of sick. Matilda was shocked. She had never heard Jenny come even close to swearing before.
"Jenny, stop! You can't go to class like this!" She watched Miss Honey brace herself against the wall of the bathroom, before lunging for the toilet to be sick again.
"I have to." Jenny managed to eventually choke out, before shakily wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. "I'm already so late! She's going to kill me." Her protesting was cut short by more retching.
Matilda went to the landline and pulled out the phone book. No way was she going to let Jenny anywhere out of the apartment today. The thought of her going to school was insane! She looked up the number for Crunchem Hall and dialed. The receiver was picked up after two rings. A man answered; it was the vice principal, Mr. Trilby
Matilda quickly made up a story of walking to school and finding her teacher getting sick in the street, before walking her back home.
"Thank you for letting us know, Matilda. We were wondering what happened to her; it's not like her to miss class. Ever. Tell her I wish her a speedy recovery. Even the principal is out with it."
"Thank you, Mr. Trilby, I will." Matilda said before hanging up. Jenny would be happy to know the Trunchbull wasn't there.
Next, Matilda grabbed a rag from the sink and wiped up the mess off the floor, as well as the now yellowish footprints leading to the bathroom. The door was now closed and Matilda could hear the shower running. Matilda would be ushering her back into bed the moment she came out, whether she wanted to or not, she'd keep smacking her with the broom if she had to.
While Matilda was thinking about what else she could do, there was a loud thunk sound from the bathroom. She went to the door and knocked. No answer.
"Jenny? Are you okay?" Still no answer. Worried, she opened the door and peeked inside. The shower was still running, but she couldn't see the woman's silhouette behind the curtain. "Jenny?" There was a moan in response. Matilda rushed inside and threw open the curtain. Jenny was crumpled in a heap on the bathtub floor, holding her head.
"Jenny!" Matilda quickly turned off the water and kneeled on the floor to be eye level. She moved her hand away, but she couldn't see any blood. "Are you okay? What happened?"
"Just got a little dizzy. I'm alright." Miss Honey said.
"No, you're not!" Matilda protested. "I called the school and told them you weren't coming in."
"Matilda! No! You shouldn't have done that! If the Trunch-" Matilda stopped her.
"I talked to Mr. Trilby, and told him I found you ill on my walk to school, so I walked you back home and called as soon as we got here. He says he hopes you feel better, and not to worry about it. The Trunchbull called out, she's got it too." She could see the fight fall from Miss Honey's face the moment she realized the Trunchbull wouldn't be breaking down her door to find her. Matilda offered her a hand, and together, they managed to get her out of the bathtub and onto the bathmat. Matilda didn't like how wobbly she still was.
"Hold onto the towel rack, I'll dry you off."
"Matilda, that's really not necessary." Miss Honey protested, but Matilda could see she was straining just to stay on her feet.
"Hold on to the towel rack." She repeated, a bit more forceful.
"Matilda," Miss Honey said, sounding exasperated, but did as she was instructed. Matilda dried off her legs and hips, before climbing up onto the closed toilet lid to get her upper body. She could tell Jenny was uncomfortable with the close contact and being seen naked, but Matilda wasn't going to let her risk falling again. She had read bathrooms were the most dangerous place in the house, and as she took in the edges of the sink, bathtub and toilet, she could see why.
When she had finished, she threw the towel onto Jenny's head, giggling as it fell over her face. There was no hope of reaching her head, so she took Jenny by the hand and led her back to bed.
"In," Matilda ordered. Jenny didn't argue, she was practically panting from the effort of standing and walking. She slid under the covers, letting her towel covered head hit the pillow. You're pathetic, Jenny thought, making a child care for you, a grown adult. You're no better than her. "Stop it," Matilda said with a scowl. "You're sick, and you're not making me do anything. I'm doing it because I want to." Miss Honey grimaced. She hadn't realized she had said it out loud, maybe she was worse than she thought.
"We could play pretend." Matilda said, after a minute of awkward silence. Miss Honey looked up at her. "We'll pretend you're not an adult. I'll be the parent, and you'll be the child."
"Like playing house?" Jenny asked, closing her eyes. Hadn't they been playing house this whole time? With Jenny pretending to be a strong, reliable adult in Matilda's life, instead of the small cowardly child she felt like most of the time.
"Yeah, like house. I know you don't need my help, but we're just pretending you do. It's just a game."
A game of make believe?
A fragment of a memory passed through Miss Honey's mind. Her father, Magnus, getting his temperature taken with Jenny's toy thermometer, band-aids all over his face and suit.
"What is it, Doctor, what's wrong with me?" Magnus asked.
"You're sick!" Four-year-old Jenny declared. She pulled the toy from his mouth and stared at it, "112! Degrees."
"112 Degrees! Well, it's a good thing Dr. Bumblebee is here to take such good care of me." Magnus said.
"Yeah," Miss Honey said before feeling a cup of medicine pressed against her lips. She swallowed it. "Make believe sounds nice. Let's play." The corners of her mouth twitched upward into a smile when she felt a cool, wet wash cloth gently laid on her forehead. "How do you always know?" She mumbled before falling back to sleep.
….
Matilda sat crossed legged on the bed, silently watching, waiting and…feeling? The first time had just been a hunch, the second, a lucky guess. The third? Quick reflexes. The fourth time though… Matilda was puzzled. It was almost as if Matilda knew Miss Honey would be sick even before she did. Every time Jennifer had lurched forward, Matilda already had the trashcan floating in the air and ready in front of her.
What had unnerved Matilda the most was her own body. She had been certain she had to pee, but when she went and sat on the toilet, nothing would happen despite the pressure growing stronger. This had been going on for the last thirty minutes, and it was driving her mad. Then an odd thought crossed her mind. No, it wasn't possible. People couldn't just…
People also couldn't make trashcans float in the air, but here she was, beckoning it into the bathroom to dump its contents into the open toilet. She pushed an imaginary lever in the air, and the toilet flushed. She supposed it wouldn't hurt to ask.
"Jenny?" Matilda whispered at her bedside. "Jenny?" She placed a hand on her forehead. She was still burning up. Nothing she gave her seemed to break the fever.
"Hmm?" Miss Honey mumbled. She opened her eyes, still glassy and unfocused.
"I was just wondering if you needed anything. Some water, maybe, or to use the bathroom?" Matilda could see the crease of worry form, before she tried to sit up.
"I'm so dizzy," Jenny said. The two of them slowly managed to get her into a sitting position with her legs over the bed, but that was as far as Matilda was willing to push her. She didn't like how red her skin was getting, or how flushed her face was. She didn't have a thermometer, but she was almost certain her fever was beyond 102. If she tried to get up, all Matilda could do was make a good cushion to fall onto, and fall Matilda was certain she would do. She just had to think. How could they do this?
"Don't!" Matilda said, when she saw Jenny trying to push herself up. "You'll only get hurt."
"I need to pee." Miss Honey said, but stayed where she was, obviously spent from the small movement.
"I know," Matilda muttered. "I'm thinking." The obvious idea was out, Matilda's pull-ups would never fit her. "How far can you scoot yourself off the bed? I could levitate the trashcan to you, but…" There was the issue of angles still, and she doubted Jenny would be willing, given her issues with modesty.
"Whatever, that's fine, just hurry." Matilda bit her lip. What she needed was a doctor. Did they really make house calls? Or was that just a thing of stories past? Did Jenny even have insurance?
Matilda played with a few angles, but it was clear this idea was out. She would have needed to be on a corner, and it all came back to neither of them having enough strength… unless… She couldn't move that much weight with her body, but maybe… They never had tested her limits. What if she could hold her up with her mind?
"Try and stand up, I have an idea." Matilda pushed with her mind as hard as she could, helping move Jenny's body as Jenny tried to pull herself up. She was a little wobbly still, but much steadier than before.
"Are you the reason I feel so light?" Jenny asked. She was still hanging onto the bed frame. Matilda nodded, grabbing her hand.
"I think I can walk you to the bathroom like this" Matilda started to say, but stopped. There was an intense, sudden pressure, like something was squeezing her. Another premonition? She wasn't going to make it halfway across the room. "I'm sorry, but can you spread your legs a little?" The trashcan met its target just as the dripping started. "It's making you feel lighter, but I think it's also squeezing you." Miss Honey stood frozen in place, looking at the bathroom with longing. "It's too late, and I don't think I can keep this up much longer." She lifted a towel off the floor with the last of her mental strength and held it over Jenny's waist.
"Thank you for that." Miss Honey whispered, nodding at the towel, but Matilda had a hunch she didn't care at this point. Matilda squirmed in place. She could feel the pressure inside herself ebbing away with the trickling sound coming from the other side of the towel. This was too bizarre! She patted the crotch of her pants, almost half expecting to find them wet, and then…she was fine. Matilda let the towel fall before she grabbed the trashcan with her hands and set in on the floor. She didn't trust herself not to mentally drop it, and she needed to focus all her attention on getting Jenny back into bed. This was too much of a strain on her powers to rely on as a solution, even if Jenny would be willing to stand over the trashcan every time instead of trying to walk.
Matilda collapsed into bed next to her. Maybe she would be more useful if she wasn't still getting over this herself. She wanted nothing more than to fall asleep as well, but she knew she couldn't. She needed to keep watch. Matilda needed to keep…feeling. She had a sense of doom hanging over her, and she couldn't seem to shake it. It didn't seem to be what Matilda had, but in a way, this was worse. Her fever was spiking, not breaking.
The first person Matilda called when Jenny started jerking in her sleep was Hortensia. It was the only number she knew. When Hortensia picked up, Matilda asked for her mom to come over, but learned Eve had also gotten sick. Matilda wasn't happy to learn her issues were in her lower GI tract, just like Matilda's and Hortensia's had been. Matilda had been relieved she hadn't had to deal with Jenny having diarrhea, but now she'd almost welcome it. She could deal with the mess if it meant Jenny would be better soon.
When Matilda tried to get Jenny to drink water, only for her to spit it back out, she made a second phone call. Followed by a third, and then a fourth. No doctor's office made house calls, it seemed. She was almost in tears when she tried the last thing she could think of. She tried the school and asked to speak to Mrs. Rodgers.
"Hello, Matilda! Glad to hear you're feeling better!"
"I need help!" Matilda begged. "It's Miss Honey! No one will come!" Now she really was crying.
"What is it? What's wrong with Miss Honey?"
"I don't know! I thought I got her sick, but it's different, and her fever won't break! Can you come look at her? I can't even take her temperature! I don't have a thermometer, but I think It's really high, and I'm scared! Please!"
"It's going to be okay, Matilda, try and calm down. Can you tell me what's wrong with her?"
"S-she's got a fever, and she's throwing up, but not like from nausea. More like from her stomach contracting, and she's not swallowing!" Matilda heard Mrs. Rogers suck in a breath. "What is it?"
"I'm not sure but, I'll be there soon. Have you called an ambulance? Do you think she needs one?"
"I don't know," Matilda said. She had been debating calling for one for the last hour, and if Mrs. Rodgers hadn't picked up, she probably would have called, but she knew something about their living situation was complicated. She didn't want to put Miss Honey at risk just because she was too dumb to know what was and wasn't an emergency.
"I'm coming, just hang in there."
Matilda was pacing the floor by the time Mrs. Rodgers arrived. Jenny's breathing was getting shallower, and she wasn't responding in anything but quiet moans. Matilda's jaw was beginning to ache, but she wasn't sure if that was because she was grinding her teeth, or had something to do with Matilda feeling Jenny's pain.
She opened the door wide for Mrs. Rodgers before she had even approached the door. Matilda eagerly beckoned her in.
"Thank you! Thank you for coming! I don't know what to do anymore!" All she had managed to do at this point was wipe her down with cold, wet rags and listen to her breathing turn more ragged. Matilda had thrown a sheet over her to cover her body after pulling the blankets off her, but she didn't have the time or the energy to dress her.
"Well, let's see where her temperatures at." Matilda watched as she pulled a thermometer out of her bag. "Hopefully it's not as high as you think." Matilda hoped so, too. "Jennifer, can you hear me? It's Mrs. Rodgers from school." Miss Honey weakly opened her eyes, but didn't say anything. "Matilda called me, she's worried about you." Miss Honey blinked in acknowledgement before closing her eyes again and rubbing her jaw. It was right where Matilda's hand was on hers. "I'm going to take your temperature."
Matilda held her breath and waited for the beep. Mrs. Rodgers pulled it out and looked down at. Matilda could see her face fall.
"Go ahead and call that ambulance now, Matilda."
….
Everything seemed to happen in a blur. Their tiny apartment was full of paramedics asking questions, and yelling vitals. Matilda could see an oxygen mask being secured around Miss Honey's face. Matilda was starting to cry again, but she didn't care. She followed them out of the studio as they wheeled Miss Honey out on a gurney. Matilda stopped when she felt Mrs. Rodgers grab her hand.
"Come with me in my care, we'll meet them at the hospital." Matilda looked back at the ambulance, she wanted to stay with Miss Honey. "Please, I'd like to talk to you about something."
Matilda followed her to her car, giving one last glance behind her, before climbing into the passenger's side.
"What were all those scars on her body? Do you know?" Matilda nodded, but didn't reply. It wasn't her secret to tell. "It's important, the paramedics need to know." Matilda bit her lip.
"Cigar burns." Matilda said softly. "She was abused as a child." She heard Miss Rodgers suck in a breath before beating the steering wheel with a fist. Matilda jumped and stared at her.
"It was her, wasn't it." She said it in an accusatory tone instead of a question, but Matilda nodded her head. They sat in silence for some time, before Mrs. Rodgers started the car. "You did the right thing, calling for help."
"I was afraid no one would come. I was so scared. She looked like she was hav-havin f-f-fit." Matilda hid her face in her arm and learned against the window.
Please be okay, Jenny, Please. You're the only family I have.
