Chicken Noodle Soup

Olivia was home with the flu, while Alex was at work and the girls were spending the weekend with their aunt Unique. Alex kept watching the clock at work and prayed that the next hour would pass by quickly.

"Okay Azariah, I'm out of here" she told her assistant. "Remember, I'll be off for the next couple of days. Olivia has the flu and I want to make sure she's being taken care of"

"Ok, tell Olivia I said, get well soon"

"You bet" Alex said as she grabbed her coat and rushed out the door.

On her way home, she decides to stop by the grocery store because she wanted to make Olivia some homemade chicken noodle soup and pick up dog food and doggie treats for Lucky. When Alex arrived home and opened the door to the house, she was expecting to be greeted by Lucky, but he was nowhere in sight.

"Lucky...here boy" Alex said as she walked through the livingroom into the kitchen. Alex put away the grocery and poured dog food in Lucky's bowl. She took a pack of Theraflu out the box and made Olivia a cup. She walked upstairs and into the master bedroom. Olivia was asleep with boxes of tissue on the nightstand next to her. Lucky was lying there asleep next to Olivia with his head on Alex's pillow. As Alex got closer Lucky opened his eyes, lifts his head and laid back down next to Olivia.

Alex placed the cup of Thera-flu on the nightstand. "Liv...sweetheart" Alex said softly.

"Hey baby, you're home" was all Olivia could get out before she started coughing and sneezing.

"Here, drink this"

"Lex, I don't want anymore Theraflu"

"Liv, it's good for you...here, it'll make you feel better. First I need to take your temperature."

Olivia sits up in the bed while Alex takes her temperature.

"103.7" says Alex. "We'll you're one degree down from this morning; hopefully your fever will break tonight. If not, I'm going to take you to the hospital."

"Okay" was all Olivia could say. Olivia drinks the Theraflu and lay back down under the covers.

"Honey, I'm going to go downstairs to make you some chicken noodle soup. I'll be back soon"

"Homemade" Olivia asks.

"Yes, homemade"

"Good, I love your homemade soups." Olivia says.

Alex heads back downstairs and Lucky follows her. Before she could reach the kitchen, she hears the doorbell. Alex walks over and opens the door.

"Mother...I...I mean, we weren't expecting you."

"I know. I thought I'd stop by and check in on Olivia" said to her daughter. "I bought over some chicken noodle soup. You how she loves my chicken noodle soup" Matilda said smiling.

"Great" Alex said smiling back at her mother, "come in," Alex felt a little disappointed because she wanted to make the chicken noodle soup for Olivia.

Matilda walks straight to the kitchen places the pot of soup on the stove.

"So, Olivia's in bed I hope"

"Yes mother, she's upstairs"

"Well, don't just stand there, give me a soup bowl" Matilda said.

Matilda pours some soup into the bowl and heads upstairs, with Alex following behind her.

"Olivia, honey" Matilda said when she saw Olivia.

"Hi mom"

"Don't worry mama's here and I'm going to take care of you" Matilda said as she sat on the edge of the bed next to Olivia. "I bought over some of my homemade chicken noodle soup for you. I know how you like it" Matilda tells Olivia as she begins to feed Olivia as if Olivia was a baby.

"Mom, I'm pretty sure Liv can feed herself" said Alex. The fact is, Alex wanted to be the one feeding Olivia.

"Oh, it's okay. I don't mind feeding her, she's my daughter too you know" Matilda says to Alex.

Alex turns and rolls her eyes as she heads downstairs. Matilda comes downstairs a half an hour later with an empty soup bowl.

"Lex, did you feed Olivia today? She was starving."

"Mother, I was at work this morning and Olivia haven't been able to keep anything down for the past day and a half."

"Well, the poor child seemed hungry to me" Matilda replied. "Did you take her temperature today?"

"Yes ma'am"

"Well...what was it?"

Alex let out a sigh before answering her mother. "Mom, it was 103.7"

"103.7" Matilda echoed what Alex told her. "Good Lord, the poor child is burning up. We need to get her to the hospital."

"Mom, she's going to be ok. I'm a attorney you know" Alex says.

"Well, from my experience, attorneys aren't always right" Matilda said to her daughter.

Those words from her mother cut like a razor. "How dare she question me and my abilities to take care Olivia" Alex thought to herself.

"She'll be just fine" Alex said as she poured Olivia a glass of water. "I'll be right back; I'm going to give Liv some water"

"Wait a minute" Matilda words stopped Alex in her tracks. "You're giving her water? I'll make tea you can give her glass of ice tea with a touch of ginger in it."

"Mom, water is good for her. Besides, she needs to drink plenty of liquids" Alex said before walking upstairs.

Alex enters the room and gives Olivia the glass of water. Olivia drinks the glass of water and lies back down, while Alex cleans off the nightstand. In walks Matilda with a glass of ice tea.

"Mother, what're you doing?"

"What does it look like" Matilda says to Alex. "Olivia sweetie, here's a glass of ice cold tea"

"Thanks mom" Olivia says. Olivia could feel the tension between Alex and her mother.

As Olivia attempted to sit up again, she felt nauseous and asked Alex to help her to the bathroom. Before Alex could move Matilda took Olivia by the shoulder and helped carry her into the bathroom. Alex watched as Olivia leaned over toilet vomiting and Matilda holding her head back. "That's it Liv, let it all out" Alex hears her mother telling Olivia.

"That should be in there holding Olivia's hair" Alex thought to herself. Suddenly tears filled Alex's eyes. She felt helpless; her mother had come into her home and taken over. Alex wanted to say something, but instead she left the room and went downstairs.

Alex sat down on the couch and Lucky jumped up in her lap. "At least I have you to take care of" she says as she rubbed Lucky's back. Matilda comes downstairs thirty minutes later, "Olivia's fast asleep again" she tells Alex.

"Mom, I need to talk you"

"Yeah, I'm listening.

Alex didn't know where to start. She didn't want to hurt mother's feelings.

"Well...you know I really appreciate you stopping by and help taking care of Olivia. I was thinking..."

Alex was immediately cut off by her mother. "I would love to stay a few days and help you take care of Olivia"

"Huh...what"

"That's what you were going to ask me, right" Matilda said.

"No mother"

"Oh"

"Mom, I took a few days off from work to take care of Olivia. She's my wife and I'm a lawyer, I know how to take care of her" Alex says to her mother.

"Oh, I...I didn't mean to intrude. I thought since you were working, someone needed to be here with Olivia" Alex mother tells her.

"Mom, I know you meant well, but I've got it covered from here."

"Okay, well tell Olivia I said goodbye and get well soon" Matilda said as she reached for her purse.

Now Alex felt guilty. "Mom, why don't you do that, I pretty sure she wouldn't want you to leave before saying goodbye."

Matilda says goodbye to Olivia and Lucky and leaves the Benson Family home. Alex spends the weekend taking care of Olivia's every need. On Monday morning a new, revived Olivia awakes feeling ninety percent better. She rolls over and kisses Alex.

"Good morning babe" she says to Alex.

"Good morning" Alex says with a horse voice.

"You sound terrible"

"I feel terrible too" Alex says.

Olivia places the palm of her hand on Alex's forehead. "Lex, you're hot. I need to take your temperature" Olivia opens the nightstand next to her and gets the thermometer out. "Open wide" she says. Olivia places the thermometer under Alex's tongue. It beeps..."102" Olivia says. "It looks like you're coming down with something"

"Yeah, the flu" Alex says.

"Aww...sweetie I'm sorry for giving you the flu" Olivia tells her.

"Well...at least I get to take care of you, like you took care of me" Olivia said smiling. "Now, don't worry, I'll be right back"

"Where're you going?" Alex asked.

"I'm going to get you some Theraflu" Olivia said as she walked out the room.

While Olivia was in the kitchen, the doorbell rang. Olivia walked over and opened the door.

"Mom...hey...we didn't know you were coming over" Olivia said.

"Olivia, I stopped by to check on you but I can see you're doing a lot better" Matilda says.

"Yeah, I feel better too. Come in"

"Where are the girls?" Matilda asked.

"They won't be home until after school today. Unique took them to school from her house"

"And Alex" Matilda said.

"She's upstairs in bed" Olivia said.

"In bed" Matilda echoed. "Alex never stays in bed after 7am."

"She's come down with something. It looks like she caught the flu from me" Olivia tells Matilda.

"What, the flu. What kind of meds are you giving her? Oh my, I need to make some chicken noodle soup." Matilda says to Olivia.

"Don't worry mom, I'm going to take care of Lex, I have four more days off from work. She'll be okay" Olivia tells her.

"Yeah, like she took care of you" Matilda said to Olivia. "If I haven't come along the other day, you'd still have the flu. Now, where did you keep the noodles?"