I grunted before I yawned loudly and moved around the bed. My hand touched the soft sheets on Yong’s side of the bed. I turned around and slowly opened my still heavy eyelids, confirming that I’m really alone on the bed again.

I sighed heavily and pulled the sheets away from me as I slid my legs to the side of the bed. I glanced over the clock on the bedside table and noticed that I only have less than an hour to prepare for work. I headed straight to the bathroom right away to take a quick shower.

I took off my pajamas and clothes then dumped them all in the laundry basket. I blasted the shower on, not minding the cold water that slightly pricked my skin. Once I was done with shower, I wrapped myself in a bathrobe and tied my wet hair in a bun, having no time to dry them off.

I rushed out of the bathroom to the closet to change as fast as I could. From the closet, I could hear the bedroom door opening, which made me think that that must be Yong coming inside the bedroom. I bent down and grabbed my black pumps before I headed out of the closet just as Yong got out of the bathroom, bringing the laundry basket with her.

I walked towards her and opened my mouth to greet her but she beat me to it when she said, “You didn’t fix the bed”

“I was in a hurry. I’m running late for work” I reasoned while she just walked straight out of the bedroom.

“You should’ve woken up early then” Yong said nonchalantly, but I could hear the sarcasm in her voice, which made me close my eyes and clamped my teeth hard.

“I’m sorry” I sighed, not wanting to argue with her early in the morning.

Before she closed the door in our room, she peeked at me from the side of the door before she said, “Fix the bed.” Then she left as she closed the door behind her.

I walked back to the bed and fixed it half-heartedly before I grabbed my phone on the bedside table and dumped it in my purse. I carried my pumps and purse with me as I ran out of the bedroom and walked straight to the kitchen.

Eggs and bacon were ready on the plate on the dining table. I don’t have time to eat anymore so I just grabbed the metal tumbler beside the plate. I took a sip from it and immediately rushed to the sink to spit it out.

“What are you doing?” Yong asked, emerging from the laundry room.

“This is coffee” I said, placing my purse and pumps down then I opened the tumbler to confirm that it was indeed coffee. I dumped all the contents on the sink before I washed the tumbler to clear it from coffee.

“What are you doing?” Yong asked between clenched teeth.

“I’m replacing it with my apple juice.” I went to the refrigerator and looked for my juice only to groan from frustration when there’s none left already. “Great” I whispered under my breath and placed the tumbler on the kitchen sink before I picked up my purse and pumps.

“You should’ve told me that you’re not drinking coffee and apparently skipping breakfast too. I shouldn’t have prepared them if you’re not consuming them”

“I mentioned yesterday that I have surgery. You know I don’t drink coffee on weeks that I have scheduled surgery”

“Well, I forgot,” she said, shrugging her shoulders while I breathed deeply as I tried my best to be very patient.

You would always remember this. You never forgot about it. You would even go out of your way so I could watch the sunrise and help me calm down before surgeries.

“Okay…” I sighed, nodding my head absentmindedly. “Will you drive me to the hospital?”

“I’m busy.” She walked to the dining table and grabbed my plate of breakfast. She went straight to the trash bin and threw all the food into the bin while I just stared at her with wide eyes, not giving me time to protest or stop her. “You can just ride a taxi,” she said, bringing the now empty plate on the sink, making me flinch when she dumped it on the sink. Then she walked past me to head back to the laundry room. “You should’ve been capable of driving yourself by now”

I thought you understood...

I closed my eyes, feeling a sudden ache in my chest while I willed myself not to cry early this morning. It’s far too early to do that.

“I’m sorry…” I whispered, ending this argument as soon as I could. “You didn’t kiss my stars this morning” I whined softly, trying to at least earn some affection from her before I go to work.

“Your what?” she asked irritatedly.

“My scars” I clarified, regretting this already.

“Do I still have to do that?” she asked exasperatedly. “Don’t you have nightmares anymore?”

“I don’t have them anymore”

But it’s always your kisses that would wake me up in the morning. It’s your kisses that served as my alarm clock. You never missed a day. Even when we’re both tired, you would never forget to kiss my stars.

“Then why do I have to kiss them? Didn’t you say you’re running late? Why are you still standing there?”

“I…” I wanted to say goodbye and kiss you goodbye. “Yeah… I better go. You’re right” I mumbled as I walked towards the front door.

When I heard a door being closed, I beelined and headed to Nabi’s room. I slowly pushed the door open before I walked to her bed. She’s still sleeping peacefully, oblivious to whatever is happening to her mothers. It’s better that way.

I bent down and kissed her cheek as I brushed back her hair. She stirred on her sleep and opened her eyes that landed on mine right away.

“Mama… sleep…” she mumbled before she pouted at me.

“I’m just saying goodbye, baby. Mama has to go to work now.” I’m seeking affection from my daughter since Yong refused to give me some. I’m settling with what I could get from Nabi, hoping that it would ease how cold Yong was to me earlier.

“Okay… I love you” she whispered. She placed her puppy beside her pillow and opened her arms wide. I smiled and leaned forward to receive my daughter’s hug. Thankfully, I could still have this. “Come back right away” she mumbled as she kissed my cheek.

“I will, baby. Go back to sleep. I’m sorry Mama woke you up” I whispered before I showered kisses on her face and smiled when I heard her soft chuckle. “Take care of Mommy while Mama is at work”

She gave me a tired salute, her eyelids falling closed again, as she mumbled, “I will”

“Thank you. I’ll go now, Nabi-ah… I’ll see you soon”

“See you…” she whispered before she fell silent and her soft snores came out once again.

I stood straight then walked back out of her bedroom while making sure that I wouldn’t disturb her sleep. I reached blindly behind me to feel the door knob only to feel an arm, startling me that I almost dropped my purse and pumps.

I turned around and saw Yong standing behind me, her glare is gone now as her eyes softened. I just stared at her, not expecting her there. I blinked my eyes and cleared my throat, breaking eye contact, before I whispered, “I’m sorry.” I moved around her as I whispered, “I better go now. I’m running late for work”

“Let me drive you,” she said, closing Nabi’s door. “Let me just grab my keys and coat”

“You’re still busy. You don’t have to” I said, not wanting to insist so that she wouldn’t get even more mad at me.

“I’m sorry” she whispered, grabbing my hand to stop me from walking while I just froze from uncertainty. She wrapped her arms around my waist and kissed the back of my head, making me sigh as I slowly relaxed my tense body. “Let me drive you, Whee”

“I… Are you sure it’s fine?”

“Yes.” She kissed my nape and broke the hug as she ran to our bedroom. “Let me grab my keys and coat. Wait for me here”

Again, I don’t want to argue with her so I just let her. I walked to the front door to wear my pumps just as Yong ran out of our bedroom. She pulled one of her crocs from the shoe cabinet and wore them before we walked out of the penthouse together.

“Nabi won’t wake up soon, so it’s fine if she’s alone inside the house for now” Yong mumbled when we’re inside the elevator.

“I’m sure she’ll be fine. Don’t rush back after you dropped me in the hospital”

“You ran out of juice, right? Want to buy one on our way to the hospital”

“No, it’s fine. I’ll just buy one in the hospital.” I squeezed her hand and noticed that she’s not wearing her rings. I wanted to ask her where her rings are but that might ensue another argument, so I just ran my thumb on her ring finger as I stared at her hand.

She noticed me staring at it and pulled me closer to her. She kissed my cheek before she said, “I removed them because I was washing the dishes earlier and doing the laundry. I forgot to wear them back when I rushed out of the bedroom. They’re on the bedside table”

You never removed them though. Not even for a single chore. You would always wear them.

I smiled at her, hoping it didn’t convey the slight pang I felt on my chest as I said, “It’s okay”

“I’m sorry” she whispered, clearly regretting not wearing her engagement and wedding rings.

“It’s okay,” I said again as I leaned forward and kissed her lips.

We moved out of the elevator then headed to her car. The ride to the hospital was both suffocating and calming. I’m both apprehensive and composed. The silence though was deafening since neither one of us spoke the entire ride.

I’m not that confident around Yong anymore. I used to, but not anymore.

“Should I pick you up later after you’re done with your surgery?”

I removed my seatbelt and I said, “I’ll just ask Hyejin to drop me back home. You’re still not advised to drive longer routes.” I grab my purse and opened the door as I said, “Thank you for driving me”

“No problem”

I closed the door then walked to the hospital entrance. I wasn’t even far from Yong’s car when she suddenly called out to me. I gulped before I turned around, feeling suddenly nervous if I did something wrong again.

“You forgot something” she called out while I furrowed my eyebrows as I walked back to her car.

I looked at my purse and opened it to check if I forgot something. My eyebrows dipped lower when I’ve got everything I need here with me. “What did I forget? I have everything in my purse” I mumbled as I stood from the passenger seat.

She rolled up the passenger side window then opened her door and said, “Walk around here”

I jogged around the car and followed immediately, not wanting to be on her bad side when she’s now in her good mood. “What?” I asked her as I stood close to her.

She cupped my cheeks and brought my face closer to kiss me. I got startled at first because I was anticipating another scolding from her and not her affection. I just pushed back my apprehension and wrapped my arms around her waist as I kissed her back.

She wrapped her arms around my shoulders and pulled me closer to her as we continued to move our lips against each other. She rested her forehead on mine when she broke the kiss and whispered, “You forgot to kiss your wife goodbye, baby”

I chuckled softly and kissed her cheek before I snuggled on her neck. “I’m sorry. I got so worried about running late earlier”

“Yet you snuggled closer to me instead of going to work” she said as she laughed softly. “I love you, Whee”

“I love you too, Yong.” I kissed her cheek again before I snatched one last kiss on her lips, making her smile as I repeatedly smack kisses on her lips. I pulled back to stare at her smiling face while she cupped my cheek and rubbed her thumb tenderly on my cheek.

“I’m sorry I snapped this morning” she said, frowning at me this time.

“It’s okay. I understand, Yong”

“Are you sure you don’t want me to pick you up later?”

“I’m fine. You need to rest. Don’t overwork yourself too much, okay? Call me if you need anything” I said to her before I kissed her palm that was still on my cheek then pulled back and broke our embrace.

“I will. Take care”

I smiled back at her before I closed her door. I walked to the hospital entrance once again. Before I went inside, I turned around and watched her drive back home. She waved at me when her car passed the entrance while I waved back at her. When I couldn’t see her anymore, I sighed before I turned around and finally headed to work.

It has been five months since Yong woke up from being in a coma after having a cerebral aneurysm. She has to get off from work to attend a series of therapies and exercises to help her recover. Nabi was attending therapies too. But Nabi’s therapies were for her trauma while Yong’s were physical therapies and even concentration exercises.

When she was able to regain her strength back, she started doin