Craving

Burgers

The bed makes a light creaking sound as Addie takes her place beside Diesel. Knowing that he had a long, tiring day at work, Addie is careful not to wake him up. Tinawagan pa nga siya nito kanina dahil hindi na nito kayang ipagmaneho ang sarili sa sobrang pagod. Buong biyahe pauwi, tulog lang din ito. Kung hindi lang naisipan ni Addie na gisingin ang asawa kanina para maghapunan, baka nagdere-deretso na ang tulog nito.

Addie's hands go to her tummy when it resumes making rumbling noises. Just a while ago, she made herself a peanut butter sandwich with the remaining two slices of bread, thinking that it would be enough to soothe her hunger and put her back to sleep. She is still hungry, but there is nothing left in the kitchen to eat. Hindi pa sila nakapaggo-grocery.

Diesel remains fast asleep, his light snores breaking through the quiet of the night, completely unaware of Addie's dilemma. The huge, dark bags under his eyes are enough proof that he desperately needs rest and some time off work. The tired look on his face makes Addie hesitate to wake him up.

Addie sighs, conflicted. She has to work about five hours from now. And if she is this hungry, she will not be able to go back to sleep. She can go back to the kitchen and search for food in the empty cupboards again, but that will mean tiring herself out for nothing.

She should have told Diesel that they were running low on supplies. Lately, she has been waking up at an ungodly hour just to deal with her hunger. Kumakain naman siya ng dinner nang maayos. Hindi niya alam kung bakit nagugutom siya habang tulog.

She considers another option—hopping in the car and driving to the nearest fast-food restaurant. Pero ayaw niyang ilabas ang kotse nang hindi nagsasabing aalis siya. Baka rin magising si Diesel nang wala siya sa tabi nito at mag-alala.

Addie sighs. Trying to get back to sleep when she is starving is off the table. Hindi niya kayang gawin kahit gusto niya. Nasubukan na niya iyon noong isang araw dahil tinatamad siyang bumangon, but she only ended up dragging herself to the kitchen twenty minutes later to quiet her tummy.

She scoots closer to Diesel, swinging an arm around his waist. If she were not this hungry, she swears she wouldn't have ruined his sleep.

Quietly, she calls out his name. Diesel's eyebrows furrow for a moment, and his snoring pauses, but he doesn't open his eyes. Addie stares at him, hoping that it will work like magic. Lagi namang nagigising si Diesel kapag pakiramdam nito, may nakatingin sa kaniya.

When that, unfortunately, doesn't work, she taps on his chest lightly. "D. . . ."

That seems to have done the trick. Diesel finally opens his eyes. He takes a look at Addie, then rolls to his side to face her. He shuts his eyes and his light snoring resumes not long after.

"Diesel." Addie raises her voice a bit. She gently taps his cheek thrice. "Wake up, please." Diesel opens his eyes again, gaze empty, which means that he's still asleep. Addie has to tap his cheeks again to make sure he keeps his eyes open and doesn't fall back to sleep.

Diesel lets out a grunt. Recognizing Addie's warmth even when half-asleep, he reaches for her and pulls her closer to his chest. He knew that getting a bed this big was useless. Nagsisiksikan lang naman silang dalawa lagi sa isang tabi.

"Gising ka na ba?" Addie asks, tracing the inked feathers on his arm. "I'm hungry."

Those two words pulled Diesel out of his sleep in an instant. Suddenly, he is wide awake, as if he was not snoring a minute ago. Suddenly, he is not tired, as if the tough day at work did not even happen.

"Sorry for waking you up," she mumbles. He cups her cheek and leans in to drop a kiss on her forehead upon seeing the guilt in her eyes. He doesn't mind waking up at any hour if the first thing he sees is her.