Sugar, Spice and Everything Nice

8

Two weeks had passed. The leaves of trees are the gradient of colours red, orange, and yellow. Carmelita has been forcing herself to talk less with Peter for the past three days, and she transitions to autumn feeling numb. Right before she even knew about it, sadness, as well as madness starts pouring on this beautiful day.

Today was reserved for her driving session, along with her father to keep her supervised. They exit the street and they drove to the usual place where cars rarely pass by.

Her father parked the car on the side of the road and Carmelita starts walking over to the back of the car. Her shoes unintentionally kicking the leaves of autumn trees, and into the driver's seat, switching places with her father.

She started the car by herself, and she started driving. As she isn't yet fully licensed, she must be supervised by someone who already have a license, and her father has been there for her ever since she took the first test. But nothing with the same type of conversation gets her this day. Nothing seems to be in the same spirit ever since she started overthinking. There is clearly something unsettling she's trying her best to hide.

"Mag signal ka, do not forget to do that"

And she did as she was told. She signals to the right, breathing in some cold air. The drive continues in silence. They have been in this place so many times that she had memorised the routes she needed to go without her father telling her to do so.

The past days had been hard to cope with. Peter's voice sounded differently as they talk through the phone but the same type of comfort as he speaks never changed. His sickness took over as the snows in Oxford started melting. And the same sickness made him less talkative which pains her the most.

Her father sighed heavily "Alam mo, if the prince is in-love with you, s'ya na talaga ang pinaka gusto ko sa lahat ng nagkakagusto sa iyo. He's done things that are unthinkable just to be with you, at iyon talaga ang hinahangaan ko sa kanya."

Carmelita sighed heavily as the words of her father sinks in her mind. In fact, the things he's done unthinkable are the things that makes her fall for him deeply. There are so many unspoken words that are hard to express on messages or calls. And this time being apart from the prince of Oxford becomes the most hurtful feelings. It has become a burden that her heart couldn't easily ignore completely. In fact, one would not stop worrying about the current situations of the ones they care about. And she found herself falling into deep affection in every second that passes by while they are apart. A romantic interest perhaps that leads to overthinking every now and then.

Carmelita's eyes are focused on the road. She drove on-top of a small pile of dry leaves, pass through a few signs on a lonely park with nothing but numbness in her heart. Then a thick cloud of awkwardness starts to form within the empty spaces of the car with her father sitting on the passenger seat. Every exhale of cold air creates some moist that sticks on the surface of the window beside her. With her blunt expression indicating so much about how she feels.

"Are you okay?" Her father's eyes went from the steering wheel to her face that rather looks pale. She looks even more pale as the unusual silence got her thinking too much of the things she could have done with Peter if things at this moment were the opposite.

"Yes, why, do I look...bad?" Carmelita managed to look at her father with her left hand

Her father finally has enough of the same response she gives almost repetitively since the morning tea. He opened the glove compartment revealing a bunch of CDs with bits and pieces of papers from the local post office, topped with a green rectangular box of tablets.

"Pa, I don't need Panadol" Small chuckles escape her lips, but even that doesn't sound so reassuring.

Peter is staying in Oxford ever since his sickness started. Travelling to different cities every day is inconvenient for his current situation. The same reason forced him to do phone calls with Carl.