𝐌𝐘 𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐋, reneé rapp

000

Believe it or not, today was supposed to be a good day.

The first thing to hit Brielle when she woke up was a wave of nausea; then came the pounding headache, the aching of her muscles, and the urge to throw herself off a cliff. Her stomach twisted and knotted in ungodly ways, which immediately pulled her back into her bed. She groaned, seeking comfort in curling against the havoc of blankets.

She took a moment to recover from the nausea, pinching the bridge of her nose. When she tried moving again, her limbs felt like they were on fire and her head felt like it'd fall off her shoulders. Fine; she really was sick.

To be fair, she hadn't felt this way in a while; she barely got sick, so it'd be unfair to complain. The only thing that pissed her off was the fact that she had plans with her best friend before their first week of college. She didn't want to blow Reneé off, especially since she loved spending time with her, but she couldn't go anywhere feeling like this.

Brielle stayed curled up in bed for a while. She knew she needed to check her temperature, take medicine, all that helpful shit - but it was hard not to get demotivated by the cruelty of having to activate over 200 muscles just to get out of bed. Eventually, she managed to grab her phone and clamber out of bed, despite tripping over god knows what, and stumbled to the kitchen.

She fumbled with the thermometer for a good six seconds, then her eyes widened when her temperature was 102.7°. Where the fuck did the fever come from? Did it literally pop up overnight? Whatever, she'd just have to do what she could to break it.

The brunette shuffled through the cabinet only to realize that it hadn't been restocked since the last time she was sick. She'd ask her parents if they weren't at work; this had to be the devil's timing.

brie
sorry reneé, i can't go out

nae
wait, why? is everything okay?

brie
i don't know how, but i got sick

nae
did u take any meds?

brie
we're out lmao

nae
omw.

Brielle threw her phone on the counter and put her face in her hands. She would've told Reneé that it was fine, especially since she didn't know if she was contagious, but her head throbbed like it was going to burst and her stomach felt like it was being clawed from the inside - not to mention that Reneé was the most stubborn and determined person on Earth. Plus, the comfort of her best friend would help. It always did.

Begrudgingly, she gathered the motivation to walk back to her room and flop down on the bed, burying her face in her pillow.

✄ ┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

It didn't take long for Reneé to get to her place, considering that they were neighbors. She stole some Tylenol and Ibuprofen from the medicine cabinet and grabbed her house key to walk over; she refused to take any chances when it came to Brielle.

"Brie?" She called out, walking around the house. When she didn't hear a response, she walked to her room, which explained it pretty well. She'd fallen asleep in a span of five minutes. She swore this bitch could fall asleep within seconds.

Reneé sat on the edge of her bed and gently shook her awake. The brunette lifted her head and sighed, cracking a smile at the realization that her best friend was there. "Hey, baby," Reneé hummed as she looked down at her. "How are you feeling?"

"Hey, angel; I feel shitty," Brielle giggled. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, clutching her stomach as it twisted. "I feel like the devil is tossing a salad in my stomach, and my brain feels like it's literally being set ablaze. That's so cute, right?" She scoffed playfully. Reneé chuckled and rolled her eyes as she brought a hand to her forehead; Brielle felt her heart flutter a bit, but she pushed the feeling down and focused on getting better. She was just checking on her, that was it - and from the look on Reneé's face, she didn't need a thermometer to know that she was burning up. The blonde opened the capsule of Ibuprofen and handed her a few pills, along with the bottle of water on her dresser.

"What was your temp?" Reneé asked, a look of concern etched on her face. The brunette finished downing her pills before breathing out. "102.7 or some shit," She sighed; Reneé's brows raised in alarm. "Okay ... did you eat?" Brielle shook her head. "No, I don't want to get sick."

Reneé asked a few more questions, most of the answers being no because Brie was sick. She took care of a few things before heading back home - she wanted her best friend to eat, so she snagged a can of chicken noodle soup. It would help with her fever, and it was easy on the stomach. At first, Brielle dreaded the idea of eating in fear of throwing up, but she did it anyway; it was amazing, to say the least. "That's why we listen to me," Reneé teased.

✄ ┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

Brielle wasn't surprised when Reneé told her that she was staying; honestly, she genuinely appreciated it. She loved how caring and protective she was toward her, how she'd give up everything to be beside her. Just being with Reneé was enough to make her feel better, even if she physically felt like she'd been hit by a bus twelve times over.

The two made the most of it. They curled up in bed and picked a random movie to watch together; Jennifer's Body to be exact.

Reneé's warmth was the most comforting. Brielle snuggled against her, her head resting on her shoulder and their legs intertwined. The contact made her brain feel fuzzy, but in a good way ... in a soft, relieving way. She wasn't sure she'd ever loved anyone like she loved Reneé.

"Jennifer is so hot," Brielle murmured with a giggle, but Reneé was plenty capable of hearing. She quirked her brow and looked down at her best friend, tilting her head. "Oh, is she?" She hummed teasingly. They held eye contact for a few seconds, which felt like centuries to Brielle; her eyes were a beautiful shade of green, with olive and gray flecks decorating her endless irises. She swore that she couldn't get enough looking at those eyes.

"Fine, I'm sorry," The brunette scoffed defeatedly, leaning against her friend. Reneé smirked and chuckled smugly, patting her on the head. "Good girl," She giggled, biting her lip and looking back at the screen. It took everything in Brielle to pretend like that didn't make a pit form in her lower stomach; like she didn't feel things at so much as the sound of her voice. It was all friendly, and she knew that. She just loved and appreciated Reneé, really; that was all.

✄ ┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

It didn't take long for Brielle to fall asleep - she actually lasted longer than Reneé thought she would. The blonde looked down at her best friend, a soft smile curling her lips. She looked so peaceful, so content; she'd kiss her forehead if she wasn't sick. She was more than happy that she was able to help her and make her feel better; her goofy smile, her relaxed breathing, her body against hers, was all worth it.

The fact that they started college together next week was both exciting and upsetting; if she was forced to go to school, she felt way better going with Brie.

The feel of Brielle's warmth against hers and the way she buried her head in her neck made her eyes heavy. Reneé tightened her grip on her waist and rested her chin on her head, watching as the movie blurred. In a few minutes, she was asleep against her, their breaths soft and slow.

Brielle was sure that being sick had never felt so perfect.

Author's Note:
the next chapter will be coming later this week <3 thanks for reading, and i'm wondering if some of you caught the towa bird reference? anyway, have a good day!! thanks for readin'
- em