"Mahal . . ."

"Hm-hmm."

Diesel brushes Addie's hair out of her face. He turns to his side to hold her better, running his palm over his shirt she's wearing, then lightly squeezing her hip before curling both his arms around her waist. Addie, almost instinctively, puts one leg over his thigh. He frees one of his shanks and puts it over Addie's, trapping her leg in between his.

It's a quiet Saturday evening, and they're nothing but entangled limbs under the covers. It's perfect.

"Adira," tawag ni Diesel sa asawa. Addie's eyes remained closed.

He knows that Addie's spent the day, and he's well aware that he's partly the reason why. Ano ba'ng magagawa niya? He's weak when it comes to Addie, but he has grown even weaker now that she's letting her hair grow longer. The last time she let her hair grow was about three years ago when she got pregnant with Nadia.

There was no way Diesel could say no when Addie stepped out of the bathroom completely bare, with the ends of her damp hair curling around her shoulders and arms. Why would he protest over Addie pinning him down? He's always down for that shit.

Diesel has no complaints about staying in bed with Addie while they hold each other to sleep, but Nadia's coming home with her Wowa in a bit. They need to prepare dinner and dress up. They have to postpone their cuddles until later.

"Matutulog ka na ba?" he asks before showering Addie's cheek with soft kisses.

Addie shakes her head. Without opening her eyes, one of her hands reaches for Diesel's face. He melts under her touch and meets her parted lips halfway for a kiss.

They tried to keep down the noises they were making. Then they take another shower together. Diesel washes Addie's hair, and she shaves his stubbles.

* * *

Diesel wishes that Monday never came. After taking in an overseas project, he asked for a month break from heavy work. He thought his mother was generous enough to let his consultant grant him his well-deserved break and the other architects absorb his projects, but what he didn't expect was to get double the work right after his break ended.

He's annoyed, but like usual, he cannot do anything about it. Now he wishes he hadn't let go of the two smaller projects he was supposed to take on had he not asked for a break. One large-scale project is more physically and mentally taxing than a few smaller ones.

"D," tawag sa kaniya ni Addie. She hasn't gotten off the bed yet. And she looks so comfortable, it's almost tempting to get back on the space beside her and spend the rest of the morning sleeping in.

Diesel sits on the bed, leaning over to plant a kiss on Addie's forehead. Addie wraps her fingers around his wrist to keep him where he is. It's way too early. Diesel should have at least one more hour to spare with her and Nadia. "'Alis ka na?" she asks.

Diesel nods. Addie whimpers in protest, making him laugh. Addie smacks his thigh. "Di mo na naman ako ihahatid?" She lifts her head off the pillow and moves it to his lap.

Natigil doon ang pagtawa ni Diesel. Hindi na naman niya ihahatid si Addie. And even when Addie tells him that she understands, he still feels bad about it. "Next week, Monday, okay?"

"Okay," Addie says, nodding. Diesel let her stay in his lap for a while. After that, he moves to Nadia's trunk bed, carefully planting a kiss on her cheek to not pull her out of her deep sleep, before heading out.

* * *

Diesel's eyebrows furrowed upon seeing stacks of boxes and brown paper bags on the kitchen counter one Friday evening. Nadia comes into view, her low-heeled sandals making sharp noises against the floorboard. Her arms reach up to him, and he instinctively carries her off the ground. He places a kiss on her forehead. "Si Mama?"

"Palit damit," Nadia answers, pointing to the bathroom a few steps away from the kitchen. She hands him something from the pocket of her shorts—a cola lollipop. "Open, Papa."

Diesel takes the piece of candy, ripping and taking off the wrapper with his teeth. "Toothbrush ka after, ha?" he reminds Nadia before giving her the lollipop. Nadia nods and pops it in her mouth. Diesel sets her down on the dining chair.

Tsinek ni Diesel kung ano ang mga laman ng kahon at paper bag. At tama nga siya sa hinalang dinaanan na ng driver sina Addie at Nadia sa supermarket para mag-grocery.

His shoulders slump as he removes the contents of the paper bags. He was looking forward to doing groceries with Addie tomorrow! At alam naman niyang bukas talaga ang schedule niyon. Pero wala na siyang magagawa dahil natapos na ni Addie ngayon.

"Iyo 'to?" Diesel turns to look at Nadia, holding a plastic jar containing cola lollipops. "Baka masira ang teeth mo."

Nadia shakes her head, pulling the lollipop out of her mouth. "Not mine. Mama. Hingi lang ako one."

His forehead creases. Parang hindi naman mahilig si Addie sa candy. He sets aside the lollipop jar somewhere Nadia cannot easily reach, before continuing to unpack the grocery bags and boxes.

He was in the middle of arranging meat in the freezer when Addie crept up on him from behind. She wraps her arms around his waist, burying her head in a small spot on his back. Diesel chuckles, closing the freezer before reaching for her hands.

"May gusto kang dinner?" he asks. He slowly walks over to the counter, and Addie follows without removing her arms around him.

"Wala kang gagawin?" Addie asks, her voice coming out muffled against Diesel's shirt. Diesel shakes his head, caresses her hand for a bit, before ripping apart the straw ropes on the grocery boxes.

"Wala," he answers. "Ang daya mo. Bakit kayo lang ni Bub ang nag-grocery?"

Addie laughs, tiptoeing to kiss him on the nape. "Sorry. Akala ko, busy ka rin bukas."

Diesel turns around to face her. He lightly flicks his fingers against her forehead. "No. Scheduled na 'yon e."

"Okay, sorry," Addie says with a chuckle. "Ikaw taya, luto ka na," she adds, reaching to remove his necktie and unbutton his shirt.

"Yes, Ma'am," he replies, eyes trained on Addie's fingers and the soft glint of their wedding ring. He takes her hand and places a kiss on her knuckles.

Nadia decides to stay in the kitchen and 'help' Diesel with dinner. Addie grabs her jar of lollipops before heading upstairs to take a shower.

* * *

Diesel comes up to their room after making dinner and setting the table with Nadia. He finds a sleeping Addie on the left side of the bed, with a lollipop stick dangling loosely between her fingers. He picks up two candy wrappers and a lollipop stick from their bedside table, the stick from Addie's hand, and throws them in the trash bin in the bathroom. He puts back the lid of the plastic jar before gently waking Addie up.

The first thing Addie does upon opening her eyes is grab him by the nape, catching Diesel off guard as she brings him closer for a kiss. He tastes the cola in her mouth.

* * *

Hindi niya naihatid si Addie—ulit—kaninang umaga, but finafuckinglly, Diesel now has some time to pick her up. In the parking lot, he skips happily to where his car is and calls Addie the moment he gets inside. He drums his fingers on the steering wheel as he waits for Addie to pick her up.

Maybe they can have dinner outside with Nadia. They spent the weekend lazing around the house because they were all tired, save for Nadia, who seems to never run out of energy. For a few years now, their dates have mostly revolved around staying in the house, eating good food, and sleeping in. He hasn't had the chance in a while to take his two girls out for dinner or somewhere fancy.

Addie finally picks up. "D?" Addie says, and Diesel hears Nadia shouting papa!!! in the background. Addie whispers to Nadia, telling her to keep it down.

"Uuwi ka na?" he asks before starting the engine. Where should they eat dinner tonight? Nadia's quite picky about food, so they should probably go somewhere already familiar.

"No, hindi pa," sagot ni Addie kaya biglaang napapreno si Diesel. Good thing walang kasunod na sasakyan at nasa parking space pa siya, wala sa kalsada. Nilapitan tuloy siya ng isang guard sa parking at kinatok. Diesel rolls his windows down and apologizes before pulling over to the side.

"Uuwi ka na ba?" Addie asks. "Una ka na. Luto ka, please?"

Diesel loosens his tie. He takes a deep breath before nodding, even if Addie cannot see him. "Okay. . ." So much for going on a date night, but he cannot bring himself to complain. Hindi lang naman siya ang may trabaho. Addie makes plans and time for him even without the assurance of him being free. He should do the same.

Sayang dahil ngayon lang siya makakauwi nang maaga, pero ganoon talaga. Besides, Addie wants him to cook dinner. Iyon ang gusto, kaya bakit hindi niya ibibigay? At least they can still have dinner together. But, he should really make time for his two girls on the weekend. Maybe on Saturday?

"Paano kayo uuwi?" Diesel asks, tossing his tie on the shotgun seat. "Sunduin ko kayo?"

"Hindi na. Magpapasundo na lang kami. Pahinga ka na lang," Addie replies, which makes Diesel frown. He knows she's just worried about him overworking himself, but he still feels quite bad every time Addie doesn't let him do what he could do for her.

"Okay. Ingat kayo ni Bub."

"Mmkay. . . . Say bye to papa na," Addie mutters. Nadia whispers, "Bye, Papa. Lab you."

That makes Diesel smile. He says his I love yous to his two girls before dropping the call and driving away. He's on cooking duty for tonight.

Well . . . he's been on cooking duty for two weeks now. Ngayon lang niya iyon napansin. He doesn't mind, really. But Addie has learned to enjoy the kitchen and will sometimes not even let him near it during the weekdays. She would say that it's her territory, that he should rest, and that she's the better cook. They always ask Nadia whose cooking tastes better, and Nadia often answers that she tastes no difference. But sometimes, Bubby would pick sides. They keep a tally of their Nadia Approval scores.

Once home, Diesel changes into comfortable clothes after informing Addie that he has arrived safely. He takes a nap in the living room for half an hour, then texts Addie right after waking up, asking her whereabouts. He makes himself coffee before preparing dinner.

All he has to do after that is wait for his two girls to come home. He decides to stay downstairs and mindlessly scroll through the cable channels while waiting.

About half an hour later, his mom's driver drops Addie and Nadia off. As usual, Nadia runs to him and grabs his leg. He crouched down to pick her up and carry her in his arms.

"Palit lang akong damit," Addie says before weakly tugging on the hem of his shirt to make him lean over for a kiss. Diesel catches a faint taste of cola in her mouth, probably from the lollipops she has been eating for the past few days.

Diesel watches as Addie almost drags her shoulder bag with her as she heads upstairs. His eyebrows furrow in concern. Okay, Addie's exhausted. She even looks like she's going to fall asleep while walking! Alam naman niyang madalas itong umuuwing pagod, but there's something different this afternoon. She seems worn out.

He turns his head towards Nadia. "Is Mama okay?"

Nadia shrugs, her eyes trained on where his stubbles grow. She keeps on running her little palms over his face, as if checking if there is any sharp hair. "Don't know."

"Saan kayo galing?" he asks. He carries Nadia with him to the kitchen.

"Doctor."

Diesel stops in his tracks. He looks at Nadia. "May sakit ang bubby?"

"Nope. Big doctor," Nadia says, making a gesture with her arms as if to say that the doctor is tall.

Nadia's pediatrician is a petite woman, so he's sure Nadia isn't the reason they went to the hospital. Why would Addie go to the doctor without telling him? His grip tightened on the spoon he had just picked up. Did she hurt herself at work?

Diesel sighs. He'll just ask Addie about it later. Bilin na bilin niyang sasabihan siya kaagad kung may mangyayaring hindi maganda habang nagtatrabaho. But he doesn't want to argue with Addie now that she's exhausted. Besides, he has a bubby to feed.

He sets Nadia down on the dining chair as he sets up the table. "Pagod si Mama. Marami kayong ginawa?" he asks, even if he knows Nadia cannot go on in full detail to provide him with what he needs to hear.

Nadia leans her cheek against the table as if she's trying to recall what happened the whole day. She shakes her head. "Sit down only," she answers, raising her head.

"Nasa office lang si Mama?"

"Yes." Nadia nods. "Sit only."

Diesel hums in confusion. "Baka pasaway ka kaya tired si Mama?"

"No!" Nadia shakes her head repeatedly, shaking her ponytail loose. Diesel laughs and removes her ponytail before running his fingers over her hair. Nadia pouts.

"Okay, okay. Hindi na," bawi ni Diesel sa sinabi niya kanina.

"Maybe baby s'heavy," Nadia mumbles.

Diesel stops combing Nadia's hair. What?

WHAT?

After a few seconds of silence, Nadia gasps, clasping her hands over her mouth. She looks up at the dumbfounded Diesel behind her. "Oh, no! S'a secret!"