Spain x Reader ~Beyond Health and Wealth~

~Beyond Health and Wealth~

You sniffled and wiped your nose with the back of your sleeve. Of all the times to get sick! Catching a cold was NOT the best way to begin your job. It was just a part-time thing, but it was also embarrassing knowing that you had one at all.

Is it even allowed for people to work if they're sick? you wondered to yourself.

Your job wasn't at a café or a restaurant or anything that handled food, thank goodness, but what if customers complained or had second ideas of shopping at this store because they saw a sick employee running around handling merchandise?

Don't get so worked up, ___________! you told yourself. You come too far to be having doubts just because of a little cold! You can do this. Just a few more days, and the cold should be gone—Oh, shoot!

"Hola, ___________!" your co-worker greeted you. "How's everything coming along? Are you finding everything okay?"

"Yeah," you nodded and bowed your head to continue stocking products on the shelves. There was definitely more you could have said to your co-worker, Antonio; after all, he was incredibly handsome—and friendly to boot. Unfortunately, you were too afraid that your nose would start to run, and your voice would sound congested from your stuffed-up nasal passages. And then there was that nagging, ticklish feeling that kept on creeping up, and…and…

"Heh-choo!!"

"Salud," Antonio said.

"Crap…" you sniffed and quickly covered your running nose with your hand. You must've looked pathetic. Right when you were about to get up to excuse yourself to the nearest restroom, you saw Antonio pull out a tissue from his pocket and hand it to you.

"Here you go, __________," he said with a bright smile. He was always smiling; it made the customers feel comfortable approaching him whenever they needed help with something. You, on the other hand, were in a state far from sunshine and smiles since you were seriously a sniffling mess.

"Thanks," you grumbled and took the generously offered tissue from your co-worker. After your blew your nose, you redirected your attention to Antonio now that your nasal passages were feeling clear.

"Hey, Toni, what was that one word you said just now? 'Salud,' was it?"

"Sí," Antonio nodded. "Back home in España, whenever someone sneezed, we would say 'Jesus te cuide,' but everywhere else, people say 'salud' which means 'health.' It sounds nicer. By the way, do you have a cold, ____________?"

"Me? Oh, no!" you quickly lied. "I…uh…They're allergies!"

Antonio looked confused. "Allergies? In the middle of el invierno, the winter?"

"Yeah!" you insisted. "I have these really weird allergies that come up only in the winter. It's strange, I know."

"I don't think it's strange," your co-worker refuted.

You felt your face begin to grow hot—perhaps it was your cold turning into a fever.

"You don't?"

"No," Antonio answered. "I think it's very interesting."

Crap! What am I supposed to say to that? you wondered.

Luckily, your boss came strolling through your aisle and told you and Antonio to get back to work. Right before he exited the alley with Antonio following not too far behind, you sneezed again much to your unfortunate situation. Immediately, your boss turned around an eyed you suspiciously.

"Oh, ___________ just has allergies," Antonio explained.

"In the dead middle of winter?" your boss asked.

"That's what she claimed," Antonio insisted.

To your relief, your boss walked away without even giving you a warning. You would have to thank Antonio when your boss wasn't within hearing range. Before Antonio left, he said, "Dinero." It definitely wasn't "Salud," but you figured it had something to do with health, too.

-----

When you were on your break, you went to the staff longue where Antonio was preparing some coffee.

"Hi, Toni," you said while you went to the staff's refrigerator to grab your lunch.

"Hola, ____________," Antonio smiled looking up from the coffee pot. "How have your allergies been holding up?"

"They've been…better," you lied since you didn't have allergies in the first place. The cold air in the refrigerator was making your nose start to run again, but you didn't want to take your head out so he could see you.

"____________, are you okay?" your co-worker asked in a concerned tone.

"Of course, I am—" You felt a sneeze coming. Not wanting to sneeze inside the refrigerator, you quickly took your head out and whipped around to sneeze.

"Choo!"

"Salud," Antonio responded.

"Oh man…" you groaned. "Thanks, Toni."

"De nada." He walked over and pulled out another tissue for you to use.

"By the way…" you said after you wiped your nose, "what did that other word mean? Didn't you say 'salud' before?"

"Ah, that," Antonio chuckled. "You say a different word for the second and third times someone sneezes. 'Dinero' means 'money' or 'wealth' in Spanish."

"Oh. So then you're technically wishing someone good health and fortune," you deduced.

"That's right."

"I get it," you sniffed. "Thanks, again, Toni."

"De nada," Antonio replied with a bright smile.

-----

"Not again…" you groaned. Your nose was beginning to tickle. Another sneeze was coming. Luckily, you came prepared with your own package of tissues just for such a occasion. But when you reached inside your pocket to grab a tissue, there wasn't a tissue packet to be seen.

What? I could've sworn I had one in here— Then it hit you. Shoot! I left it in my other pants pocket! The sneeze was coming.

"Ah…"

"Here you go, ____________!" your tissue-offering co-worker/savior said offering a tissue right before your sneeze came out.

"Choo! That's the third time this week," you sniffed. "Thanks, yet another time, Toni."

"Salud y de nada," Antonio laughed. "Your allergies must be really bad. Maybe you should get some allergy medicine."

"Oh, don't worry. I just took some cold medicine so it should be better soon."

Your co-worker looked confused. "I thought you said you had winter allergies."

"Huh? Wh-What did I say?"

"You said you took cold medicine."

You smacked your forehead—which turned out to not be the smartest thing to do because your head was pounding from all of the congestions you had. Plus, another sneeze was coming.

"Heh-choo!"

"Dinero," Antonio responded.

"Thanks, Toni—A-choo!"

"Amor."

"Choo!"

"Amor," Antonio repeated.

"Hn-choo!"

"Amor," Antonio said for the third time. "Wow, ___________. I think you might have a cold."

"How'd you figure dat oud?" you asked from behind a runny nose and a spoiled tissue. Antonio handed you another one that you gratefully took.

"You mentioned taking cold medicine earlier," he replied. "If you're sick, you could have just said so. I know. Do you want to come over to my house after work so I can prepare my own cold remedy for you?"

"Really?" Suddenly, your face began to feel hot, and something told you it wasn't because you were sick. "You really don't have to go out of your way for me, Toni. You should—Ha-choo!"

"I insist," Antonio laughed. "Y amor, by the way."

After you blew your nose, you began to talk again. "What does 'amor' mean? And why do you keep saying it? I thought there was something different for each sneeze."

"It actually stops at 'amor,'" Antonio explained. "For the third time and up, one says, 'amor' meaning 'love.'"

"S-So what, you really just keep saying 'amor' over and over again?"

"Sí."

"Oh. Hey, Toni, about your offer—Achoo! Shoot!"

"Amor," Antonio replied.

"Thanks," you sniffed. "Well, maybe I will take you up on it."

"Seriously? That's great!" Your co-worker looked more relieved and elated than you had expected.

"Yeah," you smiled nervously. "I'll be more than happy to see if there's a way to cure my cold faster than the medicine. Um…then, I'll see you around, Toni. I have to get back to work."

"Alright, ____________," Antonio grinned.

-----

You sneezed.

"Salud."

"Achoo!"

"Dinero."

"Thanks, To—Gosh darn it—Choo!"

"Amor."

"Tha—Choo!"

"Amor," Antonio repeated. "Are you cold, __________?"

"Just a little bit," you admitted. "It's not too bad, though."

Suddenly, your entire body became warm as Antonio draped his arms over your shoulders and rubbed your sleeves to generate heat.

"You should try to keep yourself warm," he said. "If you get too sick, the boss might ask you to take some days off. It wouldn't be fun going to work without seeing you there."

"Oh…" At this point, you were doing all that you could to keep yourself from squealing out loud. "I'm sorry, Toni."

Antonio shook his head. "There's no need to apologize, ____________. At any rate, you should feel much better after you try out my cold remedy."

You managed to chuckle. "I appreciate i—Achoo!"

"Amor," Antonio laughed. "You're lucky, ___________. You're going to be getting a lot of love because you sneeze so much."

"Y-Yeah…" you blushed. "Thank you."

"De nada, ____________."

As the two of you walked to Antonio's house, you secretly wished that you wouldn't be getting better anytime soon. Who knew? Maybe there was something else hidden inside his words that was wishing of something more than receiving love.