“Oh, Lord. Are you okay?” a man’s voice said from behind her.
Aileen tried to look back to see who it was, but was quickly driven back toward the toilet bowl, where she had been practically submerged as she tossed up the nothingness that made of the contents of her stomach. When she was finally able to get her hurling under control, she realized he had stepped over her and was holding her hair up away for her. To her humiliation, she realized it was Grant.
“I’m so sorry,” she muttered, reaching up to flush the toilet.
“No. Don’t be. If you are sick, you’re sick.”
“It just hit me. I didn’t even hear you ring the bell.”
“I didn’t. The door was wide open. I knocked on the door frame and there was no answer. I heard weird noises and came in to see if you are okay.”
“I’m so embarrassed.”
“Don’t be. We’ve all been there before. Would you like me to come back another day?” he asked, helping her to her feet.
Aileen walked to the sink, feeling wobbly, holding on to the edge for safety. She washed off her face, drying it on the nearby hand towel and began swishing some mouthwash about her mouth before answering. It didn’t help. She still had a horrible taste in her mouth.
“No. Please just go ahead and get started. I’m going to, uh, brush my teeth and try to be less gross while you get going,” she said, then immediately thought better of it. “No. I’m not thinking very well, right now. I might be contagious. Why don’t you go home and come back another day? I’ll pay you for your time today since I’ve wasted it.”
“No. I’ll take you up on not risking getting whatever you’re coming down with, but no need to pay me. It’s no big deal. Call me when you feel better and I’ll come back and start then. You’re not in any hurry, are you?”
“No. None at all.”
“Good then. I’ll see you again soon. Do you need anything before I leave? Are you sure you are okay here alone?”
“Yes. I’m fine. Just some little bug, I’m sure. Thank you.”
He nodded and left, closing the front door behind him. Aileen went over and flipped the lock and then went back to the bathroom to brush her teeth and clean up a bit. Afterward, she lumbered to her bedroom and climbed into the bed, not bothering to set an alarm. Instead, she went to sleep and stayed that way for hours, having the same dream she had before, with the red and silver dragon chasing her. It ended with her falling again, but this time she hit the water and bolted upright in bed, wide awake.
“What the hell is wrong with me?” she said aloud.
After a few minutes of waking up fully, she realized that she felt better. Not only that, she was starving. Getting up, she went to the freezer to see what all she had in there. She wasn’t there enough to keep fresh food, but she had packed some things into the freezer for quick meals. There was nothing there that looked appetizing. What she really wanted was a big pile of nachos and a soda.
It wasn’t something that she usually ate and she couldn’t believe she could even think of it after the miserable retching earlier in the morning, but that is exactly what she wanted. She’d probably regret it later, but right now, she didn’t care. She picked up her phone and ordered a delivery of the large nachos grande and a side of extra guacamole, before deciding to add on an order of sopapillas for dessert. It was completely gluttonous, but she didn’t care.
An hour later, she sat looking at the empty containers in disgust. Why had she eaten all that? What was going on? She was never this hungry. It looked like enough food for two or three people and she had eaten it all. This was crazy. She sighed and glanced at her watch. Shit, she was late. She should have left an hour ago. The last thing she needed to do was fail to meet the requirements of her contract and foul things up.
She threw her containers in the trash and pulled it up to take it out, dropping it in the curbside bin before heading back to Yakov’s. She drove most of the way in silence, pondering what was going on with her. She had been sick. She was either sickened by food or starving. It was crazy. She was halfway home when it hit her.
No. No way.
Stopping by the nearest drug store, she purchased a pregnancy test and then went next door to the fast food restaurant there to use their restroom. Coming out with the test wrapped in toilet paper and tucked in her purse, she jumped back in her car and drove nervously toward Yakov’s. She wanted to look, but she didn’t dare. Finally, she arrived at his place and went inside.