her. It was
awkward but she couldn’t think of anything to say and
apparently he couldn’t be bothered. She finished her meal and
then looked up at him and smiled.
“ So,”
she said. “Tell me about me.”
Allen
smiled. “Aren’t you supposed to wait for your memory to
return naturally?”
Frances
shrugged. “Maybe, but I’d like to hear the highlights
anyway. Especially the dirty laundry. For example, why are we
together?”
“ That’s
dirty laundry?” Allen’s eyebrows almost disappeared into
his hair.
“ I
don’t know, do I? How did we meet?” she asked leaning
forward. A wave of nausea overtook her and she had to lean back
again, “Ooh.”
“ What’s
wrong?” Allen asked standing up as she put one hand to her head
and the other to her stomach.
“ I
don’t know,” Frances said. Then she stood up very
suddenly and ran to the bathroom. She got to the toilet just in time
for her sandwich to come pouring savagely out, as well as the
contents of her saline drip at the hospital and any bile that might
have accumulated. After that it was any air left in her esophagus and
finally the heaving stopped.
“ What
was that?” she asked very perturbed as she wiped her mouth.
“ I
don’t know,” Allen said slowly. “Maybe we should
call the doctor.”
Frances
shook her head, “No, it's fine, I’m feeling okay now, we
don’t have to call anyone.”
Allen
shrugged, “If you say so…shall I make you another
sandwich?”
“ Er,
yeah if you don’t mind.”
“ I
don’t mind. Just go lie down and I’ll be right back.”
Allen hurried out of the room as she watched. She crossed over to the
bed and sat on it, ignoring the burning in her stomach in favor of
enjoying the softness. She figured she’d probably been sleeping
in this bed long enough to take it all for granted, but not long
enough to have forgotten the hard floor and the barely there
mattress; the funky smell of the bunker, the cold, wet, hunger…sure
it was however many years ago it had been, but in her head, it might
as well have been yesterday. The discomfort of nausea could hardly
compare to the memory of all that.
Allen
came in carrying another sandwich with a glass of juice and some
salad on the side. He really was a handsome fellow, and those eyes
were to die for. She just didn’t see how they fit .
“ The
cook’s arrived,” he said grinning at her.
She
smiled back out of politeness, “Great.” She took the
plate from him, studying its contents. The nausea seemed to have
disappeared so she ate with gusto and finished her meal. She held her
breath for a few minutes, wondering if the vomiting would begin again
but this time the food stayed down.
“ Huh…”
she said. “Maybe my body just needed a salad.”
Allen
laughed, “Maybe.” He breathed in deep, “Soo, do you
wanna watch a movie or something?”
“ Er,
how about some entertainment news? I’d like to see who is
popular now.”
Allen
laughed, “Since when do you care about such shit?”
Frances
shrugged, “Hey, it’s the fastest way to catch up.”
“ Catch
up on what?”
“ On
what people find important,” she said.
“ Don’t
you wanna know what you’ve been up to?”
“ Oh.
Wow. Do I wanna know?” she asked wincing in anticipation.
Allen
smiled, “Yes, you really do.”
“ Tell
me tomorrow. I think I need a bath and rest for now.”
“ You’re
the boss,” Allen said standing up to leave her to it.
The next
morning when she woke, Frances vomited again. Allen pulled rank and
declared they were going to the doctor whether she liked it or not.
Chapter 5
“ You’re
pregnant,” the doctor declares baldly, coming into the room and
placing the results of the tests in front of them. Frances stared at
him in shock.
“ No
I’m not,” she stated.
“ I’m
afraid you are. We’ve done all the tests from MRI to UTI and
that’s what came back,” the doctor replied. They had
indeed done what was seemingly every test known to man.