“I love you so much,” I whisper back to him. “Please, be safe.” His eyes widen, and I know he can see the vulnerability in my eyes, and he finally understands my fear about this trip.
“Oh, baby.” He closes his eyes tightly and buries his head in my neck. I wrap my arms around him, holding him to me, as he gradually increases the tempo and pressure inside me and I come, pulsating around him, as he empties himself into me.
***
“They’re going to be calling your flight. You’d better get through security.” Luke’s wearing a baseball cap and glasses in hopes that he won’t get recognized in the airport. He looks hot.
He always looks hot.
“Have fun with Jules tonight.” He pulls me to him and kisses me long and slow.
“Be good.” I raise an eyebrow at him and he laughs.
“I’ll see you tomorrow. I’ll call you when I get to the hotel.” He kisses me again, then rests his lips on my forehead and takes a deep breath, like he really doesn’t want to let me go.
“Okay. Safe travels, my love.” I run my hands down his chest and step back and watch him walk toward security and his terminal.
***
“Natalie?” Jules calls as I open the front door to my house. I have hardly been here all week.
“Yeah, it’s me.” I really don’t feel well, and I don’t think it has anything to do with Luke’s trip.
“Did Luke leave this morning?”
I walk into the kitchen. Jules is buttering a bagel and as the aroma hits my nose it turns my stomach.
“Oh, shit.” I run for the hall bathroom and throw up, barely making it in time.
“Hey, are you okay?” She’s standing in the doorway, watching me. Jules is one of the only people in the world that I would let stand there and watch me hurl.
“I think I must have the flu. I’ve been feeling queasy all morning. I thought it was nerves, but apparently not.”
My stomach convulses again and I grip onto the toilet as I violently retch.
Jules disappears and comes back with a glass of water for rinsing my mouth and cool wash cloth. She sets the glass on the sink and presses the cloth to my neck and I moan.
“Thank you.”
“Let’s get you upstairs and in bed.
Lie down for a while and see if your stomach settles.”
“Okay.”
Jules follows me upstairs. I don’t feel too bad, just intensely nauseous. I hate throwing up.
My phone pings in my pocket as I climb on the bed. It’s a text from Luke.
About to take off. No one recognized me. I miss you already, beautiful.
I smile and hit reply.
I miss you too. Be safe. I want you home in one piece, please.
And, I have to barf again. I run for my bathroom, and stay there for the next thirty minutes. Jules is hovering with wet rags and water, and makes me shove a towel under my knees.
“I think we should go to the E.R.”
“No, I’m fine.” I wretch some more.
“Yes, I can see that you’re in top form,” Jules replies dryly.
“Don’t be a bitch.”
“Nat, I’m worried. You can’t stop throwing up.”
“I don’t have anything left to throw up.”
“Yet you’re still dry-heaving. This isn’t normal, even for the flu. You don’t have a fever.”
My abs are starting to ache as I continue to heave over the toilet.
“Nat, don’t make me call my mother.”
“She’ll side with me,” I reply.
“Fine, I’ll call Luke.”
“No, he can’t do anything from L.A.
anyway.”
More heaving. God, there’s nothing left in me! What is wrong with me?
“Okay, Nat… get in the goddamn car.
Here’s a bucket.” Jules shoves a big plastic bowl under my face and helps me to my feet. “An hour of uncontrollable barfing is too much. You’re probably dehydrated.”
She helps me into the car and takes me to a nearby hospital emergency room.
Surprisingly, it’s fairly quiet and I’m processed through triage and into a room quickly. I’m thankful that Jules is with me to
give
them
my
personal
information; I can’t stop heaving long enough to form a sentence.
I manage to give a urine sample and change into a hospital gown.
“Natalie, I’m Mo. I’ll be your nurse today. Put this pill under your tongue.
It’s called Zofran, and it’ll help the nausea.” I gratefully accept the medicine from the kind, petite nurse and take a deep breath.
“Let’s get another set of vitals.” Mo smiles and takes my temperature, blood pressure and heart rate.
“Everything is normal. That’s a good sign. Dr. Anderson will be here in a few moments.”
“Thank you.” Jules pulls a chair up next to me and my phone starts to ring.
It’s Luke.
“Hello?”
“Hey, baby, I’m at the hotel.
Everything okay?”
“Yes, everything’s fine. I’m just hanging out with Jules.” Jules’ eyes go round and she mouths “What the fuck are you doing?” at me. I brush her off.
“Okay, good. I’m heading back out to my first meeting. I’ll text you when I can.”
“Alright, have a good meeting. I love you.”
“I love you too.” I hear the smile in his voice as he hangs up.
“Natalie…”
“Stop. He can’t do anything from L.A. There’s no need to worry him.
He’ll be home tomorrow anyway.”
“He should know that you’re in the emergency room.” God, she’s stubborn.
“That pill they gave me is helping with the puking. They’ll probably just send me home.”
“Knock, knock.” A small blonde woman pokes her head through the door.
“I’m Dr. Anderson. I hear you’re not feeling well, Natalie.”
“I’ve been throwing up for about the last hour and a half.”
“Has it been steady, or does it come and go?”
“Steady. Couldn’t breathe until the nurse gave me that anti-nausea pill.”
“Any other symptoms like diarrhea, fever, abdominal pain?” She is jotting down notes in my chart as we talk.