Nora pursed her lips. “Of course, you would say that since you’re lighter than me.”
I laughed but did not antagonize her further.
She cast a glance around and realized that Anthony was not present. “Shouldn’t Anthony be back by now?”
I nodded. “He has a dinner appointment. He will be back late.”
She grunted. “Looks like the wife of the president has to learn to deal with solitude once in a while.”
I felt satiated after consuming a block of cheese. Then, I stood up and poured her some water.
“You had steak today, didn’t you?” I asked, recalling her earlier remark.
Nora nodded as she squinted at me. “What’s up with your arm?”
I followed her gaze and realized to my horror that my arm was covered in dense red rashes.
She pulled my arm, suddenly frightened. “It’s all over your face too!”
I was terrified to discover that they were not just on my face, but also on my legs and everywhere else.
My eyes met Nora’s. “Is this an allergic reaction?” we said in unison.
“Are you allergic to cheese or matcha?” Nora studied me intently.
I shook my head. I’d always indulged in those but I never had a reaction like this.
“What else have you had?” Nora persisted.
“Hairy crabs!” I cried in realization.
“You’re allergic to seafood?”
I shook my head. “No, it was impossible. I had them just yesterday.”
I didn’t have the time to overthink. Nora dashed out to the yard and shouted, “Armond, Sienna looks like she’s having an allergic reaction. Hurry over and we’ll take her to the hospital.”
I studied the rashes with fear and could not figure out what I had eaten to cause such a reaction for the life of me.
Nora returned soon after and pulled me out of the villa where Armond was waiting in his car.
As soon as we entered, Armond headed straight for the hospital. Nora appeared frantic. “Should we give Anthony a call?”
I shook my head as he would be occupied by now. “It’s fine. This is just a mild allergy. Let’s get to the hospital and see what it actually is before contacting Anthony.”
I began to worry about the rashes on my face when I felt the rashes itching fiercely.
Though I wasn’t beautiful by modern standards, I was at least proud of my face and did my best to present it well. It would be an awful shame indeed if it were to be scarred and pockmarked for life.
We arrived at the hospital in record time. Armond stopped the car in front of the lobby and Nora dragged me out.
“Doctor! Doctor! This is an emergency!” she yelled.
The staff came rushing over at the sound of her voice. Several nurses enquired about my condition and had Nora register on my behalf.
A nurse led me to an office to wait for a doctor.
The doctor on duty examined me and gave the diagnosis that it was indeed an allergic reaction but not a very serious one at that. A jab or two of a general antihistamine ought to do the trick. It was such a relief for me.
I was still unsure about what it was that I was allergic to. “Doctor, is it possible to find out what triggered it?”
Whether or not it was the hairy crabs or the cheese, I had them often and never had a reaction like this before. Why today then?
The doctor finished writing a prescription. “It could be the fact that the crabs and cheese were consumed together, or that one of the compounds had triggered this reaction. If you’d like, I could run some tests and give you a definite answer.”
“Yes, please.” I nodded. It wouldn’t do to have to be cautious about what I eat all the time. If I’m not careful, I might end up here again in a few weeks.
This was a hospital in the city, and as a result, the wards were all occupied. Even my jabs had to be done out in the corridor. To investigate the source of the allergy, the nurse drew some blood and hooked me up to a drip apparatus.
There were more wards along the corridor. As it grew late, many patients fell asleep.
There was no way I could fall asleep, though I tried to close my eyes to rest them. Meanwhile, Nora took care of my bill while Armond looked for a parking spot.
This may not be a first-tier city, but parking was still a hassle.
I heard footsteps along the corridor. A male doctor in a white gown appeared in front of my eyes.
“Did I wake you?” he asked.
I shook my head. “Don’t worry about it, I wasn’t asleep.” The doctor procured a syringe when he saw that my drip was almost empty.
“Is it time to change the saline?” I enquired nervously.
He shook his head and pinched the tube. “This is a temporary measure,” he said as he emptied the contents of the syringe into my drip.
“Isn’t this administered as a jab?” I inquired suspiciously. Isn’t it normal to inject a patient with antihistamine instead of administering it through the drip?
The doctor adjusted the speed. “It’s saline. The previous batch was too concentrated; this is just to water it down slightly. Don’t worry, it won’t affect anything.”
I wasn’t familiar with medical procedures, but even in my ignorance, this explanation felt too far-fetched to me. But my nagging suspicion was unable to identify what was wrong.
Without a concrete reason to raise any objections, I settled down and accepted it without complaint.
The doctor eventually moved to other patients to carry out the same procedure. My suspicions evaporated when I observed his deftness in carrying out his duty. Soon after, I closed my eyes again.
A while later, I could no longer deny feeling that something was wrong. My eyelids felt too heavy to open.
Suspicion and fear clouded my mind. I groped for my hand and pinched it hard. After ascertaining that I was not dreaming, I mustered all my strength to wrench my eyes open.
The sight of the doctor standing menacingly before I had confirmed my fears.
I reached out to push him away, but he suddenly lifted me up and out of the corridor.
As the sedative began to take effect, I reminded myself over and over again to stay awake.
I bit down hard again on my tongue and the pain of it was immense. By this time, I found myself being carried over to the lift.
I recognized the possibility of him taking me away. My first instinct was to struggle to free myself, but I felt completely limp. I wanted to scream for help, but I was too weak to even form any words.
The lift doors opened and he walked in with me. He pressed for a certain floor but I couldn’t see what it was.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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