After Mom and Dad left, I sent a text to Peter asking him to call when he got a chance. A few minutes later, my phone rang.
"Hi Peter," I chirped happily.
"Hi Jules, are you feeling better?"
"I feel lots better than last night, I'm still kind of weak and all I've had to eat is Jello. But I'm not really hungry because of the drugs and fluids they're pumping into me. I've only been eating since they did the colonoscopy."
"Is that the butt camera thing?" Peter asked, a little too gleefully to suit me.
"Yeah, that's the one. They wanted me to fart in front of two women and I refused. I made my mom leave but the nurse only stepped outside the curtain. It was just air but jeez, can you fart in front of your mom?" I asked.
"Only the regular kind and I try not to. I understand Jules, it must have been weird," Peter sympathized.
"How was school, did you get my homework?"
"Yeah, they sent me a pass and let me out of P.E. so I could go to your teachers and collect it all."
"Well, they'll do an allergy test tomorrow and then I should get to go home. I hope I can get back to school soon."
"I don't know why but okay," Peter chuckled. "I'm waiting on your dad to pick me up so I can come over and see you," he announced.
"That's great Peter, I miss you so much."
"I miss you too, I better comb my hair and get ready, see you soon and I love you," Peter advised.
"Okay, I'll be here. I love you too Peter, bye."
I heard someone moan and then a whimper.
"Hello, are you okay?" I called.
"Please, get help! Please," the voice pleaded.
I stabbed at the emergency button and waited. Fifteen seconds later a nurse stuck her head in and asked what was wrong.
"The next bed, I heard them ask for help and it sounds bad," I explained.
She walked out of sight and then walked quickly to the door. I heard her tell someone to page a certain doctor, but I couldn't hear the name. For the next ten minutes, there was a lot of activity as nurses and doctors came in. Finally, a male voice said, "He's stable, let's get him to ICU."
As they pushed the bed past mine, I saw a black teenager with more tubes than I had, he had an oxygen mask and some stuff that I have no idea what it was. The last thing I heard was, we need to get those leads replaced, if that kid hadn't heard him call out he would have been gone by now."
Suddenly it was very quiet, a nurse returned and brought more Jell-O and slid my curtain back.
"What was wrong with that kid, is he okay?" I inquired urgently.
He was stung by several bees and went into shock. We don't know why his monitor didn't sound an alarm. He's stable now and he should recover just fine," she reassured me.
An hour later, Peter and my dad were by my bed and Mom was in the market across the way buying me magazines. I tried to tell her I wouldn't be here long enough to read them.
Peter was excited and kissed me right in front of Dad, then he looked behind him to see Dad smiling gently. They had pulled the line out of the back of my left hand so I reached up and pulled him down for another kiss.
"I'll let you two speak privately and be back in a moment."
"He's so cool," Peter pointed out. "I forgot he was here when I saw you. Um... how do you feel?"
"Pretty good, the pain is gone, and they fixed the catheter thing so it doesn't hurt either."
"What's a catheter?" Peter inquired.
I pushed down my covers and pulled up my gown showing him the tube. I covered back up and looked at his eyes. It was hard to believe that not long ago the sight would have terrified me. Now I could even bring the terrible images to my conscious mind and though it made me sad, it had lost its power over me.
"Ouch, that has to hurt!" Peter declared.
"No, this one is no problem, the first one hurt because it was too big but after they replaced it, no problem." I explained.
"What's the orange stuff from, an Oompa Loompa blood transfusion?" Peter grinned.
After I stopped laughing, I explained beta-dyne and its purpose. Not nearly as entertaining as Peter's notion.
Mom and Dad returned and we had to calm down a bit.
I explained about my roommate and all the activity they missed. I told them they expect him to recover just fine.
Ultimately visiting hours were over and Peter and my parents said their goodbyes and left. One more bowl of Jell-O and three nurses came in at once. I thought they were there to change the bags of fluid but they removed them one at a time and then the large needle from my arm. They untethered my right arm and I was able to move freely. One nurse left and the third one began removing the catheter. Then they had me sit up and then stand by the bed. I was led to the toilet and told to sit. The third nurse stepped out and waited. I peed for an eternity but eventually it stopped.
I was allowed to rise but not flush. The nurse looked in the bowl and then flushed the toilet and smiled. "No blood, you're done with the catheter unless something changes," she told me.
"That's great, can I just get up and go when I need to now?" I asked.
"Sorry hon, you'll need to use the blue plastic jug by your bed tonight. You still have painkillers in your system and you could fall on your own. So use the jug, we'll be checking in the morning. I'll put an absorbent pad in your bed in case you leak a little. It happens sometimes when a catheter is removed. You should be able to get up and walk around in the morning," she informed.
Half an hour later, a nurse brought a pill and had me take it with water. I was enjoying being able to lie on my side again. After what seemed like a short while, I was being roused awake.
"Good morning, what would you like for breakfast, you're on a mild diet but I could bring some eggs and cream of wheat cereal," the cheery young man with the Jamaican accent intoned.
"That sounds good, um... how about some toast?" I asked.
I can add that, it will be white bread, you're not ready for whole grains yet. Grape or apple juice? You can't have orange juice just yet, too much acid."
"Grape," thanks.
"You're quite welcome, I'll have that for you in a few minutes," he chattered and then hustled out.
He was back in ten minutes and put a tray in front of me with everything we discussed. Plus a bowl of chocolate tapioca pudding and a bowl of green Jell-O. I thanked him and he said he would see me at lunch time. Finally, I looked at my phone and it was just seven o'clock.
A nurse came in while I was finishing the last of my pudding. "Good morning Jules, how are you feeling?"
"Great, I got to eat breakfast and I slept better not being on my back."
"Excellent, your jug is empty, is your pad dry?"
"Yes, I could stand to use the toilet now though."
"Well, let's see you get out of bed and walk around a bit and then you can do that," she instructed.
I pushed the tray away and slid out of bed; it felt good to stand up without any help. I walked to the door and back and the nurse nodded.
"You don't need me, I'll be back in a moment with a pair of pajamas," she announced.
"Cool, thank you, those would be better than this gown thing."
The nurse left and I took my first standing pee for what seemed like a long time. It was fantastic.
When I came out, there was a pair of pajamas and slippers on my bed.
I put them on and ditched the gown, I hung the gown where it could be seen and put on the slippers. I sat in the chair next to the bed and checked my phone. I answered a couple emails and a very nice message from Wyatt.
A lady came in with a cart and looked at me. She smiled and told me it was good I was out of bed because she was there to change the sheets. I offered to help, but she declined. She told me it was rare for a patient to offer and thanked me for my thoughtfulness.
An hour after she left, I was taken to an examination room.
"Hello, I am Dr. Pagiotte, I will be performing your allergy panel procedure. After some mild skin abrasion, we will apply this grid to your abdomen, then we will apply allergen extracts to each of the grid sections. Since people who have food allergies are more likely to have allergies to bites and stings we'll test for those as well.
The only unpleasant part or at least the worst part was the abrasion, they actually sanded my belly skin with a fiber pad. Some of the drops they put in the little cells burned a bit. Then they taped a plastic cover over the whole thing and sent me back to my room, admonishing me not to move the cover or scratch.
I received another shot as soon as I was in bed and then I was left alone for awhile. At eleven on the dot, Dr. Pagiotte arrived with a nurse and removed the cover, then photographed the grid. Then they removed the grid and the doctor said he would have my results after lunch. They sprayed something on my skin and the stinging went away.
I had no sooner got to bed and relaxed when another nurse came in asking if I had had a "movement."
I told her no, and she made a note on her clipboard. She told me that when I did it might be soft or even liquid but not to worry it would become normal as I returned to my usual diet.
That was the most in depth conversation I had ever had regarding poop, I knew Peter would enjoy hearing about it immensely.
The nutritionist returned at eleven fifty-five to offer lunch.
"Any problems with what you ate this morning, young man?"
"Problems? No, it all tasted great."
"Ah, yes that's good but not what I meant. Any diarrhea or severe gas?" he restated.
"Oh, no I haven't even needed to go yet, maybe after lunch?"
"Possibly, it must seem strange for so many people to be interested in your poo but it's because of why you are here. Meanwhile I can bring you some chicken and peas, mashed potatoes and gravy and some cottage cheese. If it seems familiar these are all foods your mother said you eat regularly."
"That sounds good, I'm actually pretty hungry, grape juice again?" I asked.
"I can do that, I'll have it here in a short while," Ordinale announced.
Lunch was surprisingly good; the chicken wasn't even rubbery. Mom arrived and told me they had the results of the skin test and she was there to hear them with me.
Dr. Pagiotte entered and held up a printed page. "I have your results right here, young man. You are allergic to coconut, both the oil and the flesh; you are also sensitive to strawberries and marionberries. Have you ever had a reaction to strawberries before?"
"Only disgust, I hate the taste, they are way too sweet for me. I never eat them and I never heard of marionberries," I supplied.
"Well, out of the panel those were your only reactions. Your reaction to bee venom was standard as was your reaction to ant venom. The next step is for your internalist to review your results and make recommendations."
Dr. Pagiotte said his goodbyes and I thanked him. Then he was gone.
I climbed out of bed and walked to the bathroom. When I returned, I asked Mom if I should put out a press release about my normal bowel movement. She giggled and asked if I was ready to go home.
"You bet! Did you bring some clothes for me?"
"Yes, they're right here and you can put them on after we talk to Dr. Marquez, okay?"
"Sure Mom, I hope I can go home today. Everybody is really nice but it's not home."
"I know Honey, I think they'll release you today."
The nurse that had inquired about my bowels walked in. "Any progress?" she asked.
"Yes, I left it in the bowl if you need to check, it was just regular so no problem, right?."
I heard a flush and then the water in the sink, the nurse walked out and thanked me for my cooperation.
"Do you have any idea how hard it is to not flush, Mom?" I asked.
"I know, Honey, and I know it's embarrassing but you're almost done here. They do all this for a reason."
"I know Mom, I can take it."
Dr. Marquez showed up half an hour later and pronounced me fit to go home.
"Take it easy on stuff like nuts and whole grains for another day then return to a normal diet. If you have any difficulties let us know."
"Thanks Dr. Frank, I appreciate it. That means I can get dressed and leave now, right?"
"It does indeed but an orderly will have to wheel you out to your car," the doctor advised.
He left and Mom held up a tote with my clothes and shoes. It didn't matter that she was there, I shed the pajamas and put my undies on and then finished dressing. Mom went down the hall and signed me out and she returned with a man and a wheelchair. I took my seat without argument and off we went.
I never realized how much I loved my room. Even the squeaky floors had a certain charm. I stretched out on my bed until my phone beeped. It was a text from Peter.
I called him and when he answered, I said, "I'm home, where are you?"
"I'm home too, but Mom's going to bring me over so I can see you and bring your homework."
"Cool, I'll be waiting for you, how soon?"
As soon as Dad gets home, he should be here any minute, so soon okay?" Peter speculated.
"I can't wait to see you, I'll wait downstairs."
Peter said goodbye and disconnected and I put my slippers on and walked downstairs. I made a deviled ham sandwich and drank some iced tea. I even munched a few chips but that filled me up pretty quick.
Twenty minutes later the doorbell rang. I opened the door and Peter mobbed me, he held me so tight his mother had to coax him to release me.
"It's okay Ma'am, or should I call you Iris or maybe Aunt Iris?"
"Aunt Iris will be just fine, Jules."
"Well, please come in and have a seat, Mom is upstairs but she'll be right down."
"Jules, was that the door?" Mom called from the landing.
"Yes Mom, Aunt Iris and Peter are here," I informed her.
"Okay, I'll be right down," she replied.
I walked back to Peter and his mom.
"I heard Jules, there's no hurry," Iris said before I could tell her Mom was on her way.
"Hello Iris, how are you. I see you've escaped the twins?"
"Yes Nancy, their daddy is taking a turn watching them. They mind him fairly well."
"Let's see, you like green tea right? I have a lovely one, let's go to the kitchen and I'll make a pot and we can gossip," Mom grinned. "You boys can go up and entertain yourselves.