The Things I Lost In The Desert

Chapter 6 - The Good Guys Dress In Black, Remember That.

[Four months later...]

I could hear the soft click of Sofia's heels before I saw her. She kicked the door down dramatically before sashaying in.

"So? How do I look." She had on a bright yellow pantsuit, with no undershirt because the valley of her breasts was exposed. In a tasteful way. It only brought attention to the collection of gold chains. Her pants were tapered in at the bottom and she had on white strappy heels. She'd gelled her hair back into a bun with a sleek and sexy middle part. She looked amazing but overdressed.

"You're overdressed." I giggled, speaking to her reflection in the mirror in front of me.

"No such thing as over-dressed Rome. They invented that to keep the bad bitches down." She attempted to do a swirl but her heel got caught on the carpet and she landed on my bed with a huff.

We both broke out into a fit of laughter before she sat upright. "Any who, why aren't you dressed?" She said in an accusatory tone, probably convinced that I was going to cancel again.

When we had come back from Dubai, I had this nagging pain in my side and because only God knows what I might've contracted in that awful desert, I went to the hospital immediately. Good thing I did because my appendix had become swollen. The doctor had told me I was lucky to have it early.

Even weeks after my surgery, I felt some bloating and light pain, and that's what I kept using as an accuse to get out of hanging out with Sofia. 

I couldn't exactly tell her I was nursing a broken heart over a one-night stand. Mostly because I felt like a complete idiot, I knew there was no future between Raheem and me but also because I had to sign an NDA. But today, was the first time we were going out for the first time in months.

"Not at all." I slammed the laptop in front of me closed. "I was just finishing up some work for Gary's book."

As a children's book illustrator, inspiration struck at any time and it was best to spring off it the minute the opportunity presented itself. One of my latest clients was my neighbour across the street. He was a divorced man who wanted to surprise his two daughters with a book about them. So here I was on the floor, in front of my full-length mirror with my makeup spread out around me, busy on my laptop because an idea hit when I was applying primer.

Sofia scrunched up her nose like she smelt something awful. "Agent K, Gary? Creepy tuxedo man?" Gary was an ex-soldier, who was always formally dressed. I admit that the man had hawk-like eyes but I just chalked it down to his years of service.

"Sofia," I warned. "He's still my client. Also, he is very nice."

"Yeah, whatever." She got up and brushed my curtains aside to look outside. No doubt getting a view of his apartment across from us. Sofia gasped, drawing my attention to her.

"What?"

"What if, he likes you?"

"Sofia, he's three times my age," I said dismissively.

"Then why is he coming over on a Friday night?" She was still holding my curtain aside, staring outside.

"What?" Before I could say anything else, my doorbell reverberated around the house, telling me someone was at the door. Before going to the door, I shot Sofia a 'behave' look.

Just like I expected, Gary was at the door, smartly dressed and holding a steamy dish.

"Hey there Rome," His faint southern accent greeted me. "I made some desserts and I thought I'd share them with ya."

He didn't give me a chance to say no as he handed me the warm casserole dish, covered with a kitchen rack. "Gary! You shouldn't have."

He waved my protest away and then dropped his arms to the side like a military man standing to attention. You can take the man out of the military, but you can't take the military out of the man it seems.

"I'm used t'makin' extra for my daughters." Something behind me caught his eye and I saw Sofia noseyly trying to peek at what was in my hands over my shoulder. "Where' ya gals headed?" He asked taking in Sofia's outfit and my half-makeup'd face.

"Just a girl's night out. We haven't spent time together since coming back from vacation."

"Ah. Right." He nodded stiffly, then offered Sofia a tight-lipped smile. "Enjoy ya'lls night then. And stay safe."

"Thanks, Gary." I waved him off as I passed the treats to Sofia. She wasted no time in lifting the cloth and shoving a cube of neatly cut cake.

"Mmm," she moaned around a full mouth. "You know what this reminds me of? Basbusa, you remember that desert we had in Dubai?"

I winced at the reminder of Dubai, it was sort of a trigger for me. Along with camels, deserts and insanely good-looking men.

"Yeah, don't eat too much of that we still have dinner reservations to get to."

Halfway through dinner, a sharp pain sliced through the right side of my abdomen forcing me to double over.

"Babe, are you ok?" Sofia looked ready to jump out of her seat, worry widened her green eyes. I took a deep breath and sat back, assuring her that I was fine when I didn't feel anything.

"You sure?" I reached across the table to grab her hand.

"I'm sure. It's probably a cramp or something." Watching Sofia sit across from me, worried over a cramp, filled my heart because I won the lottery with her. Growing up in multiple foster homes really made you appreciate the people who stuck around.

She's the closest thing to family I'll ever get. 

So close you haven't told her what really happened in Dubai, a voice nagged in my head and I quickly brush the thought away. "Let's get dessert-"

I couldn't finish my suggestion because the sharp pain came back, with more force. "Ow!" I bent over holding my side. The pain began the throb.

"No, no, no, no, no," Sofia said running around to my side as fast as her heels would allow her. She helped me up, draping my arm across her shoulder. "We're going to the hospital, right now."

"I'm sure it's-" my body protested the lie I was about the tell. As she helped me up, we attracted the attention of everyone at the restaurant. As we wobbled out, using each other for support our waiter ran after us.

"Excuse me your bill?!"

"I'll get someone to pay it off, this is an emergency!" Sofia yelled over her shoulder.

"Sofia," I said through gritted teeth. "Pay the bill before we leave." For one hot summer, I was a waitress, so I knew if this bill didn't get paid, it would come out of that poor kid's pocket.

She huffed and blindly dug through her back with her free arm and grabbed a couple of bills, waving them in the teenager's direction. "Here kid, keep the change."

Sofia made it to the hospital in record time, after she explained that I recently had an issue with my appendix I was in a doctor's chair even faster. The doctor was accompanied by a student doing his residency under her supervision, he chatted to me as he prepared me for my abdominal scan.

I tried to relax on the examination table as he spread a cold gel on me. Using a sonogram, he slowly and meticulously read the results on the monitor next to him. After a few minutes, his friendly face morphed into confusion.

"What? What is it?" I sat up but he gently pushed me back down.

"Usually we advise patients to not eat or drink a few hours before the scan because it can affect the result. I understand you just had dinner?" I nodded "Let me call in the doctor. Just to verify."

When the older woman returned, she too had a scowl on her face which deepened when she stared at the screen.

"Good news or bad news doctor?" I joked trying to sound light-hearted.

"Both." She removed her glasses to look at me with a grimace. "Your appendix has definitely ruptured."

"What's the good news?"

"You're about three months pregnant. Congratulations." She added dryly.