THE UNEXPECTED

38

PRESENT DAY

I awoke with a thumping headache and my mouth salivating, something wasn't quite right but I couldn't put my finger on it. My stomach had been feeling strange over the last couple of days and this morning I would've deduced the pulsing in my head to the late night we had prior to this but I had been feeling ill for the last two, now three weeks. I assumed that it was a cold that I had since the weather was getting colder but I wasn't sure about my stomach.

"Mornin'." Joel's right arm clamps me to the bed by the waist as he spoons me, and I feel his body heat radiating into me. "How're you feelin' today?" He presses little kisses into my bare shoulder which sends a shiver running down my spine, and my lips part to answer but a sudden wave of nausea ceases my movement. I still before feeling the need to keel over and vomit.

"I think I'm gonna be sick." I just about utter out before flipping Joel's arm away from my body and rushing to the bathroom. Skidding to the floor, my knees buckle and I just about make it to the toilet bowl before emptying my stomach of the food I'd eaten yesterday. I'm retching and shivering by the time that Joel reaches me, his hands come and move my hair from my face and I don't even need to turn around to know his eyebrows are furrowed and his lips are thinned.

"That's it, darlin'. Get it all out." He rubs circles into my back which immediately soothes my shaking body. I've always hated throwing up since I was younger, it's been an irrational fear of mine for quite some time.

I taste the acidity on my tongue which immediately makes me retch once more, finally no longer vomiting up food and its now that I know it's all over.

"Water - please." I say, coughing a little at the horrible taste. Joel immediately springs into action as he hastily grabs an empty cup and fills it with tap water,

"Here." He says, handing me the glass which I take appreciatively. He softly smiles at me which I attempt to return but quite frankly, I feel like utter shit.

"Thanks." My voice is hoarse as I reply and my knees are shaky as I try to raise to my feet to stand, Joel offers me his arm which I happily take.

"Get back into bed, I'll let Maria know that you're too sick to go to the school today." Audibly sighing, I nod and Joel presses a kiss to the crown my head before ushering me back into our bed. Flopping back into the comfort of the duvet, I snuggle into it and try not to think too much about my sudden sickness. It shouldn't be too important anyways. "Get some rest, baby, I'll be back later." Joel leans against the doorway of the bedroom as he surveys my poorly state, he gives me a once over before shutting the door softly and I hear his footsteps padding down the staircase.

The house is awfully quiet nowadays and especially when Joel leaves - it's times like this when I really miss Ellie's presence. I think about her everyday and even though she's within arms reach, she's also a million miles away. She avoids Joel like he's infected or something and with me it's barely even small talk, it's like we're strangers again and it kills me. She's completely shut herself off from us and it's been the hardest thing ever.

I feel like I've lost a part of me and I know Joel feels the same, I hear him mumbling her name in his sleep sometimes and it breaks my heart every time. He feels the brunt of her absence and I feel awful because of it.

I wasn't sure how long I'd been lost in my thoughts for but when the door slammed, I was bolting upright from my previous position against the pillows on the headboard,