Of Illnesses And Antidotes

Chapter Two

"Here you are. Two hundred milligrams of ergotamine tablets. Only take a maximum of three per day and a maximum of five per week. If you do take multiple in one day, take one and wait thirty minutes before taking another." I offer a warm smile to the tiny nine-year-old girl stood behind the counter. Her small, hazelnut eyes gaze up at me worriedly. She bites her lip.

"Th... thank you," she stammers and nods her head at me. She turns around and shuffles back into the crowds milling around in the main hall. Her shoulder-length chestnut hair is swept over her shoulders by a dainty, dark hand and then I lose her in a throng of children trudging back to their dormitories.

Sighing, I glance down at my clipboard and realise I only have one patient left. Clearing my throat, I lean in close to a small microphone. My steady breathing tickles its sensors, sending quiet crackles echoing throughout the main hall.

"Can Child 085663 please report to the pharmacy hatch."

Pushing the microphone away from my lips, I glance upwards just in time to see a tall, dark-haired girl with sharp green eyes striding towards the pharmacy counter. Her hand slips inside her jumpsuit and withdraws a folded slip of paper from her bra. She unfolds it and slides it across the counter. Smiling at her, I check the prescription and disappear off to fetch her pills, all the while muttering to myself the measurement.

Moments later, I return. "Fifty milligrams of hydroxyzine. Only to be administered when needed at a maximum of twice per day."

"Cheers." The girl's hand snatches up the paper bag containing her pills and she marches away.

I raise an eyebrow. "You're welcome." Turning around, I catch sight of Doctor Craig heading out of the storeroom. "Hey, Doctor Craig, do you want me to pull down the shutters?"

She shakes her head. "That's alright, Naomi, I'll do it later. How was your shift?"

I shrug. "Decent. Nothing much happened."

"We hadn't missed any prescriptions then?"

"Nope. Well, one girl's dosage was ten milligrams short but Marcia had that sorted in no time."

Doctor Craig smiles warmly at me. "Good. Well, see you tomorrow, Naomi. Bright and early."

"Bright and early as always, doctor." I return the smile.

"Don't forget your medicine."

"I won't."

Doctor Craig arches her eyebrows, giving me a knowing look. "I mean it. You have an unfortunate tendency to forget to take it after your shifts."

"I know; I can't help it. But I promise you this time, I will remember it. Cross my heart."

"Oh, and Naomi?"

"Yes?"

Doctor Craig nods at the surgical mask, pulled down around my neck. "Make sure you wear that properly next time."

I smile sheepishly. "Sorry, doctor. See you tomorrow."

"Remember to stay out of trouble."

"Why does everyone think I'm a troublemaker?" I mutter to myself, shaking my head.

Well, there may be one reason...

Passing by Doctor Craig, I enter the storeroom and remove the apron from my jumpsuit, hanging it back on its peg. I pull the surgical mask over my head, scrunch it into a ball and toss it into a nearby bin. Breathing a sigh of relief, I leave the storeroom and the pharmacy through the side-door, heading towards the girls' dormitories. Halfway there, I realise what I've forgotten. My medicine.