Cheyenne: The Art of Love and Jealousy

Chapter Fifteen: Fever

William picked up Cheyenne for school two weeks after the night in together in her bed because she wasn't feeling well and she didn't want to walk in the cold. She was insistent on going to school despite her current state of sickness because of a math test she could not retake that counted for ten percent of her final grade. William pulled up to her house to find Cheyenne in her extra running shoes, gray sweatpants, and her camouflage hoodie. She was a little pale, her eyes were red and puffy, and her nose resembled the color of a strawberry.

"You don't think you're pregnant, do you?" asked William, sounding concerned after he had to pull over so Cheyenne could vomit on the side of the road. "I mean I pulled out, but it's not a foolproof method."

"Not a chance," Cheyenne answered after she finished vomiting and closed the door so William could drive again. "First, I'm on the pill, just so my periods are predictable instead of seven to nine weeks apart or more and it helps with my... health issues. Third, I started right on time yesterday."

"Well, you've got one bad stomach bug," said William.

"I'll be fine. As soon as I am finished with my test, I'm going home. Thankfully, algebra is second period."

"How are you getting home?"

"My mom is off work in two hours," Cheyenne explained. "I called her before you came to pick me up and let her know she was going to have to get me after second period because I'm sicker than a dog."

"Well I think you're still cute," said William.

"Then you need your eyes checked," Cheyenne said as William pulled into a parking spot. "I'm in my sweats and tennis shoes and I look like I lost a bet to a tomato."

"Yes, but I know what you look like under all that, remember?"

Cheyenne managed a weak smile as she remembered his birthday. "That's true."

"It's a beautiful sight," said William quietly. "You're absolutely perfect." Cheyenne blushed and smiled.

William turned off the engine and turned to Cheyenne looking a little more serious.

"So what health problems do you have that the birth control pill helps with?"

Cheyenne shifted uncomfortably, looking embarrassed. She had never told anyone outside of her mother and her doctor. She was ashamed of it, but William would find out eventually and she wanted him to find out from her.

"I have Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome," she said. "It's a hormonal disorder that triggers irregular cycles, and acne. The pill helps since estrogen helps regulate periods, and combats skin problems. My periods used to be months apart. The first year, I only had three instead of the twelve a year girls are supposed to have. I was put on the pill at fourteen."

"So you're regular now?" asked William. 

Cheyenne was suddenly struck with the realization that she was talking about her period with a man and William didn't seem bothered by it at all. She supposed that it had to do with him having a younger sister who had no filter on her mouth and said whatever she was thinking.

"Yeah," Cheyenne said. "My periods were so unbearable before, I would have to stay home for the first two days. My cramps aren't that bad anymore. They're only bad for an hour or two, but nothing I can't handle."

"I'm glad. I don't like seeing you in pain."

William walked Cheyenne to her first class in the F building, kissed her warm forehead, and left for his class just as the warning bell rang. Cheyenne sat in her usual seat by the window and put her head down as the rest of the class came filing in. She took short notes as her teacher spoke; doing everything she could to fight the urge to sleep. When the bell rang, she walked to her math class on the ground floor of the L building. She stopped once to vomit into a trash can but she managed to get to class on time.