The Dysfunction Of Evan: Books 1-3 Collection

39. Suicide Note

Tom held my hair back as I hurled the contents of my stomach into the trash can. We'd been right in the middle of a scene, and I just barely made it. It was day three of what ever stomach bug I caught, and it wasn't even pretending to go away. As I finished, Andrea rushed over and handed me a damp towel. 

"I'm sorry." I said as I pressed the towel to my face. 

"I think maybe you should see the doctor, Astrid." Ray said. 

"Probably best at this point." I agreed. "I don't think the clinic will be able to do much though." 

"Well, Tom, why don't you take her to an Urgent Care?" Ray suggested. Andrea said she'd go get my purse from the trailer and meet Tom and I at the car. 

"How's your stomach?" He asked as he drove us through town. 

"I feel a lot better. I'm probably pregnant." I said, half joking.

"Didn't you just finish your period?" He asked. 

"Yeah, but it was really light and only lasted two days." I leaned my head against the window. "And we are very irresponsible with birth control."

Tom chuckled and agreed with me as we pulled into the parking lot. 

After going through all the usual paperwork, I was taken back to a room and my vitals were taken. I answered all the normal questions and given a cup, then escorted to a restroom. When I returned to my assigned exam room, I set the cup on the counter and sat in the chair next to Tom. I leaned against him and he put an arm around me. I was starting to get cramps, probably from the amount of puking I'd done over the last two days, which was paired with generous amounts of dry heaving. 

I grabbed onto his hand. I really just didn't feel good, now that I was sitting down and able to just focus on my body. Work started two weeks ago, and it had been fourteen to sixteen hours days non-stop. 

"You feel really warm, baby." Tom said softly. He'd touched his hand to my forehead. I responded by nuzzling into him. 

A nurse came in a few minutes later and took my urine sample. About fifteen minutes later, the nurse came back in with the doctor. He introduced himself and I was asked to get on the exam table. I told him my symptoms. 

"There's a nasty stomach bug that's been making its rounds, its a viral strain that's got people sick for weeks at a time." He said as he palpitated my neck and chin. "Your urine test was negative for pregnancy. Have you had any bowel problems?"

"Nothing out of the ordinary. I have IBS." I told him. He asked me to lay back. 

"Any pain when I press down?" He pressed gently into my lower abdomen. 

"Yeah, a bit." I said. "More of a discomfort." 

"Alright. You can sit up." He instructed. He looked in my ears, assessed my eyes, and had me open my mouth. "You're very dehydrated." He said. He picked up my hand and ran his thumb over the back of it. 

"I'm going to run an IV to get some fluids in you. Are you nauseous?" 

"It comes and goes." I said. 

"She dry heaves a lot." Tom added. The doctor nodded. 

"Worse when you eat?" He asked me. I nodded. 

"Yep. I'm pretty sure you've got that virus I mentioned. Not much we can do for it, just rest and fluids. Make sure you stay hydrated and let it work its way out." The doctor said. "I'll give you something for nausea, that should help."

"What about work? I'm an actress, and we're right in the middle of filming." I said. 

"Well, I don't recommend exerting yourself, do what you feel you can do, and if you need to stop, tell them." He handed me a prescription. "If you need, I can write a note limiting the hours you work and requesting frequent breaks."