No Rest for the Wicked

8

~The Following Monday Morning~

A little off balance, I trudged into work with a yawn. I'd been getting more and more tired as the weekend went by. Not to mention I was pretty shakey and my headaches were consistently causing me a lot of pain. I still wasn't really sure what was going on.

"Woah, woah, dang, Kira, are you okay??" Lizzie asked, gripping my shoulders tightly. I slumped down for a second before popping back up with Lizzie's help.

"I don't know." I replied with a faint slur.

"Oh my God! Kira, your face!"

"Pale?"

"Immensely. And it looks really thin. Kira, you look almost 50! Or like... A ghost or something!"

"Hilarious." I said weakly, dropping my bag to the ground.

"What's going onnnnn... Kira, what's wrong?" Eve asked, coming in from the back room.

"I dunno. I'm just really tired. I'm fine, though." I replied with a halfhearted grin.

"You're most certainly not fine. Are you good to drive home?"

"I came today so I think so."

"Good, cause I want you to go home and rest, maybe call a doctor." Eve said, pressing her hand to my forehead.

"But I'm not-" I started to protest.

"You haven't taken a day off since you got here. I don't know if you're amassing vacation days, but you need to take today off." Eve went to the back and came back with a thermometer. She ran it over my forehead and then looked at the number with a shocked expression.

"Fever?" I asked.

"No... In fact, you're cold. 35 degrees C."

"In Fahrenheit?"

"About 95 degrees Fahrenheit. You should be at-"

"98.6 degrees Fahrenheit average." I replied, slumping down into a chair. "I took Biology in High School."

"As your unofficial boss, I'm telling you to go home for the day. You sure you can drive?"

"I'm sure. I drove here. But what if you need me?"

"We survived over two months after the last bloke quit before you came. We'll handle this. Go home." Lizzie said, helping me up and taking me outside to my car. "Call me if you need anything."

"Okay, thanks." I said, shutting the door.

***

I practically collapsed into the small table next to the door as soon as I walked in. It was a miracle I didn't crash the car in town, but once I got to the secluded roads, it was a little easier... Aside from the strobing blur in my eyes.

I regained my footing and hung my keys on the hook (after several attempts). I took a few deep breaths before standing up straight.

"You're home early." Lucille said matter-of-factly, coming in from the living room.

"I was sent home. Lucille, you've been around the block, do you have any idea what's wrong with me?" I asked, my eyelids fluttering a little bit.

"What are you feeling like?"

"Well, I'm exhausted, my face is pale and thin. Eve took my temperature and said I was on the verge of dangerously low body temperature. Lizzie even said I look 50. And I feel it, too. My eyesight sucks and I can't stand right. Lucille, what's wrong with me?"