Ruby

Chapter Three

I remember how this all started.

It had been a sunny fall afternoon and I had just come back from my dancing classes. I was feeling fitter than ever. But just outside our dance school, are three flights of stairs with eight steps each. Me and my three friends Lindsay, Melly and Dani were going to go the the local coffee shop for a cold drink.

I had gotten down the first set fine, but on the second step in the second flight i went tumbling. I fell down both flights of stairs. 

I wasn't hurt, and thought nothing of it besides the fact that i just lost my footing.

It got worse.

About a week later, i was in my room reviewing some homework assignment that was due soon. Suddenly my head started throbbing. It was like someone had punched me.

I went to mum, who gave me a Panadol but that didn't help. But i blamed it on the fact that i hadn't had enough water, enough sleep and had been working too long.

It got worser still.

One morning - about a month after i had started continually falling and getting huge headaches - i felt really sick.

I got up and went to the bathroom and examined my face in the mirror. But all of a sudden, i felt this extreame urge to vomit. I bent over the toilet and choked up everything i had in my stomach. Liam had found me and went to tell mum. Eventually i was just bringing up bile and water. It burnt my thoart. I felt absolutley horrid.

We blamed it on a stomach bug.

A few days later, on a wednesday afternoon, mum took me to see the doctor. I had a constant headache and hadn't stopped vomitting in the mornings.

We saw my regular GP - Docotor Lovelock. 

"Ruby, you've presented some very strrange symptoms. Can you describe your symptoms again?" she asked.

"Well," I said, "i've been vomitting in the morning and i've had bad headaches," i repeated.

"Have you had any other symptoms? Like dizziness or lack of balance?" she asked.

"Well actually, I have been falling a lot lately," i said.

She nodded. Suddenly she reached for her masking tape and walked to the end of the room. She lay down the white tape in a straight line from one end to the other.

"Can you walk on this, Ruby?" she asked me.

I stood up, and aligned myself to the white line of tape. I started walking.

And then i fell.

"Oh!" my mother exclaimed.

"Come back Ruby, have a seat," Doctor Lovelock said.

"So what's wrong with her?" my mother asked.

"Well Mrs Field, i am going to refer Ruby to an Oncologist," she said.

"Oh, but isn't Oncology, like, cancer?" my mum said, confused.

"Don't worry Mrs Field, it's just a precaution. Better to be safe rather than sorry,"  she smiled. She passed my mother a note, showed us the door and took the next patient.

I looked up at my mother. "Don't worry Ruby, as she said, it's just a precaution," she smiled weakly and suddenly i wanted to vomit again.