Just a little one shot i came up with. Its meant to be humorous but since i'm more of a drama writer you may not think its funny. Anyway, i hope you like it :)
Disclaimer: I don't own anything that was created by the creators of Malcolm in the Middle.
The Wilkerson Boys versus a Spider
"Now boys, I want you to look after Jamie while your father and I are at work." Lois told Reese, Malcolm and Dewey, who were all sitting at the table eating breakfast.
"What! Why?" Reese asked.
"Because! That's why" Lois yelled as she left the house, slamming the front door behind her.
"Oh man, this sucks!" Reese whined.
"Stop your whinging, Reese. It's only for the day" Malcolm said.
"But it's a whole day! Not only is it a whole day out of our summer vacation but it's also a whole day of being stuck inside a house looking after a 2 year old who's as bad as we were! You can't honestly tell me that you're enjoying this!"
"Of course I'm not! But it doesn't matter anyway because it's raining outside!" Malcolm had raised his voice.
"I guess the only thing we can do is watch TV" Dewey, the only one who didn't mind babysitting the youngest brother, said calmly.
"I guess that's not so bad" said Reese. "Where is Jamie anyway?"
"He's still asleep in Mum and Dad's room" answered Malcolm with a shrug of his shoulders.
After that the boys sat down on the couch to watch TV. They fought several times over what they should watch but after a while Malcolm and Reese lost interest which left Dewey to pick a show to watch. They were halfway through an episode of a ninja cartoon when they heard a sound that came from the baby monitor.
"What the hell was that?" Reese asked alarmed. Malcolm rolled his eyes.
"It was just the baby monitor. Jamie must be awake now."
"What should we do then?" asked Dewey.
"Just leave him. He'll go back to sleep." Reese said.
"No way, Reese. We can't just leave him there all day. We'll let him out and he can come watch TV with us." Malcolm said, standing up.
"I like my idea better." Reese mumbled as he and Dewey got up. Suddenly, another noise came from the monitor. This time it sounded like a scream. The boys all looked at each other in fear before racing to their parent's bedroom.
"Oh my god Jamie! Are you okay?" Malcolm yelled instinctively as he burst through the door, Reese and Dewey following. None of them knew exactly what to expect when they entered the room. All of the images that flashed through their minds had been horrific but they had no idea how to respond to the sight that they saw. Jamie was standing up in his cot, with a bright smile on his face and arms outstretched, ready to get up. Nothing, or nobody, else seemed to be there with him.
"Okay, I'm confused. Why did he scream then?" asked a puzzled Reese. Malcolm shrugged his shoulders while Dewey kept looking around.
"I got no idea, Reese. Come on, let's just get him out of here then we can get back to the TV" Malcolm walked over to Jamie's cot and picked his brother up, placing him on the floor below. Jamie stood firmly by the cot and tried to reach something that was inside it, poking his tiny arms through the gaps in the wood.
"What do you want, Jamie?" asked Malcolm gently, as if his brother would answer him. He looked into the cot and noticed that Jamie's favourite stuffed toy was still in there. "Oh, is that what you're after" Malcolm said with a cheeky smile. Jamie nodded his head, somehow knowing exactly what his brother meant. Without further hesitation Malcolm reached his own hand into the cot and grabbed the toy but as he lifted it higher a small black thing fell off it.
"Oh my god, what's that?" he asked no one in particular.
"What is it?" asked Reese who was still standing by their parent's bed.
"I dunno," Malcolm squinted at the black thing until it started moving.
"Oh man, it's a spider!" Malcolm exclaimed.
"A spider!" shrieked Dewey, who was afraid of them. Reese snickered.
"You guys are such babies. Here, I'll get rid of it for you." Reese walked over to the cot as Malcolm kept watching the spider. Suddenly aware that it wasn't alone, the spider crawled across the cot's sheets and climbed onto and then up the wall.
"Are you trying to get away from me are you?" Reese taunted. "Well let me make one thing clear, nothing and nobody escapes the wrath of Reese Wilkerson!" he finished triumphantly.
"What are you gonna do, Reese?" asked Dewey, who was at the furthest point possible.
"What do ya think I'm gonna do? Smash it!" Reese laughed cruelly.
"With what?" asked Malcolm.
"Well duh. I'll use my hands, Einstein." Reese turned away from Malcolm and started reaching over the cot to where the spider was sitting on the wall. With one fast movement, he punched the wall. The spider was too fast though. Although it lost its balance, it still gripped the wall with one leg and with the agility of an acrobat it was able to stick the rest of its legs back onto the wall.
"Hey!" Reese was annoyed. There was no way he was going to let a small spider beat him at what he does best; punching people/things. So he tried again. He missed again. And again. And again. Malcolm thought it was quite comical so he started laughing and through his fear, Dewey joined in. Reese voiced his annoyance with a loud grunt.
"That's it!" Reese yelled as he gave it one more punch. His frustration must have clouded his mind though, because he missed again but left his clenched fist on the wall. That was all the spider needed. Quickly, the spider jumped onto Reese's outstretched arm and ran along it to his shoulder. Reese started panicking, yelling out for someone to help.
Malcolm and Dewey stopped laughing, though didn't do much else but watch. They watched as Reese tried to bat the spider away but missed every time. They watched as the spider kept crawling, along his arm, his shoulder, his back and then finally his neck where it seemed to sit. Grabbing his chance while he still had it Reese flung his hand at his neck, this time right on target. Malcolm and Jamie watched as the spider fell to the floor, apparently dead. Dewey was too far away to see as through the whole ordeal he had inched himself as close to the wall as he could, even feeling a little discomfort.
Puffing and panting, Reese flung himself onto his parent's bed where he collapsed; his energy seemed to have disappeared. Malcolm on the other hand, leant over the spider to get a better look at it. It was small and black in appearance, probably no more than an inch in size. Its body was round and glistening, its thin legs curled in towards it. It wasn't until he leant closer to it though, that he noticed something but in the dimness of the room it was hard to make out.
"Dewey, make yourself useful and turn on the light for me," he ordered.
"Why would you want the light on? It's dead! I squished it myself. Now just get rid of it." Reese croaked.
"In a moment Reese. Please Dewey, turn the light on." Malcolm said impatiently. Without saying a word Dewey did as he was told and with a click the room was flooded with bright light. This made it clearer for Malcolm to see the red mark.
"Oh man, it's a black widow!" he exclaimed.
"So what?" Reese was getting impatient now.
"Black widows are one of the most poisonous spiders in America," Malcolm explained. Then a thought crossed his mind, which filled his face with fear. "Oh man, I wonder if it bit Jamie." Malcolm turned to Jamie, knelt down to his level and quickly gave him a once over. Reese sat up.
"Is he alright?" he asked, concerned. Malcolm stared at Jamie, Jamie stared back. Suddenly Jamie's face broke into a smile and he grabbed Malcolm's nose.
"Hey, let go!" Malcolm exclaimed with a grin on his face.
"Well, is he alright Malcolm?" Dewey asked from the wall.
"I think he is but black widow bites can be dangerous to children. Maybe we should take him to the hospital."
"How?" Reese asked.
"We'll take the bus" Malcolm said quickly.
"I've got no money" Reese pointed out.
"Well I dunno then. Maybe we should call an ambulance to check him so you don't have to leave the house!" Malcolm snapped.
"Sounds good to me" Reese had a goofy grin on his face, showing most of his perfect teeth. Malcolm rolled his eyes.
"Alright then, Dewey you go call an ambulance and Reese get rid of the spider." Malcolm ordered. Dewey quickly left the room but Reese groaned.
"Why should I get rid of it? I was the one who killed it!"
"Because I'm gonna keep an eye on Jamie and maybe see if I can find a bite mark, or would you prefer to do that instead?" Malcolm snapped.
"Okay okay, I'll get rid of it" Reese said in a sing song voice.
"Good," Malcolm calmed down "This time maybe use something other than your hands like say, a broom and dustpan. Or at least use a tissue." Without saying a word Reese disappeared out of the bedroom which left Malcolm to check Jamie more thoroughly. Dewey could be heard on the phone, his voice echoing through the hallway and into the master bedroom. After checking all of the usual places and finding nothing, Malcolm gave up and let out a sigh of exasperation.
"Well Jamie, from what I can tell the spider didn't hurt you but it's probably better to get you checked out anyway." Malcolm told him. Jamie just continued to stare at Malcolm, only averting his gaze when Reese ran back into the room holding a dustpan.
"Okay, I found the dustpan but not the broom so I grabbed a tissue to use instead" he announced. Malcolm turned to face him but didn't reply back, just watched as Reese gingerly used a bunched up tissue to sweep the spider into the pan. Reese breathed a sigh of relief.
"That wasn't too hard" he declared.
"Good to hear. Now get rid of it" growled Malcolm.
"Alright alright. I'm going" Reese left the room via the bathroom door and Malcolm followed, leading Jamie along with them. In the bathroom they stood around the toilet.
"Should we give it a funeral ceremony?" Dewey's voice sounded from outside the hallway door.
"Nah, let's just flush it" answered Reese as he tipped the contents of the pan into the toilet and flushed it. They watched as the spider spun around a few times in the water before disappearing. Reese dusted his hands.
"Well, that's the end of that then. Let's go back to the TV. I wonder what's-" Reese broke off and seemed to gag a little. Malcolm and Dewey stared at him with widened eyes as he doubled over and fell onto the toilet, emptying his stomach at the same time.
"Whoa, are you alright?" Malcolm exclaimed. Reese wiped his mouth and lifted himself to a kneeling position.
"I...I think so," he croaked out. He slowly stood up and flushed the toilet again.
"Are you sure?" Malcolm pressed.
"Yeah I'm fine. I probably ate something bad at breakfast." Reese shrugged and walked out of the bathroom, probably heading back to the couch. Malcolm and Dewey looked at each other and then Dewey spoke.
"Oh, the ambulance should be here in about 20 minutes. The woman I spoke to on the phone said that Jamie should be okay but they're gonna send someone out to check anyway."
"Good, though I checked him myself and I couldn't find any bites but it's better to be on the safe side." Malcolm then grabbed Jamie's hand and led him out to the lounge room where Reese was sitting on the couch, a hand resting on his chest. The TV was on and he was watching a cooking show but when he saw his brothers enter the room he quickly changed it to a boxing match. Malcolm heard Dewey stifle a laugh behind him.
"Reese, Dewey said that the ambulance should be here in about 20 minutes."
"Yup, okay," Reese croaked through his still burning throat. Malcolm picked up Jamie and placed him on the couch next to Reese and once Jamie was settled he sat down on the other end of the couch, closest to the kitchen. Dewey sat on the arm chair, resting his feet on the coffee table. Malcolm was about to say something when he heard a sharp inhale of breath coming from the other side of him. He looked at Reese, who was hunched over with his hand clutching his abdomen tightly. Dewey lifted his feet off the table and leant in closer for a better look.
"Reese, what's up? You gonna throw up again?" asked Malcolm, a little worried.
"I dunno. My stomach feels really tight at the moment."
"Sounds like you've got food poisoning," Malcolm mused. "Just sit back and relax. Or you can go sit in the bathroom, your choice." The only movement Reese made was lifting his head up and letting it rest on the couch behind. His eyes were now closed and he looked like he might be asleep. Feeling content, Malcolm went back to watching the TV and Dewey put his feet back on the coffee table.
Reese however was not as content as his brothers. Along with feeling sick, he was in a great deal of pain. His chest and abdomen were feeling tight and his arms, legs and neck were all aching. After a few minutes of complete agony, he decided he couldn't deal with it anymore.
"Hey guys, do you think you can handle the ambo's on your own? I need to go lay down for a while." Reese told them, his eyes still closed. Malcolm turned his attention away from the TV again and stared at his older brother. He wasn't looking to good, his face was pale and it looked like he was sweating.
"Yeah, we should be fine" answered Malcolm, not taking his eyes off Reese. Reese peeled open his eyes and slowly got up from the couch, successfully making it to a standing position. Using the arm of the chair for support he walked around the back of the couch but only made it a few more steps before he started feeling dizzy. Reese stumbled a bit but was lucky enough to find the back of the couch to lean on. Feeling the pressure from Reese Malcolm spun around and saw his brother cradling his head in his free hand.
"Reese! Are you alright?" Malcolm jumped up and stood in front of Reese, grabbing his shoulder's to support him.
"I'm okay, just a little dizzy" Reese said with a pained expression on his face.
"Alright, well let me help you to your bed." Malcolm grabbed Reese's arm and slung it over his shoulders. Welcoming the support, Reese leant on his brother and began to walk. In a few minutes they had reached their bedroom and Malcolm helped Reese lie down on his bed.
"Are you sure you're alright?" Malcolm asked, standing over Reese's bed.
"Yeah, I'm okay. Just need to lie down for a while." Reese mumbled.
"Okay, well I'll just go get you some water. It should help." Malcolm ran out of the room and returned shortly with a glass of water in his hand. He placed it on the bedside table.
"Here you go" he said. "Let me know if you need anything else."
"Okay." Malcolm then turned on his heel and returned to the couch in the lounge room. Dewey looked at him.
"Is Reese alright?" he sounded concerned.
"He says that he is, He just needs to lie down for a bit. Now shut up and let me watch TV." Malcolm told him, not taking his eyes off the TV. Dewey rolled his eyes but did as he was told. When the next add break started they both heard a noise coming from the front yard. Malcolm walked over to the window and peeped out of it. Sitting in their driveway was the ambulance they had called for, with 2 male officers walking towards the front door. Malcolm rushed over to let them in, opening the door before they had a chance to knock.
"Hello young man" one of them greeted cheerfully, "we got a call regarding a spider bite to a toddler?" he questioned.
"Yep, that's right. Only we're not quite sure if he was bitten, we were hoping you could check him out for us." Malcolm told them.
"Sure kid. Where is the little tyke?" asked the other officer.
"Right this way" Malcolm gestured for them to come in and he led them to Jamie who was still sitting on the couch watching the TV. One of the officer's glanced at the TV.
"Isn't he a little young to be watching boxing?" he pointed out.
"Not really. He doesn't really understand it anyway." Dewey said from the arm chair. The officer looked at him but then turned to face Jamie.
"Hi there little guy, what's your name?" Of course, Jamie didn't say anything but he did give the officer a huge grin.
"His name is Jamie. I'm Dewey, this is Malcolm and our older brother Reese is in the bedroom."
"Thanks kid" said the officer. Dewey rolled his eyes, which went unnoticed. As both the officer's starting examining Jamie, Malcolm noticed that there was a gagging sound coming from the bathroom.
"Excuse me" he said politely with a smile on his face just before he ran as fast as he could to the bathroom. He reached the door and saw Reese hunched over the toilet again.
"Reese did you drink the water?"
"Yes, but it didn't stay down very long" Reese said through puffs and pants.
"Do you want me to help you back to bed then?" Reese was about to answer but was cut off by a voice coming from behind Malcolm. It belonged to the cheerful officer.
"Whoa, you don't look so good kid!" he said to Reese before turning to Malcolm. "Okay, we checked your little brother and he seems to be clean for bites. I already told your other brother and he told me to tell you." Malcolm breathed a sigh of relief.
"Okay, thank you."
"No problem kid. Now if you won't be needing us any-hey, wait on a second!" The officer walked over to Reese who was still hunched over the toilet bowl. With a gloved hand he brushed a red patch on Reese's neck, which made Reese flinch in pain.
"Hmm," he turned to face Malcolm, "that spider, did it happen to have any contact with this brother?" he motioned to Reese. Malcolm thought for a minute before he realized what the officer meant.
"Oh man, it did. Are you saying that it bit Reese?"
"What!" Reese cried out. The officer turned to Reese and chuckled.
"Sorry to be the one to tell you this kid but it looks like you've been bitten. Most likely by a vampire spider!" The officer exclaimed. He then got up and yelled out to his partner.
"Joe, don't pack up just yet. We've got a situation in the bathroom!" The officer then walked back to Reese and knelt next to him. "It's alright, kid. Just relax for me. It will all be over soon."
"What's going on, Dan?" The gruffer looking officer was now at the bathroom door, peering inside.
"Looks like this kid was bitten instead of the toddler..." Malcolm wanted to stay but the phone started ringing so he had to leave. He pushed his way past Joe and past Dewey and Jamie who was now standing behind Joe, hoping to get a look at Reese.
"Hello?" he answered it.
"Malcolm! How's it going bro?" It was Francis.
"Hey Francis. You've actually caught me at a bad time-"
"Bad time! What's going on?"
"Well, there was this black widow spider in the house and-" Malcolm realized that he didn't have time to tell the whole story, "well, long story short it bit Reese and now we have a couple of paramedics in our bathroom."
"Oh my god! Is Reese alright?"
"Well I dunno. You kind of dragged me out of the bathroom and to the kitchen." Malcolm said impatiently.
"Geez, relax man. Forgive me for being worried about my little brother."
"Francis, I have to go! Can you please call back later?"
"Oh alright. But you-" Not wanting to hear a lecture Malcolm harshly hung up on him and dropping the phone on the kitchen table he ran back to the bathroom, where he saw Reese laying down on the tiles and the officers kneeling on either side of him. Dewey and Jamie were standing just inside the door watching intently.
"What's going on? Why's he lying down?" Malcolm asked, concerned.
"Nothing to be concerned about," Dan said, "we just needed him to relax and we find that lying down is the best way to do that" he finished with a smile. Just then, Reese's body starting convulsing, thrashing around violently.
"Oh my god, make it stop!" Malcolm exclaimed as he moved in closer.
"There's nothing we can do, kid. We've just gotta wait it out" said Joe. After a couple of minutes Reese's convulsions stopped and the officer's put him in the recovery position, lying on his side.
"Hey, what was his name again?" asked Dan.
"Reese" Malcolm and Dewey said together.
"Oh that's right. Reese, can you hear me?" Dan said to Reese. Slowly Reese's eyes opened and he nodded his head.
"Are you aware of what just happened to you?" asked Joe. Reese shook his head.
"Okay, you just had a seizure. You're alright now though, so stay calm. Your brothers are right here with us. Everything is going to be fine." Joe said slowly. The he and Dan got up and turned to Malcolm and Dewey.
"Alright, this is a little more serious than we thought but luckily the hospital gave us some antivenom in case we needed it. The only problem is that we left it in the ambulance. We'll just go get it." With that, Joe and Dan walked out of the bathroom.
"Wait, what do we do now?" Malcolm called from the doorway.
"Just stay with him and keep him calm. He needs to stay relaxed" Dan called back through the hallway.
"Alright then" Malcolm said under his breath. Turning around he walked into the bathroom and knelt down beside Reese, Dewey having done the same thing. Malcolm placed a hand on Reese's shoulder in a bid to comfort him.
"Okay Reese, everything is gonna be alright. You're gonna be fine" he said softly. Reese looked up at him and gave him a tired smile. "It will all be over soon and when it is you can pick which TV show to watch. You can even choose that cooking show you like." Malcolm continued. Dewey didn't seem to like the idea of watching a cooking show but Malcolm glared at him.
"Alright boys, here we go" Dan announced as he and Joe returned to the bathroom. In Joe's hand was a large needle. Malcolm and Dewey were pushed aside as Dan and Joe took their places.
"Okay Reese. We are just going to give you an injection into your shoulder. You might feel a jab and then some stinging but it won't be too bad" Dan told him. Reese started looking a little distressed at that information so Malcolm pushed his way back to his brother's side and placed his hand on his back, rubbing it soothingly.
"It's gonna be alright, Reese," he repeated, "just relax and it will all be over soon." Dan and Joe stared at him.
"He doesn't really like needles" Malcolm told them sheepishly.
"Alright, in 3...2...1." Joe jabbed the needle into Reese's shoulder. Malcolm felt Reese tense up and he groaned in pain but soon it was over, Joe pulling the needle out.
"And all done" he exclaimed as he put a bandaid on Reese's shoulder.
"Well done champ, you did well" Dan congratulated Reese while Joe put the used needle into a plastic bag. The bag was put into their first aid kit which they locked up afterwards. Dan, Joe and Malcolm stood up.
"So what now?" asked Malcolm.
"It will take a couple of hours for the antivenom to take affect but he will make a full recovery" grinned Dan.
"Just keep an eye on him and keep him comfortable." Joe told him. "A hot bath may also help with the pain."
"Okay, thanks for your help." Malcolm thanked.
"No problem." Dan said.
"Dewey, can you please see these officer's out. Take Jamie with you." Malcolm ordered.
"Okay" Dewey did as he was told. Malcolm turned to Reese, who hadn't moved from his side.
"Hey, how are you feeling?" he asked with a smile. Reese answered with a groan.
"Still terrible" he managed to croak.
"Do you wanna go lie down again or do you wanna watch TV?"
"Lie down" Reese could only whisper.
"Alright, well can you get up?"
"Maybe" Slowly Malcolm helped Reese to a sitting position where Reese immediately let his head fall onto his knees. Malcolm turned his head to the doorway.
"Dewey!" he called.
"What?" Dewey answered from down the hall and then his head peered through the doorway.
"Can you give me a hand please? We just need to help Reese get back into bed." Dewey shrugged his shoulders in response and moved to Reese's side.
"Okay, on 3" Malcolm instructed, "1...2...3-" They both picked Reese up by the shoulders and led him into the bedroom where Reese was able to find the strength to put himself to bed, without the help of his brothers.
"Okay, if you need anything we'll just be watching TV" Malcolm told Reese when he was settled. Reese made a noise which Malcolm assumed was his response.
"Okay, let's go" he whispered to Dewey and they both headed out of the room.
"Hey, where's Jamie?" Malcolm suddenly remembered his youngest brother.
"When you called me I plonked him on the couch. I think he's watching some baby show on TV at the moment." Dewey answered. Sure enough, when they both got back to the TV they saw Jamie sitting happily on the couch, remote clutched tightly in his hand. Malcolm and Dewey tried to wrestle it out of his fingers but were unsuccessful, Jamie was surprisingly strong.
"Oh well, I guess we're watching what he's watching" Dewey commented. Malcolm rolled his eyes but gave up trying to get the remote.
"Fine then, Jamie. You win!" Malcolm said angrily.
So for the next couple of hours Malcolm and Dewey sat bored rigid, watching children's shows with each show more boring than the last. Just when they thought they couldn't handle anymore, Reese appeared.
"Reese! Thank god you're here. Can you try getting the remote off Jamie so we can end this torture?" Malcolm pleaded. Reese, who was looking a lot better, smiled and gave a chuckle.
"Alright, I'll see what I can do." He knelt down in front of Jamie so that he was eye level.
"Jamie," he cooed, "please hand over the remote." He held his hand out but Jamie shook his head and clutched the remote tightly to his chest. This annoyed Reese a little but he kept his calm.
"Jamie, don't you remember? I saved you from a spider. That makes me the good brother which means that you owe me. Now hand over the remote." Reese said more forcefully. It didn't work though; Jamie still clutched the remote and stared blankly at Reese. Then Reese had a sudden change of tactics.
"THAT"S IT! GIVE ME THE DAMN REMOTE!" he yelled and made a grab for it, which began a wrestling match between them. All Malcolm and Dewey could do was watch as their older brother was being beaten by their youngest brother, Jamie not giving in that easily.
"WHAT IS GOING ON IN HERE?" Reese stopped what he was doing as all 4 brothers turned their attention to the kitchen, where the loud bellow came from. It was their mother, home from work.
"Oh man." Reese, Malcolm and Dewey muttered under their breath.
"Reese! What are you doing? Jamie is only a toddler!" Lois cried out in shock.
"Mum, you don't understand-" Reese tried but was cut off.
"I don't want to hear it. You march right into your room and stay there!" Lois ordered. Reese sighed but got up.
"We should've left him in his room" he muttered under his breath so only his brother's could hear. For once, considering what had happened during the day, Malcolm and Dewey agreed with him.
THE END