Alara's POV
14:33

"I snagged this from the shelf in the hallway." Kelly says as she tucks another blanket around me. "Is that any better?"

"Yeah, a-a bit."

"Good. Try not to worry, okay? The nurse should be here in a minute and she'll get this all sorted out." She places her hand on my forehead. "You feel nauseous at all?"

I nod.

The nurse arrives with the captain on her heels.

"How're we doin' in here? I hear you're not feeling so hot."

"Yeah, so a half hour ago she was fine. She was sitting up, chatting with us, eating jello. Then this fever came on suddenly and she won't stop shaking, not even with four blankets on, and she feels like a furnace."

"And my stomach hurts…really bad." I groan. "And I want to throw up." Just mentioning puking is enough to make my stomach churn, and I shut my mouth and breathe slowly through my nose before anything has a chance to come up.

"Alright, hun, we're gonna get your temp and go from there." She goes to stick a thermometer in my mouth but I shake my head, afraid to open it. "Sweetheart, I know you're nauseous, but there are two places this thermometer can go; I think you'll prefer this one."

I hear a soft "Ouch" from the captain across the room. I open my mouth immediately. The thermometer takes over a minute to beep. It's an agonizing minute. The tip of the thermometer leaves a horrible metallic taste in my mouth.

"103.9. Alright, you've got a fever. I'm going to let the doctor know and she'll probably switch your antibiotic. Nothing to worry about. Now, I'm just going to take a quick peek at your belly."

She pulls up my gown to expose an angry red wound. Just hours ago there was only a thin pink ring around the staples, seemingly just local tissue irritation from the trauma. Now a good portion of my belly is red and hot.

"Holy shit." The captain mutters from the foot of the bed. "Now that's infected!"

"It is, but we're hardly at the holy shit stage yet." The nurse responds, glancing up at him. "Nothing we can't handle."

She prods the area with her fingers and I shriek. I can't help it.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." She coos at me. "Alright, I'm going to notify your doctor and while we wait for her to come in I'm going to give you some medicine to bring your fever down. Oh and here," she adds, placing a plastic basin on the bedside table, "just in case."

She leaves the room and I look miserably at the basin.

"You need it?" Kelly asks, ready to grab it.

I shake my head quickly. I refuse to throw up in front of my commanding officers, even if one of them also happens to be my best friend.

"You sure?" She eyes me suspiciously, as if she doesn't believe me.

I nod.

"You know, you might feel a whole lot better if you just throw up."

I shake my head again, too quickly this time and my vision swims briefly.

"Kel, stop trying to make her throw up."

Kelly barely restrains herself from glaring at Ed, but relents. "Alright, well just let me know. Is that extra blanket helping at all?"

I nod slowly even though it's not entirely true. My chills have abated a bit, but only if I lie absolutely still. Kelly places her hand on my forehead again, then on my cheek.

"Yeah, you're burning up…hey, why are you crying? Alara, everything's gonna be okay."

I use the crook of my elbow to try to cover my eyes once I notice the captain walking over towards me.

"Are you crying because you're scared or because it hurts?" He asks me, crouching down at the side of the bed and patting my elbow.

Embarrassed, I shrug my shoulders and continue to hide my face. I'm acting like a baby, not the chief of security of a Union starship. Once this ordeal is all over I should probably request reassignment…

"Alara, I think you're going to feel a whole lot better after the nurse comes back in with that fever medicine. And then the doctor is going to come in and she'll probably switch your antibiotic and you'll feel good as new. I don't think you have anything to be scared of. It's okay to cry, though. Nobody is going to think differently of you if they see you cry. I cry, Ed cries."

"All the time. You know, Gordon cried when we played Gone with the Wind at movie night that one time. And he's seen it at least ten times. I think I saw Bortus crying during it, too, when Bonnie Blue died."

"See? Even Bortus cries. There's no rule against crying in the military."

A knock at the door startles me a bit but I don't budge from my position.

"Hi there, I have your fever medicine." She frowns. "What's wrong, sweetie? Do you feel worse?"

"She's just a bit upset right now." Kelly answers for me.

"Okay, well, she should take the medicine as soon as possible; I don't want her fever to rise any higher. Alara, do you think you can take these pills for me?"

"Could you maybe just leave them? I'll make sure she takes them."

"Alright, if you promise me you'll get them into her in the next ten minutes."

"I promise."

I hear a low rattle as she sets the medicine cup down on the table; the squeaking of her shoes indicates her departure.

"Ed, shoo."

"Shoo? Oh, uh, yeah…you know, I've actually been meaning to hit the John…"

"Good. Why don't you get a bite to eat or something as well?"

The captain walks out the door, muttering something about peeing and sandwiches, and when I'm sure he's gone I uncover my face.