The next morning, I asked Beth if her co-worker would still be interested in going out with me while we were cleaning up after breakfast. She looked shocked that I had brought it up myself, but I suppose that was to be expected considering I had completely shut down the idea more than once.
"Yes!" she had exclaimed. "I know Davin's not on call tonight. Let me text him. I'll do it right now!"
"Do you mean that blond guy?" Summer asked, bringing her dirty dishes into the kitchen. I pointed her toward the dishwasher when she went to sit them in the sink. She rolled her eyes, but loaded them regardless. "He's, like, such a dork."
"He's not a dork, Summer. He just really cares about horses. And, he's good at what he does" Beth replied, tapping away on her phone while leaning against the counter. I stood next to her, casually sipping a glass of orange juice and peeking at her phone screen.
"He said he's free. Do you want him to pick you up here?"
"No. I'll meet him. He can pick the place, I really don't care."
"Mom, isn't that guy, like, totally in love with you?" Summer asked just as Jerry strolled in from the dining room.
"Who's in love with you?" Jerry asked, slightly panicked.
"No" Beth replied with a sigh, giving her daughter a hard look over the top of her phone. "He and I just work well together."
"Who?" Jerry asked again, rubbing his hands.
"Beth is setting me up with her co-worker, uhh…" I started.
"Davin" Beth filled in.
"Davin?! I hate that guy" Jerry said, narrowing his eyes.
"Great. He sounds like a real winner. Can't wait!" I said sarcastically, loading my juice glass in the dishwasher before leaving the kitchen for the living room. Beth followed, explaining her text conversation thus far.
"Okay. He said there's some Cuban place downtown that's good. He'll meet you there. I gave him your number so he could text you directly."
"Awesome" I said, flopping down in the armchair. Morty was already watching some bizarre television show that resembled Saturday morning cartoons in hell that already interested me more.
"Hey, did you change your hair?" Jerry asked, sitting next to Morty.
"Yeah, Jer. Morty complimented me on it like 20 minutes ago at breakfast and you agreed" I explained, rolling my eyes. He obviously hadn't noticed at all considering he was tapping away on his tablet at the time.
"Oh" he laughed, blushing. "That's right."
"Where's Grandpa Rick?" Summer inquired, looking at Morty. I kept my eyes glued to the television screen.
"Uh – I don't know, ya know? Probably still in space somewhere – or whatever." He quickly threw a glance at me and I pretended not to notice. Then, I heard my phone chirp from inside my back pocket.
"That's probably Davin!" Beth said with a huge smile on her face. "He's really excited! Text him back!"
I sighed and pulled my phone from my pocket. It wasn't Davin.
Rick: Hey, what are you doing?
How in the hell was he texting me from space?
I suddenly felt sick to my stomach. Legitimately. Like I could puke at any second. I scrambled from the chair and walked to the bathroom as quickly as I could without raising suspicion. I felt my stomach lurch as soon as I closed and locked the door. I heaved and leaned over the sink, unable to get to the toilet in time. Nothing came up. I heaved again and again with no result. A cold sweat had broken out on my face and neck and I suddenly felt dizzy. I set down on the cool tile floor and leaned with my back against the tub. At this point I was thanking my lucky stars that I had skipped actual food in favor of juice this morning because this wasn't the first time I'd felt sick today. When I awoke this morning, the same overwhelming feeling of impending vomit washed over me as soon as I had stepped out of bed and a similar bout of dry heaves had wracked my body for five minutes.
I considered canceling the date. And then my phone chirped again.
Rick: I'm coming back tonight. Meet me in the garage when I do.
Fuck that. Whatever spell Rick had me under during the past week was broken. I was going on this date even if I was puking blood.
—-
Davin did end up texting me to firm up the particulars of our date later in the afternoon and he seemed like a normal enough fellow. The photo that Beth showed me also gave me hope that it wouldn't end in total disaster. During the day, I suffered a few more instances of nausea, but was combating it with some fizzy ginger ale that I had purchased from the corner store. And, as early evening approached, I actually began to feel nervously excited for the date.
"Do you know what you're going to wear?" Beth asked. She was sitting on the foot of the trundle bed, watching me dig through piles of clothes in the closet.
"I was thinking about a nice burlap bag. You know, like a potato sack" I joked, throwing a yellow summer dress onto the bed beside her. Honestly, I was looking for something a little less form fitting since the nausea also came with side order of stomach bloating as an extra super fun bonus. My period was due next week so maybe it was just PMS.
"Well, you could wear something like that and still look beautiful."
"Shut up" I replied, rolling my eyes while tossing another dress on the bed.
"Do you think you'll sleep with him?"
I barked out a laugh and looked back at her. She had a sly smile on her face.
"Come on, Beth. Seriously?"
"He's a good looking guy!" she exclaimed, holding her hands up. "Besides, when was the last time you – ya know?"
I had no clue how to answer that question and I felt my face flush. Time to change the subject.
"What makes you think he'll want to sleep with me?" I countered. She just shrugged and picked up the last dress I had tossed on the bed. A navy blue 50s style house dress that flared just below the bust and went down to mid thigh.
"Wear this one. It'll show off your legs."
Already feeling defeated with the rest of the choices I had, I agreed and began the beautification process. Once I was out of the shower, Beth was by my side the entire time, helping me with makeup choices and styling my hair. Summer even wondered in to join, offering her opinions. I was already beginning to feel exhausted with all the attention having never been much for this much fuss over a date. But, it was nice to spend quality time with Beth and Summer, especially since I'd never had many girl friends to discuss typical girl things with. Beth was the one constant in my life – one of the people I loved most – so I would never pass up these opportunities.
"Okay, I need to leave. Like, right now!" I said, grabbing my purse and attempting to pull away from Beth has she was buckling the belt below my bust.
"Alright, have fun!" she called, as I was rushing down the sidewalk to my car parked on the street. Of course, I was running late which I absolutely hated.
As I got in the car and started the ignition, another roll of nausea hit me and I groaned. At this point, I'd rather have puked my guts out and just gotten it over with but whatever was plaguing me was insistent on making me hang on the fringes of miserable. The nervous energy radiating through my body wasn't making matters better, either.
—-
As the evening progressed, I was pleasantly surprised with Davin's company. He was funny. Extremely funny, actually, and he had me giggling from the moment we said our hellos. He was also extremely attractive. The photo that Beth had shown me earlier that day did not do him justice.
"So, when was the last time you went on a blind date?" he asked, sipping the wine he'd ordered for the table.
"Never, actually. And, I have to admit – it wasn't exactly blind on my part. Beth showed me a photo."
"Well, I admit – she showed me one too and I was like 'hell yeah'."
I giggled for the millionth time that evening, ignoring the little voice in the back of my head yelling that I was acting like an imbecile.
"What would you like to do after dinner? I have a few ideas but thought I'd ask you first in case you had something better in mind" he said, topping off my glass of wine.
"Humm…" I started, tapping an index finger to my chin to imitate deep thought. And, as I did, Beth's voice echoed in the back of my mind.
"Do you think you'll sleep with him?"
You only live once, right?
"How about we go back to your place for a nightcap?" I said, already feeling the faux boldness draining from every limb. I hoped like hell that I didn't sound as insecure as I felt. And, when was the last time anyone had used the term 'nightcap'? Ugh.
I watched as his eyes widened ever so slightly before replying, "Yeah, that's wayyy better than any of my ideas." An easy smile spread across his face and I felt my heart skip a beat. I'd never considered myself a particularly good flirt, but I seemed to be crushing it this evening. Or, he was just really horny. Either way.
"Excuse me" I said with a smile of my own as I rose from the table to find the restroom. Once locked away inside, I fished my phone from my purse to check the messages I knew Beth had, not doubt, sent me.
Beth: How's it going?
Beth: You haven't replied so I'll assume it's going well.
Beth: OMG go to the bathroom and text me back!
Smiling to myself, I began to reply when another message popped up as I was tapping away on the screen. I felt my heart jump into my throat and felt my stomach lurch with a fresh wave of nausea.
Rick: Where are you? I'm in the garage.
I dismissed Rick's message and resumed replying to Beth.
Me: Yes, it's going well! Good job, Bethany. I have to admit, I didn't have high hopes but you've proven me wrong.
Her reply was nearly instant and I silently laughed at the mental image of her clutching her phone in a death grip for the last three hours.
Beth: I told you to always trust me! I won't wait up for you!
As I was tucking my phone back in to my purse and preparing to head back to the table, it rang. As soon as I saw Rick's name on the display, I pressed the power button until the phone shut down and then made my way back to Davin.
When I got back to the table, he was already signing the credit card slip and I frowned at him.
"Too late, doll!" he said with a wink as he rose from the table and offered me his arm.
As soon as we stepped outside, I took a deep breath to steady myself, wondering if going home with this stranger was really a good idea after all. Just what was I trying to prove?
"There's a park a few blocks over. You wanna take a cliché romantic type stroll first?" he asked.
I literally sighed in relief before replying, "Oh, yes. That sounds very cliché and also lovely."
When we reached the park, I found myself clutching Davin's arm tighter as an overwhelming wave of nausea and vertigo hit me simultaneously. My vision also began to blur and I felt myself tripping over my own feet.
"Whoa there. Everything alright?" he asked, attempting to steady me.
I couldn't reply. I felt the bile rising in the back of my throat and I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that I was going to vomit. I wrenched away from him and stumbled into a bush, doubling over as cramps assaulted my stomach, forcing the puke up my throat and out of my mouth like a pump.
"Oh! Oh my god!" I faintly heard Davin cry from behind me. "What – are you drunk or something? You only had one glass of wine!"
"No, I haven't been feeling well. I'm so sorry!" I wailed as soon as I was able to catch a breath. Another pump of puke was forced from my mouth again, cutting off my apology. After several strong heaves, here was no substance left; only pure bile that burned my throat and nose as it violently expelled from my trembling body.
"You want me to call a doctor or something?! An ambulance?!" I could hear panic in his voice and it would have been comical if I didn't feel like my body was trying to force every organ through my mouth and nose. When I suddenly heard the whirl and pop of a portal somewhere nearby, I felt as if I could crawl inside the puke covered bush and hide there forever.
"What the hell?! Who the fuck are you?!" I heard Davin yell, no doubt scared shitless to see a man spontaneously appear from a green hole that materialized out of thin air.
I didn't hear Rick reply – only felt his large hands settle on my lower back and shoulder as I continued to retch on the poor helpless bush.
"W-w-why didn't you answer my messages?!" he shouted while rubbing one hand up and down my back in a soothing manner. "Jesus Christ!"
I groaned in reply and felt my body slump to the ground as my legs gave out. Rick halted my decent and guided me to a nearby bench.
"What the fuck is going on here?!" Davin shouted, coming toward the bench.
"Back up, dipshit" Rick spat in reply. I felt him settle on the bench next to me and take one of my hands. "Drink – drink this. Right now" he said, pressing a glass bottle into my palm. I lifted my head to look at him but my eyes were blurry with tears and running mascara. He knew what was happening to me and I wasn't going to just blindly follow his orders. I shook my head in defiance.
"God damn it! Don't – don't be a fuckin' moron! You want – w-wanna keep barfing until you dehydrate like a piece of jerky?!"
He pulled the bottle from my hand and lifted it to my lips and used his other hand to tilt my head back. The liquid in the bottle was cold and left a cool tingly feeling as it slid down my throat, coating my esophagus. After a few swallows, Rick removed the bottle from my lips and I moaned at the instant relief. Now that I could focus on anything other than the overwhelming nausea, I grabbed my purse and dug around until I found a packet of tissues.
"Hey man, is she alright?" Davin spoke up again. "She was completely fine and then she just –"
"Ah, shit – are – are you still here?" Rick cut him off with a growl. "Byeee."
I had just wiped the running mascara from my eyes in time to see Rick open a portal under Davin's feet where he dropped and disappeared before it closed with the signature pop.
"Rick! What the hell?! Where do you send him?!" I cried, standing up and then just as quickly plopped back down when my knees refused to hold my weight.
"Relax. He's – I sent him home – t-t-to his house."
"How do you know where he lives? How did you even know where to find me?"
"You – uh – you don't wanna know how many answers those questions have."
As I continued to clean my face with the tissues, a soft breeze blew past that chilled my heated skin, causing goose bumps to erupt over my arms and legs. I pushed the hair stuck to my sweaty forehead back to get a better look at him and I gasped. He looked like absolute hell; like he hadn't slept, eaten, or bathed in days. His hair was disheveled – well, much more so than usual. His eyes were bloodshot and the stubble on his normally clean shaven face made him look 10 years older. His lab coat was wrinkled and appeared to have flecks of blood down the front.
"Rick –" I started, placing a hand on his shoulder. He flinched and looked at me, his eyes intense.
"We need to – that serum w-won't last much longer" he said rising from the bench and pulling me to my feet, slinging one of my arms around his neck. And, before I could question him further, he shot another portal directly in front of us and guided me through.
We emerged on the other side somewhere I didn't recognize but resemble a top secret government lab from a science fiction movie. From my viewpoint, there was a control panel to the left, tanks containing alien life forms – dead or alive, I couldn't be sure – directly in front of us, and what appeared to be an exam table to the right. There were also shackles affixed to the right hand wall which, thankfully, weren't occupied at the moment.
"Where –" I began when another cramp and fresh wave of nausea doubled me over.
"In – uh – under the garage" he replied, leading me toward the exam table. "Lay down so you – before y-you fall down."
I seemed to recall Beth mentioning this underground bunker to Rick shortly after we returned from Unity's planet so I nodded in understanding.
"You know what's wrong with me" I stated as I climbed atop the table to lie down. I watched as he pulled his flask and took a large gulp.
"You – y-y-you have a parasite."
"What? How? What kind of a parasite?"
"The kind that – that sucks – drains your life force until it's big – l-large enough to escape."
My mind was immediately filled with images of the chestburster scene from Alien and I quickly sat up in horror.
"Lay back down!" he growled, exasperated. Then added, almost as an afterthought, "You're pregnant."
"WHAT!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, feeling my heart jump into my throat. "That's impossible!"
Rick shot me incredulous look as he paced the floor, flask still in hand.
"Okay" I admitted. "Obviously not impossible. "But, you and I have only –"
"It's not mine" he cut me off. "I-I-I got vasectomy when Beth – right after Beth was born." He took another huge gulp from his flask before sitting the empty container on the lip of the control panel nearby. "And – and – and you wouldn't have such severe symptoms within – in less than a week. Or ever."
"Rick, I haven't slept with anyone else in like eight months" I replied, my mind still reeling. Nausea bubbled up from my gut again and I groaned, cradling my head in my hands.
"Wrong" he said, pulling a bottle of mystery booze from under the control panel. He unscrewed the cap and drank from it directly.
"Oh my – oh my god" I breathed as it clicked. It was a parasite. I'd never been pregnant but I knew this couldn't be run of the mill morning sickness.
I sat up on the table and swung my legs over the side. Rick picked up a nearby trash can and casually handed it to me seconds before the bile made its reappearance.
Unity.
To be continued…