A/N: Many thanks to Phish Tacko for her work on this!
Ch. 49
With Joon at work, Sam had decided to go grocery shopping. He'd left the kids with old Mrs. Meyers next door and had headed out.
Even though it was a chore, Sam enjoyed it. It was like a short reprieve from the boredom of being cooped up in the house and the responsibility of parenthood.
Sam was in a good mood, and he leisurely strolled through the supermarket, looking at various products. Soon enough he came across the samples that were put out every day.
This time the store had laid out small cups of gummy bears and other candies.
Smiling to himself, Sam picked up one of the cups, took the top off and popped a gummy bear in his mouth. Then he ate one more.
The store itself was pretty empty that day. Seeing no one else around, Sam reached for another piece of candy. He had just eaten another piece of candy when a man in an apron with the word "manager" written on a tag on it approached him.
"Hey!" The man said, an angry look on his face.
Sam looked up at him.
"Hi?"
"What's wrong with you? Are you retarded or something? I see you in here every week and every week you do the same thing! You can't eat the candy before you pay for it!"
Sam was confused.
"I don't understand, isn't all this -"
"What's so hard to understand? Pay before you eat!"
Sam's eyes got wide.
"Oh, I'm so sorry! I thought these were free! I didn't know! I'll pay for it, I have money in -" Sam stopped, suddenly overcome with pain.
He'd been having cramps all morning. They were some of the worst he'd ever felt, but now it was taking all of his willpower not to collapse. He was in so much pain that he didn't notice that the expression on the manager's face had changed from angry to worried.
"Uh, are you alright there, kid?" The man asked.
Sam didn't hear him. Besides the pain, he was starting to get nervous.
Ever since he'd gotten pregnant the second time, he'd noticed that he was panicking a lot more. There was the blackout, and now he was starting to have a full-on panic attack at the store. Not good. He tried to steady himself by taking deep breaths, but it wasn't working.
"Dude, you alright?" A teenage customer approached Sam and the manager. He looked Sam over. "You look like you're about to pass out."
Sam took another deep breath, but right then, his cramps got worse. He wasn't even sure how that was possible, but he felt like he was being stabbed. Sam doubled over, holding his stomach and breathing heavily.
The teenage boy's father came over, seeing the situation.
"Sir?" He asked nicely. "Do you need an ambulance?"
Sam shook his head 'no'. That was the last thing he wanted.
The manager wrapped an arm around Sam's waist to help him stand.
"I think you need to sit down, son," He said, leading Sam over towards the break room.
Once they were in the room, the manager helped Sam sit down in a chair, then got him a cup of water. He noticed that Sam was still holding his stomach and panting.
"Kid, you need to calm down," He said, setting the glass down in front of him. "You're having a panic attack."
Sam nodded in agreement, but didn't stop hyperventilating. He felt terrified, like the walls of the room were closing in on him.
"Breathe. Deep breaths." The manager rested a hand on Sam's back. "Come on, you can do it. Relax."
Sam took a deep breath and held it, trying to force himself to calm down. He did feel slightly better, but his stomach still hurt. He groaned in pain.
The manager frowned. "It's gonna be okay."
Sam shook his head, but said nothing.
The manager sighed.
"Is there anyone I can call for you?"
"My wife, Joon," Sam whispered. He took a sip of water and it somehow helped calm him slightly. Then he handed the manager his cell phone.
Sam just closed his eyes, frustrated at the entire situation. He could hear the manager dialing Joon's number, followed by parts of the short conversation that followed.
"Joon will be here in ten minutes," His boss said. after he hung up. "Drink some more water. It'll be okay."
"Okay. I hope so," Sam replied. "I can't take much more of this today."