Double Life

Disclaimer: Don't own Wendell and Vinnie, don't own iCarly

A/N:

Chapter 35 (Ongoing Sickness)

"Taryn get up already!" Wilma's voice rang in her head like a tornado alarm, which she'd been all too familiar with in Texas. She rolled over in her bed and moaned. Her stomach was on the fritz and her upper chest was incredibly sore and tender to the touch. She could hardly move her body with how sick she felt. "It's been half an hour, and it's past the time you need to be getting to work."

"No, I called in sick…" She woke up earlier, still exhausted and fatigued from having to go to the restroom all night. Wilma rolled her onto her back, causing her to groan loudly. The woman put her hand to Taryn's forehead and narrowed her eyes.

"Well you're not running a fever."

"I didn't get any sleep last night. I was up worrying about my family." She started to sit up, and instantly felt a wave of nausea pour over her and a smell that made her bile shoot up her throat. "Oh god what are you wearing!" She covered her nose and mouth, gagging as Wilma leaned back.

"Same perfume I'm always wearing. The lavender scented." Wilma looked to the clock on the wall and sighed heavily. "Why were you up all night?"

"Cause I'm scared of Vinnie meeting my family. I think either he's going to think they're all nuts, or they're going to break him. I've been so anxious that it was hard to sleep, then I started having to go to the bathroom over and over. I think I'm sick, Wilma."

"Well come on, I'll make you some soup or something." Taryn slowly moved out of the bed, with Wilma's help. She didn't want to be sick, not today, not ever. She needed to get over to the apartment and make sure Wendell and Carly were doing well. She had to make sure Vinnie was out of bed. "I need to be with my family, Wilma. I don't mean my immediate one, I mean-"

"I know what you mean, now come on." Wilma threw Taryn's arm over her shoulder and walked with her out of the bedroom. Taryn could walk just fine, she just needed to wake up. "You'll be fine in a few minutes, then I'm taking you to work."

"But I-"

"Called in sick? I know that. You're not sick though."

"I feel sick. I'm nauseous, I have a headache, I'm in a foul mood, and my stomach hurts. I'm sick."

"Well then if you're sick, you can't go over to the apartment." Her eyes widened and she exhaled softly. "You don't want to get any of them sick, do you?"

"No…" Taryn pulled away from Wilma and walked begrudgingly to the kitchen. She froze in place once a peculiar revolting scent stung her. "Ugh, what's that smell?" Wilma walked past her, staring at her with concern. "Smells like maple, but-"

"Should. I've been making pancakes and have some tea on boil." Taryn slowly looked to the pot of tea on the stove and the plate of pancakes sitting beside a bottle of syrup. Wilma grabbed the bottle and began pouring the maple syrup onto the pancakes. She watched with an unsettling feeling as nausea began swirling inside of her like a vortex.

The boiling herbal tea produced vapors that left her feeling disgruntled, more so than she'd ever been. Normally she loved herbal tea, though she tended to drink coffee more. The longer she watched the boils, the stronger the nausea became. The smells of the syrup and the tea worked against her body until finally the sickness inside of her spiked up.

"Oh god!" Her hand flew to her mouth and she bolted from the kitchen, ignoring Wilma calling out to her. Tears welled up in her eyes as she charged into the nearest bathroom and fell to her knees before the toilet. She gripped the edges until her knuckles went white and felt Wilma behind her, holding her head up as she let her stomach contents release from her system.

"It's all right, Taryn." Wilma pat her back and looked up to a picture on the wall. "Well, I guess you really are sick." Taryn's head fell slightly and her eyes clenched shut as her body trembled with pain. Wilma grabbed a nearby tissue and helped wipe her mouth. "That's not good."

"I hope it's nothing serious. I can't take serious right now, Wilma. I can't. I'm stressing out, my emotions are whack, and I'm-I'm getting married in two months!"

She started to faint to the side and Wilma grabbed her up. "Well getting married is the good thing."

"I know." Taryn leaned into her chest, sobbing uncontrollably. She wasn't sad, but she wasn't joyful. "What is wrong with me, Wilma? My entire body is screwed up, everything is out of order. I've had colds before and stuff, but I've never been so sick I'm throwing up everywhere! Then I'm fine as the day goes on, it's just…"

Wilma rolled her eyes and helped her to her feet. "It's all right. I'll take the tea off, we'll skip breakfast. I'm going to get you to my doctor. We probably should call Vinnie." Fear spiked in her and she grabbed Wilma's shirt, pleading with her She didn't want Spencer worrying about her. If he knew he was this sick, he'd be beside himself with worry. She knew how involved he would get.

"No I don't want him worrying over me. Call him if the doctor says it's something serious, but until then, I don't want to worry him if the doctor is going to say it's just a cold. Please. He's opening his store today."

It was the reason she wanted to be with him and the kids, she wanted to support his first day at the big store. Now she'd have to spend the day with the doctor. Wilma gave her a skeptical look and turned away, shrugging her shoulders.

"All right, but I am going to call your sister."

"What? Why?"

"Because she told me if anything happens, to call her."

"Ugh! Kelly knows I can take care of myself, Wilma."

"Yeah, but I think she was concerned about something else. Now grab your jacket, and let's get moving." Taryn nodded and left the bathroom. Wilma flushed the toilet and followed out, smirking slightly. "Kelly said you were always the independent one, or something like that. The one to be different from the family."

"She was the independent one, I was the black sheep." As they passed the kitchen, she stopped and gazed longingly at the counter. "Maybe I could just have a slice of bread before we go?"

"No, I'd rather you not eat anything." Wilma smirked at her and started to drag her towards the door. "Who knows, maybe you'll need a blood work done."

"A needle?! No! No I can't stand needles, I'm terrified of them, Wilma!"

"Oh relax, I was joking. I don't think a needle would be involved."

The car ride to Wilma's doctor was a quiet one. The humming of the road induced Taryn into a drowsy state, which was effectively calming. She looked to Wilma with a subtle smile and reached over, patting the woman's wrist. "Thanks for looking out for me Wilma. I'm really feeling a lot better. Maybe we could just go to see Vinnie and the kids first?"

"No. You've been acting up all week, it's time we see a doctor. Besides, I already had this set up for you…Kelly says she'll meet us there."

"Oh…Okay." Wilma tensed and looked out the window of her car before glancing at the vehicles in front of them.

"You know Taryn, you're not half bad for someone that can joke back and forth about how single I am. I'm glad you and Vinnie are going to start a family. I was thinking of adopting a child, myself."

"You should. I'm sure Carly and Wendell would love to have more cousins than just Todd and Nina. I'm surprised you and Kelly are even talking to each other, I never thought you two would be able to be friends." Wilma chuckled softly and started to smile as tears ran down her face. She stared in shock at the woman, unable to comprehend those tears.

"I've not always been as tough as I seem. There's a reason I'm so intimidating, and Kelly singled me out on it. You see, I followed her to where she was staying at after her meeting with Vinnie and was trying to confront her about what she did, and she called me out on a couple things…"

"You're pretty strong though-"

"I am, but it has gotten me in trouble." Wilma straightened herself in her seat, her facial features tensed as she steadily turned the steering towards the freeway. "I'm going to tell you something, you are not to tell Vinnie. I had a very good relationship once. It was great, we could have gotten married." Taryn gasped and grinned from ear to ear, but frowned the instant she remembered that Wilma was still single.

"So what happened?"

"I was nineteen, going through college. My boyfriend and I were going strong, and I'd…I'd gotten pregnant." Her jaw dropped and her eyes began to grow to the point she thought they'd fall out of her sockets. "Twins. We were very much in love."

"So what happened?"

"The day I found out I was pregnant with the twins, there were all these things that had been going on for a couple weeks. I mean I had my symptoms for a while, I only realized I was pregnant around the time I was able to learn I had twins. My boyfriend wasn't happy about it, though. He became aggressive because he didn't want children like I did…" Taryn's heart stopped and she cupped her hand over her mouth.

"Wha-what did he do?" Wilma furrowed her brow and slowly shook her head. Her hands tensed on the wheel and her arms trembled.

"…He poisoned me…I was rushed to the hospital and had to have my stomach pumped. I survived, but my babies didn't."

Taryn put a hand to her chest and bowed her head, "Wilma, I'm so sorry. I didn't know. Vinnie doesn't-"

"He doesn't know obviously, he was in Seattle. I don't want him to know either." Wilma took a deep breath and turned onto an exit. "It was around that time I got a lawyer that did everything possible for me, she was an amazing person and an amazing lawyer. She sought a maximum penalty." Taryn watched as Wilma's expression grew inspired and her eyes glistened at a fond memory. "Attorney Amy Travis. My mentor, my hero and inspiration. If ever there was a person I looked up to more, I don't know. She was the one who inspired me to be the way I am now. She fought tooth and nail and was there for me every step of the way. My boyfriend was charged with double homicide and one aggravated assault. He's still in prison and won't be getting out anytime soon."

"I'm glad you had someone like that there for you. I can see why you push Carly to be the best she can be."

"I like to think of it like this. If I can do what Mrs. Travis did for me. If I can help a young girl or someone rise above a tragedy and fight for them not for the money but because I care about them. If I can inspire another and help make someone stronger, then I believe my job is done. I always do the best I can."

"You're a good person Wilma. You know, you do deserve some happiness too."

"That's why I've been thinking about adoption lately. Not to mention, that's also a good way to avoid the symptoms. I'm thirty-five, my body can't handle a pregnancy as well as it could years ago. Though, I'm really not sure I can get pregnant. After what my boyfriend did to me, it severely damaged my body, screwed me up physically." Wilma turned into the clinic and smiled at Taryn. "I'm glad you found someone like Vinnie, because I know as stupid as he can be from time to time, he would never hurt you. So don't be so afraid."

"I'm not."

"You are." Wilma parked the car in front of the clinic, Dr. Neela Family Clinic was what it said on the sign. "This is my doctor. She's a primary physician as well as a specialist in gynecology. I recommend her, she's an excellent doctor and has been in practice since I was in college."

"Is she the doctor that discovered your babies?"

"Yeah, she's also the doctor that saved my life." Taryn's eyebrows shot up and Wilma opened the door. "When she heard my name mentioned as a patient coming in, she raced to the emergency department. It was midnight, she was working the late shift. There weren't many doctors on staff at the emergency room at the time, and she knew that. So she came as soon as she could and immediately started barking out the orders for what to do. If it wasn't for Dr. Neela…"

"Oh my god…"

"I'd like not to think about what could have happened. Come on, let's get in there." Taryn slowly exited the car, frantic over Wilma's story. She was lucky to find a man that wouldn't damage her in such a way, but what did Wilma mean by her being afraid?

"I still don't know what you think I'm afraid of…"

"You're afraid Vinnie's going to leave you because of your family or whatever reason there is. He won't. That man loves you so much he'd move the sun with his bare hands if he could. I know I'm angry and hurt over his leaving us, but that's different, and I understand his reason for doing so. To take care of his daughter. If that says anything, there's this: He's devoted to his children and to his wife above all else. That is you, Taryn. Keep that in mind. Also bear that in mind as we go through this appointment…"

"What does that me-"

"Taryn!" She stiffened at her sister's voice. Her heart jumped up and she smiled at her sister waving from the front door.

"Kelly!" She hurried over to Kelly and hugged her. "I don't feel as sick as I did earlier, so I don't think-"

"No backing out of this one, sister. The doc's waitin' to see you." She took a deep breath and looked over to Wilma. Wilma had a serene expression on her face and was beaming with pride. It was almost frightening, but then, nowhere near as frightening for her as doctor appointments were.

So what are your thoughts? We see the final issue that separates Spencer and Wilma, what she meant when she told him of a time he wasn't there for her when she needed him. We also see Taryn's not doing too well. It has been a few weeks within the tale. What are your thoughts of this chapter?