Chapter 11
This is the first time that he has ever regretted kissing a girl. His head fees like it's going to explode with the pressure in his sinuses. He lay there in bed the next day, a tissue over his face, and his body wrapped up in his blankets. A shiver ran through him. Someone knocked on the door and he didn't bother to say anything, mainly because his throat was soar, and he didn't bother to get up since his body ached with a fever. The person opened the door.
"Hey, Zack."
Zack sat up slowly, and the tissue dropped from his face, and he felt his body ache as he did so. He saw someone in a full white body suit. "Cody?"
"Hey, just checking up on you."
"You look ridiculous," he said in a nasally voice after he saw his brother, whose voice was muffled due to the suit.
"I wanted to come by and bring you more medicine and see how you're doing, and I brought you a thermos of chicken soup. The proteins and other ingredients in it are proven to help cure a cold." He held up the silver thermos. "And I didn't want to get sick while bringing these to you. This suit allows me to do that without coming in contact with your germs."
Zack coughed. "Reminds me of the suit you made a few years ago at the Tipton. You know, fish bowl head."
"Yeah, but this one is more advanced." He tossed the small box of medicine to him. "Here, take these once ever four hours, and drink a lot of fluids, including this soup." He came over and set the thermos on Zack's bed. Zack nodded, and he winced at the sinus pressure in his head.
"Ow... Man, I hate this. I never get sick."
"Well, that's what you get for kissing a sick person."
"I know. And I regret it now."
"You regret kissing Haley?"
Zack thought about that for a second. "Okay... maybe I don't regret it, it just would have been better if she wasn't sick. I guess I just couldn't wait anymore. How is she, by the way?"
"She's still sick, but is doing better. Haven't you texted her?"
"Yes, but she doesn't answer. I said that I became sick, and she never responded after that."
"She probably feels bad for making you sick. You should just call her."
Zack thought about him kissing her and then running out of the room. "She probably doesn't want to talk to me. I ran out of the room after kissing her yesterday, mostly out of shock." He coughed and moaned with how that hurt his throat. "Ow, my throat."
"I think you should go see the ship's doctor. All Haley had was a nasty head cold. You have that and a soar throat, which means you may have strep throat. You need antibiotics to cure that."
Zack moaned again and collapsed back onto his pillow. "Just leave me be, Cody. Let me die in peace." He coughed again.
"You're not going to die, Zack. That is, if you don't get some antibiotics."
He gave his brother a displeased look. "Thanks, man. Now leave so I can sleep."
Cody nodded. "Fine. But I'm setting up an appointment for you with Dr. Handle."
He left and Zack didn't bother to protest. He really wants to get over this bug, mainly because it's making him feel like crap. Other than that, he enjoys not having to go to school and not having to work. What time is it, anyway? He looked over at his nightstand clock. It was only 7:30 in the morning. He moaned again and pulled the covers over his head, not wanting to deal with this cold the whole day. He barely got any sleep last night since the cold symptoms were setting in hard core and it was hard to sleep. He'll go to that appointment.
As Cody said he would, he made a doctor's appointment for Zack, and made it at noon that day. Again, Zack didn't protest and walked into the ship's doctor's office, which smelled of coffee and sterilizer, and stopped when he saw himself in a mirror on the wall. His face was flushed, his nose was chapped red from blowing it a hundred times an hour, and his eyes were glassy.
He looks as hideously sick as Haley when he saw her the day before. He looked away from the mirror, disgusted at his own appearance for the first time in his life, and went up to the reception desk. The middle-aged lady there gave him forms to fill out and he went and sat down in the waiting area that was void of people, that is, until someone came out of the doors leading into the office, and the doctor followed her. Zack noticeably jumped at seeing her.
"Thank you for coming in, Haley," said Dr. Handle. "Just continue taking over-the-counter cold medicine and you should be over this bug in a couple days."
"Thank you, Dr. Handle," she said, not sounding as nasally as the day before. The doctor left back through the door and Haley went up to the reception desk. Zack watched her, his heart pounding like a drum. She looks really good in those jeans...
A female nurse came out of that door and looked at her clipboard. "Zack Martin?"
Haley suddenly turned and saw Zack sitting there. Her blue eyes widened as he stood up and came up to the reception desk. The two teens stared at each other for a moment. "Hey," he greeted Haley.
"Um, hey. I'm sorry that you got sick."
"It was my own fault. And I think we both know why."
Her face suddenly turned pink, pinker than it was since she was still sick. She cleared her throat and looked away.
"Yeah, Cody set up this appointment for me," Zack said, his voice still nasally. "He thinks I have something called streep throat."
"You mean strep throat?" she whined. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry."
He waved a hand. "Nah. Cody said all I need is antibiotics and I'm cured."
"He's right. The antibiotics will kick the bug in a day. At least, you'll stop feeling sick in a day."
He nodded. "Well, I guess I should get back there and see the Doc."
"Yeah, okay."
He gave his unfinished forms to the receptionist and she said he could finish them after his appointment. He looked at Haley again. "See ya. And... find me after we both get over this thing. I want to ask you something."
Haley nodded. "Okay."
He turned and went on with the nurse into the back. Another female nurse did a cheek swab on him after he was put in a small room, and left, saying something about a culture and a test. Zack had no idea what that meant. When the doctor came in and asked how he thinks he caught this bug, Zack told him the truth—he kissed a girl who is sick.
"They weren't lying when they said that women would be the death of us men," Dr. Handel joked. He was a man who could be in is late forties, with graying brown hair. "Now, your test came back, and it turns out that you do indeed have strep throat. So, I'm proscribing antibiotics. There will be enough pills for a week, so even if you feel better, keep taking them since the virus can stay in your system up to two weeks. The sooner its kicked, the better."
"Okay," Zack said and coughed. The doctor gave him a sly look.
"So... you kissed a girl and got sick, huh? Are you dating this girl?"
"No, but I want to. It's shocking that I do, actually. It's shocking that I kissed her in the first place, even. She's definitely not my type."
Zack couldn't believe he was discussing this with a the ship's doctor of all people. The doctor said, "Well, we can't control who we fall for. My marriage is evidence of that. Sarah wasn't my type in the least, but I fell head over heels for her against my will. Like you, I gave in and kissed her—when she wasn't sick, mind you—and we've been together ever since. Twenty-five years now."
Zack nodded. "Well, I already told her I wanted to ask her something after I get over this. I think she knew that I want to ask her out."
"Go for it, pal." He paused for a moment and snickered. "You know, there was a girl in here earlier who said she kissed a guy and got him sick."
"Yeah. That guy was me. And she succeeded."
Dr. Handle's brows rose. "Haley? Really? Well, I approve of her. She's such a nice girl."
"Yeah, she is."
"So, anyway, I will give you this prescription..." He handed Zack a slip of paper. "...and all you need to do is go to the pharmacy just down the hall from the office to grab it. And take a pill once a day until the bottle's empty, okay?"
"Whatever you say, Doc."
Zack coughed, and then sneezed. Dr. Handle handed him a tissue and Zack blew a lot of of snot out of his nose.
"Go on, get better," Dr. Handle said. "And good luck with Haley."
"Thanks."
Zack left, filled out the remaining paperwork for the visit, then hit the pharmacy. He should have just asked Haley out right there in the office and got it over with. But he didn't want to look like a sick mess while doing it.
"Thanks," he said to the male pharmacist after she handed him the prescription in a little white paper bag. He left down the hallway, on back to his cabin.
He should just do it. Who cares how he looks? Well, at least she wouldn't care.
Zack headed towards the girls' cabins.
She knows she got Zack sick, and he became far more sick than she was. It even turned into strep throat! That is, if he has it. She knows Cody knows his stuff, so if he thinks that Zack has strep throat, then Zack has strep throat.
She let out a breath and took a daytime cold medicine pill from the same box that Zack gave to her. She remembered some random conversation she had with Cody and Bailey once as they were in one of their study groups. Cody mentioned that he and Zack rarely get sick. So if they rarely get sick, how did Zack have a box of medicine just lying around? She smiled as she sat there on her bed, realizing it. He bought it for her. How sweet of him.
She touched her lips. He likes her. He really likes her, enough to kiss her when she's as sick as a dog. What could he want to ask her? Does he want to ask her out? That has to be it. Or... maybe he wants to ask her to just forget that the kiss ever happened.
"That's probably it," she said to herself, then stood up to take off her shirt so she could change into pajamas, but she heard knocking at her door. Who could that be? All the kids are at school, so it couldn't be Bailey. Her heart jumped, knowing that there was a kid who didn't go to school and was at the doctor's at the same time she was. She went to the door and opened it to find Zack standing there. "Zack? What are you doing here?"
"Not the greeting I was expecting," he said, his nose clogged.
"Sorry. I just thought... nevermind. What did Dr. Handle say?"
"He said I have strep throat. Cody was right, as always." He held up the prescription bag. "I have to take these for a week."
She nodded. "You'll be over this in no time with those antibiotics."
"Yeah, and speaking of no time... I told you I wanted to talk to you when I have gotten better, but I didn't want to wait, even if I'm better by tomorrow."
"Okay."
He let out a breath and held her gaze. "Look. There's a reason why I kissed you yesterday, and that reason is because I like you like crazy. In the beginning, I wanted to help you out, but I guess after that... I payed more attention to you and started to like you. Now, you're pretty much all I think about, other than the spicy shrimp at the buffet."
She couldn't believe what she was hearing! "You... really like me?"
"Yeah. And I didn't want to wait any longer to ask you out, so... will you go out with me? And I mean 'go out with me' like, will you be my girlfriend?"
Her mouth dropped open and she stared at him, shocked. She couldn't will her tongue to work.
"So... you're not saying anything, so I'm guessing that's a yes?" he questioned, hopeful.
She grinned, and she couldn't stop herself from embracing him. He staggered back at her ramming herself into him, and she held him tightly. "Yes, I will go out with you and will be your girlfriend. Yes!"
She saw in the corner of her eye his arm make a fist pump. She beamed at that as he wrapped his arms around her back. Her happiness shot up through the roof of the ship as she hugged his heated body, most likely from his fever. But oh, how she loves it! How she loves him.
Wait, loves him?
He brought her back to face him and she looked away sheepishly. "Sorry," she said. "I guess I'm still a bit self-conscious."
He took her chin and brought her face back to him. "Hey, don't worry about that, okay? So you have a few zits on your face. Big deal."
"Not just a few, all over."
"So what? Look at my face. I'm a sick, snotty mess."
"At least that will go away. Dr. Handle told me about what I could do to get rid of all this acne, but... I declined because I might be allergic to whatever he would prescribe."
"Just don't do anything about it, then. I like you the way you are."
Her heart warmed and she gave him a grateful look. "Thank you, Zack. You're wonderful."
He smirked in his suave way. "I guess I am, aren't I?"
"You are."
Their gaze lingered for a moment, and they both started leaning in. But, due to his sickness, Zack turned and sneezed. And she followed suit, sneezing in the other direction. When they looked back at each other, she saw snot falling out of his nose.
"Zack, here." She pulled out a little baggie of tissues from her jeans pocket and gave him a tissue. "Your nose is running like a faucet."
"So is yours."
He blew and she took her own tissue and blew as well. She laughed—she couldn't help it. "What?" he asked, crumpling up the soiled tissue and stuffing it in his pocket.
"Just... nothing. I'm just really happy."
He took a breath and said with a clogged nose, "Yeah, me, too. But I'll be happier when I'm over this. I never get sick."
"Yeah, I know. And thanks for buying me medicine, by the way. That was really sweet of you."
His hazel eyes widened. "Wait, I said..."
"Yeah, but Cody said you guys rarely get sick so... I put two and two together."
Zack shook his head, mostly likely because of his brother. "Well, okay, yeah, I bought it for you."
"Thank you, again." She leaned in and planted a kiss on his soft, warm cheek. He smirked at that, then sneezed and blew his nose after with another tissue Haley handed him. "I think you should get back to your cabin and rest. The both of us, actually."
He looked back at her with a playful glint in his eye. "The both of us in my cabin, huh?"
Her eyes widened, and her cheeks inflamed. "No, no, that's not what I meant, I... nevermind. Let's just get over this bug."
"Right. Then... see you later?"
"Definitely."
They stared at one another for a moment, then Zack left. She watched him go until he was out of sight.
She has a boyfriend now. A boyfriend who really cares about her and likes her for her. She never thought this would happen, especially with an impulsive, yet good-looking, caring and funny guy like Zack.
Haley went back into her cabin, changed into PJ's and got into bed, thinking about her new boyfriend until she drifted off to sleep contently.