The Candy Syndrome
cowritten with Delia97
"What are those?" Elle asked as she noticed a box in X's hands as they headed out the the garage early that morning.
"Nothing!" X murmured quickly trying to hide the box from his partner but she reached out and snatched it from his hands before he could.
"Let's see," Elle chuckled as she leaned against the SUV and started to read the note attached to the box of candy. Her nose twitched a bit as she caught a wiff of perfume on the note. "A secret admirer? Oh, and she thinks your ears are cute? She's obviously in need of an eye exam!"
X glared at Elle as they got into the car. How could she just laugh at that note? The alien that sent it sounded very nice! He bit back a sharp remark. He couldn't let Elle know what the note meant to him. She was just a human. She would never understand.
"Do you want some of the candy?" he said casually as he pulled out of the garage and headed into the city. The traffic was unusually heavy that day and he soon found himself caught in a traffic jam. Maybe if he offered to share some of it with her, Elle would think that it wasn't very important to him.
"Really?" Elle said as she opened the box and reached in, carefully selecting the best looking piece. It looked so delicious, with loads of nuts and the special fake chocolate that all aliens used. Just then she looked up suspiciously at X. "You didn't poison these, did you? Why are you sharing?"
"Because, I really don't like candy very much," X grumbled. Oh, he really should have gone into acting. "Anyone who noticed me would know that."
"I still don't trust you. Here," she said as she picked out another candy and stuffed it into his mouth, watching carefully for a moment after he swallowed to see if it hurt him. After a few minutes passed and X was still alive, Elle was satisfied that the candy was safe and popped the piece she had selected into her mouth. So good! She quickly reached out and took another and then another.
"Hey! Let me have some!" X said as he reached over and took several pieces. "Greedy little human!"
A little bit later, X was pounding the horn in frustration. An hour and they had barely moved a block. Suddenly he heard a moan from the passenger seat. He looked over to find Elle leaning over, her skin a nice green color. Wait a minute. humans weren't green. "What's wrong with you?" he asked. "You're looking better than usual suddenly."
"I don't feel well," Elle murmured. "My stomach hurts and..." she suddenly stopped talking and frantically rolled the window down, leaning out and throwing up as her body shook with heaves.
"Gross," X murmured as Elle collapsed back onto the seat a moment later, beads of sweat dotting her forehead. "Always causing a problem. Well, I can't turn around and take you back to headquarters now. Not in all of this traffic! Just be careful if you feel sick again. Don't mess up the upholstry! I told you not to eat all of that candy!"
"X, be quiet," Elle moaned as she closed her eyes. Maybe that would help a little.
"X?" she whispered a minute later.
"What is it?" X said as he looked over at her. It looked like she was sweating more. He hoped that wouldn't stain.
"My hands feel funny, tingly and sort of numb. My feet do too. Is the traffic getting any better?"
"No." X didn't know what to say, afraid that the wrong thing would panic her. He looked over again and saw her pale blue eyes staring at him, wide with fright.
"X, I can barely see you," she murmured. "You're all blury."
X hit the breaks and quickly shifted the car into park. He jumped out, ignoring the honking cars behind him and darted to Elle's side of the car. He pulled the door open and reached in, unfastening her seatbelt and gathering her into his arms. There was a hospital just down the block. Surely they could help her.
He hurried down the street as fast as he could go, his hands tingling a bit from her weight. Things seemed a bit blurry as well but with all of the pollution that wasn't surprising. He came into the Emergency Room, staggering a bit under Elle's weight and started towards the treatment rooms. He could hear some humans talking and suddenly a doctor was there taking Elle from his arms and laying her on a stretcher. The doctor said something and a moment later a nurse was there, pressing a mask over Elle's mouth and nose while another nurse poked her arm with a needle. A third nurse came over to him, asking him questions about what happened but he felt so funny, so light headed that he couldn't quiet reply. Suddenly, he remembered something, the candy that they both had eaten. He stammered out something about them or at least he thought he did. It was getting very hard to talk and the room was spinning. He felt his legs start to give and then he was falling, blacking out before he hit the floor.