Alright... I'm experimenting a bit now... hopefully it goes over well. Thanks to all of my reviewers... you make my life so much happier!
CrystalClear444: I'm confused. I'm not quite understanding what you're trying to say. lol.
007. Days
Elphaba ran out of the café as quickly as she could. Halfway back to Shiz, she noticed the sky darkening with rain clouds. She reached back to pull up the hood of her cloak, but the cloak was nowhere to be found. She swore and picked up her pace to try to beat the rains.
Barely a minute later, rain cascaded from the sky in sheets. Elphaba winced as a familiar burning sensation tingled through her skin. She pressed on, literally sprinting back to her dorm. She rushed into Crage Hall, breathing hard, and climbed the two flights of stairs to her room. Her head began to throb from the effort, she was dizzy, her limbs felt heavy and uncoordinated. She cursed the effects water had on her. When she reached to door, she fumbled for her key and struggled to fit it in the lock. Before she could manage to get the key in the lock, the door opened. By this time, the pain in her head was unbearable and her mind fuzzy.
"Elphaba!" Glinda exclaimed, "where have you— Ew! You're soaking!"
Elphaba barely processed the blonde's words. She stumbled past her, grabbed a dry frock from her closet and disappeared into the bathroom. She wrestled the wet clothes off of her and dried her skin with a towel. She pulled the dry frock over her head and glanced quickly at her reflection in the mirror. She looked pale and near death. She turned away from the mirror in time to vomit into the toilet. When she was finished, she collapsed against the wall, trembling slightly.
There was a tapping at the door.
"Elphaba?" Her roommate's voice called through the door. "Are you done in there? I need to use the mirror."
Elphaba didn't respond. She could only hear the blood pulsing through her ears.
"Elphaba?" The door creaked open slowly. Finally, Glinda's eyes found the sweaty, trembling mess that was Elphaba in corner. "Lurline! What happened to you?" Glinda went to her side and place a small hand on her forehead.
"I…," Elphaba sighed and croaked, "it was the water. It hurts me and makes me ill."
"You're burning up," Glinda told her. She offered Elphaba an arm and hoisted her up.
"So you're allergic to water? I've never heard of such a thing," Glinda said as she led Elphaba to her bed.
Elphaba forced a smile. "Neither have I."
"Rest," Glinda ordered, "if you're not better by morning, I'm taking you to the hospital wing."
Elphaba nodded. "Thanks."
"For what?" Glinda didn't stay for an answer. She left to let Elphaba sleep.
While away, Glinda contemplated her roommate. She had been so mean to her at the very beginning of the year. Now she realized that she had no reason to hate the green girl. Elphaba wasn't a terrible person. She was just terribly private, quiet and unfortunately colored. She was smart, she was quick to establish right from wrong, and she was tragically allergic to water. Glinda wondered why such horribly physical traits were inflicted upon her. Well, those traits won't get the better of me. Not anymore. I can be my own person and decide what's right from wrong. Glinda decided. I don't have to be the weak, helpless creature that relies on others to make decisions for her.
A few hours later, Glinda returned to the room. Elphaba was sleeping, but her breathing was slightly irregular. Glinda bit her lip. She desperately hoped that she wouldn't have to take her to the hospital wing, but things weren't looking good. She wished that Ama Clutch hadn't gone out with the other Amas this afternoon. Then, she might not have had to take care of this situation by herself. But as it was, Glinda was on her own.
Glinda heard movement from Elphaba's side of the room. She dismissed it as Elphaba shifting positions or adjusting the covers, but the sounds didn't stop. Glinda looked over her shoulder to find Elphaba shaking uncontrollably. Glinda screamed and rushed over to her.
"Elphaba! Wake up, wake up, wake up!" Elphaba kept on shaking.
"No, no, no, no, no!! You have to wake up!" Glinda cried. She was scared and crying in her panic. "Please Elphaba! You have to stop shaking!"
Still, she kept on convulsing. Finally, Glinda's mind became less foggy and she realized that she needed help.
"I'll be back. I promise," Glinda told Elphaba, as if she were actually listening. She dashed out the door, down the stairs and through the rain, which had come down to a drizzle by now.
"Miss Glinda!" a friendly voice called out to her. Glinda looked around and found Boq, a little munchkin fellow who had a huge crush on her, heading toward her.
"Boq, you have to help me," she begged.
"What's wrong?"
"It's… my roommate. She's really sick. I need to get her to the hospital wing." The words came out in a flood. "She shaking and she won't stop and she won't wake up and—"
Boq's eyes were wide, but his face took on a serious expression. "Come on then. Let's hurry."
Glinda nodded and dragged him quickly by his wrist to Elphaba. When they arrived, Elphaba had stopped shaking. Boq saw her skin and gasped.
"Don't be disgusted. She's a good person," Glinda pleaded, "and she needs help."
"No, it's not that," Boq said as he tucked the blankets around Elphaba and picked her up. "I knew—I know her. We went to day school together." He moved swiftly out the door again and Glinda followed.
"Keep the blanket over her face," Boq instructed, "She can't stand water, if I remember correctly."
Glinda obeyed. "I know. That's what got her in this mess in the first place."
They arrived in the hospital wing out of breath and restless.
"Can I help you?" the lady at the desk asked out of habit, not looking up.
"Our friend," Glinda gasped between breaths, "She's terribly sick." She threw a glance at the still unconscious Elphaba. The nurse followed her gaze.
"Oh, my…" Her eyes were as wide as saucers. "Can I get a nurse in here? Now?"
A moment later, three nurses stepped into the room. Glinda and Boq looked desperately at them. The nurses stood for a moment unsure of their latest… green patient, but then sprung into action.
"Bring her this way," a nurse motioned to Boq. Another nurse busied herself checking Elphaba's temperature and recording the information on a clipboard. The last nurse, who also had a clipboard, turned to Glinda.
"Patient's name?"
"Elphaba Thropp."
"Your relation? His-" she motioned toward Boq "-Relation?"
"She's my roommate and his friend. Our friend," she corrected herself.
"Age of patient?"
Glinda faltered. "I'm not sure. I think eighteen." Glinda couldn't remember. Elphaba always acted older than she was.
"Does she have any allergies that you know of?"
"Pure water."
The nurse raised her eyebrows. "How unusual. Can you describe her current illness?"
"Well, she was in the rain. That's what I think caused it. And she threw up… I think she had a headache, too… She had a fever and couldn't walk very well. I went out for a bit to let her sleep and when I came back she started shaking and she wouldn't wake up." Glinda started to tear again.
The nurse patted her arm sympathetically. "Don't worry. We'll fix up your friend. But I have one more question for you: Her skin…"
"She was born that way," Glinda told her. The nurse nodded and rushed her few notes off to the others, leaving Glinda alone in the waiting room. Boq returned a few minutes later.
"Well?" Glinda asked him.
"They say that she'll be here for at least a few days, two weeks tops. They have her all situated and she's been given shots of pain medication and something to keep her from convulsing," Boq told her, "She'll be okay." He put a comforting hand on her shoulder and let her lean against him.
"Thank Oz…"
Not the BEST ending in the world, I know... Anyway, obviously I tried something different with Elphaba's water allergy... that was my experiment. I mean... I can always change it back to her regular allergy.
Mmm... reviews.
e.r.
...uh-oh, my bad (in almost all senses of the word) chapter is coming up soon...