CHAPTER 2:
The next morning, Aubrey and Chad woke up for the day.
"Morning, Chad," Aubrey said, yawning.
"Morning, Aubrey," Chad replied, also yawning.
"I'm looking forward to meeting Chloe's cousin today," Aubrey remarked.
"Really? When are you meeting her?" Chad said.
"Chloe and her cousin are meeting me at Starbucks later today, after Finn goes to school," Aubrey explained.
"Nice," Chad said.
"Well, I guess I should go wake up Finn for the day," Aubrey said.
In Finn's bedroom, Aubrey gently shook Finn awake.
"Morning, sweetie. Time to get ready for...Oh, my," Aubrey said, shocked to see her son's stomach covered in spots.
"What's wrong, Mommy?" Finn asked groggily.
"Hang on," Aubrey said before placing her wrist onto Finn's forehead and telling him to look at his stomach.
"Whoa, what's that?" Finn asked.
His eyes widened like saucers, noticing the spots on his torso.
"Finn...you may have come down with...chickenpox," Aubrey said slowly.
"What's chickenpox, Mommy?" Finn asked.
"Chickenpox is not serious, but it is contagious, so we have to be careful; if you touch someone while you have chickenpox, you'll be giving it to them," Aubrey explained.
"Is that bad?" Finn asked.
"It is. We need to get you to a doctor right away. But everything will be fine, don't worry," Aubrey assured him.
"But what about school?" Finn asked.
"I'm afraid you're going to have to stay home until you're better," Aubrey said.
"How long will that take?" Finn asked.
"It depends on how bad the doctor says it is. But you will be okay within a week. Maybe two weeks, but maybe quicker," Aubrey explained.
"Is it really gonna be close to a week or two?! What about trick-or-treating?" Finn asked, worried.
"If you're feeling better by then, you can still go. So let's just cross our fingers that you're better by then," Aubrey said.
"Okay," Finn said sadly.
Afterward, Aubrey went back into the bedroom to explain to Chad what was happening.
"Chad, we have a situation," Aubrey announced.
"What's wrong?" Chad asked.
"I think Finn has chickenpox," Aubrey said.
"What? How can this be? He was just fine last night," Chad asked.
"I don't know. I was waking him up for the day, and next thing I know, he was covered in spots," Aubrey recapped.
"What are you going to tell Chloe?" Chad asked.
"I guess I have to tell her that I won't be able to meet with her today," Aubrey said.
"Might be a good idea," Chad agreed.
"Why don't you go make breakfast, and I'll call Dr. Hendrix?" Aubrey suggested.
"Okay," Chad said as he went downstairs to do so.
While Chad was making breakfast, Aubrey made a call to Finn's pediatrician to get an appointment. Luckily his pediatrician was able to squeeze him in for later that afternoon. But then there was still the tough decision to make: Should she still call Chloe and tell her she'll have to miss their scheduled coffee meet, or could she still try to make it anyway? After some thinking, she finally came to a decision that a part of her knew felt right. She went ahead and called Chloe.
"Hey, Chloe. I'm sorry to do this, but Finn may have chickenpox, and I can't leave him alone," Aubrey said apologetically.
"I understand. I'll let my cousin know you can't make it. Just give me a call if you need anything," Chloe said.
"Will do, Chloe," Aubrey said, relieved.
"I hope Finn feels better," Chloe said.
"Thanks, Chloe. I'll let him know. Later," Aubrey said, hanging up.