Official Camp Feline - Matilda |
"Hello Starbuck" she said snidely. Starbuck was my new nickname from the troupe that came in with General Grant on bikes. It was part compliment, that I reminded them of an action hero from Battlestar and part insult because she wasn't very feminine. Angel used it as an insult. She hated Sci-Fi, anyone that shallow did. I stooped by her trash can and vomited into it. I sat down heavily swaying.
"Been drinking?" She said in a scolding manner. If had hadn't been so sick I could have thought of all the ways I hated pretty prissy girls like Angel.
"I've had a seizure" I said. "I don't remember coming here. I need to go back home." In my mind at that time home was my house on Russell street - not the bunker.
"Now Starbuck, what makes you think you had a seizure?" Angel said in a snide manner. I was stumped. I mean I didn't exactly recall it and I couldn't put into words at that moment. I vomited again.
"I just have these sometimes" I muttered wiping my mouth on my sleeve. "Where am I?" I was briefly lost, nothing looked familiar.
"So how do you feel during the so called seizure? Because I want you to know I'm pretty much an expert on them and I can tell YOU did not have a seizure." Beautiful. I don't know how long I sat there, I watched the shadows on the wall getting ever more dehydrated and then thankfully the Commander came in.
"What's wrong with Runner 5?" He asked sharply.
"I think she said she had a bit too much to drink" Angel said with a bit of a musical trill and swaying her hips and flipping her hair. Yup it was nice and glossy. She actually giggled.
I looked up into the Commander's eyes, "Sir, I've had a seizure, I'm really thirsty, can you help me back to my bunk?" He nodded and helped me out into the open and across the green to our bunk.
The thing was I had a run that day and Angel had cost me recovery time by wasting it telling me how I wasn't really a seizure type person. I guess she had seen a show on tv or knew someone once and thought that all seizures were alike. Next she could tell me how my kidneys were great.
Dragged back to the bunk the Commander got me some water. I drank 24oz then another 24. Dr. Jividen was there and took a look at my pupils.
"She'll be okay" she announced, "but usually rest is required....hey....why is she drinking so much?" Jividen asked the Commander. He sat down close beside me.
"She has a kidney problem" he commented, "that's why she was in New Portland, they were taking some tests."
"Well, she can't eat this hard tack Commander, it's all protein laced with vitamins and fiber. It's going to be very hard on her kidneys and as a runner she needs some carbohydrate." He looked genuinely shocked.
"Is that what caused the seizure?" He asked. Jividen shrugged, "I don't know, my specialty is with the dead."
"Sorry Commander" I said, "I just didn't think. Heavy protein taxes my kidneys but I don't know much about it. I was diagnosed close to the time of the outbreak." He looked grave. I thought he was going to retire me as runner right then and there and possibly that is what he was thinking.
"Okay," he said, "we'll see about providing you with some apples at least. Can you be around to run this afternoon?" I nodded.
I felt really sore about being sick in front of Angel who probably had told the whole camp about me drinking and getting all sick in the infirmary. There wasn't anything I could do. I felt terrible and worse I had delayed the mission by hours.
The side gates and perimeter was on lock down right as me and Dr. Jividen were leaving. We had to cut through the cemetery woods and the woods along the road during October spider season. I was not happy. I rather see a crawler than a spider.
We did find one lone elk on the trail in front of us. Dr. Jividen darted it and brought it down so we could take samples. Darting it wasn't as fun and as easy as I thought it would be, the poor thing thrashed down to the bridge that spanned the creek that fed Swash Lake and would have drowned had the tied been in. But we wrangled it around to take blood and samples. Dr. Jividen scraped at its hooves even. She looked inside of its mouth and opened its eyes and inspected every part of the animal - every part. Gross. By then it was around 5:30pm -- too close to sundown to stay out anymore and we had to cut back through the woods to the main gates.
Dr. Jividen was humming to herself she was so happy. Her happiness made carrying back all the samples not so bad.
When I got back there was an apple on my bed and under it was a note, "No one listens to Angel she's a flaky bitch. Everyone is team Starbuck," and it was unsigned on my cot. I didn't recognize the handwriting. Was anyone for Runner 5? I always felt so alone, especially when I was sick, then I felt both alone and useless.