Chapter 44

 

Half an hour later, Elyssa was back in her room, curled in a fetal position in bed.   She heard the door to her room open, but she didn’t look up.  Instead, she closed her eyes, pretending she was asleep.

 

“Lyssa?”

 

Elyssa recognized the voice as Jenna’s.  Sighing, she rolled over onto her back to face her friend.

 

“Hey,” Jenna said softly, offering Elyssa a smile.   Elyssa smiled back wanly.  “How was it?” Jenna asked.

 

“Horrible,” Elyssa replied bluntly.   “You know what a bone marrow exam is, Jen?” 

 

“Uh, I dunno, I guess I’ve heard of it before, but…” Jenna trailed off, shrugging.

 

Elyssa smiled grimly and began to explain, in detail, what had been done to her.  As she went on, Jenna’s face got whiter and whiter, as her green eyes widened.

 

Finally, Jenna sagged down on the bed.  Her body trembled slightly, her breaths came in ragged gasps, and she was the color of paste.

 

“Sorry,” Elyssa said, rather flatly.   She should have known Jenna would almost pass out.   She had no tolerance for blood, needles, or gory details of any kind.  And she had fainted or almost fainted many times because of this.   They were all used to it by now, so it was no cause for concern.

 

There was suddenly a quick knock on the door, and AJ popped his head in.  “Hey, honey,” he said, entering the room.  “How’s my girl?”

 

Elyssa was about to reply, when AJ noticed Jenna sitting on the edge of the bed, her head between her knees, her thin frame shaking. 

 

He shot Elyssa an alarmed look, and she just waved her hand casually.   Still, AJ was concerned.   He knelt on the floor beside Jenna and lightly rested his hand on her back.  “Jen?  You okay?” he asked.

 

Jenna looked up slightly.   “Yeah,” she whispered shakily.  “I’ll be fine in a few minutes.”

 

“Okay…” AJ said uncertainly.   He glanced back at Elyssa.  “So, how are you doing?  What were the tests like?”

 

“Uh, I don’t want to go into that now,” Elyssa replied, glancing at Jenna and then back at him meaningfully.   AJ nodded, realizing what had happened.  He looked back at Jenna, whose coloring had not improved much.

 

“I’ll be right back,” he said, patting Elyssa’s shoulder and then heading out of the room.  In the hall, he ran into Nick and Kevin.

 

“Hey, Nicky, you might want to go in there,” he informed Nick, motioning to Elyssa’s room.  “Jenna looks like she’s about to pass out.”

 

“What?!” Nick cried, his eyes widening in alarm.

 

AJ quickly put his hand on Nick’s shoulder to calm him.  “Don’t worry, I think she’ll be okay.   It sounds like Lyssa started telling her about her tests or something, and Jenna got like that.  She must have a weak stomach.”

 

Nick nodded, relaxing a bit.  “I’ll go make sure she’s okay,” he said, ducking into Elyssa’s room.   AJ followed behind, while Kevin headed to the waiting room, where the others were sitting.

 

“You okay, baby?” Nick asked, gently perching beside Jenna at the foot of the bed and lightly putting his arm around her.

 

Jenna nodded.  By now, some of the color in her face had come back, and her breathing had slowed.   “I’m okay,” she said, sitting up straighter.

 

“I’m sorry, Jen,” Elyssa said again, sounding more sincere this time.

 

Jenna just waved her hand and smiled sheepishly.  “It’s okay.  You know me,” she said.

 

Elyssa smiled genuinely for the first time in hours, relieved that Jenna was okay and hoping that the worst part of her hospital stay was over.  Unfortunately for her, it was just beginning.

 

***

 

 

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