The Bachelorette Party

[jke1995]

The Bachelorette Party

Chapter 1

The planning meeting was tonight. Eight bridesmaids all convened in Shannon’s apartment to put together a perfect long weekend for their mutual friend Danielle’s bachelorette party.

Shannon had put out some food, wine, and beer for everyone as they shuffled in.

“Okay, thank you all for coming tonight. I know we’re all in a groupchat together but I felt that tonight would be more productive if we met in person. What I’d like to accomplish is planning out Danielle’s bachelorette party.” Shannon announced to the group.

There was instant buzz amongst everyone.

“Hold on. Before we get started, I figured it’s best if we all go around and just introduce each other quickly. As you all know, my name is Shannon, and I’m Danielle’s younger sister.”

A blonde woman to her left stood up.

“My name is Rose and I am Danielle and Shannon’s cousin.”

The woman to Rose’s left stood.

“My name is Jane. I grew up next door to Danielle. We’ve been friends since elementary school.”

The next person stood.

“I’m Cassie. I went to high school with Danielle.”

“I’m Kayla. We were in the same sorority in college.”

“My name is Beth. I met Danielle at a book club a couple of years ago and we’ve been very good friends ever since.”

“I’m Megan. I’ve worked with Danielle for several years.”

Finally , the last girl stood up

“My name is Candice. I’m Charlie’s sister.” Charlie was Danielle’s fiancé.

“Great, now that we all know who each other is, we can get down to business and hash out the details of this party.”

Several voices shouted at once. 

“Let’s do Nashville. Broadway is so much fun at night.”

“I went to Napa for my friend’s bachelorette party and had some of the absolute best wine I’ve ever had.” 

“Let’s do Miami! The beaches are ridiculously awesome.”

“Everyone calm down. All of those places are very fun, but Rose and I have something a little more Danielle in mind.” There was agreement amongst the bridesmaids. Danielle was a nurse who hadn’t partied very hard in a long time.

“We have a cabin rented in Colorado this weekend.” Rose said. The excitement returned.

“We should ski. I love Aspen.”

“No, let’s do Vail.”

“Guys quiet. This bachelorette party is going to be a little unconventional. We’re actually not going to leave the house at all.” The room went silent. 

“I know this isn’t what you guys had in mind. But we put our heads together and we tried to think about what Danielle would want. Now let’s think about her for a minute. She is the most selfless person we all know. She’d drops anything for us whenever we need help with anything. There’s a reason why nursing comes so naturally to her. She’s been doing it her whole life. She loves helping people. That’s why she went into nursing to begin with.” Rose said. Everyone agreed with that.

“That’s not the only reason though.” The group looked at Shannon, perplexed.

“You see, it’s actually quite obvious, Danielle has a thing for sick people.” Shannon stated. 

“Well yeah, that’s why she’s a nurse.” Kayla said.

“It runs deeper than that. She has always obsessed over taking care of sick people. She has loved it her life. Her favorite game when we were growing up was that I’d pretend to have a cold and stay in bed while she played a doctor and took care of me. Then she’d pretend to catch it and have me take care of her.” Shannon explained. “She is obsessed with the common cold and the flu. Her favorite TV episodes are ones where someone gets sick. She’s never let someone being stop her from being around them while sick and she has made the most out of every sick day she’s ever had.” Shannon said.

“For example, when we were younger, Rose caught the flu on her birthday and her parents cancelled her party.”

“I was devastated.” Rose said.

“Danielle begged my mom to let her still visit Rose. I don’t know how she did it but my mom let her.”

“It ended being such a great birthday. She stayed with me the entire day and helped my mom take care of me. I was so sad but she made me feel so much better.” Rose remembered.

“Right. Then naturally she caught it and stayed home for three days and promptly gave that flu right to me.” Shannon said with a laugh.

The room was still quiet. 

“Come on. You guys all have a story like that. Jane, remember when you caught the chicken pox and Danielle brought you your schoolwork every day?” Shannon asked. Jane nodded.

“She’s right. She came by every single day and helped take care of me. I was so miserable for an entire week and I looked forward to her coming to visit me.” Jane agreed.

“Then she of course caught them and she was the one who had to stay home for a week. She was so happy when I got to return the favor.”

“Exactly. Cassie, remember your prom?” Shannon asked.

“No, I didn’t go because I came down with the flu the night before.”

“You sure did. Who was the first person you told?”

“Danielle. She was over within an hour and brought all sorts of things to take care of me take my mind off of missing prom.” Cassie said.

“And then?”

“Then she woke up the morning off sick as a dog. Your mom brought her over to my house and we spent the day in bed together. It was almost perfect.” Cassie said smiling.

“See? I’m sure the rest of you have these kind of stories. Come on let’s hear them.”

Kayla spoke up. “Junior year of college, we were supposed to go to Gulf Shores for spring break, but I caught the worst cold of my life right before. I wore this super small dress to a party with no jacket and walked through the rain back home. It was the morning everyone was suppose to leave and I heard the car pull away as I was laying in bed. I wanted to cry, but then Danielle walked in with soup and tissues and all sorts of stuff. She made me feel so much better. Once I got over that cold, I gave it right to her and spent the rest of spring break taking care of her while she was sick in bed.”

“That doesn’t shock me at all.” Shannon said. “Who else?” 

“Well I remember when I was first getting to know Danielle through our book club. I had a miserable cold and had to miss one of our meetings. The next day, I was curled up on the couch, under a blanket, when out of nowhere Danielle is at my front door. She got my address from someone else in the club. I was surprised at first but she sat on the couch and read me the chapters I missed while I got to lay there with my feet in her lap. I have never felt more cared for. Then, the following week, she missed the meeting due to a bad cold. You bet I was there the next day reading to her while she put her feet in my lap.” Beth said.

“That’s so sweet.” Jane said. Everyone agreed.

“Oh, about a year ago at work, we had this super huge presentation her and I had to give to the whole hospital board. We stayed late for weeks putting it together. Well, it turns out being overworked and having little sleep isn’t good for your immune system. The morning of the presentation I came in coughing up a lung and sweaty with a fever. She sent me straight home and did the presentation herself. She wasn’t even my boss and she sent me home. I felt so bad I missed it and that all that work was for nothing. That evening, Danielle came over with soup, ginger ale, tissues and flowers. Of course I couldn’t smell them but it was so lovely. I told her I would take her out to dinner that weekend, but when the weekend rolled around, she had the flu herself and dinner out turned out to be soup in bed.” Megan said.

“Very on brand for her.” Shannon said.

“She came to our family’s house for Christmas this past year and I had the worst cold I ever had. I stayed in bed in my parents’ guest room while everyone else was opening presents and having fun downstairs. Danielle came up with sick day supplies and my presidents and she let me open them in bed because my family didn’t want to spread germs. She made that lousy Christmas pretty fun. Then we were supposed to go out later that week for New Year’s Eve, but when I got to her house, she was nowhere to be found.she was in bed with my cold. I decided to return the favor and had so much fun staying with her that night.”

“Nothing like a cold for the holidays.” Rose said. “You see. She loves taking care of sick people and she definitely likes being sick herself. For her bachelorette party, we’re proposing this: We come down with a bad cold and Danielle takes care of us. She’ll thrive on it and we know she’d have no problem taking care of eight people at once. It may not be the most fun in the world for us but it’s her weekend and this would make her so happy. Plus besides the wedding in a couple of months she has no way to ever get all of her favorite people in one place ever again. Are we agreed?”

There was some murmuring. Candice spoke first.

“I’m in.”

“I am too.” Said Megan 

“Screw it. Let’s do it.” Beth said.

“I’m down.” Cassie said.

“Sounds weird, but I like it.” Said Kayla.

“I can’t deny Danielle.” Said Jane.

“That settles it. Let’s catch a cold everyone.” Shannon said.

“Now how do we make sure that we get sick?” Cassie asked.

TBC

[sneezefan222]

Can’t wait to see part 2!  You’ve done great so far!  Please keep this going. 

[Likesn]

I love it that everything is out in the open. Now, let the sneezing commence!

[prismaticpollen]

this is a really interesting concept! I can’t wait to see what happens next!

[Sneezyboy]

Wow just wow!

 

[jke1995]

Thank you all. I’m glad you like it so far. The next part is right here. Slight TW as the use of needles is described. Otherwise, enjoy!

Chapter 2

Megan was nervous. It was the day before the trip, and had volunteered to help get everyone sick. It made sense as she was the only one who worked in healthcare.

Once a week she worked as a nurse in a general practice that was affiliated with the hospital. This was her best chance to encounter someone with a cold, and it was extra helpful that today was a day she didn’t work with Danielle, who was working in the actual hospital building today. The only issue was that there was no guarantee a patient would have a cold. It was late autumn, so the odds were high, but you never could tell. 

Most of the day was uneventful. Routine checkups, migraines, broken bones. Nothing even remotely contagious. Megan was starting to become nervous. This was her chance to be a good coworker and a great friend to Danielle. Finally around 3:30, Mary came in unannounced.

Mary was a regular in this clinic. A young architect about 27 years old, she had a tendency to panic over every slight ailment and would see a doctor at the slightest discomfort.

Today, Mary claimed she was suffering from pneumonia, which really meant she had a cold or flu. Sure enough, she looked fairly sick for once as she lay on the exam table. Her dirty blonde hair was up in a lazy top knot, her skin was incredibly pale, save for her bright pink nose. She wore a gray crew-neck sweatshirt with her college logo on it, a pair of black yoga pants, and a pair of slides dangled off of her feet.

“Hello, Mary. What brings us in today?”

“Well. *sniff* I wedt to bed feelidg super word out add cold. Thed I woke up id the biddle of the dight sdeezidg add coughidg. I haved’t beed able to stop, HaiCHOOOO! I’ve already taked so bady sick days that by boss said I deeded a doctor’s dote to have ady bore tibe off.”

“Well that’s no fun. I’m going to do a couple of quick tests before the doctor comes in, okay?” Megan said gently. She always had a pleasant bedside manner. 

She began by taking Mary’s blood pressure and tested her reflexes. Then an exam of her eyes and ears. Then her throat which revealed a lot of inflammation. Then her nostrils, which contained an almost obscene amount of mucus. Lastly, she took Mary’s temperature, which clocked in at 100.2. Megan made her notes and told Mary the doctor would see her shortly.

Since the day was winding down, Megan stayed in the room while the doctor conducted her examination. Mary kicked her slides off and lay back on the table. Megan could make out some sweat on the soles of her feet, probably due to her fever. 

After the examination, Mary was diagnosed with a case of the flu and was advised to go home and stay in bed for about three days or so. The doctor left Megan to wrap up the appointment. 

“Mary, before you go, the hospital is actually doing a study on this year’s influenza strain. Would it be alright if we took a few swabs of you saliva to send to the lab?” Megan asked nervously. She so did not want to get caught.

“Ha-HaiChooo! Yeah sure. *sniff* but please bake it quick so I cad go hobe add get idto bed.” Megan was quick taking three swabs each of her mouth and of her nostrils. She placed them in a Petri dish and covered it. Mary had no idea these germs would not be studied, but rather enjoyed by nine women. 

Later that night, Megan sat in her living room with her nursing bag and the Petri dish on the floor in front of her. By now she had changed into a teal crop top and gray sweat capris. She was carefully extracting the saliva and mucus and dropping it into a syringe. Whoever would be injected with this, would soon come down with a bad flu.

——————

Finally, the night had arrived. Everybody had made their travel arrangements and got the cabin. It was early November and there was already snow in the Rockies. 

The cabin was rustic, with a wooden exterior, but was spacious, on brand with the Western American aesthetic. In all there were five bedrooms. The master was upstairs, and it was decided that Danielle would sleep there. The other four each had a queen sized bed to be shared. Shannon and Rose claimed the upstairs one to be next to Danielle. The remaining rooms were split up with Jane and Cassie sharing, Kayla went with Beth, and Megan with Candice. The last to arrive was Shannon and Danielle. The others spent their time discussing a plan to get sick. Megan gave them the run down of the shot, and offered to be the one to inject herself.

“That’s not fair.” Said Kayla. “You we’re the one to get the germs in the first place.” 

“Yeah, you should have at least a little time before you get sick.” Said Jane. 

There was some more murmuring before Candice spoke.

“I’ve known her the shortest out of everyone on this trip. I’ll start things off.” Everybody seemed to agree. Megan unzipped her bag and pulled out the syringe.

“Is this going to be instantaneous?” Candice asked.

“Most likely not. With this amount of germs, I would say about 8 hours before you start feeling symptoms.” Megan explained.

Candice nodded and took off her sweater. Megan sterilized the needle and Candice’s arm. She sweated, but found a vein without any trouble and injected Candice with the flu. She winced slightly but took it well.

After Megan absorbed a little bit of blood with a croon ball and applied a Band- Aid to Candice, the girls circled around her.

“How do you feel? “ Beth asked.

“I -  I ACHOOO!” Everyone looked shocked. Candice smirked.

“I’m just kidding. It’s gonna take a little bit.” The girls laughed and before they knew it the guest of honor was there. Danielle was so happy to see everyone and catch up with all of her closest people. The group danced to music and played drinking games with the exception of Candice who didn’t want to be hungover on top of sick with the flu. She called it a night early but everyone else continued to hang out. Shannon asked Megan if everything had gone okay and Megan assured her it was according to plan.

The girls stayed up fairly late, but things didn’t get too crazy. Danielle was under the impression that they would all go hiking tomorrow.

When morning rolled around, Shannon and Rose got up to make everybody breakfast. Slowly but surely, they all woke up and headed to the kitchen to eat and make coffee. Everyone was chatting when they realized that Candice wasn’t up yet. Then they heard the sound of someone clearing their throat. Everyone looked in the hallway and saw a pair of Tweety Bird slippers standing in the kitchen doorway.

TBC

[Italiangirl]

Amazing update! Keep up the good work! 

[Likesn]

The fun is about to begin 😁

[Sneezyboy]

I love this one! Cant wait for part 3

[CharliesGirl]

Oooh this is great! 

[Sneezefairy]

I can’t wait for this to continue! 

[sneezefan222]

Not a bad story!  Would love to see more!

[NickG1998]

Please continue with this wonderful story and keep up the amazing work 

[jke1995]

Chapter 3

Danielle was the first to speak.

“Good morning, Candice, I’m glad you slept in. Come have some breakfast.” She was clearly blissfully unaware of what her bridesmaids were planning. 

Without speaking, Candice stepped into the kitchen. There was a large island in the middle of the room with five wooden barstools lined up against it. There was also a small table in the corner over looking a large window with a view of the mountains.

The view out the kitchen windows was picturesque, which was not quite how Candice felt. She was the only one in the group not dressed yet. Her hair was standing up in weird places and her attire consisted of her slippers, yellow robe, gray tank-top, and yellow pajama pants. She slowly made her way to the island and sat down on a barstool. Immediately, she rested her head in her hands. 

“Everything okay, Candice? You don’t seem too hot.” Danielle asked, very concerned suddenly. 

Candice lifted her head and unleashed a raspy cough into her elbow. 

“Yeah, just a little tired.” She said weakly. Danielle’s nursing instincts kicked in and she approached her future sister in law. She felt her forehead.

“Candice, you’re burning up! I think you caught something on the flight here.” Danielle said.

“AtCHOOOOO! Ugh baybe you’re right.” Candice said before launching into another coughing fit. Shannon was relieved she was playing it off so well. 

“Well, no hike for you today. Back in bed, missy!” Danielle said, trying to hide her excitement. She helped Candice off of her stool. She guided her back to her bedroom, trying to conceal a smile. 

Danielle sat Candice down on the bed and peeled off her slippers. She then grabbed her ankles and slowly laid her back on the bed before setting her feet down.

“You poor thing. This seems worse than that Christmas cold. I’m sorry it’s while you’re on vacation, but I’m going to help get you better, okay?” Danielle said, pinching Candice”s big toe before covering her with the blanket.

“Thadks Dandielle. *sniff* but it’s your party. I dod’t wadt you to get sick either. ACHOOOO!” Danielle passed her a tissue. 

“Don’t worry about me. We’re all going to make sure you feel better, okay?” Danielle said before exiting the room.

Meanwhile, the other seven discussed the next steps.

“Okay, we need some sort of plan so she’s not the only one taking care of Candice and catches it first. She’s going to want to take care of all of us.” Shannon said.

“Well how do we get close enough to Candice if she’s going to be in the room constantly?” Kayla asked.

“Easy. Some of us will have to distract her. But we should have someone as the designated flu-catcher so it’s only one person at a time getting sick.” Rose suggested. 

“Makes sense. Who should be the next person be?” Asked Jane.

“I will.” Said Rose. It was settled.

Danielle came back downstairs with her nursing bag. She grabbed a thermometer and stuck it under Candice’s tongue.

“100.8. This is quite the flu already. Poor thing. Here take these. She had a couple of Tylenol in her hand and passed them to Candice along with a bottle of cold water.

“Sip at the water. It’ll help you feel better. Let’s also get this dove off of you. I don’t want you to over heat.” She grabbed the robe and hung it up on the bedroom door.

“Hey Danielle. Your sister wants you for a minute in the living room.” Rose poked her head in.

“Are you sure? I’m helping Candice right now.” 

“I’m sure. It’ll only be a minute or two.” Rose said. Danielle quickly got up and left the room.

“Hey, how are you feeling?” Rose asked, sitting on the bed.

“AtSHOOOO! Perfectly biserable. But this is all kidd of fud. What bridgs you id here.” Candice said.

“I need you to do me a favor.” Rose said.

“What?”

“Sneeze in my face.”

“Sdeeze id your face. AaaaaSHOOOOO!” Candice let loose a huge sneeze  right in Rose’s face.

“Exactly. I’m going to get sick next.” Rose said with a smirk.

TBC 

[Sneezefairy]

This is absolutely lovely!

[NickG1998]

I absolutely love this wonderful story keep up with the amazing work 

[Likesn]

So much lovely contagion to come.

[Sneezyboy]

So lovely!😍 

[jke1995]

Chapter 4

Rose sat for a minute. She could still feel Candice’s snot on her face. Normally, she would have been completely grossed out, but like Candice said, this was actually fun. She had always had a miserable time whenever she caught a cold or the flu, but if you’re one of eight people catching it on purpose, it shifts your entire perspective.

“AtSHOOOO!” Candice let out another huge sneeze uncovered.

“Poor thing. Here, now blow.” Rose grabbed a tissue and held it to Candice’s nose. She let out a gurgling blow, leaving the tissue absolutely shredded with snot.

“Good girl.” Rose said, tapping her nose playfully.

“Ugh, thadks. This flu is already hittidg be hard. Are you sure you wadt to go through with this? *sniff*”

“Totally. Have you seen Danielle? She’s eating this up.” As if on cue, Danielle came back into the bedroom.

“Hey Rose, the rest of the girls are going on a small hike if you want to go. I don’t want you hanging around and possibly getting sick.” Danielle said.

“I doubt that.” Rose thought to herself. “Danielle, it’s your weekend. If anything, you should be the one on the hike and I’ll help take care of Candice.”

“Oh come on, I’m a nurse, and this flu is already bad.”

“Exactly, there’s no reason for you to catch it on your trip.” Rose argued.

“Oh I’m not worried.” Said Danielle.

“Okay fine, but I came to spend time with you, and if that means taking care of sick little Candice then so be it.” Rose gave Candice’s pinky toe a small squeeze which caused her to giggle- and sneeze.”

“Ahh APCHOOOO!”

“Here let’s have some of this.” Danielle poured a spoonful of DayQuil onto a spoon and fed it to Candice.

“Ugh it’s so gross but I kdow it’ll help be feel better.”

“That’s the spirit. Now lay back and let Rose and I take care of you.” Danielle tucked Candice in.

Meanwhile, the others went out on a small hike on a nearby trail.

“So how long until Rose catches it?” Beth wondered aloud.

“It shouldn’t take very long. The patient I took the sample from had a very nasty case. Highly contagious.” Megan said.

“If that’s the case, Danielle will probably catch it long before all of us do. She’s going to spend every waking moment around Candice.” Kayla sounded worried.

“Rose knows what she’s doing. I’m sure she’s going to steer Danielle away as much as she can.” Shannon said.

Back at the cabin, Rose and Danielle waited on poor Candice. She was incredibly sick already, though the medicine was helping. Rose took every available opportunity to sit or stand as close to Candice as possible. She fed Candice a light breakfast, constantly put her hand on her forehead, and caught her sneezes with a tissue.

“ArSHOOOO! Ugh, Thadks Rose.” Candice said after what felt like her thousandth sneeze of the morning.

“No problem.” She answered. Danielle came into the room with another box of tissues.

“Here you go, Candice. Do you need anything else right now?”

“Do thadk you. I thidk I’b good.”

“Well maybe we should check your temperature again.”

“*sniff* we just checked it ad hour ago.”

Rose could tell she was starting to intrude on Danielle’s caregiving space so she took an opportunity to back off and step away from Candice’s room.

The hiking group returned a little before 1:00 p.m. They removed their jackets on the screened in porch. 

“Hey, we’re home!” Shannon called out from the living room. Danielle came in with a smile.

“Hey guys! How was your hike?”

“A lot of fun. The scenery was gorgeous!” Jane said.

“How are things here?” Megan asked.

“Alright. Candice is in good spirits but she is very sick right now. I’m glad she actually just fell asleep a few minutes ago.” Danielle said.

“At least she’s resting. Where’s Rose?”  Kayla asked.

“She was helping me, but I haven’t seen her in about an hour.” Danielle said , just realizing how long it had been since she had seen her cousin.

The group wondered for a minute before hearing a loud “HAICHOOOO!” 

Danielle assumed it was from Candice and checked her bedroom, but she was still snoring away in bed. She wandered out and stepped into the kitchen and found Rose. She was resting her head on the kitchen island.

“Rose?” She asked as she nudged her shoulder. She lifted her head up. Danielle could see her face drained of color, with the exception of her nose. Which was turning pink.

“Hey, Dadielle. Sorry I was just restidg by eyes. Do you deed he- hel- HeiCHOOOO! Help?” She sneezed into her elbow.

“Alright that’s enough, Rose. This is why I said you shouldn’t get too close to Candice.” Danielle helped her off her chair.

“This is going to be an awful bug, I’m afraid, but I’ll get you well again.” Danielle said as she guided Rose out of the kitchen. 

Rose and Shannon’s bedroom was upstairs, just off of Danielle’s room. She guided Rose through the living room where the remaining girls were gathered.

“Everything okay, Rose?” Shannon asked. Rose responded with a hacking cough.

“I’m afraid she had Candice’s bug. Everyone please keep your distance.” Danielle announced.

“You poor thing, Rose.” Cassie said. 

“I’ll be okay everyode. It’s just a- HepCHOOOO!” Ugh.” Rose said as she trudged upstairs. Danielle helped settle her into bed. Rose was cold, so she didn’t bother taking off her sweater or jeans. Danielle conveniently had her nursing flashlight on her and shined it in Rose’s nostrils.

“Mucus is already building up. I’m sorry Rose, it’s working its way through your body fast.” She said as she tucked her cousin in. 

“Settle in. I’ll check on you in a few minutes.”

Back downstairs, the women discussed the next phase of the plan.

“That worked surprisingly well. Who should be next?” Megan asked. 

“I don’t mind.” Said Beth.

“I have an idea, I’m going to number us 1 through 6 and randomize it in my phone. I’ll be 1, Jane 2, Cassie 3, Kayla 4, Beth 5, Megan 6.”

Shannon explained. She entered the numbers into an app, hit enter, and showed everyone.

“Number 2. Jane, you’re our lucky winner.”

“I’ll do it. It may be hard though, I’ve never had a cold or the flu before.” Jane said as everyone looked shocked at her.

TBC 

[Sneezyboy]

This is so good! You are doing an amazing job! I love everything!

[sneezingfun894]

Oooh nice! Loving the contagion pace as well 

[NickG1998]

Please continue this wonderful story and keep up with the amazing work 

[Likesn]

On 7/15/2023 at 11:55 PM, jke1995 said:

I’ve never had a cold or the flu before

Well, you're going to have one very soon 🤣

[starspray]

This is incredible ahhhh

[jke1995]

Chapter 5

“What do you mean you’ve never had a cold?” Megan asked, astounded.

“I just never have. I have a pretty good immune system and I’ve never had anything so bad I’ve had to stay in bed except for the chickenpox when I was younger.” Jane explained.

“That must have made Danielle insane.” Shannon said.

“After knowing what I know now about her, I would say so. Look, I’m going to try my hardest  to catch this but I’m just saying it may not happen.” Jane said.

“Well, in that case, you better get started. Why don’t you go upstairs and see if Rose needs anything.” Cassie said.

Jane climbed upstairs in a purple turtleneck, blue jeans, and wool socks. She knocked on Rose’s door lightly.

“Cobe id.” Came the response from inside. Jane opened the door slowly. Rose was sitting up in bed coughing ferociously into her hand. 

“Hey Rose, how are you feeling?” Jane asked as she sat down on the bed.

“Oh by God. It hits you so fast, I- I- ITCHOOOO!” Rose leaned forward and sneezed all over Jane’s red sweater. 

“I’b so sorry.” Rose said as she leaned back in bed.

“Not to worry. It’s actually welcome. You see I’m the next person to get sick.” Jane said.

“Oh, well I’d that case, I’b dot sorry. *sniff*” joked Rose.

“No worries. I was just telling everyone downstairs that I’m unsure about this because I’ve never had the flu before.” 

“You what?” Rose exclaimed before another coughing fit, this time uncovered.

“Nope. Not even once. I’ve been extremely fortunate.” Jane said.

“Wait. Didd’t Dadielle take care of you whed you were youdger? I thought everyode had a story like that.”

“Well, I had the chicken pox a long time ago. And Danielle did take very good care of me that week, but that was the last time I’ve ever been sick with any kind of illness.” 

“HepSHOOOO! Well, I thidk this ode is godda get you. It boves fast.”

At that moment, Danielle knocked on the door.

“Hey Rose, can I come in?” 

“Here, hide udder the bed. I have ad idea.” Rose instructed Jane. Jane did as she was told and ducked under quickly. Danielle entered the room with her nursing bag. She was trying to conceal her excitement.

“I’m sorry you got so sick, cousin. Can I take a quick look at you?” She grabbed her small flashlight and examined Rose’s eyes, ears, and nose.

“You already have a ton of mucus building up in there.” Danielle said. She was almost giddy.

“It sure feels like it.” Rose said trying to sound glum.

“I know I’m sorry. How about I make you a little something light to eat?” 

“Actually, cad i Baybe just take a dap? I’ll eat whed I wake up.”

“Of course. Can I give you some medicine before you do?” Rose let her cousin give her a couple of Advils and some water to down them.

“I’ll check on you in a bit.” Danielle said before closing the door. Jane popped back up.

“She had do idea you were here.” Rose said with a smile.

“It didn’t seem like it. Now that she’s gone, what do you want from me?” Jane asked.

“What I’d really like is for you to cobe id bed add cuddle be. Dot odly will it warb be up, but it will give you direct access to by gerbs.” Rose explained.

“Well, I’m up for anything.” Jane said as she climbed into bed. She pulled the covers over her and Rose while she draped her arm over Rose, placing her hand on her shoulder. The two fell asleep quickly.

When Rose woke up, she felt incredibly uncomfortable. She was hot and cold at once, her body ached, her head felt full of cement, she was incredibly thirsty. A little disoriented, she checked her phone on the nightstand. 3:48 p.m., it read. She rolled over and saw that Jane had already gotten up and left the room. She slowly sat up and let out a sneezing fit into her shirt. 

“Ehhhh ErCHOO! ETCHOOO! HetCHOOOOO!” She looked down and saw her t shirt covered in snot.

“Ugh, well I guess I was goidg to chadge idto pajabas adyway.” She said to herself as she slowly got out of bed.

A little past 5:00, the kitchen was buzzing with activity. The healthy women were preparing two different dinners. Shrimp Alfredo and red wine for the healthy ones, and vegetable soup for Candice and Rose. Danielle was busy making rounds with her two patients. First up was Candice.

Danielle entered her bedroom with a tray that held a bowl of soup and a can of ginger ale. Candice was sitting up in bed, the covers pulled up to her waist, leaving her only visible from her gray tank top up. The top of the bed was quickly becoming littered with used tissues.

“Hi Candice. How are you feeling?” Danielle asked as she set the tray down and started gathering up used tissues. Candice’s initial response was a hacking cough.

“Ugh. *sniff* Does that adswer your questiod?” Danielle let out a giggle.

“I’m sorry. I know you’re miserable, but you really are so cute when you’re sick.”

“Thadks. I wish I felt cute. HhepSHOOO!” 

“You’ll be back to yourself in no time. Don’t worry. Now please eat a little bit and sip that ginger ale. That’ll help settle you.” 

Candice ate as much as she could before tapping out. She managed to drink the entire can of ginger ale before Danielle left her to rest. Next up was her cousin. She carried an identical tray upstairs, only this one contained a bottle of Gatorade instead of ginger ale. Danielle tapped softly on the door.

“Cobe id.” Came the reply from inside. Danielle opened the door and found Rose in bed. She had now changed into her blue and white pajamas, her hair now in a ponytail, and her bare feet poking out at the end of the bed. Danielle could make out beads of sweat on Rose’s forehead and the soles of her feet.

“Here Rose, let’s take that temperature of yours.” Danielle quickly grabbed her thermometer and stuck it under Rose’s tongue and kept it there until she heard it beep.

“101.3. That’s not good Rose. Drink your Gatorade. We can’t have you getting dehydrated. Rose sniffed and sat herself up. Danielle added a bendy straw to the drink, something that Rose liked growing up. She smiled.

“Thadk you. I cad’t believe by fever spiked like that.”

“Well I kind of had a feeling. It smells a little like sweat in here.” Danielle teased, tickling Rose’s right foot. 

“Stop! You kdow how sweaty a fever cad bake you.” Rose squirmed. Danielle made sure she ate her soup and finished the Gatorade before pulling the tray away.

“I’ll be back to check on you in a little bit. If you need anything just ye-“
 

“HARRRRCHOOOOOOOO!” A booming sneeze came from downstairs. It obviously wasn’t Rose, and it didn’t sound like Candice. Rose was feeling hopeful but didn’t say anything.

“I’ll be right back.” Danielle hurried downstairs. She arrived in the kitchen where everyone was silent. All eyes were on one person.

Standing there in a black cardigan, white t-shirt, jeans, and bare feet was Jane. She had her hands over her nose and mouth. Her eyes looked surprised and disappointed. She slowly lowered her hands and revealed a pink nose.

TBC