We Need to Talk
Rachel
It was still too early to sleep, it was only seven o'clock in the evening, but I was already lying down, ready to do just that, as I felt extremely tired and sleepy. I spent the whole day in bed, and even though I couldn't eat anything, I still didn't feel like doing so due to the huge discomfort I experienced in the morning. Probably, this happened because of some food I had consumed the day before, something that Lindsay insisted on denying.
Anyway, Joseph let me off for the whole day, on the condition that if I didn't feel better, I should seek urgent medical attention. However, as the nausea passed, I chose only to rest, as I still felt weak considering what I had experienced that morning. I couldn't eat throughout the day, a fact that Lindsay and Joseph were unaware of.
When the food arrived, I simply discarded it. When they asked me if I had managed to eat, I lied and said yes, just to avoid them forcing me to see a doctor, which would be expensive and complicated in London. They left me alone, and I could surrender to the lethargy that accompanied me from the moment I woke up that morning and persisted even at night.
I remembered what happened the moment I woke up. The first thing I noticed that morning was that there was something wrong with my stomach. The second was that if I didn't rush to the bathroom, I would vomit in my narrow bed. My instincts acted quickly, allowing me to reach the toilet in time to avoid a very inconvenient event. The third thing I noticed was that I couldn't get up from the floor where I sat because my legs were too weak to support my trembling body.
"What's happening?" Lindsay asked, looking at me with a scared expression.
She had just walked through the open bathroom door, which I couldn't close due to the rush I was in, and facing the scene in front of her, it was quite understandable that she wasn't concerned about me. I wasn't either.
"I'm not feeling well at all," I confessed, expelling another gulp of the bitter-tasting liquid.
"I can see that with my own eyes; you don't need to tell me," Lindsay said nervously. "Why are you vomiting?"
"I have no idea," I really didn't know, "But it must be just a discomfort. I'll be fine soon."
I truly believed in my words, but after feeling sick for the third time just that morning, I was simply horrified at what could be causing so much dizziness and nausea.
I was in the mansion's kitchen, trying to ingest at least a glass of juice when the smell of frying in the room made me practically run out to the back porch. At this point, I didn't have anything left to expel from my stomach, but still, I forced anything out, even though there was nothing left to be eliminated.
I heard footsteps approaching, and I felt terrible that someone else would see me in this extremely embarrassing situation. However, to my relief, it was Lindsay.
"You're vomiting again?" It was an observation. "This isn't normal, Rachel."
"I believe it was something I ate," I repeated what I had said last time.
"Everything you ate, I ate too, and I'm fine," She was right, and I chose to stay silent; I wasn't in a condition to argue. "Is this the first time you've felt nauseous in the morning?"
"You know perfectly well it is, Lindsay!" I responded, annoyed. "You're with me every day."
"You're right," Lindsay agreed with an awkward smile. "I'm being silly."
"I'm feeling better already," I announced, stepping away from where I had been, near the door where I had been trying to vomit. "I'll go check on Joseph."
"Take his breakfast while you're at it," she suggested.
Just the memory of the smell of frying in the kitchen sent a shiver down my spine, but I couldn't say that to Lindsay, and I ended up doing as she asked, which was quite difficult and caused a new wave of nausea, this time witnessed by Joseph.
After that, he let me off work for the day, which was quite satisfying, but it wouldn't repeat tomorrow because I was sure I would be feeling much better.
************ ❤️***********
Everything repeated itself the next morning, and the first thing I did upon waking up was head to the bathroom. However, there was nothing to expel, which left me even more trembling and weak than the day before. Once again, I found myself sitting on the bathroom floor next to the toilet.
I knew Lindsay would soon be with me; after all, she was sleeping in the bed next to mine. It was no surprise when she arrived by my side, with a deeply concerned expression.
"This isn't normal, Rachel," she pointed out the obvious.
"I'll be fine," I said with a conviction that was far from what I truly felt.
Although it was clear that Lindsay didn't believe what I said, she simply nodded and joined me on the floor, trying to help me as best she could.
When I started to feel a bit stronger and believed my legs could support me, I stood up with Lindsay's help. Upon realizing that I was indeed capable of standing on my own, she left the bathroom, leaving me to take a refreshing shower.
I returned to the room and dressed to face another day of work, adopting my now habitual jeans, t-shirt, and sneakers, a style of clothing I had never adopted before, but it was the most comfortable way to spend the day.
"Are you feeling okay? There's no use pretending; I want you to tell the truth."
I smiled at the veiled reprimand in her words, aware that even though we had only known each other for a few months, she already knew me very well.
"I'm not pretending," I denied with amusement. "I am okay."
We agreed that she would go fetch Joseph's food since I wouldn't risk smelling that terrible odor in the kitchen. Meanwhile, I would go to his room to organize some things, open the curtains, and assist him with any tasks he needed, as we did every morning.
Upon reaching the door of his room, I knocked quickly just to announce my arrival and entered without really waiting for his permission.
"Oh!" I exclaimed in surprise as I stepped into the room, encountering Enrico right away. "I'm sorry, I'll come back another time."
He was sitting in the armchair by the window, with his leg crossed at the ankle and his elbow supporting his chin, as if he was just waiting for something. I suspected he was waiting for his father since Joseph wasn't in the room, and I assumed he was in the bathroom.
"Stay," he said with authority. "I need to talk to you."
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