“I agree. Maybe I'm just tired and homesick, but...” I shrugged. “This isn't home yet.”
“You miss me?” he asked. I could practically here the flirtatious smile on his voice. “Or just home?”
“God yes, I miss you. I miss everyone, including Athena,” I said with a smile. I knew he was just teasing me.
“She’s a cute pup, that’s for sure,” Jacob agreed. “I’m sure she misses you, too.”
“I’d like to give her a snuggle,” I said. “But not as much as I’d like to cuddle up with you.”
“That would be nice right about now,” he said. I heard him move something around on his end of the line. “This place definitely isn’t the same without you around.”
My eyes were getting heavier by the second. It was so nice to hear Jacob’s voice and if I had had more energy, I would have stayed awake all night long talking to him. But the long hours at work had taken its toll and sleep was knocking on my door.
“I hate to cut this short, but I think I need to go to bed,” I said. I couldn't stop the yawn from escaping this time. “I’m beyond exhausted.”
“That’s okay,” he said. “Get some rest. I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon.”
“I can’t wait,” I said.
“Me either,” he assured me. I could almost imagine him leaning over and kissing me. “Goodnight.”
“Goodnight,” I whispered.
I hung up and set my phone on the nightstand. The screen filled the room with a soft glow for a few seconds before it went black. When it did, I closed my eyes and drifted into a deep sleep instantly.
I woke up in a panic and ran to my bathroom, flipping up the lid of the toilet quickly as I dropped to my knees in front of it. Then I threw up, not once but three times, one right after the other. My stomach clenched until it was all over. Once the storm had passed, I laid down on the bathroom floor for a minute. I drew in a long breath and tried to relax. The nausea was gone, but my stomach still felt tight from the throwing up.
Sunlight flickered on the bathroom floor and I shut my eyes against it. All I wanted to do was curl up in a ball and die. There was nothing I hated more than throwing up. It was terrible. The nausea, the retching, the smell. I wanted so badly to avoid it. I thought that maybe a sip of water could make the feeling go away, so I took a drink from the glass next to my sink. It only made it worse, though and my stomach turned again. That water was coming back up, whether I liked it or not.
Dammit, I thought. I closed my eyes and willed the water to stay down. It took a moment of me concentrating only on my breathing and sheer will power, but the need to vomit finally passed.
“Must have been something I ate, I guess,” I said to myself, as I slowly stood up and walked back toward my bed.
I had skipped dinner the night before, though, since I had been at work. And for lunch, all I had eaten was a salad. It was hard to imagine that whatever had made me sick was food poisoning.
Oh well. Could just be that the stress of the past six weeks has finally caught up to me, I thought. Either way, I hope that it’s all out of my system now.
I glanced at the alarm clock on my nightstand, and was surprised to find that it was nearly eleven in the morning.
Wow, I must have been even more tired than I realized, I thought. I never sleep in this late.
Jacob would be arriving in a couple of hours, which still gave me plenty of time to get ready. I decided I’d go out to the kitchen and make a cup of coffee before checking my email. When I opened my bedroom door, the smell of fresh-cooked bacon and eggs entered my nose. I nearly ran back to the bathroom to throw up again, but instead just breathed through my mouth. Lauren was standing in front of the stove and she turned to face me with a smile on her face.
“Good morning,” she greeted me, raising up her spatula in a wave. “Sleep well?”
I let out another yawn before responding. “I can’t believe how late it is, though. You’re making breakfast, so I guess I wasn’t the only one to sleep in.”
“You want some?” she asked, motioning to her cooking. “I've definitely made enough for two.”
“No thanks, I'm good,” I said, holding my stomach with my hands and trying very hard not to think about food. “I just need some coffee.”
Lauren spun around and grabbed a mug from the cupboard. Then she poured me a cup of strong black coffee. She handed it over and I took a sip, but something about it tasted off.
I had to admit that it was nice having a roommate again that wasn’t my parents. Especially having a roommate who was as considerate as Lauren. I had found her in the local want ads, where she posted that she was looking for someone to rent out her extra bedroom. It was a perfect situation, because she wasn’t concerned about having me sign a lease as long as I agreed to pay the rent on time.
She worked in Silicon Valley as a programmer, but for a different company. She knew how demanding my internship was and she was always super quiet when I was trying to sleep and understood when I wasn't home until weird hours. I couldn’t have asked for a better last-minute living situation.
“What are you up to today?” she asked, as she pulled food from the frying pan and situated it neatly on her plate. Just looking at it made me queasy, so I focused on my coffee cup.