Gym class was a disaster. Because I had left early last Friday to get labs and an x-ray, I had forgotten to take my gym clothes home to be washed. I had no clean shorts or shirts so I borrowed a clean set from Sammie. Since she is smaller than me, the P.E. uniform was a little tighter than I normally liked to wear my clothes. As I walked to the gym, I prayed that Chandler had miraculously been called to the office to go home. No such luck. As I sat down, I noticed him scooting across the floor to get closer to where I had sat down. He started making fun of how tight my clothes were. He told me that I was getting really fat and that I should go find the local Twinkie joint. Sammie staying true to her promise and was quick to defend me. Mrs. Brown heard Chandler and Sammie and forced them to run laps. I felt bad for Sammie for she had not done anything wrong. After class when we were getting out of our uniforms, I apologized to Sammie for getting her in trouble. She told me there was really nothing to forgive and to forget about it for it was not my fault. She said she would see me in choir and to not let Chandler ruin my day.   

Well, the day did get worse. In my next class, I did not feel very well, so I went to visit the nurse. She took my temperature and her thermometer read 105.3°F. She told me to lie down as she dimmed the lights. She called my mother immediately. Thankfully, my mother only works a few minutes away from the school. As soon as Mom arrived, she looked at my pale face and knew this was not good. She said thank you to the nurse and then she helped me walk out of the school. As I sat in the car, I look at the person driving. I did not know who it was. I was so tired and hot that I laid my head back and fell asleep.   

The next thing I knew I was in the hospital. Doctors and nurses were running in and out of the room. I overheard one say something about a seizure and another about dehydration. I wondered were they talking about me. Then, I felt a pinch as an I.V. was hooked up to me. It started to pump fluids into my body. I kept asking for my mother. The nurses and doctors kept pointing to a woman that was standing next to my bed. I did not recognize who she was. I wondered why my mother wasn’t here in the hospital with me.   

I heard someone say she may not live if the high temperature did not drop. Many thought went through my head. “What did he just say?” “Was he talking about me?” “Where is my mother?” “Why is she not with me?” I don’t remember much after that.