Several minutes passed and the tension in the room was unbearable. Ryan finally stood up and started to pace in a small circle. She started to talk in a louder voice, "Come on, Karen, talk to me. Please, talk to me," she pleaded. Finally she couldn't take the silence anymore and she yelled in a frustrated plea, "KAREN! FOR GOD'S SAKE!! PLEASE TALK TO ME!"
Every muscle in Jamie's body was coiled with tension. Ryan was pale and rigid as she stood in place with her eyes tightly shut. Just when Jamie was sure they had lost her an older female voice picked up the phone and identified herself as an Oakland Fire Department paramedic. She had to hang up immediately to begin resuscitation, but she promised that someone from the department would call back when they got the girl stabilized.
Ryan hit the disconnect button and sank into her chair. Her head dropped into her hands and she sat motionless for many long moments. Jamie was shaking all over and felt like she was freezing to death. When Ryan finally looked up she saw the pallor on Jamie's face and she immediately got up and shoved Jamie's head between her knees. She grabbed a paperweight from the desk and flung it against the wall. Yvonne came running and Ryan instructed her to get a cold cloth. She returned seconds later with the requested item. Ryan told her she could leave, thinking that Jamie would respond better to her alone. She placed the cloth on the back of her clammy neck and slowly massaged her tense muscles. After a few minutes she felt her begin to stir and she helped her sit up.
Jamie was still stark white but she was shaking less and Ryan guessed that she was in no danger of passing out. She helped her to her feet and guided her out of the small office. As they passed Yvonne's office Ryan said quietly, "I'll call in an hour to see how the girl is." Yvonne mouthed a thank you and Ryan nodded her acknowledgment.
As they got to the curb Ryan propped her up against the car and searched through Jamie's bag for the car keys. When she found them, she turned off the alarm and opened the passenger door. Jamie's color had not improved and Ryan began to worry that she should not have moved her. She appeared to be in shock, and Ryan hoped that being in familiar surroundings would calm her down. She had a rather vacant look in her eyes, but she seemed cognizant of where they were.
Ryan maneuvered her into the seat and belted her in securely. She ran around the car to get into the drivers seat. As she started the engine Jamie moaned loudly and started to struggle to free herself from the seat belt. Ryan unhooked her own belt and ran around to the other side. As she opened the door Jamie leaned over dangerously close to the sidewalk and began to vomit. There wasn't much Ryan could do at this point so she just knelt down and placed her hand on the back of her neck for comfort. She grabbed some tissues from the box on the floor and wiped her mouth gently. Then she lifted her back into the car and checked her vital signs. Her pulse seemed a little quick, but Ryan expected that. She reclined the seat as much as possible and placed her limp form back against the seat.
Jamie was beginning to stir as they approached her house. She moaned slightly and shifted a bit as Ryan pulled into the drive. "Please let no one be home," Ryan prayed aloud. She trotted to the passenger side, opened the door and removed her seat belt. She squatted down and made eye contact. "Are you going to be sick again?"
A small nod and a lurching movement were the only warning that Jamie provided. Regrettably Ryan's reflexes were not fast enough and the remaining contents of Jamie's stomach caught her right in the crotch of her jeans. She swallowed the bile that was rushing up her own throat and did her best to comfort her friend. When she was finished gagging Ryan slid one strong arm behind Jamie's shoulders and the other under her knees. She grunted deeply from the strain as she rose to a standing position. Boy, I wish we had the Range Rover tonight. That squat was a killer!
She struggled to carry her friend up the walk and shot a concerned look at her as she moaned softly. Her diverted attention caused her to stumble just a bit on one of the stairs. Please don't drop her, she pleaded with herself. She hoisted her burden higher on her chest to free her right arm. She managed to get the key in the lock and turned the knob, where she was overjoyed to find the house dark and still. She crossed the threshold and laid her down on the sofa. "Jamie?" she said quietly. When she got no response she lightly slapped her face. Great! Now she's unconscious! After making sure that she would not tumble off the small sofa she dashed into the kitchen to fetch a dish towel which she wet and filled with a few handfuls of ice. She flicked on the overhead lights as she returned to the sofa.
She sat Jamie up again and gave her a brisk ice massage on the back of her neck. She began to respond and finally muttered, "What happened?"
"You almost passed out at the help line. You're in your living room now. How do you feel?" Ryan dropped to her knees and held on to her shoulders to steady her and looked closely at her eyes.
"Okay, I guess. A little sick to my stomach, though. How long was I out?"
"Not long," Ryan said as she exhaled deeply and rubbed her eyes in her familiar gesture of fatigue. "But a lot longer than I'm comfortable with. Has this happened to you before?"
"Yeah. I..." she started, but Ryan saw the green tinge return to her face. She scooped her up and began to climb the stairs quickly, feeling beads of sweat pop out on her forehead as she struggled with her weight.
She carried her into the bathroom and allowed her to kneel on the floor and rest her head on her folded arms crossed upon the toilet seat. Another round of gagging followed and after a few quiet minutes she helped her to her feet and guided her into her room.
"What did you have to eat today?" she inquired.
Jamie thought for a minute, trying to order her muddled brain. "I don't remember. Didn't we eat together?"
"No, that was yesterday," Ryan said as another look of worry crossed her face. "Jamie, I want you to think about today. This is Tuesday. Tell me about what you did today."
"Um, did we have psych today?"
"No, that's on Monday. This is Tuesday. You have your Romantic Poets class on Tuesday. Did you go?"
Jamie concentrated hard and after a few minutes her memory came back. "Yeah, I did. After that I went to the library and then I got some lunch."
"What did you have?" Ryan asked.
"Um, I felt a little funny so I just had some soup and a couple of crackers."
"No breakfast?"
"Um, I don't think so. Oh, no, I was running late so I just had a diet coke."
"Okay, then what did you do after lunch?" Ryan continued.
"I had my next two English classes, back to back. Then I went back to the library and got really engrossed in reading for my class. My watch alarm went off at 6 and I rode my bike home and got my car. I drove back and picked you up at 6:30," she gave Ryan a little smile, proud of her accomplishment of remembering her day.
"So, you asked if I had eaten, but you didn't tell me that you hadn't," she chided her gently. "I guess you need someone to look after you too," she said as she ruffled Jamie's hair. "I'm going to call your parents to let them know about this. I think you should see your doctor."
"NO!" she cried. "Don't call them, Ryan! Please!" she begged with a note of panic in her voice.
"Okay, okay," Ryan said as she gently caressed her cheek. "But we've got to get something into your tummy. Do you think you have any 7-up or ginger ale?"
"Probably, but I'm not sure."
"Do you feel like I can leave you for a minute or two?"
"Yeah. My stomach is still bad but I don't think I'll pass out again."
When Ryan returned with a glass of ginger ale she resumed her questioning. "Tell me about when you passed out before"
"It's kind of embarrassing, but I tend to pass out when I'm under stress. My blood pressure is kind of low and I just tend to go out."
"Do you get any warning?" Ryan asked.
"Yeah, like tonight I could tell that as soon as you disconnected the phone..." here her voice got fainter and she began to lose her color again. Ryan reached over quickly and removed the glass
from her weak hand.
"I'm gonna get you into bed. Then we're gonna talk about this a little. What do you wear to bed?"
"A T-shirt," Jamie replied as she pointed to her chest of drawers. Ryan pushed her down on the bed and lifted her legs, placing them on the bed also. She walked over to the chest and picked out a very large light blue t-shirt, obviously one of Jack's. She returned to the bed holding the shirt up for Jamie's approval. Her questioning look received a nod in return.
Ryan stood at the foot of the bed and began to unlace Jamie's brown leather ankle length boots. She dropped each boot to the carpet and touched a sock as she asked, "On or off?"
"Off," was the faint reply.
She walked around to the side of the bed and began to unbuckle the brown leather belt which held up the khaki chinos. "I can do that, Ryan," she insisted as she tried to sit up.
Ryan let her give it a try but she flopped back down again in seconds. "God, why am I so dizzy?"
"Because you've been vomiting and you had almost no food in your stomach to start with. You're probably a little dehydrated. Let me get you undressed and then we'll try to get some fluids down you, okay?"
"I feel embarrassed, Ryan," she admitted with a small voice.
Ryan gave her a sad look and sat down next to her on the bed. "Jamie," she said softly. "I...I'm not trying to...I mean I don't want to..."
All at once it hit the smaller woman and she hastened to reassure her friend. "No, no, Ryan. Please don't think I'm worried about you seeing me naked. I'm just shy...around everyone," she insisted. "I don't even like Mia to see me naked."
Ryan nodded her head, feeling reassured that Jamie wasn't afraid of her in particular, but she didn't want her friend to lie in bed with her stained and smelly clothes on. She looked rather helpless until Jamie sighed and said, "I'm being silly. Please help me."
She dropped her arms to the bed and let Ryan do her job. She unbuttoned and unzipped the pants and instructed, "Pick your butt up a little." Jamie did as she was told and the chinos were removed and folded neatly.
Ryan began to unbutton the multicolor pastel plaid flannel shirt. She worked the buttons of the sleeves open and removed one arm. She turned Jamie over onto her side and removed the shirt completely. Next she tugged the pale yellow t-shirt up her torso and over her head.
Ryan pulled her up into a sitting position, braced against her own body. "Are you okay?" she asked gently.
"Yeah," she said weakly, but it was clear that she was feeling queasy again. She put her arms around her torso and easily unclasped her peach colored silky bra. She slid it off her shoulders and tossed it away, being careful to avert her eyes as much as possible. Gathering the blue t-shirt, she bunched the fabric together and pulled it over Jamie's head, and then pulled an arm through each sleeve and placed her back onto the bed.
Next she went to the other side of the bed and pulled back the comforter and the sheet. She returned to Jamie and rolled her over until she was lying on the exposed bottom sheet. She went back around again and pulled her up until her head rested on a pair of fluffy down pillows.
Jamie's color was much better now. Ryan checked her watch and noticed that it was almost 11 p.m. so she walked over to the phone and called the help line. Yvonne answered the main number and Ryan asked if they had received word on Karen yet.
"Yes, the paramedics called about 10 minutes ago. They pumped her stomach and have stabilized her. They seemed quite confident that she'll be okay. Physically, at least," she added. "How's your friend?"
"She's okay, that was not an uncommon reaction apparently." After a few more words Ryan hung up and went back to the bed. Jamie's color was nearly normal, but now she was quietly crying.
Ryan untied her shoes and kicked them off. She finally pulled off her leather jacket and draped it over a chair. She had to get her sodden jeans off but she didn't want to leave her friend for long. So she just shucked them and looked in the dresser for some sweats or pajama bottoms. Luckily she found some thin cotton flannel pajama bottoms that must have been Jack's. She slipped them on and shimmied out of her bra without taking off her T-shirt. Crossing over to the bed she climbed in and pulled another two pillows behind her back. She scooted right next to Jamie and pulled her into the crook of her shoulder. Jamie's head dropped onto Ryan's breast and she shook with quiet sobs for a long while.
"How could someone be so cruel to a child?" Jamie finally gasped out. "How could you rape a little girl because you think she's gay?!"
"I can't answer that Jamie. I can't imagine abusing someone so vulnerable. The really awful thing is that Karen's innocence is destroyed. She might get through the trauma but she can't reclaim her childhood. That's gone forever."
"I'm so proud of you Ryan," she murmured. "You saved her life. You really saved her life!"
"No, the paramedic did that. I just knew enough to call them."
"I didn't realize how bad it was until the end. She would have died if I had been there alone," she began to sob again.
"You don't know what you would have done if you were alone, Jamie. Don't speculate about things like that," Ryan said into her ear as she held her close.
Jamie began to calm down after a few more minutes of sobbing. The stress of the evening began to claim her and she was sound asleep within moments. After Ryan was sure she was in a deep slumber she rolled her onto her back. She drew the comforter up to cover her breasts and pulled her arms out of the covers.
Ryan rolled out of bed and went to the phone. She dialed the familiar number of the firehouse and heard her father's strong voice answer. "Hi, Da. It's me."
"What's wrong, Siobhan?" he said with a note of concern.
"Nothing big. Jamie and I went to the teen talk line tonight and we had a really stressful call. A young girl overdosed and we just got to her in time. Jamie hadn't eaten and she passed out. None of her roommates are here, so I'm gonna stay over to watch her."
"Oh, the poor lass, you take good care of her, Siobhan, she's a lovely little thing."
"Thanks Da, will you let the boys know I won't be home?"
"Sure thing, sweetheart. I love you, Siobhan," he said softly. "And I'm proud of you for helping that child tonight."
"I love you too, Da. See you tomorrow."
Ryan found a small quilt lying on a chair. She flipped off the lights and got onto the bed . She lay outside of the covers and placed the quilt around herself. She lay in that position for a long time, unable to relax enough to sleep. Hours later she drifted off for a few restless hours of sleep.
Just after dawn she awoke with a start. She rubbed her weary eyes and carefully rolled out of bed. As she picked up her shoes she heard Jamie stir.
"What time is it?" Jamie asked groggily.
"It's just 6 a.m.," Ryan replied. "You can go back to sleep. You could use the rest."
Ryan came over to Jamie's side of the bed and sat on the edge to check her out. "I'm going to take a shower and go downstairs to fix some breakfast. You stay in bed and I'll come check on you at 7. If you're better you can come down and have some breakfast before school, okay?"
"Okay," Jamie agreed. "Gimme a hug," she said as she extended her arms. Ryan dutifully complied, giving her a small kiss on the top of her head for good measure.
By the time Ryan had reached the door to the bathroom she heard Jamie's breathing fall into a steady pattern. She smiled wearily at her sleeping friend and closed the door.
After a partially rejuvenating shower Ryan ambled down stairs to find something for breakfast. She had slipped Jack's pants back on along with her own T-shirt. She did a reasonably decent job of washing her jeans out and tossed them in the dryer while she searched the kitchen for acceptable food. The closest she could come was some instant oatmeal. The pantry held every type of spice and herb, but the only real food was microwave popcorn, fat free cookies and diet soda. This is disgusting. Every one of those 3 is underweight and I bet they're all malnutritioned. I can't do much about the other two but Jamie is
going to start eating better if I have to move in here to cook for her. There was no fruit in the house, but she did find some milk that had a day left before it went bad. She put the instant oatmeal in the microwave and grumbled to herself as it cooked.
She extracted the bowl and added the milk and some brown sugar. She was on the verge of gagging as soon as she took her first bite. What a terrible thing to do to a poor little oat, she moaned. Every bit of flavor and texture has been removed!
Her stomach was queasy as it was, and the wallpaper paste that claimed to be oatmeal was making matters worse. I can't do it. I'll grab something on the way to class. Anything would be better than that!
She was pleased to hear Jamie stomping around upstairs but she thought she should give her some privacy so she climbed up on the marble counter to wait for her pants to dry. Just a few minutes after 7 Jamie came down the stairs, clean, pressed and very pale.
Ryan hopped off the counter and walked over to her. "You don't look much better," she admitted. "How do you feel?"
"About like I look," she said weakly. "I'm still a little sick to my stomach and I feel pretty shaky."
"I think this is a perfect day to skip school," Ryan suggested. "Why don't you go back upstairs and hop into bed. I'll go to the store and buy you some human food for breakfast."
Jamie looked at her blankly while Ryan turned her around and steered her back up the stairs. "Scoot," she commanded.
Without a word she climbed the stairs, unbuttoning her blouse as she did so. Ryan pulled her still damp jeans from the dryer and struggled into them. Nothing better than hot, wet jeans that still smell like vomit, she thought cheerily. She picked up the keys to the Porsche and was just locking up when Cassie pulled into the driveway.
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