Chapter 120 - An Infection?

Rosa's condition was stable the whole day after that, and Reynard was relieved that the worst had passed but then the next morning, Rosa's painful scream penetrated the air. 

Reynard flung off his covers and ran to ensure her safety, and was shocked to see her clenching her stomach and throwing up all over the floor. He didn't need to ask to know that the shooting pain had returned. 

"Let it out," he said as he rubbed her back. "It's okay, we can clean the floors. I'll bring you some water before I go get the doctor."

Reynard knew where Armand lived. He had handed him a piece of paper with his address on it yesterday before he left, and Reynard had discarded it, thinking it was of no use anymore. But as he fished it out of the trashcan, he realized how much importance this little piece of paper held. 

Surprisingly, Armand lived quite close to Reynard's house. Hastily, Reynard poured a clean glass of water for his sick sister and made her drink it slowly in sips before he dashed out of the house, the little chit of paper clenched in his palm. 

Armand Schneider's house was like every other in his street: tall, shiny and magnificent. If the circumstances had been different, Reynard would have felt hesitant to approach the looming gates, but right then he ran at it and knocked so loudly, his ears rang.

"Hello?" he called in as he repeatedly slapped his palm against the cold metal. "Hello? Is anyone there?"

Before he could speak any further, the gates opened with a click and a cold woman with a stony face and similar fair hair to Armand's stood by the threshold and looked suspiciously at Reynard's face.

"Yes?" she said crisply as she narrowed her eyes, nudging her chin forward. "What business do you have here?" 

Despite his panic, Reynard tried to appear composed.

"Um, i-is Armand here?" said he, his voice shaking. 

The woman arched a sharp eyebrow. "And you are?"

"I'm a friend of his," Reynard said, giving a wavering smile. "Please, madam. Is he available at the moment?" 

The woman was not convinced as she scanned Reynard. "I'm afraid he's busy at the moment, so if you could please visit another time-"

"I'm begging you, madam," Reynard said, his voice breaking. "Please tell him to come meet me once. It's a matter of saving someone's life."

The woman scoffed as she let go of the gate. "Are you a friend from his academy?"

Reynard frowned. "No."

"Then I'm afraid he can't take his precious time out just for a mere outsider. I'd advise you to arrange a meeting with him when he's at leisure. Right now, he's studying for his exams which are due in a couple weeks."

Reynard let his demeanor loose as he pushed the gate aside and stormed inside the house uninvited. The woman was testing his patience and he was unable to tolerate it any longer.

"Hey!" she screamed. "Intruder! Get out of my house!"

"Armand!" Reynard called, ignoring her. "Armand Schneider!"

The woman caught up to him and held him by the collar, her nails digging into Reynard's neck. 

"What do you think you're doing?" she hissed, looking him right in the eye. "Get out of my house before I call for my husband. Get out, now!"

"Armand!" Reynard called, still disregarding her. 

"What in the heavens is going on?" Feet thudded against a grand carpeted staircase against the farthest wall and Armand appeared in the room with what appeared to be a shocked expression on his face. His eyes widened even further when he caught sight of Reynard standing in the middle of his house, and his mother holding him by the dollar. "What in the world…?"

"Son!" the woman exclaimed. "Help me get this man out of the house; he's barged in uninvited! The audacity!"

"It's okay, mother," he said as he approached the two, his hands outstretched in front of him. "I know the man, so let go of him, will you? Please?" 

Slowly, Reynard felt the women's nails leave his neck and he finally took a breath. 

"Armand, it's my sister again," Reynard muttered. "She's throwing up everywhere even though I made her eat a lot yesterday. And she was fine then, too, but this morning-"

"Calm down," Armand said, putting a hard hand on his shoulder. "It's alright. I know you're worried. Don't fret, I'll come along."

"You aren't going anywhere!" the annoying women cried shrilly. "You need to study for your doctors' exams!"

Armand turned to his mother and looked her coldly in the eye. "Practical work is a part of the exam procedure, mother. Prior practice won't do anybody any harm. Let's go, Reynard."

"Stop!" the woman screamed as both of them made a run for it and before any of them knew it, they were out on the street. 

"The sun's just rising!" Reynard said to him as both men dashed in matched paces. "Why were you awake so early?"

"It's my mother!" Armand answered in between fast breaths. "According to her, I should start my revisions at the earliest possible."

"What?" Reynard asked incredulously. "You mean she commands you to start studying at the crack of dawn?"

Armand gave him a sad smile. "That's pretty much the gist of it."

Reynard scoffed, still not being able to fathom the fact. "What a control freak."

The two turned a corner and stopped as a group of girls walking jollily down the street with linked arms and only ran by as all of them stopped to admire the two handsome men.

"Here we are," Reynard wheezed as he fiddled with the key to his house and when he finally managed to open the door, he ran inside and to his sister's room, Armand only a couple steps behind him.

"Dear me," Armand exclaimed and as he caught sight of the wriggling lady on the bed and the amount of puke on the floor. "What the hell happened here?"

The two scrunched their noses at the pungent smell that hung in the air and went to check up on Rosa's condition. 

"How're you doing?" Reynard asked as he carefully stepped over the vomit and sat beside Rosa's shivering body. "Is your stomach still hurting? Look, I brought a doctor."

"It feels like I'll die any moment now," she sobbed in reply, her cheeks stained with tears. Even in her sick condition, she looked very pretty, with her cheeks red and her eyes shimmering with tears. 

"Hello there," Armand whispered as he interrupted the siblings. "May I ask if your stomach hurts more than yesterday?"

Rosa looked at Armand and paused. "U-Um..." she stuttered, flustered. "Uh, y-yes."

Armand nodded as he looked away. "By the look of it, I was wrong yesterday. If it was a mere hunger pang, it should've settled by now. But the fact that the contractions have resumed means that this is probably a stomach infestation. Have you eaten any rotten food lately? Anything you shouldn't have eaten?"

Rosa gulped, trying to remember. "Uh... I-I don't think so." Another shooting pain made her curl up and she wailed. "Aghhh, I can't remember!"

Armand clenched his jaw. "Miss, try to remember, please. Did you eat anything bad lately? Perhaps you shared something with an ill person?"

Rosa remained silent for a few minutes before she looked at the alleged doctor.

"I shared some fruit a few days ago with a close friend of mine. Since then, I've been feeling a dull pain in my abdomen area, but it heightened only yesterday."

Armand nodded again as he noted everything down on his notepad. 

"Stomach infection it is. Does this close friend you speak of have any history of illnesses?"

Rosa nodded as she remembered. "Yes, yes she does."

Armand pursed his lips. "I'll write some medicines down here, which you can get from any good apothecary. They may be expensive, but they'll suppress the pain for you. Before you get proper treatment."

The two waited in anticipation as Armand wrote down the prescription.

"Here you go." He handed the small piece of paper to Reynard who gave it one glance and gave a soft gasp. 

"These are too many," he muttered as he checked the long list. "Are you sure all of these are absolutely necessary?"

Arman nodded with a sad smile. "I'm afraid so. I should be getting back to my mother in case she's blowing up with worry. If you ever need me again, you're always welcome at my house."

Reynard smirked. "Your mother might think otherwise."

"Don't worry about her. I'll tell her to let you in unquestioned next time. See you, then." With that, Armand took his leave.

Rosa watched him leave with a dazed look in her eyes.

"He's a handsome young fellow," Rosa whispered before throwing up.

✿

"Mister William Radomir!" Reynard approached the familiar apothecary's stall, waving the small piece of paper in the air. 

The middle-aged man looked up in surprise. "Well, well, well. Look who we have here. Long time no see!"

Reynard wanted to greet him with a warm smile, but he just could not, considering his circumstances. "Well, things have been a bit strange for me. Anyways, could I have all of the listed?"

Apothecary Radomir took the list from Reynard's hand and scanned it before rubbing his eyes and doing a double take.

"My my, boy," he muttered, reading down once more. "These are almost ten medicines. Herbs and syrups and whatnot! And none of these are for typhoid, too. Did your momma get another illness or something? Poor her..."

"No, it's not exactly for her," Reynard said impatiently. "Look, Mister Radomir, can we hurry it up a bit? I need these urgently."

"I heed you, boy," the apothecary muttered as he shuffled around to gather the listed materials. "Mm, we got wormwood...a mint and peppermint compound...and what's this? Aloe juice?"

Eventually, the man gathered all the medicines and pushed them towards Reynard.

"That'll be 30 silvers."

"What!?" Reynard exclaimed, incredulous. "Are you serious? There's no way all of this is that expensive."

Apothecary Radomir shrugged. "You know I give you more discounts than anyone on the street, boy. This is the cheapest you can get anywhere."

Reluctantly, Reynard handed over the implausible amount of coins, almost emptying his whole wallet and quickly headed home. 

"I'll brew you the herbs with some tea," Reynard called as he darted inside his house and straight to the kitchen. "Hold on there, now."

It was a while before the tea was finally ready, and by then, Rosa was almost unconscious once again. She quickly shaken to conscious and was forced to gulp down all the herbs. 

"It's bitter," she coughed.

"Shh, we need you to drink all of this if you want to relieve yourself from the pain. There's nothing else we can do."

It took a while but once she finally finished the whole two cups, Rosa started feeling much better.

"It's the palliative medicines," Reynard muttered once he saw his sister finally relax. "Guess that Armand guy really was the real deal." Reynard sighed as his sister fell into a deep sleep. He smiled at her, finally able to ease up himself, but then he sniffed and the puke's smell made him tense all over again.

…

…

"I should probably clean this up."