Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
***
I WAKE UP from a dreamless sleep in an unfamiliar bed, which isn't an uncommon occurrence for me. It takes a moment for my surroundings to come into focus. I've been transported, I realize: this room looks more like a hospital room than a doctor's office. Dr. El-Hashem is dozing in a chair in the corner, but she instantly snaps awake the second that I do, as if she'd been carefully listen for me to move.
"Cain, thank goodness, you're awake," she yawns, absentmindedly cleaning her glasses on her lab coat. "I was supposed to bring the test results to you as soon as they came back, but you looked so peaceful sleeping upstairs, I didn't have the heart to do it. I just had you moved down here so I could wait for you to wake up."
My heart soars and falls at the same time, leaving me feeling as if I'm suffering congestive heart failure. Dr. El-Hashem has a sense of mercy, a warm heart; that's good news. The bad news? The results came back, and I'm not in my own bedroom.
"Thank you for letting me sleep. I need my beauty rest, you know? You don't get looks like these by just simply moisturizing." I rub the back of my neck, grateful for my warm pajamas, no matter how hideous they are. This room is fucking freezing. "So, what were the results?"
I already know the answer, and I don't like it. But I have to hear it out loud.
"I see. Did you sleep well?" Dr. El-Hashem smiles at that, as if my beauty routine is a fucking joke to her. "I — I'm sorry, Cain. The tests came back positive."
"Were these tests for pregnancy or STDs?"
Dr. El-Hashem sighs, like she's used to dealing with people like me and hates her life everyday for it. "Neither. I have some more questions for you. Is it okay if I ask them now, or would you like a moment?"
"Nah, go ahead. Interrogate me. Go for it, sis. Live your life."
Dr. El-Hashem scans her eyes down her clipboard, pressing her pen into her lips. "Are you currently on any medications?"
I shake my head. "No."
"Are you allergic to anything?"
"No."
"Have you done any sort of drugs — alcohol included — in the past six months?"
Something about Dr. El-Hashem makes me feel almost embarrassed to admit it. I hesitate before quickly denying it.
"You have nothing to hide," she replies, her voice impatient. "Just please tell me the truth."
I bite my lip. Lie to authority figures. You can't trust them. "Oh. Okay. Then, yeah. I guess."
