Quinn

-Quinn-

I don’t know what’s wrong with me. My head hurts. I think I’m going to be sick. I don’t want to die.

This happened two weeks ago. I love the parks of California. I would spend hours outdoors. I loved to be alone. My old man doesn’t get it. He wants me to play sports. I’m not a “real man” to him. A real man. Not all men enjoy sports, drinking, skirt-chasing, smoking, or being an asshole. No wonder Mom left him.

I digress.

Anyway, I went out to the park. It was Friday. No school tomorrow. But I would be stuck with my old man. I could work around that. Anyway, I just walked around the park. I had my music on. No one can bother me out here. I could just lose myself in nature and music.

I was walking along the trail into the woods. It had to be about three in the afternoon. I think I was in the middle of the path. Suddenly, something bit me on the neck. Something like a tight pinch. I rubbed on the back of my neck. What was that?

And then it all went black.

When I woke up, it was night. What happened? Where did the time go? I stood up and dusted myself off. I just went home.

When I got up on Saturday, I thought I was going to be sick. I felt like throwing up. My whole body shook. When I stood up, my legs shook like pudding. I could barely keep still. I nearly fell over. I couldn’t explain what was happening. It took an hour to get to the bathroom. I threw up everything in my stomach. I thought I was going to die. I ended up staying home from school.

It got worse from there.

Some days, I couldn’t get out of bed. My body was in so much pain. I felt cold all the time. I could barely keep any food down. Neither anything to drink. I would get dizzy as my head ached. My vision would blur. The doctors and my old man couldn’t figure out what was wrong with me. Still, I got worse.

The hunger came. Oh the hunger! It got so bad that my insides twisted with the pain. I tried to eat but couldn’t keep down any food. My thirst was bad too. My body felt like it was on fire. Sometimes, I felt so cold. I couldn’t sleep under blankets anymore. It still kept getting worse.

Now, I am huddled up on the floor of my room. I keep hearing voices. They sound more like wailing and screaming. I don’t know how to make them stop. The pain and hunger are getting to me. I don’t know how much more I can take. I had no idea how much worse or strange it would get.