The Time Travelers' Club: Chapter 40 -- Sick Days

"Hi, this is Emily Henry, Sam’s Mom.  I am keeping him home today.  He's sick.  Maybe the flu."

It was Monday morning.  Emily sat on the corner of Sam’s bed, talking to the school’s secretary.  Covered with a heavy blanket and with a thermometer stuck in his mouth, Sam could only hear murmured responses.

"Really.  Several other cases of the flu. It must be going around."   Emily listened for a moment.  "Yes, Bon could do that.  Ok. Thanks. Bye." Emily turned to Sam.  "Sounds like there are several other students with the flu.   Bon is bringing your homework, so you don’t get behind."

Sam tried to smile, but he couldn’t get enthused about homework right now.  He felt hot and sweaty from the fever, ached all over, and longed to sleep.

Emily went to the living room.  He could hear his mom on her cell phone talking to the doctor’s office.

"Yes, about 100.3…." She paused.  "Today at 10:30. Yes, we can make it."  Then there was silence.

"Hi, Judy. It’s Emily. Sam’s sick…"  Emily paused.  "Oh dear…  It really must be going around..."  She paused again.  "I plan on being in by 2 and work until closing.  I’m going to ask Mrs. Steers if she can watch him for a few hours."

Emily went into her bedroom.  Sam could hear her talking to someone else, then she came back into his bedroom.  "How do you feel?"

Sam barely opened his eyes and, in a low moan, said.  "I may die soon…  It’s so hot in here... I'm soaked."

Emily chuckled over his dramatics.  "I think you’ll live.  Grandma's taking us to the doctor’s office."   She looked at Sam, who had dozed off.

About an hour later, Grandma Henry arrived.  Lois Henry was in her early sixties but looked young for her age.  She loved being a mother-in-law and a Grandma, since she had no daughters, just two sons, and only one grandchild.

Emily hugged her.   "Thanks for coming. Dad not with you?"

"He's gone to his fishing club meeting.  How’s Sam doing?" asked Grandma Henry, shedding her coat and throwing it on the couch.

"I haven’t checked in a while.  I let him sleep while I got ready."  Grandma Henry peeked into Sam’s room.

Between the two of them, they managed to get Sam, all wrapped up in his blanket, into the car and off to the doctor’s office, arriving on time.

 Fortunately, they waited only about fifteen minutes, before seeing Doctor Joe.  Sam thought he looked very distinguished with his salt and pepper goatee.  Doctor Joe examined Sam citing "the flu bug going around" and prescribed a couple of days of bed rest, flu medicine, and good old-fashioned chicken soup.

"See how he feels in a couple of days," advised Dr. Joe.  "I think he will be able to go back to school by Wednesday or Thursday.  It’s a short-lived bug."

Sam didn't care how short or long it lived.  He only wanted to sleep.

Back home, Sam changed back into his pajamas and crawled back into bed.

"I'll be back in a little while to spend the night with you just like I did with your Dad,” said Grandma Henry. “Maybe if you're up to it, I can tell you some stories about him when he was your age. Would you like that?"  Sam smiled.  Grandma Henry kissed his forehead and left just as Mrs. Steers came in through the laundry room entrance.

Emily introduced them. Grandma Henry said she would be back by about seven that evening.

Since Emily wanted to miss as little work as possible, Mrs. Steers volunteered to watch Sam without being asked.

"Thanks for sitting with Sam.  I think he'll sleep for most of the afternoon."  Emily put on her coat.  "Oh, and Bon Wilkinson will be coming by with Sam's homework later."

"Don't worry, I'll be waiting for her.  I can do some reading and check in on him from time to time."  Mrs. Steers followed Emily to the door and watched her go down the stairs.

"I'll be home by 6," she yelled from the bottom of the stairs.  "And my mother-in-law promised Sam she would spend the night as well."

"Okay. Bye," said Mrs. Steers.

Mrs. Steers went to Sam's room.  He had woken up.

In a low groggy voice, Sam said.  "I think I caught something in London.  I may die soon."

"No, probably not.  I can tell you what you have.  Time-travel sickness.  It's like a combination of the flu and jet-lag."  She explained that he had spent too much time on his first trip and that was the reason he was sick. It had happened to both Albert and her.  "You'll be fine by tomorrow, then we can talk.”

Sam tried to keep his eyes open but nodded off.

Mrs. Steers set up a workspace at the kitchen table.  She organized her large piles of paper and several yellow notepads on the kitchen table.

"Lottie, there's a lot of research to do," she said to herself.  "Then you have to prepare your results and present them."

Several hours passed, Mrs. Steers was focusing on an oversize booklet when someone knocked on the apartment door.  It was Bon with Sam’s homework.

"Hi. I hope I'm not bothering you."

"No.  I knew you were coming.  Sam is sleeping.  Is that Sam's homework?"  Bon handed her a large manila envelope.

"Yes, we just have a couple of short assignments.  He chose a good time to be sick, if he doesn't want to get behind."

"Very good," said Mrs. Steers, holding the packet of homework.  "Thank you for dropping this off."

Bon said goodbye and left.  Laying the homework on Emily's desk, Mrs. Steers went back to reading her notes.

"Hmmm... I wonder if this is the same one?"  She mumbled, examining a photograph in the booklet she had been reading.  "If they had two children, then maybe one of them could be the one I'm looking for."

She made a note on her notepad.  Look for a similar Henry in New York City.