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Swollen Issues - Chapter 41

Brian helped a weak Nick into the house. “You wanna get into bed?”

Nick was only able to manage a slight nod but then stopped walking when he remembered the stairs he would have to climb. “Couch,” he mumbled. He could smell the food that Leighanne was preparing for the dinner they had planned for tonight. Nick doubted that he would be eating anything, even the smell was making him feel more nauseated.

“Here you go, are you cold?” Brian asked as he helped his friend ease back onto the couch.

Nick laid down slowly onto his side, drawing his legs up to his stomach.

“I’m guessing that’s a yes?” Brian offered. He bent down and took Nick’s hat off. “Where do you keep spare blankets?”

“Hall closet,” came the hushed reply.

Nick could feel his stomach churning again, his mouth salivating once more. He didn’t want to get sick again. There wouldn’t be anything to throw up anymore and his stomach was so tender from wretching that even the mere thought of another bout of vomiting made him feel worse.

Coming back with the navy blue plaid blanket over his arm and a pillow from Nick’s bedroom, Brian could see that Nick was battling another wave of nausea. “Bud, let’s get your jacket off,” he urged as he tossed the blanket and pillow ontop of the coffee table.

Slowly, Nick sat up again and more or less allowed Brian to pull the jacket off his arms. As he laid back down, he quietly gagged as few times. Brian lovingly covered Nick up with the blanket. He set the designated ‘sick bowl’ next to the couch on the floor.

“Want the television on?”

“No.” His reply was barely audible.

A couple of the dogs came bounding in, running towards their master laying on the couch. Brian couldn’t help but smile at the yapping animals, thinking this would cheer Nick up but was quickly shocked at his friend’s response to the dogs as they tried to lick his face.

“Get them out of here,” he moaned.

Giving out a short whistle, the pups scampered towards Brian and followed him out towards the french doors leading to the fenched in back yard. “Out ya go, fellas,” Brian ordered.

Brian walked into the kitchen, finding Leighanne pulling out a batch of chocolate chip cookies from the oven. He snuck up behind her and wrapped his arms around her growing stomach and kissed her on the side of the neck.

Leighanne jumped. “God, I didn’t hear you, you scared the crap outta me!”

“Just got back about ten minutes ago,” Brian replied as he reached for a cookie from the pan.

Leighanne swatted his hand. “Hey, those are hot, you’ll get burned,” she scolded. Brian ignored her orders, picking up a hot cookie and then quickly dropped it ontop of the marble countertop. “Where’s Nick?”

“Laying down on the couch,” Brian replied over his shoulder as he pulled the jug of milk out of the fridge.

“Is he okay?” She searched her husband’s face for clues, all she could detect was worry.

“He’s sick again,” he sadly replied, pouring milk into a tall green glass.

Leighanne set the spatula down and wiped her hands off with a towel, as she started to head towards the livingroom.

“I don’t think he wants anyone around him right now,” Brian remarked.

She stopped and turned to face her husband. “Does his doctor know that he’s this sick? I mean, he was fine the other day, you know, like he was the same old Nick, laughing and joking around, and now you’re saying he’s sick again?”

Brian shook his head. “No, you know Nicky, he said he’d be fine.”

“Bri, you need to call his doctor and tell her,” she urged.

“He’ll get pissed at me.”

“So? Like that would be a first for you two?” She grabbed the phone and handed it to him. “You’re his Patient Advocate, so start advocating. I know for a fact that there’s medicines that people on chemotherapy can take to stop the nausea, if he keeps on getting sick he’s going to get dehydrated. Call her please,” Leighanne begged.

Shrugging his shoulders, Brian reached into his back pocket and produced his wallet. He thumbed through the cards that he carried and pulled out the gray card that had the number to Nick’s oncologist on it. After punching the numbers in, he was connected to the secretary at the doctor’s office. Brian described what was going on with Nick and he soon was connected with the doctor’s nursing assistant. She told Brian that he would need to bring Nick back in for an IV for the nausea.

“Well?” Leighanne asked anxiously when Brian hung up the phone.

“He’s not going to like this,” he replied.

“What? What did they say to you?” she pressed.

“He’s going to have to go back to the hospital for an IV for some anti-nausea meds, the nurse said it would be the best for him to go that route.”

Slowly, Brian walked back into the livingroom, Leighanne following behind him. He was hoping to find Nick asleep, but to his disappointment, he found his friend sitting up, face hovering over a bowl that had been placed by him in case he felt sick to his stomach again. “Shit,” Brian mumbled under his breath. Leighanne rushed over to Nick and sat beside him on the couch, rubbing his back as he continued to dry heave, nothing to come up, causing him to practically suffocate with each bout of heaving.

“Nick, I just talked to your doctors office, I need to take you back to the hospital,” Brian stated in a grim voice.

Nick’s head shot up, his glassy red rimmed eyes met Brian’s clear blue eyes. “What the fuck for?” he gasped.

Brian’s cheeks reddened at the choice of Nick’s words in front of Leighanne.

“Honey, they can give you something to make you stop getting sick but they have to give it to you at the hospital,” Leighanne replied.

Although Nick didn’t want to go back to the hospital, he wanted to get over the nausea and the stomach aches. He reluctantly agreed to go.

“Can you call Julie for me and cancel the dinner for tonight? Her number is next to the phone,” Nick asked quietly as he walked slowly towards the front door.

“Sure hun, just get better and don’t worry,” Leigh called out.

************

Sitting opposite of Nick in a private room, Brian gazed at his best friend’s pale face as he slept. He still had a hard time signing the papers for permission for the IV that Nick was being given, but both the doctor and the nurse pointed out that Nick had granted Brian control over his situation once he signed the patient advocate forms. Brian was now more or less Nick’s legal guardian.

Brian knew that Nick would have flatly refused the mediation that was being given to him when he got wind of the side effects. Nick was scared to death of steriods and the cancer had already taken a toll on his body from the swelling of the lymph glands fueling rumors ranging from drug abuse to bullemia.

The drug the doctor prescribed for the nausea was called Decadron and one of the side effects were fluid retention and an increased appetite. She explained that most of the steriods that are prescribed had those side effects and that there wasn’t any other way around them. Dr. Andersen decided that it would be best to give Nick decadron from now on while he was on chemo.

Nick stirred when the nurse came into the treatment room and punched buttons on the IV pump.

“How are you feeling?” she questioned as she turned the pump off.

Nick thought for a moment as he mentally checked his body and his stomach. “God, I actually feel pretty good.” He was surprised that the nausea was gone. “Brian, you ready to go?”

He smiled. “Sure, are you ready?”

Nick literally bounced out of the chair. “Yeah, let’s get the hell out of here!” he chirped.

The nurse handed a clipboard and a pen to Brian. “I need you to sign the discharge papers for me.”

Nick cocked his head to one side. “Why is he signing them? I can do that.”

The woman shook her head. “He’s taking care of you now, so he can sign it.”

Nick’s mouth dropped sightly for a second and then he grinned at Brian. “Okay, that’s cool. I get sick of signing my name anyways.”

Brian hastily signed Nick out and adjusted the ballcap on his head. “Let’s go then.”

Nick held out his hand as they walked down the hall. “I’m drivin’ give me the keys.”

“Wow, those meds really worked, didn’t they?”

Nick patted his friend on the back. “Yeah, that’s the best idea you’ve had in a long time. We're gonna stop at Taco Bell on the way back, I'm starving!”

Brian forced a small laugh. He felt like he betrayed Nick somehow by not telling him about the med he had been given. “Yeah, okay.”

Chapter 42