章 19: Carried Away
The girls watching the race were going crazy cheering their team mates on but Pearl was quick.
From the moment she had gotten the quiet 'go', Pearl heard almost nothing else. She saw the girls ahead of her but two hundred meters was a distance she'd claimed before.
Shoving off from the crouch, she'd started running. She was sure she passed the girls on either side of her but she had trained for years and her focus couldn't be broken. The finish line loomed near and Pearl saw Beth jumping up and down just beyond it. She touched the rope and stopped smoothly a few yards away.
Leaning over, she caught her breath. Her chest felt tight as she stood up again to congratulate the other girls for being good sports.
"Whoa," one girl heaved, doubling over. "You're fast."
"I know," Pearl grinned. "Good race, sweetie, well done."
Then she started coughing and the other girls called for some water. A bottle was handed to Pearl and she took it with gratitude. She wasn't breathing too heavily anymore but her chest was still constricted. Even after some water, she coughed.
"Are you okay, Pearl?" Beth asked anxiously.
Pearl nodded.
Ally blew the whistle and all the campers rushed to hear the next instructions a small distance away. Beth still watched Pearl.
Susie's last words to Jesse were, "She doesn't look so good." Then she had skipped off to join the others.
At first he thought she meant the girl who had tumbled near the finish line. He had gone to the girl's aid. Beyond a few tears of humiliation, she assured him she was fine. Jesse helped her up and patted her back in encouragement.
"Good race."
She sniffled and smiled. "Thanks, doc." She jogged to join the others and that was when he looked about to congratulate the winner of the race and spotted her surrounded by the other leaders.
It didn't look like a victory session.
"What's going on?" he said as he approached.
The first thing he noticed was Pearl coughing. She actually made to sit down as he got there. He knelt beside her, already recognising the onset of trouble.
"Pearl, do you need help?" he asked gently.
She nodded and put her hand to her throat. Stifling another cough, she gasped for breath.
"Do you have your inhaler?" he asked her.
She nodded again, her hand falling to the ground.
"Is it with you now?"
She shook her head once, coughed again.
"I need you to try and relax and tell me where it is."
Her chest rose and fell quickly and Jesse reached for her hand. "Relax, sweetheart, and tell me where the pump is."
"My- bag," she gasped.
Corey was off in a second to go search for the inhaler.
Jesse could see Pearl was fighting not to have an asthma attack, but he also knew it wasn't something she could control at this point. He instructed Beth to hold up Pearl's arms and he asked Ethel for the windbreaker she had around her waist.
Unfortunately, at that moment the campers began to run back to their dorms for showers. Dust rose and grass floated in the air and Pearl started coughing uncontrollably, her arms jerking out of Beth's gentle grasp.
Most of the girls didn't notice anything amiss until Jesse scooped Pearl up into his arms as her face began to discolour and she battled for breath.
"What are you doing?" Brittany asked.
Beth had her hands over her mouth, scared for her superior.
"She won't last until Corey gets back. I'm taking her to the cabin," he said over his shoulder, already moving away.
She wasn't very heavy but he didn't want to make it any harder for her to breathe by jostling her as he ran fast. So Jesse jogged with her in his arms, trying to keep Pearl in a sitting position.
He got to the edge of the forest that separated the two parts of the campsite. Just as he reached the line of trees in front of the cabins, Corey appeared.
"Oh no," she said when she heard the wheezing.
"Let's go back to her room," Jesse instructed, taking long strides.
He put her on the bed with another endearment. "Ok, sweetheart."
Jesse handed her the inhaler and it fell to the floor. Pearl's face was discoloured and she had tears in her eyes.
Jesse picked it up and held it to her mouth. "On three. One, two, three." He pressed the pump and waited a few moments. "Again. One, two, three." He pumped once.
"There you go."
Pearl coughed and gasped a few more times and Jesse delivered one last dose of the inhaler. Then he instructed Corey to help take off Pearl's shoes and get her into bed.
"No," Pearl said weakly. "I'll be fine."
"Only if you rest," Jesse said firmly. "I'm not asking you. You need to rest."
"Camp," she protested, trying to keep Corey from taking off her second shoe. She was too weak to really fight her off and she was wasting the precious energy she had left.
"It'll have to go on without you for a bit."
At that she looked ready to argue so Jesse relented a little bit. "You can join everyone after supper, but please rest a while Pearl." He smiled at her. "What will Ma say if she hears I let you get sick?"
That made her smile.
"Yeah, you can hear her too, right?" Jesse teased. He stood up and looked at Corey. "Looks like you have first shift."
"No problem."
"We'll send someone over with your food."
"Thanks Jesse," Pearl said faintly.
"You're welcome. Congratulations for winning the race, by the way."
He ducked out of the cabin and missed the shadow that crossed her face at the mention of the race. She really didn't understand why God had let her go.
"You had us scared for a moment," Corey told her. "None of us have ever seen you have an attack."
"I'm sorry."
"No. I'm sorry. We shouldn't have let you run."
"It's okay. I'll be fine."
"Well, I've been praying since you started coughing on the field. I thought you were choking on spit," she chuckled.
Pearl made a face and leaned back against the wall. She felt weak and Jesse was right- she had to rest.
She fell asleep before her food arrived and when she woke up, Jesse was sitting by her bedside.
"Hey doc," she said, groggy.
"Hey, patient." He reached over and handed her some water.
Pearl sat up and took the paper cup. When it was empty, he took it from her.
"You ready to eat something?'
She nodded and he uncovered a tray that had her food on it.
"Hey, that's not spaghetti and meatballs."
"No. Ally and I made this cream of tomato soup, saltines and corn bread especially for you," he teased.
She laughed a little as she watched him pour soup out into a big mug. "From a can, packet and…"
"A box," he finished with a grin. "Betty Crocker at her best."
Pearl tried some of the yellow bread and nodded. "It is good."
After she had eaten and he had placed the tray on the available table, Jesse said, "Okay, let's go join the kids."
Pearl threw off the blanket and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. Before standing up, she said a little prayer.
Jesse handed Pearl a jacket and opened the door for her. Stepping out behind her, he asked, "You okay?"
She nodded. "I'm feeling a little weak but I'll be alright."
And she was.
After assuring the girls and leaders that she was alright, the evening proceeded as normal.
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