Adopted

Chapter 30

I woke up suddenly, drenched and cold. I must have cried out or something, because Mom was by my side, turning on my overhead light. 

"What's wrong? Are you okay?" she whispered. I could feel we were moving again. 

"I'm cold. And soaking wet," I observed. She looked at me. 

"You are," she felt my forehead. "Let me check your temperature, okay?" 

She got out the thermometer and put it in my mouth while I shivered. She took it out when the thermometer beeped. 

"Your fever broke.  99. Pretty much  normal. Let's get you up, change your bed, and you go shower and get into clean PJs, okay?"

I nodded, took my clean PJs with me to the bathroom and showered quickly, just to rinse off, though I washed my hair quickly, because it was so sweaty.

When I got into my clean PJs and came out of the bathroom, Mom was pulling my sheets off my bunk and Dad was up front doing something. 

"You need to take your meds, and do your mouthwash stuff," Mom said. 

I nodded and went to the front of the bus to get a bottle of water to take my meds with. There was a small sink at the front, too, so I did my swish there and spit the medicine out. 

Dad was rummaging through something.  He came up with a stuffed animal and a card. 

"Here," he said, handing it to me with a smile. I took them from him. It was a cute little cat stuffy. I opened the card.

'Get Well Soon, Jessica!

With Love,

The Phoenix Hearts Project, Francesca, Simone, Kayla'
@FrannyPATD, @SimonePATDHearts, @KaylaPATDHearts

"What's this?" I asked, showing Dad the card. 

"You haven't had a chance to see it, but when I do 'Girls/Girls/Boys', well, before the show, there are a bunch of volunteers who hand out coloured hearts and when I sing the song, people light them up with the flashlights on their phones and it looks like the rainbow flag. It's amazing. Remind me to make sure you get to see that next time you're able to see a show - because tonight you'll still be staying on the bus to rest up, okay?"

I nodded. 

"But how did they get this to you?" I asked. "And what's the Hearts Project?"

"They gave it to Zack, who is usually wandering around when the volunteers are showing  up to organize the hearts. They saw my post from yesterday, and brought it with them. I have some really awesome fans, if I say so myself. The Hearts Project is the hearts I told you about. They get volunteers to print out and cut out thousands of hearts. The song has sort of become an LGBTQ anthem, so to speak. So they use it as a positive affirmation. They also throw - fans, not the Hearts Project specifically - rainbow flags on the stage. I try to collect them all and wear them while I'm singing. It's getting a bit out of control, though," he laughed, showing me a picture on his phone from another concert. He was buried in rainbow flags. 

I took the card and the stuffed cat back to my bunk where Mom was putting a fresh sheet back on and my blanket. I put the cat and the card on my pillow and took a picture with my phone, posting it to Instagram and tagging the three volunteers.

'Thanks for the card and the stuffy,' I posted. 'Already feeling better. Thanks for being you, and doing what you do.'

"All right you, you're still  on the mend - into bed, and off to sleep with you, again," Mom said. 

I moved the card onto one of the shelves and put the stuffy beside Mr. Bunny and snuggled myself down under my covers. Mom covered me with my blanket, kissed my forehead and turned out my overhead light. I was asleep within minutes.

When I woke up in the morning, I felt way better than I'd felt over the past couple of days. I was even hungry, though my throat was still a bit sore.  

"Welcome to Tuscon," Zack said as I came out of my bunk and into the living area of the bus. "How're you feeling, little one?"

"Better, thanks," I said, looking out the window. Tuscon didn't look much different than Phoenix. 

"Morning, sweetie," Mom said, coming up to me. "Do you want to eat breakfast? We could go into the restaurant across the road, or we can just stay here.  What are you in the mood for?"

"Would you believe me if I said I was in the mood for eggs and bacon?"

"That's my kid!" Dad said, coming into the bus from outside. "Down for a day and ready to eat bacon and eggs the next day."

"And pancakes?" I asked. 

"If you're up to it, go get dressed and grab your pass. We'll head out," Mom said. 

I went to the back, got dressed, brushed my teeth and then came to the front and took my meds. We'd put them in a basket in a shelf, since I was using bottled water to take them. It made more sense to have them up at the front than in the back with me. 

The five of us went out of the area behind the venue Dad was performing at, and into another diner just across the road. Dallon, Dan and Kenny were already there. 

"Hey there, Little Urie!" Dan said "How're you feeling?"

"Better, thanks," I said. 

"You gave us a bit of a scare," Dallon said. "Don't pass out in a restaurant again, okay?"

"I will do my best," I promised.  

Kenny came over and gave me a hug. 

"Glad you're feeling better kiddo. You coming to the show tonight?"

"No, Dad says I have to stay in the bus and relax and rest up at  least tonight."

"Smart man," Dallon said. 

I looked at the menu and ordered when the waitress came over.  I went to the bathroom while waiting, and came back to the table. 

"You okay?" Mom asked quietly. 

"Yeah, why?"

"No reason. Just checking. Hoping you don't have an infection," she said. 

Breakfast came and I ate everything on my plate.  I was so full by the time I was done. Dad even got me a hot chocolate.  

The crew members who'd been in the restaurant outside Phoenix also came over to see how I was feeling as they were finishing their breakfasts and heading to continue setting up for tonight's show. 

As we were leaving the restaurant, Brendon stopped the three of us. 

"Hey, Zack, take a picture of the three of us, please," he said, handing Zack his phone. 

He put his arm around me, and Mom put her arm around me on my other side. 

"All right, smile you three," Zack said. "Pretend you're actually happy to be together."

The three of us laughed, and Zack snapped the picture. 

"Perfect!" he said.