Party for Disaster

Chapter 4

Charles Wallace came into the hospital as Chad and Sam were pondering.

"Chad! There you are. I went to your apartment and you weren't there" said Charles Wallace.

"How'd you know I was here then?" said Chad.

"A. I have one of the greatest minds in recent history. And B. I just figured Meg would be working tonight" said Charles Wallace.

"Buddy, I hate to break it to you, but this time in the hospital, your sister's the patient" said Sam.

"What? What's wrong with her?" said Charles Wallace.

"She has tonsillitis. The very word hurts my heart" said Chad.

"Mine too. Ringo had it once. He also needed surgery" said Charles Wallace.

"Yeah. From what he told us, recovering from tonsil surgery ain't pretty" said Sam.

"Great. Now I feel so much better" said Chad sarcastically.

"Sorry, Chad" said Sam quickly. 

"Not at all" Chad whispered.

After he said that, Chad sneezed. 

"Gesundheit, buddy; you okay?" said Charles Wallace.

"He's catching a cold; maybe worse" said Sam.

"Sam, I'm not catching a cold" said Chad.

"Then it's worse. He's catching something worse than a cold" said Charles Wallace.

Chad sneezed again then coughed for another few seconds.

Dr Whatsit came out and noticed.

"Why, Chad. You've been so focused on your wife, you didn't realize you're sick" she said.

"I'm not sick, Mrs Dr Whatsit" said Chad.

Dr Whatsit put her hand on his forehead. "Yes you are. You have a fever."

"That's what I thought" said Sam.

"And he sneezed a couple of times too, Mrs Whatsit" said Charles Wallace.

Chad sneezed a third time. "There's another one. Gesundheit" said Sam.

"Doctors Who and Which are taking care of Meg. I have time to check you out. Sit down, my love" said Dr Whatsit. 

Chad did as told and Dr Whatsit tapped his chest and listened to it.

"Y'know, I often wonder why they do that" said Sam.

"They do it to make sure there's no congestion in the lungs. That wouldn't be good" said Charles Wallace.

"No it wouldn't. That's actually clever" said Sam.

Dr Whatsit looked down Chad's throat then diagnosed him.

"You've got something alright. You seem to have gotten the flu" she said.

"The flu?" said Chad.

"Gawrsh. I didn't think it was flu season" said Sam.

"Sam, the flu is still catchable no matter what season it is. And Chad has it" said Dr Whatsit. 

"How long do you reckon he'll have it?" said Charles Wallace.

"These things usually last about three to five days, if you take care of yourself. So, Chad, I want you to go home and get in bed" said Dr Whatsit.

"Bed? But what about my children? Meg's been so worried about them" said Chad.

The stress of that sentence caused him to break into another coughing fit. 

"Chad, until you get well, you have to stay in bed. You'll have to solve your children problem yourself" said Dr Whatsit before leaving.