When his earache started on Tuesday, Miguel Ortiz was able to ignore it. By Wednesday, he had to take Tylenol to help control. He was still aware of it and it felt even worse that night. He had to get up and take more of the pills. Thursday the pills did not help as much. He was quite uncomfortable most of the day but at night the pain was more excruciating. After tossing and turning for an hour he finally got up, got dressed and headed for medbay to see if they had anything stronger he could take.
He was hoping Wendy would be on duty but it was Lt Albright. He was tempted to just go back to his quarters. But he really needed to get some sleep and he couldn't if he didn't get some relief from the pain. Lt Albright intimidated him a little bit but he plucked up his courage and walked up to desk. She was busy working on some chart. She did not look up but she acknowledged his presence with a businesslike "Yes?"
"Uh, I was wondering if you had something for an earache?" he said nervously.
This time she did look up. "You have an earache, Chief Ortiz?"
"Yes," he admitted somewhat miserably.
"Step into the exam room," she instructed
"I don't want to be any trouble. I think I just need some drops or something."
She looked for a minute like she would make one of the acerbic remarks she was famous for but her expression almost softened. "It's no trouble, Chief. If you are ill we are here to help you and you do look ill. Come on." She walked around the desk and took his elbow steering him to the examining room. "Hop up on the table."
He hesitated but obeyed. Before he could figure out a polite way to object again she popped a thermometer into his mouth and told him to unbutton his shirt. She was ready with a stethoscope and pressed it to his chest. It was cold and he jumped but she ignored his reaction. She walked around the table and pushed the back of his shirt up checking his lungs from behind.
When she finished she took the thermometer out of his mouth and wrote all her findings down on a new chart. He watched her nervously. He'd halfway expected her to yell at him about bothering her. She turned back to him holding a medical instrument with a strong light on it. "Which ear is it that hurts?"
"Left."
She pointed the light into the ear. The metal tip also entered his sore ear causing him to involuntarily gasp with pain. "Sorry," he apologized.
"It's quite understandable. When did this start bothering you?"
"Day before yesterday."
"Why didn't you come to us then?"
"It wasn't so bad." He was sure he'd be yelled at now but she simply shook her head. She checked the glands in his neck and armpits. This confused him. She also checked his eyes and throat.
"I'm going to need to draw some blood," she told him.
"Why?" he squalked nervously.
"I need to get a white blood cell count. You have a very bad infection, I'm afraid."
"I do?"
"Lay back on the table. I know you don't like needles, but this can't be helped. Look away, if you like."
Though he told himself not to, he did look away. He'd had ear infections as a kid. He remembered getting eardrops but not all this. His ear hurt even more when he was laying down. He wanted to sit back up. He'd felt her draw the blood but continued to look elsewhere. Now she wrapped a blood pressure cuff around his arm and pumped it up. It felt awfully tight. "Owww," he couldn't help but say. She once again wore the stethoscope and did not seem to hear him. He sighed with relief when she took it off him. He tried to sit up but felt suddenly dizzy. She took his arm.
"Perhaps you should remain lying down," she suggested easing him back down.
He wondered how much blood she had taken but the pain in his ear caused him to disagree "My uh my ear feels better when I sit up." He tried to sound conversational but it sounded more like he was begging.
"I'm sorry, Chief." She handed him a heating pad. "Try holding this to your ear while I finish this paperwork and get you admitted."
"Admitted? I can't stay here."
"I'm afraid you can and you will. You are going to require an aggressive regimen of antibiotics to fight this infection. Your temperature is nearly 103 degrees and you're badly dehydrated when we get you settled in a bed we'll start you on an IV."
"But I have to be on the bridge in five hours," he argued weakly.
"You are on sick call and will be for several days." She was firm.
He was becoming agitated which was causing his ear to hurt even more. He unconsciously rubbed it.
"We'll give you something for the pain at that time," she promised. "I know it hurts."
He was about to argue more when Lt. Lacey Allyson came into the exam room. He had dated her and he liked her a lot.
"Miguel, what's wrong?" she asked him.
"Chief Ortiz has a serious infection which has settled into his left ear canal. He's going to need a bed. If you go prepare him one I'll notify Dr Smith."
"You don't have to wake Wendy up," he objected.
"I'm afraid regulations dictate she be notified of your condition. She will be able to prescribe you a painkiller so you can sleep."
He felt miserable. He hadn't meant to cause all this trouble. He thought they would give him some eardrops and send him on his way. Lt Albright walked into the other room. He heard her buzz Wendy. Lt Allyson came back. She glanced at his chart.
"Do you think you can walk, Miguel?" she asked sweetly.
"Of course I can. I walked down here." He felt like being grouchy but tried to remain civil. Damn! He did not want to stay in medbay.
She smiled and helped him sit up. Her hands felt cool against his skin. He actually had to lean on her more than he expected as she walked him down a short hall and into a room. She had pulled the blankets back for him and sat him on the bed. He suddenly felt tired. She took his shirt off. He kicked off the shower thongs he wore.
"You're pretty weak, let me help you get out of your pants," she offered. He had to look away. He remembered the last time she'd helped him get undressed. He sure felt a whole lot better then. He was beginning to admit to himself that he actually was sick.
She slid a hospital gown onto him and took off his jogging pants. She pulled the blanket over him. "I can get you another blanket if you're cold," she offered.
"No thanks."
She put her hand on his forehead.
"That feels nice," he said, suddenly feeling winded. His ear hurt so much he had to wince.
"Wendy will be here in a minute and we'll get you something for the pain," she promised.
"I didn't mean to cause so much trouble," he said miserably.
"It's no trouble, Miguel," Wendy assured him as she entered the room. She, too examined him. His neck hurt where she touched it and he winced again. She asked him a few questions but he was really feeling incredibly weak and tired. She put drops in his ear and gave the nurses some orders. He was so sleepy when they established the IV. He couldn't really process what they were saying to him. He fell asleep before they were finished.
"Poor guy. He's really sick," Lt Allyson commented sympathetically
"Yes, he is," Wendy agreed checking the chart. "We're going to have our hands full rehydrating him and bringing his temperature down."
"He's in a lot of pain," Lt Albright pointed out.
"I'm going to put him on painkillers PRN. I'd rather see him sleep than suffer. He must have been running a temp for days for the infection to have invaded so much of his system."
"He said the earache began the day before yesterday," Lt Albright reported.
"He was probably coming down with this even before then," Wendy said. "I'm afraid he's in for a rough time."
Wendy was right. His temperature shot up later that night and in his delirium he pulled out his IV. His condition had deteriorated by morning as the infection attacked his lungs making it difficult for him to breathe. He had to be put on a respirator and Wendy double the dosage of the powerful antibiotic he was on.
His friends from the bridge wanted to visit but she did not allow it and, in fact, put him in isolation to avoid any more germs. His fever finally broke late Saturday night and Sunday he seemed to be resting more easily. The medication kept him asleep most of the time. They were able to get him to drink on the few times he was awake but he was not terribly coherent.
Sunday night Wendy ran into Lonnie at dinner.
"How's Miguel?" she demanded.
"He's actually a little better," Wendy was happy to report.
"That's great!" Lonnie's whole face lit up. “We pull into Sydney Harbor tomorrow. He's done nothing but talk about Australia since he found out we were going there. I've never seen him so excited about seeing anyplace."
"How long will we be in port?" Wendy asked.
"Four days and everybody has been granted leave!"
"Not everybody. I'm afraid Miguel is going to miss Australia. He won't be on his feet for at least a week if he's lucky and doesn't have any setbacks. He's still pretty sick, Lonnie."
A few minutes later Lonnie returned to the table she shared with Tim, Lucas, Tony and Dagwood.
"How is he?" Tim demanded
"She says he's a little better but he's going to miss Australia."
"Miss it?" Tony said.
"He'll still be too sick to leave medbay," she explained
"He's been hyped up about it ever since the captain announced we'd put into port there," Lucas pointed out.
"He's wanted to go there his whole life," Tim told them.
"Well, he's not going now," Lonnie told them sadly."What did he want to see? One of use could take a picture or something for him."
"Had to be the surfer chicks," Tony stated.
"I'm not sure. I think it was the strange animals," Tim said.
By Wednesday Miguel was feeling a little better and was coherent enough to realize he was not going to get to see Australia, after all. He was disappointed but pretended not to be. He still had trouble staying awake for very long but he was breathing on his own and eating regular food. He'd been sick enough to be appreciative of even that much of a recovery.
By Thursday night he was well enough to be sitting up in a chair. Wendy had agreed that his friends could visit him. She hadn't wanted to expose him to any germs they might have picked up on shore leave but he looked so sad that she went ahead and allowed it. He was eager to hear about what they had seen. He had not expected to be showered with presents. He was given a toy kangaroo that hopped. A stuffed koala bear and a stuffed platypus duckbill were now sitting on the bed. They would have to fight him later for bedspace. Tony had smuggled him in a small jar of genuine Aussie beach sand (and some x rated photos of surfer chicks.) Dagwood brought him a disk of diggary do music. The captain even sent a T-shirt via Lucas that said: My captain went on leave in Sydney Harbor and all I got was this lousy T-shirt.
He may have not have been able to go to Australia but Austalia had certainly come to him. He was overwhelmed. The fact that his friends were thinking of him really moved him. He had more photos and postcards than he could hang up in his little medbay cubicle.
He didn't feel disappointed anymore. People he barely knew had sent him presents. Wendy rescued him before he embarrassed himself by weeping in public and ruining his macho image. She shooed the others out saying he had had enough excitement and it was time for him to go back to bed.
"Do you believe all this?" he asked when they were gone.
"It's like Christmas or your birthday," Wendy agreed clearing off the bed for him.
"I never got this much loot for Christmas or my birthday," he vowed still in something of a state of shock. "Did the Captain really send this?" He held up the T shirt.
"Yes, he did. Everyone knew how much you'd been looking forward to seeing Australia and felt bad that you couldn't."
"Maybe we'll come back again sometime," he said hopefully.
"Maybe," she agreed helping him get into the bed. "Do you want me to take these toys away?"
"Just you try," he grabbed them protectively.
She knew he was joking but that they did mean a lot to him. "Okay," she laughed "but you have to get some sleep."
"How come I'm so tired all the time?" he asked suddenly serious. "I thought I was getting better."
"You are, Miguel. You were very sick and your body needs rest to recover. Part of it is the medication you are on. You are getting better. Don't worry. I'll probably have to boot you and your toys out of here by this time next week."
The following Tuesday she did release him from sick bay but he was not yet cleared to go on duty and had to promise to rest. His bunkmate helped him get his stuff back to their quarters. There were two more hopping kangaroos in there.
"I got some for my other two kids too," Mike explained "You're all mentally under the age of five," he teased.
Miguel just laughed and thanked him again. He had actually played with the thing to pass the time in medbay. He also had games and puzzles other people had sent him. Mike helped him put them away. He couldn't believe how tired he felt just coming from medbay. Mike noticed and insisted he lay down for a while. He feebly protested but was easily overruled by the Engineer's mate.
It felt good to be back in his own bunk. He still felt bad about missing Australia but the fact that so many people were thinking about him on their leave took most of the sting out of it. Australia would still be there. He could come back some time but special friends he had on board SeaQuest, that was something he knew enough to enjoy right now. Or maybe tomorrow. He decided to close his eyes for just a minute but sleep overtook him.