[[[-IF2E-02.TXT-]]]
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Island Fever 2: Eternity
Written by: JeremyDCP@hotmail.com
M/F, F/F and a whole lot more
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Chapter 02: "Angina"
-*- Thursday, December 5, 2013 -*-
"Welcome back to the real world," Kristanna said to me,
zipping up a long winter coat and tossing a scarf around
her neck as we exited the small jetliner at 9:56am in the
Baltimore/Washington International Airport located in
Baltimore, Maryland. Kristanna yawned sleepily and looked
around the terminal. "So where is this Candice chick?"
"She is supposed to meet us here outside the gate," I
told my wife, my own body riddled with exhaustion. "Perhaps
she is running late? Let's give her a few minutes."
Things had been rather hectic since I got that gruesome
telephone call just last evening from Candice, who informed
me that her sister (Pamela) had been rushed to the hospital
by paramedics after grabbing her chest and then collapsing
on stage at the Baltimore-area strip club where she was
employed due to what may have been a heart attack. Candice
went on to explain that Pamela was still very much in love
with me (contrary to what I had been led to believe by her
recent actions), and that my simple presence would do her a
tremendous amount of good as she began the road to recovery.
Without any hesitation whatsoever, Kristanna told Candice
over speaker-phone that I would be on the first flight to
Baltimore in the morning. That turned out to be somewhat of
a lie, because I actually found myself on a jetliner a mere
three hours later.
After a call to the airlines, and then a call to Kevin -
my helicopter pilot friend who often shuttled me between the
island and the Peru mainland - I had two tickets for the
10:50pm flight from Lima to Fort Lauderdale, Florida which
landed at 5:44am. After a brief lay-over, the connecter
flight took off at 7:15am and landed at 9:45am in Baltimore.
Not only did Kristanna insist that I find my way to
Maryland as quickly as possible - thus, the reason for the
overnight flight instead of waiting until the morning - but
she was also quite adamant about coming along for the trip
herself as well. Kristanna claimed that she did not want me
to go on such a long trip all by myself.
She also admitted that it would have been quite awkward,
as my newlywed bride, for me to rush thousands of miles away
to be by the side of a "former lover" who could very well be
in the middle of a life-threatening catastrophe (at the time,
we had no real specifics on her condition).
Kristanna was fine with me visiting Pamela and offering
her any kind of support I could - after all, it was her idea
to begin with - but she simply wanted to keep _an eye_ on me
as I did so. It was an awkward situation, indeed, but I knew
where Kristanna was coming from and understood her viewpoint
perfectly. I had no issue with her tagging along whatsoever.
"I never packed a suitcase as quickly as I did last night,"
Kristanna commented, glancing around the terminal for a
blonde-haired woman in a pink coat and white jeans. That was
what Candice, who was supposed to meet us here at the airport
this morning, told us she would be wearing. "I'm happy that
Kevin was able to get to the island as fast as he did."
I frowned. "What a sour ending to Lindsay's 19th birthday
party. She was so happy and full of joy last night. Then
after that telephone call from Candice, Lindsay cried for a
good half-hour before Trish was finally able to settle her
down. The possibility of Pamela having a heart attack really
struck a chord within her; her father died of one last year.
Lindsay is still in a world of hurt over what happened to
her father. She still cannot believe that he is gone."
"Pamela will be fine," Kristanna said, full of optimism.
Unfortunately, Kristanna and I were literally out on our
feet. With the long (forever) airline flight from Lima to
Fort Lauderdale, neither of us had gotten any sleep whatsoever
throughout the night. The short jaunt to Baltimore actually
seemed twice as grueling because of how overly exhausted we
were. Worst of all, I knew that I would not be getting any
sleep in the immediate future.
"Lindsay seemed to be in much better spirits when we talked
to her on the telephone a few moments ago once the airplane
touched down," Kristanna mused. "Lindsay said she led all of
the others in a prayer session for Pamela deep into the
night. Lindsay has faith that Pamela will pull through, too."
I took a deep breath and sighed. "I'm not quite certain
what it is that I am supposed to accomplish by being here.
Pamela has refused to even speak to me since she left the
island five months ago. She hangs up on me when I call her
on the telephone. What if it is more of the same?"
"Just be yourself," Kristanna advised me. "Let Jeremy be
Jeremy, and everything will fall into place just fine."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Ummmmm... excuse me?" came a friendly voice from behind
us. "Are you Jeremy and Kristanna?" When we turned and nodded
our heads at the young woman standing there, she greeted, "Hi,
I'm Candice [Last Name]... Pamela's younger sister."
* * *
The weather outside was cold and blustery as Kristanna
and I procured our suitcases from the baggage claim area.
Candice had good news to report as she explained to us that
Pamela did not suffer a heart attack after all. That was
the initial diagnosis, or perhaps the fear, given by the
paramedics. But after a battery of tests throughout the
night, the physicians at the hospital determined that the
pain in Pamela's chest and her subsequent fainting spell
had been caused by a sudden outbreak of _stable angina_.
Although this is a potentially fatal condition if left
untreated, it is more of an early warning sign for a heart
attack. Stable angina, Candice told us, could occur when
the heart muscle did not receive enough oxygen-rich blood
for a short period of time. The lack of blood supply was
made even worse during physical activity, when the heart
pumped faster and needed much more oxygen than usual.
The medical staff at the hospital believed that Pamela,
in the midst of a busy and frantic night at the strip club,
exerted a tremendous amount of energy that ultimately led
to the chest pains and her fainting on center stage. The
root problem, however, was that Pamela was suffering from
extremely high blood pressure, yet had never taken any
medication for it. This news, of course, upset me.
Throughout their testing procedures, the doctors did not
find any direct damage to Pamela's heart itself. They
believed that medication to regulate her blood pressure, and
nitroglycerin, which could relieve any future episodes of
angina but hopefully prevent them altogether, was the best
course of action to aid her on the path to recovery.
If Pamela refused to take the medication, the risk factor
for her having a full-blown heart attack in the future that
could ultimately prove to be fatal was increased ten-fold.
Thus, it was imperative to get her into a routine of taking
the medication that they prescribed for her.
But right now, Candice explained, Pamela was still in a
really bad state. Although her condition was stabilized and
well under control, Pamela was still scared and confined to
bed-rest, having been poked and prodded by countless hospital
personnel throughout the overnight hours. She was literally
up to her eyeballs in medication and naturally wanted to
escape the prison otherwise known as her hospital room, but
the staff would not allow her to leave just yet.
After we secured a rental car, Kristanna and I followed
Candice through the downtown streets of Baltimore to Johns
Hopkins Hospital. As Kristanna was on her cellular telephone
and informing the ladies back on the island of Pamela's
diagnosis, this drive reminded of why I absolutely disdain
city life so much. I could not tolerate the traffic and all
of the honking horns as we made our way through the bitter
cold. I had a certain longing for my peaceful island in the
tropics, or the idyllic life back on the farm in Norway.
* * *
"You two should go in and see her without me," Candice
said to Kristanna and yours truly, as we stood just outside
the closed door of Pamela's hospital room. "The two of you
have all that history with her; I need you to give you guys
some privacy. I am going to the cafeteria to get something
to eat. I will be back a little later on."
"She's your sister," I reminded Candice. "You should come
inside and visit her as well with us."
"I really want her to have some time alone with you and
Kristanna," she insisted. "Pamela has seen enough of me
since she was admitted last night. I know most of what went
on this past summer back on your island because Pamela told
me. But the truth is, it's really none of my business. I do
not need to be there while you all sort things out together."
"I'm going to the cafeteria as well," Kristanna chimed in,
as I shook my head in disagreement at her. I wanted Kristanna
to step inside and be with me as I visited Pamela. "I need
some coffee to help stay awake. Besides, I am probably the
LAST person that Pamela wants to see right now. Pamela and I
were not on the best of terms when she left the island earlier
in the year." My wife patted me on the wrist and urged, "You
go in and see her by yourself for now, Jeremy. It's probably
best that way. Like Candice, I will be back shortly."
I offered her a peculiar expression. "What happened to
you wanting to keep a close watch on me? Isn't that why you
insisted that you come along for the trip to begin with?"
Kristanna smiled softly. "I trust you, Jeremy." She
paused, then added, "Now go in and see your girl." After
offering me a quick kiss, Kristanna turned and followed
Candice toward the hospital's cafeteria.
I turned and glanced down at the door-knob. I had not
seen Pamela since July 1. Hell, I had not even had a
legitimate conversation with her since that date, either.
She had been acting all bitter and angry for five months,
yet Candice claimed that not only was Pamela still in love
with me, but all she ever did in her down-time was talk
about me as well. Did that make any sense?
What was I supposed to say to Pamela? What was I supposed
to do? I was fearful that upon seeing me, Pamela would
start kicking and screaming, and get the hospital security
staff to come and toss me out onto the street as if I was
trespassing. I naturally began to worry, and now wished
that Candice had stayed with me instead of going off to the
cafeteria for some food. Candice was Pamela's sister and,
if there was a vocal outburst, she had the best chance of
calming her down.
Swallowing hard twice and taking a long, deep breath, I
closed my eyes and nodded my head. It was time to face
whatever my fate was on the other side of this door.
An instant later, I gently nudged it open and stepped
inside. But I was not prepared for what I was about to see.
Pamela appeared to be sleeping, but I nearly freaked out
at the sight of her with wires and tubes attached to various
portions of her body. There were two IV bags strewn about,
one on either side of the bed, and she had some sort of
breathing apparatus tacked onto her nose and mouth. There
was a machine next to her with different numbers and graphs
as well. I imagined it was tracking her vital signs.
Devoid of any mascara and literally stripped down to her
barest essence, Pamela looked more weak and vulnerable than
I had ever seen her before. I never imagined that she could
look so feeble. What had this place done to her?
All I wanted to do right now was bring Pamela into my arms
and comfort her, and tell her everything would be all right.
I wanted to make all of her anxiety and pain just go away.
But I couldn't. I had no idea how she would react.
I set the bushel of red roses that I had purchased from
the hospital's gift shop, as well as a large teddy bear,
down upon the adjacent table. My eyes trained on her, I then
slowly went to Pamela's side and had to hold back a tear or
two as I looked down at her. Again, what did this place do
to her? Who enjoys seeing someone they love and care for in
a hospital bed with wires and tubes attached everywhere, with
a breathing tube and machines beeping in the background?
Pamela appeared to be just a shell of her former self.
As she continued to sleep, I made a motion to latch onto
Pamela's hand and gently hold it. But I stopped before I
could after noticing that an IV wire was inserted into the
back of her hand, near her wrist. Exasperated, I shifted my
focus and then barely squeezed her fingers together.
And not surprisingly, I began to cry.
"Pamela..." I choked, wiping away tears, as I glanced at
her face. Although I desperately wanted to, there was no
way that I was going to intentionally wake her. Pamela
needed to rest and recover from the awful ordeal she had
been put through in the past 14 or 15 hours.
Considering our history and the current status of our
relationship - which was not good, to put it mildly - I did
not know whether or not I should do this. Was it proper?
Did I even have a right to? If she were awake, would Pamela
object and slap me across the face as a result? Would she
scream for the police and demand that I be dragged away?
No matter - I wanted to. Yes, I wanted to do this. No
one was going to stop me, either. I planted a long, yet
very innocent kiss across her forehead. It felt justified.
I squinted my eyes at the big breathing tube, and the
sounds the device itself was making, as I appraised Pamela
and her appearance. Yes, she was very weak and vulnerable.
She looked nothing like the intellectual, vibrant woman I
had met and instantly fell in love with back in June. I
almost got sick to my stomach due to the emotions.
But still, my God... she was beautiful. Pamela still
looked beautiful to me, even in such a weakened state. Was
it wrong to feel or think this way?
I came to the conclusion that no matter what, this was
still Pamela. She may be pale and sapped of her physical
strength, and her insides may have been afloat with deep,
mind-bending medication, but in the end, this was still
Pamela. This was still the woman who I loved and cared
for more than mere words could ever say.
I may have been a married man - and Kristanna was still
the unquestioned centerpiece of my universe - but due to
the type of lifestyle and relationship I led, I had the
vision of what it would be like to open my arms and fully
accept Pamela into our little family and have her spend the
rest of eternity with us. How wonderful would that be?
I wanted to take Pamela back to the island with us - and
eventually Norway - and give her all of the love and
happiness that she so very much deserved. The image of her
in a wedding dress even flashed through my mind, the two of
us exchanging vows and then her joining Kristanna as my wife.
Just the mere thought forced me to cry, and I involuntary
dropped my forehead upon Pamela's arm and rested it there as
I tried to sift through the myriad of feelings of this moment
and get them under control.
As good of an idea as Pamela joining our little entourage
sounded, however, I knew it would never come to fruition.
Pamela had absolutely no interest in the type of life that I
led. It was why she originally left me to begin with.
"Oh, good morning!" came a cheery voice from behind me. I
turned and saw a hospital nurse, perhaps in her early 50's,
step into the room and greet me with a smile. "How are you
today? Are you Pamela's husband, by chance?"
My eyes wide, I stared at the nurse for several seconds
before answering, "No... not quite. Wish I was, though."
"Must be a good friend, then," the nurse speculated, going
over to one of the computers in the room and tapping away upon
its keyboard. "I won't be but a minute here. Just checking
up on her signs." When she was finished at the computer, the
nurse came over and inspected the two IV cords.
"Is Pamela going to be okay?"
"Oh, she'll be fine," the woman informed me. "The doctor
needs to be prescribe her some medicine and she will need to
take it every day, but she will be fine. She's a strong gal."
"When do you think she will be released from the hospital?"
"Later today." With that, the nurse collected her charts
and said, "If you or Pamela need anything, just let me know.
Just press the big red button on the side of her bed."
"Thank you," I nodded, glancing back over my shoulder until
the nurse left and closed the door 90 percent of the way shut.
When I turned back around, it felt as if a sudden jolt of
electricity had just blasted straight through me. Not only
was Pamela awake, but her eyes were thick and bulging, and she
was staring directly at me in total and complete shock. Or
fright. Or disbelief. Or anger. Or maybe all of the above.
"Pamela..."
"What are you doing here?" she said to me in a weak voice,
peeling away the breathing tube and its mask from her face.
Tears quickly began to stream down her face and she again
asked, this time demanding, "What are you doing here?"
"I'm here to be by your side," I responded, now grasping
the lower half of her right hand and squeezing. "I heard you
had a pretty scary episode last night at work."
"CANDICE!" Pamela snarled, pulling her hand away from me
as if it had just been burnt. "I'm going to get her!" Pamela
vehemently shook her head and fretted, "Candice got you to
come all the way here from Norway? How could she!"
"Actually, I was back on the island," I gently told her.
"Norway? How did you know about Norway?"
Pamela shook her head again. "You... you shouldn't be
here, Jeremy. You shouldn't be here at all."
"But I want to be here."
"You shouldn't be here..."
"How did you know about Norway?"
Pamela coughed and turned her face away from me for a
brief moment. "Amy... Amy has pictures... photographs of
you and the other girls together, and gives status updates,
on her _Facebook_ and _Instagram_ pages. I saw pictures of
your wedding and... and the new house you're having built."
"Amy is broadcasting our life on the Internet for the
entire world to see?" I asked, suddenly irate. Considering
how several of us wanted to keep the true status of our
relationship under wraps from family members, I could not
believe that Amy was using social media to post photographs
and give _status updates_ concerning our personal matters.
Oh... Amy and I were going to have a talk about this.
And considering that she was my submissive, it was not going
to a pleasant one for her. Nor would the end result.
"Amy has pictures of my wedding with Kristanna online?"
"Amy has pictures from the last six months up," Pamela
muttered. "Of not only you and Kristanna, but her and
everyone else, too. I... I've been keeping up-to-date with
you... sort of... through her _Facebook_ and _Instagram_."
"Okay," I nodded, boiling with absolute rage inside.
"How... how did you get Lindsay to... to agree to stay?
And she is back with Trish now? I... I saw a picture of
them hugging each other, dated last month."
What if Lindsay's mother or sisters came across these
photographs, and this was the way they learned that she was
bi-sexual and part of a polygamous relationship? Oh, Amy
was going to be in for it. Big time!
I needed to change the subject. And fast. "How are you
feeling, Pamela? What happened to you last night?"
"I haven't felt good the past couple of days," she told
me with a sigh. "I... I had pain in my shoulder since the
weekend, but I thought it was nothing more than a pulled
muscle or something. I went to work last night... and... I
was feeling light-headed. I was on stage, dancing, and...
all of a sudden, it felt like... I couldn't breath. I felt a
sharp pain in my chest, and I... I fell over. Everything...
was a blur, after that."
"Candice says you have some sort of heart condition that
was caused by excessively high blood pressure."
"Stable angina," Pamela nodded.
"Why do you have high blood pressure? You should have been
taking medication for it long ago."
"I had no idea I had high blood pressure."
"You don't go to see the doctor for routine physicals?"
"I don't even have a doctor, Jeremy."
"Huh?" I blurted out. "Why?"
"Because I never thought I needed one."
"And that way of thinking almost gave you a heart attack."
Pamela made a face and glared at me. "I don't need you to
lecture me. You don't even belong here, Jeremy." She brought
her hand to my chest and gave it a gentle shove. "Get out of
here. Go back to your life in Norway, or the island, or
wherever it is that you came from. Just leave me alone. I
don't want you here!"
"How can you say that to me?" I asked her, now incredibly
hurt. "Do you know what it took for me to get here?" I
actually began to cry in front of Pamela. "We were having a
birthday party for Lindsay last night back on the island when
your sister called and told us what happened. I dropped
EVERYTHING and flew 3,500 miles in the middle of the night,
and made it to Baltimore by ten o'clock in the morning. I
haven't had any sleep in 48 hours. I've been worried sick
about you and your health, Pamela, and all you can say is
for me to leave you alone and you don't want me here..."
"You don't belong here!" she sobbed, now upset herself.
"Oh my God, I'm going to kill my sister when I see her!"
"Candice says you are still in love with me..."
"CANDICE IS FULL OF CRAP!"
"Is she?" I grasped Pamela's right hand once more and
insisted, "Is she?" When Pamela began to cry even harder,
I brought her hand to my lips and kissed it. "Let me help
you. Please... let me help you. Let me be here for you."
"What are you going to do?" she quaked.
"Whatever it takes to get you better."
"OH, JEREMY!" Pamela roared, slamming her left forearm
down hard upon the bed. "Jeremy, Jeremy, Jeremy! WHY DO
YOU HAVE TO BE HERE AND DOING THIS TO ME RIGHT NOW?" Her
face now absolutely covered in tears, Pamela, in the midst
of an emotional outburst, rocked her head from side-to-side.
"I THOUGHT I WOULD NEVER HAVE TO SEE YOU AGAIN!"
Although she was fighting it, my words - and my presence -
had gotten to Pamela. I had broken her defensive barrier.
I leaned over close and slipped my right hand beneath her
neck, then cupped the back of her head and tilted it upward
until her forehead was gently touching my shoulder. I gave
Pamela a little hug and whispered, "I love you, sweetheart.
I always have. And no matter what, I always will. I just
want... I just want you to feel better."
"OH GOD!" she cried. "I... I love you... too..."
For the next 60 seconds, I allowed all of the emotions and
feelings to wash over me at once, and then simply let them go.
I recalled all of the many wonderful experiences I had with
Pamela back on the island, as well as our arguments and the
sudden split. I also thought back to last night, and how my
world had been turned upside down since. I held Pamela's
head to my shoulder and cried like I never had before, and
she basically did the same. I did not care that I was the
man, and that I was supposed to be strong.
Everything I had ever felt for Pamela - all the good vibes
and even the bad ones - was funneled and put through the
pressure cooker of my soul. I never thought I even see this
woman again, let alone hold her hand and tell her that I still
loved her. Unfortunately, it had taken what was originally
thought to be a heart attack to make this a reality.
"I'll always love you as well," Pamela shrieked, tilting
her head and then finding my mouth for a kiss.
Pamela just kissed me. Willingly.
"There's some people that want to talk to you," I informed
her once our lips parted ways, furiously pressing buttons on my
cellular telephone. "They have been worried about you, too."
When I transferred it to speaker-phone, a female's voice
came through loud and clear from the opposite end. "Hello?"
"Lindsay?" Pamela laughed and sobbed. "Is that you?"
"Pamela!" Lindsay exclaimed in response. "Pamela, are you
okay? Trish, get the others! Tell them Pamela is on the
phone! Pamela, what's wrong? Are you going to be okay?
Please tell me that you are going to be okay!"
"We love you!" Trish blurbed. "Get well soon!"
Still crying, Pamela wiped tears away from her eyes and
again shook her head at me. "Trish... hi! I'll be fine,
Lindsay. Nothing is wrong that the doctors cannot fix."
"PAMELA!" came another voice through the receiver.
"Amy..." Pamela gave me a gentle punch in the chest and
complained, "I cannot believe that you're doing this to me!"
"How are you feeling?" Amy wondered.
"I'll be okay," Pamela answered, before gulping her
throat. "Lindsay? Happy birthday, honey. I heard you had a
birthday party last night. Did you get any good presents?"
"I did, but not the present that I want most."
"What's that?"
"For you to finally come home and be with us for good."
"LINDSAY!" Amy gasped.
My eyes wide, I coughed and nearly choked at those words.
Wow! Did Lindsay just say what I thought she said? WOW!
Pamela, of course, appeared to be petrified. Speechless,
she had no response. Who could blame her?
"All my love, girls," I said into the telephone. "I'm
going to let you go for now. Pamela needs her rest." After
each of them said a quick good-bye, I put the telephone away
and insisted, "I had no idea Lindsay would say that to you.
That was not a set-up, or anything. I... I'm sorry, dear."
"I believe you," she coughed.
"I'm going to stay with you until you are back on your
feet and 100 percent healthy," was my promise. "I also want
you to see a family doctor and get a full physical exam."
"Oh... if there was anything else wrong with me, the
hospital would know about it by now," Pamela offered. "I
had every test and imaging scan possible overnight."
"You're still getting a doctor," I insisted. "And you're
taking whatever medicine the hospital gives to you. Do you
have any idea how dangerous having high blood pressure is?
Candice said your blood pressure is at _stroke level_."
"I know how dangerous it is now."
"Do you have any idea how..."
"Stop lecturing me, Jeremy!" Pamela snapped, cutting my
words off in mid-sentence. "I'm not in the mood for it!"
"I'm sorry," I relented, again squeezing her hand. "I'm
so sorry. I just... I worry, Pamela. I don't want anything
bad to happen to you." I glanced around the hospital room.
There was a cup of ice water nearby, with a tub of yogurt
next to it. "Would you... like me to get you anything?
Are you hungry? Thirsty? Warm? Cold?"
Pamela shifted her entire body about several times and
complained, "This bed is really uncomfortable."
"What do you expect? It's a hospital bed."
"I'm a stripper, thus I have no insurance through work. I
can only imagine what this place is going to charge me once I
get the bill. You'd think with all the money hospitals make,
their beds could be at least be comfortable. But no..."
"You won't pay a cent," I told her. "I'll take care of
it. I will take care of all of your medical costs."
Pamela sighed and shot me a disapproving glare. "I don't
want your charity, Jeremy. I never did. And I never will."
She made a motion to reach for the cup of ice water, but a
few of the wires attached to her body got tangled and her
arm got caught. Exasperated, her entire body jerked and she
threw a split-second hissy fit. "I hate this place!"
"Let me," I insisted, grabbing the cup of ice water and
then handing it to her. "There."
"I feel like a lab rat with these things all over me!"
Pamela whined, upset. "This bed feels like a giant rock!
I just want to go home!"
"Can you sit up?"
"Why?"
"Just try," I pleaded. "Try to sit up, and not mess up
any of the wires or the other equipment in the process."
It took some doing on her part, but Pamela was able to sit
up on the bed. Being careful, I nudged my way in a little
behind her, then wrapped my arms around her midriff in a
tender embrace. In this position, she could recline upon
me instead of the unforgiving mattress. "Much better," I
nodded, starting to rock back-and-forth in a gentle fashion.
I took the cup of ice water from her right hand, only then
to bring it up to her lips. "Drink," I whispered. Pamela
took a small sip, then crunched on some ice with her teeth.
"Is there anything I can get for you?" I asked yet again.
"You know I will do anything to help you. Anything at all."
Pamela turned and made eye contact with me. Tears were
still flowing down her face as she begged, "Please don't ever
leave me. I don't... I don't want to lose you... again."
"Whoa, sweetheart," I responded, unsure what to think of
her request. "I have a..."
"I know," she said, cutting me off. "You have a wife.
You... have the other girls. You're not giving that up.
I'm not... I'm not asking you to." Pamela took a deep,
ragged breath and gulped her throat. She again peered
into my eyes, this time simply asking, "Are you happy?"
"Yes. Yes, I am."
The 30-year-old offered a faint smile, yet a new tear
slid down her cheek anyway. "Good. You deserve it."
"Are you happy?"
Pamela began to sob once again. "N-No..."
"Why not?"
"Because I don't have you," she answered honestly, before
completely breaking down and losing control of her faculties.
Pamela balled up a pair of fists and punched each of my
shoulders with them several times in succession. "WHY DO YOU
HAVE TO BE HERE RIGHT NOW? WHY DID YOU HAVE TO COME BACK
INTO MY LIFE?" She slapped at my shoulders now with open,
weak palms. "I'm never going to get over you now..."
"Just come back to the island with us."
Pamela screeched and literally jumped two feet high off of
the bed as Kristanna entered the hospital room while saying
those eight words. Looking as if she had just saw a ghost,
Pamela clutched the bed-sheet tightly to her body as Kristanna
made a slow approach. Obviously, Pamela was not aware that I
had brought company along to Baltimore with me. These two
ladies, needless to say, were not exactly the best of friends.
"What is SHE doing here?" Pamela roared, glaring at me.
"Come back to the island with us," Kristanna reiterated,
causing Pamela to shift focus back to her. "I've been talking
with your sister. You're miserable here in Maryland. You
work six nights a week and have no social life outside of
that wretched strip club. You have shut yourself off from
the rest of humanity. And you refuse to date anyone."
Kristanna was not done. Not by a long shot. "You've been
going to college all these years looking to become a teacher,
yet you know down-deep that no school district would ever
hire someone with a background that includes 12 years as a
stripper. Well... one school would have, but you passed that
opportunity up when you refused Jeremy's offer of help
several months ago. And now, with a heart issue, what strip
club would want you? I am sure dancing and stripping is
hard, strenuous work... that's a lot to put on your heart."
"Get Kristanna out of here, Jeremy!" Pamela seethed,
trying to control her anger. "She is talking down to me!"
"I'm not talking down to you at all," Kristanna growled,
hands on hips. "I'm offering you a solution to end all of
your problems. Come back to the island with us."
"Krissy?" I said, dumbfounded. "How? Why?..." Where was
this coming from? Wasn't Kristanna supposed to be at odds
with Pamela? Weren't these two women enemies, in some way?
Ignoring me, my wife told Pamela yet again, "Come back to
the island with us. Come back, and let's start over. Come
with us to Norway when we travel there in three weeks. Give
yourself the opportunity of finally being happy in life."
"Are you INSANE?" Pamela sniped.
"Your sister told me that even YOU yourself will admit
that the single, biggest mistake that you ever made in your
life was leaving the island and not giving the rest of us -
the girls - a better chance. You were so Hell-bent on
winning Jeremy over and keeping him to yourself, and so
angry at me at the same time because he chose me - he chose
US - over you, that you realized once leaving and returning
home that sharing Jeremy is a million times better than not
having him at all."
"Jeremy may have a wife who loves him more than life
itself," Kristanna proclaimed. "I will do anything and
everything I can to make Jeremy happy. I would DIE for him
if I had to." I narrowed my gaze at her as she continued,
"Jeremy may have four other live-in girlfriends as well.
Lindsay and Amy worship the ground that he walks on. Each
of them cannot imagine what their life would be like without
him in it. Devvy and Trish are very close to him as well.
Both have completely sworn off other men."
"So... Jeremy has a loving wife, he has four girlfriends -
two of which are itching to marry him. Jeremy has all the
money and financial security anyone could ever ask for. He
is, in many respects, leading a charmed life."
Kristanna paused, then added, "Yet there is this big,
massive void in that life. It's been there for five months.
I have seen it every single day. I have lived through it
EVERY SINGLE DAY. It's you, Pamela. It's you, and the
fact that you're not a part of it."
"Krissy, what about all the..."
"Come with us, Pamela," my bride interjected, my words
chopped off in mid-sentence one more time. "I am willing
to forget our troubles from the past because I know that
Jeremy needs you, and you need him. I got him into this
lifestyle, and I knew there would be moments like this
where one day I may have to make a sacrifice. I am willing
to start over fresh with you, provided you have an open mind
concerning our lifestyle and, at the very least, you give
your absolute all to make it work between us."
I was too stunned to even say anything. Was this what
Kristanna wanted all along? Was this really why she had
insisted on coming along for the trip to Maryland? Did she
have prior visions of luring Pamela back into our lives?
And... I had a _massive void_ in my life? Really?
Pamela, meanwhile, was shell-shocked and mortified beyond
any and all reason. It still appeared as if she just saw a
ghost. What exactly was going through Pamela's mind at this
particular moment in time? I really had no idea. She just
sat there, literally frozen, with a blank, empty stare.
Thus, Kristanna offered her hand to Pamela and simply
said, "Let's go home."
<<<- End of Chapter 02 ->>>
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"Island Fever 2: Eternity"
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