“No, it’s perfectly all right, Miss. Under the circumstances, I understand her being a little impatient. So why don’t we get to the point.” The doctor glanced down at a folder in front of her. The sympathetic smile she gave me told me all I needed to know, but it hurt even worse when she said the words. “I’m sorry to have to tell you this, Ms. Johnson, but you’ve tested positive for gonorrhea.”
“Oh, Godl” All of a sudden Jasmine wasn’t so calm. She covered her face with her hands. The way she was acting, you’d think she was the one with the shit. I sat as still as I could in my chair, trying to hold back tears. The only thing I could think of was how much I regretted sleeping with Travis the night before.
“How do I get rid of it?” I asked in a grim tone.
“I’m going to give you two prescriptions. One is Zithromax for the gonorrhea. It’s four pills that you take at once. It’s probably going to make you pretty nauseous, but that should subside in about a day.” She scribbled on a prescription pad. “The other prescription is to treat chlamydia.”
“Chlamydia? I’ve got that too?” I yelled. “I swear to God I’ma kill Malek.”
“Well.” The doctor shifted uncomfortably in her chair. “We’re not sure about the chlamydia. We don’t do the test for it here. We send it out to a lab. What happens in a lot of cases is that chlamydia piggybacks on gonorrhea. The prescription is just precautionary, but better safe than sorry.”
“So I don’t have to take this one until you get the results?” I stared at the two slips she handed me.
“Well, we suggest you take it right away since we won’t have the results back for a few days, and it’s better to treat these things quickly. We also suggest that you refrain from any sexual contact for at least ten days.”
“You don’t have to worry about that. I don’t wanna see another dick the rest of my life.” I stared at her, dying to get out of there. “Is that it, Dr. Reed?” As if that wasn’t enough.
“Yes. The only other thing I need to know is how many sexual partners you have. I know it’s a little embarrassing, but it’s a health department requirement.”
I was about to lie and say one, but Jasmine cleared her throat to get my attention. Out of the corner of my eye I saw her fold her arms across her chest, daring me to lie.
“Two.” I lowered my eyes.
“Have they been notified? Because if you’d like, we can notify them for you. Sometimes it’s easier that way.”
“No, I’ll take care of it,” I mumbled, not looking forward at all to the prospect of telling Travis that he had VD.
“Okay, Ms. Johnson.” The doctor stood. “Good luck.”
“Thanks, Dr. Reed.” I glanced at the picture of Travis on my key chain. “I’m gonna need it. Let’s go, Jasmine. I wanna get to the pharmacy and take these pills as quickly as possible.”
Jasmine pulled into my driveway, then turned to me with an ominous look. We’d just made a quick stop at the pharmacy to fill my prescription. I was about to go in the house and wait for Travis when she asked the most obvious question.
“You all right, Steph?”
“What d’you think, Jasmine?” I snapped. “I gotta go in that house, fix dinner for Travis, then wait till he gets home with the kids so I can tell him I gave him gonorrhea. So you tell me. Do you think I’m all right?” Tears were welling up in my eyes as I waited for her reply.
“No, I guess you’re not.” She took my hand and smiled weakly. “If you’d like, I’ll go in and wait with you. Travis might not act so crazy if I’m here when you tell him.”
“Nah, it’s not gonna make any difference.” I shook my head. “You go on home. Besides, I made this mess by myself, so I gotta clean it up by myself. I just hope I can think of a way to do that before Travis gets home.”
“Don’t play games with this, Stephanie,” she advised. “Tell him the truth. Lying is just gonna make it worse.” She grabbed my hand as I moved to step out of the car. “I love you, little sister. I’m here if you need me.”
“You know what, Jasmine?” I smiled at my sister with newfound respect. “I’m really starting to believe that. But why? I’ve been a bitch to you all my life.”
“Yeah, but you’re also my sister. Except for Momma and Derrick, you’re all I got.”
“I hope you feel that way after I tell Travis about this gonorrhea. ’Cause I might be knocking on your door to sleep on your couch.”
“I don’t think it’s gonna come down to that.” Jasmine tried to sound upbeat. “But if it does, you’re always welcome.”
“You’re serious, aren’t you?” This newfound sisterhood was hard to believe, although it was touching me. Me and Jasmine had never been close, but it was great to have someone to lean on, especially now that I’d made such a mess of my life.
“Yeah, I am serious,” Jasmine said.
I leaned over and kissed my sister’s cheek.
“Thanks, Jazz, for everything. I don’t think I coulda made it through this without you.” I stepped out of the car but stuck my head back in when a thought came to me. “Listen. I’m not sure if I’ll still be gettin’ married after all this, but if I do, I’d like you to be my maid of honor. I was gonna ask LaShawn, but with everything that’s happened, I want it to be you.” I smiled at my sister. “Think you can handle the job?”
“You damn right. I’ll be the best maid of honor a sister could ever have. I’ma throw you a shower you’ll never forget,” she promised.
“Good.” I felt good until I remembered the CVS package I was holding. “Lemme go inside and take this medicine.
“I love you, Stephanie.”
“I love you, too, Jasmine.” I closed the car door and walked toward the house, dreading the rest of my evening.
Today had probably been the worst day of my life. I had made a big mistake messin’ around with Malek, and now I was payin’ for my mistakes big-time. And I knew things would only get worse once I told Travis the truth. But as bad as things were, I was glad. I’d made a new friend today. I just couldn’t believe it was my sister.
21
I walked into the house and collapsed on my couch. I was so tired, I felt like I was gonna pass out right then and there. Becky, Sabrina, and I had gone down to Petersburg to celebrate Dylan’s birthday, and I don’t think I’ve ever had that much fun celebrating a birthday, including my own. Unfortunately, I was paying for it now. By the time we left the club and had breakfast at the Waffle House, it was almost seven o‘clock in the morning. I didn’t get home until seven-thirty, which left me barely enough time to take a shower and drag my ass to work. I should’ve called in sick like Becky and Sabrina, ’cause I can’t remember the last time I’d been this damn tired.
I felt like I was glued to my couch. Thankfully, Dylan was going outta town for the weekend. Usually, on Friday night we would go out to dinner and see a movie. Just the thought of getting up made me wanna cry. Of course, whoever started banging on my door didn’t care how damn tired I was. I tried to ignore it, but the knocking just got louder and louder.
“Who is it?” I finally whined from the couch.
“It’s me!” Sabrina let herself in, looking spry and energetic. I wanted to slap her. She probably slept all day.
“Damn, girl. Think you coulda waited for me to say ‘come in’ or something? I coulda been in here getting my groove on.” She didn’t have to know I didn’t have the strength to undo a zipper right about now.
“Gettin’ your groove on with who, yourself?” Sabrina shoved my feet aside and sat next to me.
“Very funny, Sabrina. I coulda had a man in here,” I protested.
“Please, Jasmine. I already know Dylan went outta town.”
“Why you always gotta bring up Dylan?” I tried to sound offended as I hid the grin on my face. “Like he’s my man or somethin’.”