AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I grabbed another piece of oxtail dumpling and popped it in my mouth, chewing thoughtfully. I took a drink of my seltzer then frowned. My tongue itched, and I stared at the oxtail dumpling. When my waitress finally passed by, I stopped her. "Hi, could we have the bill please? And the oxtail dumplings, did they have mushrooms in them?"
"I'm not sure, Miss. Why?"
"I'm allergic,” I said. “I didn't see that listed as an ingredient."
"Oh, um, let me double-check for you."
My tongue started to itch in earnest, and I tried to use my teeth to stave off some of the discomfort, but it only multiplied.
Fuck me. I was usually so careful. And this pub was so popular with the people in the office because they were one of those places that listed all their ingredients so you could make sure you knew exactly what was in the food.
Ugh, fuck me.
My throat started to itch, and I began to worry. Jesus Christ, my tongue… I needed to do something. When the waitress came running back, I looked at her for help, and she shook her head. "No, there were no mushrooms in it."
"Are there mushrooms in anything else?"
"No, I don't think so."
I started to scratch at my clavicle and just knew I'd find hives. The waitress's eyes bugged out. "Miss, are you okay?"
"Not really. I'm having an allergic reaction to something. Could you tell my colleague that I had to go?"
I could tell the waitress was panicking by how wide her eyes went.
"Oh my God. Should I just bring your bill?"
"Ugh, fuck the bill." I reached into my purse and pulled out a couple of fifty-pound notes. "This should cover it, right?"
She nodded. "Yes, but that's too much."
"Take that as a tip."
"But it's too much. We?—"
I shook my head.There was no way I was going to make it home on the Tube. Not like this. But the office was right around the corner. I could lie down on my couch. Which I was going to need after I injected myself.
Fuck.
"Thank you. When he comes back, could you tell him?—"
"Yeah, I'll let him know."
I hurried out, making my way back to the office for my EpiPen.
Just as I made it my office, I could feel my throat closing. This was definitely an allergic reaction. Somehow, even though I’d just had the dumplings and my seltzer, I had to have ingested mushrooms. I dug through my desk drawer, looking for the EpiPen. Fucking hell, where had I put it?
Finally, I clawed out all the contents of my drawer onto the floor. When I found it, I breathed a sigh of relief, yanked up my skirt, and fumbled for my tights to pull them down enough.Then I dragged in a deep breath and plunged the EpiPen into my thigh.
I stumbled back to my couch and down, trying to breathe deeper and fill my body with oxygen before I passed out. That shit hurt. I knew I needed to get to the fucking hospital, so while I waited for it to take effect, I texted Lance.
Gwen: Had an allergic reaction. In my office. Would you be able to come and take me to the doctor?
Lance: OMW
As my symptoms started to recede and I started to calm down slightly, the shakiness hit me, and I knew that was the effect of the Epinephrin in my system. I finally started to breathe more evenly, and the stress of the evening started to make me drowsy, but once again I could have sworn I smelled him.
Atticus.
