13. Myome
MYOME
Ithrew a card down and shifted slightly when Rome threw his card down harder in response. I sucked my teeth.
“Don’t be a sore loser,” he teased.
“Nobody’s being a sore loser.” I turned to Drix. “What do you have?”
He threw a card on the pile and I danced in place while I plucked up our book and added it to our pile. Drix smirked from behind his cards.
I’d been in the hospital for hours now, but since I was conscious and stable, I’d fallen to the back burner while they dealt with emergency patients.
Chandler, Drix, Rome, and Charm had stuck around thankfully and were making the time go by. We’d only been here an hour before Rome went to the gift shop and purchased a pack of playing cards.
Chandler sat in a corner of the room near the window with her phone in hand, no doubt dealing with all the press that came with me being rushed to the hospital. I hadn’t looked at my phone yet but I was confident there was bullshit circulating.
I was thankful for the people around me to help silence the noise. Charm sat at the foot of my bed while Drix and Rome were on either side of me. Rome had kicked off the game of spades we were playing, and honestly, it was the most fun I’d had in days.
Drix glanced from his cards to me, back and forth. I gave him a little smile to let him know I was okay. He didn’t buy it. A part of me liked how concerned he seemed about my health and how I was doing. It was reassuring that he not only liked me but cared about me and my health.
The four of us finished our game and jumped into another. Then, all of our heads snapped to the side when the door opened.
“Ms. Ross?” The doctor grinned as he looked at me.
“Mrs. King,” Drix corrected.
The doctor cleared his throat. “Right. Sorry.”
“You’re good, man. Come on in.” Drix pushed his chair back from the bed to make space for the doctor and climbed up. “Do you have news for us?”
“I do.” The doctor walked over and looked at the different machines I was plugged into.
“Can y’all give us the room?” Drix asked.
“Oh! Uh, sure.” Charm nodded and she, Rome, and Chandler climbed to their feet.
I gave them a little wave before they walked out and closed the door behind themselves.
“Alright. Well, it looks like your heart rate is a little fast and the rhythm itself is abnormal. Your electrolytes are imbalanced but not lethal and the coloration of your skin is a little off in my professional opinion.” He clicked his pen.
“You mentioned getting a good amount of sleep but you are consistently tired, right?”
“I’m also a performer and have been practicing and running around a lot, so that may just have me tired.”
“Maybe. What’s your diet like?”
“I don’t really have a diet”—I forced a small laugh—“I just kind of eat whatever I want and assume that working out and performing will balance it out.”
“Alright. Well, let’s start with today. What did you have for breakfast?”
“I had a breakfast smoothie. It was just fruit, honey, and almond milk.”
“Okay.” He scribbled something down. “Any snacks?”
“I had a granola bar.”
“Okay. And what did you have for lunch?”
I paused while I thought about it. Drix looked at me.
“Uhm…” I shifted in my seat.
“Do you remember what you had for dinner?” The doctor asked and silence took over the room.
“Myome,” Drix said tightly and I looked over at him. “I know fucking well all you ate today wasn’t that fucking smoothie and a granola bar.”
“I was busy!” I argued.
The doctor cleared his throat and nodded.
“Okay, so at least we know it’s extremely probable that your issue is not eating enough today.
Undereating can cause all the issues I mentioned, but if it isn’t corrected, things can get worse.
It can cause your bones to thin and cause issues for your organs.
Skipping a meal here and there isn’t lethal and I’d never want to present it to you like it is, but I will say not eating is just as serious as overeating. ”
“I get it.” I nodded. “I’ll definitely keep that in mind in the future.”
“Okay. Well, I’m going to get you something to help with the electrolytes but the skin coloring and heart rate should even out to normal on their own as long as you have a moderately balanced diet.
With that being said, I want you to see your primary care doctor in a week to make sure things are going in the correct direction.
I’ll write you a note to sit out, at least for tomorrow, and I want you to pay attention to your body and take things easy. Can I trust you to do that?”
“Can he?” Drix echoed.
I shot him a look then looked at the doctor.
“Yeah. I’ll be sure to take care of myself.”
“Good. I’ll be right back with the pill.”
“Thank you.”
The doctor jotted a few things down then left the room. I kept my eyes on the door even after he was out, just so I didn’t have to look at Drix.
“What’s up, Twin?” Drix walked over and sat at the foot of the hospital bed. “You got an eating disorder or what?”
“No.” My eyebrows knitted together and I shook my head. “No.”
“Then, what’s going on?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “I just… I’ve been busy and haven’t actually felt hungry. I’m not intentionally forcing myself not to eat. It’s just…” I sighed. “I don’t know.”
“Yeah, well, we’ve got to make shit shake, Myome, or you won’t be able to travel and do press for this album, let alone go on tour.
We talked about this shit when we talked about your rehearsing practices.
Your voice is dependent on your body. Do you think you can have a weak body and strong vocals?
” he asked. “Huh? Do you think you can perform while not taking care of yourself?” He didn’t give me a chance to respond.
“Obviously not or you wouldn't have been laid out on the fucking floor of that club.” He slapped his hands together and my lip automatically poked out.
“I didn’t do it on purpose,” I reminded him.
Drix closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
“Alright.”
“I feel like I’m the one who’s sick but you’re the one upset.”
“Alright,” Drix repeated.
I cut my eyes at him. “Is that all you're going to say?”
“What do you want me to say, Myome?” He looked away from me.
“I said what I had to say and I ain’t arguing about it.
” He exhaled. “Take care of yourself or retire because there ain’t a way to take care of your career and neglect your body that ends with you being successful.
Be a one-hit wonder if that’s what you want to do but I’ll buy your mothafuckin’ contract and shelve you myself before I let you kill yo’self for some shit that ain’t even guaranteed.
” He looked back at me. “Now the ball is in your court. Move how the fuck you want but just know I’m gon’ act accordingly.
” He patted the bottom of my leg then stood. “I’ll send Charm in.”
I scoffed at his audacity and got ready to argue but didn’t get to even start my argument before he left.
Charm came back in what felt like seconds.
“Hey. What happened?” she asked softly.
I sighed and tapped the bed for her to sit.
“I’m not taking care of myself,” I said simply and shrugged. “And my career could end up being over if I don’t start forcing myself to.”
“What?” Charm forced a small laugh. “What do you mean you aren’t taking care of yourself?”
I exhaled, collapsed into the pillows behind me, clasped my hands, and started over from the moment she’d walked out of the room with Rome and Chandler.
I told her everything the doctor had told me and about Drix’s ultimatum. She gave me a small smile as I finished.
“I mean, if you have an eating disorder, we’re here for you and want to help you figure it out.”
“I don’t have an eating disorder.”
“Okay. Then we don’t have anything to worry about,” she said. “You’ll be more conscious of your eating, which will help out with your health and Drix won’t try to shelve you. It’s that simple.”
“But it's still annoying,” I grumbled.
“It could be worse.” She reached over and squeezed my hand. “At least you know what’s wrong and how to fix it and this happened before our official tour and album release. Shit could be worse.”
“I know. You’re right.”
“And if you had any question about that man being down bad, we got that confirmed.” She wagged her eyebrows and I kicked her lightly, making us both giggle.
Drix came in soon after with Rome, Chandler, and something for me to eat.
I took a few bites, fully aware of him staring at me.
Chandler hugged me goodbye and told me to reach out if I needed anything and she’d send me a drafted statement if I wanted to use it when I felt ready.
The doctor delivered the pill he wanted me to take and recommended I get lots of rest but told me I didn’t have to stay overnight since I’d been monitored for hours.
Charm, Rome, Drix, and I left the hospital together. Rome called an iDrive for him and Charm to share and Drix and I headed to my place. We walked in together and Drix exhaled as he toed his shoes off and plucked them up to walk to the room.
I followed his lead.
I watched as he moved around the room, tossing his phone and watch on the bedside table and yanking his shirt off. He collected clothes to sleep in and tossed them on the bed. Then he walked over to me, settled his hands on either side of me, and leaned in.
“How you feeling?” His eyes searched mine.
“I’m okay.” I swallowed and looked off briefly. “Are you mad at me?”
“Nah,” he said. “I’m not mad at you. I’m just worried about you, Twin.”
“I get that.” I looked up at him.
“Do you?”
“I do.”
“Good. I don’t want you to think I’m mad at you or like I’m going to hold shit against you that you can’t control.”
“I get it. For real,” I assured him.
“Alright.” He nodded and leaned in.
I smiled right before his lips touched mine. I wrapped my arms around his neck and he pulled back, grabbing my legs and hoisting me up as he stood. I giggled against his mouth.
“You want to shower together?” he asked.
I nodded. “Yes, please.”