Well This Is Just Swell
Chapter 9: A Late Night Emergency
Hilery scrubbed her face. The dance had been horrible in her opinion. Bo had sat with Kendra the whole night and, outside of a single dance, had done doing nothing more than whisper back and forth and laugh. It had been hard not to walk over and dump a cup of fruit punch on her co-worker’s pretty dress. Shoot, it had been hard not to beat the hell out of her.
She sighed and water droplets flew from her lips. The shower felt good and seemed to help relieve her stress, even if it was just a little bit. Finally, she shut the warm water off and stepped out of the tub. She had left early to avoid Cooter’s questions as to why she hadn’t spent time as a social butterfly. She planned on being in bed by the time he got home.
She wrapped her hair in a towel and put on her lotion, followed by her pajamas. They were purple and extremely soft. They were her favorite set, and she liked to wear them whenever she was down.
When she was done Hilery looked in the mirror before unwrapping her hair. She couldn’t figure out what Kendra had that she didn’t. Maybe it was the hair? Hers was to her waist when she left it down, and blonde. Kendra’s hair was dark. The young Davenport woman shook her head. That couldn’t be it. Bo always complained every time she even considered getting it cut or dyed.
She began to braid her hair as she thought. Maybe he wasn’t interested because she was less feminine than all of the women he had dated in the past. She did work at the Hazzard Garage instead of the Boar’s Nest. She grabbed her rubber band and shook her head again after she had it fastened; no, that couldn’t be it either. Kendra worked with her.
She let out another deep, gusty sigh before opening the medicine cabinet and pulling out her facial lotion. She began to apply it as she continued to think. Maybe it was her eyes? Hers were blue, Kendra’s hazel. That could be it, she thought, though the differences didn’t stop there. Kendra was also slimmer, as Hilery had gained weight, and she was taller too. She frowned. Bo probably didn’t like women who he had to bend too far to kiss. He had a good foot on her height. She was only 5’4”, while he was 6’4”. She put her moisturizer back and shut the cabinet before turning off the light and leaving the room. She had brushed her teeth before getting in the shower.
For the next half an hour she tossed and turned in her bed. Finally she kicked off her blankets and fished around in her nightstand. She pulled out a Baby Ruth bar and sighed. She wasn’t much for chocolate, but it could be a comfort. As she opened it she heard a truck pull into the drive. Cooter was home. She groaned. She had figured he’d be gone ‘til later. She had figured wrong. She took a bite of the candy bar and chewed as she braced herself for the knock on her bedroom door.
A few bites later, Hilery made a face. Her tongue was no longer cooperating and she could no longer chew the candy. She spit it out in a tissue and lay back, figuring it was nothing to worry about… until she felt like her tongue was sticking into the back of her throat. She sat back up and started to gag. The young woman grabbed the waste basket next to her bed and vomited. Afterward, she realized she was in trouble. Her breathing became shallow, and she couldn’t swallow. She began to drool as she struggled to move the air in her throat.
Hilery slipped on her slippers and ran downstairs as fast as she could, waste basket in hand. “Booder!” she rasped. “Ny gongue ith thwollen! Ny danna breed!” Cooter turned from where he had been sipping his coffee at the mantle, and turned ghost-white.
“Hilery, sweetheart, stay calm, and go get in the truck,” he told her firmly. He sat his coffee on the mantle and followed her out the door. Cooter drove like a bat out of hell in the direction of the Tri-County Hospital. He even picked up an unintentional escort, namely Rosco.
“Jit, jit, Cooter, you pull on over now! You’re speedin’!”
“Rosco, I ain’t got time for this! Hilery can’t breathe!!”
“Cooter, I know those kinds of games, pull on over, now, before I make you pull over! Khee!” He didn’t stop.
The patrol car was faster than the old pickup Cooter was driving, so Rosco edged up and nudged him off the road. Things never were easy in Hazzard, especially when someone was in trouble.
Cooter pumped the brakes and stopped the truck before hitting the steering wheel. Rosco came up to the drivers side and shined his flash light in. “Rosco, we ain’t got time for this!” he shouted.
“OH HUSH! You were going fifty-five in a twenty-five. Khee.”
“Loso, pweece.” Hilery said. Rosco shined the light over on her.
“Oh knock it off Hilery,” he replied. “I know you can breathe, so stop making those raspy noises.”
“Rosco, she ain’t playin’!”
“Loso… pweece…” she was getting worse and threw up in the waste basket again.
“Oh jit, she ain’t kiddin’… jit!”
“That’s what we’ve been trying to tell you!” Cooter snapped. He didn’t usually snap, but when his cousin’s life was in danger, he was willing to make an exception to the rule. “And now my pickup is stuck in the ditch!”
“Git her in my patrol car. Jit… nu…” Rosco turned and rushed back to his patrol car as Hilery and Cooter climbed out.
Soon they were on their way again.
When they arrived at the hospital Rosco went in with them, concerned. He watched as Cooter banged hard on the glass to get the receptionist’s attention. “Can I help you?”
“My lil’ cousin, she can’t breathe!” The nurse’s eyebrows shot up.
“Through the double doors. A nurse will meet you on the other side.”
“Thanks Rosco,” Cooter called over his shoulder. They had gotten there in record time with the siren going.
Cooter stood outside the room while a nurse helped Hilery into a gown as the doctor tried asking her some questions. Failing to get any answers from her, he went to the elder Davenport cousin.
“Mr…?”
“Davenport. Cooter Davenport. What’s wrong with my cousin?”
“It looks like anaphylaxis. I have ordered Benadryl, Solumedrol, and Rantidine for her. Benadryl and Rantidine are histamine blockers, and Solumedrol is a steroid. The nurses are going to administer them through an IV. Do you know what she was exposed to that could have caused a reaction? Does she have any allergies which could cause this?”
Cooter shook his head. “Bees, but she wasn’t stung… at least I don’t think.” The doctor nodded and returned to the exam room, leaving Cooter in the hallway. A few moments later Cooter was invited in.
“Hey,” Hilery croaked out.
“Hey, kiddo.” Cooter said, giving a small smile. “How you feelin’?”
“Tired,” she replied. Cooter took a seat by her side and took her hand.
“As to be expected.” The doctor said. He studied her for several moments. “What were you doing when your tongue and throat started to swell Miss …?”
“Hilery Davenport. Eating a Baby Ruth bar.” Hilery grumbled. Her voice sounded horrible. The doctor nodded as he looked at the chart before making a few marks on it.
“I believe you are probably allergic to nuts or chocolate. Try to avoid those so I don’t see you back in here.” He smiled at her. “Now, what we plan is to keep you for a few hours, and if the swelling goes down to a satisfactory level we will be letting you go home. Any questions?” Cooter and Hilery shook their heads no. “Good. The nurse will be in to check on you periodically, as will I.” and with that he left.
For a time neither Davenport said anything, both lost in thought about what had happened. Finally, Cooter broke the silence. “I’ve never been so scared in my life.”
“Neither have I.” Hilery admitted. “At first I didn’t even realize what was happening.” She avoided looking at him, afraid to see the fear on his face which had been written across hers. He gently took hold of her chin and turned her face to look at him. She averted her eyes.
“Look at me Hil.” Cooter said firmly but gently. When she did, she saw only relief. “The important thing is you’re okay now.” She nodded and started to cry. She was on an emotional roller coaster. She eventually cried herself to sleep, leaving Cooter to stand watch… and remember the past.
He remembered a red dress and white clutch; cherry red lipstick and long, flowing blonde hair; he remembered ice cream and lemonade on hot days. Suddenly he jerked awake and became upset with himself. He hadn’t meant to fall asleep, but rather to stay awake and watch over his cousin. He looked around to see what had awakened him, only to discover the doctor stood on the other side of the bed, checking on Hilery.
He shone a penlight in her mouth and had her move her tongue around. He made her say “ahh,” and checked the glands in her neck.
“Good,” he said. “I think you’re ready to go home now.”
“What time is it?”
“Mr, Davenport, the time now is… 5:32 in the morning.” Cooter groaned and ran a hand down his face. He had brought his cousin in six and a half hours before. It had been a miracle something had told him to go home instead of spending the night with his date.
He stretched and stood up after the doctor left. “How ya feelin’?” he asked.
Hilery shrugged her answer before thinking for a moment. “Better. Tired though. Ready to go home and climb into bed.”
“I think I’m gonna do the same. We can skip church today.” He smiled at her and ruffled her hair a little. She gave a small smile of her own. Then the nurse came into the room with the discharge papers and a few prescriptions.
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