Episode 13 (Serena Season 2)

I feel like I'm boiling alive the moment I wake up.

Groaning and kicking off the sheets, I roll over to the other side of the bed,

hoping that it's cooler over there.

(Serena told me she was going out this morning to find something to help me, but--)

(Everything's so damn warm.)

Rubbing at my eyes, I double-check to make sure that there's air flowing through the room,

but everything is open to the breeze -- it's just not helping.

My brow is drenched with sweat, and every part of my body just feels so heavy.

(Fevers are supposed to be good, though, right? It's your body fighting off whatever makes you sick.)

(I just need to hope it finishes cleaning house soon.)

(And... maybe get something to drink in the meanwhile.)

It takes a couple of tries for me to sit up,

taking deep breaths until everything around me stops blurring at the edges.

Using the bedpost to get to my feet, I shuffle slowly into the other room,

grabbing the first glass I see to fill it with water.

I cough between sips, but at least some of the scratchiness in my throat goes away.

I'm prepping myself to push away from the counter and go back to bed when there's a knock at the door.

(Serena wouldn't knock. She knows I'm in here.)

MC: "Um. Come in?"

The door swings open slowly.

Through the haze in my thoughts, I'd expected Clyde or maybe Leilani bringing more soup,

but Olivia is the one standing in the doorway.

Olivia: "Oh god, . You look... really under the weather."

MC: "You were going to say 'awful,' weren't you?"

She gives me a sheepish smile, taking another step inside before closing the door behind her.

I stare for a second, my head pounding too much for a quick response.

(Okay, Serena's definitely not going to like this. Maybe I should...)

Olivia: "You caught me. But let's get you back to bed."

A wave of dizziness means I can only nod, letting Olivia carefully shepherd me back into the bedroom.

It's so much easier to sit down,

and I keep my cup clenched tight between both hands while trying to drink more.

Olivia: "You poor thing."

Olivia: "I brought you something to make this all better, okay?"

She reaches into her bag and pulls out a chunky-looking vial full of bright liquid.

Olivia: "It's from the Mithridate. Drink a little for the next few days and you'll be fine."

(Oh, damn it.)

A. Refuse.

B. Hesitate.

C. Question her.

---

C. Question her.

MC: "Is this why you really came here? To cure me?"

Olivia: "I..."

Olivia: "Of course it is."

---

My stomach does a flip as I look at the vial.

(Serena's worried about the risks, but what if I get so sick I'm not able to take the cure?)

(What is she going to do?)

(But Olivia came here knowing that Serena had already told her no. That's not--)

(Damn it, my head hurts way too much for this right now.)

Olivia: "I'm going to force it on you."

Olivia: "I'll leave it on the bedside table, and you can take it if you want to."

Olivia: "I just want you to have the option, okay?"

MC: "...Okay."

She places the vial down and gives my shoulder a gentle squeeze.

I look down into my water, wishing moe than anything that guilt wasn't churning into the pit of my stomach.

Olivia: "Feel better, ."

I listen to Olivia's footsteps until they fade away, the front door quietly clicking shut.

Gulping down the last of the water, I let myself fall back against the pillows,

wondering if willpower alone is enough to make my fever break.

It's not.

I can't tell how much time passes while I stare at that vial, weighing the potential consequences.

My skin is clammy, eyes half-lidded because the energy to keep them all the way open is ebbing from me.

(Why isn't Serena back yet?)

(She could just throw the stupid vial away so I wouldn't have to look at it.)

(Or maybe she'd see how bad things are and tell me to take it.)

(Damn it, I don't know what the best option is.)

Remembering that little moving plant in the cage, my chest tightens.

I want to believe that Olivia doesn't know about the monster, that the one she has is helpful.

MC: "That would sure make things a lot easier."

MC: "Serena..."

I turn my pillow over in the hopes that it will be cooler on the other side,

but it's only a momentary distraction.

Part of me wants to try and get up for water again,

but the idea of standing is about as appealing as jumping off the highest mountain on the island.

(She's so worried about me. It's only going to get worse.)

(I'd try any other teatment than Serena wanted me to, but we don't have anything else.)

(The village is great, but it's not high-tech.)

(There wasn't even an spirin bottle left over when we were in the resort,)

(and Serena's first aid kit was almost empty.)

Reaching for the vial, my fingers stop just an inch short from it.

A cough makes me hesitate more than anything else, but it's also a good reason just to take it.

MC: "If there's risks, consequences..."

MC: "Serena will figure out a way to cure them. I know she can."

MC: "But that means me surviving that long."

(And honestly, I feel awful.)

After another long moment of grinding my teeth in indecision, I reach for the vial.

The makeshift cork holding it closed comes off easily, and I close my eyes before taking a sip.

MC: "Ugh!"

(It's so bitter!)

I'm glad that Olivia told me to take it in small doses,

because I'm not sure if I could stand to drink any more than that.

Capping the vial again, I put it back on the bedside table and curl up on the bed,

praying that it'll work.

A few minutes later, I can swear the room is ten degrees cooler,

and my heartbeat is slower, the painful pounding in my head starting to ease.

I take a deep breath, wiping the sweat off my brow.

MC: "It's working."

MC: "Thank god. If I have to drink weird plant sap, it BETTER work..."

I doze off out of sheer relief, sleeping peacefully rather than being fraught with fever dreams.

A couple of hours late, I stir to the sound of Serena coming back into the room, her arms full of supplies.

MC: "Hey."

MC: "I was wondering if you got lost out there."

Serena: "No, I'm sorry. I ended up talking to Angelo to get some ideas of what the village had on hand."

Serena: "Wait, you..."

Serena: "You look a lot better."

She drops what's ni her arms on the nearby chair and comes up to me,

pressing one hand to my brow and the other to my neck.

Shock passes through Serena's eyes before she glances at the bedside table and sees the vial.

Serena: "Where did that come from?"

MC: "Um, it's--"

Serena: "Did you get that from Olivia? Did you take it?"

(There's no point in trying to lie. I had just hoped she wouldn't be too upset.)

MC: "...Yeah."

MC: "To both of your questions."

Serena's face falls before she swipes the vial up off the table.

For a moment I think she's going to break it, but she brings the sap up close to her face and examines it,

seeing how much was left.

Serena: "How much did you drink? Was this the only one?"

MC: "She said to take it over the course of a few days. I--"

MC: "You were so worried about me, Serena."

MC: "And I knew you didn't have a cure."

MC: "I'm not blaming you for that, but I thought it would be better for you to fix whatever the vial did than--"

Serena: "Than let you die?"

Serena: "Did you really think I would do that?"

MC: "No!"

MC: "No, of course not. I just wanted to make things easier for both of us."

Serena's fingers tighten around the vial until her knuckles go white,

letting out a hiss of frustration between her teeth before putting it back down.

Serena: "I have no idea what that will do to you."

Serena: "I don't have any way to test it, . There's no cure for the cure."

A. "Maybe I'll be fine."

B. "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it."

C. "I didn't have any other choice."

---

A. "Maybe I'll be fine."

MC: "I might be fine, Serena. We don't know if there are any side effects."

Serena: "We may not know that for years. It could be long-term or sudden."

Serena: "There's no way to tell, not while we're stuck on this damn island."

---

Seeing her caught between disappointment and worry, I'm not even sure what to say.

I feel so much better now, but that doesn't solve the other problem.

MC: "I know you don't trust Olivia's methods--"

Serena: "I don't trust her. And I don't understand why everyone else does."

MC: "She's just friendly, Serena. And..."

MC: "No one wants to think that they're doomed."

MC: "These plants do work, even if they're tied to that monster."

Serena: "Are they? Do you know that?"

MC: "I--"

MC: "I have my suspicions. Because Olivia said--"

Serena: "When?"

MC: "What?"

Serena: "When did she talk to you when I wasn't there?"

(Oh, goddamn it.)

MC: "Earlier."

Serena: "..."

Serena: "And you're feeling better now?"

MC: "Yeah. A lot better."

Serena's back goes stiff and she crosses her arms, looking away from me for a long moment.

I can't read her expression at all.

Serena: "Then let Olivia take care of you."

MC: "What?"

Serena: "I'm either too emotionally compromised to treat you,"

Serena: "or too damn jealous to think through this straight, but I--"

Serena: "I have to step away."

(Jealous? She's--)

(Oh. I fucked up.)

MC: "Where are you going?"

Serena: "...To Clyde's."

MC: "For how long?"

Serena: "I haven't figured that out yet."

Tears prick at the corner of my eyes, but I nod.

It's not until Serena leaves the room that I actually start to cry.