“Of course not! Don’t be silly!” Ruby muttered, neatly placing some panties into the large luggage. She held up a few more and wondered if she needed them.
“It’s not like you’re going to live there, Ruby,” Amee commented, smiling.
Ruby frowned. She was being overly cautious of course, as usual. “You’re right. I’m not going to live in Europe.” That said, she put the spare panties aside before turning her attention to her bras.
Rhonalite, known as Rhona, poked her head in through the door, followed by Emerald, known as Emm to them. The girls crashed onto Ruby’s bed, ruining Ruby’s carefully made-up duvet before dropping her clothes to the floor.
“Bet you can’t wait to meet that handsome English man of yours,” Emm chuckled, resting her pretty face in her palms as she looked at her sister. “I’m so jealous of you.”
“You’ll get your turn soon,” Ruby said, picking up her clothing from the floor. “And Brian is not my English man.”
Emm laughed. “Oh yeah? So why did he insist you stay at his place when you told him you’re coming over for a wee holiday?”
“He did not insist,” Ruby replied, neatly folding a pair of black skinny jeans before placing them into the luggage.
“Don’t lie, Ruby,” Rhona butted in. “See? You’re smiling. We know you like him.” Rhona kissed the air as though she were kissing a boy. “Oh, Brian, I love you. Let’s get married and make babies.”
Emm and Amee laughed.
“Stop it!” Ruby snapped, slapping Amee’s arm. “Don’t be silly. He’s a good friend, that’s all.”
“Okay,” Rhona chuckled. “He’s whatever you say he is. But deep down, you know what he is to you.”
Ruby frowned at her sister, indicating she should mind her own business.
The door opened at that moment, and Mrs. Chan came in.
“Mum?” Ruby said. Emm, Rhona, and Amee cleared some space on the double bed for their mother to sit.
“Come here, Ruby,” Mrs. Chan said. Ruby moved toward her mother, and they hugged. “You be careful, all right? And you ring us at least every second day.”
“Yes, of course I will,” Ruby answered.
“I love you,” Mrs. Chan said.
“I love you, too,” Ruby replied, hugging her mother again.
* * *
TWO
Somewhere in the Middle East
Ruby felt like she was dying. She was feverish all day and hoped like hell she wouldn’t get any worse because then she knew she’d have to go to a hospital. She did not like hospitals. The very thought of them reminded her too much of her dead father, evoking the memories of familiar hope and desperation, routine checkups and chemotherapies, and what happened that final day, years ago when he took his last breath, and submitted to cancer. The images still caused her heart to ache painfully, while brewing fresh tears in her eyes.
No, she would definitely get better, Ruby told herself firmly. Her fever was only due to a change in climate because she was now in a different country; that was all. Or perhaps it was some sort of bug, nothing more. Could it be malaria? But how could she possibly have gotten malaria when she only spent one day in Kuala Lumpur? And most of that short time, she stayed in her hotel room, sleeping.
Groaning silently, she ruefully hoped she was not bothering the passenger sitting next to her. Gosh! What a nice kickoff for her big overseas trip! Suddenly, she felt like she was about to vomit. In response, she tightened her fingers around the elephant pendant on her chest while her other hand cupped her mouth. That way, she wouldn’t embarrass herself in front of the other passengers. Thank God, most were asleep.
With a shiver, the pain suddenly hit her with full force, making her groan in agony. She squeezed her eyelids shut tightly, tears burning behind them. When she couldn’t take it anymore, she yanked her glasses off to wipe the stubborn tears away. After silently struggling her way out of her seat, she headed toward the toilet, taking slow, painful steps and holding onto the aisle seats for support. She knew she was sweating like a pig, and wondered, contritely, if she smelled like one, too. Oh God, the world was spinning around her like crazy. Her breaths were coming in short, sharp gasps, and her vision started to blur. This was not good. Not good at all.
She bumped against somebody. A male body; hard, firm, and utterly warm against her cold, clammy skin.
“So—sorry,” she managed to murmur, her eyes on the floor, entirely focused on avoiding a fainting spell.
“Are you all right?” the deeply timbred voice of a Scottish accent drifted softly to her ears.