Page 43 of Seashells at The Summer Hotel Lovely Bay
‘I can’t believe it; I come all this way, and I get struck down with a cough. We’ve paid all this money!’
Robby nodded. ‘That’s the last of our worries. It’s always the way when you go on holiday. I wonder what it is? I wasn’t feeling that great either, but I seem to have nipped it in the bud. What did you take?’
‘Paracetamol.’
‘Have you got any ibuprofen?’
‘I’ve got every drug known to man in my toiletries bag. Do you think I should take some ibuprofen as well?’
‘Maybe take a double dose when you go to bed, and hopefully, you’ll wake up in the morning feeling better,’ Robby suggested. ‘It might work.’
Nina nodded. ‘Yes, I hope so. I didn’t have this as part of the plan. I didn’t want to get sick in Thailand.’
‘One of the blokes here has been quite poorly. His wife is a doctor, and she said it’s because of all the new germs you encounter when you go to a different country, especially when it’s on the other side of the world.’
‘Right, I never thought of it like that.’
‘It makes sense, really.’
‘Yes, it does. And then, of course, on top of that, you’re sitting in a crowded area on the plane, full of people coughing and spluttering their germs all over the place.’
‘There is that, and then there’s the fact that they reckon planes don’t get cleaned that well,’ Robby noted.
Nina nodded. ‘I did have my handy-dandy antibacterial wipes and I disinfected just about every part of that seat. So, anyway, whatever it is, long and the short of it is that I’m not feeling great.’
‘Oh well, hopefully, a good night's sleep will do you well.’
‘Yes, I hope so.’
‘So, what are you going to do now then?’ Robby asked with a concerned tone.
Nina turned her phone around so that it captured the panorama below her of the hotel pool and the gorgeous, balmy Bangkok evening. ‘I’m just going to sit here for a bit and watch what’s going on outside, listen to the night sounds and stuff, and then I’m going to have an early night. I really want to get better for when you arrive, so that we can do the things we've planned.’
‘Good idea. Yep, just rest up.’
‘I intend to.’
‘Okay, well, I’ll let you go then.’
‘What are you doing?’ Nina asked.
Robby smiled. ‘I'm meeting one of the guys downstairs in the bar and we’re going to pop over the road for some dinner, and then I’m going to do the same as you and have an early night. I’ve got loads to catch up on with work as well. It’s been quite full-on here.’
‘Sounds like you’re busy.’
‘I am, which is why I am looking forward to seeing you and having a week off doing nothing much at all. I’ll be there soon.’
‘Same here. Actually, maybe it’s a good thing that I am feeling a bit poorly. It means that I will stop charging around in the humidity and actually take a bit of a break. By the time you get here, I’ll be right as rain again.’
‘Yeah, maybe it’s a good thing. Okay then, will I speak to you in the morning? I’ll leave my phone on all night. If you need me, just call me.’
‘Yeah, okay. Love you lots, see you soon. Can’t wait.’
‘Will do. Love you,’ Robby said, waved and then tapped his phone and he disappeared from the screen.
Nina put her phone down and sat for a bit longer, looking out over the pool area. After texting Nancy back in Lovely Bay, she put her phone on charge beside the bed, closed the shutters, did a quick wee, put a glass of water by her bed, took some ibuprofen and paracetamol, and, trying not to cough, attempted to go to sleep. She wasn’t feeling good at all.
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