chapter 2 - onset

It started with chills. Anna woke a few days after returning to Houston feeling chilled and shivered in bed despite the fact it was May and the deep south summer was already well underway.

She felt terrible all day long and the next day she made an appointment with her doctor. By the time she was able to get in she was running a fever. When she told her doctor where she had been, he started her on anti-malarial drugs.

Anna's lab work came back, and she was negative for Malaria antigens. She still felt sick though. They ran more tests but were not able to find anything. She spent her days mostly lying in bed, feeling hot then cold, with her roommate Maddy bringing her cool damp towels for her forehead. Over the course of a couple of weeks she dropped a 3 pounds because she never felt like eating.

Finally, after more than two weeks of fever and chills, Anna woke up one morning feeling fine. In fact, she felt absolutely great. Full of energy and in good spirits. Her roommate noticed the change immediately.

"Wow, you look so much better!", Maddy exclaimed upon seeing Anna that morning.

"I feel better. In fact, I feel great. It's the first time I have felt good in weeks. I hope it lasts.", Anna replied.

"We should go to Galveston today.", Maddy suggested.

"Sounds great to me.", Anna agreed.

They packed a beach bag, put on their swim suits and coverups, and made the drive to Galveston Island. They spent the day there lying out in the sun, playing in the surf, and getting drinks on the Strand.

The next day Anna work up feeling good physically, but having trouble concentrating. She seemed fuzzy headed all day. It was the same the next day and the following day after that. She went into work, studies were over until Fall now, but had a very hard time concentrating on anything. Her coworkers noticed it but knew she had been sick so didn't say anything to her about it.

This went on all week and Anna decided she would go back to the doctor if she didn't get better over the weekend. On Saturday she woke up feeling fine again. She felt great physically, and she was clear headed. For the first time in days she could easily focus and concentrate. She got up and took a long hot shower. While in the shower she could hear someone saying something. She called out to see if Maddy was asking her something from the hallway but got no response. As she showered the voice came into focus. She was hearing a voice, but it was coming from inside her head.

A few minutes later Lisa noticed a trail of water from the bathroom. She followed it down the hall and to the kitchen. In the kitchen she found Anna naked, dripping with water from the shower, and eating from a box of hostess cupcakes. She stood there and stared at Anna as Anna ripped open each cupcake and shoved it into her mouth.

Anna didn't even notice Maddy watching her eat. All Anna could hear was the voice in her head commanding her to "Eat".