Love's Redemption (Chris and Maddie)

Brandon quickly caught the juice before it could spill. Before I could even turn my head, I heard a familiar voice right next to me. "Maddie, you really know how to handle men. I might need to come to you for lessons."

Lisa had finally seen my message.

I gave her a light tap. "Don't you know that scaring someone can be dangerous?"

"Scaring someone to death would be pretty expensive, wouldn't it? Isn't that right, Mr. Howell?" Lisa joked with Brandon.

Lisa acted like a sweet little lamb around Keith but would become really bold and outspoken with everyone else. I couldn't imagine how she managed to keep up the act with Keith. "Where's Mr. Marrow?" I asked, noticing that Keith was gone.

"He left," Lisa said, sitting down next to me and looking at Brandon. "Mr. Howell, you got two servings while Maddie didn't get any. Isn't that a bit unfair to your girlfriend?" Lisa's comment was clearly meant to point out that Brandon had eaten my portion. I gave her a gentle nudge to suggest that she should stop, as it might embarrass Brandon. Sharing my leftovers with Brandon was fine between us, but it might look bad if others saw it.

But I was wrong. Brandon handled it smoothly. He continued eating calmly and said, "Her serving is right here."

"Oh, so, you're sharing a serving, Mr. Howell. How romantic," Lisa teased.

"Yeah, Dr. Carline, maybe you should try this with Mr. Marrow next time," Brandon replied with a playful tone.

I laughed, but Lisa pinched the arm where I had gotten my blood drawn, and I winced. "Ouch, that hurts."

Brandon quickly said, "She just had blood drawn from that arm."

Lisa looked worried and asked, "What happened?"

"I got a fever," I said, leaning on Lisa's shoulder. "You're picking on a sick person."

Lisa felt my forehead and asked, "How did you get a fever? What else is wrong?"

"My throat hurts. It feels like I'm swallowing razor blades," I said quietly.

"Is it a viral flu? How long has it been since you had your blood drawn?" Lisa asked.

"Since 8:30 am. I'm just waiting for the results," I said, looking at Brandon, who was still eating calmly as if we weren't there. Brandon stayed calm no matter the situation. He was just like that.

Lisa checked her watch and said, "The results for a basic blood test should be ready by now."

She looked at me and added, "You seem better. If you still have energy to flirt with Mr. Howell, then you're probably okay."

Lisa really was my best friend. She was always teasing me, even with Brandon around.

I wasn't bothered by her jokes. "Yeah, with Mr. Howell taking such good care of me, I'm sure I'll recover quickly."

"Exactly. Love is the best medicine,"

Lisa said with a smile as she stood up. "I'm leaving now. Find me later

Wen you get your results.

I waved at her with a playful gesture. Lisa me a mock angry look but

did

you go to? I can check for

You can are which deprec

"Fever clinic," I said, just as a man walked over to us.

I thought he was looking for Brandon, but he said, "Dr. Carline."

Lisa's face showed surprise and a hint of annoyance.

After being friends with her for years, I knew that something was wrong, so I stood up too.

"Dr." the man said, I

"Dr. Carline, I've been trying to find

you for

at Lisa with a strange exprekinet

didn't expect to see you

her

"I