Vladimir Kudin MMD4

"Vladimir
Hurry up or we'll be late!"

My roommate pounded on the wall impatiently
As if that would make me finish sooner

He thought I had stomach trouble
I'd been in the bathroom most of the morning
And it was true
I had thrown up quite a bit
And there was considerable cramping

But that wasn't what was wrong
At least I didn't think so

I pulled the crumpled up piece of paper out of my pocket
With trembling fingers
The instructions for post procedure care
Were simple and straightforward

Plenty of fluids
Plenty of rest
Keep the solid foods to a minimum for three days
And call if anything seemed too strange

I hadn't been sure what "too strange" had meant
At least at the time

For the first day everything had been perfectly normal
I rested
Watched television
Played video games
Drank lots of water
Had a light meal

When I awoke on the second day
My arm was itchy
The spot where I'd had the injection
It had developed a rash
And it felt like I had a fever maybe
But there had been something going around the campus
So I thought not much of it

Today
The third day after I'd answered the advertisement
Which had been pretty standard fare from the science department

"Wanted: Test subjects for medical study"

Every campus has them often
It had paid well for that sort of thing
Though right now it didn't seem worth the trouble

Two of my teeth had fallen out when I brushed
And the cramping was almost unbearable

I'd developed a rash all around my neck
Similar to the one on my arm

I pounded back on the wall to my roommate

"Go ahead, I have to go back to the clinic I think"

He said something about my missing class again
Then the door slammed
He was gone

Slowly I made my way to the phone in the hallway
Laying the piece of paper on the table
I focused my watering eyes on it with difficulty
And dialed the number

Ring........ring........

It feels like forever
But someone answers finally

"Hello, this is Vladimir Kudin"
I say trying not to sound as lousy as I feel
"Can I speak to Dr. French?"