Chapter Four

I wiped the sweat off my forehead as I expertly piped a border of chocolate ganache onto the tray of freshly baked croissants.

It wasn't typical of me to sweat profusely during work hours despite the heat which escaped from the oven whenever Pastries were being baked. I felt some sort of feverishness that seemed to intensify the more work I did but I attributed it to work strain.

“Entrepreneurship is not a child’s play,” I whispered to myself. I could never fully explain the joy I felt whenever I resumed work in the mornings. I was so proud of how much I’d captured the hearts of the people in the neighbourhood. My orders and supplies had tripled from a month ago when I started out but that was no easy thing to do.

I tilted my neck to my left hand side and there was my assistant Ray sliding a tray of golden-brown scones into the oven. She was such a workaholic who loved her job. All I ever did was give her my recipe and she delivered the pastries just fine.

“You have so much energy Ray; you’re so full of life,” I shouted grinning wildly from the spot where I stood, garnishing my croissants. “Thank you ma’am; I get my inspiration from you,” she responded with a smirk.

I shrugged my shoulders pushing aside the first tray while bringing forth the one that was next. “Oh young lady, come off it,” I said to her with a wave of hands.

“I wouldn’t be able to sort these bulky orders all by myself, you know. I’m so grateful for the gift of you and I hope no one contaminates your joyful and resilient spirit.” I never ceased to show to my employees how grateful I was to have them work with me.

As I bowed my head onto my work surface so as to achieve a perfect finish, my head unexpectedly banged hard like a set of drums being hit by a performing instrumentalist and my vision became blurry, my eyes spinning like a stainless steel tray that just hit the bare floor. The more I tried to gain control of myself, the more I failed at it.

I took some steps backward to find the wooden stool which I often sat with and I tripped and almost fell. ‘Holy Lord!’ this was certainly not me.

“Ray darling, I can’t tell what’s wrong with me,” I said, calling to Ray who was now deeply engrossed in her work. “Oh madam, what could be the problem, she enquired, her voice laced with empathy and concern.”

“I fear I might be having a little health challenge, a fever or something, my head hurts from a severe headache and my vision is blurry, I also feel extreme weakness and dizziness," I replied, wearing a worried face.

“I’m so sorry about that, what are you gonna do now? I could stand in for you if you need to take some time off,” she suggested.

“Oh dear, I don’t even know right now,” I responded, holding my head with my palm as if to support it from falling. I was seriously thinking how my business would function without my presence. As much as I knew I had help, I had trust issues too and I wasn’t about to entrust my newly established business to someone else, at least, not for too long.

“Have you thought about seeing a physician?” She asked, interrupting my wandering mind. How did I not remember consulting a doctor though? I’d not seen the four walls of a hospital in five years except for my routine check-ups which I did in the laboratory so I guess that was the reason.

“I should do that right away, thank you for reminding me what a hospital does,” I responded in appreciation.

I muttered some words of affirmation under my breath and summoned the courage to stand up to go get my bag which contained my personal items.

“I’ll be on my way now, do arrange the croissants on the display cases. Take good care of the shop please, I’ll be back in a jiffy,” I said as I walked out through the large door leading outside the shop.

“Safe ma’am,” Ray’s voice echoed through the building. I moved a few minutes forward along the street and flagged down an oncoming cab.

I got in through the door and settled in, exchanging brief pleasantries with the driver while telling him where I was headed.

“We’re at Smith’s clinic,” came the voice from around me. I had dozed off a minute into the ride. I quickly jolted out of my sleep and handed him his fare. “Thank you,” I said calmly as I alighted from the car, and I didn’t care to hear his reply.

I walked through the car park into the roofed hallway leading to the clinic’s entrance. Hospitals always smelt of drugs and I hated that for myself.

“Hi, I need to see a doctor to conduct some tests on me,” I said to the receptionist at the counter with a sense of urgency. “Give me a minute," she replied as she put a call through to someone.

“Kindly follow the passage through that door, the second door by the left is where you’re headed,” she said to me after hanging up.” Thank you,” I said, barely talking.

My stomach rumbled as I found my way to the doctor following the instruction I was given.  I was already seeing stars and feeling very light headed. I knocked on the door twice and opened it.

“You’re welcome,” the doctor mentioned with a warm smile and I nodded my head in response. “You look really worn out, have your seat,” " he motioned to me with a hand gesture and I sat.

“I’m Doctor Derrick and I’ll be attending to you. What brings you here ma’am?” He questioned me while flipping the file on his gold yellow desk. He was a cute guy with a nice pixie cut and a flirty smile.

“My body feels weak and I feel lightheaded; my sight is blurry, my head hurts from severe ache and I threw up early this morning before work. I just have a general intense feverish feeling,” I said, repeating the same things I had said to Ray, my assistant.

“These are quite familiar symptoms. Sit back and relax while your samples are taken for a test. You’ll be alright,” he assured me and then he put a call across to a nurse demanding her presence.

My blood and urine samples were taken and handed over to the laboratory scientist while the doctor checked my vital organs.

In a few minutes time, I was called in by the doctor, his countenance calm and unperturbed. I feared doctors so much because you could be passing away the next minute and they’ll show no sign of worry whatsoever.

He handed me an envelope containing the test results. I held it for a minute, my hands trembling with fear for what my diagnosis might be.

“Congratulations ma’am, you’re six weeks pregnant,” he said, stretching out his hands for a handshake.