just what I needed

roll me up and smoke me, love, and we can fly into the night
you take drugs, to let go, and figure it all out on your own

Uldren hums a soft chuckle as she tells him that she thought they’d passed the ultimate test, not reading into it as she might have perhaps, and instead simply tightens his arm around her with a light shrug. “There’s multiple.” He decides to answer with a crooked smile, just as her whisper hits him and he snorts, trying to clear his throat at precisely the time she starts to cough into his shoulder, the hand at his side digging in before she’s gripping his shirt with what feels almost like a death grip as it racks through her.

He returns to stroking her spine gently, trying to soothe it out of her even as his own voice rasps slightly, and he’s quick to glare at anyone that might be giving them an odd look. So far, though, nobody has, simply just keeping to themselves in the line they wait in as it dwindles, and before they know it it’s their turn. Now, Uldren is prepared for his bartering skills – sure, he has a small amount of lasti and he’d not care if he spent every last piece of it on making sure she got what she needed to get better, but he can offer more vibrant and beautiful things in exchange for it, too.

The doctor guides them to an empty room and Uldren remains beside Ira as the doctor fixes the glasses on his face before he looks at the two of them and asks what the problem seems to be, noting that a cough was present but aside from that, he wanted more information.

Uldren

ira

She keeps herself up with the support of Uldren and is once again left taking ragged gasps for air once the coughs cease. She wants to assure him she's alright, but those words would be so far from the obvious reality for anyone to believe and she current can't get a word out even if she tries. It's difficult to tell what is worse, the coughs or the breathing. Both hurt in their own way, but while the coughs come and go, she has to take a breath every second and can't exactly just stop for an hour or so to get some rest from the painful discomfort it brings.

Even if she wants to show that she's doing better than she actually is, she remains leaning on Uldren when it becomes their turn and they are guided into a room. Letting him keep his arm tightly around her and she surprisingly finds it preferable to sort of hide herself a bit against him like that. Doctor visits have not exactly been her most favourite thing growing up and still aren't.

She had hoped the coughing would be enough information, but of course the doctor wants to know more, so she makes a weak gesture to her chest and clears her throat. "Coughing, obviously... Can't really breathe properly. It all just... Hurts a lot. I just need something that can help with the breathing... Maybe calm the coughing some." She doesn't even dare to ask for any medicine for it, suspecting that if the Drench clinics are currently overcharging, the regular price up here is probably around the same or higher.

She takes a short moment to catch her breath again and swallows down the urge to try and wave it off as not as bad as it seems. "Had this before... Many times. Usually turns out to be pneumonia or something similar to it... She mumbles a bit and her eyes drifts towards the floor. Part of her starts preparing for a bunch of accusatory questions, since she's admitted to getting this often. She's had to put up with it before (coupled with her father straight out blaming her) and while it's true she doesn't take optimal care of herself, she knows she gets ill anyway even when she tries. For starter, she didn't smoke as a child and she could get severely ill back then too.

roll me up and smoke me, love, and we can fly into the night
you take drugs, to let go, and figure it all out on your own

The doctor settles in to listen while Uldren remains that steady pillar beside her. And as Ira explains what it is she’s looking for the doctor starts to write down some options, trying to focus on the relief aspect of it before trying to decide how best to treat her. Most of the doctors appointments today have been of a similar illness, and the doctor seems a hint frustrated at the amount of them these days — far worse than the previous years. He chalks it up to the Plates not doing better jobs at preventing the illness from spreading like a wildfire in the Drench, but nobody’s asked him for his opinion anyway.

So he nods to her, standing and moving to wash his hands before stepping up in front of her with his stethoscope and little wooden tongue compressor. “Mind if I take a look and listen?” The doctor asks and Uldren squeezes her lightly with his arm around her, moving to the opposite side of the doctor and reaches for her hand so they can keep that contact if Ira agrees.

Uldren

ira

While watching the doctor writing things down, Ira realises she is still having a grip of Uldren's shirt and lets it go, but keeps her hand at his side and her arm around him. The other hand fiddles idly with her end of the scarf and she's remains a bit on edge, taking note of the doctor's frustration over the current situation and the amount of sick people. She still doesn't think that her illness got anything to do with the new one, since this is a known and returning issue for her, but it wouldn't surprise her still if it was mixed in somehow this time.

When the doctor steps away to wash his hands and grab what he needs, she looks at Uldren (and his sore throat), but her attention returns to the doctor before she can say anything. She shakes her head to the question if she minds and let's him go ahead with the examination. Even if she really doesn't like being poked and prodded at like this, she understands it's necessary and just wants to get it over with.

She takes hold of Uldren's offered hand and follows any instructions given for the doctor to be able to check on things. Apart from taking any deep breaths, if asked to. She tries, but just ends up wincing from the pain it brings to her chest. There isn't much of a noticeable infection in her throat, but her lungs have a very telltale crackling sound to them when listen to whenever she takes a breath. "So... How close are they to collapsing this time?" She mutters dryly and finds a spot in the ceiling to stare at. Showing some displeasure over the situation seemed acceptable and still be within the frame of "behaving well". At least she has not snapped at anyone yet!

roll me up and smoke me, love, and we can fly into the night
you take drugs, to let go, and figure it all out on your own

The nod offered is enough for the doctor to reach forward, checking her respiratory rate and listens to her lungs, with quiet murmurs of deep breath and a pause before the and exhale, over and over again until he seems satisfied that he’s heard the correct type of crackling, before he checks her throat. Everything seems normal there, but it does appear that the infection has stuck to her lungs, a fact that has the doctor frowning when the question hits him.

It’s a question that has Uldren’s hand tightening and looking immediately over at her with far more concern than he’d otherwise had this entire trip. But the doctor clears his throat and writes something down, looking back at Ira with a tilt to his head. “I don’t have a record for the last time someone saw you, but if I had to guess it’s about a fifty-fifty chance. It’s a good thing you came when you did.” He offers sympathetically, before he continues. “We should get an x-ray, but I think it may be this type of infection that’s causing most of your issues – potentially the new illness as well, which… We don’t really have a solution for yet. But we can handle the bigger part right now. I’d like to prescribe an antibiotic and some pain relievers.” He offers, looking over at Uldren since Ira hasn’t stopped looking at the ceiling.

And with it, some hint of an attempt to try and make the result easier with the price of it. “We offer payment plans as well to ensure you can get the full dosage of the antibiotics to let it run its course.” He adds and Uldren immediately nods.

Uldren

ira

The question isn't even meant to be a very sarcastic joke; she sounds serious enough with it, if a bit tired and annoyed. However, she does regret asking it the moment she notices Uldren's reaction to it, quietly cursing herself for just bringing even more worry to him. So she squeezes his hand lightly and starts stroking it with her thumb in an attempt to comfort him in all this, but she keeps her gaze on the ceiling while listening to the doctor. Nodding a little at the reply to the question and tries to not look too concerned herself, though her jaws tighten a bit.

The doctor continues explaining things and she gives small nods here and there just to show that she is paying attention, while also trying to handle all the different sources of discomfort currently coming her way. The illness, the pain, being in the clinic, Uldren's worry about her and her own worry about the costs of it all. The doctor mention of having antibiotics for it makes her relax in relief for a second, before the worry of the cost settles in again.

She finally glances to the doctor when he mentions payment plans and she follows his gaze over towards Uldren in time to see him nod in agreement to it before she has a chance to say anything herself. She closes her eyes to take a few breaths, her grip of his hand tightening for a moment. It isn't that she is against the treatment. She wants it, knows she needs it, but she can't help feeling guilty when it seems Uldren is prepared to take the cost upon himself. Still, she looks back to the doctor and nods as well. "Yeah, sounds good." She'll have to sort it all out with Uldren once they are alone again.

Turning her head back in Uldren's direction, she gives his throat a look in a silent question, not wanting to speak up out loud about his own problems for him, but she won't hide the concern she has for him as well. Both of them seemingly preferring to try and shift the attention away from themselves and to the other.

roll me up and smoke me, love, and we can fly into the night
you take drugs, to let go, and figure it all out on your own

Uldren doesn’t care one way or another when it comes to the payment plan. They can work it out amongst themselves, but he does know that he intends on paying it to make sure she gets the entire run of the course. And as she squeezes his hand and gives him a look once the doctor’s finished up with figuring out Ira’s problem, and he works his jaw trying to decide whether he even wanted it noted.

But he’d made her come to the clinic to see what could be done, the least he could do is make sure he’s seen too. So he clears his throat and looks to the doctor once he’s done writing out the meds needed and where to go and which slip they would need to get the medicine for Ira’s conditions. “I, uh, am also having some problems.” He offers, sitting on the little bed beside Ira as he delves into his own issues. And while, it certainly felt like a cold, there were things that weren’t exactly cold related.

And the doctor is quick to check him out as well, checking his throat and listening in, checking a few other places that Ira’s hadn’t, and when the doctor returns to his seat he exhales a soft sigh. “Well, for yours, Mr. Kayn, looks like it’s entirely related to the pandemic going on. We don’t… Really have anything for it yet, as I said, but I can prescribe some pain relievers too.” Uldren works his jaw and nods, but remains relatively silent, refusing to look over at Ira as he watches the doctor continue to write.

Uldren

ira

She watches Uldren a bit anxiously as he works his jaws and remains silent for a while, and she almost starts to wonder if he is not going to say anything. But she's still not going to speak for him, and she doesn't even need to when he decides to tell the doctor that he is having some problems as well.

While Uldren is being looked over, she continues to hold onto his hand and gently stroking it with her thumb. Hearing that it's related to the new illness only adds to her list of worries, together with the fact that Uldren is now refusing to look at her and she can't help but wondering if he is upset with her for perhaps making him say anything about himself. So she shifts a bit and slowly strokes a hand up and down his back in an attempt at comfort.

"Hey... No one has snapped yet, so I'd say we're managing this test fairly well." She whispers softly as she leans in close to him while the doctor is busy writing. "And we're both getting what help we can, so... It'll be alright." She does try to be positive about it and do what he has done to her before; keep reassure that things will be alright. They will be alright. She wraps her arm across his shoulders to give him a careful hug, quietly wishing they were in a place where she could just huddle up with him for comfort.

roll me up and smoke me, love, and we can fly into the night
you take drugs, to let go, and figure it all out on your own

There’s a low murmur of agreement from Uldren as the doctor continues to write, his hand flipping over slightly to squeeze her own. It isn’t like he’s upset with her, more so himself for thinking it was nothing when it apparently was something – and perhaps there’s a shade of a flush to his skin not unlike embarrassment as he nods while she leans into him. “We’ll be alright.” He agrees in a soft whisper, keeping his eyes on the doctor as Ira wraps her arm around his shoulders and he slips his own around her waist, ever the picture of patience.

The doctor finishes the writing, however, and tears off a few scripts as well as the payment plan option, approaching them with a softer apologetic smile as he hands it off to them. Looking at the price of it, if it were all at once it was astronomical, an amount that Uldren didn’t even have the option to pay off in one sitting, not without working overtime and begging people to buy his jewelry. But the payment plan, while likely taking a while to cover, was at least doable, and he exhales a rattly sigh of relief at it with the instructions on how to pay it back, once a month, until the sum is complete.

Of course, the fine print certainly adds some safety for the company paying for it, though, but it isn’t like Uldren’s the type to not pay it back. Not unless he died or something, which, hopefully not. Either way, Uldren signs it, and when he looks back up at the doctor, he tells them the place to go to get the prescriptions, and makes sure that they have the slips of paper in hand before bidding them goodbye and good luck.

Uldren

ira

If there's anything she can relate to, it is thinking and hoping things aren't as bad, only having to face that they indeed are bad and there is no judgement what so ever towards Uldren from her for it. She keeps her arm hugged around his shoulders to be there as much of a support for him as he is has been for her and even though her heart sinks a bit when she reads the papers over his shoulder, she doesn't seem very surprised at the cost. Being very used to having to handle medical bills.

It is the constant back and forth story of her life. Working a ton over the year only to have most savings drain away over the season instead of her being able to get out of her father's apartment already.

She gives the doctor a quiet thanks and leaves with Uldren. Once outside the clinic, she gives him a nudge with her elbow. "We survived that relationship test. Can mark this down as the oddest date I've been on." She says with a small smile in an attempt to lighten the mood a bit. Turning towards him, she takes the scarf and gently but quickly wraps it around his neck, before giving it a careful and almost playful tug to keep him close.

"You know I'm gonna help pay off my part, right? And you're not stopping me. Not going to allow you to to take all this upon yourself, if that's what you're thinking." She says as she leans in closer and there is a hint of a stern tone to her voice, but her dark eyes holds a warmer look to them as they search for his green and a soft smile is still on her lips. "We're gonna get through all this together."