You Give me Fever

Sgt. Younger had suggested that we should get together before he left town on vacation, and I told him to let me know when he was free.  Following up on his suggestions like this was not one of Sgt. Younger's strong suits.  I didn't hear from him.

Three days later (Saturday), I had what I have to assume was the plague.  I could barely stay awake for more than a couple of hours at a time, and I had a raging fever.  I could eat, but I could barely breathe or talk.  I can't recall a time when I'd felt so sick.  So much for Sgt. Younger keeping his germs to himself.  So much for my cavalier "who cares about germs!" attitude. 

Yet, I called him Sunday evening to wish him a good trip.  No answer: I left a voicemail.  I acted like I felt fine.  I'd done a shot of cough medicine before the call, and my voice even sounded pretty normal.  Why I wanted to keep my illness a secret from Patient Zero, I have no idea.  I'm sure it couldn't be that I wanted to seem carefree and need-free.  I've always side-eyed girls who act helpless at the sign of a sniffle.  "Bring me orange juice!  I need medicine!  Snuggle me!"  Okay, if I had felt like actually taking a shower that weekend, I may have accepted a snuggle.

He texted me Monday afternoon, and said he was in the airport on a layover, halfway home.  I assured him that a day spent in airports was probably better than a day at work.  Not that I'd know, I was still holding down my couch at home.  He told me he'd call me later.  He did not.

I didn't know when to expect him back in Austin, but I assumed it would be Sunday.  He'd said he was going for a week, and most people come back to start the next work week on a Monday, right?  I thought I'd hear from him on Monday.  Because who takes time from their vacation to call someone back home?  Or finds an extra 20 seconds to send a "wish you were here!" text?  Not Sgt. Younger.  But, I heard nothing on Monday.

I heard nothing on Tuesday.

I heard nothing on Wednesday.  W T F?  I decided I would probably just never hear from him again and even though the idea of that was pretty confusing, I chalked it up to me being unwise in the ways of today's dating world/youth.  You invite a gal on your family hometown vacation one week and just stop talking to her by the next, right?  These things happen?  Hmpf.

Thursday night, close to 10 pm, I received a text from the wayward Sgt.: "Hey! I got back early Tuesday and hit the ground running.  I hope we can catch up soon."

Hmmm.  I decided that World's Best Hugs edged out World's Worst Phone/Text Communicator, and I responded:  "Hi! Glad you came back! I'd like to get together soon, too.  Just let me know what works for your schedule!"

No response.  Followed by three days of radio silence.