Ashley wiped her brow as she sat in the cafeteria picking at the peppers at the side of her jacket potato. She had really wanted it at the time, but now just the thought of eating caused her stomach to lurch. Blowing her hair from her eyes in an attempt to cool herself down, she shifted again as a fresh wave of sickly heat enveloped her. She tugged at her cardigan, fighting against its stifling embrace before finally removing it.
“What is that?” Tess exclaimed, grasping Ashley’s arm, her eyes fixed on the raw, swollen mark at the crook of her elbow. She had been doing her best to hide the mark, but the tail-end of her fever had caught her off guard. It was no longer isolated to night-time, but came on throughout the day. She imagined—she hoped—it meant it was finally coming to an end, esp
