Since Zoey was a child, she loved watching basketball games. Basketball is a great way of exercise and a great way to have fun with friends and possibly make some new ones.
Today, Shawn, Jack and Zoey were going to a basketball game with Cory to help him cheer him up.
Zoey had also forgiven Shawn about last week. Forgiving others is a very subjective and complicated process. Everyone has their own set of morals and ethics, which means that everyone has a different view of what can be forgiven and what it means to forgive. It took a long time but she finally forgave him.
"Come on, Jack!" Shawn called as he and Zoey walked into the living room. "Cory's gonna be here, like..." The doorbell buzzed. "Now. Get your coat!"
Zoey walked over to the door, opened it to reveal Topanga on the other side.
"Topanga?" Zoey said in confusion. "What are you doing here?"
"There's something I want to talk to Shawn about." Topanga informed as she walked into the apartment.
"Well, actually, we were just on or way out." Shawn told her.
Topanga sighed. "I just want to make sure you and I are okay."
Shawn hesitated for a moment and nodded. "Yeah, yeah, we're okay. Why?"
"Well, I know since Cory and I broke up, things have been kind of weird between us. I care about being your friend." Topanga explained. Jack then walked into the living his, his face covered with small red dots. "Jack! What happened to your face?"
Jack scoffed. "Apparently she doesn't care about being my friend."
"We're on our way to a basketball game. Now is not the time to be making fun of Jack's face." Shawn told Topanga.
"No, he's not going anywhere." Topanga declared. She walked over to Jack and examined the red dots that were all over Jack's face. "Those look like Chickenpox. Do they itch?"
"No, not really." Jack replied. He then lifted his arm to reveal several red blotches on his arm. "However, these are a little irritating."
"All right, you've got it. If you don't take care of these now, you could get really sick." Topanga responded.
Jack's eyes widened. "I don't want to die."
Zoey rolled her eyes. "Nobody's dying."
"We are going to the game." Shawn insisted. The doorbell buzzed. "That's Cory."
Topanga immedaitely rushed over to the door and locked it. "No! Cory! Don't come in here!
"Okay. Topanga, what are you doing in there?" Cory asked as he began to try to open the door.
"She's trying to keep us from going to see the Sixers!" Shawn explained.
"Cory, they have Chickenpox! Run away, or you could catch them!" Topanga informed.
Shawn huffed. "Save your breath, Topanga. He is not going to listen to you."
When Shawn unlocked the door and opened it, Cory was nowhere to be seen as the elevator doors closed.
"I can't believe how whipped his is." Zoey said with a chuckle.
Shawn rolled his eyes and turned to Topanga. "And what do you mean, they have Chickenpox?"
"I don't want to die." Jack said as he continued to scratch his arm.
"You're not going to die. I'm going to stay here and take care of the three of you." Topanga assured, closing the door. She stepped forward and pointed between Shawn and Zoey. "Jack had full-blown Chickenpox, and you two have half-blown Chickenpox."
Shawn huffed. "That is so ridiculous. If I have Chickenpox, where are my dots?"
Topanga lifted up his shirt to reveal several red dots. "Should I connect them for you?"
Zoey rolled up her sleeves to see that she too had red dots covering her body. She lifted up her shirt slightly and saw red blotches across her stomach.
"Oh, man, you're both dyin' worse than I am." Jack complained.
Shawn shrugged his shoulders. "I feel fine. So I have dots."
"It's because it hasn't hit us yet, babe." Zoey told her boyfriend.
Topanga nodded in agreement. "Zoey's right. When I had it, I had dots, a fever, and I couldn't stand on my own two feet."
"At any time during this sickness, did you ever get quiet?" Shawn wondered.
Topanga gave him a pointed look. "I'll excuse that because I know you're sick."
"I am not sick. I have never felt better." Shawn stated confidently before his face suddenly fell. "Or perhaps I have. Zo, put out your arms."
Zoey put her arms out just in time Shawn fell into them. Her legs then buckled and she felt herself drop back onto the couch, Shawn falling down with her.
••••
The virus had gotten to Zoey and Shawn. The two leaned on the kitchen counter as they watched Topanga on the couch, reading to book to Jack who rested his head on her lap.
Zoey's head was spinning like crazy and her vision was beginning to blur while she was covered in a sheen of sweat. Both her and Shawn were fully covered in red dots and were scratching their bodies like maniacs.
"'And as he looked into her dying eyes and gently cradled her dying head, he knew they would be together again someday'." Topanga read out as she began to cry.
"In heaven?" Jack wondered, his voice breaking.
"Yes." Topanga whimpered, grabbing a tissue and handed it over to Jack.
"Okay, Topanga. It's very nice." Shawn complimented, rubbing his back against the fridge. "My brother, Zoey and I appreciate everything you're doing for us. So the next time we get Chickenpox, we'll give you a call."
"Shawn, we do actually need her help." Zoey told her boyfriend, running her nails up and down her arm.
"Shawn, stop scratching." Topanga demanded.
"Topanga...." Shawn seethed, trying his hardest not to scratch his arms. "I really don't want your help."
Jack lifted his head from Topanga's lap and glared at his brother. "Well, I do, Shawn. Topanga's a good nurse. My fever's down to malaria level. I think I can go back to my village now."
With that, Jack eyes rolled up into his head as he fell back on the couch.
"He's delirious." Topanga said and leaned over him. "Jack, you can't get off this couch, okay?"
Jack nodded. "Okay. I don't care what he says, I want you to stay."
"Jack..." Shawn trailed off.
"Shawn, it's okay." Topanga reassured standing up from the couch. "He doesn't know what he's saying. It's the fever talking."
"That's not right. He doesn't want to be friends with you because you broke up with Cory. That means you were never really friends. No friends. No friends at all." Jack explained before he fell back against the couch, passed out.
Topanga pursed her lips. "Although it seems to be a very perceptive fever, doesn't it?"
••••
The next day, Shawn and Zoey still had the Chickenpox while Jack was all better. The couple were cuddled on cuddled on the couch, a blanket covering them, still covered in faint red dots.
"Hey, guys. Going to the grocery store. You want anything?" Jack asked when he walked into the living room.
Zoey shook her head. "No. Thanks for asking."
"You're welcome." Jack responded. He walked to the door before he turned to face his brother. "Hey, sure you're there's nothing you need? Like maybe to call up a friend and tell her you're sorry."
"I don't know what you're talking about." Shawn said simply.
Jack gave him a pointed look. "You know who I mean. Come on, she took care of us. She was here for a couple of days. Now she hasn't been around. You know the one I mean. Her names rhymes with Noshmanga."
"It's not my fault, Jack. This is what happens when you're friends with a couple and they break up. You're forced to choose sides, and Cory's my best friend." Shawn explained.
Zoey lifted her head from Shawn's chest and looked up at him. "Cory's also my best friend, and I try my hardest to balance between the two of them."
"Yeah. I'm sure she realizes that." Jack said.
Shawn rolled his eyes. "Well, yeah, thanks to you."
"Hey, look, my temperature was, like 112. I didn't know what I was saying." Jack defended himself.
"It's okay. I'm sure she felt uncomfortable, too. She's not coming back." Shawn muttered.
Jack opened the front door to reveal Topanga standing on the other side.
"Yeah, you're probably right." Jack sarcastically responded. He turned to Topanga and gave her a smile. "Hey. There's my favourite nurse."
Jack hugged Topanga before he walked out of the building, leaving Topanga, Shawn and Zoey alone in the apartment.
Topanga sighed. "Look, Shawn. I know you're in a tough situation. Cory's your best friend."
"You know, he used to tell me how wonderful you were. But guys always say great things about their girlfriends until they break up, and that's when the truth comes out. You know, I've waited fifteen years years to find out what he really thinks about you. Do you want to know what he thinks about you now that you're broken up?" Shawn questioned.
"Shawn, I don't want to talk about that." Topanga protested, placing a bag on the kitchen table. "You know, I just came here to tell you that you are n unappreciative little jerk, and if you're so uncomfortable around me that we can't be friends now that I'm not seeing Cory, then maybe we were never really friends at all. And I want you to tell me that to my face."
"Now that you've broken up, he still tells us how wonderful you are." Shawn announced. "He's completely broken-hearted over what he's lost."
"So am I." Topanga agreed.
"I've never seen Cory like this before, Topanga." Zoey admitted with a frown. "He's not the same without you."
Shawn stood up from the couch and sighed. "Cory's my best friend. But I want to tell you to your face that if I knew that you and I weren't friends anymore... it'd break my heart, too."
"You want soup?" Topanga offered, gesturing to the bag on the kitchen counter.
Shawn turned to Zoey and pouted. "Will you feed it to me."
"You know, I will." Zoey responded with a smile.
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PUBLISHED: October 9, 2018
WORDS: 1714