Every time I’m woken up for vitals checks, I look at Twitter to see if the hashtag is still trending. And every time I’m greeted with more people talking about how #quaranteen sounds like a vacation, more teenagers who want to go to #quaranteen with Oliver. And, weirdly, some people wonder who the second #quaranteen is.

Wait, hold up, aren’t there two #quaranteens?

Are the #quaranteens related?

Is the other #quaranteen as cute as Oliver?

I read the posts like I’m reading about someone else’s life. How did this become my life?

I look to see if Kelsey tweets that she’s not coming after all, that her parents changed their minds. She doesn’t.

After the 7:00 a.m. check, I stay awake, listening to Oliver’s snoring. Then I hear him wake up, yawn, and unlock his phone. I’m sure he’s checking in on Kelsey World.

Now he’s on the phone talking to his mom, saying he’ll see her soon. I’m suddenly nervous about meeting her. I know I’m probably not her favorite person, seeing as how it’s my fault her son is in quarantine.

I can’t wait to see my own mom, who should be in Miami tomorrow night. I know she got down here as soon as she could, but I still wish it could have been sooner.

I should feel nervous about meeting Kelsey too, but I don’t. I mostly just feel … dread. Maybe I should invite Becca and Jenna. I text them: Good news! We can have visitors.

Becca writes back: My mom would never let me!

Jenna: We have school, quaranteen! Sorry. Hopefully we’ll raise more money for you soon!

Nurses come and go, and Joey stops by too. It’s nice to see him, and I feel a little bad for what I said yesterday about him picking on Oliver. I don’t know why dudes think it’s funny to pick on other dudes. He’s talking about basketball again and, even though I don’t really care that much about sports, I try to listen to him. It’s a nice distraction from having to think about Oliver. And Kelsey. I really don’t want to think about Kelsey.

Joey suddenly switches topics from free throws. “So who’s the lucky someone that’s going to visit you?”

“Ha-ha,” I say, though it makes me happy he thinks I have a lucky someone.

“Come on. Oliver is inviting a girl. Surely there must be someone you want to invite.” He kind of smirks when he says Oliver’s name, which bugs me. But he’s also thinking about the people in my life.

“It’s only twenty-six more days,” I say. “I think everyone can wait to see me.”

“Well, if I went to high school with you, I’d already be on a plane on my way down here.”

I giggle nervously. He made me giggle.

“Okay, duty calls!” Joey announces. He grins at me, salutes, and marches to Oliver’s side of the room.

I’m still thinking about what he said as he pulls the curtain open, and just as I’m wondering if Oliver heard it too, I see Oliver on his bed, giving Joey a dirty look. Oliver sees me looking at him, and he rearranges his face into a smile, but it looks more like a snarl.

“Hey, buddy!” Joey says.

I haven’t known Oliver long, but I know he’s not a “buddy” kind of guy. I almost tell Joey that, but he pulls the curtain closed and I’m alone again, listening to two guys who clearly don’t like each other talk. Could I be the reason they don’t like each other? No, that seems like a silly thought … right?

I hop on Twitter again. Still no canceled flights from Kelsey. And more people who want to know about the second #quaranteen. Who want to know about me.

Joey finishes up with Oliver and walks out, removes his suit, and walks off in one direction. From the other direction, a woman approaches with Dr. Demarko. The doctor helps the woman climb into a hazmat suit, and I notice she has Oliver’s blue-green eyes. I can’t hear what they’re saying, but I don’t need to be a professional lip reader to see that she’s saying, “My baby!”

Oliver’s mom practically runs through the antechamber, and then she looks around the room, eyes wild. “You!” She’s looking at me, her voice shaking with rage. I sink back into my bed as she approaches.

I’m just about to push the CALL button on my bed when Oliver rips open the curtain. “MOM!” he yells.

She tears her eyes away from me and scoops up Oliver in a tight hug. “My baby!”

Oliver hugs her, then pats her back like she’s the child and he’s the parent. I can see where he inherited his anxiety from. But I’m surprised at how calm he is with her, how quickly he calms her down. He pulls away from the hug but still holds on to her arms. “Mom, stress is not good for prevention in spreading diseases.”

Nice one, Oliver, I think.

“I’m sorry, Oliver. You have no idea how hard this has been on me. You wouldn’t even be here if it weren’t for her!” She spins on her heel to face me. I’m flat as a pancake on my bed.

“Why did you do it?” she asks, her voice shaking. “Why would you do something so reckless? Why would you endanger my baby like that?”

She glares at me, and I see that Oliver is peering over her shoulder, waiting for an answer too.

“I’m sorry,” I say in a small voice. “I wasn’t thinking.”

“Well, that much is clear!” his mom huffs. “That still doesn’t explain why you did it. I know you’re not Oliver’s girlfriend.” She sneers when she says it, and I feel disgusting and contagious and diseased. Like a nobody, a nothing, like pond scum. Like gum stuck on the bottom of a shoe.

“Why don’t you think she’s my girlfriend?” Oliver crosses his arms over his chest.

“Why would she be your girlfriend?” Oliver’s mom looks me up and down. I can tell she doesn’t like what she sees.

“I wish she were my girlfriend, Mom. She’s amazing. And strong, and smart, and brave. And she stands up for what’s right.”

None of us says anything for a moment, their blue-green eyes staring at me.

“Mom, meet Flora. Flora, meet my mom, Patty.”

Patty’s face softens a bit, and she says quietly, “I’m sorry. I’m still not sure what is going on, but I hope you feel better soon. I need to catch up with my son now.” She pulls the curtain shut, and I’m alone again, replaying everything in my head that Oliver just said.