The Parasite
Parasites come in all shapes and sizes, but one thing’s clear—they don’t belong inside us
“Hey Lynette, you busy?”
“Nahhh, just finished with my last patient. What’s up?”
“I was thinking of dropping by your clinic. Would that be okay?” Dakota asked.
“Of course! Are you alright, or do you have some juicy gossip for me?” Lynette chuckled.
Dakota rolled her eyes, “Ugh, I wish! Unfortunately, I’m not feeling too great.”
“Oh! What’s wro—”
“I’ll explain when I get there”, Dakota hung up.
~~~~~
“Dr. Verlice is waiting in her office for you”, the receptionist, Becky, greeted Dakota with a smile as she walked in.
“Okay, thanks Becky.”
Dakota knocked on Lynette’s door but didn’t wait for a response before entering.
“Oh my God, Dakota! You look awful!”
“Hello to you too.”
“Sorry, hi! But seriously, what happened to you?!”
“That’s what I’m hoping to find out. I’ve been feeling so nauseous for weeks now, throwing up at least once a day.”
“Could be food poisoning, but go on, what other symptoms?”
“I feel bloated all the time, and there’s this constant, dull stomach pain.”
“Hmmm…how’s your appetite?”
“Ravenous! I’m eating like a beast, only to throw up afterwards, so hard you’d think I’m turning into a werewolf!”
“That’s quite the exaggeration, but I’ll let it slide”, Lynette stifled a giggle. “I’m guessing you’re fatigued too, right?”
“Yeah, that too!”
“Do you remember eating anything unusual prior to all of these?”
“I can barely remember what I ate for breakfast”, Dakota grinned sheepishly.
“You’re useless, you know that?”
Dakota gasped in mock offense, “Do you talk to all of your patients that way?”
Lynette, lost in thought, barely registered what Dakota asked, “Nausea, bloating, fatigue…yeah, sounds like a classic case of tapeworm or some other foodborne parasite. We’ll start with a blood test and a stool sample.”
“Oh, wait! Come to think of it, I had sushi about a month or two ago. Do you think it came from that?”
“Possibly, but we’ll know more after we test your stool sample”, Lynette handed her a sample container. “And my nurse will draw some blood. It’ll take a few days for the results. In the meantime, I’ll prescribe some medication to help manage the symptoms.”
“You are the best! Thank you!”
~~~~~
Dakota’s phone pinged:
Yo, where u at? Ur results are in. Drop by the clinic asap
Lynette got a swift reply:
Still at work. Be there in an hour or 2
~~~~~
“Okay, hit me with it. I’ve got a parasite inside of me, don’t I?”
Lynette’s face was unreadable, “Yes, you do, and—”
“I’ll stop you right there before you get all doctor-y on me. Just give me the medicine to get rid of it.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to know—”
“Positive. Just tell me what I need to take.”
“Oookayyy, if you say so. I’ll be right back.”
Lynette returned with two strips of pills and a glass of water. She handed them to Dakota. “This is a single dose—take it now”, she said, pointing to the first strip with a single pill.
Dakota swallowed the pill and examined the second strip, which had four pills, “When do I take these?”
“Tomorrow, same time. Take all four at once. You’ll start to feel it working within a few hours. Expect some abdominal discomfort as your body expels the parasite, and possibly some pain too.”
“Thanks, Lynette. I’ll text you tomorrow to let you know how it went.”
~~~~~
Dakota called in sick the next day, anticipating the many toilet trips she’d need, to fully expel the parasite.
Three hours after taking the pills, she felt mild pain in her lower abdomen that quickly grew more intense.
She rushed to the toilet, only to find she’d gotten her period. The timing couldn’t have been worse.
Sitting on the toilet, she waited, unable to tell if her pain was from period cramps or a bowel movement—she didn’t want any accidents.
As the minutes passed, the pain escalated, and soon she was doubled over. When she lifted her head slowly from her knees, she noticed the toilet bowl was filled with blood.
Her period had never been this heavy, this quickly before. She looked closer. Are those clots? She’s never had clots this large before.
Despite the blinding pain, Dakota cleaned up and texted Lynette:
I’m in terrible pain. Period cramps. My flow is wayyy heavier than usual and there are huge clots. Could the parasite medication have interfered with my period?
Lynette replied an hour later:
Oh good, the parasite is out. Sorry ur in pain, tho. I’ll drop by after work.
Dakota was confused:
No, I’ve not pooped yet. I just got my period.
Lynette clarified:
Yes and that’s why I said the parasite is out.
Dakota was stunned:
Wdym the parasite is out? What kinda parasite gets expelled thru period?!
Lynette replied:
An embryo, duhhhh!
__________________________________________
Thank you so much for reading this! 🥰 If you liked my writing, please leave a comment, click the heart and subscribe for free!
You might enjoy this as well:
About the Creator
Dharrsheena Raja Segarran
🥇 Vocal Creator of the Year (2023) 🏆
❤️ Erythrophile ❤️
✨️ Glitteringly Savage ✨️
🖤 Elegantly Disturbed Mind 🖤
Instagram 🤍 Facebook 🤍 Threads
Reader insights
Outstanding
Excellent work. Looking forward to reading more!
Top insights
Excellent storytelling
Original narrative & well developed characters
Compelling and original writing
Creative use of language & vocab
On-point and relevant
Writing reflected the title & theme
Easy to read and follow
Well-structured & engaging content
Heartfelt and relatable
The story invoked strong personal emotions
Masterful proofreading
Zero grammar & spelling mistakes
Expert insights and opinions
Arguments were carefully researched and presented
Eye opening
Niche topic & fresh perspectives
Keep reading
More stories from Dharrsheena Raja Segarran and writers in Horror and other communities.
Comments (139)
WELL DONE. GREAT ENDING. HUGS TAKE CARE! CHEERS
I’m finally getting around to reading this! Masterful twist! 😆 Sometimes it’s difficult for me to read things that have a medical angle because I’ll often try to make the diagnosis before it comes out lol I think the only thing that could connect this with “aliens” is the idea that something is inhabiting a body. 😆 This would be a great Twilight Zone episode! Speaking of watching movies, I think I’m going to try to organize a “vocal movie night.” I know of a website, almost like zoom, that allows someone to “host” and screen share. I figure it would be a cool way for some of us that have met on vocal to connect and talk about visual arts and story telling! I’m going to look at my schedule and see when I could do this but I’d love chat with you in real time if you can make it 😁 Maybe the first movie will be Aliens in honor of you never watching it lol
I knew she was pregnant when she said she's vomiting for weeks! Ha! But true, babies are parasites, they feed on their mother even after they are out, so... though I'm curious if she was sad or happy to get rid of it without even really knwoing what she got rid off when she made the decision....
Dayuuumm! That twist is a heavy hitter! The fact that pregnancy and tape worms cause the same symptoms is disturbing. Yet another reason I don't wanna have kids! I wonder how Dakota feels losing the embryo. Short and punchy - well done!!
Excellent
Outstanding
Highly appreciated 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
Ohh how much I loved this story! 😁
If I had a dollar for every time a parent described their child as a parasite, well, you know how it ends. Well done!
I was fully invested in Dakota’s struggle with the parasite, only for it to turn out to be something completely different.
Nice one. The realization of the parasite's nature came when she overridden the doctor... The confirmation was a growing delight. Creepy and amazing :-)
The story takes a twist, revealing that the "parasite" Dakota had was not a tapeworm, but an embryo.
Ending never expected. Your write up was captivating to read.
Oh! I really enjoyed reading your sharing! Good job my friend! Thank you so much.Health and happiness to you 💜🌹
But not sure
Oh yikes! Didn't see that coming. Still not a fan of sushi.
Love it! It's a shame she didn't let you finish speaking in the office. She would have known what sort of parasite it was! Excellent writing.
Wow! What a twist! For a second I thought it was going to be an alien kind of parasite... XD
that was outstanding, loved it so much!
excellent work
An incredibly gripping story with a chilling atmosphere—your storytelling kept me hooked till the end. Amazing work!
Wasn't expecting that ending! Was hoping it was a parasite, not an embryo. Great storytelling.
I was kind of sad When we found out that the parasite was a baby. As usual very well written. Great work!
That was a great read, it's funny in the end, suspenseful and gripping throughout, and engaging too, worth the read timr
I really wasn’t expecting that, loved that tho! 👀