Christmas Sickness

Poor #1 often spends Christmas time ill. I think it was three years in a row that he got a stomach virus and spent Christmas Eve vomiting all night. Really puts a damper on the magic of the night. So he never looks forward to Christmas very much; he is a bit of an Eeyore and expects things to go poorly so that he isn't disappointed when they do.
This year was worse than ever. We left for WV on Thursday the 20th. We stopped first at my parents' house and spent the night. #1 awoke in the morning saying his throat and head hurt, and he definitely had an inflamed lymph node. We let him take it easy and indulged him with sad faces and lots of Tylenol. Saturday we headed up to the in-laws' and things got no better. He could be distracted for a while, but the head always hurt, and he was definitely dragging. He couldn't stand light or noise- definitely a problem at Christmas celebrations!
Finally Monday morning, Christmas Eve day, Hubby took him to the doctor at an express place. He was diagnosed with some sort of infection, placed on Prednisone and an antibiotic. Still he did not improve. The headaches NEVER went away.
By the time we returned home the 27th, I was concerned, but thought that perhaps all of the travel and out-of-routine time had not allowed his body to heal even with medication, so I put him on bed rest and watched him. Sunday he dragged, but I thought might be improving. Monday, New Year's Eve, I caught him holding his head, but when he saw, me he perked up. He had a party to go to that night, and I think he was determined NOT to miss it!
New Year's Day he awoke with blisters in his throat and as miserable as he could be- or so I thought. I told him we would be going to the doctor the next day. The next day, nearly two weeks after the start of all of this!- he awoke with a horrible rash on his face and arms. We headed over to the doc expecting to be told that he had a reaction to the antibiotic. Instead, they did a blood test and told us it is mononucleosis. We left the office being told the rash was normal and just wait it out.
That night the poor thing came downstairs and his whole head was swollen, even his ears! The rash was spreading and he was the most miserable I had seen him yet. I gave him some Prednisone I had left from a poison ivy incident with #2, two Benadryl, and sent him off to bed in the spare room so I could listen for him through the night.
Yesterday I called and got the definite results; it is mono. I told them I wanted to get him back in to the doc since the swelling and rash were worse. We went this morning. The good news is he is no longer contagious. I had been afraid that he would have to miss his first day of college on Monday, but thankfully, as long as he doesn't kiss anyone, he will be ok to go. The bad part is that this has been such a severe case that he will probably be tired for a month or more. I have not told him that, but said it may take a couple of weeks. I am not an Eeyore!

So while we are sitting at the doctor's office having been told that it is probably mono, the nurse practitioner leaves for a few minutes. "So have you been kissing the girlfriend?" I ask.
Great fear seizes his eyes as they grow round in his swollen head. He pauses, half nods, and then shakily whispers, "Yeah."
"You'll need to tell her," I say. That was it. The NP comes back in and continues the exam, then he leaves again.
"I thought you would be mad," #1 says. Then the NP is back again.

Out in the van I ask why he thought I would be mad that he got sick. "Not that I got sick, but that it is mono," he replied. I assured him that it is just a virus and I am not upset. Glad to know I still hold some fear over him though.