This is part of a series on Grace Heights Health and Rehabilitation — which had over 40 residents and 35 staff members test positive for COVID.

MORGANTON, NORTH CAROLINA: Other people my age in this community say it’s fake and that people are trying to make it seem way worse than it actually is. To be honest, I didn't think it was fake. I definitely thought it was real, but I thought some of the positives weren't real and the government was just dragging it out to be more than what it really was. Working as a receptionist at Grace Heights, I saw how many people were dying and that made me take it more seriously. I thought this is actually really, really, really serious. But, I didn't think COVID was going to be as huge as it is and I really did not think I was gonna get it.

Other people my age in this community say it’s fake and that people are trying to make it seem way worse than it actually is.

I’m really cautious and didn't hang out with a lot of people so I didn't think it would get to me. I went to the beach with a group of friends. We didn't go to Myrtle because we knew it was really big and horrible there. We went to Holden. We stayed at our beach house and went to the beach a little bit. We did go to Myrtle one night to go eat, but I don't think I got it from there. We were pretty cautious when we were at the beach, at least I was. But, they still went out and didn’t think they would get it. I think they kind of knew that there was a chance they could get it, but did not take it seriously enough. I saw videos. Some people were wearing masks and some were not. I think one of my best friends brought it to me because I had to work and they went to parties at Myrtle Beach. That's how I think I got it. 

I just didn’t feel right. This is a weird sickness. I've never felt this way before. That first day was really bad. I felt horrible. Two days before that night, I was over at a friend's house and my throat was a little sore and I just didn't feel too good. That Saturday I came to work, my throat hurt. It wasn't anything too bad so I didn't think much of it. So Sunday I woke up and I was supposed to go to work and I just felt really, really bad, really bad. I was driving and It felt like I was going to pass out. When I got to work, they called my mom and told her to take me to get tested. I got tested on June 21st and that's the day they said I was positive. 

This is a weird sickness. I've never felt this way before.

A few of my friends started getting sick around the same time. There was a big group of us that got it. I think five or six. We’re all 17 and 18. We all thought, “This is insane!” It really surprised us all! My best friend who got it actually works with me too. She's probably at my house more than she's at home. It's like a second home for her and she's there all the time. We're just really close so it gets hard for us not to be together. So, I got it and she got it, we just quarantined together at our house for 14 days. 

By the second day I didn't even feel that bad anymore. The only symptoms I really had were a sore throat for a little bit. I didn't have any taste or any smell. I also had a headache. That was it!  Thankfully, nobody else in my family got it.  I tested negative about a week or two after my 14-day quarantine.

Having had it definitely made me take it a lot more seriously. I was in the same position as many kids out there, I didn't think that going to the beach would've done anything, but clearly, it did. All of us are way more cautious than we were. When people ask us about it, I just say you should be more cautious about it and take it seriously! I am scared of the possibility of getting it again, just a little bit.

I didn't think that going to the beach would've done anything, but clearly, it did.