Chapter One Hundred and Fifteen: Falling Ill

“Buzz, buzz.” The vibration of his phone by his ear made Tsukasa Aoki groan softly as he opened his eyes. He had hoped to sleep in today after yesterday’s intense training session at the mixed martial arts gym.

His body felt weak and limp as he reached for his phone and glanced at the messages.

“Boss, want to hang out on Saturday?” Tsukasa read the message from Tora Maeda and turned over wearily in bed. His fingers tapped out a reply: “Let’s talk this afternoon. I want to sleep a little longer.”

“Boss... it’s already afternoon,” Tora’s reply came swiftly. Tsukasa’s eyes widened in shock as he blinked toward the screen—it was 1:30 p.m.

How did I sleep this long? Skye probably hasn’t eaten breakfast or lunch yet.

The thought jolted him to sit up, but as soon as he exerted himself, dizziness swept over him. His hand supporting him on the bed weakened, and he collapsed back onto the mattress.

No... this isn’t right.

He raised his hand to his forehead, feeling an intense heat radiating from both his palm and brow.

A fever?

He coughed once, his throat dry and sore. After a moment of rest, he propped himself against the headboard, grabbing his phone to send a message to Tora: “Not feeling well. I won’t be going out today.”

Tora quickly responded: “Got it. Boss, rest well.”

Setting the phone on the desk beside the bed, Tsukasa weakly stood, dressed with shaky steps, and walked out of his room.

He knocked gently on Skye’s door, his voice hoarse. “Skye, have you eaten?”

“No,” came the indifferent reply, as if she were engrossed in a game.

Tsukasa coughed twice. “Shall we order takeout today?”

“Huh?” Skye’s voice sounded puzzled, followed by the clatter of her removing her headphones. “What?”

His eyelids drooped, his head leaning against the cool wall. “I mean, can we order delivery today?”

“Whatever,” Skye said, frowning slightly as she looked toward the door. Tsukasa seemed strange today—not only had he slept until afternoon, but now he wanted to order takeout...

Could it be that after two weeks of keeping up this pace, he was finally reaching his limit? Her face paled suddenly, but she shook her head firmly: No, Tsukasa wasn’t that kind of person.

She set her headphones on the desk, hesitated for a moment, then stood up.

“What do you want to eat?” Tsukasa sat against the wall by Skye’s door, mustering the energy to scroll through the takeout options on his phone.

Footsteps approached softly.

With a creak, Skye opened the door and saw Tsukasa sitting by the doorway, his cheeks flushed, exhaustion etched deeply on his face.

“Tsukasa?” She frowned, concern tightening her features. “What’s wrong?”

Tsukasa forced a bright smile and rose. “Nothing much, just a little tired. I want to rest today.”

“Come here!” Skye refused to buy it. Her brow furrowed, her delicate face tense as she reached out her hand.

Tsukasa blinked, smiling wryly. “Really, I’m fine.”

“Hurry up!” Skye pressed firmly, her lips pursed seriously. She stepped in front of him, grabbed his collar, making him bend down, while her other hand reached for his cheek.

Embarrassed, Tsukasa turned his head away. Despite living twice over, being cared for by Skye like a little guardian still made him feel awkward.

“A fever?” Skye’s frown deepened.

Seeing her expression, Tsukasa chuckled softly, placing his hand on her small head. “Don’t frown; it’ll make wrinkles. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of myself.”

“Idiot!” Skye swatted his hand away in frustration. “If you could really take care of yourself, you’d do it properly! Only now, when you’re this sick, do you think about it? If that’s how you’re going to be, then forget about taking care of me.”

Tsukasa smiled helplessly. “Maybe I caught a cold after training yesterday. The sweat got chilled by the wind. It’s okay—medicine and plenty of hot water will fix it. My body is strong.”

Watching Skye’s pout deepen in sulking, he thought how utterly adorable she looked with her cheeks puffed out. “Alright, alright! What do you want to eat? I’ll order takeout.”

“Idiot! Go lie down now.” Skye grabbed the hem of his shirt and tugged him inside.

Tsukasa didn’t resist and let her guide him back to his room.

Skye’s gentle pull caused him to plop down on the bed.

“I’ve already slept all day. I’m really okay!” Tsukasa waved his hands toward her intense gaze.

But Skye was serious. Calling his name with weight: “Tsukasa.”

“Huh?” He looked at her youthful face, matured by a solemn expression. For a moment, she didn’t look like a sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl.

“Lie down.” Skye’s gaze was sharp and unwavering—as if warning him that if he disobeyed, she might get angry.

Not wanting to upset her further, Tsukasa obediently lay back. The moment his head touched the pillow, the little strength he’d mustered vanished. His mind swam, eyelids heavy and barely able to stay open.

Skye grabbed a blanket, covering him carefully. Seeing how he struggled to keep his eyes open, her tense expression softened into one of worry. She sighed deeply.

“Stay still. Don’t move.” She warned gently before leaving the room.

Tsukasa smiled wryly as he heard her footsteps descending the stairs. “What a failure of a big brother I am.”

His eyes slowly closed, the bed soft and inviting, pulling him into a hazy half-sleep.

Faintly, an icy little hand brushed his cheek. Straining to open his eyes, he barely made out Skye’s silver hair spilling over her shoulders as she leaned over him, her face full of concern.

She was so close that Tsukasa caught a faint scent of her.

“Take your medicine and rest,” Skye said softly, carefully supporting his neck. A few strands of her silver hair drifted onto his face with her movement.

Tsukasa struggled to sit up, meeting her gaze filled with both reproach and tenderness. He gave a weary smile. “Sorry, this time I think I’m really quite sick.”

Skye sighed long and hard, her fingers pressing on his feverish cheek as her brows knitted tightly. “You...”

What to do? He really did have a high fever!

She brought out some fever medicine, cautiously held it to his lips, and helped him swallow it with warm water. Once he drank it all, she gently helped him lie back down.

Without pause, she fetched a basin of warm water, soaked a towel, and wrung it out.

Tsukasa’s eyes were barely open. The sound of running water echoed softly as he murmured, lips moving in reassurance: “It’s okay... just sleep, and you’ll be fine.”

Skye wiped his burning face with the damp towel, her cute face grown serious and mature with worry. “Idiot, stop pushing yourself.”

“Sleep now.” Her gentle voice and tender touch eased the tension in his brow. Time and again, she placed the cool towel on his forehead, watching as he drifted into a deep sleep.

Finally, exhausted and sweating, Skye quietly sat by his bedside, gazing at his face for a long while without a word.