Chapter 157: Chapter 157 – Getting Sick
It was the worst. His body trembled uncontrollably, scared. If there was something that scared him the most in this world, that was getting sick.
"No…" His voice became so weak that it lost its usual tone. "Hell no."
The last memory of being unable to move freely and bound to that machine filled with cables flashed in his mind. He was scared. Scared that the freedom he regained would be gone in just a month.
Naturally, his mind knew that it was probably just exhaustion and cold. But the traumatic experience was still traumatic. He couldn't help but think of the worst.
"Damn…" He tried to push his body again. This time, he managed to sit down and operate his smartwatch, bringing up a contact list. "I need help… I can't stay alone like this, or it will only get worse."
There were only so many that he could contact, and he wasn't particularly close enough to them to ask for help. In this situation, he could only count on one person. It was embarrassing, but he didn't think he would survive alone. His mind was in disarray, and he always thought of the worst, even now.
Pressing a familiar name that he always kept in contact with, even when he moved away from his apartment, the screen changed into a call.
Soon, the face of a cheerful girl with short brown hair appeared.
[Video Call started]
"Morni– What happened? Why are you crying, Max?"
As soon as she saw his state, she began to raise her voice worriedly.
'Crying?' He thought, running his hand over his face. He didn't realize it himself, but apparently, he cried out of fear. 'Hahaha, how uncool.'
A chuckle escaped his lips.
"There is nothing wrong." He replied with a hoarse voice, "I just got sick and can't even move. Sorry, Nina, but…"
"Ah, say no more! Get in your bed again, and I will go there! Don't move, okay? Uuh, your complexion looks really bad."
It could be seen on the screen that the girl began to run around her room to change her clothes. Soon, she returned with a different appearance; a neat and cute girl appeared.
"Should I bring you breakfast also? It will take a while, but…"
"Yeah." Max nodded at her, "Thank you."
"Hnn, no need to mention it! I will be there in a few minutes!"
The screen disappeared.
Following her advice, Max returned to bed quietly. At times like this, he relieved his experience since he was in this world. Streaming was fun, and he quite enjoyed it.
Putting his arm above his eyes, he tried not to think about anything. Because of that, he drifted to sleep without him noticing it.
***
Nina arrived at Max's apartment just a few minutes after the call ended. She brought a hot meal that could energize a sick person with her and various medicines.
Before she scanned him using an application to know his sickness, she couldn't be sure what kind of medicine he needed, so she brought them all.
The security near the entrance recognized her. When she asked them whether it was possible to borrow the key to Max's place, they gave it to her after some questioning.
"Hahaha, take care of your boyfriend." One of the middle-aged security guards who had stopped Max from parkouring in the past laughed.
"B-Boyfriend?" Nina got flustered. It wasn't rare for them to get mistaken as a couple, but lately, she was always embarrassed when someone called them that.
She quickly resolved the misunderstanding and went to his room on the sixth floor. She used the keycard from the guard to open the door slowly.
"Max?" She called out to her friend, but there was no reply.
Entering, she closed the door and went to the bedroom, where he was last seen in the video call, after putting the meal on the table.
There, she saw him falling asleep once again. The trace of tears on his cheek had dried out, but his expression wasn't that good. And he was apparently having a nightmare.
"Ugh… No… No. I… don't want… alone…"
Nina immediately put her belongings down and approached him. She climbed up the bed and stroked his hair. It felt soft, probably because he took care of himself a lot.
"It's okay, Max. I am here."
Most probably feeling her touch, his breathing stabilized, and he wasn't throwing around anymore. New tears trickled down from his eyes. She immediately wiped them out with a handkerchief.
She was confused as to why he acted like this, but she also understood. He was always alone, even before she met him. The only person talking to him was her and Chef Rush, her father.
"You're not alone anymore, don't you? There are many friends playing games with you now. I also began playing games and enjoyed it."
At first, she was worried that his streaming didn't work out. But that was an unfounded one. He managed to charm many people and make them stay to watch him. His content wasn't so unique, but it was still different from many streamers, especially his movement called parkour.
"Though you also made many girls fall in love… Well, I won't lose, though. The secret leader of your female fans will always stay by your side. Fufufu." A playful giggle escaped her lips as she backed away. "Still, you're burning up. Let's fix you real quick."
Operating her smartwatch, she opened a health scan application and pushed the cold metal against his forehead. The signal spread by the smartwatch scanned Max's body and got all the data needed to know what was wrong.
After a few seconds, the result showed up.
[37 degrees Celsius. Cause: exhaustion. Treatment: Drink a D-Grade nutritional supplement and cold medicine.]
"Ah, you're too exhausted. As expected, someone should look after you all the time. This is why dad always calls you in the morning to make sure you eat something healthy."
Grumbling, Nina took the medicine she brought from her bag. She also found a C-Grade nutritional supplement on the table near the bed and decided to make him drink it when he woke up. This would work better than the D-Grade one.
For now… she let him sleep while she sat next to him, reading a novel she had taken a liking to lately. It was a romance novel.
Taking another look at Max, she whispered quietly.
"You've worked hard. That's why I love you."