5 Chapter 5: Cold

"...Seriously?" Haruka-san folded her arms with a frown as she looked down on the old man who lay lifelessly on the living room couch.

It was 6 in the morning. At this time, we usually sit at the dining table for breakfast before our morning activities, but somehow this old man had managed to come out of his room sluggishly with a red face.

"38.2 degrees celsius." I read the number that showed on the thermometer. "It's quite a high fever."

Haruka-san looked at the thermometer with a frown. "Are you kidding me? How did you get a cold in the first place?"

He shifted his gaze while mumbling. "... grinding took more time than I thought..."

"So you stayed up all night playing games? And let me guess, you also turned on your air conditioner wearing only your undies without covering yourself, is that it? Are you an idiot?"

Haruka-san's words kept coming out like a storm, piercing his dignity. His silence had already confirmed his sister's speculation.

Haruka-san touched her head and sighed. "What are you? A kid? How can an old man like you still catch a cold for that reason?"

"S-shut up. *cough* Leave me alone… oof." He replied with a hoarse voice while trying to get up but ended up collapsing again on the couch.

"Don't move around while you are sick," I said as I squeeze the water out of the towel on the basin and place it on his forehead. He breathed heavily as he sweated a lot.

I thought for a moment. "Should I take an absence for today? This fever looks like it won't come down for a while."

"H-huh? W-what are you *cough* t-talking about?" He grabbed the towel on his head while forcing himself to get up again. "I d-don't need you to take care of me. This c-cold is not gonna stop me any- *cough* *cough* *cough*"

"I said stop moving." I tried to fix the towel on the place, but then he grabbed my arm.

"Hey, brat. I don't need you to worry about me." He talked slowly. "Focus on your school first before anything else."

"But-"

He suddenly laughed mockingly. "What is this? Are you perhaps falling for me? If you have the time to play around you should focus on catching up on your studies. Those red marks on your exam paper won't go away you know. Or maybe you just want to skip school because your school life has already become boring?"

"Y-you..." I shook my arm and snapped at him. "Fine! I won't care even if you rot in your filthy room!"

I walked to the table and drank my milk in one go. Then I grabbed our breakfast, a ham sandwich with vegetables, our bags, and Ryuma. "Come one, Ryuma. Let's go. We can't be late for school."

I dragged him to the exit without looking back. I didn't even say goodbye to Haruka-san like I usually do. I just wanted to get away from that bastard as fast as possible.

***

"You know you are going too far," Haruka spoke as she put her hand on her waist and munched her sandwich with another hand. "Do you want to be hated by him that much?"

Masa just made a small laugh while he lay down and held the towel on his forehead. "What are you saying, Haru-chan? You speak like I was doing it on purpose."

"suit yourself." She sighed. "You are very good at making everything complicated."

She placed his sandwich and a glass of water on the table beside him. "I'll try to get home early. At least eat something and drink a lot today. Try to not move too much like he said."

"Yeah, yeah. I know, little sister." He mumbled while lying on his side, backing her.

She looked at her big brother for a while before asking. "Do you ever wonder why people are so kind to you?"

No answer from him.

"Forget it." She sighed and took her belongings. "I'll be leaving now. Stay safe at home."

Not long after, the sound of the front door closing could be heard. He lay down on his back while staring at the ceiling blankly.

"Too kind, huh?" He murmured. "I'm also wondering the same thing."

***

"So my dad got mad at me because I played F*O too much last night. He said that video games are a source of laziness and can make people violent. Isn't he such a boomer?"

"Well, seeing how you were almost late at school with eye bags under your eyes already indicates how right he is, at least for the first one."

"Hyaaa, it can't be helped. Last night there was a special limited event where I could gain some rare items and resources. Of course such an opportunity can't be ignored."

Two boys chatting in the classroom while waiting for the teacher to come. The blonde one named Toshima Len sat sideways leisurely while the black-haired one named Tamegawa Ritsu was reading a book seriously. The two of them sat beside each other at their desks two rows from the back of the classroom.

"Well, at least my sacrifices were worth it. I finally got my favorite character after many attempts thanks to the event rewards and personal budget."

"I see. How much did it cost?"

Let made a forced smile while raising his index and middle fingers. "Two month's worth of saving."

Ritsu glanced at him and sighed. "Idiot."

"Come on man, nothing is free in this world. For the sake of collecting all of my waifus I'm ready to sacrifice anything."

"Suit yourself."

"By the way, you should start to play it too. Most of our classmates already do because it's the most popular gacha game[1] these days."

"No thanks. Unlike some people, I'm busy with my own agenda. Besides, I don't want to be dragged into that hellhole."

"How cold. Is that what you say to your friend?" He sulked and turned to face the person that sat behind him. "What do you think, Ouma? Do you play it too?"

The person in question didn't respond. He stared blankly through the window with a faint look.

"Ouma. Oi, Ouma? Can you hear me?" The blonde waved his hand in front of Ouma and snapped his fingers.

"H-huh? What?" Ouma came to his senses and looked at him. "Sorry, did you say something?"

"Dude, I have been talking since earlier. Why are you staring at the sky so seriously? Did you find a UFO or something."

"Eh? Is that so?" He looked around in a daze before looking embarrassed. "Sorry, I think I was spacing out."

"Really? You are unusually quiet this morning. Are you feeling unwell?"

"I'm okay, really. It just…" He scratched his head while making an awkward smile. "There is something that keeps bugging my mind. Just some useless thought, so it's nothing."

"Oh, what is this? Are you perhaps having perverted thoughts about a girl?" Len moved his body closer as curiosity took him better. "Who is it? Is it from our class? Or- Ouch!"

Before Len could continue Ritsu smack his head with his book.

He whined as he grabbed his head. "Hey! What's your problem?"

"Do you have no shame? Stop thinking that all males are the same as you." Ritsu snorted and continued reading his book."

"Why you-"

"The teacher is coming!" Someone shouted.

Everyone ran to their seats as the teacher stepped into the classroom, ready to start the lecture session.

***

It had been some weeks since I started going to school. I had to work very hard to catch up on the subject material. There were a lot of things that I didn't understand, so I needed to study harder.

Fortunately, my classmates here were kind enough to help me adapt to the school environment. At first, they were interested in us because we were transferred in mid-semester. They swarmed us, asking where we came from, and stuff. Some of them were even kind enough to show me around the school. Yes, it was just me. Ryuma spent his first day in the nurse's office after trying to get out of the class through the window. He was fine, fortunately, but they forced him to stay there just as he jumped from the third floor.

Today we had literature class for our first period. The teacher was enthusiastically lecturing the class in his usual spirit. Many students like this teacher because of his unique style of teaching. He is a funny teacher who likes to share his stories in the middle of a lesson.

I would usually join the laughter with everyone else, but today I didn't have any spirit to. My mind wandered to somewhere else that was not the lesson nor the teacher's story.

The second period was history class. This was quite a difficult subject for me since I was completely unaware of this country's history. I tried to focus on the teacher's lecture and the textbook, but I couldn't.

I brushed my hair with both hands frustratedly. Why couldn't I focus?

Before I knew the break time had already started. Len and Ritsu stood up from their seats.

"Hey, do you want to go to the cafeteria?"

"Sure. I hope they still have yakisoba pan[2] left."

"Great. How about you, Ou-"

I suddenly stood up from my seat, making the chair creak.

Len who asked me the question was startled while raising both of his hands. "Whoah, dude! Calm down. What happened?"

"I..." I gulped. "I gotta go home now."

"Huh? Right now?" He looked at the clock. "It's still the first break. Not even passed noon. Are you sick?"

"Sorry, there is an urgent matter at my house. Please tell the teacher about my absence today."

I packed up my belongings in my backpack. "Ryuma, can you go home by yourself today?"

Ryuma who sat at the desk beside me glanced at me and nodded.

"Good." I walked to the door while pointing at him. "Make sure to go home directly after school. Don't wander around or follow some stranger. And don't eat something weird on the way."

As I said the last sentence, I left the class and ran outside.

***

"...Wow, did you hear that?" Len made a small laugh as he looked at the door where Ouma disappeared. "He talks to him like he is an elementary schooler."

Ryuma couldn't agree more. He also thought that his worries were too childish. He never wandered around while following a stranger, though he couldn't say the same thing about the food.

Ryuma rested his head on his right hand while looking at the window. His desk was at the back corner of the class, so he could see the schoolyard clearly. He saw Ouma walk through the gate and disappear behind the fence wall.

He snorted while looking away. Ouma already looked restless ever since they left the house. If he ended up going back home again he should've just stayed there from the beginning.

Well, it was not like it was his business anyway.

***

"*cough* *cough* ...Sh*t..."

Masa coughed while still lying down on the couch. His body felt hot and weak. His clothes were drenched by his own sweat.

"To think that I would be defeated by a mere cold. Ugh-"

He covered his mouth with his hand like he wanted to vomit, but nothing came out.

He rested his hand on his temple and sighed. "Stupid event. Why did they have to set the time at night?"

What Haru said was not far from reality. He did turn on his air conditioner since the summer night was hot, but he did cover himself. Although the cover had been removed by the time he woke up the next morning. He already was used to sleeping with nothing on his upper half, so there was no helping it.

"Hehe-hehe, at least I already acquired my objective." He giggled creepily while raising his smartphone, which he had fortunately brought with him.

"I finally ascended my three five stars without real money spent. Hahaha, unlike those rich kids who only know how to throw money, I raised them with my own efforts. Let's see how their skills look in action."

He tried to open the main menu before a notification appeared.

"F*ck, low battery?" He groaned while touching his head. "I need to get my charge from my room."

He tried to get up again but ended up collapsing on the couch.

"Ugh. I don't have enough energy to move..."

He breathed heavily and chuckled. "Screw it, if I can't walk, I can at least crawl!"

It took him some time to gather the resolve to drop himself on the floor.

"Ouch! *cough* My back!" He groaned while touching his back. "But this is nothing! I need to *pant* get my charge to *pant* see their skills!"

He moved his hands and legs and started crawling. He knew he looked like a cockroach at this point, but he didn't care. He didn't want to waste his time doing nothing on the couch. He could at least raise their level cap to unlock their special illustrations.

It took him a great effort to drag his body on the floor. He managed to move, but just for a little while. He stopped right beside the kitchen, his room was only four steps away from his current spot.

"*pant* This is bad. I think *pant* I'm running out of *pant* HP from the fall." He panted heavily, stuck on the floor. He couldn't move a single muscle.

He paused for a moment before giggling again. "Hehehe, I guess I should rest a little to collect some strength."

Knowing that there was nothing he could do, he closed his eyes while embracing the cold floor. Lying down on the hard surface may feel uncomfortable, but he didn't have any other options.

***

I ran to the apartment in a hurry. There was a time where I almost collided with a stranger on the way or tripped my legs, but I didn't slow down my running.

You may think that I was exaggerating, but I couldn't help it. I couldn't calm down, even if I tried. Every time I tried to focus on something, the memories from that time kept replaying in my mind.

It was just a mere cold. Just a damn mere cold. I was sure that stupid old man would be fine by himself.

Yet, I couldn't remove my worries.

I arrived in front of the apartment door panting and tired. Sweat dripped from my chin as I brushed it. I couldn't just make a racket inside as he might be asleep in the living room.

I tried to cool myself. I bet he would just mock me for looking for reasons to skip school again. Just thinking about his smug face already made me want to punch him.

This was stupid. Maybe I should go back. There must still be some time left before the next classes start.

But...

I sighed. "Since I already got here, I should check him for a moment."

I took the key from my pocket. Haruka-san gave it to me the first day I got here. Ryuma also had one, though he rarely used it since we always went out together.

I opened the door slowly. It was quiet. The curtains to the glass door leading to the balcony were open, so the interior was quite luminous. The corridor that connected to the main room was placed in the middle. On the left side, there were three rooms. Starting from the nearest one was Haruka-san's room, the old man's room, and lastly mine and Ryuma's room. On the right side, there was a bathroom and changing room, while next to it there was an open kitchen that merged with the living room.

I walked through the corridor, trying to check the couch to see if he was still resting on them before abruptly stopping.

Besides the kitchen, the old man lay prone on the floor, breathing heavily with a red face. Cold sweat drenched his clothes, making them stick to his body.

I felt like my heart stopped beating as I dropped my bag on the floor.

No.

This was not right.

This must be a terrible joke.

Why?

Why is this happening again?

***

It has already been a few days since mother's coughing worsened. Every time she does the chores she always coughs relentlessly. Today was no different.

"Mother, why do you keep coughing? Are you sick?" The five years old me asked her innocently.

"Mother is okay, dear." She covered her mouth as she closed the pot lid. She was making dinner in the kitchen. "How about you go play outside for a while? The dinner will be ready soon."

"But what about you, mother? shouldn't a sick person rest?"

"You don't need to be worried. Mother still needs to wait for the dinner to be cooked. You don't want burnt food for your dinner, right?"

I quickly shook my head and giggled. "Alright mom, I'm off now."

I ran outside the house. There was a small meadow that I found which had a lot of wildflowers. I heard that if you make a charm from this flower then it could make sick people recover quickly. I didn't know how to make a charm, so I made a crown out of it instead. I was sure that a crown with a lot of flowers would make it more effective.

I ran back home. I made sure to not ruin the crown by raising it on my head while moving. I couldn't wait to bring it to my mother.

I opened the front door and lunged in. "Mother! Look what I make! I make a crown from the-"

I abruptly stopped. On the kitchen floor, my mother lay prone with a red face and heavy breath. She looked sweaty all over her body.

It took me a moment before I understood what I had just seen. I didn't realize when I dropped the crown or when I stepped on it.

"M-mother?" I tried to call her, but she didn't answer.

***

Masa woke up with a sore body. He tried to open his eyes which felt heavy. The familiar ceiling of his room was present in his sight. Looks like he made it to his room, yet strangely he didn't remember how.

Fortunately, his body felt better after some rest. He tried to get up, which he finally could do successfully. He was lying on his own bed, with a new towel on his head. It looked like his room was already being taken care of as it had become less messy than before.

He looked at his own clothes. The drenched tank top that he wore before had already been replaced with a dry black t-shirt. It looked like someone deliberately wiped his sweat and changed his clothes without his consent.

He combed his hair on top of his head with his fingers and sighed. He wondered if Haru was already at home and taking care of him. It was still too early for her to get home.

Suddenly he had an awkward feeling. They may be siblings. But having his sister wiped his naked body as his age didn't feel so right.

Right when he was about to stand up, the door opened. Ouma walked inside, bringing a tray of soup and a glass of water.

"You're awake?" He walked closer to his bed and put the tray of food on the table beside him. "It seems your fever's already gone down. You need to eat a lot to get better."

He pulled a chair up beside the bed and sat on it. He then took the soup and scooped it while blowing it until the steam lessened. He then brought it in front of the Masa face. "Come on, open your mouth."

Masa looked at the spoon and Ouma repeatedly with a weird face. "...There is no poison in it, is there?"

Pissed by his words, Ouma forced the spoon in his mouth. The act caught Masa off guard.

"*cough* Hot! *cough*" He stuck out his tongue as some of the soup dropped on his shirt and pants. "Hey, what is your problem? Is this how you treat a sick person?"

"Huh, you seem healthy enough to make a joke."

"When did I make a joke? Are you messing with me or something?"

"No, I was just annoyed that there is someone who doesn't know how to thank a person who is taking care of him."

He glanced at the soup and his own clothes. "You did all of this?"

Ouma rolled his eyes. "Who else?"

Masa was silent for a moment before murmuring. "That's a relief."

"What?"

"Nothing."

Realized his worry was all for nothing, he relaxed by stretching his arms upward while yawning. He then scratched his bottom ignorantly. "Heh, I didn't know you were willing enough to take care of me. Didn't you previously say that you won't care even if I rotted in my filthy room?"

Ouma shifted his gaze to the window. "Safety comes first. I can't leave someone sick on their own, even if that person is you."

Masa whistled while leaning on the head bed. "Wow, what a saintly thing to say. You should work at the cathedral when you grow up. I'm sure there will be a lot of people that cry for your kindness."

Ouma didn't answer back.

Seeing that the other party didn't buy his joke, he scratched his head awkwardly. "You know, this is just a common cold. You don't need to make a fuss out of it. It will be gone later without you kno-"

"Mother..." Ouma cut his words while still averted his gaze. "Mother also used to say the same things."

Hearing the person he talked about, he became speechless. This was probably the first time the kid talked about his mother with him ever since they moved here.

"She always said that she was ok, even though she became tired easily, even though her coughing became worse each day, until finally-"

He gulped before continuing.

"Until finally, she collapsed from overworking."

There was a pause. Neither he nor the kid said anything for a while before he continued.

"She was preparing dinner when that happened. I just came home from playing when I found her lying on the floor, breathing heavily with a high fever."

"I tried to call her, shook her body, crying, anything. But she didn't answer."

"It took awhile for someone to come. Since then she couldn't move from her bed anymore."

"She spent her life as a sick person who couldn't do anything. She couldn't go outside the house, she couldn't cook my favorite meals, she couldn't have any freedom as she had before."

"Yet despite all of that, she still smiled at me. She said that everything would be alright, that she was happy that it was not me that got sick."

He placed the soup on the table and wiped his eyes.

"You may've never raised me nor have you ever exist in my childhood life, but please..." He looked directly into his eyes. There was a pain passed through his blue eyes. "I already lost one of my parents. Please don't make me lose another one."

Ouma got up and went out of the room, leaving the old man alone with his own thoughts.

"'Another one', huh?" Time passed before Masa closed his eyes with his hand and chuckled. "Can I still be called one at this point?"

His chuckle became harder before he finally hit the wall beside him with his fist.

"Dammit." He cursed softly. His fist felt stung, but he didn't flinch a little. "Stupid brat. Why did he have to make that face?"

***

[1] Gacha games are video games that implement the gacha mechanic. Similar to loot boxes in video games, gacha games induce players to spend in-game currency to receive a random virtual item. Most of these games are free-to-play mobile games, where the gacha serves as an incentive to spend real-world money

[2] Yakisoba Pan is a noodle that stuffed into a Japanese hot dog bun.