Sweep Her Off of Her Feet

It's been about a week since I accepted the dragons offer to run around trying to steal loot from suicidal patients and I have seen a wide variety of people in that time and done what I could to help them, but today is what I have been waiting for. Today I am going to see patient 109, also known as Centi. I told her that I would come back to visit her, but little does she know that I plan on bringing her out with me. I couldn't sleep last night because of the nervous excitement that built up at the thought of going to see Centi. I am also really excited to see Chest and New Chest. When I wake up, I go to Gabriel's office, and he points me down the right hallway.

"This is it. This is her room." I come to a stop before room 109.

For some reason I wait outside the entrance for several minutes. I am so excited, but I can't get myself to take the step and get in the door. Ultimately, the idea of seeing Chest again pushes me into action. I step into the entrance and walk in.

"Ahem," Centi clears her throat, "I am the final boss. You will not make it out of here alive. Not unless you kill me... or escape. But of course neither of those things could ever happen! Well, you could probably kill me if you wanted, I wouldn't mind too much, but you would never esc- Eh? You?"

I laugh at the funny face Centi makes whenever she realizes that I am the one who entered her cave.

"What's funny?" She demands. "I wasn't monologuing. I just knew that you had come in so I was mocking you... and I didn't show a will to live. None at all. I would ne-"

I made my move. I nod to Chest, "Give us a minute friend." I say, before I sweep Centi off her feet and hold her in my arms, looking her deep into the eyes.

"You look really cute when you get defensive about how suicidal you are."

She blushes and yells, "Put me down you demented man!"

I lean into her ear and whisper, "I'll give you a reason to live."

She blushes even harder than before and hits my chest, "Let go of me."

"If you insist." I drop her. She falls toward the ground screaming and I quickly catch her, "So you didn't want me to let you go after all."

At this point, her face couldn't get much redder, "What is your problem?"

"That you aren't with me. I came here to fix that problem."

"I don't want to go with you!"

"Oh." I set her down on her feet, "I'll be going then."

For some reason she gets bashful and averts her eyes, "You are leaving already?"

"I really only had the one thing in mind for coming here. I am really glad that you seem to be doing better."

"But couldn't you at least catch up some with Chest and New Chest? They have missed you."

"Ah. Good idea."

I take her suggestion and take a few minutes to talk to chest, and then I go to see New Chest and that is when I see it.

"You have unlocked five more chests?! Woah. This treatment really is working for you."

I hear confusion from the other room, "I haven't unlocked anymo-"

Centi peeks in the room and sees all the new adjoining rooms and her face goes even redder than it was before.

"Of course! I unlocked all of those rooms right after you left, and they did NOT suddenly appear whenever some idiot picked me up against my will. I think it was some malfunction, because they appeared the moment you left."

"Oh, great! What are their names?"

"Uh... The one in the next room is Chesty, then comes New Chesty, Chester, New Chester, and... Jimbo."

"Jimbo?"

"I didn't name him, that's just what it is!" She snaps.

"Well, it is great that you have so many friends now. I have some adventuring stuff to take care of, so I'll be going." I walk to the entrance.

"Wait," Centi says and I pause right before the entrance, "You... you are going to come visit me again, aren't you?"

"I seem to make you uncomfortable, and I don't want to counteract the doc's treatment. It will be for the best that I don't come back."

"Huh? No! You aren't counteracting the treatment. You are the treatment."

"Wha?"

"Nothing!" She chirps, "Just make sure that you come back and visit me. I might not like you, but it it nice talking to a friendly human every now and then."

"If you say so." I exit the room and end up in Gabriel's office.

The dragon speaks into my mind.

"Are you okay? You don't look so well."

"I'm fine, just a little sad."

"Don't worry, things are better than you know. I want you to visit patient 109 again tomorrow."

"But she clearly doesn't like me."

"Clearly? Clear to who? All that's clear is that you fell for cheap lies."

"What do you mean?"

"You'll see. Why don't you take the rest of the day off today? You can hop right back into it tomorrow. We don't have any critical patients, so don't worry."

I take Gabriel up on his offer and retire to my quarters right after I finish talking to him. I go and lay down on my bed so that I can think, and because the cave room I am in has a good echo, I decide to think aloud.

"You'll see. He said that I'll see. What am I going to see? She doesn't seem to like me, but she told me to come back. She didn't even give me my dagger back. Why would she keep it? Gah. Cave do you have any ideas? No? That's fine. I guess I'll see if I can figure this all out tomorrow."

I turn the situation in my head a hundred different ways, but none of them seem to make sense. I go into a fitful sleep, and when I wake up, I find myself on the floor in the middle of the room.

"I have a nice soft bed, right over there and I had to come keep the floor company?" I stand up and sigh. "Time to go solve this Centi mystery."