44

KATHERINE THRONE

The feel of sun rays touching my skin was what made me come awake, and my eyes fluttered open. Immediately they did, an overwhelming headache ravaged my senses. I felt my forehead and the beads of sweat that lined it stained the back of my hand—I was having a fever, and my temperature was high.

I observed my environment now and found out that I was in Alexander's bedroom again and then instantly, the memories of last night came flooding back. How I had flimsily thrown myself at Alexander, and kissed him. A pang of guilt and disgust at myself gripped my heart, I had let down my guard and broken down my walls. I threw away my self–respect and shamelessly kissed him. All because I was intoxicated.

I'm never taking alcohol again. And I mean it this time.

Just then, the door opened and Alexander came into the room. I was startled by his sudden presence and I also felt an awkward wave engulf me as he came in. I knew my cheeks were stained red with embarrassment and I wished the ground would open up and suck me into its abyss. I couldn't even look him in the eye, I averted my gaze.

"Hey Katherine, how was your night? I hope you slept well." Alexander inquired as he stepped into the room. His skin glistened with sweat and I could still see him panting a bit, it seemed like he just got back from his morning run.

"I'm so sorry for what happened last night Alex. I don't know what came over me. Please. Don't take it the wrong way, I just—"

"There's no need for apologizing Katherine," Alex said, chipping in and halting my rambling, and then started coming into the room,

"But what I did yesterday was very brash and uncouth of me. I was under the influence of alcohol and I didn't know what I was doing. I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable or annoyed you. In fact, I'm never taking alcohol ever again in my life. Please, forgive me for doing—" He was already in front of my bed now and he shushed me by putting his index finger over my lips. I swallowed down the rest of my words. Partly because he was preventing me from speaking, but mostly because the feel of his finger against my mouth made me unlock more memories of last night.

Despite the kiss not lasting for long, I was able to savor every moment of it. It was the most incredible feeling ever, as much as I'd hate to admit, the feel of his lips against mine felt natural and delightful. It ignited an untouched feeling in my nerves, a feeling that only Alex knew how to bring out in his own ways.

Shit, am I really thinking this right now?

"I said it's fine Katherine, I'm not mad at you at all. Would it make you feel better if I say that I truly enjoyed the kiss?" Alex said to me as he took away his finger. His statement digested and settled in my chest and I pondered upon it. He liked the kiss, did he actually like my drunken–impulse induced kiss?

My cheeks threatened to flush red at that, but I suppressed it with all my might—I was supposed to be remorseful, not basking in the delight of his kiss.

"Alex, thank you for taking care of me last night. Thank you for listening to me rant at the bar. Thank you for everything. But I need to get goin—" I couldn't complete my statement as the moment I had gotten on my feet to leave, my knees were weak and gave out immediately. However, Alexander quickly caught me in his arms before I could roughly land on the bed.

I was in his arms again. Somehow, I am never able to get away from this boy no matter how hard I try. Why is that? In his arms, I'm facing upwards and directly gazing at him. My focus centers on his eyes, and he does the same.

The connection was instant and our gazes locked, I tried to tear myself apart for my own good but it seemed like I had lost control over myself and was submerged in the pool of his mesmerizing gaze. It was hypnotic, staring at the horizon of his blue eyes and there it was again, the ignition of that burning fire.

But apparently, that wasn't the only thing that burnt.

"Katherine, you're running a temperature. Are you sick? That must be why you fell." He tore away from the connection and focused concernedly on my welfare. He gently lowered me onto the bed and I sat upright.

I did actually feel feverish, but I deemed it as an after-effect of the alcohol. I felt my forehead and I really was warm.

"I don't know, I do feel feverish now. But I was fine yesterday before I slept off." I answered.

"Come on, freshen up and I'll take you to a hospital." He offered and I shook my hands in decline.

"No, you don't need to worry. If my parents or Katie hear that I'm in the hospital, then they'll be deeply worried and I don't want that especially considering the fact that it's not too long that I got out of it." I opposed it. "It's just a fever, some Tylenol will fix it. I'll sleep afterwards and everything will be fine by the time I wake up."

Alexander's hands clipped to his waist and he stared for lingering moments without saying a word. I knew he was about to protest that I oblige and follow him to the hospital, and I was ready to decline the offer to my last breath.

"Okay, if you say so." To my surprise, he dropped the topic. Good for both of us, I wasn't going to be heading to any hospital. "I'll go to the drug store and get you some Tylenol then. There's one nearby, so I'll be back soon." He added

"Thank you so much," I replied and he gave a small smile before he turned around and left.

Fifteen minutes later, I heard the front door open and Alexander was back. Fifteen minutes was all the fever needed before it kicked into full force; I was shivering and sweating at the same time. I had to submerge myself under the duvet because of the chilling cold despite the numerous beads of sweat that formed on my forehead.

The door to the bedroom opened and he entered with a small branded store bag containing the medication. He dropped it on the bedside table.

"Hey, I'm back." He sat beside me and slightly pulled down the duvet from my face and felt my temperature. A concerned yet displeased frown creased his lips. "Are you sure you don't want me to take you to the hospital, you're worse than how you were before I left."

"I'm fine, Alex. Don't worry yourself." I said, but everything about me currently betrayed that statement.

"How can you tell me not to worry and say you're fine? You can't even speak properly." He objected.

"I'll be fine after I take the Tylenol. Please, don't worry yourself about taking me to a hospital." I remained firm on my decision.

He sighed deeply in surrender, "Fine. But if it gets worse than this, I'm not listening to you. I'm taking you to the hospital." He stated and I managed a small nod.

"Alright, I'll go prepare breakfast for you so you can take the medication." He said to me and then he got up from the bed and went out of the bedroom.

Even amidst my sickness, shivering and sweating underneath the duvet, I still wasn't able to get the thoughts of last night out of my head.

-:-

ALEXANDER WALTERS

I decided to prepare something light for Katherine, eggs, and toast. I wanted to add coffee but I wondered if it was suitable for a sick person, so I would be going with milk instead. Milk is healthy.

However, I saw how bad Katherine looked, her situation seemed very serious and I knew it wasn't a regular fever. Something was wrong somewhere, or something bad must've caused it. Granted, I'll respect her not seeking medical attention at a hospital, but that doesn't mean I can't bring medical attention to her.

While the bread was in the toaster machine, I decided to call my parents' personal doctor, Doctor Steve. When Katherine is fast asleep after eating and taking her medication, then he can come over and run some tests on her to ascertain what's wrong. Even if she wakes up in the process, there's nothing she can do to stop it at that point.

I picked up my phone to call Doctor Steve and that's when I started to perceive the crisp smell of something burning. I wondered what it was for a short moment, but then I recalled! My eyes widened when I remembered that the eggs were still on the burner.

"Fuck!" I cussed and ran back into the kitchen to attend to the burning food. I reached the stove and saw that it was practically burnt, blackening, and stuck to the pan.

Well, I guess I'll have to make a new batch.

-:-

"So doctor, what's the problem with her?" I asked after he had done a series of things on her: checked her blood pressure, used the stethoscope on her heart, multiple uses of the thermometer, and other things I couldn't quite identify.

I was able to make new eggs and salvage the breakfast. I took it to Katherine and she was able to eat a little and take the medication before she passed out in a deep sleep. Very deep one, she hasn't even as much as blinked her eyes open despite the doctor's tests.

"Well, she's stressed." He replied as he took off his spectacles and placed them in his pockets. "Her stress levels are high and that's what made her to break down. Please ensure she gets some rest or prolonging her stress could cause something more serious in the future."

I looked at sleeping Katherine on the bed. Oh, I'm going to make sure she gets enough rest and she's definitely not leaving this place until she gets better. I'll make sure of that. I know if she leaves this place, she'll be back to her never-ending studying and that's the cause of this in the first place. She needs a break, and I'll make sure she gets one.

"Alright doctor, thank you very much."