CHAPTER 19: CHAPTER 19: ENCOUNTER, REUNION (18)

No wonder he was talking nonsense!

"Wait a second!" She opened the car door, threw on a raincoat, and dashed into the night.

It was unclear what time it was in the dead of night; the entire school was quiet, the whole town was without electricity, and candlelight flickered in the far right room on the second floor, which seemed to be a temporary clinic shared by the county hospital and the town health center.

The rain had lessened a great deal.

She ran to the clinic where the doctor and the nurse hadn’t even rested, as they were on a 24-hour duty. Along with them, the soldiers who were still fighting on the riverbank were also tirelessly working round the clock.

"Thank you for your hard work." She picked up the medicine, expressed her gratitude, and returned to the car.

Inside the car, he had his eyes closed, his cheeks unnaturally flushed under the light of the car lamps.

She grabbed a bottle of water and gently tapped his face, "Xiao Xu, Xiao Xu, wake up, it’s time to take your medicine!"

He opened his eyes and looked at her. Because of the fever, his eyes shone as if a layer of water was floating on them, making his already delicate features, enhanced by this gleam, appear almost like a jade sculpture.

She watched, feeling inexplicably anxious, as if the gleam imprinted on her heart, shining brightly and unsettlingly.

It wasn’t until he coughed that she remembered she was supposed to give him his medicine.

"Xiao Xu, there’s no electricity and no hot water, bear with it, and take the medicine with cold water!" She supported his head, made him drink some water, "Come on, open your mouth, time for medicine."

She poured all the pills into his mouth and then helped him swallow them with water. She wasn’t careful and poured too much, making him cough violently, splashing a lot of water on his clothes.

"I’m sorry, I’m sorry..." She busied herself patting his back and wiping his clothes.

When he finally calmed down, he lay back, his gaze falling on her face, the light misty and dreamy. It was as if he was looking at her yet also not looking, muttering something softly.

She didn’t catch what he said, but echoed in a whisper like her mother used to care for her, "It’s alright, it’s alright, the medicine will make it better soon!"

Warm and tender.

As she leaned in close, placing a wet cloth on his forehead to cool him down, she suddenly felt a weight on her shoulder—it was his head resting on her.

"..." What should she do? She stiffened all over.

Ticks of itching at her neck, he burrowed in closer to her, and she suddenly thought of her family’s puppy, Bangbangtang, who also nudged into her embrace whining when feeling distressed.

She immediately softened, stroking his back and his hair like she would for Bangbangtang.

The night quieted down again, and he fell asleep on her shoulder.

This time, what woke Tu Hengsha was the sunlight piercing through the car window and... a sharp scolding by her ear.

"You sleep, just sleep! But why drool all over me?"

With the scolding came a sharp shrug of his shoulder, causing Tu Hengsha, who was in a daze, to bump her chin directly onto his thigh.

She groaned, rubbed her chin, and looked up at him only to see his eyes bright and alert, no trace of his frailty from the night before. She instinctively touched his forehead—it wasn’t hot anymore!

"You’re better now! That’s great!" She also noticed the sunlight outside the window, joyfully exclaiming, "Ah, the rain has stopped! The sun is out!"

He kept a stern face, turning the mirror towards her, "Look at yourself, dirty as a mud monkey! And leaning on me!"

She looked in the mirror, indeed a mess with her hair unkempt and her face and strands smeared with mud, yet she still felt wronged.

"I might look like a mud monkey, true, but you yourself..."

"And drooling so much?" He tugged at his T-shirt, pointing at the wet spot from last night to show her.

Tu Hengsha thought, he was indeed cuter when he was sick...