Intermission - Taking care of him.

Alice was, admittedly, fairly nervous. Talking to Luke Allen, one of the richest men in the world, the employer of both Oliver and Diana, and someone who held even more magical power than her boyfriend was just weird. However, Oliver’s condition had her on the verge of panicking, so she didn’t hesitate to call him.

“Oliver? Sick from using magic?” Mr. Allen asked over the phone. “What happened?”

“We’re not sure. He says he was… practicing,” Alice told him.

“I see. His symptoms?”

“He’s weak, dizzy, sore all over, a bit delirious, high fever… Still has an appetite, though.”

Mr. Allen let out a heavy sigh of relief. “Oh, good. Then it’s all normal.”

“Normal?”

“Yes. He probably overextended himself, but some good rest and good meals should have him back on his feet in a day or two. Think of magical energy as another fluid running through the body, another form of energy. Spend it recklessly and the body suffers side effects, not unlike heavy exercise without drinking water. Well, perhaps a little more serious than that. Make sure he doesn’t use magic in the next few days. When he’s feeling better, tell him we’ll move our alchemy session for next week, okay? Other than that, you can treat it like a regular cold. Have him drink plenty of water. Would you mind if I send some fruit?”

“Um… No, please do. Thank you.”

“If something out of the ordinary happens, please don’t hesitate to call me. If his symptoms haven’t diminished tomorrow I’ll send a doctor to see him.”

“I… Very well. Thank you for your time, sir.”

“Don’t mention it. Thank you for calling, Ms. Knight.”

Alice hung up and let out a heavy sigh. It was a good thing that the man was clear and to the point. Maybe a habit born from always being busy. She could learn from that.

“He says we can treat it like a regular cold,” Alice told Noelle. “He says Oliver should be fine in a couple of days if he rests, eats and doesn’t use magic until he gets better.”

Noelle smiled. “Thank goodness. I almost started crying when I saw him on the couch… Thank you for staying cool.”

Alice chuckled. “I almost had a heart attack, too. I hope I don’t get nightmares about it.”

“But you know… I really believed he’d never get sick,” Noelle said, gently stroking Oliver’s head. He had his eyes closed and was breathing softly, but he grimaced every time he moved.

Alice nodded. “At most he got a few headaches, but yeah, I thought the same.”

Noelle smiled wryly. “In some romance shows, there are these scenes when one of the main characters is sick and the love interest comes to take care of them. I used to think it would be fun if that happened, but now that I see him like this… I feel stupid for thinking that.”

Alice laughed. “What, you’re telling me you wouldn’t like it if Oliver took care of you if you had a cold?”

“...No, I think I would,” Noelle admitted with a giggle.

A while later, Isabelle came back up with a bowl of soup and a bowl of porridge.

“Sorry we made you cook on your own,” Noelle told their friend.

“Hey, he’ll be happier if it’s you who stay with him. Cake, get off the bed or hot soup can fall on you. Actually, you probably haven’t eaten yet either, huh?”

“And yet she hasn’t complained,” Alice noted. “She’s staying right by her dad’s side.”

“...I’ll bring you your bowl up here,” Isabelle said.

Cake meowed with her tail waggling. Isabelle went back down after leaving the food on Oliver’s desk.

“Oliver, time to eat,” Noelle told him, gently stroking his cheek. “Let’s get you up.”

If it was helping him sit up, Noelle could do it on her own. Oliver leaned back on the backboard of the bed. He was shivering.

“Ugh, this sucks…” he moaned.

“I bet,” Alice said, sitting down on the bed with the bowl in her hand. She tried the soup and noticed that it wasn’t boiling hot, but at just the right temperature to eat immediately. Isabelle must’ve let it cool a bit.

“...”

She noticed Noelle staring at her, though. At her AND the bowl of soup. Oliver could read their mind and they all could mostly read his mind, too, but the girls couldn’t read each other’s minds. This time, however, Alice didn’t have to.

“I’ll feed him the soup, you can feed him the porridge,” Alice said.

“Deal.”

The two girls giggled and shook their heads, feeling silly. And yet… Yeah, it did feel nice getting the chance to take care of Oliver.

“Come on. Open wide,” Alice told him.

His eyes were unfocused and tired, but he did as told without complaint or comment. The latter was a bit of a shame because Alice thought his delirious comments were kind of funny. She couldn’t wait for him to get better to tell him the things he had said.

Isabelle came back with a bowl of food for Cake and set it on the floor. The cat jumped on it.

“So, have you told the others yet?” she asked.

“Should we?” Noelle asked. “They’re all busy today. Maybe we should tell them later?”

“Yeah, I was thinking the same,” Isabelle said. “Mom is with Diana and Maria. If we tell them they might feel like they have to rush.”

“I just talked to Oliver’s boss,” Alice said. “He says he’ll be fine if he rests. We don’t need to alarm anyone. Let’s wait a bit more and send them a text later.”

“...How was the movie?” Oliver asked after swallowing some soup.

Alice smiled. “It was good.”

“It was… fine,” Noelle said.

“It was disappointing,” Isabelle said, arms crossed and pouting.

Oliver scowled at Alice. “Why you lie to me?”

“I didn’t! It was fine! These two just have unrealistic expectations.”

“Come on, Alice! The previous movie was so good! This one being ‘just fine’ is even more disappointing than if it had been bad,” Isabelle said.

“I’m with Isabelle on this one,” Noelle said.

“Well, I liked it okay? Suck to be you two.”

Oliver chuckled. “Hey… Thanks for being friends with my sister. You’re the best thing that has ever happened to her. She knows it but is too shy to say it.”

Alice and Noelle looked at each other, grinned then turned to look at Isabelle, who was blushing madly.

“See, he’s always been one to talk nonsense when he’s sick. Ever since he was a kid, he…”

“We love you, too, Isabelle,” Alice told her, grinning teasingly.

“Alright, he’s your boyfriend and I already did my part as his sister. He’s in your hands now. Bye!”

Isabelle left the room, leaving the door open. Meanwhile, Alice and Noelle laughed while Oliver continued having his soup.

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