"Towels, get the towels!" Tyler ushers us inside, hollering from someplace deep within his lungs. "Hurry up, Seto's shaking!"

I still don't comprehend why the situation around the brunet's well-being is such a cautionary trait amongst everyone else, but I digress. I stand towards the side, a towel, given by a rushing Tyler, had been draped over my shoulders while a cup of piping hot coffee rests in my hands. I'm shivering slightly, considering I'm still damp and there's no heater in Adam's house, but not as much as Seto.

He's sat there on the couch, his body quaking with vigor. He looks to be deathly ill, it's quite uncanny, but what disease could allude to this type of reaction? Is he allergic to water or something? I snicker at that thought as it's followed by images of him swimming within the ocean as a sort of mermaid.

The car ride turned out to be a fluke, as nearly all the roads held some sort of debris on them. Branches, glass, scrapped wood from houses; it seemed like the storm had grown stronger from our time sitting idly in the car. I parked it towards the side, leaving it who knows where.

"Highway's closed and there are blockades all over the streets," I pointed out while having signed. "I think we'll need to walk."

"Both of us don't know where we're going," Seto deadpanned, but then hastily shook his head once lightning had struck once more over the horizon. "Well, I'm sure Adam's house must be up the street."

Adam's house wasn't up the street, in fact. It was a good ten minute walk from where we had parked Seto's car. Alas, within the confusion of the storm, ten minutes turned to thirty and water turned to frightened tears as branches fell among us. At some point, Seto's umbrella came undone as well, flying away due to the howling winds. We still made it back to Adam's house nonetheless. We would've been stuck there for the remainder of the night if we hadn't done anything, possibly until the next evening as well, due to flooding.

"Here, I got you some spare clothes," Adam appears next to me. He passes me a hoodie and joggers, as well as some underwear. "Before you grimace, that underwear is new and clean."

"Thanks, Adam," I nod my head slightly in gratitude. I hand him my cup of coffee, to which he places on the nearby coffee table, and points me towards the staircase. I head upstairs towards the bathroom to change, making sure to lock the door behind me.

It's nearly pitch black in here, asides from the candle Jason had lit when he went upstairs to use the bathroom. It smells of cherries, as well as cinnamon. I move the candle slightly, letting the light bounce under my face. I stare at my half-lit reflection for a while.

I look awfully tired, as if I hadn't slept for days. My hair is less gravity defying, much to my own disappointment. I spot a couple pimples on my temples and jaw as well and grimace. I don't know why I'm worrying about my appearance out of the blue, but oddly, I feel obligated to.

I shake my head and attempt to get the water out of my hair and clothes. To no avail, it seems, that I am drenched. I hastily take off my soaking clothes and place them into the bathtub. I figured I'd leave them there and retrieve it later once they're more dry. Maybe I'd ask Adam for a hanger.

Speaking of Adam, I change into his spare clothes. The hoodie is a bit large, considering that Adam is sightly bigger than me, but the joggers fit just fine despite being baggy at the legs. The underwear, as weird as it is, fits fine too. I really hope Adam was telling the truth about this, because the thought of sharing the same unpackaged, used underwear as him, whether clean or not, is repulsive. I exit the bathroom and head downstairs.

Seto's asleep with a stack of blankets securely wrapped around him. I notice a damp cloth on his forehead as well, then the apparent grimace on his face. Ty looks as if he's about to cry.

"You need to calm down," I overhear Adam coo to Ty, "he's just running a fever."

"He's sick, Adam!" Ty snaps back, shaking his head. "What if this is it for him?"

Adam pauses and wipes his eyes. For a guy who seems happy-go-lucky, it's frightening to see him possessed with such uncertainty. After hesitating, he speaks with the voice of a ghost, "He'll be fine, I promise."

"I don't get what's going on, it's just a fever, right?" I interrupt. "I mean, it shouldn't be my business to ask, but I feel like I should know what's going on."

With glossy eyes, Ty looks back at me with a frown, "He'll tell you when he's ready."

It's ominous, really, the way he says it. His voice is all shaky, like a stereo on full blast. I haven't seen Ty like this before, with tears streaming down his face like an unanticipated waterfall and a hefty pinch of sadness. I soften my gaze in unrequited empathy. It's self-destructive, really.

It's not just Adam and Ty who are physically breaking down in a whirlwind of tears, it's everyone else in the room as well. Whether it would be choked sobs, or quiet sniffles, I'm able to hear it all. I feel as if though I should be crying, too, but I'm just left to ponder. What's truly going on?

I've heard they've all knew each other since childhood, or approximately childhood. Growing up in Australia, with a different set of friends, I wouldn't be able to understand such terrors they might be experiencing within their particular friend group. After all, I've only been introduced to all of them once Ty and I became roommates. I shouldn't feel alienated, they welcomed me in with open arms, after all.

It's the first time I've seen Seto at this gathering (or, in other words, show up). Either that, or perhaps it's the first time I've actually paid attention to who decided to show up. As mentioned earlier, I'm usually hiding in my own world, or wandering outdoors, only seeing flashes of faces here and there as I'm entering and exiting. Maybe Seto had always came and I was just too oblivious to notice. I digress, it doesn't matter much now, I'm acquainted to him.

I cautiously stroll away from the group and into the kitchen, peering out the front door. The fog has dissipated slightly, but left an ominous haze within the neighborhood. The skies have been growing darker, as if midnight weren't enough. The homogenous mixture of rain and hail has begun to transform into rain and snow, which has been quite the turn of events. The ground has begun to be covered in a layer of white as well. It's not much, since the rain makes attempts to wash it out, but it will be soon. Hopefully my car won't be buried.

It's close to silent within the house—a much different mood from the regular miens of feathery laughter. I sigh to himself, pulling the sleeves of Adam's hoodie to cover my hands. My feet shift in discomfort, stacking atop each other as a lacking attempts to keep warm. The frigid air has begun to settle in.

I'm still adapting to the sight of snow. Back in Australia, in the part of the country where I lived, it never snowed. It sends ripples of nostalgia through me—Shelby would've loved to see snow in person. She had gone to London for vacation during Christmas break around our Freshman year in high school and came back disappointed.

"You went to London for Christ's sake! You shouldn't be sad about it!" I recalled myself scolding her.

"I didn't see any snow," she replied with a muttered tone. "It rained and was very gloomy. I hated it."

I laugh at the memory, wiping a tear from my eye. Christmas is coming up soon; I'm hoping I'll be able to book a plane ticket to Australia. I want to visit my family and somehow bring back a pile of snow for Shelby. The very least, maybe instant snow. I can't wait for Autumn to end. Despite the powder clashing against the surface of the earth, winter isn't expected to arrive until another month passes. Curse global warming.

I've had enough of my homesickness, 'Shelby-sickness' I also like to call it, so I head back to the commons room. Everyone has seemed to calm down a bit, as now Adam joined Kyle, Jason, Ian, Quentin, Jerome, and Tyler on the ground for a game of Uno within the candlelight. Ty is still sitting by Seto's side, this time grasping tightly onto his hand. I go sit next to him on the extra chair Adam had once sat on.

"How is he?" I whisper, nudging Ty slightly on his arm.

"He's a little better, he stopped shivering at least," he smiles a bit. "I'm surprised you went out for him."

I stir for a moment, scrunching up my nose in defense, "Why is that surprising?"

"I assumed you disliked him," he merely shrugs, slowly placing down Seto's hand.

"I'm not an asshole, Ty," I roll my eyes in heavy exaggeration.

"That's debatable," he snickers in return. "But thank you, I really appreciate the effort. I'm sure he does, too."

My glance shifts back towards Seto again. He looks more at peace, with a soft expression on his face in place of the usual sorrow. His lips are cracked and pale, but slightly open with drool dribbling out from the corner of his mouth. The cloth on his forehead has yet to be removed, but his hair is mainly dried. The pillow underneath him is soaking. It's nice to see him sleeping, as he always looks exhausted or fatigued.

"Do you think he hates me?" I abruptly question, breaking the silence between us.

Ty looks at me with a somewhat shocked expression, then laughs, "That's a stupid question. He doesn't think much of you, but he enjoys your company."

I remain unresponsive and decide to take another gander at his expression. The sight of him breaking down is still fresh in my mind. For such a fragile body, his grip was strong as he hugged me tightly, sobbing into my chest. Does he truly think no one cares about him?

It's selfish for me to say, but I'm beginning to grow tired of watching him sleep. Isn't it considered rude to watch someone while they're dozing off? I'd be terrified myself if I had known someone was watching my every move while asleep. Ty couldn't look more intrigued, however. Either that he's interested, or perhaps his concern is eating at his thoughts.

"Uno!" Kyle screeches. A symphony of groans are followed after his apparent victory, followed by the shuffle of cards. Surprisingly, the commotion doesn't wake Seto up. I guess he's a heavy sleeper; possibly too exhausted to open his eyes.

"Brice, Ty," I hear Quentin's voice call out, "you should join us with playing Uno. Kyle keeps winning and it's unfair."

I awkwardly turn around in my seat and conduct my best grin, "I'd love to."

Ty shifts uncomfortably, as if he hesitates to leave Seto alone. I nudge him again, to which he unravels and accepts the game. We both join the group within the candlelight. Uno seems simple enough—I've never played it before, but I assume the concept should be similar to goldfish.

Despite my apparent laughter and light-hearted attitude, my mind still wanders. There are too many thoughts clouding my mind, but I try to enjoy my time with them, anyway. Part of me wishes Seto was here on the ground, too; perhaps he'll beat Kyle in this stupid card game. He seems like the type of enjoy these sort of things. Regardless, there's always next time. After all, it's not like he's leaving us anytime soon.