20k READS?!?

WHAAAAAT?!?!

*wipes tear of joy away*

I can die happy now.

Enjoy this new chappy!

I personally love stories/chapters where one person gets sick and the other has to take care of him/her :)

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~Jessie's P.O.V.~

I walked through the automatic glass doors of Saber Cavern, the sun peaking just above the horizon, leaving the sky with a blooming red-orange shade. Sting was on my back, his muscular arms hanging around my neck while he peacefully slept on my back. His stomach rose and fell in an even pattern, and I could feel his shallow yet hot breath down the side of neck. Hanging on one of my arms were our backpacks, which were super heavy. I was glad that I was above average in strength, or else both my arms and legs would have given out a while back.

Grandfather was at the reception desk, a newspaper gripped his hands. When he saw me with a limp Sting on my back, his lips curled into a smirk. "I already--" he started, but I cut him off, already tired of his voice.

"Yeah yeah, I know," I grumbled. "No need to rub it in." Grandfather let out a wheezing sort of laugh and shook his head.

"I tried to warn you," he said in a smug tone. I scowled at him.

"Just so you know, that newspaper was from a week ago!" I yelled before going to the elevator with a sleeping Sting on my back.

I heard the rustles of paper before he yelled, "I KNEW THAT!"

"Yeah right! That's why you spent the entire day on the crossword puzzle!" I spat back. I wasn't really bothered when I couldn't hear his response as the door closed. All I knew was that I got my revenge.

Once I got to the floor with our room, I went to our door and stuffed my hand into my skirt's pocket. The first object I felt was a piece of paper, and it was then that I remembered that I never got to read what Axel wanted to tell me. I made a mental note to do that later once I had the time. Once I grabbed ahold of the golden key, I pushed it into the lock and turned it.

"Welcome home!" Lexi greeted without looking over to me. She was sitting next to Lector, watching some TV. When they turned to us though, their eyes widened and they flew over to us.

"Sting-kun!" "What happened?!" they both said at the same time.

"He's sick, apparently," I frowned, glancing at him, his head dangling over my shoulder.

"B-but he wasn't sick in the morning!" Lector cried, shaking his best friend, but he didn't react; he just continued laying motionless. "Sting-kun, wake up, please!"

"I thought he seemed off," Lexi said.

"If you knew that, you should've said something," I grumbled as I walked over to his room's door and opened it with my free hand.

"Aww, but you look so cute having him on your back," Lexi smirked as both she and Lector followed behind me. I opened my mouth to scold her, but one glance at Lector and I decided that wasn't the best decision.

"Fair enough," I mumbled before placing Sting face-up onto his own bed. I then lamely dropped both Sting's and my schoolbags right next to a chair that was placed next to it.  I stuffed my hands into my pocket and took out the crumpled piece of paper.  I decided to leave it on the nightstand, since it wouldn't do any harm to anyone.  "Lexi, could you get me a wet towel?" I asked her, rubbing my sore arm.

"Hai!" she saluted and flew out of the room to get what I asked her for.

"Lector you--" I started to say, but stopped when I saw Lector looking over Sting. His eyes were glassy, as if he was about to cry again. "You can just...stay there," I finished my sentence, feeling bad for the poor cat.

"Hai.." he answered halfheartedly before burying his face into Sting's chest. I looked at the two of them in pity until Lexi came back with the wet towel.

"Thank you," I said softly, taking the damp towel from her. I gently placed it on Sting's forehead, making sure I don't wake him up. Lexi glanced over at Lector with a face of pity.

"He must be really worried," Lexi frowned.

"Yeah," I replied and petted her. "Just like you were that one time."

"Is it the same illness?" she asked, looking at me with her blue eyes. I pause for a second before nodding. Lexi bit her lip in response. "I see..you going to tell Lector?" I looked at her and smirked.

"I'll leave that to you, since you're already so close to him." At a first glance, most people wouldn't be able to tell the change of Lexi's cheeks turning a darker shade of red, but of course, I could. "Oo, someone have a crush?" Now it was my turn to mock.

"Do not!" she snapped rather quickly, but she then took a deep breath. "All right, fine, I'll just leave you with Sting, alone, in his bedroom."

"H-hey, wait! That isn't--, I'm not, it's not what you.." Her words left me stammering like a tomato-red fool.

"C'mon Lector, I need to tell you something," Lexi grabbed ahold of Lectors hand and started pulling him away from his spiky-headed partner.

"W-wait, what about Sting-ku--"

"Don't worry about him, Jessie will take good care of him, won't you Jess?" She smirked in triumph as she led Lector out of the room.

"Wait, Lexi don't--!"

"See ya later~" she sang, gently closing the door and locking it. I hurriedly, but quietly, ran over to the door and gently knocked on it.

"Lexi, Lexi!" I loudly whispered. "Unlock this door right now!" I pathetically waited for a response, but found none. I sighed loudly. At least she had the decency to close it gently, I thought to myself. I stood there for a minute or so before deciding that I didn't have much to do but just take care of Sting. Taking a deep breath, I turned around and walked over to the wooden chair, taking a seat in it. I positioned myself so that I was facing Sting. There was sweat around his face, which was slightly cringing with pain.

I felt his towel. It was already starting to get warm, but not enough so that it should be changed.  "So much for not being sick for a long time..." I murmured quietly, stroking his blonde hair. It was surprisingly soft to the touch for spiky hair. 

For a couple minutes, it stayed like this; me just stroking his hair, periodically checking the towel to see if it was getting too warm. That was, until, Sting started stirring awake.

"N-..nngh.." he groaned quietly, making me slightly jolt in surprise and recoil my hand from his hair. His eyelids slowly opened, and he squinted once the sunlight hit him. His eyes wandered around the room until his oceanic blue pupils locked onto mine. "J-...Jessie.." he murmured, tilting his head so that he was facing me.

"Hey," I smiled warmly. "How do you feel?"

"Like crap," he answered bluntly with a grin on his face as he rubbed his eyes. His voice was scratchy, as if a cat had scratched his vocal cords.  Even so, I chuckled at his joke and shook my head.

"Same Sting as always," I smile, but my grin slowly turned into a frown. Sting noticed the change and frowned back.

"What's wrong?" he asked, his voice a bit hoarse.

My smile returns and I ask, "When was the last time you've gotten sick?"

"Like, maybe when I was 5 or something?" he answered, confused. "It was only a tiny fever too." I nodded, slightly relieved with the answer.

"Well, that's to be expected since you're a Dragon Slayer right?" I said.  Sting nodded and coughed.

"What does that have to do with the sickness I have now?" he asked, his voice a little weaker.  I took in a deep breath, knowing that this was going to take a while to explain.

"Okay, well, all Dragon Slayers have strengthened immune systems," I started, "so that means they can't get sick as often as normal people." I paused to see if Sting was still listening.  He was, as his eyebrows were creased together and his eyes were focused on me.   "However, once in a Dragon Slayer's life, their entire body shuts down for..'maintenance,' of sorts." 

"'Maintenance'....how?" Sting asked slowly.

"Well, first you kinda feel..off, I guess.  Like how a normal cold or sickness feels like..like how you were today in the morning," I explained.  He nodded, wincing as he placed a hand on his forehead.

"You okay?" I frowned, starting to stand up from the chair and going to feel his forehead and towel, but he held up his other free hand to stop me.

"I'm fine," he murmured.  "Just a bit dizzy, continue."  I furrowed my brows, but nodded and slowly sat down.

"Well...after that, you then start to feel more tired and weak, which is the stage you are at now," I continued.  "After then comes the part where your, um, mind starts to deteriorate and it will be hard to make out thoughts and to speak.  Once you get to that part, you'd probably sleep the entire day off, and then you'll be fine the next day."  I took a deep breath once I finished the long explanation. I had quickened the speed of my words at one point, so I'm not sure how much of that Sting understood.

"O...kay," Sting sweatdropped, probably not understanding one word like I had predicted.  I sighed and shook my head.

"It doesn't matter," I waved off.  "What matters is that you just have to stay in bed until tomorrow."

"Tha--" Sting started, but then abruptly stopped.  He put his hands over his eyes and muttered, "Shit."

"What?" I asked, worried.

"Today's the Grand Music Games audition," he responded tiredly. 

"What??" I said, quite surprised.  I faintly remember him telling me when it was, but was it today? "I'm pretty sure it's.." I trailed off, remembering what he had said.  I groaned and pinched the bridge of my nose.  "Just what I needed," I grumbled under my breath.

"It's okay Jessie, I can go, I'm not that sick," Sting said, attempting to sit up.  I placed a hand on his muscular chest to stop him.

"No," I said firmly.  "You're not going.  You have to stay here and rest, or else you're going to be sick for more than one day."

"It's just a fever Jessie," Sting protested, "I'll be fine."

"No, Sting," I repeated.  "You're not going.  As your roommate and..friend, I'm not letting you go.  Besides, I'm the substitute for your band, so I can go in your place and it'll be fine."

"Jessie, no! I have to be there," Sting urged, pushing my hand away and sitting up.  He almost immediately placed a hand on his head, but still refused to face the facts and said, "See? I'm fine.  I can handle this."  I cocked an eyebrow at him. His confidence in himself is quite astounding.

"Alright," I said, amused.  "If you're so sure, stand up."

"Pfft, I can do that," Sting said smugly and lifted himself up from the bed. Mere seconds later, his legs buckled and he would have fallen to the floor, had I not saved him. 

"See? You can't even stand Sting, and you definitely can't stand and perform," I frowned, putting his arm around my shoulder so that I could support his weight. I really thought that he would have agreed with me by now, but I was wrong.

"No, I have to be there!" he said once again, refusing to give up. His voice started to have a hint of desperation in it, which made my frown deepen. "You..you don't understand..You couldn't understand..." he muttered. 

"So make me understand Sting," I softly replied, gently placing him down on the bed.  He sat there and rubbed his forehead, his bangs shadowing his eyes as his head was facing the ground.

"You wouldn't understand what it feels like to never achieve something in your life: no trophies, awards, certificates, nothing," Sting murmured. "The only thing I thought I could at least be good at was magic and dueling, which is why I strove for good grades, so that I could get into Saber Academy.." A brief chuckled erupted from his throats.  "But, even that I couldn't achieve." A ray of light lit one side of his head when he slightly lifted it, allowing me to see one of his dark blue eyes.  They looked empty, devoid of the light that I knew Sting Eucliffe always had in his eyes. "Once, just once, I want to feel like I accomplished something," he said in a begging-like tone. "I hadn't thought much about singing, but when I first heard of the Grand Music Games, I knew I had to win it, I just knew it."  He paused for a second.  "It's funny, you know?  Lector looks up to me because of my bravery and because he thinks that I can do anything I put my mind to, but..if that were true, I wouldn't be here still pathetically trying to not disappoint my parents."  Sting shakily breathed out a laugh and rubbed his eyes.  I stood there for a moment, processing his words.  He was right, I'd never be able to understand what it would feel like to never achieve something in my life; I've accomplished too many things to even begin to understand.  But, there was one thing I could relate to. 

"I may not understand what it's like to never have any achievements.." I walked up to Sting and wrapped my arms around his body.  He tensed up when I gently squeezed him, probably shocked by my actions.  "..But I do know what it's like to disappoint your parents.  It may not seem like it, and you may not believe me, but I really do." Sting froze for a second before slowly putting his arms around mine.

"Aren't you..scared someone might see us like this?" he joked quietly, trying to lighten up the mood.

"Hmm, maybe," I played along. "Why? You scared Minerva will see us like this?"

"What?! No! I.." he paused. "I'm kinda enjoying this.." I was a bit stunned by his words and found that my cheeks were starting to grow hot, but I smiled.

"Ah, careful there Eucliffe. I think you're mind's starting to get hazy," I teased.

"Wh--it's not!" Sting huffed and pulled away from our embrace. I chuckled at his annoyed expression and his puffed-out cheeks.  However, my smile immediately fell when he started coughing as if he was trying to cough his lungs out.  I sat back beside him and rubbed his back, trying to sooth his coughs.

"You okay?" I asked as I did.

"My head..it's feels fuzzy and everything is starting to tilt.." he muttered, putting his hand to his forehead before getting another wave of harsh coughs.

"Okay, I think it's finally time for you to get some more rest," I finally made up my mind, pushing him down onto his bed.

"But whyyyyy???" He childishly whined, but yet did not fight back when I made him lay back on the bed.  As soon as his head hit his pillow, I could see the fatigue start to set in on him.

"Because it's getting obvious that you're starting to get delirious," I answered.

"What..what deliriousness? I'm...m'fine.." he murmured, but his words started to slur together in drowsiness.

"You need your rest, Sting," I insisted, pulling the covers over him.

"But..."

"Rest," I said sternly. Sting pouted.

"Fine," he mumbled. "But only because th'world's too...wobbly anyways..." I couldn't help but smile as I picked up his towel, which had fallen to the floor when he attempted to stand.

"I'm going to go and dampen this towel again, okay?" I told Sting. I was just about to leave the room, hoping that it had already been unlocked, when, without warning, Sting grabbed my hand. I turned around and met with his pleading blue eyes.

"W-...wait," he whispered, his voice not only sounding scratchy, but also like the desperation I had heard not long ago. "Please...can you stay? At least until I fall asleep?" he pleaded. I frowned, but found no real reason not to.

"Okay," I whisper. "Alright." I walked back to his bed and say on the very edge, gently rubbing his arm when I do. He weakly grinned and soon he slowly, but surely, closed his eyes. I didn't have to wait very long before his head tilted away from me and his whole body relaxed. Once his grip disappeared, I carefully placed his hand by the side of his head and slowly walk out of the room. I try the doorknob to see if it had been unlocked yet, and was glad to find that it was. I was just about to open the door when I remembered that there was something in the room I still needed. I tiptoed my way to our backpacks and quietly took them. I then finally opened the door and exited the room, gently closing the door behind me when I was out.  

As soon as the door clicked, Lexi and Lector flew over to me.

"Will he be alright? How is he???" Lector asked worriedly.  

"He's fine Lector.  He's just resting, and he'll be fine by tomorrow."  I gave a smile of reassurance, but Lector still looked worried.

"A-are you sure?" Lexi rolled her eyes.

"He's been stuttering like an overprotective fool as soon as I finished explaining," she sighed before flying to the brown cat's side.  There, she gave him a good slap on the back. "Listen Lector, if Jessie said he'll be fine, he will, promise," Lexi said firmly.  Lector sniffled and looked right into Lexi's blue eyes.

"Promise?"  Lexi smiled and gave a toothy grin.

"Ya know it!"  Lector gave a small smile and rubbed his eyes. 

"Okay, I'll go look after Sting while he's sleeping!" he offered, using his wings to fly over to the door.  He gently opened the door and disappeared behind it, making sure not to close the door too harshly.  Once Lexi and I heard the soft 'click,' our faces both turned beet red.  

"God dang that smile," I heard Lexi say as she sucked in a breath.  "And don't you dare say anything because--"

"Yes, I got it," I cut her off, my voice barely above a whisper.  I too remembered the look on Sting's face as he had begged for me to stay.  My face grew a brighter shade of red as I realized I had seen a side of Sting Eucliffe that not many people get to witness: his vulnerable side.  

"Truce?" Lexi asked, rubbing her face to get rid of her blush.

"Truce," I agreed, sighing.  I then remembered that I was supposed to dampen his towel again.  "Hey,  I'm gonna go dampen his towel, can you cook dinner tonight?" I asked Lexi.  Her face twisted with confusion.

"What? Why?"  I rubbed the back of my neck in reluctance. 

"I..might have to..go audition in Sting's place.." I mumbled, the last few words barely audible. The heat was starting to go all the way to the tip of my ears.

"Huh?" Lexi tilted her head.  "What did you say?"

"I, uh, have to...audition..with Sting's band," I squeaked.  Lexi's face went blank.

"Heh?" she blinked.  "HEH?!?!"  I flinched at the volume of her voice and smacked my hand over her mouth.

"B-b-be quiet!"I stuttered. "Y-you don't want to w-wake up Sting!"  It didn't seem like she had heard me as she started to squeal like a fangirl anyways.

"AaaaAAAAAHHH!!" she shrieked into my hand.  "MY OTP IS HAPPENING!"

"SHUT UP!" I hissed.  "This has nothing to do with relationships!"

"What do you mean it's not?!" Lexi's voice was muffled through my hand. "You have hated the very idea of bands, much less singing!"  In the back of my mind, I knew that she was right.  I had always feared singing in front of an audience; I much rather study or spell complex words in front of an audience than sing.  There was a reason behind that of course, but only a select few knew.  

Sighing, I ran a hand through my sleek black hair.  "I know, Lexi. I know," I muttered, "but..Sting's counting on me, and.." I paused.

"You wouldn't understand what it feels like to never achieve something in your life." 

"..And, well, I can't let him down, now can I?" I looked down at Lexi.  Her blue eyes widened, but then softened. 

"Jeez, you're too kind Jess," Lexi let out a sigh.  "Doing the things you don't want to do for.." I glared at her. "..a friend." I patted her head.

"You would know a lot about that, wouldn't you?" I chuckle.

"Only because of you," she responded, a wide grin on her face. I smiled softly and gave her a quick hug.

"Did I ever tell you how much I'm lucky to have you a friend?" 

"You're very very very lucky," Lexi smirked.  "No better friend than the very awesome raspberry-loving Lexi!"  

I laughed.  "Yeah yeah," I jokingly rolled my eyes and started walking towards the bathroom.  "You better start preparing dinner, or you might not finish until midnight."

"Oh hardy har har!" she laughed in a mocking manner.  "Right away pop star."  I turned my head to give her a smirk before turning to the restroom and sink.

~♪~

A few minutes later, I was all ready to go back to Sabertooth Academy.  I wasn't sure if Sting or his band had a dress code, so I just threw on a black shirt, a dark purple leather jacket, and black tight jeans.  I brushed then tied my hair so that it on the left side of my shoulder.  After making sure that golden heart locket was okay, I reluctantly took out my white clip and stared at it.  Maybe I should leave it..? I suggested to myself.  Shaking my head, I put it in my jeans' pocket.  Nah, have a little part of her as you do this. Once I grabbed my phone and placed it in my back pocket, I exited my room.  "Lexi, I'm gonna be going out now, how you doing?  Sting still sleeping?" I asked as I entered the kitchen.  

"Not too bad," she answered nonchalantly as she stirred whatever was in the pot, "and Sting's still sleeping, yeah."  I poked my head beside her and looked at what was in there. To my surprise, it seemed to just be porridge.  "Oh c'mon, have a little faith in me," Lexi huffed.  "I'm not gonna cook grilled fish and serve it to a sick person; I'm not that inconsiderate." 

"But you are going to cook some for you and Lector right?" 

"..Well, that's a different story."  I chuckled and shook my head as I put on my black boots.  

"All right, be good while I'm gone and take care of both Lector and Sting for me 'kay?" I told her as I tied them.

"Hai!" she saluted.  I nodded and opened the door.  

"Be good!" I reminded her one more time before closing the door.  I then sucked in a breath before walking towards the elevator.  Once I walked through the metal doors, I pressed the ground floor and waited.  My feet tapped on the floor as I watched the number go down all the way to 1. The doors slowly slid open, and I walked out to the lobby.

"Oh, Jessie!" Grandfather peaked his head out from the today's newspaper.  "Where you going? How Sting's doing?" 

"Sting's fine, and uh, I'm going to...school," I replied slowly. 

"School?" Grandfather sat up properly and raised his eyebrows.  "Why you going back to school?"

"For..stuff."  He raised one eyebrow over the other in suspicion.

"Well..say hi to my son..for me.." he said slowly, as if contemplating every word.  "It is open right?" 

"Yes, Grandfather,"  I rolled my eyes.

"Okay okay, I was just asking," he raised his hands in defense.  "Have fun sweetie."

"Mmgh," I mumbled, adjusting my jacket.  "Bye Grandfather."

"See ya kiddo," he waved as I walked out the exit.