Chapter 255 - Rainy Night (3)

As the group focused their attention on fighting their opponents, only Sofia noticed that Stephen had fallen asleep. She did not mind him leaning on her but her movement was indeed restricted by his weight.

Only after the first match was finished with victory on their side did she feel that her shoulder was numb. The weight of Stephen's head was straining her full control of her character that she felt her gameplay was a little off from her usual.

But, it was not just the heavy weight that she felt uncomfortable. When Stephen snuggled closer to her neck, his uneven breaths touched on the side of Sofia's ear. And she sensed that his breathing was abnormally hot. It was in the literal sense that told her that something was seriously wrong.

"Next game?" Claire asked and directly sent them an invite. Clark and Joey quickly accepted her invite and waited for Sofia to join.

"Wait," Sofia whispered and placed her phone in her lap. Then, she raised her hand and pressed the back of her palm on Stephen's forehead. "He's hot."

Hearing Sofia's calm voice, the three who were just waiting for her to come inside their virtual lobby for the second match instantly snapped their attention away from their phone and looked up at her. 

"Ohhh," Clark reacted, not sure what to say. He only glanced at Stephen and was not able to comprehend what Sofia meant. 'What hot?' he stared in confusion.

As for Claire, a small yet teasing smile rose from her lips. "Isn't he?" she mumbled.

"Ahhh... I'm envious! I hope everyone can sleep and look hot like Stephen!" Joey joked.

"..." Sofia paused for a few seconds and took a deep breath. "Ehem! He is burning. I mean, he has a fever," Sofia quickly rephrased her words after realizing that her companions misunderstood her.

"Stephen has a fever?!" the three exclaimed in unison.

Just now, they really thought that Sofia was complimenting Stephen's innocent appearance. He did look handsome despite his messy hair and peaceful bearing. The coat he had borrowed from Clark's driver actually had given him a vibe of a respectable boss.

Joey quickly followed the gesture of Sofia and checked Stephen's forehead. "He is really burning. AHHH!!! This is because of the rain. Now, he is sick! If only he had used an umbrella!" Joey frowned and spoke anxiously.

"What do we do?" Claire stood and put aside her phone. 

"Do you have a medicine for fever, Claire?" Sofia asked as she was trying to maintain a calm composure. It was her first time dealing with someone who had a fever. Something like this was not in forte.

"Let's check his body temperature first and see how bad his fever is," Clark stated before Claire could respond to Sofia's query.

"I don't have a thermometer or medicine!" Claire panicked.

As their dreadful feeling grew bigger, Stephen stirred and opened his eyes. "Are you done playing?" he weakly murmured as if he was not aware of how serious his situation.

"Bro, you still think of our playing when you are actually in fever!" Joey also stood in front of him and placed both of his hands on his waist. His height was already towering so Sofia waved her hand and gestured for him to return to his seat. "We are so worried about you," he grumbled and took a sit.

"You have a fever," Sofia softly old Stephen.

"Ohh," Stephen sat straight and blinked his eyes a couple of times. The side of his eyelids had become misty as he felt a tear start to gather to roll down his face.

Before he could wipe the tear that was forming on the side of his eyes, Sofia extended her hand and brushed her fingers to it. "Don't sleep. You have to take medicine."

Stephen smiled and yawned. He resembled that of an innocent child. He stretched his arms and legs comfortably and looked Sofia in the eye.

"Okay. It's probably the rain. I do feel like my body is so tired. Do you have a medicine?" he gently nodded his head and leaned his back on the sofa.

"I have no medicine for fever. I'm sorry," Claire helplessly replied.

They were just teenagers. No matter what, it was not something that they had anticipated. Even Sofia who had more experience in life was sure that she does not have any fever medicine in her place too.

"It will be fine. Calm down, Claire. I will call my driver to get us the fever medicine. What else do we need?" Clark presented and rubbed Claire's back to comfort her.

'What else do we need? Bring Stephen to the hospital?' Sofia mentally asked. "Other than medicine, thermometer, uhmm... we need hot compress... and..." she trailed and felt like she really does not know everything in this situation. It was her first time taking care of someone who felt sick! After a few seconds of pause, she continued, "...search on the internet how to handle a patient with fever at home. We might miss something."

"Okay, okay... I am searching here. There are many results. Let me read the answers first," Joey spoke and quickly scroll down his phone. Claire and Clark followed and started typing too.

"Do you want to go to the hospital?" Sofia asked Stephen. The hospital was indeed her most appealing solution.

On the other side, Claire was quick to grab a glass of water and hand it to Sofia. "Maybe we let Stephen drink water first to keep him hydrated. Here is the glass of water, Sof," she said.

"This is indeed necessary," Sofia agreed and accepted the glass. She then moved the glass next to Stephen's mouth, "Have a drink, Steph."

Stephen subconsciously grasped the glass but it was Sofia's full hand that was already holding the glass that he grabbed. "No wonder I felt the chilling coldness. It's probably the fever."

"It's better if we go to the hospital," Sofia said feeling bothered by his response. But she did mind that Stephen hand covered her hand with his as he drank the water.

"No, no, not the hospital. I just want to sleep. I think I will be fine after I sleep," Stephen responded after finishing the glass of water. His eyes were half opened and his voice sounded like he had contracted a flu.

"Okay, wait for the medicine. You have to take medicine before you sleep," Sofia repeated and returned the empty glass to Claire.

"It says here that he needs to have medicine and take it every six hours if the fever is not gone. Then, we will monitor his temperature. If it's abnormally high, we must send him to hospital," Joey summarized all the information he had managed to search.

"Fever is a normal reaction of the body from our immune system to fight foreign bacteria. Especially that he was running at night and exposed in the rain for who knows how long," Clark read loudly the information he saw on the internet before he dialed the number of his personal number. Then, he moved farther to speak his instruction to the man.

"I'm fine guys. I'm not going to die. What's up with all your gloomy tone!" Stephen chuckled and tried to lighten up the atmosphere around him. But soon, he did felt nauseous. "I'll be fine," he said and closed his eyes.