"'Ello?" A groggy voice answered from the other line.
"What the hell, man? You're asleep even at this time?"
"I had a hard night last night, okay?"
"Good grief, who did you-!"
"Work-related. Why did you call me? I doubt it's to keep tabs on my dating life."
"I need a favor."
"Sure. What is it?"
By the time he was finished, Jasper was practically screaming at him. "Are you crazy?! Wait, don't answer that. You already are. Fine, I'll take over good thing the term just started."
"I'll speak with Dr. Gonzaga myself."
"Of course, you should! That's a relief. Alright, I think Agatha and I could handle the rest."
"Wow, you mentioning Agatha is a miracle."
"Shut it; I want to let you know I have a very healthy amount of respect towards Dr. Ferencillo."
"As well as a very healthy amount of space between you and her."
"Whatever. I'll let you know her answer once I get in touch with her."
"Thanks, Jasper."
"Oh no biggie, Harold, it's the least I can do."
By the time the call ended, they were already at the condominium. Harold paid the driver and carried Rayne out of the taxi as he did not want to wake her up. The driver was kind enough to take the backpack for him and placed it by the steps of the building. The guard saw them, and Harold asked if he could leave the backpack for a few minutes, and the guard promised he would keep an eye on it.
"Is ma'am Rayne alright?" The guard asked, looking at the sleeping woman in concern.
"She's fine. She needs some rest." Harold said.
"She doesn't have the virus?"
Harold shook his head. "Pneumonia."
The guard winced. "Not as bad as COVID but not good in general. I'll put the bag here, and you can get it anytime."
With Rayne still in his arms, Harold entered the building and was greeted by a worried Mrs. Gonzales. "How is she?" She asked.
Harold gave her a summarized version of Rayne's condition. Mrs. Gonzales looked relieved, and for one cynical moment, he thought it was because the entire building would not be quarantined. Still, a nicer part of himself countered that despite her attempts to flirt with him, she was the type of building manager that cared for her tenants to the point that she was being motherly. He had seen how she fussed over Rayne and even volunteered to feed Bubbles should she end up in the hospital.
"I see. Well, put her to bed immediately and let her rest. Who will take care of her for now? Her parents and her older brother live overseas. I can check on her from time to time…!"
"I'll do it. She's my responsibility, after all." Harold interrupted.
"That's so neighborly of you." Mrs. Gonzales could not help but say it in a dry tone. Harold pointedly ignored her. "Very well, I'll leave it to you. If you two need anything, let me know, okay?"
Harold nodded and went to the elevator. Mrs. Gonzales pushed the buttons for their floor for him and accompanied them to Rayne's unit. Once they arrived, he thanked the building manager and kicked the door closed. Bubbles greeted them, and he stared at Harold as if wondering why this human male was carrying his mother.
"Mrow?" Bubbles' wide eyes stared into his brown ones.
"Your mom's sick, and I'm here to be her nurse. I'll be your sitter as well." He answered.
"Mmrr." The cat's ears were flattened against his head.
"I know. I'm an outsider, but you will have to deal with another male in the house. I'm here to stay." He said gently but firmly. "I won't let anything happen to her, okay?"
Bubbles' ears went up. He stared at him long and hard, then began to rub his head on his leg.
Harold went to Rayne's bedroom and gently laid her on her semi-made-up bed. He took off her shoes and covered her with the blanket. Bubbles meowed at him, promptly went to his human, and laid on her stomach.
"Yeah, you keep an eye on her," Harold whispered to the cat.
Bubbles fell asleep instead. Harold shook head and left the unit to get Rayne's backpack downstairs. He returned a few minutes later and placed the backpack on the sofa.
For the next hour, Harold spent it moving his things from his place to Rayne's, making her living room his temporary home. He did not bring much, just his laptop, smartphone, his stash of food, and a few books to keep himself occupied.
Harold took his phone and began to call the dean. Their conversation was brief, and he was relieved that Dr. Gonzaga agreed with his request, even if it was a last-minute one. The dean does not like surprises, but given the current situation, one has to adapt.
"Take care of yourself, alright?" Dr. Gonzaga was asking.
"Yes, ma'am. I'll be back within or after two weeks."
"Good. Fortunately, the semester just started, so there's nothing major to tackle yet."
After Harold ended the call with the dean, he made himself comfortable on the couch and grabbed a book. He had missed reading fiction, and it felt good to turn off his brain even for a few hours.
Rayne woke up feeling more relaxed than she had earlier, although she still had difficulty breathing. She felt less feverish and hungry. She turned and saw Bubbles sleeping on top of her hip. She made an 'aww' sound at her cat, who opened his eyes and stared at her, then began to stretch, extending his claws.
"Ow." She muttered, then laughed when she saw Bubbles letting out a huge yawn. The cat then got off her and strolled towards the door. She slowly got off the bed and sat on it, panting. It made it worse when she started coughing. The cough was so painful she ended up hugging herself.
She had never felt so alone in her whole life. She remembered when she got sick as a child and teenager, how her parents cared for her by preparing meals, making sure she took her medications, and at times they would buy what she wanted, mainly food. Her brother, Jared, would do his best to cheer her up by checking up on her or quietly keeping her company with him by reading or doing his homework.
Now that they were all living in Canada, she had no other relatives she could rely on. Oh well, I'll do this on my own as usual. She thought.
The door slammed open, and Rayne looked up to see Harold looking like he had run through a storm and got mauled in the process.
"What are you doing here?!" She shouted, but it sounded like she had inhaled an entire helium tank.
"Keeping an eye on you," Harold said as he went to her.
"You didn't have to." Rayne protested.
"I know, but I want to. Besides, given your condition, you would have difficulty moving on your own, and your recovery period would be longer than two weeks if you keep moving around."
Rayne wanted to argue further, but she remained silent. Harold was right; any sickness requires bedtime rest and limited movement. If she tried to push herself, she would get worse.
"Now that's out of the way; what do you want to eat? No deliveries for you, not now, not ever. I'm going to raid your cabinet," he added hastily as she scowled at him. "With your permission."
"Fine. I think some instant soups are on the kitchen shelf."
"Okay, I'll indulge you this once, but I'll make everything from scratch next time."
"What are you, my dietician?"
"Let's say that I care about your health. Would you like to eat in the dining room or your room?"
"I am not an invalid, prof. I'll be able to walk to the dining room."
Harold just nodded and left. To Rayne's surprise, Bubbles followed him. "Traitor." She muttered. When did her cat become this friendly towards her neighbor? Bubbles were like any other cat, aloof and cautious around people that were not his human. Mentally shaking her head, she looked at what she was wearing and winced. She was still dressed in outerwear—time to change into something more comfortable.
It took her quite some time to change into an oversized gray sweater, dark blue jogging pants, and a very loose-knitted cardigan sweater. It took her even longer to get to the dining room. She was tired before she even left the door. She was leaning against the doorway of her bedroom when she saw Bubbles trotting towards her.
"Oh, now you care?" She said to the cat. She still felt betrayed that Bubbles followed Harold instead of her.
Bubbles chirped and began to rub her leg. She sighed. She could not stay mad at him and bent down to pet him.