When Maxen was discharged a few hours later, the two of them argued about how he would go home. As usual, he insisted on taking a bus since he had no money for a cab. But Cosette already got him one and even paid it twice the amount he needed.
And before she sent him off, she nagged him to take his medicines on time and have plenty of rest. She repeated it like a broken record to the point Maxen nearly lost his mind.
Standing on the hospital's driveway, she giggled while staring at him through the window of the back passenger seat of the cab.
'Maxen… he is still so young, she thought.
"Your medicines! Don't forget!" she reminded him when he glanced at her. As usual, he didn't react and averted his eyes coldly.
Still, she waved him goodbye. "Take care~!" she continued waving, watching the cab drive away.
Since she didn't have enough energy to commute, Cosette contacted her driver to pick her up in the hospital. Her driver arrived minutes after Maxen left.
'Just when will I wake up?' that question suddenly hovered over her head, making her eyes droop. 'To be honest, if I can choose between reality and this world, I will choose the latter in a heartbeat.'
Cosette was terminally ill and was just waiting for her to die. She actually wanted to, so the expenses for her treatment would stop burdening her grandparents.
'Grandpa and Grandma...' her eyes softened at the thought of her grandparents before she shook her head with her eyes closed.
"Whatever, Cosette!" she slapped her cheeks to wake herself up. "That's not important. What's important right now is I have more time to meet the other characters!"
While she cheered herself up, reminding herself of what she should do, the driver glanced at the rear mirror. What he saw was the young miss holding both her fists up, looking all determined.
Usually, the young miss would just sit there in silence while staring at the window. As if she was a goddess; untouchable, unreachable, and unapproachable.
So, for him to see Cosette, having this energy and determination slightly baffled the driver. And yet, he didn't say a single word about it.
The young miss of the Blac family had the authority to fire anyone at will. He would rather pretend to be mute and deaf instead of stepping out of his bounds and offending her. Moreover, wasn't it better that the young miss was becoming a normal and lovely sixteen-year-old, and not a mature lady trapped in a young lady's body?
*****
When Cosette returned home, it was as if she didn't go away overnight. She was still welcomed by the servants politely, and her father was already at work. It was a freedom most youngsters would enjoy, so she happily went to wash up. Cosette had many plans even for today since she believed this might be her last day in the world of the novel.
"Gosh… I can't believe I actually interacted with Maxen." She cupped her cheek, sitting on the chair in front of the vanity mirror. She was still in her robe with a towel wrapped around her hair, blushing at the memorable encounter she had with her favorite character.
But as she revisited today's and yesterday's memories, a frown slowly dominated her face. Although she was over the moon to meet Maxen — the villain of the novel's story — having a glimpse of the life he had to lead left a bitter taste in her mouth.
"It looked so real. Even in the hospital, everyone… are like real people," came out a murmur, thinking that everyone she met — be it a character in the novel or just a stranger — didn't look any different from actual humans in her world.
"Come on, Cosette." She slapped her cheek lightly, trying to get herself together. "You can't be distracted with that. Today, I will go to the Academy and take a peek at Asher Quinn! As far as I know, his brother and friends who are also key characters in the novel also study there!"
The side of her lips stretched even broader as she thought about meeting the male lead and the side characters. If she was a bit early, she would also make a trip to the countryside to meet the female lead.
Surely, Cosette had her hands full.
On her bucket list, she already checked the characters she met. For example, nanny Lucia, and the driver George. How she knew about them was because they were mentioned in the novel a couple of times. The driver who would grow old being the personal driver of Cosette was someone she trusted in the novel.
If anything, the driver knew a lot of secrets more than Lucia or Cosette's father. But not a single word was said from the driver's lips. That was why the real Cosette was comfortable, even when the driver was around.
"Asher, Luke, and Matthew," Cosette uttered the names she was planning to meet today.
Asher was the male lead, Luke was his little brother, and Jake was the male lead's best friend. Jake would become Asher's business partner after ten years when the novel starts.
Now that she thought about it, there were more characters she could meet in the academy. It was a school of elites, after all. And the novel The Devil's Heat circled around the socialites, their struggles in the upper echelons, and so on. So, there were a lot of wealthy characters.
"Even the female lead will enter the upper echelon…" she muttered, recalling the scene when the 'country bumpkin' first attended a party for the elites. "That's where the story will start and how Asher and Mia will meet."
Cosette smiled, despite knowing she would probably wake up before she would witness that magical first meeting from happening.
After some time, she readied herself to visit the academy. If she was able to meet the villain, Maxen, she was hopeful she could at least glimpse at the male lead even from afar.
"Hehe. If only I can ask for their autographs and selfie, but whatever. It's not like I can take them home." A giggle slipped past her lips as she happily skipped herself towards the walk-in closet to change, for she would stop at nothing in meeting every character she could.