Luigi was very nervous and scared for Jian and his heart felt like it's about to jump out any moment. He was always cautious about his driving speed, yet he doesn't seem to care about how fast he's going.
He stopped at the Emergency room of the nearest hospital, he wanted to carry or assist Jian but the red-haired boy toughen up and walked on his own. He followed him and Jian quickly told the nurse that he consumed shrimps.
He was almost out of breath and quietly waited as he lied down on the bed. The ER was already busy as it was but a fire broke out in a nearby residential apartment and wounded burned patients came one after another. There was a shortage of physicians and beds. Upon seeing it, Jian got up and wanted to free up the bed for others. But he was stopped by Luigi.
"What are you doing?" Luigi asked. "Do you know how you look right now? Even your cheeks are swollen, we came here earlier, just lie down here and I'll get you a doctor, okay?!"
The guy struggling to breathe smiled at Luigi and then became obedient.
After a minute or two, Luigi came back with a doctor and a nurse. The nurse helped the doctor prepare the syringe and instructed the friend of the patient to help Jian take his jeans off.
He was dumbfounded with the instruction, Jian did not wait for him and tried to unbuckle his belt. Luigi turned red and thought there's nothing wrong in helping this man pull out his pants for a second time. He looked so cheeky as he pull the tight jeans and block others from looking at Jian's flawless smooth legs. The doctor skillfully injected the epinephrine shot on Jian's outer thigh. He was also given anti-histamine and intravenous drip to reduce his fever. When everything calmed down, Jian was given prescription and the doctor assisted the other patients. It was also at that point when Luigi helped him wear his pants.
"Why did you eat the shrimp if you were allergic to it?" Luigi gently asked, a tone and way of talking that Jian could not get used to.
"I'm pretty much allergic to all seafoods and my allergy to shrimp is quite severe. But they prepared it already, how can I say no?"
"Even so, you did not eat what I gave you though." Luigi sulked.
"Raw fish can give you flat worms, why would I eat it? Yuck!" The red-haired little guy reasoned out.
"Then, why can't you just say you can't eat those kinds of foods to your family?"
Luigi threw his temper yet Jian just stayed silent.
"I'm making things up for Sean. I will do anything to make sure he's safe, I can't afford to worry him or make him upset. I'll treat his family with respect. But you can't force me to seriously play house with his family. That's not your place."
The smiles disappeared and Jian confronted him.
"So, you've been pretending all along and fooling us?" Luigi asked. He already knew that Jian is not kind. Considering how his uncle formed his family, he can understand why Jian hated them before, but the illusion Jian created on the dinner table made him felt somehow betrayed. For sure, Sean wants Jian and his mother to reconcile and become close. His uncle also wants to be forgiven by the child who lost his mother because of him.
Luigi then regretted how he worded his question. "Sorry, I didn't mean to say it like that."
"Luigi" Jian calmly called his name, "We got what we wanted, a chance to go back in time and prevent Sean's accident. Call it pretending or fooling or whatever, but I told you, I'll do everything to keep him alive except acting chummy with your aunt and uncle. How about you? What's your plan?"
Luigi could almost not answer his question. He was taken aback, he then made an excuse, "How can you rush me to make a plan? I was with you last night and then when I woke up just this morning, I'm now back here. I can't even believe I came back in what I consider 'the past'."
He just came back in time and thought he'd live this dream like normal. Sean might die next month, what the fuck could he do? Compared to him, Jian immediately set his negative emotion aside and visited Sean and quickly gave his twin brother the impression that Sean does not have to worry about him. If Jian does not call or do the prank or make Sean worried, he wouldn't leave the city and meet any accident.
"Woah, it must be nice to be you, you had your first one night stand and you're back in time just like that." Jian mumbled.
Jian got out of the bed carrying his own IV bag. "Where are you going? And what's that supposed to mean?" Luigi was stressed again.
The bed was immediately occupied by the patient with third degree burn. Luigi could not say anything anymore. He took the IV bag and carried it for him. Jian went to the automated machine outside the hospital and went back to pay the cashier in cash.
"Why do you have to go outside when they accept cards here?" Luigi couldn't help but pry, clearly, Jian still has fever and rashes.
"Why are you so nosy?" Jian use the same tone.
After paying and buying the prescribed medicines, Jian tried to take the IV Bag. "Give it to me, I'm going back, you go home."
"You're a patient. If you're not going to stay in the hospital, then I'll take care of you." Luigi insisted.
"What's wrong with you?"
"What's wrong with me? Shouldn't you be asking that to yourself?"
"Arrgh! Why are you too sticky to me? I know I gave you a good time before, but that's only pity fuck, don't get attached to me, will you?"
Luigi's eyes reddened at the words 'pity fuck'. "I was drunk that time, you took advantage of me and you call it pity fuck?"
"That's exactly the point, nothing good comes out when you get clingy to me like this. Go home."
"Can I at least take care of you until you fall asleep?" Luigi requested as if he's haggling with Jian.
"It's already late, go home."
"I'll take you to your inn, how about that?"
"Oh my god, I don't need you to take care of me." Jian argued yet Luigi did not back down. They kept arguing while sitting on the waiting area. To make Jian rest, Luigi made him lie on the bench, his head on Luigi's lap while the IV bag was raised overhead. It was the instruction of the nurse to them when she saw the two arguing about who holds the IV bag and some stuffs about 'pity fuck'.
Luigi's lap got numb, his arms were also tired but it was more peaceful when the patient finally fall asleep.
The phone on his pocket rang and Jian did not even reacted to the sound. Luigi took it upon himself to answer the call for him. Funny, the person calling was Sean. For him, it was only yesterday when he was asking Jian to return Sean to him and here they are now. Luigi looked at the red haired patient on his lap, the red rashes on his face gradually lessened and it was no longer swollen.
He couldn't tell Sean that he's with Jian, so he did not answer it and planned to return the phone on the pocket but he saved his own number instead and dialed it to get Jian's number. He remember how he got Jian's number before. After that day on the convenience store, Jian kept messaging him about some random stuffs. He'd ask why he kept glaring at him. He'd ask how did he performed on the thesis defense. He even asked why he looked like he did not take a bath on one certain day. Jian knew how to make Luigi annoyed.
"You really rile me up." He mumbled while stroking the little patient's red hair. He thought, "One time, your smile seemed sweet, then it's sort of naughty. Then, here you are smiling again even though you hate the people you're smiling at. You're too deceiving unlike Sean..."
He stopped thinking there. He got annoyed for comparing him to Sean again.
Time passed and the IV bag got emptied, a nurse helped them take the IV bag away and dispose it properly. Jian woke up and thanked the nurse.
By that time, he was half-asleep and barely able to keep walking. He did not have energy to argue with Luigi. "I'll take you to the inn, can you tell me where?" Luigi asked and Jian obediently answered, "Mariana Pension House"
"You said inn, Mariana's too expensive. You could have just stayed at my place."
Jian laughed. "Luigi, you're so fucking horny. One pity fuck and here you are taking responsibility for me. What happened to your love for Shanshan?"
Luigi could not answer. Does it only take one passionate night to move on from his years of unrequited love? Of course, not. Why is he clinging to the person he hated for years now? He changed the subject and said "Anyway, what happened to us was a mistake, it happened in our previous life, it's not counted."
"The problem in our country is that, people here romanticized virginity in the most judgmental way possible. What's wrong if you're not a virgin anymore?" Jian smiled mockingly and added, "Ahh, I guess you're the type that wants your first time to be spent with the person you love."
He drove him for two kilometers from the hospital. He checked in and as soon as they get to his room, Jian shut the door immediately. He was quite disappointed for the hot and cold treatment. He was about to go home when he received a text message from Jian.
Red Shrimp Jian: Thank you for today. I'll treat you to lunch, just please don't mention anything to Sean and his mom.
Another message came, Red Shrimp Jian: Good night Luigi, your butt has good penmanship btw.
He laughed feeling embarrassed with himself.
Emo kid Luigi: Your butt has better talent. Lmao.
A surge of refreshing feeling tugged his heart. "Did I just dirty talked?", he couldn't help but ask himself.
When he came home, the people at their house were already asleep. He looked at his phone and saw that there was no new message. "Is he asleep?"
Suddenly he got a phone call from Sean.
"Hello?" Sean's weak voice came through.
"What's wrong Sean?"
"Can you call Kuya Jian. I'll text you his number."
"Why? What happened?"
"I have a fever right now. Do you believe in twin thing? Anyway, whenever one of us gets sick, the other gets sick too. I'm worried about him, he's too quiet whenever he's not feeling well. Can you call him? I'm out of cellphone load and ma already turned off the wifi. I want to make sure he's okay, can you call him for me?" Sean pleaded.
The call ended and was followed by a message containing Jian's number which was already saved on his contacts.
Twin thing…
No wonder Sean worry too much about Jian to the point of dying.
"When he died, what happened to Jian?" His line of thought creeps him out. "Nah, there's no way."