Four didn't respond to the remark, but his silence spoke volumes. His cold, calculating mind was already piecing together the puzzle, though he didn't share his thoughts.
Ikenna studied him for a moment longer before finally nodding. "Fine. If it gets you to commit to the sessions, I won't press further. But don't expect me to go easy on you."
Four's gaze hardened. "I wouldn't expect anything less."
As Ikenna and Four continued their conversation, Ikenna's phone buzzed with an incoming call. He ignored it. Then came another vibration. And another. By the fifth call, he was visibly irritated, muttering under his breath.
When the phone finally stopped ringing, it was immediately followed by a string of notifications, five in rapid succession.
He tried to dismiss them, but the persistent pings didn't stop. Knowing it could be from a VIP patient, he sighed in annoyance and pulled out his phone.
The screen displayed an urgent hospital page: "Dr. Ikenna, please report to the VIP ward room 2** immediately. Emergency, seizure in progress."
The words sent a chill down his spine. His frustration evaporated in an instant, replaced by focused urgency.
He cursed under his breath, his mind racing as he processed the situation. 'A seizure? How? She seemed stable earlier.'
"I need to go," he muttered abruptly, shoving his phone into his pocket and heading for the door.
Ikenna didn't wait for an acknowledgment from Four as he left, but he was unaware that the man, persistent as ever, had followed him. Four, slow yet determined, maneuvered his wheelchair down the hall.
Inside Nnenna's room, chaos ensued. Nurses and doctors were frantically working to stabilize her. She convulsed on the bed, her body trembling as her muscles tensed unnaturally.
A nurse was already drawing up Ativan to control the seizure, while another was prepping a syringe. The lead physician was shouting instructions
"Keep her airway open! Check for hypoxia, get the pulse oximeter on! What's her oxygen saturation?"
"Eighty three percent and dropping!" a nurse replied, her voice tense as she adjusted the oxygen mask over Nnenna's face.
"Okay, administer the Ativan. 2 mg IV push. We need to stop this before it progresses into status epilepticus. Someone prep a gurney, we'll need to get her to imaging after this for a CT scan."
The team worked seamlessly, though tension filled the room. A nurse grabbed a bag of normal saline to start IV fluids, while another monitored the EKG.
At that moment, Ikenna strode in, his commanding presence halting the chaos for a moment. "Let me check," he said firmly, his tone brooking no argument.
The attending physician looked hesitant but stepped aside, trusting Ikenna's expertise. "She's still seizing," the physician reported. "Vitals are unstable, and we're concerned about aspiration."
Ikenna nodded, his hands steady as he examined Nnenna. He observed her pupils, noting sluggish responses, and listened to her breathing, which was shallow and erratic. "Good call on the Ativan," he said. "Let's see how she responds to it."
He glanced at the monitors. Her heart rate was spiking, nearing 150 bpm, and her oxygen levels remained dangerously low. "Suction her airway," he ordered. "And position her laterally to prevent aspiration."
A nurse immediately turned Nnenna onto her side while another gently suctioned her mouth to clear any potential obstructions.
"We'll need a CT scan to rule out intracranial causes," Ikenna said, his voice calm despite the urgency. "Prep her for transport as soon as she stabilizes."
Behind him, Four watched everything unfold, his expression unreadable. Though he didn't say a word, his sharp eyes missed nothing.
Four remained seated, his cold gaze fixed on Nnenna as her body convulsed. The sharp contrast between her frailty and his unyielding nature only seemed to deepen his scorn.
"You encouraged me to start physical therapy, yet here you are, dying. Weak. Very weak," he muttered, his tone devoid of sympathy. "I guess you aren't so special after all."
Around him, the room buzzed with medical activity, but Four was oblivious to it all, his focus unwavering. Yet, deep in his mind, an uncomfortable flicker stirred, an echo of her words and actions that had pushed him to reconsider his own state.
Unaware of Four's thoughts, or anyone else's, Nnenna's world was fading. Sounds became muffled, and colors dimmed as consciousness slipped further away.
It felt as though she was sinking into an endless ocean, the weight of her body pulling her down. Just as darkness began to claim her completely, a familiar sound echoed in the void
Ding!
The voice of the love system resonated faintly in her mind, cutting through the haze:
"Be transformed by the renewing of your mind. You changed Four's mindset towards physical therapy, which is the first step to recovering full function of his legs. This earned you 400 good points."
The words registered faintly as if spoken from a great distance, yet they carried warmth, a tiny glimmer of hope in an otherwise cold abyss. Nnenna's body remained still, her fate uncertain, but somewhere deep within her subconscious, she clung to those words like a lifeline.
Another faint sound from the love system followed shortly after.
Ding!
"You impressed Director Ikenna by doing what he hasn't been able to do for weeks, convincing Four to work towards recovering full function of his legs. This earned you 150 good points."
The notification rang in her mind, breaking through the thick fog clouding her consciousness. It was a small but vital beacon of hope.
The love system's voice was gentle, filled with concern and an undertone of urgency.
"Nnenna, would you like to exchange 1000 good points for an extension of your life by one month?" she asked, her tone almost pleading.
She wanted Nnenna to live, but she could not act without her consent. A closed mouth was indeed a closed destiny.
The system hesitated, almost as if she could feel the pain radiating from Nnenna's fragile body. "Please... say something," the system urged softly.