Chapter 26: A Fever and a Promise

“Ash, I’m done washing up. You must be starving? I’ll get dinner ready right away.”

Chris called out to Ash, who was half-lying on the sofa, as he exited the bathroom after drying his face and blow-drying his hair.

Ash didn’t respond. Only the sound of a soap opera from the TV remained.

Chris walked closer and saw Ash half-lying on the sofa, as if asleep.

Ash’s beautiful golden hair cascaded down like a waterfall, a few strands lightly resting on her flushed cheeks.

Those strands trembled slightly with her steady breathing.

“Ash?”

Chris asked softly, tiptoeing over.

In the soft light, Ash’s black dress gave off a faint sheen, making her skin look even fairer.

A short brown blanket was casually draped over her waist, revealing a slim calf carelessly resting on the coffee table.

Chris bent down, his gaze involuntarily lingering on Ash’s face.

Her eyelashes rested lightly on her eyelids, the tip of her nose slightly upturned, and her lips were a bit pale, almost white.

But… still soft and lovely.

However, Ash’s cheeks had an unnatural flush, and her breathing was a bit quicker than usual.

Chris frowned, reached out and gently touched her forehead. It was scorching hot.

“Fever indeed…” he murmured lowly, with a hint of heartache and self-blame in his voice.

“Really, why do I have to be so stubborn.”

Chris gently shook Ash’s shoulder, his voice soft as if coaxing a child:

“Wake up, Ash. Don’t sleep here. You’ll catch a cold.”

“…Wuwu”

She opened her eyes drowsily, her gaze somewhat unfocused, as if not fully awake.

“Cold… Don’t leave me… Don’t.”

Ash’s mutterings made Chris freeze. He quickly stroked Ash gently, comforting:

“Don’t be afraid, I’m here… I won’t leave you.”

As he spoke, Chris took off his coat and draped it over Ash, then gently held her, pulling her into his arms.

Ash’s body was feverish. Chris could feel her trembling breaths and the “cold” she muttered.

“Ash, wake up. Eat something then go back to sleep in your room.”

Ash gradually regained consciousness. She blinked, and after seeing who was in front of her, she suddenly threw herself into Chris’s arms. The corners of her mouth lifted slightly, revealing a relieved smile of having narrowly escaped a disaster:

“Ah, thank you, Chris… I thought I was going to…”

“What’s wrong? Had a nightmare?”

“…”

After a moment of silence, Ash slowly spoke:

“Mm… I dreamed… I fell into the Mekong River… submerged by water… around… freezing… I thought… you pulled me out, Chris… wuwu, as expected, good brothers never abandon me…”

Ash spoke with some slurred speech, and also a bit incoherently.

“You’ve caught a cold.”

Chris said this, holding Ash’s underarms with both hands, gently straightening her up.

“Hey… Chris, aren’t I heavy? It was easy to pull me out… right… I was all ready to feed the fish…”

“Ash, stop talking nonsense. Take some fever medicine and go back to bed.”

“Oh…”

Ash agreed, shook her head, then said again:

“No, why would I have a fever or a cold… These are all simulated… You just give me a few electric shocks, or use a bit of L24D… I’ll be fine immediately.”

“L24D?”

Chris caught this unfamiliar term from Ash’s words. Before he could dig deeper with professional questioning, Ash struggled out of his embrace and staggered to her feet.

“…I can’t let you look down on me, Chris… I’m fine… These are all illusions they put on… I don’t have a cold…”

Ash muttered, took a few steps forward, then her right leg gave way and she fell to the floor. The coat slipped off, and somehow the shoulder strap of her black dress came loose with it.

The black fabric slid below her chest, revealing the girl’s pure skin in all its glory.

“Ash!”

Chris ignored any notion of not looking at indecent things. He quickly stepped forward to support Ash, whose head was about to hit the floor.

With one arm supporting Ash’s upper body, he used the other hand to pull up her slipping dress strap.

Ash’s whole body was burning hot, and her cheeks were very red.

“Get some good rest, Ash.”

As he said this, Chris bent down, adjusted his stance, and lifted Ash in a princess carry.

“I’ll bring you some fever reducer in a bit.”

Ignoring whatever Ash’s cherry lips were muttering, Chris carried her quickly but steadily into the room.

Ash’s body was as light as a feather, yet so hot that it made his heart clench.

Chris carefully placed Ash on the bed, his movements as gentle as if handling a fragile treasure.

Ash’s cheeks had an unnatural flush, and her brows were slightly furrowed, as if she couldn’t rest peacefully even in sleep.

Another nightmare?

“Don’t be afraid, Ash. Whether you fall into water or are trapped anywhere, I will save you… Please forgive me for what happened five years ago. I won’t let that happen again.”

Chris comforted her softly. He pulled over the blanket, carefully tucked it around Ash, and smoothed the edges to make sure no cold air could seep in.

He turned to pour a glass of warm water, found the fever medicine from the first aid kit, and sat gently by the bed.

He called her lowly:

“Wake up. Take the medicine first, then sleep.”

“…Oh…”

Half-asleep, Ash was helped up by Chris and obediently opened her mouth to take the pill.

She also tilted her head and drank a few sips of water from the cup in Chris’s hand.

Her movements were clumsy, but clumsily cute. Water droplets slid from the corner of her mouth, and Chris quickly wiped them away with his fingertip, natural and careful.

“Don’t choke,” Chris said, watching Ash swallow the medicine, then slowly laid her down and fixed the blanket again.

He also brought a towel and gently placed it on Ash’s forehead to cool her down.

Now, everything’s taken care of.

Chris thought, glanced at the time, it was already almost 8 o’clock.

He turned off the light and quietly closed the door, but soon he came back, holding a piece of bread. He flipped on the small desk lamp and sat by Ash’s bed.

He kept watch over Ash while eating a simple dinner.

“I’d wanted you to try my sandwiches,” Chris muttered, taking a bite of bread.

“Rest well, I’ll make them for you next time… Sleep now, have sweet dreams. I’ll never abandon you, Ash.”

Ash fell asleep, and her fever gradually subsided. Looking at her peaceful sleeping expression, it seemed she wasn’t having nightmares.

Chris took out Ash’s medical records and studied the doctor’s report once again.

How much in this report was concealed?

Ash’s mental problems probably weren’t just from war PTSD.

If Ash’s unintentional mutterings were correct, then was this “Rainbow” unit conducting biomimetic experiments on humans?

Could Ash recover?

Even if she couldn’t go back to how she was, at least as long as she could be happy and not tormented by nightmares.

Chris asked himself these questions in his heart, and answered them the same way.

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