Suzy felt a strange tightness in her chest, her nose stinging faintly.

She looked straight into Thomas’ eyes, trying to tell whether he truly meant what he said or was simply saying it to comfort her.

His dark gaze was clear and steady.

He looked sincere. Completely sincere.

He meant every word. He truly did not want to make things difficult for her.

And the more he was like this, the more complicated her feelings became.

Maybe she really was not cut out to be this kind of person. She could not enjoy his gentleness the way she thought she would. Instead, all she felt was guilt.

After a long silence, Suzy finally leaned forward and wrapped her arms around him.

Thomas froze for a brief moment before pulling her into his embrace, holding her tightly, as if he wanted to press her into himself.

For a second, Suzy felt dazed.

She could not tell whether this tenderness came from who he truly was, or from the system’s binding rules.

"Suzy." He called her name softly.

"Mm?"

"Am I important to you?"

No matter what, he was the first person she had ever reached full favorability with. Of course he mattered.

She answered without hesitation. "You are."

Thomas let out a quiet laugh. Then he asked, "Even after he comes?"

It took Suzy a moment to realize he meant Derek.

"Of course," she answered.

Thomas slowly loosened his hold on her. "Then I’m relieved."

***

Suzy stayed in Thomas’s room that night.

The next day, she slept until the afternoon.

Thomas stepped out of his room around noon and ran straight into Leonard.

The man looked at him with a rather strange expression.

"Where’s Suzy?"

"She’s still sleeping."

Leonard frowned. "Can you show some restraint? Suzy’s not in great health, you know that!"

The apartment had good soundproofing, so he had not heard anything the night before.

But when he tried to wake Suzy for breakfast that morning, there had been no response from her room.

The place was not big. It did not take much imagination to figure out where she had gone.

"I will next time," Thomas said, nodding.

"...Tch."

The more Leonard looked at him now, the more irritated he felt.

"The moment the place across the hall is ready, you’re moving out. Immediately."

***

Thirteenth floor, Liam’s apartment.

The doors and windows were shut tight. The room was dim, filled with the distant howl of wind and the rumble of thunder outside.

The two brothers sat at the table, a single candle burning between them.

Its flickering light cast shifting shadows across their similar faces. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

"Let’s eat," Liam said, picking up his spoon.

In front of each of them was a bowl of plain white porridge, still steaming, and a single opened can of fish.

It was not much, but compared to those who had nothing at all, it was already a small blessing.

At least they still had food.

Across from him, Noah looked pale, his illness having taken visible weight from him.

At Liam’s words, he gave a faint nod. "Mm."

He lifted his spoon, scooped up a mouthful of porridge, and brought it to his lips.

Liam watched him with quiet concern and placed a piece of fish into his bowl.

"Eat a little more. When I’m not home, have you even been eating properly?"

"I have," Noah murmured in defense.

He picked up the fish Liam had given him and moved to take a bite, but the sharp, fishy smell hit him the moment it reached his nose.

"Ugh—"

He abruptly dropped the spoon and clutched the table, retching.

"Cough... ugh... mm..."

His stomach was empty. There was almost nothing to bring up, only the bland porridge he had just swallowed.

"Noah!"

Liam shot to his feet, his chair scraping harshly before toppling over with a loud crash.

He rushed to his brother’s side, gently patting his thin back.

"Are you still feeling sick?"

Noah finally lifted his head, eyes damp, lashes clinging together with tears. He looked fragile, almost pitiful.

"Brother... I feel awful."

Seeing him like this, Liam’s chest tightened painfully.

Noah was his little brother, his only remaining family in this world. Watching him suffer like this was unbearable.

"Then don’t eat for now. Go rest in your room," Liam said softly.

Noah gave a weak nod. "Alright."

The nausea had barely subsided. Liam carefully lifted him into his arms and carried him back to his room.

Only then did he realize just how light Noah had become.

Much lighter than when they first arrived at Starlight Towers.

"When I’m not home, you’re not eating properly, are you? Otherwise, how did you lose this much weight?" Liam frowned.

Noah leaned weakly against him. "I can’t eat."

He had tried, but never much.

Ever since he fell ill, he had no appetite for anything. All he wanted was to lie in bed and not move.

Only after Liam came back did his appetite improve a little.

After laying him down, Liam pulled the blanket over him and pressed a hand to his forehead.

"The fever’s starting to go down. The medicine is working. Rest for a bit. I’ll go find you something you can actually eat," Liam said gently.

"...Mm."

Liam stood and left the room.

Not long after they moved into Starlight Towers, Noah had fallen sick.

They had plenty of food stocked, but no medicine. That was why Liam had no choice but to go out with Wendy to search for supplies.

He went into the spare room and began rummaging through their supplies.

There was a decent amount of food, enough to last them a while if they rationed it.

After searching for some time, he finally found a packet of oats.

This should be easier for Noah to stomach, he thought.

Liam tore it open, then went to the kitchen and boiled water on a portable stove, preparing a warm bowl of oatmeal.

He carried it carefully back to the bedroom.

When he pushed the door open, Noah was lying quietly on the bed, already asleep.

"I made you some oatmeal," Liam said, almost whispering.

At the sound of his voice, Noah slowly opened his eyes.

He was hungry.

The faint, sweet scent of oats drifted through the air, stirring a quiet ache in his empty stomach.

Noah braced himself against the edge of the bed and sat up, taking the bowl from Liam. The oats had softened into a warm, steaming mash, easy to swallow at a glance.

"Careful, it’s hot," Liam warned, sitting beside him, his eyes fixed on him without blinking.

Noah scooped up a small spoonful, blew on it, and brought it to his lips.

Sweet and soft, far easier to stomach than plain porridge. He swallowed, then gave Liam a faint smile. "It’s good."

Relief loosened something in Liam’s chest. He was just about to speak when Noah’s expression suddenly changed.

Noah clapped a hand over his mouth, shoved the bowl back into Liam’s hands, and doubled over the side of the bed as he began to retch violently.

Everything he had just eaten, along with sour bile from his empty stomach, came rushing back up.

"Ugh... cough—"

His body trembled with the force of it, his thin shoulders heaving.

Liam held the bowl in one hand and gently patted his back with the other, his heart twisting painfully.

"It’s okay. It’s okay. Just let it out," he murmured hoarsely, though his voice trembled.

Noah retched for a long while before it finally subsided. He slumped weakly against the headboard, his face frighteningly pale.

"Liam..." His voice was barely more than a whisper. "Am I... not going to get better?"

"Don’t talk nonsense." Liam frowned sharply, setting the bowl aside and gripping his hand. "You’re just sick. Once you take the medicine, you’ll recover. Your fever’s already going down, isn’t it?"

Noah blinked, but said nothing.

Liam ruffled his hair gently. "Be good. Lie down and rest. I’ll figure something out."

In front of him, Liam forced down the rising panic in his chest.

He didn’t understand.

He couldn’t understand why something as simple as a fever had turned into this.

Noah had always been healthy. Even though he was young, he exercised regularly and rarely got sick.

Liam had thought that once he took the fever medicine, he would recover quickly.

But judging from his current condition, it clearly wasn’t that simple.

What went wrong?