Oriana was only further confused by his exaggerated reaction. Vincent had never tried to touch her more than was necessary. This was the first time he’d put his hands on her like this. It was so intimate, and she was so unaccustomed to having a boy touch her that she was flustered the entire time. On top of that, she was now pinned in place. It went without saying that she’d never lent her shoulder to a boy her age before.
“Sorry for making you worry, but um, I’m perfectly fine…so…”
Before Oriana could finish speaking, Vincent suddenly wrapped his arms around her.
“Huh…?”
Almost as soon as his arms snaked around her, they slipped away again. His entire body began to slip toward the ground. Apparently, he’d been trying to cling to her to keep from falling. Shocked, she completely forgot about the fact that she still had the lollipop stick in her hand and tried to catch him, but it was sudden, and his weight was too much for her to bear. Unable to withstand it, she collapsed onto her bottom with him landing face down in her lap.
“Ouch…”
“Everything okay?” Miguel asked as he hurried over. For whatever reason, he’d apparently given them some space. That explained why he hadn’t come to save her even though she’d been on the verge of dying from embarrassment.
Teary-eyed, Oriana glared at him. “Does this look okay to you?! Vincent? Vincent?!” Vincent was completely unconscious in her lap. When she finally got a good look at his face, it was bright red. His breathing was coming out in ragged gasps, too. She’d thought his blushing cheeks were merely a product of the sunlight, but now she realized he’d had a fever this whole time.
“What do we do?! Is he sick?!” Oriana shouted, panicking. For him to collapse out of nowhere like this, she could only guess it had to be something serious.
In contrast, Miguel didn’t seem at all worried. “He’s been pretty busy lately between his studies and research, so the exhaustion must’ve caught up with him. Sorry ’bout that. He must be heavy.” He dragged his friend out of her lap. Even though Vincent had been heavy enough that Oriana had no hope of moving him, Miguel managed to lift Vincent onto his back like it was nothing. Judging by the way Vincent’s entire body hung limply, he really was completely conked out.
“Guess I must’ve let him push himself too much,” Miguel said.
“Everyone always talks about how he’s a superhuman who’s never caught a cold before…”
“Instead of listening to ridiculous rumors, why not actually pay attention to the person who’s right in front of you?”
He’s absolutely right.
Miguel’s words were like a slap across the cheek. Miguel must have caught the gloomy look on her face because he raked a hand through his hair. “My bad. I was taking things out on you. The real person I’m pissed at is me, for taking his word for it that he was doing fine.”
“No, I should apologize. I know that Vincent’s only achieved what he has because he worked hard for it, and I still said something so insensitive…”
Vincent Tanzine was like anyone else; if he didn’t study, he couldn’t take first place, and if he worked himself to the bone, he’d catch a fever. Oriana had frequently caught fevers when she was little, giving her father endless grief. She had been lucky enough to get the opportunity to see that Vincent was a normal human being, but she had still said something so stupid. She was ashamed of herself.
Oriana dug into Vincent’s pocket and took out the key to the storehouse, stowing away the magical implement he’d been in the midst of using for his experiment. She also rolled up the paper he’d been studying so earnestly, and she and Miguel walked together toward the infirmary.
“He’s normally good about conserving his energy, but he got a little too fired up this time,” Miguel explained.
“Did something happen to cause that?”
“…He met you and had to go through his first real test.”
“Huh?” She quirked a brow at him.
Miguel kept his gaze focused straight ahead as he hauled Vincent along. “He wanted to look good for you, since you’re his new friend.”
“Look good? But he always looks good…”
“Well, when you come to check in on him later, be sure to tell him that.”
Oriana giggled and patted her chest. “Of course, leave it to me!” But as she listened to Vincent’s strained breathing, her brows furrowed. “If only I could visit the boys’ dorms to see him.”
“Why not? I’ll let you in.”
“What? You mean I can actually enter?”
Miguel grinned. “We’re on the second floor, but there’s a tree right by our window.”
“…Oh. You meant to sneak in, not get permission from a professor or the dorm head. And on top of that, you’re asking me to climb a tree?”
“Yup.” He nodded like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Oriana burst into laughter. “You know, it’s kinda funny how you treat me like I’m a guy. I’ve never had anyone tell me to climb a tree before.”
“You wouldn’t want to hang out with me if I treated you like a girl, right?” He paused for a moment before adding, “I like hanging out with the three of us—you, Vincent, and me.”
Even assuming he was merely joking around, it didn’t seem to be a total lie. They hadn’t really started talking to each other properly until about four months ago. The three of them hadn’t hung out much at all, but knowing that even such a short period had been special to him warmed Oriana’s heart.
“Thank you… It means a lot hearing you say that,” Oriana said, meeting Miguel’s gaze. She decided not to let her own embarrassment get the better of her this time and discourage her from saying what was on her mind. “I enjoy it being the three of us, too.”
In all honesty, they hadn’t spent enough time together for her to feel that way from the bottom of her heart, so she’d merely said it as a way of returning the gesture to him. But she was shocked by his reaction.
I can’t believe he’s smiling with such joy on his face.
Miguel was a hard person to read normally, but the way his eyes softened as he grinned, genuinely happy, made her stare in awe.