Chapter 33: Staying the Night

Chapter 33: Chapter 33: Staying the Night

Nicole fell asleep not long after that.

I could tell because the study had gone completely quiet. The occasional rustle of paper was the only sound left whenever I moved on to another problem.

I glanced over at her.

Her breathing had slowed, and she looked completely comfortable under the blanket, like she’d been sleeping there for years.

Apparently, telling her to close her eyes had been all it took.

I shook my head and went back to the materials.

The next couple of hours passed without much happening. I worked through the problems one by one, checking the solutions and making notes wherever I found something that needed to be changed. A few of them were more complicated than I expected, but nothing I couldn’t handle.

Every so often, I’d get up from the desk and walk over to Nicole. I’d place the back of my palm against her forehead to check her temperature, then head back to the desk once I was satisfied she was still doing fine.

By the time I finished reviewing most of the material, almost three hours had passed.

A quiet knock came from the door.

I looked up.

The door opened slowly, and Chloe peeked inside before stepping into the room.

"Finally." She walked toward me with a relieved look on her face. "I’ve been looking for this study for ten whole minutes—"

I immediately raised a finger to my lips, the universal symbol for ’shush. Stop talking’.

Chloe stopped mid-sentence.

I pointed toward the couch.

Her eyes followed my finger, and the moment she saw Nicole sleeping peacefully under the blanket, her expression softened.

She lowered her voice to barely a whisper.

"Aw. She’s so cute."

I smiled faintly and stood up.

"Come on."

Chloe nodded, and I walked with her out of the study, pulling the door mostly closed behind us so we wouldn’t disturb Nicole.

Once we were outside, Chloe turned toward me. "I’m about to head home. I came to get your car keys."

"Already?"

"It’s getting pretty late, and it’s over thirty minutes back to our place from here."

I pulled out my phone and checked the time.

7:03 PM.

"Oh." I slipped my phone back into my pocket. "Just give me five minutes to finish up, and we’ll go home together."

She gave me a small look, then glanced toward the closed study door. "And who’s going to take care of her?"

I paused.

She had a point.

I looked back at the closed study door. Nicole was still asleep, and leaving her here alone suddenly didn’t feel like a great idea.

Then I looked at Chloe. "You’re saying I should spend the night."

Chloe nodded like the answer was obvious. "Obviously. She’s sick. Besides, she’s your..." She paused just long enough to make the word feel deliberate. "...friend."

I stared at her. "Very funny."

Chloe grinned. "Keys." She held out her hand.

I sighed and pulled my car keys from my pocket before placing them in her palm. "Be careful on the way home."

"I will." She closed her fingers around the keys. "I’ll text you once I get home."

"Okay."

Chloe turned and started walking toward the stairs, and I watched her go for a moment before turning back toward the study.

I opened the door and stepped inside, closing it quietly behind me.

I made it a few steps toward the desk before stopping.

My eyes drifted toward the couch.

Nicole was still asleep, curled up comfortably beneath the blanket, her face relaxed and peaceful.

I stood there for a moment, just watching her. Then I walked over to the couch and leaned down beside her.

I raised the back of my hand and gently pressed it against her forehead, checking her temperature.

Her forehead didn’t feel hot anymore. It wasn’t exactly warm either, which was probably a good sign. The medicine seemed to be doing its job. Maybe she’d taken it just in time, before the fever had a chance to climb any higher.

—

I went back to the desk and resumed my work.

There was still quite a bit left to review, and the remaining problems took more time than I expected. By the time I finished the last few pages, I knew there was no way I’d be able to get through the rest of the material tonight. Some of it would have to wait until tomorrow, like Nicole had said.

I leaned back in the chair and stretched, rolling my shoulders before standing up.

I was starting to get thirsty.

I left the study and headed downstairs to get some water. After filling a glass in the kitchen, I made my way back upstairs and returned to the study.

I opened the door and stepped inside—

Nicole was already sitting up on the couch.

She turned toward me as soon as she heard the door open, her eyes settling on me with an expression that looked more stunned than anything else.

I stopped near the doorway.

"You’re up. How are you feeling?"

Nicole stared at me for another moment before looking around the room. Then she looked back at me.

"What time is it?"

I pulled out my phone and checked the screen. "Eight seventeen."

Her eyes widened slightly. "You didn’t go home?"

I walked over to the couch.

"Yeah. Figured someone had to take care of you."

Nicole’s eyes brightened. "You stayed to take care of me."

"Don’t read into it."

She smiled. "I’ll try not to."

She glanced toward the door. "What about Chloe?"

"She went home a while ago. She took my car."

Nicole nodded. "Okay."

I stopped beside the couch and raised the back of my hand to her forehead again, checking her temperature.

Nicole’s cheeks turned slightly pink, but she didn’t say anything.

I kept my hand there for another second. Her forehead felt noticeably cooler than before.

I looked at her for a moment, then nodded more to myself than to her. "Much better."

I finally pulled my hand away. "Go freshen up. I’ll make dinner."

Nicole blinked at me, genuine surprise in her voice. "You cook?"

"I’m a student who lives alone. Of course I cook."

She smiled at that, letting out a soft giggle.

I stood up and started toward the door, already thinking about what I could make with whatever she had in the kitchen.

"Wait."

I looked back at her.

"I’m not... really hungry."

I gave her a flat stare. "You didn’t eat much earlier. I saw."

Nicole looked at me for a moment, then gave a small nod. "Okay."

—

I went downstairs and started looking through the kitchen.

Nicole’s kitchen was stocked with pretty much everything I could have needed, so finding something to make wasn’t exactly difficult. I settled on something simple and easy to eat, making creamy mashed potatoes with soft scrambled eggs and a small portion of steamed vegetables. I kept everything mild, knowing she probably still wouldn’t have much of an appetite after being sick all day.

It didn’t take too long to put everything together.

Once it was ready, I served two bowls and carried them to the dining table.

By the time I finished setting everything out, Nicole had come downstairs. She’d changed out of the orange pajama set she’d been wearing earlier and into a dark blue satin set with a button-up shirt and matching pants, complete with a fresh pair of plush memory-foam scuffs that definitely weren’t the ones she’d had on before.

She sat across from me as I placed her bowl in front of her.

"Eat slowly."

Nicole looked down at the food, then back at me. "You really made all this?"

"It’s dinner, Nicole."

She smiled. "I know. I’m just surprised."

I sat down and picked up my phone.

Nicole took a small spoonful and tasted it. She paused for a moment, then muttered under her breath, "My man can cook."

I looked up. "Huh?"

She immediately shook her head. "Nothing."

I stared at her for a second, but she was already taking another spoonful, looking completely innocent.

I shook my head and went back to my phone, scrolling through the department’s group chat as I ate.

After a few seconds, Nicole spoke casually.

"Your birthday’s coming up."

"It’s still a month away," I replied without looking up.

I paused. My thumb stopped moving, and I slowly lowered my phone before looking across the table at her.

She was still eating like she hadn’t just casually brought up my birthday a month in advance.

I stared at her for a moment. "You’re abusing your power, you know."

Nicole blinked at me innocently. "Am I? I didn’t realize."

For some reason, I suddenly wished I had a fry to toss at her, just like I did Jackson.

I looked at her for a moment, and despite everything, I couldn’t help smiling. She genuinely looked content, happily eating her dinner like there was nothing strange about any of this.

I shook my head and went back to my phone, scrolling through my feed while I continued eating.