She woke to heat, a hot stifling type of heat. She sat up, threw off the covers and breathed deep as the cool air of the night flowed over her hot skin. 

“Easy, Jisoo, take it easy.”

“Hot. So hot,” she muttered, flopping back on the mattress. She kicked the bedding off her legs, trying to cool down yet again. A warm hand touched her forehead. 

She twisted away from him. “I’m hot, don’t add your hot hand to my head,” she cried. “Why is it so hot?” 

In the background she could hear someone whisper, “.” 

She didn’t know what his problem was. She was the one who was hot. Then she realized she wasn’t alone. “Are you hot too?” She turned feverish eyes to Suho and studied him. He looked normal. But then normal for him was hot. “No. You’re already hot. It can’t be bothering you.” 

He frowned. “What?” 

“Why are you so hot?” she cried. “I’m hot too but not hot like you are.” 

He shook his head. 

She frowned up at him. “Of course you’re hot,” she snapped as she rolled over onto her stomach and stretched out across the whole mattress. “That’s better.” 

“What’s better?” Suho asked beside her. 

“This waterbed. It’s much cooler.” 

Then he touched her feet. She screeched in pain, flipped over onto her back and burst into tears. “Why are they burning? They are on fire. Why? Can’t you put the fire out,” she pleaded with him. 

“I will. You stay here and I’ll get water.” 

“Water. Yes. Water. It would put out the flames,” she cried. “Hurry.” 

She twisted in pain, her knees bending and straightening as the throbbing wouldn’t stop. 

She whimpered, but it caught in the back of and ended up sounding like a gurgle. She half laughed. “That sounded bad. I’m not sick. I’m just so hot.” 

“You’re running a fever,” said a grim voice beside her. 

She opened her eyes and shrieked. Suho was leaning over her, his face close to hers, his gaze locked on her, cataloguing her features. 

“Water,” she asked when she could. “I’m so thirsty.” 

“Here.” He reached an arm under her shoulders and helped her to sit up. Holding the glass to her lips, she drank greedily. When the glass was empty, she sank back to the pillows, tugging the covers up to hide the bare skin her underwear didn’t cover. Then immediately, threw the covers off again. It was too hot. 

“Sorry,” she whispered. 

“Really,” he said, a smile in his voice. “What are you sorry about?” 

“I got sick. You don’t need that.” 

“Well, at least you got sick at the right time. You’ll be taken out of here and get medical help within a few hours. Now if you’d been so inclined as to have gotten sick earlier, well that’s a different story. But we’re safe right now.” 

She gave him the briefest of smiles, appreciating his sense of humor. 

“However, I have to clean your feet again,” he said. “So I’m going to retrieve the stuff I need then I’ll be back.” 

“And I won’t be here,” she muttered. “I don’t want anyone to touch them.” 

“They are the reason for the fever, so it doesn’t matter what you want,” he said, his voice hard. Determined.