Chapter 6

          Sulli heaved a sigh of relief when she saw the even rise and fall of Taemin’s chest – an indication that he was finally asleep. She had pulled up a chair and placed it beside Taemin’s king sized bed because she wanted to keep a very good eye on him. This was due to the fact that she knew that every time the boy gets sick, it’s always of the worst extent. The last time he had felt ‘under the weather’, he ended up fainting as he was being dragged off to the hospital and sleeping for three straight days.

          She was still very curious as to how and why the boy had gotten sick. She was trying to come up with hypotheses and theories, but she had been distracted from her contemplations when she took notice of Taemin stirring in his sleep. She looked down and took in the boy’s appearance; he had rolled onto his side [giving Sulli a rather good view of his face], his face was lightly flustered, and his hair was adorably dishevelled. She also noticed that he was slightly perspiring, so she decided to check his temperature by putting a hand to his forehead.

          She immediately pulled her hand back. ‘What the…?’ She wasn’t quite sure if she had felt correctly, so she decided to get a hold of the digital thermometer she spotted on the first-aid kid conveniently placed on Taemin’s bedside table. She ran it across the fidgeting boy’s forehead and saw that it read ’39.9° C’.

          “Nurse!” The nurse that had been assigned to take care of Taemin had been standing outside the room and stepped quietly inside. “Is something wrong?”

          “I think he has a fever, but maybe I’m just imagining things…” The nurse began to walk towards her as she said this, and when she reached Taemin’s side, Sulli handed her the thermometer. The woman’s eyes widened slightly upon seeing the reading, and she ran it across Taemin’s forehead again to make sure that the apparatus wasn’t broken.

          “You’re right, he does have a fever.” Sulli’s face fell when she heard this. “He’s experiencing much discomfort right now, but you don’t have to worry. At this temperature, it’s close to harmless. It would most likely last for 48 hours, but I’ll just have to cool him down a little.” The nurse smiled reassuringly at her as she said this, and Sulli was somewhat relieved.

          But her relief was short lived because she was caught by surprise when the nurse removed the thick blanket covering Taemin and began ing his shirt.

          “Um… May I ask what that—“ she gestured indistinctly at Taemin’s nearly unclothed upper body, “—is all for?” She could feel her face growing red.

          “Bundling can be dangerous when a person has a fever. He’s too covered up, so we have to keep the clothing kept to a minimum.” Sulli understood, but she wasn’t sure if she was paying full attention to the woman’s explanation because she was distracted by Taemin’s sudden movements. When all of the buttons of his night shirt were unfastened, he had instinctively moved to hurriedly remove the garment in his sleep— meaning he was now shirtless.

          "Ahem… would you mind handing me a thin blanket from one of the maids?”

          She hadn’t realized that she had been staring. The blush on her face grew even more, so she moved hastily out of the room to get the blanket so that the nurse wouldn’t see her red stained face. After a few minutes of searching for a maid, she returned with the blanket and she saw that the nurse was smiling amusedly down at Taemin.

          “What’s up?” Sulli was curious why the woman was looking at him like that and just had to ask as she handed her the blanket.

          "Your name is Sulli, right?" The middle aged woman had a knowing smile on her face and Sulli wasn't sure if she liked that smile or not.

          "Yes. Why do you ask?”

          “Oh, nothing.” The nurse still had that smile on her face as she looked at Sulli with amusement in her eyes. She would never tell the clueless girl that Taemin was calling for her in his sleep. He also mumbled a few words which sounded like ‘sarang’ and ‘hamnida’, but she wanted to let the girl figure things out for herself.

          Frankly, Sulli was feeling a bit uncomfortable with how the woman was looking at her so she decided to break the awkward silence with a slight cough, “So… will he be alright?”

          “Don’t worry, he’ll be fine. He just has to get some rest.” The nurse started packing up the medical supplies she had used on her patient and walked to the door. "I apologize, but I am being called by the hospital. I will be back in a few hours,". Before leaving, she turned around and said, “I placed some instructions and the medicine he’ll be needing on his bedside table.” And with a smile and a quick bow, she exited the room.

          Instructions?

          She walked over to Taemin’s bedside. Sure enough, there was a piece of paper and a few pills placed in a small bowl on the table. She decided to scan the piece of paper and the instructions left to her by the nurse.

Keep the room's temperature constant. Please avoid sudden temperature changes.

Easy enough.

Make him drink plenty of water.

Umhum.

Change the damp towel on his forehead periodically.

I can do that…

Give him the medicine provided with this note.

Yes ma’am.

If necessary, feed him. (please avoid solid foods).

Wait, what?

When he is well enough, it is encouraged that he take a cool bath. (Please aid him if he will have a hard time doing so.)

OH HELL NO.