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***Alexei's POV***

"Are you okay?" I rush to Sebastian as he stumbles on the red carpet. Pushing the cameras away, I try to cover my bestfriend.

"I'm okay." Sebastian heaves a grunt out as he attempts to stand. Immediately, he collapses exactly the same as before. I am concerned as I watch Seb's arms shake while he puts his weight on them to try to get himself vertical once again.

"Stay down." I whisper softly. I can see the concern in Sebastian's eyes. I try desperately not to let the panic out that is begging to be screamed into the open air.

"Sandy, get the medical team to Mr. Royals room ASAP." I speak lowly into the phone as I usher Sebastian's bodyguards to help me get him out of bird's eye view of the cameras.

"Mr. Royals, are you okay?" Charlie assesses the situation before accepting a head nod from Sebastian. Charlie quickly picks Seb up, walking towards the exit barriers.

"What happened?" I frantically question my client, who is also my best friend.

"I haven't eaten." Seb looks at me with questioning eyes.

"Since when?" Suspicion is clear in my tone. Sebastian is on a strict diet to compensate for the long hours he spends in the gym.

"I skipped a snack?" Sebastian shrugs his shoulders with a groan.

"Hate it for you, but you are not hypoglycemic. This seems a bit drastic for skipping a protein bar." I talk while opening the door to the hotel room. I lead the way for Charlie to get Sebastian into bed, behind closed doors.

"I haven't been feeling well." Seb softly admits with a shrug of his shoulder. I quirk an eyebrow at my friend. This is the first I have heard of his less than par health.

"The doctor will be here in five minutes. You rest. There is no need to explain it twice. I will listen in." I turn the lights down after ushering the rest of our team out of the room. We do not need too many people in the know about this. The more people who have information, the bigger the chances of TMZ finding out details we aren't willing to release.

I meet Dr. Kabul in the hall. I quickly run through the stunt that just transpired in front of too many witnesses. With a confirmation from the good old doctor, I follow him inside of the room to assess Seb.

"Mr. Royals, I apologize that we are meeting again under these circumstances. I just need a few minutes of your time. I will give you a quick once over. This could be as easy as that." Dr. Kabul puts in his pleasantries as his hands move to begin the triage.

Impatiently, I watch over the doctor while I make notes mentally of every single test he performs. After Seb's blood pressure, temp and heart rate are measured, I watch the doctor do a once over to his ears, nose and throat. Seb sits quietly, waiting for his cue to start talking.

"Everything seems okay. Start with how you are feeling. When did you begin to feel differently? Have you had any symptoms?" Dr. Kabul pulls out an audio recorder as he runs down his list of questions.

"A while." Seb looks at me with guilt ridden eyes. I won't say that I am not flabbergasted. We tell one another everything. I can confidently state that Sebastian has not told me he has been feeling under the weather.

"Okay. So exactly what have you felt like?" Dr. Kabul looks concerned as he focuses on Sebastian. Sebastian lets out a small huff before taking a large intake of breath.

"A couple of weeks ago, I fell in the shower. It wasn't a big deal at the time. I got a little light headed, the room began to spin and I lost my footing. I didn't think much of it. I ate a little bit before heading out to the gym. However, at the gym I felt worse. It seemed like each weight was heavier than normal. I figured I was slightly fatigued. My schedule has been hectic. I made a promise to get more rest. I assumed that would even the playing field." While Sebastian takes a moment to catch his breath, I watch his chest rise and fall in very short intervals.

"He has shortness of breath." I point out my observation to the medical professional. Dr. Kabul nods his head before placing his stethoscope up to Sebastian's lungs. I stay quiet so that the doctor can hear clearly.

"Has this been occurring often?" Dr. Kabul waits for Sebastian to confirm the finding before taking a note down on his pad. Sebastian's confirmation puts a small weight on my shoulders. How long has he felt bad? How come I did not notice?

"The other issues?" A raise of his eyebrow makes the doctor seem more interested and less likely to be escaping our presence in the near future.

"Every small movement ends with me feeling fatigued. No matter how long I sleep, I just feel tired. I have a hard time catching my breath and sometimes I just feel groggy. Everything, my joints, my skin and my muscles hurt. It is a dull ache. I also noticed a small amount of hair falling out. I cropped it shorter this time, but it is still noticeable. I really thought I was just over worked." Sebastian enlightens us to the struggles he has been putting up with. I feel so guilty that I continued to book more events, contracts and interviews for Seb while he was not feeling well.

"Have you noticed any unusual bruising, headaches or flu like symptoms?" Dr. Kabul seems to be running the gamut on a mental list that I am not a privy to. He can run the whole fucking medical dictionary as long as Sebastian feels better by the last page.

"Honestly, I am too tired to look for bruising that I am unaware of. I just feel like shit. I feel like complete shit." Seb pushes his head into the pillow as he closes his eyes. My mind reels with the revelation that Sebastian actually looks sick. I know he wears make-up during shoots but, I am completely appalled that it has taken me this long to notice just how ill my best friend looks.

"I am being completely transparent here, this could be anything. The only way for me to make a diagnosis or a prognosis is to run a battery of tests. This is going to take time. I would suggest touching base with anyone you have an appointment set up for. I am going to need to make Sebastian's health a priority. There is no sense in risking a more serious outcome by not being proactive." Dr. Kabul's comment is directed at me. I immediately nod my head in agreement. All the contracts can burn in hell. I don't give a dirty rat's ass who likes it or who doesn't. My only loyalty is to Sebastian.

"Go ahead and cancel his appearance tonight. I will meet you at my office in an hour. If you do not want this to spread to the media like a wildfire, I suggest you simply say that Sebastian is suffering from mild symptoms of the flu. Please note, I am not making an official diagnosis. This is for publicity reasons alone. I will see you in one hour." Dr. Kabul pats Sebastian's hand before standing from the bed.

I walk the good doctor to the door as he reminds me quietly of our meeting. It has only been a short minute, I am unlikely to forget. However, I thank the man before shaking his hand. Once Dr. Kabul is out of sight, I start throwing directions to the few people that are available around us. Sandy takes the lead on cancelling bookings while Charlie helps me to change Seb. I get myself out of the tuxedo I am wearing before slipping on a set of black sweats. Sebastian grabs his ball cap and shoves his hoodie over his head before Charlie hands Seb some glasses. With the okay coming down from Aaron, our driver, we take the private elevator to the basement so we can make our exit away from the over-populated event.

Sebastian quietly stares out of the window of the limo as we pass traffic light after traffic light. The office is a twenty minute drive from the premier. Thankfully, Dr. Kabul just happened to be at the event. If this was any other time, I would have been better off calling an ambulance for medical treatment. It pays to be fortunate. Sebastian needs the extra pull in order to get through this small ordeal as quickly and painlessly as possible.

"Are we almost there?" Seb groans while pressing his thumbs against his temples.

"Yeah, almost. Are you okay? What hurts?" I give Seb a visual inspection before checking the route on my phone. The GPS says we are four minutes away. I hope that is acceptable.

"Dude, I can't explain it. I feel tired. I just want to sleep. Everything fucking hurts." Sebastian winces as he shifts positions in his seat. The unfamiliar feeling of fear nearly knocks my breath away when I see a single tear leak from the corner of Seb's eye.

Without a word, I move towards Sebastian. His head falls onto my shoulder while my hand wraps around his frame. Seb leans into me without speaking at all. I shoot a silent prayer to the gods above that this is fatigue, the flu or some shit like that.

Pulling around to the secret back entrance, I let Charlie take the brunt of Seb's weight onto his frame. I could have handled it, I just don't want a reminder of what I have just noticed. Seb is losing weight. He has a hard time keeping weight on but, this is different. His muscles seem to be less firm. I am beginning to think that this is a bit more serious than Sebastian has eluded to.

Seeing Dr. Kabul again seems like a dream. I smile at the man who holds my best friend's fate in his hands. The nurses take over as they guide Sebastian into a wheel chair. I have never been so scared in all of my life. The way Sebastian willingly allows the nurses to position him is by far the most worrisome. Anyone that knows Seb can attest, this boy is self-reliant. If something needs to be done, Sebastian finds a way to do it. Seeing him concede to receiving help is alarming.

I am handed a stack of papers while Sebastian is wheeled away. I know better than to call Mrs. Angela. Seb would take my head if I worried his mama over something that has no grounds. I pull out my phone to start looking over my notes of all the medical history that I have available to me. Slowly, I start filling out the lines, one by one. When I see something that I am unsure of, I skip it. As long as I can fill in the majority, we can make alterations later.

My mind bounces between wondering about Sebastian's state and the medical questions I am answering. I get irritated when the past decides to rear its head, vying for my already divided attention. When Seb falling mercilessly to the red carpet makes an appearance, I angrily push my pen too hard into the paper, snapping the pen point off with a groan of annoyance.

"Here." Charlie softly grabs my attention while replacing the broken BIC with another just the same. Carefully, I go back to filling in the blanks. When the last sheet of paper stares at me, I smile briefly. That wasn't so bad.

With a long stretch, I relax my stiff muscles and head to the nurse's counter. She takes the charts away from me with a gentle smile. I watch as she begins to type all of the information in to the computer. I know it is going to be awhile, so I decide to walk away and give the lady some time to do her job.

Nothing is going to make this night go by quicker. I am just going to have to exercise patience, in the name of love. Believe me, this is not my strong suit.