I woke up from my own dry cough and the fact that I was shivering with cold. It was still dark when I opened my eyes and at first I was so irritated that I didn't even know where I was. Only gradually the memories of the previous day returned. Chishiya had taken me in and now I was in his temporary flat sleeping on the floor. Once again I coughed in agony. My throat was burning and dry as desert sand. I turned a little to the other side and considered getting up to get one of the water bottles. On the other hand, it was pitch dark and I didn't want to wake Chishiya. I straightened up a little and, after some deliberation, rose anyway. Half blind, I groped my way to the middle of the room. When something crashed loudly on the floor, I flinched in panic.

Suddenly the light came on and I held my hands over my eyes, blinded.

"What the hell are you doing in the middle of the night?" groaned Chishiya.

I lowered my hands and saw that I had knocked over an empty glass bottle that had been on the table. At least it hadn't been broken on impact. A little uncomfortably touched, I picked it up and then looked at him sheepishly.

"I was just thirsty," I murmured apologetically. As I did so, I realised that my voice sounded as brittle as a grater. I cleared my throat a little and then hesitantly reached for a water bottle. Since Chishiya didn't say anything, I took that as agreement.

"Next time you need something, use the light switch," he just grumbled quietly to himself and waited until I was back in my seat before flicking the light off again.

The water was a relief, but the burning in my throat didn't disappear and the cold feeling inside me became more unbearable every time. I huddled into a ball and tried to think warm thoughts, but it was no use. And the coughing also became more agonising with each passing minute.

I heard Chishiya sigh again.

"Could you perhaps die a little quieter?" he asked somewhat coolly.

I did not respond as I was not in a joking mood at the moment. My pulse was noticeably elevated and I felt like I could hardly breathe properly.

When something touched my shoulder, I winced violently. Chishiya was squatting with a torch right next to me when I looked up at him.

"You seem to be in a pretty bad condition. Are you cold?" he asked with an unusual seriousness in his voice.

I just nodded silently, still a little startled by his sudden appearance. Chishiya raised his hand and put it on my forehead.

"As I thought, you have a fever. Any other symptoms besides the dry cough?"

"My pulse is quite high and it hurts when I breathe in," I explained quietly.

"I see. Can you maybe sit down for a minute?"

Hesitantly, I sat up while shivering clutching my body.

"Clear your back and sit up straight," he instructed me in a neutral tone. I stared at him somewhat incredulously.

He raised his hands defensively.

"I'm just going to listen to your lungs for a moment, okay? No need to panic."

"Okay," I whispered, still a little sceptical. Chishiya then went to the light switch to brighten the room. Meanwhile, I pulled my shirt over my head but in a way only my back was exposed.

Chishiya knelt behind me.

"When I say now, please breathe in and out with your mouth open, understand?"

I nodded in understanding.

A moment later, I felt Chishiya press his head firmly against my back. A violent fluttering instantly spread through the area of my stomach.

"Now," he said. I had almost forgotten I was supposed to be breathing again, so nervous i had been about his sudden physical closeness to me.

He changed position several times and I felt exactly how he pressed his ear against my skin, hoping he wouldn't do the same to my breast. That would be too much for sure.

"So?", I asked when he had apparently finished listening to my lung sounds.

"Hmm, seems to be just mild pneumonia. Have you had any colds lately?"

"Yeah, but just a slight one," I said, pulling my shirt back on.

"You probably caught it anyway. It can happen in mentally stressful situations, for example." To my surprise, his usually arrogant tone was suddenly wiped away. "It would be best if you took antibiotics to prevent it from getting worse, but since I don't have any here, you'll have to wait until tomorrow."

He stood up and opened a cupboard where he pulled out a small rectangular package. He pulled out the blister and handed it to me.

"In the meantime, take one or two paracetamol to bring down the fever. Then we'll see."

Somewhat hesitantly, I took the tablets.

"Are you...a doctor or something?", I asked a little perplexed.

"Medical student. I used to be anyway."

I nodded in embarrassment. That was certainly the last thing I would have expected Chishiya to be.

"This seems to surprise you," he retorted, now increasingly amused again.

"More than you think," I said, squeezing a tablet from the blister. I swallowed it along with some water.

"Better take two. Just in case."

"But...I can't. I mean what if you ever need them?"

He shrugged his shoulders.

"Hasn't happened yet, and besides, I know where to find more of them," he explained unconcernedly. Then he lay back down and turned out the light. "If you need anything, just ask and stop pretending everything is fine," he replied in a brash voice.

"I promised not to be a burden to you, but now I am," I mumbled apologetically.

Chishiya sighed softly.

"Yes, but I knew that in advance."

I coughed again and groaned in pain. After a while I noticed how at least my chills were slowly going away, but the other symptoms were not alleviated by the tablets and so I suffered until the early hours of the morning. Only when it slowly became bright outside I fell asleep from exhaustion.

When I opened my eyes again and tried to move, I noticed that my limbs hurt like hell. The tablets seemed to have finally lost their effect and the illness had me completely in its grip. Unlike before, however, I was hot and sweating from every pore. I pushed the blanket off me and turned around, but Chishiya no longer seemed to be in bed. I couldn't see him anywhere else either. However, when I heard the sound of water coming from the bathroom, it calmed me down. For a moment I thought he had left me alone in here. I reached for my water bottle and quenched my thirst before slowly sitting up. Every little movement hurt and I felt exhausted and tired despite my sleep. To make matters worse, my head hurt too. Could it actually get any worse? Why did I, of all people, have to get sick in an apocalyptic world where it was all about being as physically fit as possible in order to survive? Maybe my lucky streak ended here and now and I would die mercilessly in the next game, and all because I had caught a damn pneumonia.

The sound of the door handle made me pause for a moment. The door to the bathroom opened and Chishiya came out dressed in a thin dressing gown with a traditional Japanese wave pattern. His hair was still a little damp and a towel lay on his shoulders. I stared at him like a living work of art. Why did he always have to look so outrageously handsome? Why? That should be forbidden...especially in Borderland. He was a distracting distraction from the important things.

When he noticed that I was watching him silently, he grinned smugly at me.

"Man, you really look awful."

As if my self-esteem wasn't tarnished enough because of his mere presence, of course he had to top it off, this arrogant snoot.

"That's exactly how I feel. But thank you for the flattering words."

Even for a glib reply, I was far too weak today. I ran my hands through my curly hair to tidy it, but quickly realised that there was little point, because at the moment it looked more like a tangled bird's nest. I was probably going to be forced to wash it today, assuming I was physically able.

"Take two more of the paracetamol," he instructed me as he took a packet of rice from the cupboard in the kitchen and filled it into a pot with water.

Even though I felt a bit guilty, I reached for the blister again and threw in two more tablets.

"Do you need help?", I asked, inwardly hoping he would say no.

"Just stay where you are," he replied coldly.

I didn't answer, but instead lay back down while I watched Chishiya make breakfast for us. I had to admit that it made him even more attractive when he prepared food. He managed to look incredibly cool and daring even when doing something so mundane. I gave a little sigh of relief. Probably the illness had done some damage to my brain as well. I buried my face in my pillow, ashamed.

With my current appearance, Chishiya would probably never think I was pretty and desirable. Besides, so far he didn't give the impression of being particularly interested in women...or men...or anyone at all. It was hard to believe that Chishiya was a medical student. After all, he was mainly interested in himself and the well-being of others seemed to be of little concern to him. Nevertheless, he had strangely helped me last night, which in retrospect was more than surprising.

Chishiya put the finished meal on a tray and came to the table with it. He put two bowls down for each of us. To be honest, I had absolutely no appetite, but at least I was a little hungry.

"What are you waiting for?" he asked. Hesitantly, I got up and sat down on one of the floor cushions. Chishiya took a seat opposite me again.

"This looks good," I praised him because it was true. In one bowl was rice with some sautéed vegetables and mushrooms, in the other miso soup with cubes of tofu. "Where did you get all those vegetables?", I asked curiously.

"Gathered," he explained curtly. "I read up on what mushrooms and wild herbs are edible."

I had to admit that I was usually rather sceptical about home-gathered mushrooms, but since Chishiya seemed to know what he was doing, I hesitantly picked up a little with the chopsticks.

"Are you afraid I might poison you?" he asked in his usual smug tone. I felt a little caught.

Chishiya reached for his own bowl and I watched silently as he popped one of the mushrooms into his mouth. Only then did I get brave enough to try some as well.

"I thought you would trust me more after the last game," he said almost casually. For the moment, I didn't know what to say.

"Then what happened to Ippei? Why was he killed if you are so trustworthy?", I wanted to know, pointing the chopsticks menacingly in his direction.

"Why was Ayumi killed?" he asked, completely composed, looking at me piercingly. I choked on my rice and coughed up strained. "You don't know, do you? I guess Ippei lost his nerve. He was too good a person for a brutal game like this. Maybe it was the same with Ayumi."

I had to admit that what he said made sense.

"I'm sorry," I muttered. "I didn't mean to..."

"I understand why it's hard to trust me. At the Beach, I often made selfish decisions without regard for others."

I looked up, clearly surprised at his honest confession.

"It's okay. You don't have to justify yourself to me. Each of us has made selfish choices since we've been here. Because each of us wants to go on living somehow."

Chishiya looked at me thoughtfully, but it almost seemed as if he was looking right through me. Then he began to eat on without giving me any answer. For a while we ate our food in silence. The warm miso soup was a relief for my throat. Afterwards, I actually felt a little better than before.

"How old are you, Chishiya?", I asked to break our silence and also because I was interested. He gave me a brief disdainful look in response.

"Trust me, it's better if we know as little about each other as possible," he said, then set his bowl aside. I had to admit that I hadn't expected such a response.

"Um well...", I said, not feeling like disagreeing.

"I'll go out after breakfast and try to find some more supplies. With some luck, I'll find antibiotics and cough suppressants too."

I looked up a little surprised as he rose from the table and began clearing away the dishes.

"This means...you're leaving me alone here?", I asked uncertainly.

"I don't think I can take you with me in your current state. You'd just be a burden to me."

I knew he was right, but still I wasn't really comfortable with the thought of him walking out and leaving me here in my misery. Besides, it was not entirely safe outside since the King of Spades could appear anywhere at any time. Chishiya moved away from the table and put the dishes in the sink.

"I'll be on my way in a minute."

He took off his dressing gown and exchanged it for a longer white and grey mottled cardigan. Then he grabbed a rucksack and started packing a few useful things together.

Finally, he went to the slider on his bedside table and opened it. He took something out. A pistol.

"You have a gun?", I asked, a little surprised.

Chishiya looked at me and just smiled meaningfully.

"It's better to be prepared for anything," he said, tucking it into his waistband.

Then he shouldered his backpack and headed for the door. "Don't do anything stupid or reckless while I'm gone, okay?"

I pushed out my bottom lip a little indignantly.

"No, why would i?"

Chishiya just raised his eyebrows in reply and then turned to the door to unlock it.

"See you later," he said with a final sideways glance. I hesitated for a moment.

"Take care...please, okay?", I said a little indecisively before he let the door fall into the lock.