Chapter 16

After I casually finished the soup, the man on the bed still hadn't opened his eyes. I wondered if he was truly asleep, but then, I keenly noticed that the tips of the man's ears were unusually red.

"How's the patient in Bed 36 feeling today? Has he taken his medications?" The doctor on his ward rounds glanced at Blake, whose eyelashes were obviously quivering. The doctor then turned to look at me by the bed.

"He hasn't taken his medications yet. He vomits as soon as he moves, and he doesn't have an appetite, either."

"So you left him be?"

"I—"

"Come on, quit pretending to sleep! Get up and have your family member feed you something easily digestible. You have to get the medicine down your throat!"

After the doctor was done with his rounds and exited the ward, the man on the bed slowly stirred at the perfect timing.

"Getting too comfortable with faking it, huh? Did you hear what the doctor said just now? I got some oatmeal porridge for you, so get up and eat some!"

"Alright…" When Blake saw the smile hiding in my eyes, he let out a fake cough.

"I'll help you up…"

"Wait… Urk…" It was too late.

After some hassle, the slightly cooled oatmeal porridge finally made its way into Blake's mouth.

It had been quite a bustling morning. After Blake took his medications, his boss and close buddies came over to visit him.

The sight of a group of burly men rushing into the ward was quite shocking. The old man with a heart condition in the next bed even swore at the sight.

It was only then that I learned about Blake's connections for real. As the saying went, birds of a feather would flock together, and outstanding people were no exception.

Most of the visitors worked in the same company as Blake, but I learned from their conversations that some of them were Blake's classmates in college. Some of them were alumni, and a few others were even Blake's best buddies in the same dorm in college.

I couldn't help but be amazed. When I was in college, I was only concerned about studying, but Blake and the others had already partnered up to found a company. It was no wonder that my mother kept saying that I couldn't compare to Blake!

Still, the most puzzling thing for me had to be Blake's close buddies, especially his boss. The men were extremely friendly around me, and they even had some sort of enthusiasm in their eyes.

I felt chills running down my spine when I realized that. I awkwardly answered some questions, but for the most part, I just stood by and looked pretty. I had to endure the gazes from the men who looked at me like I was some rare species.

"Enough! Don't you guys have work to do? Get out! I know you guys didn't come here to see me!"

I thought that if Blake wasn't covered in bandages, the latter only needed a cigarette to complete the tall and domineering CEO look. Well, at least he did have the height.

"Hey, look, Blay is defending him!" A casually clothed man with a buzz cut spoke up. He was the biggest man of them all, and judging by his accent, he probably came from another state.

"Come on, don't put it like that. After so many years, wouldn't you do the same if you were him?" A comparatively reserved-looking man retorted as he pushed the glasses on his nose.

"Alright, we've already met him, so it's time to get back to work. Get well soon!"

I recalled the men's introductions just now. The person speaking must be the boss of Blake's company. There were so many new faces that I couldn't quite remember them all.

"Sure. So, uh… kid, we'll be off now. Take good care of Blake, yeah?" The man patted Blake on the shoulder as he turned to speak to me. Then, the other visitors began to bid me goodbye as well.

"We'll be leaving now, uh… kiddo…"

"Na—I mean, lil' buddy…"

"Yeah, uh, kid…"

"We'll be off now…"

Why were those people behaving so weirdly? Their conversations with Blake were puzzling too, and there was also something off with how they greeted me. Was their company actually legit?

I only had my position to blame. We weren't that far apart in age, so I surmised that the men intended to treat me like one of their peers. However, thanks to my ties with Blake, they treated me as a younger kid instead.

I was beside myself with annoyance when I saw the wry smile on Blake's face.

"Nate, I think I need to go to the bathroom."

"I'll help you get there…"

I was about to help Blake up when the familiar background noise rang out just like clockwork.

"Urk…"

"Agh…"

"Ugh…"

I felt like it had gotten worse than it was this morning!

"Come on, kid! He's already in a bad enough shape! Stop helping him up! There's a urinal under the bed, so just take it and let him use it!"

"That's right, kid. Even if you help him up, he doesn't look like he can make it to the bathroom, anyway!"

I couldn't help but be stunned at the words coming from the old man, Walter Thompson, and the woman, Susan Brown. If Blake had to use the urinal, then I would have to… No! No way!

"What, you can't do it? Young people these days are so fussy. How are you going to take good care of the patient with that attitude? If you really can't do it, call someone older in your family to help!"

Perhaps because I was too nervous, I actually voiced my rejection, so the woman started lecturing me.

"Come on, kid, he's trying his best to hold it in right now! He suffered such a serious injury, too. How could you bear to—"

The word "injury" was a huge hit to me.

"Nate…"

I looked at Blake's face, which was flushed from the effort of holding it in. Gritting my teeth, I bent over to retrieve the urinal under the bed.

My trembling hand finally touched Blake's waistband. Then, I decisively bit the bullet. I managed to slide Blake's pants down to the latter's thighs without much difficulty.

However, I failed to notice that Blake, who had been retching just now, was cooperatively lifting his waist a little.

Looking at the flushed man, I let out a small sigh of relief. I grabbed the urinal and quickly stuffed it under the blanket.

After waiting for a while, I finally realized that something was off. The urinal in my left hand didn't seem to get any heavier, but the manhood in my right hand was getting hotter. It even showed signs of rising…

"Blake Wagner!" I was furious. I never thought that Blake would still do something so perverted under these circumstances.

Indignant tears quickly welled up in my eyes. I was about to retract my hand when I noticed the sprightly thing in my hand quickly losing its energy.

"I'm sorry, Nate! It's my fault for not keeping it under control. Hold on, I'll…"

Noticing the careful look in Blake's eyes, I decided not to retract my hand after all. I had the urge to just leave Blake be, but when I saw the still bloodied bandage on his forehead, I could only sigh. Then, I closed my eyes and waited.

This time, the urinal soon became heavier. With a hoarse voice, Blake said, "I'm done!"

I quickly took out the urinal and helped Blake put his pants back on with a flushed face.

Ignoring Blake's gaze that kept following me, I entered the bathroom to clean up. My face was bright red.

After cleaning everything up, I leaned over the sink and splashed some water on my face. I could see my red face in the mirror, and my rapid heartbeats pounded in my ears.

I squeezed my eyes shut once again, but I still couldn't ignore the fiery sensation in my palm. I quickly turned on the tap again and splashed more water on my face. Then, I held my right hand under the water and scrubbed it with all my might.