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The sea water knocked on the glass in a slow rhythm, and every time, the moonlight was swallowed up before even reaching the deep sea. On a particularly dark nights, the dark filled the bottom of the sea day and night. These nights the crew members relied on the adjustable lighting system of Octopod.
And now?
It was dark night.
Barnacles was trapped in a bizarre dream, as if trapped by some viscous liquid. It took him ages to break free, and when he did, he was dizzy and sweating profusely.
He opened his eyes and was stunned for a long time before he realized what he was doing. Barnacles wiped the sweat with his sleeves, but felt something was wrong.
...What was wrong?
He wanted to turn over, but was stopped by Kwazii. The cat was now nestled in his arms, sleeping soundly.
A stark contrast to his current appearance.
After thinking about it, he adjusted his position to make the other lie more comfortably. Kwazii curled up in the taller one's arms and pressed his face into the crook of his neck, happily accepting this considerate care.
His mind was as confused as a ball of mush. Barnacles blinked. The dull soreness and weakness in his muscles were a very bad sign.
His exposed hands were gradually eroded by the cold air, as if a cold wind was going straight into the neck. He wanted to shrink into himself and forget the chills but was stopped by his head.
Shivering, he could only shrink into the quilt as much as possible without waking Kwazii. While pulling onto the cloth, he touched his forehead with the back of his hand.
Dizziness, fatigue, chills, muscle aches, and an obviously too high body temperature made it easy to conclude you had a fever.
He couldn't decide whether to cry or laugh. No wonder Kwazii went straight into his arms tonight--he'd turned into a high-temperature heater, which was indeed a big enough temptation for Kwazii.
After lying there for a bit while stroking Kwazii's short orange hair, he gently tucked away the arm that was around his waist, and lightly pushed his shoulder, hoping that he would turn over on his own so that Barnacles could get off easily. He needed to grab the medical kit from the bed.
Kwazii shifted, mumbling words in his sleep which were lost in the air.
Barnacles carefully stepped over him and got out of bed. oh
As he casually took his coat and slipped it on, a slightly nasal voice came from behind him: "'Cap, what's wrong? Is there a new mission?"
He had no choice but to turn around and touch his hair. "It's just a small problem. It'll be solved soon."
Kwazii turned on the nightlight. With the dim light outlining Barnacles's figure, the two spots of pink that decorated his cheeks were particularly obvious.
He raised his arm and held Barnacles' hand, secretly exerting force, forcing Barnacles to lean over him. He first touched his forehead, then pressed the back of his head so that their foreheads were touching.
With a jolt, Kwazii stood up angrily, grabbed Barnacles's arm and forced him to sit on the bed. He then turned over and got out of bed.
"Captain, if you are sick, just tell me and don't hold on by yourself!" Kwazii shouted, showing a rare force. He asked Barnacles to take off his coat and lie down on the bed to rest.
Barnacles smiled at him: "I just want you to have a good sleep. Besides, there are antipyretics in the first-aid kit."
"Captain, if you look like this, I can't even sleep peacefully!"
Kwazii dug out a temperature measuring gun from the medical kit and pressed the button on Barnacles' forehead.
"It's indeed a fever," Kwazii said, looking at the numbers. "You're lucky it's not serious."
"How about we go wake Peso?" Kwazii said worriedly, frowning unconsciously because of it.
Barnacles smiled again and tried to get up but was held down by Kwazii.
"It's not a big problem. I'll just take some medicine and it'll be fine," Barnacles pinched his face and stretched out his hand to rub his brow. "If you're really worried that the fever won't go away after taking the medicine, we can go find him."
Kwazii was silent for a moment, seeming to weigh in the concept of his words.
"Okay," he compromised, and dug into the medical kit in search of antipyretic medicine. After looking at the date carefully, he took out the tablets and sat down by the bed with a glass of water.
Barnacles took the pill from his hand and placed it in his mouth. He quickly got a drink of water after.
Only after Kwazii had seen Barnacles take the medicine and drink the entire glass of water, he helped him tuck the quilt in and sat on the edge of the bed.
With how insistent Kwazii was being, Barnacles feared he would sit there all night if he did not do something.
Smiling helplessly, Barnacles moved aside and patted the open space beside him. "Come over and sleep. I feel much better after taking the medicine."
Kwazii studied at his face carefully, as if he was trying to decide whether this sentence was true or false.
Barnacles kept his inviting posture unmoving, but the arc of his smile deepened a little.
Kwazii considered it for a moment.
It seems to be true as he said.
Sighing in frustration, he replied: "Okay, your face does look much better."
He gently got into the position Barnacles had reserved for him on the bed, held his arms around the other's waist, and buried his head in the polar bear's neck.
"It's not that I don't believe you," He started dully.
He felt Barnacles' hand slowly rubbing his back.
"I know that the Captain has always been strong as a reassurance for everyone."
Kwazii suddenly raised his head again, his pupils shining, looking straight into Barnacles' eyes.
Barnacles' heart trembled.
"But please rely on me sometimes!"
"I know the Captain is supposed to be indestructible, but you can still get hurt and sick."
Kwazii eyes were shining brightly in the dark night.
"You don't have to show off in front of me. Let me have the opportunity to take care of you," he continued. "Make me feel wanted by you too."
Kwazii kissed his lips.
Barnacles was stunned for a few seconds, but ultimately hugged him tighter.
"Thank you for telling me this, Kwazii," he said, tilting his head and pressing a kiss on Kwazii's face.
"I'll try to do exactly as you say."
Kwazii was satisfied and a smile broke out on his face.
"Then you better go back to sleep. Getting a good rest will help you recover quickly!"
Although the moonlight cannot shine into the bottom of the sea, some people are as bright as the bright moon floating in the sky.
As for Captain Barnacles?
Kwazii was the bright moon that always hung in his heart.
The falling moon that brightens the world with love.
The moonlight tonight is so beautiful.