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Kaji wasn't usually the first to arrive in the morning, but this time he come early because he had left his candy stash in his drawer. In the quiet of the still-too-early morning, he spotted Suo sitting in the middle of the stairs.
Since when did the boy with the eye patch decide that the stairs were a nice place to relax? Kaji frowned, unsure whether to comment. After all...
"Good morning, Kaji-san, the gravity is a little strange today, isn't it?"
Kaji took his headphones off his head, doubting his own hearing. Did that kid just mention the term gravity in the same sentence as a morning greeting?
"...What are you doing here?" Kaji stood two steps in front of Suo and just realized that his junior looked very pale. The sweat that was usually invisible no matter how intense the midday training was, was now glistening on his forehead, which was partially uncovered by his bangs.
"Hmm... taking a break," replied Suo uncertainly, massaging his temples as if to ward off dizziness. Kaji reached out his hand, intending to check his temperature, but Suo grimaced with a certain panic as if he was about to be slapped. However, his position made it difficult for Suo to move, so Kaji's hand remained touching his cheek without being pushed away.
"You have a fever," Kaji concluded simply.
Suo blinked in confusion, then nodded. "I thought it was just gravity that had changed," he muttered pensively.
"Gravity?"
Suo snapped his fingers with a broad smile. "Gravity! So... this morning the gravity was so low that it felt like I was floating when I walked. Then, when I climbed the stairs, the gravity became heavy, so I took a break first—"
"Your head is the only thing that's wrong."
"No, no, Kaji-san, don't you know? In certain months, the Earth's gravity changes..." Suo rambled, trying to stand up, but his poor balance forced him to hold onto the edge of the stairs.
Kaji sighed. "Stop that, I'm not same with your gullible captain." He turned around, took a step down, and told the boy, whose cheeks were starting to redden from the rise in temperature, to climb onto his back. Suo didn't really remember what happened after that, because he fell asleep on the way and only woke up in the late afternoon, in a room he didn't recognize.
"Oh, how are you?"
"Hiragi-san...?"
"Kaji! Heat up the porridge, he's awake."
Hiragi called out loudly, and Kaji peeked out from the door of the room in his hoodless sweatshirt. He stared at Suo for a few seconds before walking to the kitchen to do what Hiragi had asked.
Suo glanced around, finding a container filled with compresses and several bottles of mineral water. Hiragi opened one, handed it to him, and asked if he could sit up. Suo nodded, but his senior wasn't confident enough to let him sit without support.
"By the way, this is Kaji's house."
"And why am I here...?"
"Kaji called me in a panic this morning, saying you had a high fever and he didn't know where you lived," said Hiragi, smiling slightly as he watched the boy finish half the bottle in quick gulps with almost no pause. Suo must have been really thirsty after hours without drinking, he thought.
"Sorry for the trouble..." muttered Suo, pushing aside his blanket and almost folding it neatly if his vision hadn't suddenly gone dark. He didn't fall, but Hiragi was clearly sensitive to the fact that the sudden halt in movement indicated something was wrong.
"Lie back down."
Suo complied resignedly, gulping down the contents of the bottle until it was empty, and did not lie that he was full when Kaji arrived with a bowl of porridge.
"Seriously, are you always this difficult when it comes to eating?" Kaji said flatly. He didn't force him, aware that it was normal for sick people to lose their appetite.
"I usually eat a lot."
Hiragi clicked his tongue and shook his head. "Hey, I'm not Umemiya for you to lie to so easily," he grumbled, "and well... even that person might realize that you never eat with us at all."
"That doesn't mean I don't eat three bowls when I'm alone~"
Both Kaji and Hiragi looked skeptical.
"Kaji-san," Suo took out some coins from his pocket. "This is to pay for the water I just drank—"
Kaji flicked his forehead without saying anything.
"Ouch,"
"You still have a fever, huh?"
"It's gone down, I can go home by myself~"
Is this kid always so stubborn?
Hiragi chewed his stomach medicine tablet, while Kaji considered whether Suo would eat if he offered him a slice of pear from the refrigerator.
"Gravity," Kaji said flatly. "The gravity still isn't normal for you, right? Rest a little longer until you feel like you're walking on Earth, not the moon."
"But—"
"Don't worry, it's not suitable for you. You can pay me back later if you feel bad about being helped, but not now." Kaji emphasized, pulling Suo's blanket closer and placing another wet cloth on his sweaty forehead.
Hiragi watched as Suo quickly fell back asleep and sighed. "Kaji, you've become a reliable senior. That's great."
"N-no, not really!"
Omake
"... Kaji-san, you're going to be late for class." Suo muttered sleepily, resting his dizzy head on Kaji's shoulder, feeling the slight jolt each time the senior stepped carefully.
"I told you, it's your head that's the problem. Today is a holiday."