High reached out his other hand to check and see if he was fevered.
‘He wasn’t.’
But just in case he should get him back to the dorms faster.
“Are you okay?” You don’t look so good.”
“I’m going to take you back to the dorms, you have a dorm right?”
The boy nodded as if shocked.
“Can you run?” He asked him. The kid nodded again, still pale and staring up at him, but this time not in shock but in awe.
High shook his head. He didn’t know what was going on but whatever it was he needed to get this kid somewhere warmer fast. Sure, it was only Autumn, but he didn’t seem to be feeling right and had suddenly turned pretty numb.
High clutched to the wet hand firmly, making sure his hand couldn’t slip. Then with the other he pointed, asking which direction to take him.
A flashlight broke into their sight blinding them with its sudden brightness.
“Is everything okay here?” A thick male voice asked before he lowered the light enough that High could see.
“Oh yeah, sorry we just fell in but we are both fine now we are going to go back to his dorm now.”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“Mark we got your call are you okay?”
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High coughed uncomfortably.
“Yes, sir.”
“Um, sir, if it’s alright with you I think Mark caught a chill and isn’t feeling well can you tell me which way his dorm room is? I think I should get him into bed as soon as possible.” High asked politely not wanting to reveal why he had screamed.
“Ah, yes, right, right, it’s the left path to the second dorm building.”
“Be careful, boys.”
High bowed his thanks then pulled Mark forward.
As soon as the security guard was out of reach they ran together as High pulled them both along with his strength.
His body ached from his intense workout he hadn’t planned on having today and just when he thought he was too tired to haul his and Mark’s dead weight behind him anymore, they were finally closing in on the first dorm, which was the one closest to the library and was also Tone’s dorm housing unit a series of three buildings, linked closely together by a series of small pathways that led between the three of them.
The kid didn’t say anything, High looked back at him. He seemed out of it.
“This is the dorm, let’s get warmed up and everything, can you remember your passcode? I live off campus so if you can’t remember I will have to take you to my friend’s room. He lives in the dorm next to yours.”
The kid didn’t respond, he just continued to stare at High’s hand. So High lifted his hand.”Push the buttons, please?” High begged.
Mark nodded and keyed in his code before dissolving into whatever space he was going into right now.
High shook his head, but just took him inside the building he stopped at the letterbox long enough to see what floor Mark was on before he hauled them both up the three flights of stairs to his floor.
High looked at him. ‘Do you have your keys? Should I be taking you to a hospital?’ High scratched the back of his neck worriedly. Before he decided the only thing to do so was to pat the kid down and look for his keys. Even if it was just to go inside, put him in bed so he could go for help.
“I’m checking your pockets for the keys now.” High warned him as if he were speaking to a child, then gently patted him down till he found the shape of it in his pocket along with his phone.
High reached inside the pocket and pulled the two times out. He looked at the phone. It seemed fine and then he took the key and unlocked the door with it. He had never been so happy because in all that flailing that Mark had done. The fact that the keys had stayed in his pocket the entire time was a little miracle in of itself.
High let himself in, turning on all the lights as he did so.
High walked into the room leading Mark inside still clutching his hand tightly.
“So this is your dorm. Nice.”
“I don’t live in a dorm. I stay at home with my mom and little brother Nine.”
High walked around the room observing its plain white walls and red checkered bedspread. The room had a single bed in it along with a desk that was cluttered beyond belief and a single standing dresser with six drawers.
High led them towards Mark’s dresser and realized that he still had Mark by the arm so he let go.
“Since you seem like you are maybe hurt is it okay if I go in your drawers for you?”
Mark nodded again.
High turned to ruffle through his dresser to find something warm that Mark could wear right now.
He pulled out a big fluffy beige sweater and a pair of black sweatpants. The next drawer was undies and socks and he pulled a pair of each out. It felt odd to be handling someone else’s underthings that were not his families or his own.
The soft fabric of something so normal and every day suddenly made him feel as if he were doing something taboo. And his heart quickened a little.
High put them down on the bed gently before opening up the next drawer and seeing a stack of neatly folded towels. He thought for a second before he grabbed two and pulled those out too.
“Let’s get these soaked clothes off first and then let’s get you showered. Otherwise, we both will stink and be dirty, and possibly catch a cold tonight, and while I am okay if I do. I would feel really responsible if you did.”
“Since you are already like this, I think that’s an especially bad idea. I hope you didn’t hurt anything, but since you won’t talk now. Maybe you did. If you can nod just do that, okay?”
Mark nodded yes.
