He Hates Me, He Loves Me Not

Adam can't get used to the chatter that comes from the lobby of Nysus City's largest hospital.

For a place riddled with sick people, he expects a more somber atmosphere to hang around, but aside from the patients lounging around or taking a walk, it's no different from a plaza during an ordinary day. He is always surprised at how the place is bustling every time he visits President Lin.

His shock is understandable. It is, after all, the only time he is stepping into a huge medical facility after his parents brought him home twenty-five years ago.

As he sits on one of the chairs near the elevators, he has never been more grateful that his family is blessed with good health. No alpha or omega in their bloodline means there's no need to make an appointment with any secondary gender specialists.

Adam checks the temperature of the topmost lunchbox in his arms with the back of his hand. Thankfully, it's still hot. The speed at which the food was delivered fulfills the restaurant's promise of serving the freshest meals, yet it'll soon be useless if he stays on the ground floor any longer.

He doesn't know how long the young masters upstairs can wait, but he also can't go ahead after Edgar warned him not to leave him behind.

"Let's go together," is all the instruction Edgar gives Adam before walking away to accept a call.

Stuck between the whims of Nysus City's famous scions, Adam has no choice but to pray that Damon's friends are nicer than they look.

Once more, moments like this have him thinking of Lucy, his predecessor. None of her training includes what to do when his boss is basically rendered incapable, stuck on a hospital bed after a sudden drop.

What is he supposed to do? Who does he listen to? What's the protocol?

He tries not to let on how anxious he is while waiting for Edgar to finish his call, but the way the paper bag is shaking on his lap gives him away.

Adam distracts himself by memorizing the layout of the lobby. There's not much to see, except for the toddler running around chasing a ball, but it keeps him occupied.

Too occupied, in fact, that he doesn't notice when a dark-haired Alpha starts walking past him. He only peels his eyes away when a bunch of paper scatters on the floor next to his feet.

Adam puts the paper bag filled with lunchboxes on the chair next to him. He squats down, careful not to crease his leather shoes, while saying, "Let me help you."

When he doesn't hear a reply, Adam takes a peek at the clumsy Alpha whose hands are moving fast to pick up the papers.

For a moment, the sight stuns him speechless. Adam doesn't know whether he's looking at a man or a woman, the Alpha's face an attractive mix of androgynous features. It also doesn't help that the Alpha's scent is that of sandalwood and the summer sun of youth spent running by the river, tugging at Adam's own childhood memories.

By the time he notices that small bump on the center of the Alpha's neck, the stranger is standing up and leaving without a word.

Adam, as if bewitched, watches in silence as the dark-haired beauty walks away.

"What are you doing on the floor?" Edgar's question snaps him out of his reverie.

"I—" he says, but he stops before he can begin explaining.

His face frowns in concentration, doing his best to remember. He was waiting for Edgar and then… and then—

His mind feels fuzzy. Why is he on the floor?

Edgar crouches next to him, picking up a folded paper while asking, "Did you drop this?"

Adam focuses on the pamphlet that is being handed to him. Did he? He can't remember.

Still, to be safe, he accepts it with a nod. He also accepts the hand that Edgar reaches out to him, pulling them up together from the floor.

Adam is trying to shake off the static in his head while they walk towards the elevator, unaware that his college club senior has taken it upon himself to carry the paper bag for him.

As the elevator goes up to the VIP ward, Adam reads the pamphlet in hopes of jogging his memories.

Try as he may, however, he knows it's his first time reading about this specialty hospital on a tropical island. After all, there's no way he'll forget about a place specifically built for those who have lost their mate or loved ones.

--

Dylan closes his eyes with a loud sigh. He can't help it. If he opens then, he may just attack his stupid older brother again.

Thankfully, Collin is beside him, helping him relax with a warm hand on his back, or else he won't know what to do if he's arrested for harming a patient.

He leans back on his chair, refusing to open his eyes as Dr. Medina explains—for the THIRD time—how dangerous it will be if Damon keeps refusing to be sent to the specialty hospital.

At this point, even Dylan has memorized the doctor's lines. What can he do when the actor part of his brain says this is the perfect time to practice being in a medical drama?

The weight of the situation doesn't matter, nor the way the doctor sounds more tired as he lists the way Damon's body is shutting down.

--

"—multiple organ failure," Dr. Medina says, ignoring the way Primo is mouthing along.

When Damon doesn't say a word, Dr. Medina throws away his professionalism by saying, "I hate to be this blunt, but you have to understand how serious this is. At most, there are six months left until your heart stops beating. Even then, we're not sure when it'll happen."

This is truly a headache for the doctor. With how rare it is nowadays, no hospital in Nysus City or its vicinity is properly equipped to treat late-stage drop. It also doesn't help that Damon's case is not a full drop, but a pseudo-drop.

Dr. Medina is about to explain the difference between the two when Primo interrupts with, "Just hook him up to life support if he wants to play Sleeping Beauty so badly."

It is the doctor's turn to sigh.

Why is it that in all the years he has been the Alpha's physician, Damon never told him that he's related to the celebrity? Sure, it's not mandatory to disclose such information, but it would've been nice if he was saved from the shock of seeing the Omega glowering at Damon from the side of the bed.

It's already a handful for the doctor to talk to one willful son of the Lin family, but now he's facing two. At least, the Alpha next to Damon's younger brother offers him an apologetic smile.

"Where did you even hear about this specialty hospital?" Damon finally asks.

Instead of answering, Dr. Medina turns to Damon's secretary who has been standing in a corner without a word.

Adam shakes his head, silently pleading to the doctor not to let his boss know.

He can understand why—after all, the idea only came to him when he saw the pamphlet Damon's secretary was holding yesterday. When asked, Adam says that he doesn't know where or whom he got it from.

Dr. Medina is ashamed at not thinking about sending Damon to a specialty hospital earlier, but in between secretly treating patients with synthetic pheromones addiction and helping the police with the investigation, Damon's hospitalization is too sudden.

Fortunately, the specialty hospital called back this morning saying that they'll accept Damon as a patient, but how can the Alpha begin treatment when he's being this stubborn?

Dr. Medina is about to start his spiel again when he sees Primo stand up.

"Alright, I'm sick of this," Primo says while rolling up his sleeves. "Everybody, leave."

--

"Go," Dylan says, one hair's breadth away from smacking his older brother in the face. "I'll take care of everything while you're away."

He means it. Not just in business, but he'll clean all the other mess his stupid older brother has gotten into. He won't like doing it but he will; he has to. It's the least he can do for his best friend, especially after knowing he indirectly caused Kaiden to almost have a miscarriage.

Damon scoffs at him then, although there's no strength left in him to say anything.

Dylan rolls his eyes at the mistrust in Damon's face. Of course, his older brother is probably thinking that an actor has no idea how to run a business, and he's right. Dylan has no interest in that, but he has someone on his side.

"Collin promised he'll help," he says while crossing his arms over his chest.

That seems to alleviate some of his stubborn brother's worries, and Dylan understands why.

Honestly, he's impressed by the abilities that clingy Alpha has been displaying recently. The more Dylan watches him work—a rare feat in itself, by the way—the more he believes that the second son of the Armando family is a hidden genius or something. Still, he hasn't forgotten that Collin isn't dubbed 'one of the three idiots' for nothing.

When Dylan sees Damon slowly closing his eyes, he knows he can't prolong this conversation anymore, so he says, "I hate you."

It's something they already know—words that they have shouted at each other since they were children.

However. he surprises Damon when he admits, "but I don't want you to die, so go."

For a moment, Dylan thinks that Damon will ignore him again, but then he sees a small nod.

It's all the answer he needs.