Reyansh didn't wait this time.
The moment she said "just a little cold"—
Something in him refused to stay calm.
Reyansh:Did you take anything for it?
Reyansh:Did you eat?
Reyansh:Since when?
The messages came one after another.
Across the staff room—
Anaya stared at her phone, slightly overwhelmed.
"…why is he panicking?"
Her fingers moved slowly.
Anaya:Relax. It's just a fever.
Almost instantly—
Reyansh:Fever is not "just."
Reyansh:What's your temperature?
She blinked.
"…seriously?"
Anaya:I didn't check.
A pause.
Then—
Reyansh:You didn't check?
Reyansh:Are you serious right now?
She let out a small sigh, leaning back in her chair.
Anaya:Doctor, calm down.
Anaya:I'm fine.
The word hung there.
Fine.
Across the hospital—
Reyansh's jaw tightened.
"…you're not."
He typed again.
Reyansh:Did you at least eat something?
No reply.
A second later—
Reyansh:Anaya?
Still nothing.
Inside the staff room—
Anaya had just stood up.
The bell rang.
Next class.
She picked up her notebook, adjusting her grip slightly.
"…just get through the day."
One step.
Then—
Her head spun.
Suddenly.
Violently.
The room tilted.
Her grip loosened.
"…what—"
Voices blurred.
The floor felt—
Too far.
And then—
Everything went black.
"Anaya!"
A chair scraped loudly.
One of her colleagues rushed forward, catching her just before she hit the ground completely.
"What happened?!"
"She just— she fainted!"
The room filled with movement.
Noise.
Concern.
Her phone slipped from her hand.
Still unlocked.
Still open.
Messages visible.
Across the city—
Reyansh stared at his screen.
No reply.
His chest tightened slightly.
"…this isn't normal."
He typed again.
Reyansh:Answer me.
Reyansh:Anaya.
Nothing.
Back in the staff room—
"Get some water—quick!"
"Call the infirmary!"
"Careful—lift her slowly—"
The same colleague who had caught her reached for her phone instinctively.
Maybe to call someone.
Her eyes fell on the screen.
A name.
Repeated.
Reyansh.
Messages.
So many.
Then, call from the same name.
Concern.
Urgency.
She hesitated for a second.
Then—
Picked up the phone.
Across the hospital—
Relief flickered as call was answered— Until
Unknown:Are you Reyansh?
His expression changed immediately.
Reyansh:Yes. Who is this?
The reply came quickly.
Unknown:I'm her colleague. Anaya just fainted in the staff room.
Everything stilled.
For a second—
He didn't move.
Didn't breathe.
Then—
His chair pushed back sharply.
"Where?"
Too fast.
Reyansh:Where is she right now?
Unknown:At school. We're taking her to the infirmary.
That was enough.
Reyansh grabbed his keys without another thought.
Everything else—
Forgotten.
Across the staff room—
"She's burning," someone said, touching Anaya's forehead.
"Why did she even come today?"
"Did she eat anything?"
"I don't think so…"
He was already moving.
Fast.
Too fast.
Because now—
This wasn't just concern.
This wasn't just past.
This was—
Her.
And nothing else mattered.
By the time Reyansh reached the school—
He wasn't calm anymore.
He had tried.
But the moment he stepped out of the car—
That control slipped.
"Staff room?" he asked quickly.
Someone pointed down the corridor.
"Infirmary—they took her there."
He didn't wait.
The infirmary door pushed open with more force than necessary.
"She's inside," the nurse said, startled.
Reyansh barely acknowledged it.
His eyes had already found her.
Anaya lay on the bed.
Pale.
Still.
A damp cloth resting on her forehead.
For a second—
Everything went silent.
"…Anaya."
He stepped closer, slower this time.
His hand hovered for a moment—
Then gently touched her wrist.
Warm.
Too warm.
His jaw tightened.
"What's her temperature?"
"High fever, 103.5 degree F" the nurse replied. "And weakness. She hasn't eaten properly."
Of course.
He exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair.
"…irresponsible."
But the word didn't sound annoyed.
It sounded—
Worried.
A few minutes later—
Her eyes fluttered open.
The first thing she saw—
Was him.
Standing there.
Close.
Too close.
"…Reyansh?"
Her voice was weak.
Confused.
"You're awake," he said immediately, stepping forward.
"What—what are you doing here?" she murmured.
He didn't answer that.
"Can you sit up?" he asked instead, already adjusting the pillow behind her.
She blinked slowly.
"I'm fine…"
"No, you're not."
The response was instant.
Firm.
Not up for debate.
She frowned slightly.
"…you didn't have to come."
"I did."
Silence.
Because something in his tone—
Didn't feel casual.
Didn't feel optional.
He stepped back slightly, already making a decision.
"We're going to the hospital."
Her head turned toward him immediately.
"What? No—"
"Yes."
"No, I'm not going to the hospital," she said, trying to sit up straighter despite the dizziness.
"I just need rest."
Reyansh's expression didn't change.
"You fainted."
"That happens sometimes—"
"With fever? Without eating? In the middle of work?" his voice sharpened slightly. "No, it doesn't."
She pressed her lips together.
"…I don't like hospitals."
The words came quieter this time.
Almost—
Instinctive.
Reyansh stilled.
Just for a second.
Because that—
That wasn't new.
A memory hit.
"You're overreacting."
"I'm not overreacting! I don't like this place."
"It's just an injection, Ana."
"No, it's not 'just' anything!"
He had laughed softly back then.
"Still scared?"
The present blurred with the past.
And before he could stop himself—
The words slipped out.
"…still scared?"
Silence.
Heavy.
Immediate.
Anaya froze.
Her breath caught slightly.
"…what?"
Her eyes searched his face.
Something about that—
That tone.
That question.
Felt—
Wrong.
Or maybe—
Too right.
A sharp flicker—
A hospital corridor.
Bright lights.
A younger version of her—
Holding someone's sleeve tightly.
"I don't like this…"
"It'll be over in a minute."
"Don't leave—"
Her head throbbed suddenly.
She shut her eyes tightly.
The memory vanished.
Gone.
"…what was that?"
Reyansh realized it too late.
His jaw tightened.
"…I shouldn't have said that."
But it was already out.
Already there.
Anaya opened her eyes again.
"…have we met before?"
The question came out quiet.
Uncertain.
But real.
For a moment—
Everything in him wanted to answer.
To say it.
To end this distance.
But then—
He stopped.
Because she wasn't ready.
Because she didn't remember.
Because forcing it—
Would only break what little they had now.
He exhaled slowly.
"…no."
A lie.
But a necessary one.
She stared at him for a second longer.
Not fully convinced.
But too tired to question it further.
"I'm not going to the hospital," she said again, weaker this time.
Reyansh stepped closer.
And this time—
His voice softened.
But didn't lose its firmness.
"You don't have to like it."
A pause.
"But you still have to go."
Something about the way he said it—
Didn't feel forceful.
It felt—
Certain.
Like he wasn't giving her an option—
Because he cared too much to.
She hesitated.
Her resistance still there.
But weaker now.
Her body too tired to argue.
Her mind too unsettled to think clearly.
"…fine," she muttered finally.
Reyansh didn't waste another second.
He helped her sit up carefully.
Steadying her when she swayed slightly.
"Easy."
The word came softer this time.
Almost—
Familiar.
And as he guided her out—
Anaya's thoughts stayed tangled.
Because those two words—
still scared?
Echoed louder than anything else.
And for the first time—
It didn't feel like imagination.
It felt like—
A memory.