Iril watched her best friend's face, which looked extremely pale and exhausted. Honestly, in all the years of their friendship, this was the first time Iril had seen Serena in such a fragile state. Serena was usually tough—even when facing the most difficult situations, she always seemed composed.
The nurse who had just finished replacing Serena's IV bottle finally left the room. The hospital room was actually designed for three patients, but at that moment, Serena was the only one occupying it.
Iril sat on a small couch in the corner of the room. It wasn't very long and clearly not comfortable enough to be used as a bed. Noticing Iril eyeing the couch, Serena paused for a moment and glanced at her friend.
"What?"
asked Iril, sensing Serena's intense gaze.
"You should go home later this afternoon,"
Serena said suddenly.
Iril raised an eyebrow, looking at Serena questioningly.
"Why?"
"The couch isn't comfortable for sleeping,"
Serena replied softly.
"Besides, I'll probably sleep most of the night anyway because of the meds. So you don't have to stay and watch over me."
Iril didn't respond right away. She just looked at Serena, this time with a more serious expression. Serena assumed her silence was a form of agreement and let out a small sigh of relief.
But then Iril asked quietly,
"What kind of image do I have in your eyes?"
"Huh?"
Serena looked confused by the sudden question.
"You know, sometimes I feel like you don't treat me as a friend—but more like your little sister," Iril said.
Serena fell silent. She didn't expect Iril to bring something like this up—especially now, while she was hospitalized.
"Back in high school and the beginning of college, you treated me normally. But after we fought and lost contact for a while... you changed," Iril continued.
Serena panicked inwardly. She thought her behavior was still normal, but apparently, Iril saw it differently.
"Could it be... she knows I was reborn?" Serena thought anxiously. "No way. There's no way she could know about that."
"At first, I thought you changed because you felt guilty. But over time, I realized—you treat me like someone way younger than you."
Serena chuckled inwardly. Of course I do. ' ' 'My soul is already in its thirties, Ril! '
"I really am more mature than you,"
Serena said, trying to sound casual.
"What?!" Iril couldn't believe what she just heard.
"Even though we're the same age, sometimes you act like a child. So I just took on the role of the grown-up girl,"
Serena replied with a mock-serious expression.
Iril puffed out her cheeks, feeling like she wasn't being taken seriously.
"Serena! I'm being serious!" Iril protested.
Serena just let out a soft laugh and laid back down on the bed.
"If you want to sleep here, go ahead. My change of clothes is in the bag. They're clean! Just change so you'll be more comfortable. But if you'd rather go home, that's okay too."
"See?! You sound like a big sister telling her little sibling to go home," Iril grumbled.
Serena smiled. "Is that a bad thing?"
Iril went quiet. She didn't really mind the way Serena treated her. It's just that sometimes, she felt like Serena didn't trust her with important things—like now, telling her to go home just because the couch was uncomfortable.
"It's not a bad thing,"
Iril finally replied with a long sigh.
She waited for Serena to respond, but there was no sound.
Iril looked toward the bed. Serena had already fallen asleep. Her pale face looked more peaceful in slumber. Iril nodded softly—it was better for Serena to rest.
She took out her laptop and started working on her unfinished assignments.
Growwwlll...
Her stomach growled suddenly. When she checked her phone, two hours had passed. Iril stood up, intending to buy some food, but before she could take a step, the door opened.
At first, Iril thought it was a nurse, a doctor, or maybe a new patient. But when she saw who entered, her eyes widened.
Someone she never expected was now standing at the door to Serena's room.
---
Iril's expression was unreadable now—she couldn't believe her workaholic cousin had actually shown up in this hospital room.
Ren—her cousin—entered with a serious look and purposeful stride. Without saying much, he immediately requested that Serena be moved to a VIP room. Serena, still asleep from the medication, had no idea her surroundings had changed.
Not long after, Ren's personal driver came in and placed a bag of food on the table before leaving.
"Eat. Then go home,"
Ren said, pointing at the food.
"I don't want to go home!"
Iril protested, folding her arms across her chest.
"Serena would be alone and sick!"
Ren sat down on the sofa and said,
"You go home. I'll stay here with her."
Iril's eyes widened. She couldn't believe she just heard that come from her notoriously cold and aloof cousin.
"But..."
"No buts!"
Ren cut her off firmly.
Iril fell silent immediately. She knew there was no point in arguing when Ren spoke like that. Since they were kids, Ren had always been like an older brother to her. Even if he was annoying at times, Iril almost always followed his orders whenever he used his 'commanding tone'.
"Serena doesn't even know you're here. What if she gets mad?"
Iril mumbled with a pout.
"With a face like this, I'm sure she'll be glad I'm here,"
Ren replied, pointing at his own face.
Iril rolled her eyes at that comment.
But deep down, she had to admit—Ren was indeed above average in looks. Even if Serena hadn't realized it yet, Iril was pretty sure her best friend was the type who could easily be attracted to a good-looking guy, especially someone like Ren, who was basically top notch in appearance.
"Well... he's not wrong,"
Iril thought to herself.
Eventually, she gave up. She picked up the food bag from the table and started eating. There was no point in resisting Ren's already-made decision.
But after only a few bites, Iril paused. She suddenly realized something.
She looked at Ren, then back at Serena who was still sleeping.
"You're dating Serena, aren't you?!"
she exclaimed, half-shouting with a look of total disbelief.
---