When The Timer Hits Zero. ~Iwaoi~

~Part Twenty~

'Wh.. What?' I stutter, Iwa's face still too close for comfort as he stares into my eyes. I feel my body stiffen up and my mind go blank. Has he noticed? 'Are you jealous?' he repeats. 'Of what...?' I look for any sign in his expression but am unable to find it.

'You know, I stole your precious little cousin. Are you jealous?' he repeats again. I am about to laugh, relief already taking over, until he continues. 'Or are you jealous that she stole me?' I hold in my breath. 'Iwa-chan, your fever's talking. Go sleep.' I say as calmly as I can. 'You don't know what you're saying.' 'So you're not gonna answer me?' he says. I can feel the heat radiating from his skin. 'Iwa-chan. Go sleep.' I say, grabbing his hand and pulling him up.

My own fever barely allows me to stand, let alone while supporting Iwa. And so, I stumble forward again, pulling him with me. Well, at least I kinda landed on the bed? Perfect, if only Iwa didn't fall on top of me. Well, what'd I expect, holding his hand? 'Iwa, get off, you're heavy.' I grunt. He makes a complaining sound. 'If you answer me.' he whispers in my ear.

'Stop and get off!' I try to wiggle him off but I barely have the strength to move. Hiding my face in the pillow, I don't answer him. 'Fine.' he sighs and rolls off. I take in a deep breath, my almost squashed lungs unfolding. 'Good, now go sleep.' I say as he goes to lay beneath the blanket. He pats on the place next to him. 'When did you get so dependent? First I have to leave and now I have to stay.' I sigh, not sure what to do with him. 'Do you want me to call Lana?' I say. He shakes his head no, patting the place besides him again. I think it through. My head is pounding harder than before. I can feel my temperature rising. Iwa won't recover when I stay. But will he recover when I leave?

I throw up my hands in defeat, lifting up the blanket. I go to lie on the other side of the bed, not even close to Iwa, and close my eyes. But I can feel it. He stares. He stares. He stares. One thing I learned about Iwa, is that he stares a lot when he doesn't get what he wants. I open one eye, look at him, and open my arms. He quickly moves towards me to snuggle. I wish his fever would never end. He looks and acts like a kid. I finally close my eyes, drifting off to sleep just a few seconds later.

I don't get to sleep for long. A nightmare haunts me. My mom, Iwa, Lana, Tama. Whenever the timer hits zero, they all disappear. All time and love they spent on others go to that one person. They all leave. I will end up alone, suffering, and loving Iwa till the end of time.

And that's what's happening in my nightmare. I call out to Iwa, his back turned towards me. He ignores me. Slowly but surely, he starts walking, putting distance between us. I cry out to him once more. 'I love you, Iwa-chan.' It sounds way more realistic than it should have. He turns around to look at me once more, a disgusted look on his face. 'Fuck off.' he says before walks off, Lana by his side.

I wake up. My eyes open wide, my breath irregular and my heart beating wildly. But as soon as I realize I'm in Iwa's arms, smelling his scent, I calm down. My fever went up a lot again. I moan in pain as even my skin hurts. Iwa must be thinking I am still asleep, as he keeps whispering to me. 'It's fine, you're fine.' I stay silent, trying to calm down, but that totally fails when I believe to hear the most silent whisper answering my calls.

'I love you too.'