The Cursed Doctor

Part 5

"Ah..." he croaks as I reenter the room.

"I'm sorry," I scurry over to the bed, "I went to retrieve your clothes."

"Ahiru," he repeats softly, his hand comes out from the sheets and reaches for me. I abandon the clothes at the end of the bed and return to his side. His hand is cold and he's still sweating. "Why... are you such a lovely shade of pink...? Mmm...?"

I would be assuming that his sweet words are nothing but fevered words, only he's as cold as a week long buried corpse. His hand slips from mine to brush my cheeks that have upgraded from pink to red.

"You—" I stop, wondering if I should even answer his question. I swallow nervously and decide he may not remember this conversation anyways. "Besides our first meeting, you've never called me by name." I look away. "But today... you've said it multiple times." My voice trails off into a whisper. "That is why... I am pink."

A loud knock ruptures through the house and I scowl at the doorway. I hold onto my doctor's hand a little tighter.

"Not going to answer it?"

I soften my expression as I look back at him. "They're going to come in either way, so..."

As predicted, their arrogance stomps across my wooden floor boards, stopping briefly in each room, to look for me I assume.

I take one more deep breath just as they enter the room. The sight must not be what our constable was expecting because he halts abruptly, Damien running into his back with an annoyed grunt.

I don't greet them.

The constable blinks a couple times during our tense eye contact before crossing the room, ending a safe six feet between me and him.

My attention moves from the threat to the cause.

Damien has a clear sense of justice ruling the emotions of his face, but his eyes betray a feeling of concern as I glare at him.

"This will be the last time you will be allowed into my house, Damien." I stand proudly beside my bed, my hand resting possessively on the doctor's shoulder. "Good day Yosef." I curtsey to the constable.

"Ahiru, please," Damien insists sadly.

Damien's brother steps in front of him authoritatively, "Ahiru," he salutes me. "Good to see you well." His tired grey eyes shift to my bed ridden guest. "I've heard some rather... unbelievable things. Hopefully you will be able to clear this up."

"Gladly." I can feel the same judgement Damien passed upon my doctor come from Yosef. Almost unconsciously, I sit on the bed to block most of his sight to Nitsuke and successfully reclaim his attention.

"Who is your guest?" he gets straight to the point.

I raise my chin a little proudly. "He is my doctor."

"Hm. Seems he's the one in need of medical attention. May I summon another practitioner for you?"

"Ah—" I had foolishly not anticipated this question. "He... has already been medicated. Just needs rest now."

Yosef eyes me skeptically. "Is that so?"

I nod. My quickly lost confidence is obviously suspicious and I cringe a bit. Is a doctor self medicating illegal?

"How is it that this man, who's name you haven't given me," he adds, "is able to fight off my brother less than an hour ago but is now bed ridden?"

"He..." I'm really struggling. I'm not as quick witted as Nitsuke is and I realize I'm becoming more and more unbelievable with each new answer I feebly produce.