Bellboy and the maid

Chapter 6

"You know," Spirou spoke calmly "I think it will be better for you to stay inside the restroom until you feel okay."
"Oh. Alright. Sorry."
After she finished rinsing her hands, she stepped out of the stall and followed Spirou outside the bathroom.
he led her to an empty hallway. "If you don't mind, could you please hold onto my jacket while I look around outside for your handkerchief? I'll be right back. Don't move until I call for you or come to me."
she nodded numbly, watching as Spirou disappeared into thin air as he left her alone in the hallway.
As soon as she was left alone, Kassandra began to breathe heavily.
she closed her eyes tightly for a few seconds as her eyes grew hot.
then without warning her head began to ache and her body started trembling uncontrollably, causing her to clutch her throat with both hands.

"Hang in there, Kassandra!" Spirou shouted from somewhere outside the bathroom. "Just hang on!"
Her entire body felt incredibly sore as she fought to control her breathing. Her heart rate slowed, but barely.
Her head pounded harder, and she struggled to maintain consciousness as she tried desperately to keep her breathing even. The pounding only worsened, and she began to cough violently as tears fell from her eyes, dripping from her eyelashes.
When she opened her eyes again, Spirou was standing above her, holding her handbag in his hand. His face was flushed from exertion, and he was out of breath.
"Spirou…" she muttered.
"Yes? How are you feeling, Kassandra? Can you walk?" he asked worriedly.
"I…I don't think so…" Her head was throbbing, and everything became blurry.
"Alright. I'm going to help you up now, okay?" He helped her stand up. "Can you walk?" He continued in a soft voice.
"Yeah…" she replied weakly before she collapsed into his chest.

Spirou froze for a moment as his eyes widened. He carefully lowered himself until he was sitting down on the floor. "Shh…" he whispered gently. "Don't strain yourself too much." He brought her in closer to him. "You're safe now, I' m here now."
Kassandra snuggled close to him. "Mm…"
Spirou lifted his hands and gently began massaging her back and rubbing small circles into her shoulders. "What hurts, Kassandra?"
she groaned as she pressed the handkerchief to her nose. "Everything."
"Okay." he responded calmly. "Try taking a deep breath, then. It should help."
Kassandra tried following suit but was unable to do so due to her congested nasal passage. She tried to take shallow breaths and after a couple moments of breathing, she managed to stop coughing. When she opened her eyes, she noticed Spirou smiling at her encouragingly.
"Better?" He asked.
"I…suppose so." She smiled lightly. "Thanks."
His expression suddenly became sad, and he glanced away from her. "Hey, Kassandra?" he muttered.
"Yes?"
"What' s wrong?" he asked, raising his eyes toward hers. "Did I hurt you?"
she frowned. "No. No, Spirou. Why do you ask?"
"I just noticed. You didn't have that many sneezes. Usually, it takes much more than that to get you so sick. Are you sure that's normal?" He furrowed his eyebrows slightly as concern laced itself throughout his voice.
she paused and looked away.
She knew exactly how he was referring to those two sneezes. They weren't just normal sneezes either. They were sneezes that lasted for more than 5 seconds
"Yeah." she breathed. "I've been sneezing since yesterday. It's nothing serious though."

Spirou nodded. "Well. If you say so." After a couple minutes of silence, he asked cautiously, "So, are you going to tell me why you didn't show up to our rehearsal dinner last night?"
She stayed silent.
"Kassandra, please answer me."
she bit her lip. "I'm sorry, Spirou. I couldn't make it."
"You didn't make it? Why not?" he asked, tilting his head.

"Were you sick then? Did you go to a hospital?"
she avoided eye contact, shaking her head slightly. "No."
Spirou remained quiet. He simply stared at her expectantly as he watched her continue to avoid looking at him, hoping for her to continue talking.
But she didn't.

Spirou exhaled sharply. "Are you scared of us finding out?" he suddenly asked her, his expression turning stern.
"Huh?" she responded, looking confused as she met his gaze with bewilderment. "Of course, not! What makes you say that?"
He gave her a strange stare. "That' s what the other members told me."
she blinked rapidly.
"I... uh...well... they might've exaggerated.. a bit..." she stammered.
Spirou narrowed his gaze at her suspiciously.
"Look..." he started. "If something is bothering you, I'd like to help." He looked at her hopefully. "Please tell me."
Kassandra swallowed nervously. "I…Umm..."

"I'll do anything to find out what happened." He persisted.
Kassandra felt uncomfortable under his intense gaze. There was an unreadable expression on his face as he stared at her intensely. He was studying her closely, waiting for her response.
"I.. I can't tell you." She finally answered.
"Why not?" he asked, frowning.
"Because. It's none of your business." She said defensively.
"I see." He nodded slowly. "I guess I shouldn't have assumed."
"I' d appreciate it if you kept it to yourself, thank you very much." She added quickly as she pushed past him.
Spirou turned to follow her with a perplexed expression, trailing several steps behind her as she made her way back towards her room.
"Wait." He called after her. "I still haven't told you what I found. I hope you'll let me share it with you." He walked a couple steps ahead and waited for her to catch up. When she did so, he continued, "It seems pretty important if you haven't forgotten about it yet."
She hesitated briefly before nodding hesitantly. "Fine, fine. But promise me one thing."

"What's that?"
"Don't go snooping around in my things."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Just trust me, alright? Please." Her voice broke slightly.
His features softened. "All right, Kassandra. All right." He assured me.
Kassandra sat on the sofa, hugging her legs as she rested her chin on top of them. Spirou had gone back home not too long ago, leaving her alone in the apartment. She wanted to go out, maybe get some fresh air, but every time she tried to walk towards the door, she would end up falling flat on her face, her feet tripping over each other. She couldn't get anywhere near the door.
It was almost 1 p.m. by the time she eventually crawled up the stairs to bed.