To the Love of My Life

Ruby’s face turned a bit pale. She didn’t say anything, only bending over to grab Steve’s other arm.

Steve wasn’t fat, but as a man, he was tall and slim. With Mrs. Taylor’s help, Ruby managed to haul him out from the pool, but she seemed rather exhausted from the effort.

Steve’s face was pale, his lips colorless, his eyes tightly closed. He was nothing like the coldly elegant man he usually was.

Steve’s body was ice-cold and unmoving. Ruby’s trembling fingers reached out to feel his faint breath. Then she called Mrs. Taylor in a shaking voice, “Quick, call a doctor.”

Mrs. Taylor nodded in a panic and ran, stumbling, back into the living room.

Clamping her teeth together, Ruby picked Steve up from the floor, slung his arm over her shoulder, and began to stagger towards the house, step by step.

After hanging up the call, Mrs. Taylor immediately rushed back to help Ruby get Steve to the second-floor bedroom.

At that moment, Ruby ignored her shyness. After sending Mrs. Taylor out, she strenuously took off Steve’s wet clothes and used a towel to dry him. Then, she dressed him in pajamas and tucked him in under a blanket.

Touching Steve’s arm, she found it was still terrifyingly cold. She picked up the remote to adjust the central air conditioning to its highest setting, then searched around and found a quilt to pile on Steve.

Ruby wasn’t sure what was wrong with her; she just felt utterly at a loss. She sat at the edge of the bed, constantly reaching out to touch Steve, trying to gauge his temperature.

Only when the warm air from the central air conditioning had her sweating profusely, did Steve become slightly warmer to the touch. Ruby heaved a sigh of relief.

However, just as she started to relax, Ruby found that Steve’s temperature, which had been frighteningly cold, began to burn alarmingly hot.

Just as Ruby was in a state of confusion, the doctor Mrs. Taylor had called arrived.

It turned out Steve had merely swum in cold water for too long, catching a chill before eventually passing out in the pool.

Luckily, he had maintained his physique through regular workouts and had better resistance than average. After taking his temperature, the doctor administered an antipyretic injection to Steve, gave him some medicine, then left.

With the doctor’s assurance that there was no major concern, Mrs. Taylor could finally relax. She went downstairs to cook.

Ruby stayed by Steve’s side in the bedroom, watching the man sleeping with a fever. Recalling that there was a regular meeting at 9:30 at the company that Steve had to attend, she picked up her phone to call Rusell Henris, explained the situation with Steve, and requested leave for herself as well.

After hanging up, Mrs. Taylor came upstairs to call Ruby down for breakfast. But Ruby had no appetite to eat and, after randomly having a bite or two, went back upstairs.