Chapter 35 - Feverish
Estella glanced over at the door Sebastian disappeared behind a few minutes ago before turning back to the figure that was lying under the thick blanket of the spacious bed. Exhaling a tired sigh through her nose, she watched the heaves and falls of his chest which she noticed was much calmer after he was bathed by Sebastian. After the bath, the boy was changed into his striped pajamas and a medical white eye patch was now worn over his right eye instead of his usual black eye patch. He had regained conscious about half an hour ago and was now asleep.
She let her eyes roamed his face briefly and released a sigh, letting a little smile curve her lips. The image of him looking fresher and less feverish was a relieving sight to see.
Gazing tiredly at the boy, her eyes drifted down to her arms. She languidly raised a hand to start massaging her left arm before switching hands to do the same for the right one, in hope to ease the soreness in those limbs.
Her arms were still slightly aching from the struggle she had to go through getting Ciel off her and up to his room.
Earlier on when he suddenly fell forward, she was left flabbergasted. She was too stunned to stop Ciel from falling onto her. Caught up in her surprise, she only realized that he had sent her sprawling across the floor along with him when she found herself staring at the ceiling. She had a hard time trying to get him off her and had to struggle between carrying and dragging him to get him to his room.
Was it because of last night? She raised her eyes to his face once again and studied him curiously. He fell sick because he gave up his cloak to protect me…Her hands curled into fists at the growing guilt in her. Thank you and I'm so sorry.
A knock on the door broke the silence in the room and her thoughts. She tore her eyes away from the boy and swiveled them over to the door to watch Sebastian entering with a stranger who she quickly figured was the doctor they have been waiting for.
With a respectful nod at the doctor, she quietly stepped aside as he approached the bed with Sebastian.
"Is he the patient?" Leaning back against the wall, Estella watched the doctor settle on the chair Sebastian had placed before going down to fetch the doctor.
She averted her gaze to the butler who gave a curt nod. "Yes. Please start, doctor." With that said, her eyes followed Sebastian as he turned around and strolled over to the spot next to her. A glance over at each other, both turned to watch the doctor carry out his examination in silence.
….
Estella watched Sebastian silently shut the door behind them.
Sebastian turned to the doctor expectantly. "Doctor?"
"Right away." The man nodded. "He has come down with a flu. Make sure he gets plenty of rest. It is the best that he does not do anything that will cause him stress-"
"Means no work?" Her eyebrow arched questioningly at the doctor.
The doctor glanced over at her in surprise before looking annoyed for a moment for her interruption. A neutral look took its place on his face again as he cleared his throat. "That will be…of course."
"Hmm, you may continue doctor." She nodded and shrugged, ignoring how Sebastian's eyes had cut over to her. Impatience was gleaming in his crimson eyes. He was clearly annoyed with her for her interruption too.
"Preferably two to three days of rest will be good for him and do monitor him constantly within these days. There should be someone in there," The doctor shot a pointed look at the closed door of the room they just exited from before turning back to them, "to watch over him over the nights too. Just to make sure that his temperature does not go too high."
Sensing finality in the man's words, Sebastian inquired politely. "Is that all, Doctor?"
"Yes, that should be all."
….
Shuddering at the morning air the moment she pushed the thick blanket off her, she could feel the hairs on her arms stand at the chilliness in the air. Stretching out her arms with a big yawn, she swung herself off the bed and crossed her room to the clothes rack to grab a pair of coffee brown long pants. Running her hands down her calves frantically to calm the goose bumps on them, she quickly put on the pants and headed out into the quiet hallway.
With another yawn, she lumbered forward, passing a few doors before stopping at one. As quietly as possible, she pushed down its handle and slid through the gap when she pushed the door open. Once she was in, she closed the door to shut out the chilly air from the hallway.
Turning away from the door, she tiredly glanced over at the clock in time to see its hour hand strike 'III' which was the Romanic symbol for three. She let out a tired sigh. She has woken herself up at three in the morning to check on the male who was currently lying a few feet away on his bed, asleep. Previously at two o'clock, she had done the same thing.
"I'm putting you in charge of the Young Master. Check on him every hour. You are excused from your duties until he is well again." Sebastian's instruction from earlier resonated in her head as she walked closer to the male with sleepy half-lidded eyes.
"Get well soon, Phantomhive…" She brushed his fringe aside and placed the back of her hand on his forehead to check his temperature, only to withdraw it back quickly. He felt warmer than an hour ago, she thought with mild surprise.
Walking to the tub of water on the chair by at the foot of the bed, she fished out the cloth in the cold water and squeezed it drier before heading back to his side. She brushed his fringe aside once again and placed the cloth on his forehead. A soft groan immediately escaped the boy's mouth when his forehead came in contact with it. She caught little movements under his eyelids when she gave a quick sweep of her gaze over his face but quickly brushed it away as just a reaction to the sudden coolness on his skin.
With a yawn, Estella turned away with a strong desire to head back to sleep and took her first step towards the door, mentally reminding herself to check on him the next hour.
All of a sudden, she felt herself being tugged back by something warm around her left wrist.
What the… She thought in surprise as she felt herself pulled backwards. She watched the world around her moved alarmingly quickly as her sleepy mind continued struggling to assimilate what was happening. However, she was obviously not quick enough.
Stumbling backwards onto the bed, she felt herself land on it and subsequently, pulled back by a pair of arms to a warm breathing object. Frowning dumbly, she slowly shifted her head with a puzzled look on her face to identify the object, clearly still unsure what just happened.
A pair of tired-looking dark blue eyes belonging to her master were found staring at her through partly-closed eyelids when she turned.
Silence hung in the air between them as she returned the stare with owlishly blinks. The soft ticking sound of the clock suddenly sounded seemingly loud and unnerving to her ears.
It was then when she finally realize that she was on the bed in the arms of the boy under her care. Her eyes widened and her mouth went agape as she continued to stare in shock at the face which was hovering over hers. With words stuck in her throat, her eyes darted to the arm he used to prop his head off the bed underneath before drifting back to his face once again.
"Phantomhive…?" She managed to croak out, finally gaining back her voice. "W-What in the world are you doing?" A bewildered look appeared on her face.
However, as if he was trying to comprehend her question, the boy remained silent, blinking once, twice at her. It was as though there was nothing wrong lying on a bed with a servant.
The bewildered frown on her face intensified at his silence as she continued to look at him strangely.
With what felt like a long time, Ciel suddenly released a sigh. "You know, this is the fifth time I hear you entering my room." His voice sounded raspy from his cold. "I can't have this all night long. You're staying here for tonight."
Silence.
"What?"
Incredulity formed on her face as she started to squirm in his arms in panic. "No freaking way-"
"Do not argue." Ciel rolled his eyes heavenwards with exasperation peeking into his action and rested them back on her face with an unimpressed look, sighing heavily. "Do you know how difficult it is to stay asleep with someone who moves like an elephant," His face darkened slightly as he talked, "walking in and out of my room every hour?
Estella threw him a weak glare. "For your information, I can't stay asleep either because I need to take care of you."
Returning the glare with a bored look, he broke into a small yawn and drawled. "That's why you should just stay here tonight. Problem solved. So, stop asking questions and sleep." He lazily ran a hand through his messy hair before cut his eyes over to her sharply. "That is an order."
Mouth slightly agape at him, she shot him another incredulous look, with an eyebrow twitching almost imperceptibly.
"Listen to me." Ciel sighed. "If you want me to recover, you will need to let me have my sleep." He eyed her with a raised eyebrow, as if waiting for her to agree.
His words hung in the silence.
"Fine." Estella huffed grudgingly. Agreement could be seen from the way the incredulous look on her face faltered and how her stiff shoulders relaxed.
Ciel nodded. "That's better. " He let out a yawn and plopped himself down on his pillow, shifting away from her to make a small distance between them. Abruptly, as though his body had a mind of its own, a small smile abruptly played across his lips just as he was turning over to face away from her, catching him in surprise.
Still disturbed by that strange action, he heard the girl behind him hesitantly uttered. "G-Good night, Phantomhive."
"…Good night."
….
The dark sky started lightening up as the sun climbed its way up to the sky. Yet, the Phantomhive manor was still in slumber, perhaps, except for Sebastian who was already busy setting the manor ready for a new day.
Gentle morning light silently crept into the room through the little gap between the drapes hanging by the window and cast itself on the sleeping pair. Somehow, it was able to make the female stir.
The movement behind her eyelids increased as her senses gradually alerted her to her surroundings. She slowly became aware of the warmth enveloped around her, then the light rhythmic breathing movement against her and finally, soft snores which were not hers.
Mildly annoyed by the snores, Estella sleepily tried to shift away, only to feel herself being pulled back even closer to the breathing warmth which was pressed against her entire length. A frown marred her peaceful, sleeping face at the ticklish feeling caused by the breathing behind. Discomfort grew as the ticklish sensation intensified.
Finally, she forced her eyes opened and groggily turned her head to identify the thing responsible for the ticklish feeling. Blinking sleepily, she frowned in confusion at the sight of her sleeping master.
Phantomhive… He looks so peaceful when he's asleep. Like a child. But why is he here? Shouldn't he in his room? What are we doing sleeping together- Wait, what?Her eyes sprang wide opened. Now, she was completely awake.
Oh right...Because I 'moved like an elephant'. She threw her eyes heavenwards exasperatedly.
Glancing up at the sleeping face of the boy, her eyes drifted down to his arms which were caging her by her waist. A tint of pink colored her cheeks at the sight of intimate-looking gesture as her heart did what felt like a somersault.
Too embarrassed to care whether her action would wake the boy up, Estella swung herself off the bed, tearing herself free from his hold, and stalked out of the room, leaving behind a sleepy-looking Ciel staring after her in confusion through half-lidded eyes.
….
With narrowed eyes, Ciel glanced at the white horse and back to the redhead servant. "Why did you bring me here? To stare at a horse?" His voice was low with boredom. He certainly looked unimpressed from the way the gleam in his eye dulled and the way one of his eyebrows was quirked.
Estella rolled her eyes and sighed exasperatedly. "It's good to take a walk sometimes, you know. Staying cooped up in the manor all day is very unhealthy."
"How is visiting the horses a walk?" Ciel snorted incredulously as he circled around the white horse which was noisily crunching down on the apple Estella fed him. Letting out a sneeze mid-way, he cleared his throat and asked with mild interest, "So this is the horse Sebastian assigned to you? What did you name it then?"
Perking up at his question, a small teasing smirk played across her face as she watched the boy took the last apple from her hand and raised it up to the animal. "Ciel."
"WHAT?" The apple which was heading towards the anticipating horse's mouth rolled off his outstretched hand as the boy whipped around with an incredulous look on his face, only to see her struggling not to laugh.
"Got you." With amusement and laughter dancing in her eyes, the teasing smirk on her face widened. "Her name is Apple, since she likes apples so much."
"Tch." He snatched up the dropped apple at his feet and brought it towards the horse which in turn excitedly took it into its mouth. Giving the horse a few pats, Ciel strolled towards and past Estella, stopping for a brief moment to address the servant. "Come, play chess with me."
She raised her eyebrows at his retreating back in puzzlement. "Chess?"
With a shrug, she started forward to follow him back to the manor.
….
"Checkmate." Ciel stated with finality in his voice as he stamped the black piece in his hand onto the board before glancing up coolly at the bewildered girl in a chair across him. "You've lost again."
"Again?" Estella furrowed her eyebrows in frustration. "Arghhh, l quit! Chess is so boring anyway-"
"Don't be a sore loser." Ciel drawled, leaning into his chair with a nonchalant shrug. "You think it's boring because you'd never won a single round." He let out a few of coughs and sniffed.
A scowl marred her face. "You…" She let out a resigned sigh. "Fine, I suck at chess, okay?"
"Hmm…" Ciel raised his gaze sharply to her face with a look of surprise, but that look on his face quickly flattered. "I'm surprised that you could admit that so easily."
She glanced away childishly, crossing her arms. "I'm going to pretend that I didn't hear that."
Lazily placing his right elbow on the armrest of his chair, Ciel snorted softly at her childishness and rested his head on his hand. "Suits me fine." He watched in silence as Estella glanced around his study with a bored look.
Studying the girl with deep thoughts, Ciel frowned at her curiously. "Blancbaston," The said servant snapped her attention over to him. "What do you plan to do after you are finished with SIGMA?" He croaked out the last part and coughed when he was done.
A surprised look appeared on her face at that unexpected question and was quickly replaced by a serious expression. "Honestly…I haven't give it much a thought." She shrugged." Maybe I will just let myself die with them." Estella stated nonchalantly as though she was just talking about the weather.
Silence.
"W-What?" He felt his heart skipped a beat at that unexpected answer and strangely, a jolt of anxiety was the next thing which followed after. "That's-"
Abruptly, the doors of his study burst opened in the midst of his sentence, revealing a concerned-looking Elizabeth rushing in.
"My poor Ciel! Are you still having a fever?"
"No, it has subsided. I'll be fine." Ciel let out a heavy sigh. "But Elizabeth, what did I say about running in my manor-"The rest of his sentence was left unheard when Elizabeth pulled him in roughly for a hug.
The sound of a chair being pushed across the floor brought the two's attentions over to Estella who bowed in return. "Excuse me, I'll be off in a bit to make some tea for you. What would you like to drink, Lady Elizabeth?"
"Oh, Estella, you surprised me!" Elizabeth released the boy in surprise. "Earl Grey will be fine, thank you."
"You're welcome." Estella threw a small smile at the girl and started her way to the door. "I'll be back with the tea soon!" The door closed behind her.
Still disturbed by what Estella said before his fiancé came in, Ciel bored a scowl into the door the servant disappeared behind, unaware of the curious look directed at him from Elizabeth.
His scowl deepened.
It was strange. Her answer just did not sit right with him. But why did it not? He pondered, shifting his attention to Elizabeth who he noticed was still standing and had a frown on her face.
"Sit down, Elizabeth." He said, gesturing to the chair which was previously occupied by Estella. He noticed that the frown stayed on as the girl wordlessly went over and sat down. Concerned by her unusual quietness, he leaned forward with a frown of his own. "Are you alright? Is something troubling you?"
"Huh?" Elizabeth raised her eyes to him in confusion, but quickly recovered. The frown was replaced by a cheerful smile. "Of course, I'm alright! I should be the one asking that question! And don't worry, nothing's troubling me."
Silence played into the air of the study the moment she was finished, only to be interrupted by Ciel a brief moment later.
"Elizabeth…" He absentmindedly played with the ring on his thumb as he eyed the smile on her face. She was clearly not telling the truth. "I've known you since we're children. Something is troubling you, Elizabeth."
His suspicion was confirmed when the girl instinctively froze at his declare.
The cheerful light in her green eyes died down as she hesitantly spoke. "Alright…I am troubled." As if on cue, the smile on her face flattered the moment she said those words. A solemn look took its place on her face now.
Behind the straight face, Ciel was slightly taken aback by her sudden change of demeanour. Seriousness was a foreign side of hers to see.
Elizabeth gave out a long sigh and spoke nervously. "I noticed you've grown quite attached to her. You have changed…"
Ciel blinked at her answer, shocked by her declaration.
"Changed? In what way?" Ciel sat upright with a frown. "And grown attached to her? You mean Blancbaston?" Incredulity grew in his voice as he spoke. "I don't think I've changed. Growing attached to that servant is out of question, Elizabeth."
"It's out of question, but you still do." The girl across shook her head. "Everyone can see it. Tell me honestly, what picture do you see when you think of the future? Is Estella part of that picture?
Ciel quirked an eyebrow at those questions.
"Don't be ridiculous. Why would she be in the picture?" His eye narrowed at the absurdity of her question. "Elizabeth," Leaning fully into his chair, Ciel ran a hand through his hair. "I'm practically married to my work. All I think about is work."
Falling into silence, Elizabeth tilted her head curiously at him, as if trying to digest what he just said. However, from the uncertain look on her face, Elizabeth did not seemed convinced. "Do you have any special feelings for her?"
Pause.
"Definitely not."
They fell into silence. The room was stifled with the awkward skittishness between them.
Suddnenly, a knock at the door echoed into the almost too quiet room.
"Come in." Ciel called out stiffly as he shifted in his chair and let out a soft cough.
The door burst opened to reveal Estella rushing in with a silver food trolley. "Sorry for taking so long with the tea, Lady Elizabeth. The water wasn't hot enough so I had to boil the water again." She babbled, completely oblivious to the stiff air between the two.
"Don't worry about it, Estella!" A small smile forcefully made its way across Elizabeth's face as she replied. "I'm not thirsty anyway."
The teapot and cups clacked as the said servant rolled the trolley towards the table. Stopping the trolley the moment she reached them, Estella grinned sheepishly at Elizabeth. "I'll get your tea to you as soon as possible, my lady." She bowed before turning back to the trolley.
"Don't forget me, Blancbaston." Ciel added casually, turning his attention to Elizabeth who he realized was studying him with curious eyes. However, the curiosity in them quickly vanished when Elizabeth found him staring back with a warning look.
Elizabeth let out a resigned sigh, deciding to change the subject. "So, where are your friends from India?"
"London." Ciel relaxed at the change of subject. "In my townhouse." He replied, absentmindedly glancing over at Estella who was fumbling noisily with the tea set before glancing back at Elizabeth.
His fiance nodded "How long are they-"
CRASH!
A sharp shattering sound at the side brought their attention back to Estella who was looking horrified at something at her feet.
Frowning in puzzlement, Ciel glanced down to see what she was looking at, only to realize she had broken a teacup. "Oh dear…" He caught Elizabeth mumble under her breath.
"Sorry, my hand slipped." Estella entered his view, hurriedly crouching down to the bits and pieces of the porcelain on the floor. "I'll clear this right away." Her fingers made a grab for one of the fragments, just as he was about to warn her against picking them up.
True to what he was about to warn, a curse of pain emitted from the servant. "Damn it!"
"You idiot."
Like an act of instinct, Ciel found himself off his chair and crouched down next to her, already tending to her injured fingers with his handkerchief. The sight of crimson blood trickling down her fingers seemed to be the trigger. It was as though his body had a mind of its own.
"Ciel…"
The boy glanced up at his sound of his name, only to see Elizabeth glancing down at him with an unreadable look which sent a sense of dread sinking down his stomach.
Realizing his mistake, Ciel slipped his hands away from Estella's and slowly stood. "Clean up that wound, Blancbaston." He shook his head at Elizabeth.
He knew the shaking of his head was meant to convince Elizabeth to believe that his action held no significance, but why did it feel like it was for himself?
Confusion arose at his own action as he turned away and walked to the door as nonchalant as he could manage. "I'll get Sebastian to clean up this mess." He said, exiting through the door and into the empty hallway.
Fully aware of the eyes on his back, Ciel shut the door and turned to the right, falling back onto the wall with a deep exasperated sigh.
An uneven portion of the wall was digging into his back, but he was too deep in thought to care. Uncertainties and confusion were overwhelming. Behind his closed eyes, questions were suffocating his head.
Why did he react like that?
When did he start to care so much about her?
When did she become more than a servant or a 'pawn' to him?
Did he have any special feelings for her?
Maybe Elizabeth was right. Maybe he has indeed grown attached to her after all.
With a frustrated groan, Ciel stalked his way down the hallway with a great desire to shut himself in his room.