In Return

While I was contemplating, Christina's words suddenly flashed through my mind.

"Natsu, if Fuyumi ever finds herself in a pinch. Please... save her heart."

I couldn't get those words out of my mind for some reason. They're etched firmly as if someone's telling me to keep remembering so that I wouldn't forget. Well, it's not like I'm going to disregard it. I would never abandon Fuyumi especially if she's in a state of crisis.

But yes, I'm aware. I really shouldn't have acted like that yesterday. It felt like I was being too insensitive but I understand her.

Fuyumi wanted to keep her pride in constant uptime because she didn't want the other people around her to feel hopeless and discouraged. As the leader, she needs to be in the center of positivity. Otherwise, it might affect her subordinates and she won't be able to continue working with them.

But that's just another facade. Although it's part of her reason, the truth is that Fuyumi was scared of losing everyone's trust.

As she grew in that position, people's expectation is also increasing to the point that Fuyumi needs to work twice as hard in order to please them. What will happen if she lost all that buildup? The mass will generally get disappointed and that will leave a mark on her career.

In other words, Fuyumi doesn't want everyone to see her weakness because she feels like she might get humiliated.

That's not true, of course. Everyone in the council loves her. They deeply care for her. I also care for her. That's why I'm telling her to stop being stubborn and give up once in a while to release that pressure. No one's gonna insult her even if she falls.

But I guess she failed to see that.

"What's wrong? You look a little down..." Kylee noticed my gloominess as we walked together.

"Nothing... I'm just tired."

I opened the door to the council but the first thing I noticed is that Fuyumi wasn't inside.

"Vice-President, where's Fuyumi?" I asked.

"Ah... President took the day off and asked us to handle the event for now."

"Hm? Did she tell the reason why?"

Secretary Sarah joined us. "No, she didn't. But I suspect that it's probably overwork. President has been pushing herself to multitask lately and I'm worried about her health..."

So that's how it is, huh?

"Hah..." I heaved a sigh and then grabbed my bag and coat. "Kylee, supervise the council for a while and ask all of the representatives to have a briefing."

"Eh? What do you mean? Where are you going?"

"Just do it. And also, contact each president of the class from all grade levels. Vice-President Joseph, please instruct every single one of them to start preparing based on the initial plan that Fuyumi outlined back then." I commanded them sharply.

"Eh?"

"Wha..."

"Nathan? What are you planning to do?" Kylee, Sarah, and Joseph looked at me.

"We're going to implement everything that Fuyumi planned from the start," I answered.

"Wait! We can't do that anymore, Nathan. We're understaffed and we lack the necessary budget to host it."

"Trust me. This is should be the time when we should be inclining our standards to match Fuyumi's. I'll do something on my end so please organize everyone here..." I bowed my head deeply.

If she wants to see it until the end...

If she wishes to make it successful...

Then I'll gladly do my best to make that come true.

"...I understand." VP Joseph patted my shoulder. "Knowing you, Nathan, you have something on your mind, right?"

"Yes."

"Then leave everything to me... we'll gladly support you and Ayumi."

Everyone in the council smiled. Looks like they finally resolved themselves and it's all for the sake of Ayumi.

"If we're gonna do this then we should fire everyone up!"

"Yeah! I hate that bastard Algion anyway, who does he think he is?!"

"Let's win, everyone!"

""YEAH!""

Now that I started the engine, it was finally time to bring her back.

"Thank you, everyone!" I bowed again.

"No problem!"

And so after that, I left the school early and rushed my way to Fuyumi's address. If I remember correctly, Christina is not at home yet during these hours so she's probably all alone right now.

I took the elevator and went straight to her room. I then hit the doorbell and then after a few seconds, it finally opened.

"N-Nathan...? What are you doing in here?"

As expected. Fuyumi was in her thick sleepwear and she was wearing a mask. I could instantly tell that she has a cold because her body was subtly shaking.

I took a moment to calm down and then I peeked inside. There were a lot of paperwork and envelopes scattered around her table and I suppose Fuyumi has been working on them while she was sick.

"You're sick. Why aren't you resting...?" I asked.

"I'm fine, there's no need for you to worry... Did you need something from me? If you have no business then lea—"

Before she could finish her sentence, I forced my way again and tapped her forehead with mine.

I gently pushed her body into the wall and then I supported her with my arms while checking her temperature.

"E-Eh? W-What are you doing?" Fuyumi blushed. Right now, our forehead is basically touching each other. Fuyumi could've resisted but she couldn't.

"Hmm... about thirty-seven point five," I muttered as I gently pulled my head and grabbed her arm. "You're definitely sick. Stop doing that and rest for a while..."

"No, let go of me... I told you I'm fine—"

"Stop being stubborn!" I raised my voice and stared at her menacingly.

Fuyumi twitched, her mouth agape. I stared directly at her bright blue eyes, eager to make her submit to me once in a while.

"..." without saying any words, Fuyumi loosened herself to me and decided to obey.

***

Nathan spent the rest of the afternoon nursing Ayumi. He frequently changed her towel and wipes off her arms and legs to alleviate the heat inside her body. He also put some cold compress on her forehead to cool her down and lessen the fever.

Ayumi didn't bother resisting as Nathan took care of her. He even cleaned her room and fixed all of her belongings and paperwork that are scattered on the floor and on the table. Now that she was able to relax, Ayumi felt very weak and she couldn't lift herself up.

It's probably because she was driving herself with pure determination, not noticing that her health is deteriorating.

After a few hours of sleep, Ayumi finally woke up. Her cold is still there but her fatigue temporarily subsided.

"How are you...?" Nathan asked. Ayumi stared listlessly as she remembers what happened.

"I made some porridge while you're asleep. Eat this, and then after that, drink the medicine." Nathan placed a small wooden table near her bedside.

He prepared her a bowl of porridge, medicine for the cold, and some water. Ayumi gently pushed her body to sit down as she took the table.

"Oh, I guess you don't have any strength yet..." seeing that Ayumi is struggling, Nathan picked up the spoon. "Say Ahh~"

"What are you doing...?" Ayumi stared daggers at him.

"I'm feeding you," Nathan answered.

"We're not kids, I can do that by myself..." Ayumi felt mortified about Nathan spoonfeeding her and tried to move up but she couldn't.

"See? You're still exhausted. Come on... Ahh~" Nathan grinned, slowly pushing the spoon into her mouth. At this point, he's just being ridiculous.

Ayumi pouted cutely like a child as her cheeks turned red. She didn't have any choice but to suck it up so she did it anyway.

No one would ever imagine their Ice-cold Princess getting spoonfed by a guy. Not even Christina could tolerate this. She'll probably faint if she sees Nathan and Ayumi acting like they're husband and wife.

"I can't believe I'm doing this... Ahh..."

After that spoonfeeding session, Ayumi drank the medicine and went back to rest. She leaned on the backside of her bed while resting her legs. Nathan returned the wooden table in the kitchen and proceeded to wash everything. After that, he went back inside to finally have some serious talk.

"Hey, Natsu..." Ayumi's tone seemed melancholic when she called him. "Why would you go this far to take care of me again? I shouted at you yesterday, I ignored your opinion and placed my outbursts on you even though you didn't do anything. This isn't the case like before when you accidentally bumped into me. I caused this mess for myself and to everyone..."

So why would he still stay by her side?

Ayumi asked herself that question first before turning to him. She didn't see any reason for Nathan to keep on helping her. And now that she turned him away, Nathan should've left her to suffer yet he's here nursing her.

"..." Nathan didn't answer for a while. He placed his bag near the table and sat down at Ayumi's bedside.

"You're not even obliged to be in the council anymore. You could've just spent your time enjoying your 4th year and hanging out with everyone, so why?" Ayumi asked again.

"Now that you say that, I also wonder why...?" Nathan contemplated.

If he didn't stay in the council, he wouldn't have to experience all of the things that happened throughout this Spring season including Reyson's problem, Angelica's case, and Yvette's family affairs.

He's also aware that he could've just quit the moment Ayumi got better and he should've spent his time with Autumn.

But for some reason, he couldn't leave Ayumi.

"If I have to put it into words... I guess I couldn't leave because I want to be on your side..."

"—!" Ayumi widened her eyes.

Be on her side? It sounds like someone's declaring their love to Ayumi but she didn't find it unsettling.

"Ever since I met you, I've been very fond of your ability to lead. You have a strong conviction and determination. But you could also say that you're a bit clumsy and stubborn but that's what I like about you. It's because of that that I highly respect and value you. You opened my eyes to lots of different things and because of that, I was able to help some people."

Ayumi's face was getting red as Nathan continues. She didn't expect this kind of answer from him.

They say that if you find someone who excels better than you, you will unconsciously start to chase that person. Admiration begins when that happens and that cycle of constantly improving yourself and dragging everyone else's strength will continue. You'll start to like that person and think like you shouldn't leave him or her if you want to improve yourself.

"I'm not putting you on a pedestal. You have genuine skills but you also have a lot of flaws. When I think about how you're always distributing that positive energy despite being exhausted makes me feel angry. But I finally understand. You're doing that because you didn't want everyone to feel negative, right?"

"That's why I'm sorry." Nathan bowed. "I'm sorry for saying such insensitive things yesterday. I didn't mean to force you out of it... Forgive my insolence."

"..."

Of course, she would be speechless. This is the first time that Ayumi was able to hear an honest opinion without sugarcoating their words. Nathan told her flaws and also her strengths. And he also understands the way she thinks and how she felts. It was like she was talking to her opposite self.

Seeing that Nathan was sincere enough to even bow down, Ayumi slowly snuggled herself on Nathan's shoulder. She had her blanket raised on her face as she felt embarrassed. She couldn't dare to let Nathan see her expression right now.

Her heart was beating so fast that she feared that Nathan might've heard it.

"F-Fuyumi?" naturally, this dense guy is also startled. He didn't expect Ayumi to lean on his shoulder.

"I'm happy that you're being honest with me..." she peeked a little bit from her blanket. "I apologize as well for lashing at you. I just... couldn't control it yesterday."

"I understand..." Nathan caressed her hair.

"But... to be honest, I don't really know what to do anymore. We don't have that much time left. The Arts Festival will start next week and we only have a few days to organize everything. I couldn't find any other way to turn this around without the budget."

The council is understaffed and they don't have enough budget to implement something grand. At this point, Ayumi's at a disadvantage and there's a possibility that she might lose the bet and accept Algion's condition to date her.

"That guy's pretty obstinate, isn't he? I'm surprised you managed to tick him off." Nathan chuckled.

"He knew the council's circumstances that's why his ego flared up. I'm pretty sure he can't wait to have his revenge since I'm always beating him..." for some reason, Nathan was staring sharply at her. "W-What...?"

"Do you like that guy?" he asked.

"No, I loathe him." a firm answer.

"I see..." Nathan breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, I don't think you have to worry about that anymore." 

"What do you mean?"

"Instead of enclosing yourself in finding a solution, you should start opening your eyes and look around you..." Nathan smiled.

"Everyone's doing their best even without your guidance, do you know why?"

Ayumi didn't answer.

"It's because they wanted you to stop shouldering everything by yourself and produce better results with the help of the others. That's the one thing you lack throughout your time in the council, Fuyumi. The ability to coordinate with everyone and utilize their strengths."

Ayumi hung her head, thinking that what Nathan said is true and that she only realized that now.

"But even so... even if I change my methods right now, it'll be too late..."

"No, everything's going to be fine," Nathan reassured her.

"Why do you think that?"

"Instincts, I guess? Well, you just need to go back tomorrow and lead them again but this time, try to actually coordinate with them and speak your mind."

I'm sure that if you were able to do that, everyone will help you cover it.

"Anyway, go see it for yourself tomorrow. I'll be on my way now, I still have some part-time job after this. Bye, Fuyumi!"

"Ah, wait! Natsu!" Ayumi tried to catch him but Nathan immediately left.

She wondered what his words meant when he said that. Ayumi wasn't sure about Nathan's basis on things. It's too far-fetched for her to accept that everything will be fine. She believed that even if she switched tomorrow, the result won't change.

That is... until she went to school that following day.

***

The whole campus was bustling with energetic students, working all together to prepare for the upcoming Arts Festival.

It was... unnerving.

Ayumi expected the whole team to be in a gloomy state and she was already prepared to face the worst but... she didn't.

When she entered the building, almost every section in the hall was preparing its exhibits and stalls. Most of them are already decorating their room and there are a few students gallivanting around to fetch some stuff.

While she is scouting them, she spotted Secretary Sarah running.

"Ah, Sarah!"

"Huweh?! P-President?!" she got startled but then she immediately firmed herself.

"What's happening? Why is everyone busy?" Ayumi asked.

"Ah, listen to this, President. We got everything that we needed!" Sarah happily reported.

"What do you mean?"

"For our budget problem, Miss Yvette Sierra volunteered to invite some art companies to sponsor our event. They shared with us an ample amount of their money to recover what we lost. As for the manpower problem, Danny and Reyson gathered everyone in their club including the ones from the junior-high department. And also, as for the Theatre performance, we have Miss Angelica hosting it."

"W-What...?"

"Isn't this great, President?! Everyone's helping us. At this point, we won't have to worry about losing anymore! We can win this, President." Sarah smiled.

How? How did this happen? I'm pretty sure I left everyone in a hopeless state... What is happening?

Nathan's image flashed on her mind when she remembered what he said to her yesterday.

"It's you again... isn't it?" she whispered.

"Hmm? President? What did you say?"

"Mhmm...! Nothing, I was just perplexed..." Ayumi wiped her face in an instant. "Tell everyone that we have a meeting and ask them for some report."

"Understood"

With her usual attitude, Ayumi ordered Sarah for another briefing.

Now that her problem is fixed, it's time to get serious.