“H-here’s the money,” the person said, pulling Milo’s coats closer to their chest as they handed some cash to the driver.

Milo stood in front of the car’s side, where he had been since the stranger had run into the fancy apartment building. He couldn't talk anymore as he was so cold, his chest was starting to hurt but he didn't dare ask for someone to call an ambulance. He had nothing to pay for healthcare. The best he could do was find somewhere he could take off his wet clothes to dry while huddle close enough for warmth, fingers crossed as he hoped that he wouldn't die.

Like that would be a pity, he thought, cursing under his breath as he turned down the sidewalk, headed back to the beach since he didn't need to wait anymore for the driver to get paid. He saved the stranger and even tried going the extra mile, whatever happened to them after wasn’t his problem.

He placed his hands in front of him, his tanned skin turned pale and his fingers numb. Freezing to death did not sound like a painless way to go. Milo cupped his hands together and blew on them, rubbing his palms frantically.

He flinched when a hand grasped his shoulder, turning around to see the stranger panting behind him, the taxi gone and both of them the only ones on the clean sidewalk.

“W-wait,” they said, letting him go and adjusting the layers of coats and looking up at him with deep brown eyes. “C-come inside. Y-y-you must b-be freezing.”

Milo didn't need to think the offer through, already headed back to the apartment building for the wealthy, the building he steered clear of because of how out of place it made him feel, but not today. As long as he got warm fast, he could care less about how he looked.

#

By the time they had gotten to the stranger’s floor, drowsiness had begun to overtake Milo’s body. His stumbled while walking and his breathing was slow and shallow, all signs of hypothermia.

I need to tell the kid not to call an ambulance in case I pass out, Milo thought to himself, rubbing his numb hands together again as he followed the short stranger down the large, quiet hall.

“Hey if I--"

“H-here we are,” they said through chattering teeth as they stopped in front of a light blue door.

It was hard to miss it, the door being the only one in the hallway not the color of brown mud.

Milo rose an eyebrow as the stranger lifted a black mat that was in front of the door and brought out a key, unlocking it. They kept looking back and forth, acting like they were trying to rob the place, and for a second, Milo thought they were. Until he realized only someone that jumped into the ocean like they had would be dumb enough to put a key under the only doormat in the hallway, bringing more attention to the hiding spot.

“C-come in,” they said before dashing into the room, Milo losing sight of them.

He let out a shaky breath, feeling each shiver from the top of his head to the tips of his toes as he entered and locked the door, entering a small, hallway that led to a lit and wide room.

He pressed his chin to his chest, barely able to keep his eyes open. His eyes closed from time to time and he quickly began to take off his wet clothes, trying to get rid of them to keep his temperature from dropping any further.

He had experienced that kind of drowsiness before. Years ago, a time when he was younger and his life was revolved around swimming and his parents. If he passed out, things would only get more difficult.

Milo could hear a small ringing in his ears as he dumped his shirt on the cold floor, everything moving and all he could see properly were different spirals and shapes of light until it stopped, and he collapsed.