Holden's heart felt lighter after that day, but not completely, for despite declaring his love, Narcissus never really gave him an answer. Allowing to be kissed didn't meant much these days, but at least it seems that he had a chance.

This had a direct impact on his attitude, and his students took notice; they began to mutter about the teacher's unusual behavior, and Narcissus was among them.

Narcissus: I'm not sure what happened, but it seems that the professor is dating, he even looks like a different person! I swear to you that he looked much more charming than those film actors who glow in the movies when they are ecstatic. I even witnessed those flowers you see in the comics and the effects around flashing *sparkles* *sparkles*. 

Reading this sort of message made Holden smile even more and feel a little envious of himself; how could he praise someone he despised so much just a few days ago? It was a silly thing to feel, yet Narcissus had no idea of his other persona, but that didn't dampen his mood.

He was truly happy, and the days of misery were gone, but they left its traces after those months without eating or sleeping properly. For the first time in his life, Holden became ill; his body was turning human, and he had no idea how to care for it; he couldn't go to the doctor because he was afraid that his tests would reveal something strange due to the remnants of his powers; and the only person he could rely on was... Narcissus.

In the midst of his delirium from a high fever, he called him, not knowing exactly what he had said, but remembering to change his appearance before going deeply asleep.

Once Narcissus arrived at the address he received through text, he rushed to enter the elegant building; he needed to show evidence of the chats he had with Holden so that the security would let him in, and even then, he had to use a lot of his charm and smooth talk. After this minor unexpected event, he located the apartment with the door ajar and carefully entered, calling for Holden, but there was no response.

The place was luxurious and huge. Narcissus was not poor, but he was also not wealthy, so he had never seen anything like it firsthand. After the initial impact, he remind himself why he had come there: Holden was sick.

The young man was laying on a bed in one of the rooms, shriveled and wrapped, in a cold sweat, his face distressed, he was twitching agitatedly, and he appeared to be having a nightmare.

Worried, Narcissus checked his temperature, since Holden had warned him that he did not have a thermometer or medicine at home, so he brought everything he needed to care for his friend; the fever was high, nearly 39 degrees Celsius, and if he did not act quickly, he would have to take him to the hospital, which Holden had clearly stated he was against it, when he called.

Narcissus was about to panic after an unsuccessful attempt to wake Holden up; if he doesn't wake up, there was no way of giving him the medicine, and without the medicine, he didn't know how to ease the fever; he tried a cold compress that he had seen being used on TV once, but he wasn't sure if it would work. Sitting there in complete despair, he began to fear for his friend's life, the one who had confessed himself to him a few days before and with whom he had shared the same feelings for a long time, but lacked the guts to utter the truth. 

A warm hand grasped Narcissus's wrist, and a hoarse voice sounded:

 "Persephone? Is it you?" Holden pulled Narcissus towards him forcing him to lie on the bed with him and hugging him. "Don't leave me, Persephone... Please don't leave me... I can't take losing you anymore... Don't leave me."

Heavy tears streamed down the young man's face, though his eyes remained closed. Narcissus tried to free himself, but the grip was too strong, the heat was unbearable, and hearing his beloved call someone else's name was like he was ripping his skin slowly with a dull knife. Unable to move, he spent the night lying in bed with Holden, thinking who the hell Persephone was.

At dawn, Narcissus woke up with his body aching from staying in the same position too long and when he turned around to see whether Holden was okay, he tumbled out of bed in fright. The person next to him was a Holden, but the wrong Holden, not his friend, but his teacher. His head was spinning and he wanted to scream, but his voice wouldn't come out.

With the thud, Holden opened his eyes to see Narcissus's terrified face sitting on the floor; his eyes were so wide and his mouth so open that it took a while for the man to understand what had happened, and before he could try to explain himself, Narcissus ran out of the room without looking back.