SWNOVELXO Chapter 9: VIPs
Her gaze turned calculating. 'Seven thousand good points just for helping him? That's enough to keep me alive for six whole months! If I don't waste any of it, I can survive even longer!'
But as tempting as the reward sounded, the second part of the task made her hesitate. "Why only 5 percent? What about the other 95 percent?" she asked the system.
The Love System replied with a cryptic tone, "Because it's not that easy. This man is... different. That 5 percent will be harder than you think. Good luck, Nnenna."
Nnenna narrowed her eyes at the man. He was clearly no ordinary patient, especially if he was staying in the hospital's VIP wing. She couldn't help but feel a little uneasy. 'Just who is he?'
The man, on the other hand, had no idea about her internal debate. He could feel her eyes boring into him, probably trying to figure out who he was. His face remained impassive, but his thoughts were sharp. She seems useless, falling down the moment she walked in.
He scoffed silently. 'How lucky she is that she didn't touch even the corner of my clothes. Even if she's a VIP, I would make her pay for disturbing me.'
His gaze remained fixed ahead, but inwardly, he wondered. 'No ordinary person can enter this floor. So who is she?'
Nnenna, oblivious to his thoughts, clenched her fists in determination. She didn't care how difficult this man might be or what kind of attitude he had. With those points on the line, she was going to help him no matter what.
Shaking off his disdainful attitude, Nnenna straightened her back and spoke calmly, though a hint of annoyance laced her tone. "I can still help you...us. I brought my phone."
The man did not respond, his silence as if doubting her ability to do anything useful. Ignoring his silence, Nnenna quickly unlocked her phone. She did not have the number for the hospital staff, so she resorted to dialing the emergency line instead. The call was picked up almost immediately.
A crisp female voice came through. "2** Emergency Contact. What's your emergency?"
"Hello," Nnenna began, trying to sound composed. "My...uh, friend and I fell, and we can't get up. We're at Royal Hospital, but I can't reach their internal phone line. Could you please call them and ask for help?"
The man's eyebrows twitched at her words. Friend? Since when had they become friends?
The voice on the other end paused briefly, as if processing the strange situation, before confirming, "Let me make sure I got this right. You and your friend fell in a ward at Royal Hospital and can't get up?"
"Yes, yes, that's exactly it," Nnenna replied eagerly, relieved that the woman understood.
"Alright," the operator continued. "What room are you in?"
Nnenna hesitated, glancing around. She had no idea what number this man's room was. Deciding to keep things vague, she answered, "Uh, we are in the VIP ward."
There was another pause, this one longer. When the woman finally spoke, her tone carried a hint of surprise. "Alright, we will contact the staff and have them send someone over."
"Thank you!" Nnenna said quickly before ending the call.
Turning to the man, she beamed. "They're sending help!" Her cheerful tone wasn't necessary, but she wanted to find an excuse to talk to him. His cold silence was starting to grate on her nerves.
The man didn't reply immediately. He was in visible discomfort, and Nnenna suspected he was biting back a groan. But just as she began to think he would ignore her completely, he murmured a barely audible, "...Thank you."
Her eyes widened. 'Did he just thank me?'
She decided not to comment, lest he retract it out of spite.
A few minutes later, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed down the hall. Four nurses entered the room in a rush, two men and two women.
One of the younger female nurses moved toward the man, clearly aiming to leave a good impression on this important VIP. But before she could touch him, her older colleague yanked her back by the arm, her expression stern.
The younger nurse reluctantly turned away and helped Nnenna instead, joining her colleague to steady her and adjust her drip stand.
Meanwhile, the two male nurses carefully lifted the mysterious man and placed him back on the spacious bed. Once the task was done, they stood in a neat line, their silent presence unnerving Nnenna.
She stared at them, her grip on the drip stand tightening. There was no way these were ordinary nurses. The air of discipline, the way they moved, it all screamed military precision.
Her lingering gaze didn't go unnoticed. The man, now sitting upright, a mask on his face before she could see his face clearly, and flipping through a folder he had picked up from the bedside table, raised his head. His cold, sharp eyes met hers. "Do you need an invitation to leave?" he asked mockingly, his voice dripping with disdain. "You barged in so easily earlier. It should be just as easy to walk out, right? Or what? You plan to move in now?"
The audacity!
Annoyed, Nnenna straightened her shoulders and stormed out of the room, muttering under her breath. "The only reason I'm even here is to earn good points, you ungrateful jerk."
As she reached the door, she paused, a sudden thought flashing through her mind. 'Wait, he's worth 7,000 good points.'
Damn it!
Nnenna bit her lip in frustration before turning to one of the nurses. "Aunty, that man is also involved in physical therapy, right? Will he come to our group sessions?"
The older nurse glanced at her with a look of pity, misunderstanding her curiosity. In the nurse's eyes, Nnenna was just another naive girl who had fallen for the mysterious man's charms.
'Poor thing,' the nurse thought, but still answered, "Yes and no. The hospital assigned him a personal physical therapist, so he will not be joining the group."