Alcohol allergy

As they wait for their friend to finish his work for the day, Lina and Leonard strike up a conversation, getting to know each other better. Lina grabs Leonard's cup and takes a sip, wincing at the strong alcohol taste, "So you got a perfect score as well! That's quite cool", She says, changing the topic of the conversation.

Leonard nods, but his face shows signs of exhaustion, "Yeah, but that was way too tiring!", He adds, brushing the back of his head, "I worked my butt off every day. I didn't get a chance to rest. But all that hard work paid off after all!"

"But what's so good about getting a perfect score?", She asks.

Leonard raises his eyebrows in disbelief. "Huh? You don't know? For real?", He adds, "Well, you'll be getting a special exam at the end of the year, and it's really hard. But if you do get the needed score on that exam, you'll be able to study abroad for around 3 or 4 years!"

"Man, I envy you!", Adds Lina as her eyes widen in surprise, "So you were able to study abroad! Bet it felt amazing!"

Leonard smiles at the memory, "It was quite amazing, you're right about that!", He confirms just before pointing at Romeo, "But compared to him, I reached my goal with hard work if you ask me!"

"You're talking about Romeo?" Lina asks.

"Yeah!", Nods Leonard, "He's a big brain, you've already seen that! And his lazy personality does give him unique and easier techniques to solve most of the problems."

"Yeah!", Lina nods in agreement, "He amazed us several times with his capabilities! Romeo's really something!"

"He was a huge help to Alex when I was away you know!", Adds Leonard, a look of gratefulness on his face, "If it wasn't for him, I bet my shitty little brother would've become a hoodlum!"

"Oy!", Chimes in Alex, looking annoyed, "At least consider my presence, both of you!"

"He'll be able to do it!" Leonard says confidently. "He'll pass that exam and go abroad for sure!"

Lina's mind wanders for a moment, looking a bit down as well. "Romeo might leave the country..." she murmurs.

"You already started missing him?", teases Maria while smirking.

Lina's face turns bright red, "W... Where did this come from?" she exclaims. And to her surprise, Romeo walks in right away, "You're missing someone?", He asks Lina, hinting that he's willing to help her, "Do you want us to meet him with you?"

"Speak of the devil!", Lina is caught off guard by his sudden appearance before slowly turning to him, "Romeo, you're sneaky as always!"

"Did you finish your job?", Asks Alex, sipping some cola.

As the alcohol starts to take effect, Lina begins to act strangely, "Yay! He finished his job!", her movements jerky and uncoordinated. She seems to be lost in her own thoughts, giggling at this inappropriate moment and slurring her speech. Her eyes appear glassy and unfocused, and she sways slightly in her seat. The once confident and composed girl has been replaced by a giggly, awkward mess. Leonard, Alex, and Maria exchange worried glances, worrying about Lina's sudden shift in character.

"What are... Why are looking so... So serious?", Questions Lina, hiccups interrupting her lines as her whole skin starts reddening.

"Lily?", Says Maria, placing a hand on Lina's shoulder, "Is everything okay?", But thanks to Romeo's quick scan, he notices the cup in Lina's hands. He quickly approaches her and asks, "Lina, what are you holding?"

Lina's response is unexpected as she dramatically exclaims, "Romeo... You're so serious! I don't love you anymore!!!!", Then she keeps whining as the boy tries to get the cup, "Nooo... Give me my glass!"

Romeo shakes his head, giving her a no, and takes the cup from her, only to discover that it was a strong alcoholic drink. After taking a whiff of the cup, Romeo puts it on the table, "She drank alcohol?" he asks, turning to Maria who confirms it with a shocked expression on her face, "A bit of Leo's drink! Oh my God, her skin has become so flushed!!" she exclaims.

Lina, feeling the effects of the alcohol, turns to Romeo for help, "Romeo... S... Save me! I think I need to throw up...", she says, her words slightly slurred.

Romeo quickly assesses the situation, "She's allergic to alcohol", He explains, checking the girl's fever, "and her red skin is a symptom of the reaction."

"Oh my god, I didn't know about that", Adds Maria, "If I knew sooner, I would've prevented her from tasting Leo's drink!"

As for Romeo, he scoops Lina up in his arms and then says, "I'll take her home. It's not that far anyways. Take care guys." And as he takes his leave, Alex can't help but hint at what's about to happen, "Oh I see, I wonder how she's going to react when she realizes that Romi's going to take care of her!", he laughs.

Meanwhile, Leonard expresses his concern to Maria about leaving Romeo to take care of Lina alone, "Can he really be alright on your own?", He asks.

Placing a hand on her face, Maria, on the other hand, seems more interested in giving the two some alone time, "Even if he can't, let him figure it out himself!", She replies.

"Oh I see", Says Leonard, catching on to her intentions and deciding to tease her about wanting to set the two up, "You want them to have some time alone to set them up because..." he trails off, leaving the sentence unfinished.

"How the hell did you get a perfect score when you used to study?"? Asks Alex incredulously, hitting his brother's back.

After reaching her house, Romeo struggles to keep Lina steady as he rings the bell to her house. He has a feeling that no one's going to answer, and his intuition proves correct as the house remains silent. Finally, he carefully lowers the inebriated girl to the ground and asks her for the keys to her house. But Lina shakes her head stubbornly, "I don't want to give them to you!"

"This is not the time for your childish behavior.", Sighs Romeo, "Lina, just give me the keys."

"No!!!" Lina protests, her speech slurred from the effects of alcohol.

"This is such a drag", Adds the boy, "then tell me where they are and I'll get them myself."

That's when Lina giggles uncontrollably, "Between my boobs!", she exclaims, as if it was the funniest thing in the world.

"You don't even have one", Says Romeo.

"You're going to make me cry", Lina pouts, "Here, take them!", She fumbles with her purse before accidentally dropping the keys on the ground. Silently, the boy kneels and takes the keys, then opens the door and gives Lina a piggyback.

Romeo can't help but shake his head at the mess in Lina's house. Clothes are strewn everywhere, empty bottles littered the floor, and it seems as though someone had overturned furniture in the living room, "What's wrong with the house? It's in such a mess, Lina", he remarks, trying to distract her from her drunken state. But Lina tugs at Romeo's hair playfully, "Lina. Stop pulling my hair. It's annoying", He scolds as he gets to her room and tries to put her in her bed.

"No, sleep with me... Romeooooo", Lina slurs, clinging onto him.

"Seriously, what's wrong with her?", Asks Romeo, "I never knew that drunk people act this way," he mutters to himself, gently laying her on the bed.

He gets to the bathroom and brings a bucket of water along with a towel, "I need to make her vomit first", He says, rinsing the towel in the cold water, "no more alcohol has to stay inside her body after all", He checks her temperature again, "The fever's burning her up as well", he thinks, putting the cold wet towel on her forehead to soothe her feverish body. After that, he takes care of the mess and cleans the house meticulously. Then, he contemplates his next move, "Of course, she'll be having an empty stomach if I wake her up right now", He says as he gets to the kitchen and starts scanning the ingredients, "Should I make some soup? We have carrots, potato, beets... Harvest Vegetable soup is good for fever as well", he thinks aloud, finally settling on the menu.

With a newfound purpose, he starts preparing the soup and chopping vegetables. Even though it's his first attempt at making the Harvest Vegetable soup, it turns out quite good. It is getting late, and it appears that Romeo will be sleeping over this night after all. He gets a change of clothes before heading to Lina's room with the menu he prepared.

Romeo gently places the soup on the bedside table and sits down on the edge of the bed, watching Lina sleeping soundly, "How such a troublesome girl can look so innocent when she's asleep", Wonders Romeo as he gently pokes her cheek.

"Lina", he whispers softly, "I made you some soup. You need to eat something." But Lina stirs in her sleep and mumbles something unintelligible. Romeo reaches over and brushes her hair back from her face, tucking a strand behind her ear.

"Lina, wake up. You need to eat something", he says again, a little louder this time.

Lina slowly opens her eyes and blinks a few times, trying to focus. She looks up at Romeo and smiles weakly, "Thank you, Romeo," she says softly. "You're too good to me."

"Finally getting back to your senses I see", He hands her the soup and a spoon and watches as she takes a few hesitant sips, "How are you feeling?" he asks.

Lina shrugs and takes another spoonful of soup, "Better, I guess. My head still hurts and I feel a little sick to my stomach."

Romeo nods and takes the bowl from her when she's finished. "You should get some more rest. Do you need anything else?"

Lina shakes her head and snuggles back under the covers, "No, I'm good. Thank you, Romeo. You're the best"

"Those three...", Says Romeo, referring to Alex, Maria, and Leonard, "They kept spamming me with texts, asking me about your well-being", Then he gets closer to her bed and adjusts her blanket, kindly covering the girl for a better rest, "Get well soon, and don't make them worry any longer, okay? Sleep well, Lina. I'll be here if you need me."

As he gets up to leave, Lina reaches out and grabs his hand, holding it tightly.

"Don't go," she whispers.

Romeo hesitates for a moment before sighing and sitting back down on the bed, "You're quite a handful you know", He adds, checking her temperature again, to find it finally starting to cool down.

Thanks to his simple gesture, Lina smiles contentedly and snuggles closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder. Romeo can feel her warmth and her gentle breathing, and he realizes from the way she's breathing that the girl's physically weak for the moment.

As they lay there in silence, Lina mumbles a few words before falling back asleep. "You don't know how much I owe you, Romeo," she says, her voice barely audible. "When I think about how much you did for me, despite my quirks and faults, I feel that you'll do anything to protect me and keep me safe, even if it means putting up with my antics and mood swings... And... And that makes me So... So happy..."

She tightens her grip on him, "For now, though, I'm content to just hold you while I'm falling asleep... Knowing that I'm safe... And that you're right here beside me..."

Romeo doesn't respond. He simply stares off into space, his face devoid of any emotion. When Lina finally falls back asleep, he puts her back on her bed and readjusts her sheets with mechanical movements.

As he makes his way to the guest room, Romeo suddenly feels a headache coming on. He lays down on the bed with a heavy sigh, his mind racing with thoughts that he refuses to give voice to, "I wish I could express or feel a pang of guilt and sadness wash over me at the words she just said", He thinks as he puts his arm over his green darkened eyes, "I don't want her to fall for me... Because I don't know if I specially care about her or not... because I know that I'm not good enough for her. I'm just a simple guy with a troubled past and a troubled fate, not to mention my cold personality... And I don't want to bring any more pain into her life. I don't want to hurt her, I don't hurt anyone anymore..."

"Lina... don't fall in love with someone like me," he thinks, his face still expressionless. "It'll only end up hurting you. So please, don't love me. It's for your own good." And despite his inner turmoil, he falls into a deep slumber, hoping that everything will be alright in the morning.

The next morning, Lina takes over the kitchen and starts preparing breakfast for both of them. She decides to make a royal menu, as a way of thanking Romeo for taking care of her the previous night. The aroma of freshly brewed coffee fills the room, while the sound of bacon sizzling on the pan creates a tantalizing ambiance.

"Hey, give that back, it's not yours," Romeo says as Lina steals the box of chocolate from the table.

"What do you mean? There's plenty of chocolate there, you know!" Lina retorts, clutching the box protectively.

"The whole chocolate thingy is mine", He adds, eyes fixed on the chocolate.

"I don't want to give it to you!", Pouts the girl.

Both of them get in a playful mood as they fight over the chocolate. Romeo has been eyeing the box of chocolates since Lina started cooking breakfast, and now he's determined to get his hands on them. However, Lina is equally determined to keep the chocolates to herself. As Romeo tries to grab the box from her, Lina keeps moving it out of his reach.

"Come on, Lina, just give me one piece", Romeo adds, his arms outstretched.

"No way!", Giggles Lina as she holds the box out of reach, "You're just going to eat them all!"

The boy lungs forward, trying to grab the box from Lina's grasp. Lina, however, appears to be quick and nimble as she easily sidesteps his advance.

"Ha! You missed me!", She teases, sticking her tongue out at him.

"You're going to have to do better than that, princess", Adds Romeo, slowly moving closer to the girl. But Lina giggles at the way he's moving and playfully shoves him, "Oh, I'll do better, alright...", But to her surprise, Romeo shows off his athletic speed, jumping behind the girl in a matter of seconds. The two of them keep playfully fighting over the chocolate, with Romeo putting his arm around Lina's shoulders, trying to grab the box from her. Lina, on the other hand, keeps pushing his head away to make him lose focus.

Amid their playful banter, the door suddenly opens, and someone walks in. Romeo and Lina freeze in their positions, both startled and surprised by the unexpected visitor. They turn their heads to face the intruder, only to find a man standing there, looking at them with a mix of confusion and amusement.

"B... Bruno?!", she stammers out, quickly trying to disentangle herself from Romeo's grasp. As for our boy, he's a little taken aback at the sudden appearance of someone else in the house, but he quickly recovers and stands up straight, smoothing out his borrowed clothes.

"Nice to meet you," he says politely, extending his hand for a handshake. But Bruno seems to have other ideas, and he ignores Romeo's outstretched hand, instead walking straight over to Lina and giving her a big hug, "Man, I didn't know that my daughter got such a hottie!" he exclaims, winking at Romeo.

Lina's face turns even redder, if that's possible, as she protests, "B-Bruno! P... Please don't get the wrong idea, it's... It's not what you think!"

At that moment, Elza walks into the house, "Bruno, who are you talking to? Lina told me that she's sleeping over...", Then she suddenly stops talking as she glances over at Romeo and then back at Lina, "Oh my, Romeo's here as well!", She continues, covering her mouth.

Bruno turns to her, still grinning from ear to ear. "No no no, you should've waited for me before introducing him to your mother," he says, wagging a finger at Lina, " And he's actually wearing my clothes! I hope you used protection because it's still early for me to have a grandchild!", He keeps teasing.

As Bruno continues with this childish personality, Lina's face turns bright red with embarrassment. "Bruno, please don't get the wrong idea," she stammers, "it's not what you think!", And she rolls her eyes and elbows Romeo as she repeats, "Bruno, it's not like that...", She says, trying to diffuse the situation, "Stop it, you're embarrassing me. And you Romeo", She finally screams at the boy, asking for his aid, "Say something already!"

Romeo, seemingly unfazed by the awkwardness of the situation, doesn't really know how to act, "Me? What am I supposed to do?", He asks before waving at the man casually, "good morning"

Lina groans in frustration "That's not what I meant, you idiot", She says as she jumps away from the boy, clearly flustered.

Elza, who has been observing the exchange with amusement, finally speaks up. "Good morning, Romeo!" she says cheerfully, "It's been a while, hasn't it? Did you sleep over yesterday as well?"

Romeo hesitates for a moment before finally deciding to come clean, "Well, there's a reason for that to be honest", He admits as he places his hand under his chin, "How should I start..."

The group settles down at the table as Lina clears the breakfast dishes and Romeo recounts the events of the previous day and the reason why he's ended up at their house. Bruno listens with interest, occasionally interjecting with questions or comments, while Elza nods along sympathetically. Despite the initial awkwardness, the group quickly falls into an easy conversation, with Romeo's presence bringing new energy to the household.