NYLA SNEEZED ONCE more, narrowly avoiding the papers placed on her desk.

Hyeon shot her another glance, "You should really head home."

Nyla shook her head and rubbed her temple absentmindedly. A headache was beginning to form. "I can't, I have to look over all of these papers before signing off on them."

"The papers will be here tomorrow Ms. Malhotra," Hyeon said gently, before placing a cup of tea in front of her. "Your health is more important."

"I'll be fine."

Hyeon glance at her once more before leaving the office. However, she didn't close the door fully as she normally did. A slit was left open—presumable for Hyeon to check on Nyla whenever she felt like it.

Nyla returned back to the files however it was extremely hard for her to focus. The numbers were blurring, and she had to read a single sentence at least twice to understand what it meant. Nyla frowned as she signed the next document. It was a report that listed the spending's of each department. The numbers were substantial higher than previous years however, Nyla couldn't figure out why.

She called Hyeon's line. "Are you able to get the Chief Financial officer to meet me today?"

Hyeon said she would find out if he was available. She shut down the phone and went back to the documents. Once she signed the necessary forms, she pushed them to the side and closed her eyes for a moment. Hopefully, not straining her eyes would help with her massive headache.

There was a knock on the door and Nyla opened her eyes abruptly. "Come in," she called.

Hyeon was at the door with another gentleman behind him.

"How may I help you?" she asked.

Hyeon gave her a look. "You asked for the head of finance?"

Nyla furrowed her brows and looked towards the papers. She did remember telling Hyeon to call a meeting, but she couldn't find the document she needed him to look over anymore. She scrambled madly flipping papers left and right and her hand hit the cup of tea Hyeon had made early.

The tea spilled on some of the documents and Nyla swore. Hyeon rushed forward with napkins and she tried soaking up the liquid.

"I think it's best that you go home now." Hyeon said softly enough that the other man couldn't here.

Nyla was about to refuse but then she looked at the state of her office. Realistically, she wasn't going to be able to do anymore work. The place looked like a mess.

Hyeon held up the soaked papers. "I'll let these sit on the table, so they'll be dry in the morning."

Nyla nodded and picked up her bag. As she was leaving, she realized that the man was still standing there, confusion etched on his face.

"Sorry about this," Nyla said with a forced smile. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to change our meeting to a later date."

She didn't wait for a reply before walking out. Anthony dropped her off home and Nyla kicked off her heels before falling on the couch. She didn't have any energy to move elsewhere.

♠♠♠♠♠♠

Nyla woke up with a startle to the sound of loud pounding. She was momentarily confused with her surroundings. Her throat was burning and felt scratchy. She tried soothing it with her hand. The room around her seemed blurry and it took a few moments for everything to come into focus.

The pounding continued. Nyla glanced towards the door—it seemed like she had an impatient visitor. Walking slowly, she opened to door to see Darius on the other side.

He looked at her front top to bottom. "You look like hell."

"Feel like it too."

He smiled and stepped inside. "Shouldn't you be in bed resting?"

"I was before you tried breaking down my door."

Darius placed a hand on her forehead and Nyla closed her eyes. It felt cool and soothing against her burning forehead. He gently led her towards the stairs. She tried climbing them but didn't have the strength.

In one fell swoop, Darius picked her up bridal style. Nyla didn't even have the energy to argue with him. She just felt so exhausted. Instead, she leaned her head against his chest and breathed in his scent. He was wearing cologne, that much was evident. However, her nose was partially blocked so she couldn't really identify what he smelled like.

"Which one is your bedroom?" His voice was soft and gravelly.

"Last one to the left."

Darius kicked opened the room door and Nyla frowned but didn't say anything. The lights were flickered off and Darius softly placed her on the bed before turning them on. The light hurt her eyes.

"Shut it off," she instructed.

Darius ignored her and walked to the bed. "Arm's up," he commanded.

"Why?"

Darius pointed at her clothes. "You're still wearing a suit. Somehow, I know that won't be comfortable to sleep in."

Nyla shrugged her shoulders and took of the blazer. She didn't have the strength to walk to her drawer and pick out an outfit. "Can you grab something for me?" she asked Darius.

He nodded. Nyla watched him open the drawers one by one looking for comfortable clothing. Unfortunately, he started from the top and took out a black lingerie set she'd bought for herself.

"I might get you to wear this." he said with a mischievous smile.

Nyla shook her head. "I'm not that delirious to wear whatever you're suggesting."

In the end, Darius handed her a pair of sweatpants and a long sleeves shirt. She looked at him expectantly.

"What?"

"Could you please turn around?"

He did what he was told and Nyla change into the clothes. She slipped into the covers. Her throat still felt like it was on fire.

"Are you decent now?"

"Yes," she said softly.

"Good, I'm going to heat up some soup that I brought. You should drink it before taking medication."

Nyla shook her head. "No, I don't want to eat. I just want to go to sleep."

"I know that," Darius said soothingly. "However, you need to eat to keep up your strength. You only have to drink a little."

When she nodded, Darius got up from the bed. "I'll be back soon," he promised.

Nyla was about to drift off when she smelled the scent of the soup. She waved her hand in the air. "Get it away from me, I'm going to puke."

Darius ignored her instructions and instead brought the tray closer to her. "Try a bite first."

With great struggled she lifted herself into an upright position and took the spoon from him. She slowly lifted the soup to her mouth. It was hard to swallow at first but after a while, it actually tasted delicious. She took a few more spoons full.

"I can't drink anymore."

Darius took away the train and placed it on her bedside. He handed her a glass of water and medication. She took it, before settling herself in the bed once more. To her surprise, Darius sat on the other side of the bed she wasn't occupying.

"What made you come to my apartment?"

Darius slowly began massaging her forehead and she closed her eyes. It felt heavenly.

"I was coming to drop off some files when Hyeon told me you'd already left for the day. I couldn't believe my ears."

Nyla let out a weak laugh.

"But then, your secretary told me that you were sick. So, I felt as though it was my duty to come and help you."

Nyla vaguely nodded, but her mind was starting to drift off again. "You know you're going to be sick in a few days, right?"

"I rarely get sick."

Nyla snorted.

"Fine, if you don't believe me, if I get sick you have to come over and play nurse."

"I have a company to run."

Darius gave her a pathetic pout. "You can't even come and help a sick friend after he saves your life?"

Nyla yawned. "Fine, I'll be there."

"Promise?"

"I promise." she said. Those were the last words she uttered before falling into a deep slumber.

♠♠♠♠♠♠

Nyla felt considerably better when she woke up. The light was streaming through the curtains allowing her to get a good look at her surroundings. The time on her alarm read twelve o'clock and she woke up with a start. She needed to get ready and go to work.

She threw over her duvet covers and slowly made her way to the bathroom. Her eyes were bloodshot red and dark circles were etched firmly underneath them. Sighing, she stepped into the shower.

Nyla came out a few minutes later, still feeling a bit woozy—however there was work that needed to be done. She grabbed her purse and made her way downstairs only to hear cluttering in the kitchen.

Frowning, she made her way pass the living room to see a six-foot man walking bare feet around the place. He was humming softly.

"What are you doing?"

Darius spun around so quickly that he almost dropped the items he was holding. Seeing that it was only her, he laid down the ingredients down on the counter. "I'm making breakfast."

Nyla glanced around the rest of the place surprise to see a pan sizzling. Discarded egg shells were laid on the pristine marble countertops.

"Make yourself right at home," she said sarcastically.

Darius ignored the sarcasm and instead noticed for the first time what she was wearing. "Where do you think you're going?"

"To work."

"No, you're not."

Nyla went to put on a pair of heels, but a wave of dizziness hit her, and she almost fell down. Thankfully, Darius was there to help support her.

He gently pried the bag out of her hand. "I told Hyeon you weren't coming in today either."

"You had no right to do that." Nyla said sternly.

Darius simply raised an eyebrow. "If I stop holding onto you right now, you'll be completely fine?"

Nyla sighed. As much as it pained her to admit, she wasn't ready to go to work today. "Fine I'll stay home."

Darius smiled and pointed to the couch. "That's your new home for today. I'm making an omelet; would you like one?"

Nyla shook her head— she still wasn't feeling ready to eat. Moments later, Darius brought a sizzling omelet and sat down beside her. She eyed him distastefully, but he seemed to ignore it. The scent hit her nostrils.

"Can I try some?" she blurted out.

Darius passed over his plate and Nyla dug in. The creamy texture of the omelet was divine. She was hit with other flavours as well. The vegetables had been sliced so thinly, you couldn't even taste them. Before she knew it, Nyla was taking more bites.

"Easy," Darius muttered from beside her. "If you eat too quickly, you'll throw up."

"This is delicious."

Darius smiled. "I'm not a chef, but breakfast is my specialty."

Nyla finished the entire omelet and she was feeling much better afterwards. She was aware the Darius was staring at her.

"What?"

"You have curly hair." He stated.

Nyla unconsciously rang her fingers through the pass of curls. "Yeah unfortunately. I always straighten my hair." 

"You should keep it like this sometimes." Darius said in a soft voice.

Nyla felt her heart beating quickening at his scrutiny of her. "Thank you." She coughed once more and whatever moments had passed between them was gone.

Darius abruptly stood up. "I'll get you your medicine."

Nyla watched as he returned with a glance of water and pills. Once he was sure that she'd taken the medication, he walked over to the piano. His fingers caressed the black and white keys casually. "Do you play?"

"Sometimes." Nyla replied.

Darius sat down on the bench. Nyla watched as he played around with the keys a few times before he launched into a beautiful rendition of Erik Satie's Trois Gymnopedies. His fingers flew across the keys and he closed his eyes, looking quite peaceful.

When he was done, Nyla clapped her hands. "That was one of the best performances I've heard of the piece."

"Thank you," he said.

"Are you sure you weren't meant to be a pianist instead of a CEO?" she joked.

He smiled. "My mother forced me to take piano lessons when I was younger. I highly doubt I'll be able to compete with the worlds best."

"If you tried very hard, you might."

Darius brought down the case for the keys. "It's nice to play sometimes but I don't think I would be able to do if for other people."

Nyla nodded, understanding what he meant. Her phone beeped and she looked at the various emails she had received. Sighting, she got up from the couch.

"Where are you going?"

"My office."

Nyla entered the room and she was aware of Darius' footsteps behind her. He took a good look around, "This is a nice place."

"I decorated it myself." Nyla admitted.

She opened up her laptop while Darius looked at the items much closer. His stood in front of the painted map, "This is a wonderful idea. What do the tiny stars represent?"

"Those are the places I've visited already."

"How was Cape Town?"

"One of the most stunning places I've visited." Nyla admitted.

Darius nodded, his fingers tracing the paint. "I've wanted to go there for quite some time. However, things just don't seem to line up."

"It's gorgeous in the summer, that's the best time to go."

"Where do you want to go most?"

Nyla didn't even have to think about it, "India."

Darius pointed towards the star, "But you've been."

Nyla met his gaze. "I went when I was a lot younger. I can't remember most of my trip. I've been meaning to go but I thought I would be going with my parents."

"You could still ask them."

Nyla shook her head. "We don't talk much anymore."

Curiosity lingered in Darius' eyes however he sensed that she didn't want to talk about it, so he let her drop the subject. He settled down on the upholstered grey couch.

"How's your sister?"

"She's good. She was excited to see me on Thanksgiving."

Nyla nodded. "It must have been some reunion."

"It was great. Although I did have to drag Vincent. He's always trying to get out of family functions."

Nyla smiled. It was clear that Darius had a sense of family and people whom he loved. Once upon a time, she used to have that as well.

"I don't know if I thanked you earlier, but I really appreciate you taking care of me. You're extremely good at it."

"Of course, I am," Darius said in mock arrogance. However, his expression turned more serious. "I used to do it all the time for Lily." He admitted.

"It must have been hard."

Darius shrugged his shoulders. "Whatever it was for us, it was a hundred times worse for her. The least we could do was support her."

Nyla smiled softly, "You're a good brother."

Darius sighed. "I wish I could see her more often."

"It's none of my business, but why doesn't she live in New York?"

"The noise really gets to her. The crowd isn't ideal either. New York just isn't the city for her."

There was a lull in the conversation.

"How about you, do you have any siblings?"

"An older sister." Nyla said. It had been a long time since she'd spoken about her though. When Nyla's parents had cut her off, her sister Meena had done the same thing. "She's married and has two kids."

"You must love spending time with them." Darius said.

Nyla gave him a strained smile, "Something like that."

He looked like he was about to say something else, but his phone rang. "I've got to take this." He said apologetically.

Nyla waved her hand and turned back to the emails. Darius spoke on the other line in hushed tones. A few minutes later he hung up.

"I'm sorry, I have to go to the office for a meeting that can't be moved around."

"Don't apologize, go." Nyla said sternly.

Darius still looked unsure. "I'll make sure to take my medication. You've left some soup, right?"

He nodded.

"I'll drink that, I promise."

Darius nodded before smiling. "If I have time, I'll drop by after work."

Nyla shook her head. "Go, I'll be fine. Stop acting like a mother hen."

With one final glance, Darius left the office and Nyla slummed into her chair. He was barely gone a few minutes, but she still missed his presence. It was utterly ridiculous. 

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Thank you so much for the 1K Reads! This was one of my favourite chapters to write, as we get to see Darius and Nyla's relationship growing into something much closer. What do you think the probability of Darius getting sick is?  Comment below. ;)