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The tickle at the back of his throat is Keigo's first warning and he starts drinking a lot of hot tea and wrapping his scarf more tightly around his neck, but it's probably too late already. He knows what this means.
Another day or two before the illness takes hold and weakens him enough to become a disappointment to the Commission people too, just like with his parents.
He'd been doing so well since they took him in, too! Keigo blinks back tears as he goes back downstairs to make himself more tea. The kettle is already boiling when he gets to the kitchen, and he nods to Cook who is flipping through a newspaper in the common room.
"More tea?" Cook inquires.
"Yes," Keigo replies quietly. "If that's okay."
"Of course it is," the cook chuckles. "Plenty of hot water to go around. And if you'd like to drink it with me here, tea always tastes better with company."
Keigo hesitates, then shakes his head. He'd love to but he doesn't want to risk making him sick, too.
The next day, he wakes up with a headache and feverish waves that rush through him, soon replaced by a cold that leaves him shivering. He made the right call, he thinks as he wraps himself up in warm clothes. Maybe Takeuchi, the friend the Commission assigned him to supervise his training, would know about medication to make it go away, so Keigo could focus on his lessons more easily...? But, no. His parents never had any money for medication; there's no reason for this to change now, not when the Commission is already spending the money to feed him three times a day every day. That's a lot already.
Thankfully, the next few days are focused on academics with little physical training which makes it easier to hide how heavy his body feels, limbs like lead. He does poorly on the quizzes though and has to apologise when his tutors end up having to explain the same things all over again.
Yet he still can't listen, because smothering the coughs takes up all of his energy and attention.
"Are you okay, Hawks?"
"Yes! Sorry for being distracted today."
He tries to keep as quiet as possible so that he doesn't disturb anyone or the flow of his schedule, so carefully constructed just for him.
Then Keigo takes a break in the bathroom before going home and misses his usual bus. He has to run after getting off the next one to make it back to the dorms before he's late for dinner, before people start asking questions he doesn't want to answer.
Unfortunately, his body can't quite take the strain and he's wheezing and trembling by the time he gets there, thick phlegm crawling its way up his throat and there's nothing he can possibly do to stop the coughing fit that's coming. No one's outside to see him, thankfully... because he's late, and they're all probably sitting around the dinner table already. He hides in the thin space between the dorm and the fence so that no one worries about him if they come out, then lets the violent coughs rack his body, tears escaping from the corner of his eyes while he desperately tries to catch his breath.
Mori finds him there a couple of minutes later.
"I thought I'd heard something... Are you all right?"
"S... S-sorry."
"You've got nothing to apologise for," the man says as he crouches beside him in the cramped space. "Are you okay? Just let it all out."
Mori's hand comes between his wings and Keigo tenses, expecting to be pulled up by the feathers but instead the hand just runs circles on his back. Even through Keigo's coat, the gesture feels comforting, more comforting than it has any right to. Keigo can't help but brace himself except that Mori doesn't stop. He stays crouched beside Keigo the whole time, silent, while his hand keeps moving even when Keigo finally stops trying to keep it all in and shakes and coughs so hard he ends up retching, though nothing comes out.
When his body is done acting up, he feels weaker than ever but also lighter than he has in days. Mori's hand is still on his back and Keigo feels... connected. Like maybe he's not alone, not right now at least. Like maybe things will turn out okay.
"Go to your room," Mori gently says as he gets up, once Keigo is more settled. "We'll bring your food there."
"But–," Keigo rasps but his voice sounds so raw and it hurts to speak right now.
So he gives up on protesting and goes inside, leaving his shoes and coat at their place in the dorm's entrance before walking up the stairs to his room and slipping directly under the covers. Getting into his pyjamas seems like too much work and it's too early to change anyway.
The sound of his door softly opening jerks him awake, blinking his eyes confusedly while Cook and Mori stand in the doorway.
"Sorry, did we wake you up?" Cook asks.
"I wasn't asleep," Keigo answers, voice still rough as he sits up and blearily squints at them, trying to figure out what they're carrying.
Cook places a tray on the small bedside table while Mori dumps a load of blankets onto Keigo's bed before tucking them around him. Cook adjusts the pillow behind Keigo's back so he can sit up more comfortably.
"You can remove them if it's too many," Mori says as he sits at the end of the bed, "but at least for now you'll be warm."
"I made some okayu for you, if you can eat. It should go down easier."
"I'm fine?" Keigo attempts, but Cook has an eyebrow arched and he's too tired to fight.
He eats. The hot rice porridge tastes wonderful and soothes his throat, warming him from the inside.
"Once you've eaten a bit, you can take some medication," Cook says, shaking the bottle of pills on the tray.
"No... Really, I'm fine. I'll be fine. Isn't this expensive?"
"Not at all, and don't worry about things like that. We want you to feel better."
Keigo doesn't know what to say, so he eats more to avoid having to speak. The food is really nice and is making him sleepy again, but it's also all very confusing. He's not sure what's expected of him or if he's answering right.
"You know you don't have to hide from us," Mori says gently. "Everyone here wants you to be well and healthy."
Very carefully, Keigo continues to focus on his food as he brings another delicious spoonful into his mouth.
If they keep repeating it, maybe it'll eventually become okay to believe it? It could be the fever talking but right now, he would really, really like these words to be true.
When Cook pushes the glass of water toward him with two pills, he accepts them and gulps it all down.
"I'll leave the bottle with you. You can take two every four hours for as long as you feel unwell. Don't hesitate, all right?"
Keigo nods. He knows it's a bad habit to revert to quietness and wordless answers whenever he's out of his depth, but the headache still drums through his head and the drowsy warmth is slowly pulling him under. Just like Mori earlier, Cook runs his hand in circles between Keigo's shoulders for a couple of minutes.
"You should change into pyjamas to be more comfortable," Cook says. "If you're hungry later there's more porridge downstairs."
"I'll let Takeuchi know you won't make it in tomorrow," Mori adds.
Worried, Keigo stares at him wide-eyed. Is he getting kicked out of the program?
"Knowing when to slow down and take care of yourself is an important part of being a hero," Mori says gently. "Or a person, too."
"You'll heal much faster this way," Cook adds. "Your tutors can wait until you feel better. Right now, you only need to focus on getting better."
"We've got your back."
"Rest well."
Exhaustion spreads its tendrils over Keigo and he can't figure out from their expressions if they're lying. The two men leave the room, water and medication still on the bedside table, and Keigo sluggishly changes into his pyjamas before burrowing back under the comfortable mountain of blankets. He falls asleep immediately.
He wakes up a few times, tense and coughing, anxious about disturbing the other dorm residents.
The next day though, after everyone goes away to work and Cook brings him more okayu, he finally starts to relax. Every so often, Cook checks in on him, kind and quiet. The stress and tension slowly leave Keigo's body, until finally he falls into bone-deep sleep.
At peace, Keigo sleeps and heals.