The youngest Cedillo was pouting, cheeks puffed out in frustration. “Why can’t I get through to Mom? Her phone never works when I need her!”
Molly was lost in a heated game. “Leo, heal us! Seriously, Leo, what’s taking you so long? Leo, hurry up! Mia and I are both about to bite it—Leo! Save us! Ugh, I’m down. Game over for me.”
Mia slumped back, defeated. “Me too. It’s hopeless.”
The two sisters eyed the boy in the middle. “Why didn’t you heal us, huh?”
Leo just raised his arm, the IV line taped to his hand. “Come on, have a little sympathy here. You see what I’m dealing with?”
The girls had been so into their game, they’d totally forgotten Leo was still hooked up to a drip. Now that it hit them, they both pretended nothing had happened.
“Oh, someone called me just now. I hung up without checking.”
She glanced at her phone. It was her husband. “Oh, it’s my hubby~”
Mia got up to call back. “Hey, babe?”
A voice teased on the other end, “Not your hubby, it’s your little man.” Henry’s playful tone made her laugh.
While Mia and her son were on the phone, Molly went to return a rented power bank—she’d grabbed it to keep Leo’s phone alive while they were stuck at the hospital.
For a few minutes, Leo was left alone.
He glanced up at his IV and called out, “Nurse! Nurse! My meds are out—it’s just air now!”
Hearing Leo’s shout, the sisters rushed back. Jade checked the bag and whistled, “Wow, it’s really empty.”
Mia blinked. “That was fast, wasn’t it?”
After the chaos, noon rolled around.
Leo checked his temperature, squinting at the thermometer. Right away, Mia and Molly leaned in, their heads practically bumping, eager to see the result.
When it was time to eat, Molly asked, “Leo, what do you want for lunch?”
They even offered Leo half. He rolled his eyes. “Eat too much and you’ll be gassing up the whole ward.”
Mia gave him a playful smack on the back. “Then don’t eat it! But do you have to say it like that?”
Leo waved his IV hand. “Hey, I’m the patient here! Cut me some slack!”
Mia grinned. “What, you want me to pull out your needle, smack you, then stick it back in?”
Typical Mia. The Cedillo family barely blinked.
A few minutes later, another commotion erupted by the nurses’ station as Jade charged over. “Nurse! Nurse! We need a new IV on 13—Leo’s bag is empty again!”
A nurse sighed, “There’s three of you. Can’t one of you keep an eye on the drip?”
With the last bag finally hooked up, the three of them flopped back, staring up at the slow drip, all silently counting in their heads, “One, two, three…”

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