[3 months later]
"Tonight, the chance of snow fall is about 89%. So anyone staying up past 10 should bring a jacket and warm clothing as it will be a particularly cold ni-" the sound of the TV cuts off abruptly.
Oliver had turned it off, annoyed by the chatter of the TV. It has been three months since the recruitment exam and the closing ceremony.
In that time Oliver has.... not made any progress. In the few months of his employment, all he had done was lose his attachment unit, get banned from going on international expeditions, and almost get demoted to the D tier. The only reason he was still in the C tier was because Olivia had put in some good words for him. It had gotten so bad that general Ying Yue recommended Oliver to work in the medical department for the time being so he wouldn't pull the rest of squad C down.
"This sucks... I hate everything... I wanna die..." Oliver said to himself, burying his face into the table.
Sieg lightly hit him with some paperwork, before taking a seat beside Oliver.
"Hey~ didn't you say you wanted to change for the better?" Sieg asked, sounding a bit disappointed.
Oliver turned his head away from Sieg, and began making circles using his fingers.
"It's hard to do that when you're this bummed out..." Oliver said, practically mumbling.
Sieg sighed before rubbing Oliver's back to comfort him.
"Alright don't be such a downer... Come on, I'll treat you to something from the canteen..." Sieg said, standing up and stretching a bit.
"Huh... food does sound good right now... yeah sure" Oliver said, still laying his head on the desk.
"Hey... if you want food you better stand up ya lazy bum" Sieg said, crossing his arms.
Oliver chuckled before slowly turning his head to Sieg.
"It's not that I'm lazy... I accidentally stabbed myself with some numbing medicine when I was changing out of my school uniform… I can't feel my legs" Oliver said, a pathetic look in his eyes.
Sieg already expected this kind of bullshit from Oliver, so he had prepared some medicine beforehand.
"I ain't going to drink your mysterious liquid..." Oliver said.
Sieg narrowed his eyes before laughing.
"Right right... but if you won't ingest it, I can always use a syringe..." Sieg said, smiling deviously.
Like a dog whimpering after being caught chewing up the sofa, Oliver lowered his head and apologized.
"Yeah you better apologise..." Sieg said, handing the medicine to Oliver.
Oliver looked at the vial of mysterious pink liquid, causing him to question whether or not being paralyzed for life would be better than having to drink the medicine.
"I'll buy you two custard puddings"
With just those words, Oliver poured the medicine down his throat. The taste of the medicine was extremely bitter, like drinking a straight shot of espresso, something Oliver was very familiar with.
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"Aunt Susan?"
"Huh what? Stop being weird..." Sieg said.
The medicine's effect kicked in immediately. Oliver could finally feel his legs again! Although he did miss the half hour of slacking. Still, two custard puddings and a full meal from the canteen was well worth any form of labour!
"Oh shit, apparently the canteen is only taking deliveries at the moment. Something about a C tier Investigator getting into a fight with a D tier Researcher..." Sieg said, looking at his phone.
"W- wait, so you're telling me I could've just sat on my ass and waited for someone to deliver our food instead of drinking some weirdo medicine?!" Oliver asked, sounding betrayed.
Sieg touched the tips of his index fingers as he made a guilty face.
"Sorry... I'll get you three custard puddings..." Sieg said.
At that moment, Oliver didn't care how many desserts Sieg would buy for him, all he wanted to do was beat the shit out of him. It would be so easy too. The only two people in the medical ward were Oliver and Sieg, there would be no witnesses... wait a minute, where was everybody?
Oliver looked around to confirm that nobody else was in the medical ward other than the two of them.
"Mr. Sieg... where is everybody?" Oliver asked, sounding a bit concerned.
"They're all out supporting the front lines. Squad A through Squad C are currently fighting a whole island of Festers, so we had to send out almost all our staff,” Sieg explained.
"Oh... well if that's the case, why aren't you over there? Don't tell me you're slacking?" Oliver asked, glaring at him with suspicion.
"While I'd love to do that; the medical ward still needs at least one doctor here. And last I checked you're just a fill in who got kicked out of his squad..." Sieg said, sighing.
Hearing those words, Oliver's facial expression darkened. Right, he had almost forgotten about that. The whole reason he was working under Sieg was because he was completely useless. Oliver wanted so badly to become a better person… but in the end he was back at square zero.
"The last 3 months... I haven't really improved myself at all... I was so confident during the recruitment exam... but I didn't change at all... damn I'm pathetic" Oliver thought to himself, clenching his fast.
Noticing the change in his mood, Sieg started to feel guilty.
"H- hey I'm sorry... I shouldn't have said that... you've actually been a really great help to the medical department, and you're also re-" but before he could finish his sentence Oliver cut him off.
"It's fine Mr. Sieg, you don't have to comfort me. I'm fine" Oliver said, forcing a smile.
The smile was clearly fake. Anyone could tell that. However, it was the only thing Oliver knew to do at that moment. Just smile. Smile so nobody has to worry. Smile so people don't have to waste time on your problems.
"Oh... alright then..." Sieg said, still concerned for Oliver.
Sieg didn't know how to help Oliver, so like most of his problems, Sieg decided to just let Oliver deal with himself and hope nothing bad happens.
"I think you deserve a break... take like... half an hour? Maybe more if you want. Just be back before quitting time!" Sieg said, saying the last half in a joking manner.
Oliver didn't laugh, nor even respond with a sarcastic comeback. He just stared at Sieg.
"R- right... be safe!" Sieg said, patting Oliver's back and walking away.
Oliver took a deep breath before continuing to smile. If he continued to smile, nobody would worry about him. Why would there be a need to worry about him? He wasn't special. He wasn't an A tier or B tier Investigator deserving of respect, nor a D tier or E tier Investigator that deserved pity. He was a C tier, he was mediocre. An average Joe amongst average Joes. With this mindset in hand, Oliver couldn't be hurt. No matter what he did, nobody could hurt him. Because there was nothing they could say, that Oliver hadn't already told himself.
“Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile. Just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile just smile
SMILE SMILE SMILE SMILE SMILE SMILE SMILE-”