Chapter 127: Nagging
Judging by the way everyone was talking or looking at him. It was as if he weren’t sitting right there, perfectly capable of managing his own affairs.
He was not a child. He had survived Earth just getting by from job to job whenever he felt like it. Now, he even managed to climb the corporate ladder and dealt with countless challenges, generally keeping himself alive in this unknown world.
Wasn’t that amazing enough?
"I’ll be fine," he said in a firm tone, trying not to sound like a petulant kid or show his annoyance. "I can do it myself."
"Yes, you will," Dr. Zhao replied dryly. "Because you’re going to take the anti-inflammatory I’m giving you right now, and you’ll feel drowsy soon."
She was already pulling out a small container of pills, shaking two into her palm. Neville eyed them warily, but accepted the water bottle Sarah thrust at him and dutifully swallowed the medication. They went down with some difficulty, his throat protesting the movement.
Dr. Zhao continued, her tone changed into a ’professional disappointment’ voice. "I’ve been telling Mr. Maxwell for months that his staff needs a better medical care system. Perhaps this will finally convince him I’m right."
Grayson’s expression didn’t change, but his eyes looked like he was slightly feeling guilty.
The elderly doctor finished with efficient movements, gathering her tools and packing them away. She left Neville with a small bag of medical supplies and sent a list on his light brain. It was instructions and prescriptions that were already downloaded in the chips, but she still sent them as a backup.
"Actually use them," she emphasized, making direct eye contact to ensure the message was conveyed well. "I’ll know if you don’t."
Neville had no doubt she would somehow know. Dr. Zhao seemed to possess an almost supernatural ability to detect when people ignored medical advice.
She packed up the last of her kit, then turned to face Grayson directly. She changed her demeanor from a doctor to an elder.
"I know what happened was inevitable," she said quietly, but everyone in the office heard her clearly, "and frankly, it’s not my business."
She paused, letting the words hang in the air before delivering the rest. "But if I have to treat another one of your employees for assault injuries, I will be filing a formal complaint with the Labor Board. Am I understood?"
The threat wasn’t concealed at all. Dr. Zhao seemed to have reached the limit of her patience for these kinds of violence. Her expression made it clear she meant every word. The Labor Board investigation would be a nightmare of bureaucracy and bad publicity that Maxwell Corporation didn’t want to have in times like these.
"Understood," Grayson replied, politely and respectfully.
Dr. Zhao nodded once, sharply, then left. The door closed behind her with a soft hiss.
Her departure created a vacuum of tension that immediately filled the space, thick enough to choke on. Neville could feel the weight of it pressing against his temples, adding to the dull throb of his headache.
Cough.
Bryan cleared his throat. His gaze swept across Sarah and Liam, both of whom had remained rooted in place.
"Perhaps we should continue the discussion now?" he said while looking at them as if to send a hint.
Neville blinked. Right, Keaton was still here to talk about something.
Sarah straightened her spine, her expression changing into something righteous and determined. "Neville still couldn’t be moved. I’ll stay here and monitor."
Bryan’s lips twitched; his expression suggested that he was trying very hard not to laugh or possibly scream.
It was clearly written on his face: Do you think this is a random place you can stay whenever you want to?
Neville caught it and felt a surge of sympathy for Bryan. He had to deal with all kinds of people like this in the company on a regular basis. He turned to Sarah, mustering what he hoped was a polite but firm tone.
"I’ll go out after a while," he said. "You should go."
Sarah opened her mouth, probably to protest, but Neville had already turned his attention to Liam.
Best to deal with both problems at once.
"I also need to add another leave on my tab for this," he said, "but I don’t think I can do it personally this time."
The words felt strange in his mouth. Neville prided himself on handling his own affairs and not causing trouble for others or adding to other people’s work. But even he had to admit that trying to move from here wouldn’t just make Dr. Zhao come back and nag at him, but also that he would risk potentially passing out from pain or randomly falling asleep after taking a medication wasn’t the brightest idea.
Liam stared back at him, trying to read Neville’s intentions and expressions. His sharp eyes caught sight of Neville’s fatigue and pain that he tried to hide.
Finally, Liam sighed in resignation. He already knew that he would end up handling this before Neville even asked. "Got it. Send me Dr. Zhao’s medical report and I’ll get Lisa to approve it."
"Ugh." Sarah groaned, her face scrunching up with reluctance. She shot Liam a look that was half pleading, half demanding. "Fine. I’ll go now. But I’ll also get the witness report from Rivera here."
Liam’s expression changed to confusion. He seemed to be asking: Why are you dragging me to your work for?
"I’ll just send you my draft report," Liam said as he read the file that he received from Neville.
"No, no, no," Sarah said, already moving toward Liam. Her hand shot out, grabbing his sleeve before he could escape. "You will help me. Okay?"
Judging from her tone, Liam had no room for negotiation. Asking nicely would get you nowhere, but firm insistence while physically preventing escape worked wonders.
Sarah began dragging Liam toward the door.
Neville watched with a mixture of amusement and pity as he saw Liam’s expression cycled through several stages of grief. The last thing Neville saw before they disappeared into the hallway was Liam’s pursed lips and slumped shoulders that screamed resignation.
