The pounding in Neville’s skull made him dizzy in pain, and he kept burying his face deeper in what should’ve been his soft, fluffy, and dry pillow. But as he buried his face longer, it was suspiciously cold and damp against his cheek.

Wait.

Damp?

Neville’s eyes snapped open, but then immediately regretted the decision as bright morning light stabbed through his retinas. He squeezed them shut again, but not before catching a glimpse of his surroundings that sent alarm bells to his brain cells.

"NO!"

Neville scrambled upright in panic, his head swimming from the sudden movement. He stared in horror at the sight of the disaster. His bed looked like someone had dumped an entire aquarium onto the mattress.

Water had soaked through not just the sheets but the mattress itself, creating a dark stain that spread across nearly the entire surface. Puddles had formed in the parts where his body had been and droplets still clung to his thighs. The sheets clung to his body with the unmistakable scent of salt water permeated the air so thickly he could practically taste it on his tongue.

"Shelly!" His voice came out as a hoarse croak. He cleared his throat and tried again, louder this time despite the way it made his head throb. "What the hell happened?"

A moment passed.

Then another.

The silence stretched uncomfortably long, and a new kind of fear started creeping up Neville’s spine.

Was it happening again?

Just as he was about to call out again, Shelly materialized in the air before him. But instead of her usual cheerful demeanor, she was shaking with her googly eyes filled with animated tears.

[HOST! You’re finally awake!] Shelly wailed so loudly that it made Neville wince and clutch his aching head. [Do you have any idea what I’ve been through? Any idea at all?!]

Neville clutched his head, "Shelly, please, turn down your volume. My head feels—"

[Feels what!] Shelly’s tears intensified, creating tiny rainbow prisms in the morning light. [I spent all night keeping you from dying from dehydration. ALL NIGHT! Do you know how many points were consumed? DO YOU?!]

"I—what?" How can you even appear now if you already wasted hours’ worth of points?

Neville’s brain kept buzzing from whatever the hell he had drunk at the party. He struggled to process this information, but didn’t forget to retort.

"But dehydration? There’s water everywhere—"

[Of course you don’t remember!] Shelly zoomed closer to his face as she continued to cry. If she had hands, Neville was certain she would have been covering her face in exasperation. [Your body started blaring high alert when it entered dehydration mode.]

Neville’s mouth opened and closed several times, but no sound came out. He looked down at himself, then back at the soaked bed, then at Shelly’s accusing eyes.

"I’m sorry, I didn’t—"

[AND!] Shelly wasn’t done. [When I checked your inventory for the emergency medical kit that I SPECIFICALLY told you to purchase ASAP, what do you think I found? NOTHING! Not even a basic transformation pill! How am I supposed to help you in emergencies if you don’t BUY the emergency supplies?!]

The guilt hit Neville. He remembered, vaguely, that Shelly had kept mentioning something about an emergency kit when he had been free and just scanning the items in the System Mall. But he had been so focused on saving his points for other things, like foods to satisfy his longing for Earth Goods, that he had dismissed it as unnecessary.

But clearly, that was his mistake.

"I’m so sorry," he said again, quieter this time, and meaning it. "You’re right. I should have listened. The emergency kit should have been the first thing I bought."

Her tears slowed to a trickle. [You really mean that?]

"Yes. Yes."

Neville tried to nod his head, but he felt like vomiting if he tried to move even an inch more.

Shelly sniffled and informed him. [But with the amount of points you have, the host can only afford the basic emergency kit. You need to earn more.]

"I know, I’m sorry."

[Also, while saving you, I accidentally spent a few more points. I need to go to power-saving mode so you can afford to buy that emergency kit.]

Neville’s heart sank. He didn’t expect that his carelessness would result in this. "How long?"

[Depends on how quickly you earn your points. It could be a day or two. Maybe more if I had to appear again, incurring debt to the system.] Shelly sadly said, pouting.

"Okay," Neville agreed meekly. "I really am sorry, Shelly. And... Thank you. For keeping me alive."

Shelly sniffled goodbye. [Just... take care of yourself, host. I can’t help you if you don’t help yourself first.]

And with that, Shelly vanished, leaving Neville alone with his throbbing headache and his very wet, very smelly bed.

"Right," he muttered to himself, surveying the damage with a heavy sigh. "Better get started on cleaning this disaster."

Three hours later, Neville had cleared most of the mess. Since he didn’t know how to use interstellar machines to dry all his items, he had to resort to the traditional version.

He propped up the mattress on the window, hoping that there would be enough sunlight to dry it out without smelling. He also managed to change the setting on the air conditioning into a heater and only heated certain areas of the house. He had scrubbed the floor, turned on the air filter, and set up the air purifier.

Now, after showering and changing into comfortable clothes, Neville collapsed onto his sofa and allowed himself to breathe. His hangover had dulled after doing his chores, but his body now ached since he lacked exercise.

What the hell had he drunk last night?

Fragments of memory drifted through his mind like scattered puzzle pieces. He remembered colorful cocktails that sparkled in the light and shots that glowed with bioluminescent properties. Each one had been pressed into his hands by well-meaning colleagues, and each one had gone down far too easily. By the time he’d realized he was genuinely drunk, it was too late.

Everything after that was a blur.

Had he embarrassed himself?

He must have.

The thought made him want to curl into a ball and bury himself alive.

To distract himself, Neville reached out for his Light Brain.

Once he turned it on, tons of notifications appeared before him.

"What in the..."

The first thing he noticed was the message from Sarah, sent four hours ago:

When you wake up (and I KNOW you’re going to have a hangover from hell, sweetie), check the company app. Trust me.—Sarah G.😘

Company app?