My mom covered her mouth, finding Rika had collapsed on the floors near the end of the staircase. It couldn't be that she fell down the stairs, my mom didn't know. Luke already held her in his arms, moving her to the couch before she ran here, fearing something must have happened. He began taking off her onesie that she wore on top of her nightgown that he insisted her to wear.
Luke frowned when he noticed faint red dots covering most of her arms and legs after wearing the present. My dad also ran down the stairs from the bedroom, finding Rika unconscious in Luke's arms. With everyone gathered in the living room, Luke commented on the present, "Rika has sensitive skin. She can't wear fabrics like this, or else her skin will react."
"I didn't know," my mom watched my sister get sick from a present she bought.
Rika uncontrollably coughed in her sleep, curling up into a circle. Luke sighed before tilting a small bottle of translucent liquid inside her mouth. Her condition immediately got better as she stopped coughing for a moment. However, Luke's condition wasn't much better than hers as his voice was a bit rough from coughing ever since he entered this house.
"It's the air. It's different from what we are used to in the first district," he explained.
My parents didn't know how different the air was in the first district. You could only breathe in them in the deep countryside, untouched by civilization in the third district. I stayed silent, not wanting to tell them it wouldn't matter how much we moved. Rika would always be sick here since there was no way we could move there.
"I think it may be better if I take Rika to my villa. You can visit her there from now on instead if that is fine with you," Luke suggested as he coughed.
"Is there really nothing we can do?" My mom looked at her daughter, frowning in her dreams.
"Rika has a fragile body. There are many things that her body can't handle," he cradled her in his arms.
"And what about her clothes in her closet?" My dad hesitantly asked about the clothes that didn't fit her anymore.
"I can clear her closet after our discussion. I usually handle matters like this," Luke apologized for forgetting about clearing her closet.
My parents couldn't refuse his offer as Luke walked towards the car with Rika in his arms after taking care of her closet. My mom cried as my dad tried to comfort her. Their daughter couldn't live with them since their house was making her sick. Before Luke left, they made arrangements that they would visit my sister the first thing in the morning.
For the first time, they decided to take the day off from work tomorrow. My parents had never done this for me before when I came home, sick with a fever. I ended up buying some medicine at the drugstore with some snacks and other supplies at the convenience store with my friends. My friend Adrian was the only person that stayed next to me. But I couldn't blame my parents as I knew how hard they were working to pay for my school tuition and extra cram school.
The next day, I stood in front of the large gates towering over me. The amount of property in this exclusive neighbourhood was stunning. Luke already stood by the gates, opening it for us to come inside. I looked around the beautiful garden alongside the pathway to the entrance of the large mansion. The air was already different here the moment I passed through the gates. The temperature was also different, making it not too hot nor cold in the summer.
My parents sadly smiled as they knew the reason why my sister coughed so much. There was no way they could ever replicate the same air inside their house. We could hear Rika's energetic footsteps as she ran to open the door for us. Abandoning the onesie, she wore a gorgeous dress with the silky fabric making it shimmer and twinkle under the sunlight. She was covered with diamonds from head to toe from the ones on her dress to the accessories.
"You're here!" She laughed while hugging each of us.
"I didn't think you would come this early," she welcomed us inside like it was her own home.
"There's nothing to do inside here," she sulked.
"Your garden looks lovely," my mom commented.
"Our servants work hard to maintain this place," Luke smiled as he followed behind Rika.
The mansion was also spotless inside, sparkling with no signs of dust or anything else unwanted. I could see my own reflection on the marble tiles. There were no signs of Rika's poor health in this mansion. She was lively as she jumped with energy like yesterday's incident had never happened.
It was like we were inside the restaurant as the servants began to come into the dining room to serve us breakfast. However, the area in front of Rika was empty. Instead, Luke passed her a white powdered drink inside a glass bottle. This was when we realized she wasn't able to digest any solid food unlike the rest of us. My parents reluctantly picked up their utensils, feeling guilty they were eating these wonderful foods while their daughter refused to touch the bottle, leaving it on the table.