***
The next morning, Mark stirred from his slumber, feeling his mouth a little dry. Yet that was quickly overshadowed by the damp clothes he was wearing. Mark shivered a little before sitting up on the bed.
He looked around the room, only to see Santiago asleep on the couch. A small smile appeared on his face momentarily before he got up and fixed his blanket.
"What's the time?" Mark muttered.
He didn't remember falling asleep, nor did he know how long he slept for.
"4:30am…"
Mark let out a small sigh. He had not done any work last night, which meant he would be ill prepared for the meeting this morning.
Thinking about all of the work he had to do, he almost felt like going back to bed. Yet the only think preventing him was the damp clothes he was wearing.
"Suppose I should go take a shower." He said softly.
Unfortunately, this hotel had one of those bath and shower hybrids. While it might not be an issue for young people to step up so high into the bath, for someone at his age with his condition, it was a recipe for disaster.
However, there were no alternatives.
Letting out a sigh, he went into the bathroom and disrobed, letting the shower heat up before getting in. Only when the room began to steam up did he attempt to get into the shower.
He lifted his leg and easily navigated his way into it, causing him to pause for a brief moment. Usually his arthritis was terrible in the morning, but only now did he realize that the familiar pain was absent.
"Hmm, that must have been a great sleep." He mused, quickly forgetting about it.
As he showered, his mind began to drift to all of the work he had to do. He was a methodical person, so he liked to plan out his schedule beforehand to maximize efficiency.
Thinking about this, he let out a small chuckle. While some might praise this way of thinking, he remembered someone who would always complain that he lacked any spontaneity.
"Yuna…"
COUGH COUGH
Mark began to violently cough while in the shower, likely a result from the excessive steam that had built up in the bathroom. He struggled to breathe as the coughing began to wrack his body.
Just when he thought that he might never get to taste oxygen again, he felt something eject from his mouth. The taste was hard to describe, but if he were to sum it in a single word, it would be… Disgusting.
He looked down at the bottom of the shower and saw some black lumps. The rising steam caused the smell to drift upwards, right into his nostrils.
Without any fanfare he kneeled down and began to empty the contents of his stomach.
Since it had been so long since he'd eaten, not much came up.
Only after a few minutes did Mark finally recover from the episode, though he was still in a panic. He had no idea what had just come out of him, though he knew that whatever it was, wasn't good.
Although he'd already washed himself, he did so again, reaching over and grabbing his toothpaste in order to remove whatever bad taste was remaining.
After brushing his teeth 3 separate times, he finally felt that it was enough.
Mark removed himself from the shower and dried himself off.
"I'll need to make a doctors appointment for this afternoon…" He said, feeling freaked out.
He left the bathroom after getting changed, only to see Santiago staring at him with worry. Yet in the next moment his face turned into one of shock.
"W-What happened to you?" He asked, his eyes looking Mark up and down.
"Huh? What do you mean?" Mark asked, trying to see if there was something wrong.
"Go look in the mirror…"
Seeing that he was not going to get a coherent response, Mark did as he was told and walked in front of the mirror on the other side of the room since the bathroom was still steamy.
Not expecting much, he looked straight into the eyes of his reflection. He saw the doubtful expression on his face morph slowly into one of shock.
His once wrinkly features seemed to have become smoother, though it was still obvious he was past his prime. The gray hair on his head seemed to be thicker, as if he'd not been balding for the past 30 years.
It was as if he was staring back at a younger version of himself, someone in their late 40's.
"W-What the hell is going on?"
Mark's hands moved up to his face, as if to make sure it was really his. This situation paired with the scary one he had in the shower made him feel on the edge.
"Dad… Are you feeling any pain? I heard you coughing in the shower." Santiago said, his tone back to showing worry.
He wasn't sure why his father's face seemingly changed overnight, but he was hoping that it wasn't a sign of something bad.
Mark turned around and faced his son, his emotions in turmoil.
"I… I think I'm okay?" He said, twisting his body a little.
He would usually feel a sharp pain if he twisted a certain way, so he was trying to do so and get a gauge on his body's condition. Yet even after trying a few times, he couldn't feel any pain.
"Huh?"
Mark was stunned.
Just to be sure, he began to move his body in certain ways that he hadn't done in many many years. He began to stretch his arms, roll his shoulders, lift his legs and soon went straight into doing star jumps on the spot.
Santiago watched on with shock and horror as the 65 year old man performed a set of warm ups like he was about to step onto a baseball field.
"Haha… HAHAHA. Look at me go Santiago!" Mark wore a brilliant grin as he continued to jump on the spot.
"OW~"
It was only when he kicked his toe on the end of the bed that he let out a yelp of pain, scaring Santiago half to death.
"Hehe, I got a little carried away." He said with amusement.