"I still do not recall asking for your expertise," the man half-groaned.

And if he merely felt ill and had some understanding of it, and nothing else, perhaps he would have been more internally grateful that someone was worrying about him. No matter how much he rejected the idea.

"I'll drink something when the world stops spinning," he finally relented. And when light stops feeling like he's being stabbed in the eye.

Archie mentions the dog and he cracks an eye open, only then realizing that Pongo had been touching him the entire time. He could feel it now that he looked. But it was distant. Somewhere under the buzz of his limbs feeling asleep.

That was not normal.

He started to fish his flip phone out of his pocket, but it escaped stumbling fingers and clattered to the ground.