บท 14: "Crazy Thoughts"

The moment she was falling, she closed her eyes and accepted her fate. Lia couldn't believe that she would be in an unlucky accident on the second day of her new job. It was her fault; why didn't she control her curiosity? She just wanted to touch those beautiful, brown and black feathers.

While she prayed that she would survive the fall, fortunately, Aesop caught up with her. It turns out that, when he accidentally hit Lia with his wings and lost her balance, he immediately moved and then dove as fast as he could to come and get her.

Aesop first grabbed one of Lia's legs and swiftly pulled her up with all his might. When they were on the same altitude, he hugged Lia tightly as he swept through the air. His left arm grasped Lia's upper back while his right arm embraced her buttocks.

Lia felt the warmth of Aesop's body, so she slowly opened her eyes. His muscular body, which had no top clothes, had been too close to her, making her beet red. It was as if her fear was replaced with embarrassment.

It was the first time Aesop had embraced someone he's not related to. He did not want to be involved and be that close with anyone but he knew that it was his fault that his new caretaker fell from the 12-meter loft. He slowed down when his feet almost reached the floor.

The shy Lia noticed Aesop's arms loosen, and she quickly moved away from him. But when she used her right foot to step backward, she stumbled, and Aesop was quick to grab her waist with his left hand.

"Th-thank you…" Lia said softly, avoiding his gaze.

Aesop was holding her waist tightly but with care. Seeing that Lia was not looking at him, he held her chin to make her face him. "Does your foot hurt?"

As soon as Aesop's golden eyes and Lia's dark blue eyes met, her cheeks turned red. She blushed, realizing how awkward their position was.

"I…" Lia murmured as she panicked in her mind. "My… right foot…" Lia tried to raise her voice, but she couldn't fight the louder beating of her heart. In her mind was a sea of unexplainable emotions, and it seemed like she was drowning in it.

Because Aesop could not understand her soft voice, he placed his hand from her chin to the back of her head and lowered his head, to make his ear draw closer to her lips. "What?" he asked.

"I think I… hurt my right foot…" Lia replied, feeling her shyness shrouding her.

Hearing this, Aesop carried Lia like a princess and made her sit on a couch. He crouched down on the floor, looking at her foot. "I'm sorry. It was an instinct. I didn't mean to hurt you," Aesop then looked at Lia with pleading eyes. "Sorry."

Lia felt Aesop's sincere apology. While resting her back to the couch, she gazed into his eyes and responded, "It's okay, you saved me. Thank you." She gave him a sweet smile.

Aesop saw how kind his new caretaker was. Lia's smile lingered in his mind, and he was thinking how cute she was. The two gazed at each other in silence, as if they were happily conversing in their thoughts.

Suddenly, the metal door opened. Sanya, with three armed men, entered the room.

"Ms. Brentvale!" Sanya called, and when she saw Lia on the couch, she sighed. "Good, you're okay…" She then glanced from Lia to Aesop and was astounded. The vulture mutant had always been avoiding people, but there he was, at a minimum distance to his new caretaker.

Aesop disliked interacting with everyone, especially the D.M. Cadre employees. He thought, "The caretaker is an exception because I accidentally hit her." When he saw that the young scientist went there with armed men, he stood up and flapped his wings.

The armed men pointed their guns at the mutant. Two of these guns were rope guns enhanced with electric stunners, and the other one was an automatic shotgun.

"No! Don't!" Lia shouted at the top of her lungs. She was frightened that they might harm the mutant. "It was an accident… He saved me! Don't hurt him!"

Upon hearing this, Sanya raised her left hand, making the men lower their guns. "Someone from the security personnel saw what happened in the CCTV." She explained, then fixed her eyeglasses. "We came to check up on you, Ms. Brentvale. But I brought the men here… just in case." She glanced at Aesop as if giving him a warning.

Sanya had been assigned to Aesop ever since she started her career in D.M. Cadre a year ago. While the other mutants were cooperative, only Aesop had remained aloof and disobedient. He had no record of violence, but because he refused to cooperate during tests and interviews, the scientists decided not to focus on him. Because of this, they only know a little about his personality.

The young scientist and the vulture mutant do not trust each other, while Lia trusts both of them.

"Mr. Aesop!" Lia called. Aesop then glanced down at her. "I'm alright now, so… if you're not comfortable here, then..." Lia stuttered as he looked into his golden eyes.

Aesop felt that it was Lia's way to avoid any commotion. He nodded, flapped his wings, and went up to the 3rd loft.

Seeing that the vulture mutant had retreated, Sanya approached Lia.

"I got a sprain, please help me," Lia said.

"Okay, Ms. Brentvale. I'm going to apply first aid." Sanya said, ordering one of the men to bring the first aid kit and ice.

While Sanya was helping Lia with her sprained ankle, Aesop sat down and started to gaze in the fake, digital window overlooking the view of Eulim City. He felt nostalgic as he couldn't remember when was the last time he helped a person. He didn't know that he could be kind, after all these years.

As he reflected upon his actions that morning, he also remembered Lia's soft body when he embraced her. She remembered her pink lips when she spoke, and her red cheeks when she blushed. He found her too cute, and he wanted to be closer to her in the coming days. Noticing that he was thinking about her, he thought, "What am I thinking… I must be crazy…" and he placed both of his hands into his face.