Chapter 16
A small smile curved her lips. Change proved to be the constant thing in her life as she watched how her body had improved. She grew an inch or two. Last time, she barely reaches the height of this mirror but that wasn't the case now. Her legs and biceps have grown muscles, too. It's not that big, though.
She sighed before going to the kitchen, which has been cleaned a week after she arrived. Her body felt sore. All her training was taking its toll on her physiques. Aside from running in the field, she also suffered waking up early in the morning and do some exhausting exercises. Usually, she does push-ups, planking, jumping jacks, and many more.
"What's the breakfast?" she murmured as she dragged her feet towards the stool.
Vladimir turned slightly. "Eggs and hotdogs," he simply said.
"That's nice," she grumbled while burying her head to the table. Her shoulder and back were doing its best to make her wince every second.
"Your heartbeat is fast. Are you hurt?" His voice was deep and soft. It always sounds that way whenever Zheira slumps herself like that. She didn't know what to make of it. Maybe he's worried or it's the other way around.
"I just feel tired that's all." She bit her lips.
"If you're going to lie make sure it's believable." He flips the egg and turned at Zheira, clenching his fist to the edge of the counter. Guilt loomed in his heart while he stared at her. She seemed burn out.
He breathed heavily. Training her was the least he could do to protect her. She must be physically ready when the next blood moon rises. It's her gateway to immortality. If she wouldn't be immortalized after that, she'll cease to exist. Every trace of her would be thrown to the pits of the void. In addition, her body would explode if it could not bear her soul's presence. The soul was his blood. It must take over her body, so the transformation would be possible. But, if her body wasn't ready like a month ago, she would writhe in pain and die in a blink.
It's pretty complicated. To be immortalized, she needed the presence of the blood moon and her soul. If her soul couldn't take over like last time, the process wouldn't be possible. If that's the case, Zheira and her soul would leave the world for good.
Shaking his head, he focused back on cooking. Admittedly, he hated the smell coming out of the egg. It irritates him too much. But, he's bearing it for her. He felt compelled to do anything to ease her pain, and he couldn't explain it.
He put the plate with egg and hotdog to the table. The moment he sat, he noticed Zheira slightly quivering. He almost hit himself for ignoring the heat steaming from her. Confirming his hunch, he tried putting her hand on her forehead. He was right. She's so hot. He could even cook an egg to her body alone. Once, he'd heard a mortal call it fever and that it's fatal to them.
In a blink, he carried her to
Gently, he wiped her face with the cloth. Something inside him turned as he stared at her screwed face. He could hear her groan, calling her adoptive parents, begging for them to believe her. He smiled sadly. "I'm sorry, Zheira! If it wasn't for my recklessness, you wouldn't have to suffer this way. I was so young back then. I thought everything I do was fine, and it was too late for me to realize the truth. Now, I couldn't stop the consequences of my mistakes. All I could do was to lessen its effect. I promise, I'll fix this." He untied her hair and tucked some of its strands to her ears.
There's a certain clench in his stomach while he watches Zheira sweat profusely. He didn't know what to do. Her fever wasn't cooling down, and her body seemed to shake violently. Breathing in and out, he tried remembering what the woman did to her feverish child. From what he remembered, she wiped her with a wet cloth, which he already did. After that, she changed her cloth with a loose one.
"Oh, that's simple!" he said with a cheery smile. It was when he touch the hem of her fitted s.h.i.+rt did he realized what he's about to do. His ears reddened as a rush of heat washed through his body. He gulped. "Uhm... Zheira? Do you mind if you change your clothes? I'll stay outside while you're doing it." Clearing his throat, he stood. He couldn't take the heat in his body. A fresh air was what he needed.
However, Zheira grabbed his wrist. "D—don't l—leave m—m—me, m—mom!" Her eyes were tightly shut but tears were trailing pa.s.sed her cheeks.
Vladimir sat back and put her hand to her stomach. "I won't leave you, Zheira. Even if I die, I'll rise from the dead to be with you again." He wiped her tears by planting soft kisses to it.
Deciding against his judgment, he then raised her s.h.i.+rt. His throat gone dry by just the look of her flat stomach. He diverted his gaze and remove her cloth gently. He's not aware of the details but thankfully, he'd been successful. The only problem now was as to how he'll put a loose t-s.h.i.+rt in her body without looking at her.
Without thinking, he wrapped her body with a new s.h.i.+rt. He has a brief moment of embarra.s.sment as his eyes wandered towards the bulge on her chest. It wasn't his intention at all, but his eyes betrayed him. He collapsed to the chair with a resigned look. It exhausts her by just changing her attire. He rather faces a beast than being obstructed by this ordeal once more. This one moment was enough to hunt him for a lifetime.
He brushed the top of her head. "Don't ever get sick again, okay?" Then he was back in wiping her skin. He couldn't help feeling suffocated as he took a glimpse of her beautiful complexion. They were confined in a room where only two of them existed, and his malicious mind kept popping up with thoughts he never have imagined to think of.
A month had pa.s.sed by so fast. Yet, he's still not comfortable with her around. Every time his eyes landed on her, his mind would be in chaos as thought after thought raced down to his core, while his emotions would try overthrowing his rationality.
Vladimir did not notice himself drifting into a deep slumber. His thoughts kept filming, so he thought he was still wiping Zheira. How very wrong he was. Of course he realized he was asleep when a distant dream hooked itself in his head.
From a far distance was a tube filled with red water. There was a boy floating inside it, wires were connected from his temple. His eyes were closed while a man wearing a cape stared at him. The man grimaced before he started tapping some b.u.t.tons in a small keyboard just beside the tube. The water started draining at once, but the boy stayed afloat. It didn't take long before the man injected purplish blood into the wires.
His veins became visible for a while, and the purplish blood traveled from it. The man laugh-heartedly when the boy started s.h.i.+ning. His skin was turning paler and paler while the blood turned to a darker shade of crimson. Cracks danced to the tube as the boy's eyes opened. The burst of gold and red gleamed in the atmosphere. The sight made the man burst into a fit of laughter.
"You awoke, my son! You'll be my greatest weapon."
Vladimir was awoken by that cackling voice. Sweats streamed profusely from his forehead as he catches his breath. He shook his head as the image did not wear off. It seemed plastered in her head. He's starting to be filled by an agonizing madness.
Everything stopped when a soft hand pinched his hand. "Are you okay?" Zheira's soft voice echoed in his ears.
"I—I am," he lied, diverting his gaze away from her. Now he realized why that memory surfaced. It wouldn't pop out without a reason. He'd forgotten about it and all through her presence, it swam to the surface. She must stop using her ability unconsciously or she might dig a dark past he's trying to bury.