Chapter Seventeen

He clearly couldn’t follow her train of thought as he had a moment of pure befuddlement cross his face. Eventually he gave up trying to make the connection on his own and asked, “Sorry, how is that related? Where did your brain go?” Taken out of context, it sounded really bad, but he was honestly attempting to understand how her thought process worked.

Smiling sweetly, Vivian simply said, “Study abroad.” As if that answered all his questions. In a way, it actually did, and she could practically see him making the connections between ‘Dahlias don’t exist on this side of the world, I want to go study where they do.’ Or something. Maybe he was thinking she wanted to return to wherever she came from. That wasn’t technically wrong either. So while he might never get the full story, he was, at least, probably thinking in the right direction.

It wasn’t that she minded being there, just that she missed certain things. Mostly foods. Food was important. Her years in the ancient past had acclimated her to the place, and she was actually curious to explore the modern differences. But food. And pretty flowers, apparently. Which could also be eaten, but that was totally incidental.

She wasn’t expected his quiet question, “You want to leave that badly?” Okay. Maybe he wasn’t drawing the right conclusions.

Deciding that the jig was basically already up where he was concerned, she answered honestly, “Not really? Just makes it easier to get things I want.” She paused, then asked, “What year is it, anyway?” She’d given up trying to hide. Having to pretend in front of everyone felt… exhausting. There was some comfort in knowing there was at least one person she didn’t have to hide her weirdness from. Hopefully she hadn’t misjudged him and this wasn’t about to go terribly wrong.

If he hadn’t been sure there was some sort of supernatural shenanigans going on before, she’d just confirmed it without question. He gave her a long, considering look. “It’s 2013.” He was watching her face for clues, but she just smiled.

“Great, thanks.” Still before her time, but close enough on the supernatural timeline that she could count on finally getting some of the things she loved. Then again, that was if they existed here. The names of people here were proof enough that she was in some sort of alternate timeline. Was she even in the same one as her last reincarnation? She might never know unless she found some historical evidence of her life…which would be really hard, considering she’d died young and almost never left her courtyard before that.

“That’s it?” He asked, clearly wanting to dig for information, and she laughed softly, regretting it when her ribs pinged her with pain for the action. Given that he was staring at her, he immediately noticed when she stilled and tried not to move any further. He frowned as he muttered, “Right, your ribs…”

Managing a pained smile, she waved him down. “It’s fine. But yeah, that’s it. Being totally upfront, I don’t even know why or how I’m here. In the end, it doesn’t really matter. This is my life now, and I’ll make the most of it.” She’d already mostly completed Vee’s revenge arc for her, although Viv supposed she still had to take care of finding her family for the girl. Otherwise? Her life, her rules.

“You’re very calm for someone in a situation… like that.” Even if he didn’t know the details, he was probably thinking about how normal people would’ve reacted to finding out they were in Vee’s place.

Giving the tiniest shrug, she picked up a fresh paper and began to sketch, replying nonchalantly. “It’s not my first rodeo. Panicking accomplishes nothing, and I’m not really scared of death anymore. It’s not pleasant, but for me it doesn’t seem permanent. So I just want to live a comfortable life doing what I enjoy. But isn’t that what everyone wants?” She wasn’t overly ambitious, and maybe he wouldn’t understand that, given he was clearly a workaholic CEO.

Watching her sketch out the next girl’s face, he pondered her words, though her nonchalance about death clearly didn’t make him happy for some reason. After a moment, he asked, “So what is it you want to do with your life?” It was a nice step forward from his initial ordering her to go with them, to actually respecting her decisions. Granted, she’d just confirmed that while she might look like a starved teenager, her mind was anything but.

Pondering the contours she was drawing, she murmured softly, “I’m not sure. I figure I’m around eighteen or nineteen physically, so I’ll go to college and figure it out. I like art and cooking, but I’m also interested in pharmaceuticals and fashion. Maybe I’ll go into acting. The idea of getting to travel and experience different roles is appealing, and I’ve already got a bit of experience in that.”

As she flipped her drawing and began listing out information, he commented, “With your skills, you could easily have a spot in information analysis too.” Unlike Doctor Jones, he didn’t seem to be pushing her towards that, just informing her of an option.

She finished the paper, setting it aside to start on the next one as she replied with feeling. “Nah. While I’m okay helping out once in a while, I know what I don’t want to do is be stuck behind a desk as an office grunt ever again, or some canary in a cage. Been there, done that. I want to go out and experience the world.”

“It doesn’t sound like you really need a tutor.” He considered softly.

She rolled her eyes as she looked at him. “Of course I do. It’s been years since I attended standardized schooling, and this place… is different. I absolutely need stuff like history lessons and to figure out the social climate. To understand what’s common knowledge. Vee was stuck in that village and was basically completely ignorant of the world. So while I’m not exactly starting from scratch, it still kinda feels like it. I can only imagine what the women downstairs are going through. Several of them have never experienced anything outside of that place.”

He was clearly trying to puzzle her out as he pointed out, “You seem really invested in people you barely know.”

Letting out a small huff, she gave him a ‘really?’ look. “It’s called basic human decency. And maybe it feels like what Vee would have wanted me to do. After all, if I hadn’t come through halfway, she would be just like them.”

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Shaking his head, he said softly, “It’s really weird to hear you talk about yourself as not you.”

Her sketching continued. “It’s a strange situation for everyone. I’m surprised you’re taking it so calmly.”

Standing up, he walked back to the couch and picked up his laptop. “It’s the only explanation that makes sense, even if it sounds like supernatural nonsense. There are too many inconsistencies otherwise. You know too much and not enough.”

Glancing up to stick her tongue out at him briefly, she replied, “And yet you’re the only one who’s noticed. Well. Doc Jones might be a little suspicious too.”

“I’ll make sure he keeps his mouth shut.” Aiden immediately reassured her. Doing something on his phone, he continued, “Regardless, there will be classes to help acclimate the others to a more normal life; you don’t need to worry so much about them. I’ll arrange for some discrete tutors to help you. The college entrance exam is in two months. Do you think that’s enough time for you get caught up?”

She paused, then said quietly, “Yes. Thank you.”

He hesitated, then added, “The best tutors probably won’t have time to leave the capital.” It was a subtle prod for her to go with them, despite him knowing she couldn’t fly.

Flipping her current paper over, she nodded absently and replied, “Fine. Give me a few days here, and then arrange a car or something.” Knowing the girls would be taken care of was one thing, but she still wanted to be there for the initial hurdle, because she considered it a critical turning point. That should be enough time to at least help them with the culture shock and get her police reports done.

“I’ll have it arranged.” He agreed easily, agreeing with her compromise.

The two of them sank into a comfortable silence as they both worked on their own projects, and it was that atmosphere that greeted Assistant Zai when he returned with a large paper bag. He’d given two short knocks before entering to warn them, but it felt more like announcing his arrival than asking to come in, given that he didn’t ever wait for them to respond.

She looked up, watching as he went straight to the table and began to pull things out, informing them, “I’ve brought meals for both of you, given I’m sure you haven’t eaten today either.” That was directed at Aiden, who hmphed a bit in agreement. It was a weird relationship. She could tell that Zai respected his boss, but that he was also used to trying to corral him or get him to eat. She tried to put her finger on what it reminded her of, until she realized it gave off nanny vibes.

However, he still put his work aside once more, walking over to her and offering his hand. “Take a break.”

“That’s rich coming from you.” She heard his assistant mutter, and almost laughed before she held it back as she remembered the state of her ribs. Taking Aiden’s hand, she let him help her up gingerly and support her the few steps to the couch. Thankfully, he didn’t insist she use the wheelchair for the short distance. He made sure she was settled properly before taking a seat beside her.

There was a light porridge, a cup of thin soup that was barely more than broth, a glass of milk, and a small jello set in front of her. Aiden got rice, two meat dishes, and soup that looked like it had stolen all of her vegetables. She glanced longingly at the meat, and Aiden admonished, “Your stomach can’t handle it right now.”

Letting out a long-suffering sigh, she retorted, “My stomach is like steel. I didn’t have the opportunity to be picky.”

“Be good.” He admonished, but he still picked out a small piece of meat and deposited it into her bowl.

Assistant Zai looked a bit like he was watching his boss turn into an alien, but seemed to snap out of it as he asked, “There’s another portion for Alex if he wakes up. Was there anything else you needed?”

“I’ll email you any further instructions, and you can take care of them tomorrow. For now, get some sleep.” Aiden dismissed him for the night casually, and poor Zai looked relieved that he could finally get off work.

He quickly bowed to Aiden and then to her, saying, “Excellent. You two have a good night. And boss?” Aiden raised a brow as if asking what, and the man admonished bravely, “You should try and get some sleep at some point too.” He quickly left the room before they could reply.

Raising a brow as she stirred her porridge to cool it down a bit, she asked, “Why does he make it sound like you don’t eat or sleep regularly?”

“I don’t require much.” He replied simply, and she rolled her eyes.

She muttered, “Probably more like you’re a workaholic and don’t take care of yourself.” When he raised a brow at her audacity, she shook her head. “What? How do you think I died the first time? A proper work-life balance is important or you’ll regret it when your health is in the gutter.” Ignoring him, she took a bite of her porridge, carefully splitting up the lone piece of meat she’d been given so that she could savor it. Swallowing, she ordered, “When you finish, wake Alex up so he can eat while it’s warm. Otherwise he’ll wake up in the middle of the night hungry anyway.”

“You sound like you have a lot of experience with children,” he remarked casually as he began to eat elegantly, but quickly.

“I had a little sister, once upon a time,” she answered absently, humming in delight as she tasted a small piece of meat. She rotated through the meal, taking sips of milk and soup to delight her palate after eating raw mushrooms and berries to fill her stomach these last few weeks.

“Do you want to talk about it?” He asked almost hesitantly, noting her melancholy despite savoring her meal.

Giving him a small, sad smile, she replied, “Maybe eventually. Not tonight. I think I’m gonna finish this and then get some sleep.” He could feed Alex. Now that she wasn’t focused on drawing, she could feel the deep aches returning. She paused, then admitted, “Whatever anesthesia they used is wearing off. I could use a painkiller.”

He immediately hit a button, and a few moments later Nurse Taylor bustled through the door, looking alarmed before calming down when she saw them eating. Aiden merely nodded to Vivian and said, “She needs a painkiller.” There was no explanation, just an order to get it done.

Nurse Taylor didn’t immediately leave to obey, instead asking Vivian, “How much pain are you in on a scale of 1 to 10?”

Without any further context, she felt that was such an arbitrary question. But with everyone’s pain tolerance being different… whatever. “Probably a five. I can work through it if I have to, but it’ll make sleeping difficult.”

“Understood. I’ll let Director Heiliger know.”

Nurse Taylor moved to leave, and Viv quickly asked, “Wasn’t he in surgery?”

Giving her a warm smile, the nurse replied, “He’s out now. He only steps in on the worst cases. If you’ll excuse me.” She bowed a little to them, then left promptly.

Looking at Aiden, Vivian asked, “Just how important is he?”

The man had the audacity to shrug. “He’s the vice director of the capital’s branch. He came this time to make sure Alex was fine.” He was so nonchalant about it, as if it was only logical to make the top brass follow him around to treat his nephew. Then again, if his family owned the hospital, so maybe it was?

“So he’ll return with you tomorrow?” She asked curiously.

He paused, then shook his head. “No, he’ll accompany you back.”

She raised a sardonic brow. “Shouldn’t you ask him about that? And are you really okay with him not following Alex?”

“He’s getting paid to do what I say. And once we get back, Alex will be under the director’s care with my father.” Implied was that she needed more care for the journey.

She stared him down, then finished her meal and muttered, “Remind me never to become your employee. I’m going to lay down.” She needed a nap.