One afternoon, Yve found herself staring at her empty locker.
The plastic bag where she’d kept the money Dylan had given her was gone.
She didn’t need to guess who’d taken it.
Lara’s scent was still there.
Yve looked around the room and Lara’s things were gone too.
She understood what had happened.
But for a moment, she wondered why Lara hadn’t said goodbye.
Instead of picking a fight, she decided to just let it go.
Maybe Lara needed it for something, had an emergency, or simply wanted to buy delicious food.
She didn’t care much about money anyway.
In her civilization, she was loaded.
One could consider her well off, not rich rich, but rich enough to live a comfortable life, at least by her people’s standards.
Then Ethan knocked on the doorframe.
“Hey Yve…”
Yve turned to look at him.
“Ms.
Joan is asking for you…”
Yve nodded and closed the locker, the broken lock clicking uselessly.
She followed Ethan down the hall to an office where Joan sat behind a desk.
After a brief greeting, Ethan returned to work.
“Hey Ms.
Yve…” Joan began with a warm smile.
“Hello…”
“Gotta tell you Yve…
you’re doing pretty well here.
Hard to find a resident like you that adjusted easily…”
“Thanks to the kind humans around me…” Yve replied.
“You still call us kind humans?” Joan asked, her smile widening.
Yve didn’t answer.
“Well anyway…
I’m having a hard time referring you to employers cause for one, you got no identification of any kind…
and we really can’t find you in any system.”
“I’m sorry about that…”
“Still, I managed to get you interviews at a few warehouses that are badly in need of workers right now, so…
thought you might want to check them out.” Joan handed Yve several business cards and a resume she’d prepared.
Yve looked at them with confusion but nodded anyway.
“Hope you get yourself some independence soon Yve…”
Yve nodded and smiled before leaving.
As she reached the stairs, a male staff member was waiting for her.
He called her name and told her to follow him.
Yve didn’t think much of it until he led her to the upper levels where there were fewer residents.
He guided her into a room.
“Who called me here again?” Yve asked.
The staff member began advancing on her, caressing her hair.
“Please don’t touch my hair,” Yve said.
That seemed to ignite something in the man.
“Been eyeing you since you got here…” He leaned in and smelled her.
“Compared to other women here?
You smell good…”
Yve tried to leave, but the staff member closed the door, pinning her against it.
“I’m warning you.
Please get your hands off me.”
The man smirked, his eyes peering into hers.
Disgust rose in Yve’s throat.
“Touch me.
And you’re dead,” she said firmly, her eyes stern.
The staff member didn’t mind.
He cupped her breast and tried to kiss her, pinning his body against hers.
That only angered Yve, and she pushed him away, sending him flying into the window.
The glass shattered as his back hit the window frame hard, and he fell to the floor.
“I warned you,” Yve said, trying to control her anger as she turned to leave.
The man pushed himself up, limping as he grabbed Yve’s hair and shoved her hard.
Yve turned around and delivered a swift kick that took the breath out of his lungs.
He gasped, coughing up blood as his ribcage fractured.
The commotion brought residents and staff running upstairs.
They found Yve standing over the man, who was struggling to breathe a few feet away.
“Yve beat me up!” the man immediately begged.
“I barely touched you.
You’re the one who made sexual advances on me,” Yve said.
“Call an ambulance,” Joan ordered as Ethan rushed to do so, then stepped in to mediate the situation.
~~~
Yve sat in the office while Joan stood behind her desk, staring at her with a troubled expression before letting out a heavy sigh.
“What happened, Yve?”
“He touched me.
I warned him three times…
he still did it anyway.”
A middle-aged woman who had been volunteering in the office shook her head.
“That’s hard to believe…
Mark’s a good guy.”
Yve turned toward her.
“Were you there when it happened?”
The woman didn’t answer.
Joan sighed again.
“This is gonna be a problem, Yve…”
“What’s going to happen to me now?”
“You broke his ribcage.
He’d need to be hospitalized for a few weeks.
That’s not a simple offense, Yve.”
“I didn’t start it, though.” Yve raised her head.
“Since I was young, I’ve been taught never to start a fight, but to never run away from one either.”
The middle-aged woman scoffed.
“What kind of parents teaches their kids like that?
That’s such a shame…
no wonder you’re like this.
Your parents didn’t teach you well.”
Yve’s expression hardened.
“You’re wrong.
My parents raised me well.
You have no right to shame my parents like that.”
“Look at that, she talks back to her elders.
I didn’t come here to volunteer my time helping criminals.
Why are you keeping her here, Joan?”
“Ms.
Bach, please…”
The woman stopped, though the disapproval on her face remained.
Joan turned her attention back to Yve.
“Do you have any evidence that he touched you, Yve?
Any eyewitness?”
Yve hesitated before shaking her head.
“No…
not really.”
Joan sighed.
The discussion continued for hours.
They went over what happened several times, from the moment Mark called Yve upstairs to the moment the residents and staff arrived after hearing the commotion.
Yve answered every question honestly, but without anyone else present in the room, there was little she could offer beyond her word against his.
Eventually, Joan asked Yve to wait outside.
Yve sat on a bench in the hallway, her head lowered as the muffled voices from inside the office carried through the door.
She remained there while the discussion continued, listening to people decide what would happen to her.
Eventually, the police were called after Mark filed a complaint against her and demanded a settlement for his injuries.
Yve could only sit there and sigh.
By the time the decision was made, there was nothing left to discuss.
She was kicked out of the shelter.
Yve gathered what little she had and placed it into a box before the police took her into custody.
At the station, she sat across from two officers while her belongings were placed on the table and inspected.
“Press your fingerprint here, please.”
Yve placed her finger on the scanner.
The monitor processed the print, searched through the available records, and returned no match.
The officer frowned.
“Again.”
Yve did it again.
The same result appeared.
The officer exchanged a confused look with his colleague before trying the scan once more, but nothing changed.
“No match found.” He picked up the phone.
“Chief, could you come down here for a minute?”
A short while later, the chief entered the office and looked over the results.
“What’s going on?”
“We can’t get a match on her fingerprint, sir.”
“Run it again.”
“We already did.”
The chief looked at Yve.
“How old are you?”
“Twenty-four.”
“Full name?”
“Celestia Yve Virellis.”
“Where were you born?”
“Reefville.”
“Where’s that?”
“The ocean.”
The chief stared at her.
Yve stared back.
The room fell into an awkward silence.
The chief looked toward the officers.
“You verified that?”
“Yes, sir.
We can’t find anything under her name either.”
“And the fingerprints?”
“Nothing.”
The chief rubbed his forehead before looking back at Yve.
“Alright.
Put her in a cell for now.
We’ll figure out what to do with her.”
Yve was taken away and placed inside a holding cell.
~~~
Meanwhile, Dylan received a call from an unknown number while he was standing guard.
He answered.
“Is this perhaps, Mr.
Pierce?”
Dylan frowned.
“Who’s this?”
“This is Joan from the government shelter.
Your name and phone number were listed on the form as an emergency contact for Ms.
Celestia Yve Virellis.”
Dylan’s expression barely changed.
“Ahh…
what happened?”
“We would just like to inform you that Ms.
Yve has just been removed from the shelter and taken into police custody for assaulting a staff member.”
Dylan scoffed.
“Ain’t my problem.” He ended the call and slipped his phone back into his pocket.
Dylan continued standing guard, keeping an eye on Derek as he went about his work.
After a moment, Derek walked over and gave him a sideways glance.
“Your girlfriend?”
Dylan shook his head.
Derek gave a tired sigh.
“Go home, son.
I don’t need babysitting.”
“Sorry.
Orders came from my boss.
Can’t leave you here.”
Derek shook his head and returned to work, apparently deciding there was no point arguing with him.
A little later, he looked across the area and called out to someone.
“Lucas.”
Lucas waved and walked over.
“Come with me.
I need your expertise on something.”
Derek nodded.
“Lay it on me.”
The two of them walked off together, leaving Dylan standing guard where he was.
~~~
Eventually, Yve was brought into a small room with a large mirror covering one wall.
She sat across from two officers while they went over what would happen next.
“Alright, Ms.
Virellis.
You’ve been here for a while now, and we’ve finished the initial processing.
The complaint against you is still being investigated, but you’re not going to remain in custody while the case moves forward.”
Yve listened without saying much.
“We’re going to release you pending trial.
That means you’ll have to appear when you’re ordered to, and there may be other conditions you’ll have to follow.
If you fail to show up, that can create another problem for you.”
Yve nodded.
“Do you have somewhere to stay?”
She shook her head.
“Family?”
Another shake.
“Friends?”
Yve paused before shaking her head again.
The officer glanced at his partner, then reached for the phone on the desk.
“Where’s that shelter form?”
A few minutes later, a fax came through from the shelter.
The officer picked up the pages and looked through them until he found the section marked Emergency Contact.
“Dylan Pierce.”
He read the phone number beneath it and picked up the phone.
Yve watched him.
Outside, rain poured across the windshield of Dylan’s car as he drove away from work.
The road ahead was dark, the wipers moving back and forth across the glass.
His phone rang through the car’s speakers.
He glanced at the screen.
Unknown number.
Dylan hesitated before answering.
“Hello?”
“Mr.
Pierce?”
“Yeah.”
“This is Officer Harris with the police department.
I’m calling about Celestia Yve Virellis.”
Dylan’s grip tightened slightly around the steering wheel.
“What about her?”
“She’s been taken into custody following an assault at the shelter.
We’ve completed the initial processing, and she’ll be released pending trial.”
Dylan stared through the windshield.
“Okay.”
“There’s a problem, though.
She doesn’t have anywhere to stay.”
Dylan let out a tired breath.
“Ain’t my problem.”
“I understand, but the shelter won’t take her back, and we can’t simply release her onto the street without establishing a residence for her.
They gave us your name and number as her emergency contact.”
Dylan was silent.
“You’re the only contact we have for her.”
“I ain’t responsible for her.”
“We’re not saying you are.
But if you’re willing to let her stay with you, we can list your address as her temporary residence while the case is pending.
She’ll still have to appear in court and follow whatever conditions she’s given.”
Dylan shook his head.
“You gotta be kiddin’ me.”
“I’m afraid not.”
Rain continued beating against the roof of the car.
“We can’t just keep her in a cell because she doesn’t have somewhere to go.
She’s eligible for release, and we need a place where she can be reached for court notices and any further proceedings.”
Dylan said nothing.
“Mr.
Pierce?”
He sighed.
“Yeah.
I’m here.”
“Can you take her in?”
Dylan looked at the road ahead, then at the clock on the dashboard.
He didn’t answer for several seconds.
“What’s the address?”
The officer gave him the police station’s address.
Dylan ended the call and stared ahead.
“Dammit…” He drove for another few seconds before reaching the intersection.
Then he turned the wheel and made a U-turn.
~~~
Dylan entered the police station and approached the front desk.
“I’m here for Celestia Yve Virellis.”
One of the officers stood and looked him over.
“Are you Mr.
Pierce?”
Dylan nodded, pulled out his wallet, and handed over his ID.
The officer checked it before nodding.
“Just need you to fill out some forms.”
Dylan did as instructed.
Once he finished, the officer led him toward the holding cells.
When they reached Yve’s cell, Dylan stopped.
Yve was doing a handstand against the wall, completely unbothered by the situation.
The officer stared at her for a moment before looking at Dylan.
“Is she mentally ill?”
“Think so…” Dylan muttered.
Yve heard him.
Her head turned toward the sound of his voice, and the moment she saw Dylan, her expression lit up.
She pushed herself upright, performed a small tumble, and landed neatly in front of him.
“Hey…” she said, grinning.
“You came for me?”
Dylan merely clicked his tongue and shook his head.
The officer unlocked the cell, and Yve happily stepped out, giggling to herself as she followed Dylan.
“Don’t fly out of the country, Ms.
Yve,” the officer called after them.
“And don’t forget about your trial.”
Yve stopped and turned back.
She gave the officer a stern look without saying a word, then turned around and continued after Dylan.
The police handed Yve a small box containing the few belongings they had taken from her, and the two of them made their way toward the entrance.
Heavy rain poured outside, drumming against the pavement and filling the air with the scent of wet earth.
Yve stopped beneath the doorway and reached a hand out, letting the rain collect against her palm.
Dylan opened his umbrella and held it over her.
“Come on…”
He gently placed a hand on her shoulder and guided her toward the car, keeping her close beneath the umbrella.
When they reached the passenger side, he instinctively held a hand above Yve’s head as she got in, making sure she wouldn’t bump it against the roof.
Then he closed the door, walked around to the driver’s side, and got in.
Yve looked at him happily.
“Hello…”
Dylan nodded as he started the engine.
“You eaten yet?”
“No…”
He pulled away from the station and drove through the rain.
“Couldn’t even last a month there, huh?”
“I could’ve if Mark only listened to my warnings.”
Dylan glanced at her.
Yve was pouting, mumbling mostly to herself, though she was loud enough for him to hear.
“He’s the one who touched me first…
I don’t get why I’m the one being punished.”
Dylan looked at her again.
“He touched you?”
“Yeah…” Yve replied, frowning.
“I thought humans were more evolved than this…” She crossed her arms and looked out the window.
“Eh, why bother…
I’m out of there anyway.”
Dylan said nothing and continued driving.
Eventually, they drove through a McDonald’s drive-through, and Yve leaned across the center console to look toward him.
The sudden closeness made Dylan stiffen.
Yve looked at him curiously.
“What’s this?”
Dylan pushed her forehead away with two fingers.
“Food.
What d’you want?”
Yve rubbed her forehead and thought for a moment.
“Is there fish?
Preferably raw.”
Dylan stared at her.
“Ain’t no supermarket open.”
Yve frowned and muttered to herself, “Eh…
where I live, fish are available all the time.”
Dylan just shook his head and placed their order.
After pulling up to the counter, he took the bag and handed it to Yve.
She immediately caught the delicious aroma coming from inside.
Instead of opening it, she stuck her face into the bag and inhaled deeply.
“Hmmm…
this smells nice.” She inhaled again.
And again.
Dylan watched her in bafflement before gently pulling her back by the shoulders.
Yve looked at him with a wide grin.
Dylan stared at her, completely confused.
“It’s for eatin’.”
“Okay…” Yve said, nodding.
Yve opened the bag and pulled out a french fry.
She took a bite, chewed for a moment, then looked at it with mild confusion.
“Is this food?”
Dylan didn’t answer.
He kept his eyes on the road, focusing on driving.
Yve took another bite.
“Tastes weird…
It’s like powder, but clumped.” She didn’t seem particularly bothered by it.
If anything, she just kept eating, grabbing a handful of fries and stuffing them into her mouth.
Dylan glanced at her from time to time, clearly bothered by the way she ate and the mess she was making, but he didn’t say anything.
After a while, Yve turned toward him and held out a handful of fries.
“You want some?”
Dylan’s hands shifted on the steering wheel, and the car swayed slightly before he regained control.
Yve didn’t react at all.
She simply kept looking at him, her hand still extended toward him with the fries.
Dylan stared back, eyes wide.
“The hell…”
“You don’t want some?”
Dylan opened his mouth as if he was about to say something, then thought better of it.
Yve eventually withdrew her hand and stuffed the fries into her mouth herself.
~~~
Eventually, they reached the apartment.
Dylan unlocked the door, stepped inside, and took off his suit jacket.
Yve had already invited herself in.
She was sitting cross-legged on the sofa with the McDonald’s bag in her hands.
Dylan immediately tensed.
“Sit on the bar stool.”
Yve looked at him, then obediently moved to the stool while Dylan took the bag from her and checked inside.
“There’s no more left?”
Yve was in the middle of eating the last of the burgers.
She looked at him.
“Uhmmmm…
no.”
Dylan stared at her in disbelief.
“I ordered a lot…
Where’d that go?”
Yve placed a hand on her stomach.
“Here…”
Dylan scoffed and turned away, tossing the empty bag into the trash.
He opened a cabinet and pulled out a pack of noodles before setting a pot of water on the stove.
Behind him, Yve continued sucking the grease from her fingers, determined to get every last bit of flavor off them.
Dylan glanced over his shoulder and winced, but Yve didn’t seem bothered at all.
Then he finished cooking the noodles and turned toward Yve, only to find her watching him intently.
She had been observing every move he made, her eyes following him across the kitchen.
Dylan stared back for a moment, caught off guard by the intensity of her gaze.
“Wash your hands.”
Yve stood and walked over to the sink.
The faucet was different from the one she’d used at the shelter, so she grabbed the nozzle and shook it, trying to figure out how to get the water running.
Dylan watched for a moment before reaching over and turning the faucet on himself.
Water began flowing.
Yve looked at him, smiled, and started washing her hands.
Five seconds later, she pulled them away.
Dylan frowned.
“No, no…
You didn’t even use soap.”
“Its clean.”
Dylan shook his head.
“You’ve been suckin’ on your hands.
Ain’t no way they’re clean.”
He pushed his sleeves up, took Yve’s hands, and turned the faucet on again.
He washed them properly with soap, working the suds over her fingers and palms.
Yve simply stood there and let him do it, smiling as she watched.
At that point, she looked less like a grown woman learning how to live among humans and more like a robot being programmed one instruction at a time.
Finally, they sat across from each other at the kitchen counter, the pot of steaming noodles between them.
Dylan grabbed two spoons and handed one to Yve before beginning to eat.
Yve watched him closely and copied what he did, taking a sip of the broth after he did.
The moment the broth touched her throat, her chest tightened.
She dropped the spoon and clutched herself, struggling to draw a breath.
Dylan noticed immediately.
“Hey, you okay?”
Yve couldn’t answer.
Her breathing grew faster and more desperate as she fought for air, her fingers pressing against her chest.
When her legs gave out, Dylan pushed his chair aside and rushed over, catching her before she hit the floor.
“What’s wrong?
What hurts?”
She only gasped in response.
Dylan slipped an arm beneath her legs and another around her back, trying to lift her, but Yve shoved him away with what little strength she had left.
She forced herself upright and staggered toward the bathroom.
Dylan followed, but before he could reach her, she pushed the door open, stumbled inside, and locked it.
“Yve!” Dylan grabbed the handle and tried to open it.
“Open the door.”
There was no answer.
Inside, Yve crawled toward the bathtub, her vision swimming as she reached for the faucet.
She twisted the handle, but nothing happened.
She tried again, her fingers slipping against it.
On the third attempt, the faucet snapped beneath her grip, sending water spraying into the tub.
Yve barely reacted.
She pulled herself over the edge and collapsed inside as the water continued pouring.
Within moments, she was completely submerged.
Under the water, her legs changed.
Her human form gave way to the shape she had been hiding, a long tail unfurling beneath her as her body curled against the sides of the tub.
Yve opened her mouth and inhaled.
Air filled her lungs.
Her breathing finally steadied.
Outside, Dylan could hear the water running and the muffled sounds coming from inside, but Yve still wasn’t answering him.
He stood outside the door, trying to make sense of what was happening.
“Yve?”
Nothing.
He knocked again.
“Yve, open the damn door.”
Still no response.
Inside the tub, Yve remained beneath the water until the worst of the suffocation passed.
Exhaustion had already drained most of her strength.
After several minutes, she pushed herself out of the water, and the moment her body was no longer submerged, her tail disappeared and her legs returned.
She barely managed to climb out before collapsing beside the tub.
Yve rested her head against the side, folding her arms beneath it as a makeshift pillow.
The water continued running beside her, spilling over the edge as her eyes grew heavier.
Eventually, she fell asleep.
Outside, Dylan waited another few minutes before knocking again.
“Yve?
You hear me?”
Nothing.
Then he noticed water creeping beneath the bathroom door.
His expression tightened.
“Yve!”
There was still no answer.
Dylan stepped back from the door.
“I’m comin’ in.”
He kicked it open, the doorknob giving way as the door swung inward.
Water covered the bathroom floor, pouring over the sides of the bathtub, while Yve lay beside it, completely exhausted.
He rushed to her, grabbed a towel from the cabinet, and lifted her from the floor.
Then he grabbed his keys and phone and carried Yve toward the door, still intending to take her to the hospital.
By the time the elevator opened, however, Yve stirred in his arms, her eyes fluttering open.
Dylan looked down at her, concern written across his face.
“Are you okay?”
“Mmm…”
The faint groan was enough to make Dylan breathe a little easier.
“Takin’ you to the hospital.”
Yve weakly grabbed a fistful of his clothes and held on.
“Don’t bother.”
Dylan looked at her half-open eyes and adjusted his hold, making sure she was secure against him.
“You sure you’re, okay?”
Yve squeezed her eyes shut and bit her lip, too exhausted to give him anything more than that.
Dylan stood there for a moment before sighing.
He turned around and carried her back into the apartment.
Getting the door open took some effort, but he eventually managed to force it wide enough to get through.
He carried Yve to the sofa and lowered her onto it, adjusting her position before turning toward the bathroom.
Water was still running inside.
Dylan headed in and looked over the broken faucet, searching for a way to stop the flow.
After finding the water shutoff valve, he turned it off and finally silenced the rushing water.
He went to his bedroom and changed out of his soaked clothes before returning to the living room.
Yve hadn’t moved.
Dylan crouched beside her and gently shook her shoulder.
“Yve.”
She didn’t wake.
He tried again, a little firmer this time.
“Yve, c’mon.”
Nothing.
Dylan stared at her for a moment, then sighed through his nose.
There wasn’t much choice left.
He slipped his arms beneath her and lifted her from the sofa, carrying her into the other bedroom.
He laid her down and pulled a towel over her, then began drying her clothes and skin.
She was still drenched from the bathtub, her hair dripping onto the pillow as he carefully wiped the water from her face and ran the towel through her wet hair.
Yve remained completely unconscious, her breathing steady as Dylan continued drying her.
Dylan hesitated beside the bed.
Yve was still soaked, and the cold air coming through the window wasn’t helping.
Leaving her in wet clothes wasn’t an option, but the thought of undressing her made him hesitate.
He looked at her, then toward the door.
For a moment, he considered leaving her exactly as she was and dealing with the consequences later.
Then he looked back at the window.
“Dammit.”
Dylan rubbed a hand over his face before finally making up his mind.
He’d never done this before.
And besides, he’s just helping someone completely helpless.
At least, that’s what he told himself.
He carefully began removing Yve’s wet clothes, keeping his eyes away as much as possible.
Every now and then he glanced down just to figure out what he was doing, but each time he immediately looked away again.
That only made it worse.
Dylan clenched his jaw and muttered under his breath.
“Get a grip.”
He finished removing her wet pants and dressed her in one of his boxers, lifting her legs as carefully as he could.
His breathing had become noticeably heavier, and he hated that he was even reacting to the situation.
He forced himself to focus as he reached for one of his shirts.
He lifted her slightly, then paused when he looked at her face.
Her eyes remained closed, her breathing calm and steady.
His gaze lingered for a moment before dropping away again.
He shook his head and carefully pulled the shirt over her.
Even with all his effort to avoid touching her, his knuckles grazed her stomach.
Dylan froze as a jolt ran through him.
His eyes widened, and he immediately pulled his hand away as though he’d touched something hot.
“Jesus…”
He took a breath and finished dressing her as quickly as he could, trying not to look at her more than necessary.
Once the shirt was in place, he pulled the blanket over her and tucked it around her shoulders.
Then he grabbed her wet clothes and practically fled the room, shutting the door behind him and leaning against it, breathing heavily.
Dylan stared at the ceiling, trying to get his thoughts back under control.
His heart was still beating faster than it should have been as he rubbed a hand down his face.
He stood there for another moment before looking down at the wet clothes still hanging from his hand.
He shook his head, sighing heavily.
“What the hell am I doin’…”