Chapter 4

Pouting, Xir snapped, "I'm not taking that! It's so bitter!"

"You have to!" I retorted almost instantly. "If you don't, it'll affect your puberty."

That much was true—if he didn't take his potion punctually, it would affect his growth and the medicinal value of his heart.

Naturally, my worried reaction inflated his ego as he turned to Thea and laughed. "See? She keeps saying she doesn't want my love when she's so crazy for me. Heck, she's more worried about my potion than me."

Then, turning back to me, he said, "My body is none of your business."

Naturally, he was just messing with me on purpose just to watch me dance, while making him feel all the more important.

"No, it is my business," I said.

And it was—my face was on the line, literally!

Xir happily leaned against the tank's edge, thinking that I loved him so much I was worried about his health. "Fine, I'll take the potion but only if you get me a box of Southwark apple pies."

'Apple pies? Do fish even eat those?'

Even as I was left bemused, Thea was smiling emotionally and kissed Xir's cheek.

"I'm surprised!" She chirped, while staring gleefully at me. "You remember my favorite food!"

Xir smiled back. "Of course. I remember everything about you, Thea."

So that was it.

Still, it was the perfect opportunity for me to get some fresh air, as I definitely didn't want to stay and watch them flirt.

"Fine," I said, interrupting their googly-eyed moment. "First, take your potion."

Seeing that I agreed to run the errand, Xir finally took the potion reluctantly, while I only left after I watched him finish it.

-

On my way to Southwark, I couldn't help remembering the moment I first met Xir.

He was kept in a cramped tank in an illegal lab, so bruised and battered he couldn't even do a flip.

Naturally, he couldn't hear me outside the tank, but was instinctively curling into a ball when he saw humans—as any victim of prolonged abuse would.

I was telling the seller, "Just look at him. His heart's medicinal value is definitely severely affected."

The seller shook his head, rubbing his palms enthusiastically. "Actually, Ms. Jackson, a little rehabilitation goes a long way even if he looks bad now. There's still plenty of time before he comes of age anyway.

"Moreover, merfolk are getting really rare in the market. It really wasn't easy for me to get you such a premium specimen, y'know…"

I was looking at Xir floating in the tank, feeling compassion even though he didn't exactly meet my standards.

"Fine, I'll take him."

With that, I bought Xir at a king's ransom and took him home, after which I spent another fortune building an indoor temperature-control tank for him.

He was so excited he dived deep, exploring the depths because he had never been in a tank that big.

"Lyra!" He exclaimed, holding my hand as he vowed, "I will definitely repay this life debt!"

And he was really good to me at first, meticulously stringing his tears into a necklace for me.

As he watched me gingerly, seemingly worried that I wouldn't like his present, he said, "It's not really valuable, but it took me a long time to make it. You can't say no."

"The weather man is saying it will rain. You should wear layers!"

"I learnt some massage techniques on the internet! Come, I'll give you a massage!"

I watched him swim around enthusiastically, but didn't humor him too much.

If anything, I felt really guilty that I would take his heart despite his goodwill.