Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ The Heart Of Metal ❯ Chapter 3 ( Chapter 3 )

Odette was...outspoken. It was quite evident in the first five minutes of their conversation that she was a highly emotional being.

She expressed herself in a way that Goten had never seen anybody do. It was like she was reliving the whole ordeal all over again, in a mere recitation of earlier events, complete with her going from being completely calm to entering a state of utter trainwreck panic in a matter of minutes.

"Yeah, so like I was sleepin' " she goes on speaking in a heavy accent which he wasn't sure could even be considered one, it was just that she dragged her words, the start and the end of her words weren't really distinguishable and it sounded she really needed a lot of cough syrup.

She then goes on to fully lay down on the worn-out couch, fiddling slightly with her septum ring, which was quite subdued as compared to the newer looking eyebrow piece and the lip ring on the left side of her lower lip. All of them in what could only be described as a pinkish shade of gold, wait...he knows this, what was it called again? 

...Ah yes, rose gold, Erika would be proud!

He still did not know whether letting Erika go was the best decision on his part. He had hired her because she was a friend of Pan and Bra's, they had told him how supportive of a friend and was looking for a job. Given the fact that it was a desk job and called for a friendly, non-judgmental face with some technical know-how, she seemed like the best option. And she was, that is until she looked at the notifications on her phone. She was a teenager after all and for that reason alone Goten didn't even blame her. It was a mutual decision to replace her and he was relieved that he didn't have to fix her 'fixes', but the only problem was he still hadn't found anyone to replace her with, the calls were getting increasingly seldom...

"And then I was like, wait what's that?" her face twisting into an expression of confusion.

Odette immediately shot off the couch, frantic, and then sharply dip her head in horror, and let out a startled shriek. It was so real that even Goten followed her gaze enraptured by her performance.

Holding an invisible body she begins to sob hysterically, "Cepheus.. my bebek, what's happening to you?" she continues to sob loudly, ignoring everything around her.

The scene is bizarre, to say the least. 

Goten keeps on watching, unblinking until an exceptionally loud wail from Odette snaps him back to reality. He quickly rushes over to her and contemplates how to bring her out of her trance without spooking her again.

"... my bebek... do you... well... breathe, why are you... struggling to breathe?" she continued in a breathless cry, gasping for air herself, so much so that Goten thought that she might pass out.

Unable to come up with anything subtler than clearing his throat, he approaches her cautiously and makes sure to stand in her line of sight.

Just as he is getting into position, Odette flails one of her arms in palpable desperation and accidentally brushes it against his arm.

This time it was nobody's fault, not that any of the previous times were, but Goten winced.

Great. Just freaking great.

She was looking at him with the same frightened look as earlier in the morning and Goten felt bad.

Though this time he realized her eyes weren't all green, they were, in fact, hazel.

Really taking in her appearance for the first time, he noticed that her brown hair had hints of caramel peeking through, bunched up on her head in the form of a supposed bun, too messy to be considered stylish in its current state, the ends red from a fading hair color he supposed, all tousled into a big heap bearing more similarity to a bird's nest than anyone's head. Her skin looked tired but otherwise, was a flawless freckly bronze, her plump cheeks flushed, her rose lips bruised and chapped, probably from her nervous biting, he assumed. 

Her eyes were getting glassy, wait, that's bad...

"Okay, so erratic breathing, got it! Where does he sleep daily, since I assume that you were surprised to find him in your bedroom?"

Odette blinked but did not respond. Instead, she turned away, her face suddenly red, panting heavily.

He was caught off-guard by her peculiar reaction, he couldn't understand what brought that on! Was it something he said, he did?

He recalled their entire conversation and couldn't come up with anything.

Was he too close? Was he in an embarrassing situation?

Nope and nope again.

Is she just shy?

She did not seem like a shy person if that was the case.

His observations were well-founded of course since her appearance itself spoke volumes about how much of a creative person she was. Her fading hair color, the piercings, color littering almost every visible patch of skin by intricate designs and among them the most striking piece of all-a wide butterfly, with its wings framing her jawline.

She was a work of art, and he supposed you'd have to have a certain amount of rebel and boldness in your character to be able to pull it off.

Then what had made her react that way?

She finally turned around. 

Though apparently, she was more interested in the floor than in him and stuttered...

"I-I can ex-explain!"

Although she was speaking, it was almost as if she was afraid of him. But why?

At least she wasn't crying...

"H-He can fly..." It was barely above a whisper, almost as if it wasn't meant to be heard.

Goten paused. Wait... what? 

It is safe to say that out of all the possible responses he'd expected, this was not one of them.

Okay, he's a Saiyan himself, at least half of it, so that shouldn't bother him so much right?

More so, she doesn't know that! ...Right? 

Of course not!

Then why does it have to be one of the weirdest moments of his life?

Deciding to look up from the floor, she caught the squinty-eyed stare that Goten had fixed her with, and she immediately caught hold of his robe, looking at him with those wide and pleading hazel eyes.

Was it shy you said? Well, think again!

"My bebek can fly!"

Bebek...hmm, Turkish, so was she Turkish? It didn't seem like it, since the distinct accent only came out when she said that word; also there was the fact that he just knew she wasn't.

"Wh-"

"I'm telling you, Dr.Son, he can! He-I've even found him on the toilet seat! You've seen those legs, he has zero ground clearance!"

"He's planning something big, I just know it, but his health is hindering his plans, you have to help him!" she exclaimed shaking the fabric vigorously.

Her panicked stare bore into his eyes, and just then Goten's cell phone rang, and Odette was back to being...shy?

He excused himself from the room, breathing a sigh of relief, tightening his robe around his body again, he stepped into his bedroom, pressing answer without having checked the caller ID.

"...Hello?" he answered in a sleepy voice, yawning slightly.

A deep, rich voice from the other side answered him.

"Hello, have I reached Dr. Son Goten?"

He immediately felt a little more awake when he heard the unknown woman's voice.

"Yes, how may I help you?"

"I heard you have a position open for a secretary/receptionist. Is that correct?"

"Yes, that is correct."

"Well if the position hasn't been filled yet, will you be interested in interviewing me for the same? Any day of the week at any time works for me."

He had interviewed many candidates but while some of them couldn't operate a computer, most of them were just slow typists. Understandably so, the biggest issue he faced was the erratic work hours and therefore it was no surprise he unable to find anyone.

While the woman seemed to be one of the most confident candidates, and he was desperately in need of another working hand, he did have to know if he'd be wasting his and her time, if she had any such problems.

"If I were to employ you, your job would entail updating data records, and at times heavy typing. The work hours shall be changing almost on the daily. Do you think you can work with that?"

"Of course Dr.Son, I can perfectly keep up with the workload and the Saiyan body clock and I may even outstand you."

A cold sweat ran down his back.

"W-Who are you?"

"Your new secretary, Maze."

Is this really happening?

"You-"

"I'm not a threat Dr.Son, please calm down. So, what time works for you?"

"But-"

"And before you say anything else, we both know you want to know who I am, so why don't we talk in a civil setting? Sounds good?"

He couldn't believe it, how did things take such a wild turn?

Well, she... whoever she is, was right, although that didn't make it any better.

So forcing in a deep breath, he replied with a curt, "9 A.M. Don't be late."

With that he ran a hand through his hair, gathering it up in a fist, and threw the cell phone on the bed.

Walking out he spotted Odette and Cepheus on the couch. She seemed to be much more calmer. She heard him close the bedroom door and beamed at him, he smiled slightly.

Well, at least that was nice...

"He's fine now. Just fell asleep, and is breathing normally now!" she whisper-shouted.

That was good, he supposed, but he still hadn't got the chance to examine him.

He saw a notepad on the table and scribbled,

'That's good, keep him warm and hydrated, and if possible bring him down for a visit today at the clinic. I'll give you some mild sedatives just in case. I'll leave you home, I'd advise you to get some rest yourself, and don't worry everything will be fine!'

'In case of an emergency, here's my personal cell: +XX XXXXXXXXXX, give me a call anytime.'

He tore off the yellow note and handed it over to her, she read it and her cheeks took on a slightly pinkish hue.

She gave him a hesitant nod, stood up, and was about to take off the coat given to her, when Goten stopped her and tightened it around her and Cepheus, whispering a "Don't worry about it." in her ear, making her blush profusely.

They walked over to the foyer and were about to open the door, when she suddenly hugged him tightly, and voiced a timid, "Thank You for everything...D-Goten!"

He smiled whole-heartedly this time, this was what he worked for!

He stroked her back in acknowledgment, and they walked out in the cold winter morning.

It was gonna be a long Monday.