Chapter four: name

I woke up earlier than usual this morning, probably because I slept earlier than I normally did. Paying no mind to that, I got up and prepared myself for work. I threw my lab coat in the laundry basket. We aren't allowed to take our lab coats outside the work building but yesterday, my head was all over the place and I walked right out without remembering to remove it.

I walked into the bathroom and did my business then I took a shower. I washed my long black hair and cleaned my body while humming an unknown tune. It was a way to distract myself from the many thoughts I was getting from just being in the shower. So many inappropriate thoughts...

"Anything but Damien, please." I begged my brain. Did it listen? No, because from out of nowhere, Damien walked into the shower and pinned me against the wall, his hot lips connecting with mine. I felt his hand again, slowly trailing higher and higher between my thighs. I spread my legs for him, screaming when I felt his fingers plunging inside my—

"No!" I shouted into nothing, pushing all those thoughts to the back of my head. I aggressively switched off the water and stepped out of the shower. This needs to stop, this needs to stop. In my naked and dripping wet state, I went to my laptop and switched it on, going to g****e.

'why do I always have dirty thoughts?'

This is so dumb, but I'll do anything for it to stop. Anything!

The search results showed stuff about puberty and hormones and various articles about the 'top 12 dirty things everyone has though of'. Basically, it was pretty useless. I shut my laptop and pushed it away from me, walking back to the bathroom to get a towel to wrap around my body.

I'm a scientist! I don't need the internet to answer questions about my body and mind.

"Sexual frustration..." I whispered, my eyes widening in realization. After Damien and I split up, I never had any other touch from a man. I've never even touched myself! That's probably what is causing all of these nasty thoughts. Yes... Yes, I may be onto something.

How do I get rid of these thoughts?

"I need a new man. Yes, not just a temporary fling. I need to find someone to be with." I said with a determined nod. I'm not doing it to get the thoughts out of my head. I'm doing it because I'm at the right age to be in a relationship and I've been single for too long. I deserve the happiness it'll bring.

"Shouldn't I be focusing on work though? It is a pretty big deal." I whispered.

I looked at my clock, my eyes widening at how much time has gone past. I'm going to be late for work! I sped to my closet and wore the quickest outfit I could put on. That was a nice red dress. It was pretty tight though, making my curves a bit more outlined than I would've liked.

No time to change. I'll wear a lab coat over it anyways.

I slid on red high heels and fixed my hair, tying it up into a ponytail. It was still a bit wet so it wasn't straight as usual. It looked wavy.

Whatever, I'm still hot.

I put on some lipgloss and grabbed my phone and bag, hurrying downstairs. I'll have to get some coffee on the way. There is no time for breakfast now. I stopped at the kitchen when I saw broken glass on the floor. It looked like a glass had fallen.

Is that the shattering I heard last night?

I looked at the sink, where I put all the dishes I used last night. The pot, the bowl, spoon and the cup. I haven't used a glass in ages. Yet somehow, one ended up breaking on the floor across the kitchen.

I looked at the windows around the kitchen and dining room. They were all closed shut so no one could have entered. It was raining last night too, so the floor would be wet or muddy.

It was probably just sitting at the edge of the table and I didn't notice.

With that, I quickly cleaned up what I could and left the glass shards on a piece of paper on top of the table. I'll properly dispose it when I get back and I'll have to vacuum the floors for any extras. I quickly stepped out of my house and locked the door, making my way to the garage.

Gosh, I'm so late. I hope Damien or Mr Hughes weren't planning on visiting my lab today.

I jumped in and sped off, driving to work like a maniac. I almost hit three pedestrians and one taxi but I didn't stop, instead I honked at them as an apology. I couldn't stop now, I was so close.

I finally got to the familiar large white building I've been working in for the past few years. Four, to be exact. I spent two extra years as a trainee, so that's six in total. It's a rollercoaster working there. Just like every other company or organization, there will be the good moments and the bad.

At least the salary is good.

I made sure that I didn't leave anything behind. Phone? Check. Key card? Check. Purse? Check.

Satisfied, I made my way out of the car and hurried into the building, heading straight for my lab. It was further away than my previous one, I think it's also part of security reasons. It was at one of the lower floors, the hardest ones to find.

I got to the door, praying that no-one had gotten in there before me. To my luck, as I scanned the card and watched it slide open, there was nobody inside. I sighed in relief and entered, my eyes widened when I, once again, met a pair of grey ones with specks of red. The metal wall had been lifted up but the glass one wasn't. His whole body was free of any chains except for his right ankle and he was laying back on his new single bed, dressed warm in a blue hoodie, white sweatpants and socks.

It made me smile. It's good to see him comfortable. Maybe he'll even speak today.

"Good morning, uh..." I said awkwardly, wishing I knew his name. He just looked at me, not saying anything back. That's okay, it'll take some time. He'll get used to me.

I walked to my desk and placed my stuff down, my eyes still stuck on him and my smile not fading.

"How are you this morning? Do you feel better with your new stuff?" I asked him, picking my tablet up and walking to him. He sat up and leaned against the wall as I approched him, his body facing mine.

I have his attention, that's a good start.

"I hope you like them. If you need anything else, I'll be happy to get it for you. Let's just try to make your stay here a little more comfortable." I said, stopping right in front of the wall. He opened his mouth, preparing to say something and then closed it, huffed and turned his head away.

So close...

I sighed softly and grabbed my chair, sitting down in front of him. It's going to be a long and silent shift.

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After an hour of waiting patiently with no luck, I decided that I should just leave him for a bit and go get a snack. I still haven't gotten that coffee I planned to get earlier today. I got up from my seat and walked to my desk. As I put my tablet down, I heard him clear his throat.

He's probably not going to say anything anyways.

I grabbed my purse and put my phone inside, grabbing my key card.

"You..." He whispered. I almost didn't hear him. It was that soft when he spoke. I dropped everything and turned to look at him in surprise. I didn't want to jump at him with my tablet, maybe he didn't like that.

"Yes?" I whispered back and made my way to him. Slowly, I walked to him, hoping he would continue.

"You... nice to Sei."

Sei?

"Sei... Is that your name?" I asked him, recieving a slow nod in confirmation.

This is amazing progress, he's spoken and given me his name.

"It's nice to meet you, Sei." I said with a smile. He looked down when I said his name again, fiddling with the hem of his hoodie. He looked... Shy. I mean, I haven't gotten the chance to know his personality just yet but I'm pretty sure that yesterday he was much more aggressive than this. Maybe it was all a cover? A defense mechanism? An act?

What if his shyness is an act?

"Is English your first language?" I asked him, having noticed his hesitation and his faulty grammar.

He nodded slowly, although he didn't seem sure. I looked at his face and eyes. His eyes were still the same but his hair was no longer that yimin blue. It looked a bit more grey than last time, like something blue that had ashes rubbed all over it.

His skin looked lighter too, pale even.

Was that normal?

"Sei," I called him, making him slowly lift his head up to meet my gaze. "May I come in and check your hair and skin?" I asked him. He looked back down, slowly nodding. I picked up the remote and pressed the button, the glass wall sliding open.

"I can't untie your ankle for safety reasons, but I will as soon as I'm finished with observating you." I explained, walking to him. His ankle being tied didn't do anything though, his hands were still free and he could grab and hurt me if he wanted to. I just hope he'll keep that shy demeanor until I'm finished.

I stood next to him and gently pressed my finger on his cheek, feeling his skin. It still had that sparkle to it, though it was definitely paler than yesterday. His hair was more grey as I had suspected. I gently split his hair apart with my thumb and index finger like I did last time and reached the roots of his hair. It was still the same soft texture but it seemed to have grown at least by a few centimeters, his curls were much smaller too.

Fascinating...

The roots of his hair were not white anymore, they were dark green! I looked at the hair in shock. How in the world..?

I flinched in surprise when Sei's hand grazed my leg. I looked down to find him playing around with my dress. "Pretty..." He whispered. That is when I remembered that I had not gotten a lab coat to cover my dress. Thank goodness, he seemed more focused on the fabric of the dress than the shape of my body in the dress.

"You like the dress?" I asked, running my hand through his hair. He shook his head, looking up at me with those dual coloured eyes. "Then why did you call it pretty?"

"You pretty." He simply said, catching me off guard. I did not expect that at all, especially not from the most dangerous man in the world.

"Thank you, Sei." I breathed out, letting go of his hair. I have to write down all of my recordings on him before I forget any. I walked out of the area and brought the wall back down, only releasing his leg after it was fully closed. He kicked the chain away from him and stood up, stretching his body. He was still as tall as he seemed yesterday, so that was good.

"How tall are you?" I asked him, typing my findings on my tablet. He blinked at me innocently, my question seeming to not be sinking into his brain.

"Your height? How long is Sei?" I tried to rephrase. He shrugged and fell back on the bed, closing his eyes afterwards. There's no way his first language is English. He can't even understand a basic sentence. Whatever, I'll find out about his height later.

My attention shifted to the door when I heard it's usual beep and saw it slide open. I waited to see who had entered, expecting Mica or Sharlene.

Right, I still have to speak to her.

To my dismay, the last person I wanted to see walked inside. Damien Moretti.

Give me a break, would you?