19.
chapter nineteen
a test for bond.
I mean, blood.

"We completed our med project by the time you showed up, mate," Gary chided, a bold smirk across his face as his bubble collided with Ash's. It resurfaced when Ash rolled his eyes and strode past him to Lillie and Paul.

The two were seated on one of the high stools, talking about something when we entered. There was a layer of tension that didn't seem to affect Gary, but I could practically feel Ash's nerves, even if his bravado said otherwise.

"What was the assertion, Lils?" He slumped onto another chair, pulling one more from under the table to his side. His eyes met mine, non-verbally pleading something. For me.

Taking a deep breath, I sat down on the wobbly chair, grabbing his shoulder when it almost tilted to the side. What was the deal with the lab chairs being off-balance? What sort of physicist accepted such ones that defied the laws—?

Lillie looked away, biting her lip and narrowing her gaze at her slip-ons. A bad feeling crept into my chest, but my smile remained—at least for his sake.

"What idiocy were you up to?" Paul said through gritted teeth. He pushed forward a paper filled with wildly written handwriting. "You're tainted with some fool's blood, and that's strengthening you more than your bond is."

His words blurred in my mind, my brain racing to come up with a sane question. The only one, after traces of elementary biology knowledge resurfaced, was: "Is it compatible with Ash's? You know, they say not all blood groups match!"

"It doesn't." Paul's reply shot through my chest like a sharp-edged dagger. I clasped the hem of my skirt, hoping to stop my mind from dwelling on the implications of what he said.

"Paul," Lillie said firmly, as if reprimanding. She turned to me, a thin-lined smile lighting up her blanched features. "Not physically compatible, because Ash is O-negative, and the ingested one is O-positive."

"He's not supposed to have positive, is he?" I countered, looking at him. However, he seemed deep in thought, his brows furrowed. "What do we do? What happens?"

"He might feel dizzy often," Lillie put in, looking rather uneasy. "But I'm not sure. We don't know whose blood it is and can only narrow it down to one person..."

"Cut the talk, Lillie," Paul cut in, shooting to his feet. He went around the table, retrieved a box, and walked back. I felt the air stir behind me when Gary stepped in front of me.

"Are you going to test her?" was his simple question. I noted his usual demeanor had vanished—yet again, a telltale sign something was wrong.

"Yes," Paul answered, kneeling in front of me. His stormy purple eyes met mine, something deeper than inquisition in them. "We want to make sure that blood is yours, Serena. Because if it isn't, either he's not supposed to be alive—or the fool has tampered with your heart."

I jerked my head toward Ash, but he was still looking at his sneakers. I bit my lip, a wave of confusion and hurt rushing to my senses. Just how long are you going to run from the truth and keep me in the dark?

He looked at me, eyes weary with exhaustion and mirrored puzzlement, although he didn't look far from the answer. Nodding ever so subtly, he dropped to his knees, taking the kit from Paul.

"I'll do it, if you let me, Serena-chan."

I couldn't deny him, even though I had no idea if it were humanly possible for Ash to have somehow ingested my blood without my knowledge. I was aware around him, wasn't I?

The prick was soft, yet sharp at the point he pulled the syringe out. I let out a low whimper when he dabbed cotton against the vein he had retrieved my life source from.

Lillie was at his side at once, helping him masterfully handle the red liquid. Paul joined in as well, muttering something about creating a mess of everything. The only person I could look to, even if I wished to never admit it out loud, was Gary.

"I swear I was never bleeding around Ash..." I whispered, more to myself than to him. But he heard me anyway.

"I believe I might know where he went wrong," Gary remarked, his hand stroking his chin thoughtfully. "But it's just an assumption."

"What is it?"

But he shook his head, unwilling to admit it, much to my chagrin. The only thing that raced through my mind as I watched Ash and his friends work was the question: Why was I being pushed aside in matters that involved me?

Was it fifteen? Or maybe even half an hour by the time Ash slumped back into his seat, craning his neck back and forth. He didn't look as tense as I expected, but neither was he smiling like he had almost an hour ago.

"It's true," Paul informed, handing me a paper filled with weirdly fuzzy words and scribbles—the language of doctors that I simply couldn't read.

Even though more than a part of me thought I would be called out as a fool to ask the question, I couldn't help it. "What is?"

Paul's eyebrow shot up before he grunted with a shake of his head. "That Ketchum's blood is tainted with yours. A minute droplet—not enough to impact him, but enough to make a change to The Void."

"H-how?" My eyes searched his in disbelief, but he remained silent, shooting me palpable glances.

"That, I'm not sure," Paul answered truthfully, looking rather discombobulated himself. He scratched the back of his head, sending a piercing gaze to Lillie. "This ends our assessment. Let's head home."

Gary nodded, pushing himself off the cupboard at once. "I'll go with Paul. Want us to drop you off, Lils?"

Lillie shook her head, clutching a binder close to her chest. That was when I noticed how fazed she looked. Perhaps she wasn't used to testing out something excruciatingly important. Dismissing the thought, I jumped to my feet, shooting Ash a tentative, non-verbal question.

He nodded. "I'll drop you—"

"Ash," Lillie interrupted. My breath hitched when her slender fingers trembled around the clipboard. "Can I have a word with you in private, please?"

The boy shifted uncomfortably on his soles, regarding me, but I merely nodded for him to go on before tailing behind Gary and Paul.

Part of my conscience told me to continue on my way and wait by Ash's car. But the other, stubborn and curious one, insisted on remaining behind—potentially even listening in. My mind was set as soon as she asked the one question that had been racing in my mind.

"Tell me, Ash. Just what did you do with her?"

Ash hesitated, his fingers gripping the edge of the counter. The silence was palpable, only broken by the heavy breeze filtering through the curtained windows.

Just when I thought he wouldn't answer, he mumbled, "It happened a few nights ago." He drew in a sharp breath, gripping the counter harder, stronger. "The night we had our first kiss."

There was a sharp gasp, and I let myself remain hidden by the silhouettes of the lab doors. "My, Ash—are you serious?"

"I don't regret it."

Something in my chest blossomed, and my hands flew to calm my heart down. My lips tingled with the memory of our first kiss. How tentative a brush of his lips it was before something deeper consumed us. He doesn't regret it like he did.

"How could you? He warned you about the implications! If you got closer to Serena! I warned you, didn't I?"

"Look, this isn't about your brother's warning." There was a sharp edge to his voice—one that had never been directed at me. "It's personal, and I don't wish to spill what's supposed to be between the two of us to everyone."

"You really decided to give up everything for your soulmate, didn't you?" It was unmistakable—the tinge of betrayal in her voice. What was even more alarming was Ash's defensive tone.

"Lillie, I already made up my mind. I was given two choices: run from imprisonment or choose it with the love of my life. My parents did it before. I chose the same thing. I chose her."

I flinched, my hands flying to cup my mouth. He chose me—over her words, his security, his life. My knees trembled, wanting nothing more than to give way.

There was a soft sob and another heavy exhale.

But my mind was set on something else. Mustering my courage and swallowing the lump in my throat, I emerged from my hiding place. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to eavesdrop."

Ash's eyes went wide at the sight of me, a hint of rose rushing to his cheeks. "Serena?"

But I disregarded him, falling to my knees beside Lillie. Our bubbles bounced off a little. "He didn't mean to break your trust, Lillie."

The girl looked up, her hurt-stricken eyes darting anywhere but at Ash. "I only wanted him to stay s-safe."

As much as I didn't understand what was going on—or how any of it affected Ash or me, for that matter—I simply couldn't walk away when a girl was on the floor, crying from betrayal.

So, I did what I was best at: smiling to give strength. "I will make sure to keep him safe, over my life. If it makes you feel any better, I'll make sure he doesn't ever inch too close to my blood."

Ash snorted, before trying to cover it up as a cough and ending up with an awkwardly real fit. That wasn't what I found endearing then. What was even better was that he was smiling. At me, meaning, thank you.

Turning back to Lillie, I nodded reassuringly. "Thank you, Lillie, for looking after his restless neck for so long. Thank you, really."

To my absolute delight, the blonde smiled, even if through wet tears. Perhaps, for once, I had struck the right chord. I couldn't beat down the pride that filled me at that thought—even if my lingering promise hung in the air.

To protect Ash.