Chapter 3: The New Friendship
"A Cyborg?" Candy repeated, still couldn't get her eyes off the small device that kept glowing coming from Albert's muscular chest. She was occupied covering her eyes to notice that round gadget when he was totally naked in front of her this morning.
"Yes." Albert acknowledged his hostess.
Candy gave him a dazed look. "H-How can you be a Cyborg? Y-You look completely human to me!"
Albert had no other alternative, but to tell her of his situation. "Please, sit down and calm yourself. Allow me to explain."
The young blonde girl obeyed. "O-Okay... I'm all ears."
"I was their experiment," he stated calmly.
"Come again?"
Albert continued. "I was a human before. Many years ago, I was walking along on a deserted place. Then, a number of men captured me and brought me to their mad scientist in a dark, unknown location."
"W-What did they do to you?"
"They wanted a volunteer, so they could work on their Cyborgenetic invention. I resisted fiercely. They...they did terrible things to me. Day by day, they keep putting different cells in and out of my body. They wouldn't let me go until I was perfect. They wanted to use me to do evil things against human nature," Albert said, with his eyes closed.
As Candy was picking up the side of Albert's story, she could feel a small tear appearing from one of her eyes. How awful!
"One night, when everyone was asleep, I managed to escape, and hide myself into the mountains. There was a tracking device on my scalp, and I destroyed it, so they wouldn't trace my whereabouts. I...I wish I could remove this contraption off of my chest, but I would die if I did...," the man with wavy blonde hair sighed deeply.
Poor Albert. I had no idea there are people like that who create such ridiculous things just to achieve their own selfish desires! This can't be real! I thought this only happened in the movies, thought Candy with concern.
"As you can see...," Albert went on, facing Candy with sad eyes. "The stunts you saw, the power I have now, were most likely created by those monsters. I've no control on my own to stop it. My strength is exceedingly overwhelming. When I touch or bump into something, it breaks! I can't even touch humans without hurting them. This is not what I want. I'm destroyed by those evil people."
Candy slid a simple question. "Can you remember what they look like, Albert?"
"No. I couldn't recall their faces. They made me swallow some sort of pill so I wouldn't have a memory of them," he uttered, rotating to the other side of the room.
"Albert..."
"Lady, I can't stay here any longer. I need another place to hide," he voiced out, walking away from Candy and buttoning his shirt at the same time.
"B-But why? You live here now. You're safe here with me."
"You don't understand. You can't keep me here," he growled. "Once they find me, they will kill you. And I do not want that to happen!"
"They can't hunt you down anymore, right? You just said you already destroyed the tracking device!" she reminded him.
"That doesn't stop them from searching until they find me and finish me off," said Albert with a warning, now holding Candy by her shoulder. "Look, I appreciate your kind hospitality, but I do not belong here. Thank you for giving me a room to stay. Nice knowing you. Good-bye."
Candy got past Albert and blocked his path. "No, you can't go, Albert! Stay here as long as you want. No one's going to find you here, I promise!"
"I can't! I'm a total stranger. You don't know me, so you shouldn't be too kind to me!" he said coldly as he shoved Candy aside as gently as he could with one finger.
He was about to get hold of the doorknob, he stopped when he felt some kind of little force around his waist. WHAT THE...? He turned around to see. "Lady, what are you doing? Why are you so insistent? Get your arms off of me this instant!"
"No! Why are you so stubborn? You've nowhere to go! This is your place now. You can do whatever you want here. They can't find you here. And my name's Candy!" retorted the fiery, blonde girl, looking at him.
"Why do you care?" Albert asked in annoyance, glaring at Candy with his cold, blue eyes. He could use his own trick to escape from Candy's grasp, but it was impossible for him to act.
When using a teleportation technique, and anything that touches him, goes along with him in any place or time. He had no nerve to touch, nor hold Candy in fear of breaking her arm like a twig. To Albert, humans are fragile. Somehow, Candy guessed one of his weaknesses.
Candy tightened her embrace. "I care because... because you're my friend, Albert. My new friend." And I'm so intrigued I want to know more about you, she thought in secret with a small smile on her face.
"Friend? What friend? I wasn't programmed to make friends. Friends mean nothing to me. I might end up hurting you, or anyone else," he frankly admitted, in a harsh tone of voice.
Candy walked around Albert to face him, still not letting him go. "Then, let me teach you the human ways! It isn't that hard. You saved my life twice now. Not only had you saved the little boy, but also the driver, and the other people at the restaurant. What you did at Downtown today was an act of friendship with the humans, and we thank you for that, really. Stay here, please?"
Albert gave Candy a very serious glare. "Do you know what you're getting yourself into? Your life will be in danger if you hold me back. The people who made me would not spare you because you knew everything about me. Would you want that?"
"I am not afraid of anyone. I always love to face danger," she quickly replied with great pride.
Silly female! Albert smirked at her bravery. Looking down at Candy's petite arms, This is the first time in my life a human ever touched me. When I first encountered humans in the past, they were afraid of me. This impetuous, but good-hearted female is different. She may be weak, and yet so bold and willing to give up her life if anything happens.
Candy didn't know how long she kept her arms around Albert's waist, and finally, he gave in. "Alright."
"Alright what?"
"I'll stay here with you. However, on one condition, you will not stand in my way, got it?" commanded the Cyborg.
"Of course!" she boomed with delight, and removed her arms from him. "Thank you, Albert. You will not regret this, I promise! Um, friends?" offered Albert a handshake.
Albert looked down on her hand, but remained still on his ground. "You know I can't hold you."
"Well, try to hold back your strength and see what happens. Come on. Shake! Wait a minute...," she suddenly recalled. "You held a boy in your arms earlier. How come he wasn't in pain?"
"I restrained my strength when I carried him," he replied serenely.
"See? You can do it! Now, shake your hand with me," she insisted heartily.
Albert slowly reached for Candy's hand and squeezed it tenderly. "W-Well?" he asked with eagerness. "Let me know if it hurts, then I'll stop."
My, his hand is smooth... like a candle... I didn't feel any tingle as he pressed my hand. "All I can say is... your hand is soft, Albert."
"Soft, huh?"
"Yes! I like the way how you hold my hand. You did well, Albert. You're not so bad at all!" complimented Candy.
"Thank you, lady," the Cyborg hinted a polite answer.
"Say, why don't you bring your new clothes into your room while I go and fix dinner? I'll turn on the T.V. for you if you like!" Candy kindly offered, as she was preparing her way to the kitchen.
The blue-eyed man thanked Candy, and not for a long moment, there was a loud crash coming from Albert's room. Candy trudged towards his room. The door was shattered to pieces.
"Oops! I'm sorry...," Albert muttered softly.
"What happened?"
"The door fell as I pushed it as lightly as I could, and crashed on the floor. I'm sorry."
"Accidents happen, Albert. It's okay. Besides, the door is so old now and it needs to be replaced. Don't worry about it!" Candy said, cheering up her new-found friend.
"I can fix this for you," he mildly volunteered.
Both Albert and Candy exchanged smiles at each other. A seed of new friendship continues...
o - o - o - o - o
Day after yesterday, Albert and Candy, wearing the same matching jogging suits, were found jogging together in the park, two blocks away from her home, at six in the morning. It was one of her favorite activities when she was not at work, and she explained to him that jogging clears her mind and maintains her body.
Tired and hungry, they stepped into a popular fast-food restaurant to get something to eat. They ordered to go. The sun wasn't that bright, so they decided to sit on the bench and to enjoy their breakfast.
All the same, they were being serenaded by birds that happened to pass by, and soon, Albert and Candy were being attacked and snatched their food. The young blonde girl ended up laughing happily as she saw herself and Albert, covered with feathers and syrup. Albert couldn't understand the humor, but laughed with her anyway. That was fun! thought Candy in secret.
o - o - o - o - o
One night... a disturbing moan was heard inside the dark room.
It was Albert.
He was having a hard time to sleep in harmony. He tended on moving his head to the right and to the left. On his face, it showed fear.
Then... he saw a dark, abandoned place...houses and buildings were burned... debris were scattered all over the place... then there were bloodstains on the ground... blood of the dead, different people... some of them have had been beheaded, some were burned alive, some were killed by the sword, and some were chopped into pieces... whoever had done this brutality, definitely had no soul.
There appeared five figures out of the dark shadows called The Dark Zaieddon. They were hard to identify for it was blurry, but the voices were clear and evil. The tallest one, their leader, walked throughout the dead bodies of the little children, and then spoke up with a deep, sinister voice. 'Kill them all...all men, women, and children! Leave no one alive! Those who defy me shall die!'
Suddenly, the leader of malevolent group heard a cry of a young boy. He approached the boy and harshly demanded: 'Join me. Become my follower, or you perish!'
Unfortunately, the young boy shook his head.
This rejection had angered the evil leader. 'You made a wrong decision, boy!'
He raised his hand, and sliced the boy in half. His blood splattered on his face and his hands. He and his men triggered a devious laughter of victory.
As the leader whirled his head around...his eyes, which were brighter than a sun, flashed open.
"AAaaaahhh!" Albert screamed as he immediately pulled himself up from his pillow. Trying to catch up his breath, his face and body were covered with sweat. On his right leg, there lay Candy's kitten, Teeny, who also woke up, startled from Albert's shriek. He softly patted Teeny on her small body. He rubbed his forehead with his other hand. He turned to look at his clock. It was 4:56 in the morning. He let out a deep sigh.
He got up, reached for his closet, and took out one shirt to replace the wet one. He led himself to the window and stood there for a few minutes, with his hand on the wall. A ray of moonlight shone on his face as he pondered of the terrible dream he had. 'W-What was that? W-Who was that monster? I...I've never seen their faces before! What a horrible dream!'
Albert went back to his bed, staring in space, and he quietly dozed off.
o - o - o - o - o
Some months later... Candy happily went in, whistling a happy tune, after she unlocked the entrance of her house.
"Yoo-hoo, Albert, I'm home! Hey, guess what, my friend, Jamee gave us free tickets for dinner...and...and...," Candy gasped in awe as she saw the different surroundings of her house.
Albert's head popped up from the kitchen doorway. "Hi there, beautiful lady!" he greeted joyfully. "I didn't expect to see you back early! How was work today?"
"A-Albert, what happened to my house? I feel like... I'm living in somebody's house. Everything is in order, and they're cleaner than clean! I'm so moved! P-Please, tell me I live here!" said the blonde lady, trying to pinch her right cheek.
"This is your house. Who else would it be?" The Cyborg was at loss for words.
"R-Really? D-Did you do a house-cleaning all day?" She gratefully asked her friend.
"Yes, but I did not use any vacuum, wash cloth or some kind," Albert unraveled as he was walking towards Candy. "It would take me hours. It only took me three minutes, though."
"Wow, three whole minutes? What exactly did you do? Perform a magic?"
"It's called Telekinesis. I sat down on a couch, and allowed me to meditate, and got everything in the house done, including the laundry," illustrated the blonde-haired hunk.
Candy placed her hands on her mouth. "Impressive! Wow, look at the plates and the glasses, they are like brand new! Oh, Albert...," holding his hands. "Thank you very much! You're such a wonderful friend! Thank you!"
"You must be tired. Come, I prepared a special dinner for us," said Albert, leading Candy the way to the dining room.
"For us?" she repeated unbelievingly.
Albert turned on the lights to the dining room. The meal is all set, complete with candlelight. "Behold!"
"Oh, my St. Bernard!" surprised Candy, covering her mouth with her hand. "It's a Chinese dinner! Wow, we have one each serving plate for sushi, egg rolls, buns, sui mai, prawns, baked salmon, orange chicken, Szechuan beef, vegetables, one big plate of fried rice, two small bowls of tofu soup, and two kinds of dessert! Y-You made them all?"
Albert nodded with a smile. "I watched an episode on Asia's Cooking Show this morning, and I thought I'd try those recipes the cook performed. I tasted my sample, and it's really good!"
"Where did you get the ingredients? Did you shop at the market today?"
"No, I went into the deep ocean where I caught different kinds of seafood," the attractive Cyborg informed his hostess.
Candy blinked her eyes in disbelief. No wonder he never replied to the text messages I sent him through his cellphone I got for him! "Hee-hee, you've been busy all day, huh? But, Albert, this is a lot. I don't think we can eat all these..."
"We'll manage, don't worry! Do you like it?" he assured her with a grin on his face.
"This is a surprise! Yes, I do! It's so sweet of you, Albert. You're so good! I can't even cook Chinese! Thank you!" flattered Candy in a very sweet tone.
"You're welcome. Oh, by the way, what were you going to say when you came in?" Albert inquired as he was pouring the glasses with cold water.
"Oh, my best friend, Jamee, gave me free tickets for 'Dinner for two' at the new Grill and Bar restaurant. I was going to ask you if we could go out tonight, but...you already made dinner, so I should've called you earlier..."
"I didn't want to spoil the surprise, so I waited for you to come home. How long it would take before those tickets expire?" asked Albert.
"In a month."
"Then, we can still go one of these days! Hey look...," he said, showing off a hand-made craft. "I made Teeny her own high chair, now she can eat with us! What do you think?" Albert questioned as he carried Teeny into her new exclusive-for-cats-chair.
Wow, this is a first! Something unique for my kitty! "Oh, Albert, you're too much! You're spoiling my baby. This is fantastic! Thank you! You made my baby so happy! Let's eat!"
Candy couldn't help observing Albert while he was adding few portions into Teeny's bowl. Hmm...Albert has been living with me for over five months now, he had spent his first Christmas and New Year with me, and here he is... behaving like a different person. In the past few months, he was always serious, unhappy, and stands near the window, thinking far away, as if he left someone so important to him. Sometimes, we get along like on and off switch, or like whacky teenagers. Could it be because he had suffered enough at the hands of that psycho who stole his freedom away? Sometimes, I hear him scream in his room at night. I ask him why, but he won't talk to me regarding his awful dreams. I wanted to be there for him as a friend. Perhaps... perhaps someday he'll talk about it when he's ready. For now, I want to enjoy what I see in him tonight. He's a darling. Look at him, he's like an innocent choir boy playing with a toy. Hey, that rhymes!'
After dinner... together, they carried the plates, bowls and glasses to the kitchen sink.
"Can I ask you a question, lady?"
"Albert, my name is Candy. When will you learn to say that? It's not that hard to pronounce." We've been through this many times! Say MY name! Is that so much to ask? One more LADY out of you, I'll wring this kitchen towel around your neck! Really!
"I'm used to call you lady, and I think it's fine," he replied, stubbornly.
"Okay, fine. Have it your way. So, what do you want to ask?"
"Why did you circle this number in red color?" he pointed to the calendar.
"Oh, that! It's my...my birthday is in two months."
"What's a birthday?"
"It's the day when you were born, and some family and friends celebrate with me on my birthday, and they give me good presents, and they made me say a wish on my birthday. Sadly, I never got it." Hmm.. that sure wasn't a good explanation.
"Are you going to celebrate on that day?" Albert asked curiously, as he put the plates on the dishwasher.
"Last year, I had few friends over for a small party. This year, I want to celebrate alone," Candy said with a sigh.
"What did you wish for?"
Candy dragged Albert to her room, and showed a medium-sized poster that pinned on her wall. "W-What's this?"
"It's a poster from Singapore a friend brought home for me. She took a 30-minute ride in that capsule. It's called Singapore Flyer, the largest Ferris wheel in the world. I always wanted to ride in it!" Candy proudly admitted with her hands clasped in happiness.
"Do you really want to go there?" he questioned Candy, who was gazing at her soft, non-curved hair.
She let out a soft sigh as she went on. "I'd give anything just to set my feet in that capsule with a special person in my life, but it's not possible. Wishes don't come true anyways!"
"Don't lose hope. Sometimes, it does, so don't let go of your dreams," Albert advised with full of encouragement.
Candy set her eyes on her Cyborg friend for a few minutes, and, "Didn't you enjoy your last birthday, Albert?"
The Cyborg sadly shook his head in response. "I never had a birthday in my whole life."
"Oh, I'm sorry," remarked Candy, feeling sorry for her mysterious guest, and then suddenly, her eyes shot up in pleasure. "I know! Why don't we celebrate the first time we met in the parking lot as your birthday?"
"Works for me," he replied, thoughtfully noting at Candy's friendly offer.
Again, Candy avoided his glare, and then excused herself to return to her dishwasher.
Albert stayed a few seconds, admiring the poster, with a small, bright smile on his face, and then followed her.
"Hey, let me help you with those plates," Albert kindly proposed.
"No, Albert, it's okay", urged the lady blonde, not allowing her friend to interfere. "You've done everything nice for me. It's my turn now!"
Not listening to Candy on purpose, "Come on, let's do this together!"
When they reached for the same plate, Albert accidentally touched Candy's hand and hurriedly, he moved his hand away as if he got burned by a hot pan. Then, two pairs of eyes with opposite colors met.
Twenty seconds after, Candy broke the ice. "A-Albert, are you okay?"
Albert swiftly kept his eyes away from Candy's, feeling uncomfortable. "Um, I'm okay. I'm going to my room now. Good night!"
'What's up with him? Men sure are strange,' shrugged the blonde, as she continued putting the plates into the dishwasher.
Shortly after Candy was done with the kitchen, she headed straight to her bedroom, and changed into her pink PJ's. She sat down in front of her study table, turned on her lap top to check important events in her msn account email. She replied to some emails that she found interesting. She spared a little more time to chat with one of her best friends on Skype to catch up good times.
One hour later, she landed her body on her bed, and thought about her Cyborg friend. Albert, I forgot to thank you for the nice dinner you made. I hope you won't be having a bad dream again.
Meanwhile, Albert was sitting on his chair, settling his foot on his knee; and two hands at the back of his head, thinking about Candy. Undeniably, something is not right. When I touched her hand, it felt more like electricity. I've touched her hands before, why is it I'm feeling weird right now? Does this mean I'm falling for the likes of that woman? This can't be! There is no way a Cyborg like me can fall in love with that human! I must stop this feeling I have right now! Other than that, I saw her tears fall down while telling me about that Flyer thing, and that worried me a little. What's so special about that place that suddenly upset her? I've been so hard on her in the previous days. Don't worry, lady, I'll try my best to be a little nicer to you, trust me!
CONTINUED...
o - o - o - o - o
Author's Note: Thank you for your reviews from the last chapter! How do you like this one? Are we sensing a spark between Albert & Candy? Find out on the next chapter!
© EnakaT 2011