The next chapter is posted! Enjoy :)
"I told you, we're doing everything we can to make best of this situation. Not my fault you won't face the facts." Eve quipped.
Frieza clenches his jaw in annoyance.
"And I'm telling you, this is a mere temporary setback. I refuse to remain as I am while stuck here." He snapped back.
The last couple days were just like this. It was bad enough that she had other shit to juggle on top of keeping a pissy little tyrant concealed under her roof. First, she had to find things to make a splint for his lower right leg. Something she found rather easily in her garage when she found to metal rods that belong to some exercise equipment she didn't use anymore.
The real fun started when Eve sadly had to come to terms with the fact, she may have to set the bone. Something she was not very familiar with. This is all stuff Lina knew how to do. The problem is, Eve can't have her come and do it. Seeing as she may have a heart attack upon seeing Eve's interstellar guest. Yet, she felt like she couldn't call Lina and have her walk her through it step by step. Not without Lina getting suspicious about why Eve suddenly wants to know something like that and in detail out of the blue.
It was rather redundant, but Eve was extremely limited with her choices. She had to look through a few videos and tutorials on how to set bones. Before she got started though, Eve carefully felt around his shin and calf to see if there were any bone jutting out and about to breach the surface of the skin. Luckily, there were no signs of a compound fracture.
But then, the skin from the bottom of his ankles to the top of his shins were tougher than the average skin. Eve practically compared them to built-in shin guards. Since the skin did in fact appear to be intact, she can speculate that it is a simple fracture. Still, a closed reduction is easier said than done. Especially, when your medical background was limited.
Then just when Eve thought she'd have a lot of trouble with this situation she remembered she had a portable X-Ray. She quickly went into the spare room and pulled it out of the closet. It was actually Lina's, but she had no room for it in her small apartment. So, she gave it to Eve to hold onto. It came in handy for emergencies. Lina mainly used it when they would work back at the marine center. She used it on injured animals that were brought in. Mainly to check for breaks or other internal injuries.
During a slow period, she taught Eve how to use it. It surprisingly wasn't all that hard to use, and she learned pretty quickly on how it works. She brought it back out to the living room. And before she put his splint on, she turned on the machine, and lightly ran the wand over his shin. What it revealed, turned out to be a clean break, a stable fracture to his tibia. This was good news, it meant she didn't have to set it.
Eve used strong tape and wound it several times around the metal bars around his lower leg. He hissed in displeasure and snapped at her in pain a few times as she did it. She ignored him at first. But when he persisted with his insults, Eve told him to stop acting like a fucking baby. He shut up, but glared daggers at her for the remark.
Afterwards, she walked down her street and a couple blocks down to a CVS Store and bought more rolls of gauze. Eve then, wound that around his leg. The best part came later that day when Drew came by to give her her wallet. He wanted to come in and talk about work that day. Sadly, she couldn't risk letting him in. She already was sweating bullets the whole time the police were in there earlier that morning talking to her. And she didn't want any more close calls that day.
Drew didn't think anything of it. He told her he was glad to see her doing better and that he will see her bright and early tomorrow for work. Frieza didn't say much to her that day. The tyrant more or less laid down and sulked over his heavy misfortunes.
Before bed that night, Eve put fresh sheets on the bed in the spare room. She gave him the crutches she found in the garage, and he hobbled his way down to the second room on the left down the hall. Which was almost directly across the hall from her own room. She also set a glass of water and some ibuprofen on the nightstand for him. He gave her a brief nod in thanks for the room and medicine. Though the young woman could tell he was not used to thanking someone.
The next morning was headache that almost ending up in a screaming match. Eve was about to leave for work. When he asked her where she was going, she informed him that she was going to work, and will be back around 5:30pm. This was something he vehemently disagreed with. Even though she helped him and gave him shelter, the tyrant still didn't trust the human woman enough not to tell others of his presence here.
He wasn't stupid, he knew in his new current and weakened state, he'd be no match for those who may try and take him away. Something he made quite clear to her when she tried to leave.
Eve told Frieza though that she wasn't going to say anything and that she really was going to work and nowhere else. But he was being a stubborn asshole, and still told her she couldn't go. It wasn't until she called him a stubborn prick and thoroughly explained to him that if she doesn't work then she doesn't get paid. And if she doesn't get paid, she can't pay for utilities and food, and she could also lose the house.
The last part was a small lie. This house was leased over to her by Drew's Grandparents shortly before they moved into a smaller apartment complex. Still, she had to keep up with monthly bills to the utilities and obviously to put food on the table. She also had another car in her garage she can use. A car Drew's Uncle gave her because he hardly used it anymore but didn't want to see it get impacted. It was a 94' Camaro. Still in great shape and ran nicely.
Frieza finally put a stop to the bullshit upon hearing this. Knowing if she lost the house, then he'd be out on the street with no shelter or cover. Which meant no protection. All things he will need. Especially, after what Eve told him later that night. She explained to him as best as she could that aliens were not some common occurrences on Earth. Not like they were in his reality.
And while some can walk about freely on Earth in the DBZ Universe, they can't do so here. Then she had to explain to him why that was. How it would cause a massive panic on the populace and that if aliens were freely roaming about, they'd be met with hostility and danger. She went on to explain how the government will come and take him away to some top-secret facility and do horrible things to him.
He understood but it also angered him that he couldn't do anything about this current issue. If he were his usual self and didn't lose his inhuman strength and power, then her world's pitiful little armies would've been a laughable concept to him, because he'd wipe out these so-called threats without breaking a sweat.
Unfortunately, he was powerless, and felt no stronger than your garden variety human. Something that still continues to baffle him because how do you lose something you were naturally born with? By the end of that night, there were only two conclusions. Either his abilities were taken away during this divine transition to her reality by the deities responsible for sending them here. The second one was a bit farfetched, but he still didn't want to rule it out as a possibility. And that was; his abilities for whatever reason simply don't work in this reality.
Back to the present, Eve arches an eyebrow at his last remark.
"And how would you go about trying to gain back your power?" She asks.
"I don't know yet. And unfortunately, I have to focus more on healing at the moment. Which is happening a lot slower than usual. Normally, I would've mostly been healed by now. Apparently, the state I am currently in is worse than I thought. I may as well be no better than one of the feeble race your apart of." He spat, as if it caused him a lot of disgust.
In which case, it did. Even now, Frieza still sees humans as a pitiful excuse for a species. They were just so weak and feeble and didn't deserve a place among the cosmos.
Eve couldn't take the insults anymore and snapped at him once more.
"When are you going to get it through your incredibly thick fucking skull!? Not everything is about power and strength you pompous Asswipe! Many thriving civilizations are proof of this. Intelligence and Complex Emotions are what make races and societies function. It's how we were able to come so far down the evolutionary line. There were many larger more powerful animal species that existed here thousands to millions of years ago.
And yet, despite their strength and power they couldn't adapt to change and different resources, so they died out. It's true, in our earlier days, humans drew short straw because they weren't the strongest nor biggest beings on the planet. But despite that, we still had enough intelligence to know how to be resourceful and adapt to climatic changes throughout our history.
So enough with your bullshit and demeaning insults to my kind. We've been here for around two million years. And despite all our ups and downs as a species we've endured and thrived. Because nature gave us the ability to do so." She argued.
Frieza's frown slowly morphed into a condescending grin.
"And yet, if there were to be an invasion to your world by higher intelligent beings then yourselves, you would be completely helpless on how to defend yourselves and your world." He said, as a matter of fact.
Oh, she was itching to slap that smirk off of his face. But Eve learned throughout the years that things cannot be solved with violence. When people are dedicated to their own opinions sometimes it's no use trying to convince them otherwise. Or as Drew always jokingly told her when they were kids; 'You can't fix Stupid'. She feels this is one of those times that statement rings true. Especially, with an uptight arrogant Space Tyrant.
"Like I've said, we've already endured before over the centuries. And we will continue to do so for as long as possible. Humans are not known to give up easily. Even during losing battles. We fight to the end and push forward as best as we can. And we're done talking of this matter." Eve gritted.
His grin widened at seeing her frazzled.
"Fair enough. What else shall we talk about then? Perhaps the human male that came to your door a couple days ago or these friends of yours you work closely with. What were their names again? I believe you called the male drew and spoke with a female named Lina." He says, as he leans back into the pillows.
Eve gave him a scrutinizing look.
"And why would you want to know about them?" She asks, cautiously.
He shrugs his shoulders, which wasn't a great idea because he winced slightly from the painful twinge in his right shoulder that was still healing.
"Well, if I'm going to be stuck here with you, I may as well get to know you a little better. Though, that was something I initially was going to do while aboard my ship. Of course, it most likely would've been in a much different way." Frieza stated, as his eyes briefly roved over her form.
She gave him a disgusted look which only made his grin stretch into a toothy smile.
"Anyone ever tell you that you're a disgusting pig." Eve implied.
"No, but then anyone who was dense enough to insult me, ended up dead." Was his reply.
Her disgusted look turned into a glare.
"Nothing really matters to you, does it?" Eve snapped.
"The only things that ever matter were endeavors that benefitted me and myself alone. The affairs or plight of others is inconsequential to me." Frieza stated, as if it were no big deal.
He watches as her glare deepens even more. And if looks could kill, then the tyrant would've been six feet under.
"Though I will say, I have brought aid to others that have provided me with valuable assistance. And you have aided me greatly. So, in a sense I owe you. Don't let it go to your head though. If there is one thing I really dislike: it's being in debt to another. I sadly had enough of my fair share of it with Goku during the Tournament of Power. This is a onetime deal between us and that is it. Are we clear?" Frieza says, with finality.
"Couldn't have put it any better myself. The sooner we can find shit out, the better. As you mentioned earlier though, we can't do much now until you're better. Be thankful you didn't succumb to your injuries or get hypothermia." Eve said.
"This is true. I guess this is where I can say you were my knight in shining armor." He said, in a teasing manner with a hand over his heart.
Eve snorts at his rather childish quip. It's funny, how she started to notice that for a highly intelligent guy, he could also act quite puerile at times. Top that with his up and down mood swings and you have a perfect blend of disaster and chaos. She can only imagine if Goku and Vegeta's other previous enemies were like this as well.
"Hardly, you were just lucky." She says.
"If you say so. Anyways, are you going to tell me a little more about yourself or not?" Frieza repeated.
She briefly crosses her arms.
"There isn't much to say. There's not much that is interesting about me." Eve replies.
In truth, she didn't like talking about her personal life much. At least, not about her past. What she did know, was her life wasn't easy. Especially, in the beginning when she was a small child. Since then, she built up a wall around it.
He arches an eye ridge at such an odd response. Frieza opens his mouth to inquire further.
"I'm going to get dinner started." She said, before he could talk.
Then Eve got up from her seat and left the spare bedroom. Crimson orbs trailed her the entire way to the room's exit. This young woman certainly had him more curious with her aloof and closed off behavior. Was it because she really didn't trust him? Or is it something else altogether? He pondered on what it is she may be hiding.
The tyrant figures he will eventually get her to talk. Most believed his way of getting info out of others was by means of violence and torture. But that wasn't really the case. Yes, sometimes he'd used that tactic, but he had an arsenal full of different tactics he'd use too. And each one was no less fun or affective. Now, Frieza just needs to find the right one to use on the stubborn young woman.
He eventually grew bored waiting for her to finish making dinner, and grabbed the remote off of the nightstand and switched on the t.v. It certainly was a painfully easy contraption to learn how to use. Eve showed him how during his first full day here. Frieza still much preferred reading and perhaps, she will be open to teaching him how to read her language. Then he can read some of the books he saw in the tall bookcase in the living room. There was even a smaller bookcase in the bedroom he was currently occupying.
But for now; this t.v. will have to do. Something tells him though; this will be harder than he thinks.
While at the same time, as Eve sits in the living room watching t.v. waiting for the timer on the oven go off, she can't help but feel the same thing.
'This is definitely turning out to be harder than I thought.'
Until Next Time ;)