Pssshhhh!
"You should be more careful, are you listening to me?" He asks.
"Relax.. its just blood. It's not that I'll die just because of it." She replies and she suddenly remembered his little sister.
Aurora's face turns sad when she remember Athena.
"What's wrong? Why did you silent?" Ralph wipe her finger with a towel and plastered it with the band-aid.
"Urm...You know..there is a people who die just because of the cut."
"I know.. that is why you need to be more careful. You're a woman after all." he pats her head gently and went to the kitchen counter.
"My sister..she..she'll die just because of the cut.." she starts to sniffle.
Ralph stop his movement. He scrunches his eyebrow and turns his body to her.
"Is…is your sister had a problem with her blood? A disease?"
Aurora shakes her head. "No.." she wipes her corner of eyes and continues "Its curse."
"Huh?" he startles a moment.
"Sorry..but I can't tell you what is her disease."
"Hmm...I get it..but, I tell you what. There is an ancient journal about one flower that can cure any kind of disease or anything related to blood problem. I used to watch the process too and the result…is amazing."
"Really?" Aurora stands beside him and continues to cook again.
"Yeah...I used to had a group of scientist escorting me to find those flower."
"Mhm?"
"But the flower can't be planted outside from that mountain. It's like the flower only grows in that mountain. So we take the extract from the flower and run some test."
"What is the subject? I mean, are they really sick or they had a special condition?"
"We have a various patient. All result that related blood cured by the extract. However, only a special case need a requirement to mixed the extract with other 'thing'" he staring the tabletop blankly. Like he was thinking of something.
"My sister..had a very special case. I don't think she can be cure by the extract only."
"Wait. Let me guest..base on your word earlier, you said that your sister will die because of the cut. And you also said that your sister is in a very rare condition right?"
Aurora nod.
"Hmm.." Ralph rub his chin and scrunching his eyebrow.
"The blood color is golden?"
Aurora startles a moment. He wants to nod, but she was afraid. What if Ralph is a bad person who wants Athena's blood too?
"That's okay. You don't have to nod. I can read your expression. And..be assured, that I had no interest to have her blood." he calms her down.
"I can guess it right because I met and treat a few of them. You must be thinking that she is the only one, right?" Ralph pursed his lips. His eyes look sad somehow.
"How..how.." she diverts her eyes to him.
"As I said, I used to had a group of scientist and we do some research years ago. That matters is actually is still in the study. But one of my senior went crazy and had a bad intention to all the subject. He's been expelled by the group and I rearrange the subjects whereabout into a few new locations. They can't be found by an outsider. Only me who know where they are. And only a few of us who left still studying on how to properly cure them. For now, we only prolong their life and upgraded them so that they can survive and live without an expiry date. I thought I gather all of them, I never thought there is another one." He said in a regret tone.
"Are..are you perhaps the one who create the substance?"
"Huh?" Ralph was dumbfounded a moment.
"No no..its not me... It happen when I was a student, I went sailing with my family. And that's when I happen to found a lot of children and teenager's body floating on the water surface. Most of them are dead, but a few of them barely alive at that time. We help them and when they were on board, we knew they have been subjecting with a weird experiment."
"You…"
"I was still in my first years of a university student. So we bring them to our lab. Doing some test to help them. I found that they have been injected with the incomplete substance, thus the result is always changing and each of them had their own condition. However, they still manage to stay alive without an expiry date."
"Why are you telling me this? I mean, maybe my sister is not in the same condition as your patient."
"Maybe...I just feel like I want to tell you...I know how it feels to have the one we love to suffer this kind of thing. That's it. My loved one is also one of the patients. Its hurt me every time I had to inject her to make sure that she can prolong her life."
"Your lover is one of the patients?" Aurora ask.
"Yup..but in order to protect her, I can't see her often. Like I said, only me who know where I hid them."
"So, you're saying that you can to help my sister by prolonging her life?"
"I need to check your sister condition first..every subject is different. They had a weird mutation. I can't just give your sister the dose that is not suitable for her." he stops for a moment.
"But, more importantly..if you want to save her, we must go and take that flower extract again. That mountain is so dangerous."
"Hmm…I don't know Ralph..this matter...I need to get my family approval first. My sister is our family's soul. We can't just let her go with a person we don't know. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to.."
"That's okay. If you want I can go and meet your family. Its an honor to meet the legendary Lee." he smiles and pats her hair.
"I'll let my family know later. So, about your lover..why didn't I know about her?"
He chuckles and took out his phone. Open the photo of one girl, he shows Aurora.
"This is Renee."
Took the phone, she looks at the picture. It was a girl with long brown hair. She had tanned skin and she looks beautiful.
"She looks normal to me, not like a sick person."
"She is..she lost her memory when I found her. Ermm…more like she doesn't remember anything at all."
"She lucky to have you.." Aurora smile and return back the phone to him.
Looking at the dish which is already done, she serves the dinner on the table along with Ralph.
"What is this?" he looks at the dish.
"Hmm...I don't know..my chef said the menu called Chicken Rice."
"Oh..I think I've tasted this before.."
"You're a prince. Of course, you have tasted it. However, don't expect much from my cooking. I'm bad at the cook."
"A-ha...I knew it. Just by looking at your chopping skill."
"Hah..you too... you don't even know how to chop at all."
"Hmm...Well, let's eat."
"Yup..let's eat."
….…
Arendell,
Aslan loosens his tie a bit when he gets inside the car. He was so stressed and busy to save his company. The problem keeps coming one by one. All because of the media which is likes to manipulate every single thing.
When he reaches homes, he was startled seeing his teacher Jye Jang inside his house with Jye Yin and Athena was there too.
He went to greet his teacher, Mr. Jye Jang which is Jye Yin father.
"Teacher Jye.."
Pap!
He slaps Aslan on the face, making him bit his lower lips.
Athena also flinches a bit. She hurriedly went to Aslan and look at him.
"Dad!" Jye Yin cried out and she also wants to approach him.
Immediately Athena shot her a glare.
"Teacher Jye. Everything can be discussed. Please have a sit first and we talk about this matter together." Aslan said. He wraps his hand around Athena's shoulder. He wants to ensured Athena that he is okay.
"How dare you!! this result has shown that the child is yours! How are you gonna responsible for this?!" he throws the paper on Aslan and Athena's face.