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“You’re good?”
“I’m fine”, he said, and that right there, was a big fat lie.
Fulgur Ovid might not be a Legatus, but that didn't change the fact that he got time-traveled to the past. It also didn't change the fact that he happened to find his home there, only for the nosy government to track down his NDA and codes then perform some advanced science, which would bore you to sleep should it be elaborated, to bring him back to the future as a part of the time travel experiment.
…To this place where his body and the technology attached to him belonged, but not his heart
Mr. Ovid never confided about his thoughts or his feelings. He's someone who takes things as it comes by and makes 'I'm fine' an overstatement. It was just so blatantly clear how he felt about being back here.
If he really was fine, then why bother coming after a quantum space scientist like me with a gun to my head? This happened one week ago. I only knew that he somehow ditched all those government guard dogs and rushed to the first person whose name was suggested in the time-traveling project from back then before it was confiscated by the government.
I got the feeling that Fulgur Ovid was not a murder hobo, though he certainly know how to project himself as one. My gut told me that he won't actually kill me should I refuse to help him, but when I looked into his grey eyes, I couldn't find it in myself to outright turn him down or report him.
Let's just say, I know a lost person when I see one.
So despite not quite understanding myself, and to somehow pay those who confiscated my project back a little, I decided to help him.
During the one-week preparation, We didn't talk much. Our relationship was just a brooding Cyborg who's desperate to time-travel again and a sleep deprived scientist who was trying damndest to make the portal work.
We didn't talk much, but when we did, I always got to learn snippets of the people he's trying to get back to. He never said something important or expressed his feelings, it took these little things which kept coming up that allowed me to have a glimpse of his thoughts.
Little things like how he casually asked for this 'Uki' to sing something while doing his share of work, only to realize a second later where he was. Or How he saw a headphone advertisement and mentioned that 'Yugo' might take a liking to it. Or how he made a comment that 'Sonny' wouldn't mind checking out my secret drawer full with mini standees from various anime that I accidently let him see. Or how it was quite clear that he's not used to saying something that could be a joke material and not immediately get some thrown into his face by this 'Alban'.
He often stared into nothing and occasionally scribbled on his notebook near my work station. Only God and maybe some server that he's browsing knew where his mind wandered.
'You… doing okay?', I would ask
'I'm fine' would always be his answer.
We didn't talk much, and when we did, all I got was a lie and some fragments of stories from another life. They were nice.
After a week of planning and preparing the necessary equipment, hack code for the security system and the time travel machine, etc. We were finally back to the time travel portal building and ready to break in. I finally asked him the important questions.
“You do realize that your physical condition requires special maintenance that the technology of the past could not provide, right?”
“Of course I do,” he answered, an annoyed look flashed through his eyes.
“Then why do you want to go back? Are you—”
“How about defenestrate the idea that I’m suicidal first, then we’ll talk”
“Now, that’s not nice, Mr. Ovid”
Fulgur shrugged, knowing that I was not really offended.
"What about you? Why did you help me?"
"You ask this now? Really?"
"I know it's not only because I negotiated while not unarmed"
We were both silent for a while, I finally spoke up.
"Well, just take it as I don't mind helping you fucking people up and being your confidant"
Fulgur went still, then a smug grin broke out on his face, like he knew some inside joke I did not.
"What's so funny?"
"Nothing, just… I wouldn't mind if you get a membaasheep"
"...a what???"
He never answered as we broke in together. We successfully reached the portal and I watched him stepped inside and disappeared from my sight. Nothing could tell whether he reached the other side safely or not, still, I had a feeling that he definitely did :)