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"Hello," Lin Ling started with a polite smile. He bowed and then more enthusiastically said, "I'm Lin Ling! It's nice to meet you."
The women at the front desk looked at each other and then at him, somewhat blankly.
After an awkward pause, he gestured to his name badge, which read: Mighty Glory, P.A. and identified him as a personal assistant.
One rose her eyebrow at him and asked, "Who's assistant are you?"
"Well, today's my first day as E-Soul's new assistant. I was supposed to meet Mr. Rock's—"
"Oh you poor thing," the woman on the left said immediately.
"Good luck," the woman on the right added, sounding genuinely sympathetic. "Go right on up, Mr. Rock's assistant will walk you through everything."
He looked between them and blinked, eyebrows knitted with concern. "Um, thank you."
Lin Ling got in the elevator and valiantly tried to restrain himself from chewing on his lower lip. What in the world was that about? He wasn't nervous at all to meet E-Soul—in fact, he was excited—but suddenly a sense of unease shot through him. He'd thought it was a blessing that he'd been offered the job in the first place, after all, what was more incredible than getting to work with the ninth strongest hero in the world? He'd worked hard and learned many new skills during his career as a professional personal assistant—even going as far as getting his driver's license—but now, he was unsure that he was qualified. He had the growing fear that he'd been too hasty to agree to take this job. Was he lacking? What did they know that he didn't? He thought he'd been so lucky to get the job offer before even meeting E-Soul in person, which was strange to begin with, but now he was second-guessing everything about his new position. He thought his experience and skills had just been that good, or that someone high up had recommended him, but what if it had all been a mistake?
"Oh, hi! You must be Lin Ling! The girls let me know you'd arrived," a short woman said, startling him. He'd been so lost in thought that the elevator doors had already opened on to a new floor. The woman introduced herself and began giving him a tour. She showed him around Mighty Glory's main offices, and the special training room—which was apparently where E-Soul spent most of his time when he was in the building. She gave him an access card and a tablet with all sorts of contact info. I can handle this, he kept reminding himself. He'd dealt with much more complicated things, and much less helpful clients who'd expected him to just figure it all out on his own. He was thankful she was walking him around and answering all of his questions.
He was starting to feel pretty positive about everything until they entered the electronics lab. That was where all of E-Soul's custom tech was created. A group of scientists near the door waved.
A young man laughed, "Oh! A new one already!"
Lin Ling blinked and waved back, confused.
The woman giving him the tour threw her hands up in exasperation, "Behave! His name is Lin Ling."
A few of the scientists snickered and one of them mumbled, "Well, I guess I lost the bet. The last one didn't even make it two months."
It wasn't until they were walking out of the Mighty Glory skyscraper and into the bright light of the afternoon that he had decided he couldn't keep from asking questions any longer.
"Excuse me, ma'am? What did that guy mean by, 'a new one already,'" Lin Ling inquired, looking down at the woman. She led him to a luxurious car, and they both got in.
"Oh, well," she took a deep breath, as if to steady herself. "E-Soul can sometimes be...difficult."
"What do you mean?"
She made a smacking sound with her lips before answering. "He isn't very chatty. And by that, I mean he doesn't talk, ever, so there's a lot of guesswork involved. And sometimes, you have to make him do things. Like wake him up, remind him to eat..." she trailed off.
The car was taking them to Hero Tower, where he was going to meet E-Soul. His pure exhilaration at the idea of finally getting to go inside the tower was stamped down by an ever-growing feeling of dread.
"Oh," he responded before nodding, not knowing what else to say. That wasn't what he'd expected. What did she mean? He just didn't speak at all?
"Essentially you're less of an assistant and more of a babysitter. No one told you that?"
"No," Lin Ling said, resisting the urge to grimace. "Why doesn't he speak?"
"I don't know, he just doesn't. Been like that since I started, and he has a temper. He's also very heavy so if you can't get him out of bed, just call me and I'll send someone."
He gawked incredulously. She was kidding right?
Lin Ling looked into her eyes and realized she was dead serious.
"That's...thank you for warning me." Babysit? Why did she use that phrase, exactly?
This was the highest paying job he'd ever had, and he had turned down three other offers to take it. He couldn't just turn back now. He decided right then and there that he wasn't going to let this ruin his mood or his work ethic. He was going to handle it like he'd tackled every job before it—with a fiery sense of dedication and positivity.
He steeled himself and kept repeating things like, "It won't be that bad," over and over again in his head.
It'll all be fine, he thought as the vehicle drove along the bridge to the tower's base.
In no time they'd gone up the elevator and stepped onto the ninth floor of Hero Tower. Butterflies fluttered in his stomach as he looked around. The view was incredible. He felt like he was the hero. It was amazing. He could see the entire city from up there. The place felt more like a palace than an apartment. Who cared if E-Soul didn't talk, why would anyone quit a job with a view like this?
"Lin Ling?"
"Coming!"
He followed her to an area with some workout equipment. E-Soul was lying on his back on a bench and lifting the heaviest bar Lin Ling had ever seen. It was loaded with so many weights that it was bowing in the middle, but E-Soul was lifting it without even grunting.
He's so cool.
"E-Soul, this is Lin Ling, your new personal assistant."
E-Soul didn't look up or acknowledge the woman at all.
"It's nice to meet you! I'm happy to be here! It's an honor to work for you, sir," he said, bowing deeply to E-Soul. "Thank you for all you've done to help our city. I look forward to assisting you."
E-Soul put the bar back on its rest and sat up to face him. The larger man was shirtless and only wearing his helmet and a pair of black jeans. Scars decorated his whole body, and Lin Ling could see messy black hair escaping from beneath the back of his helmet.
"So, most of his food is given to him in the form of smoothies since he refuses to remove his helmet. They're in the fridge over there. The top shelf is for breakfast, middle shelf for lunch, and the bottom shelf is for dinner. The mini-fridge has his protein shakes and vita-boosters. It'll be your job to bring his meals to him when he needs, answer calls for him, convey our messages, and help get him ready for public events, things like that. Mr. Rock doesn't have enough time to help him much anymore now that he's CEO."
The woman kept talking about all of Lin Ling's responsibilities as if E-Soul wasn't present. E-Soul sat on the bench with his feet planted on the floor and head hung low, and there was something about the way that the older man inclined his helmet and gripped his own knees that made Lin Ling feel like E-Soul was uncomfortable, or maybe that he didn't like Mr. Rock's assistant very much.
Lin Ling kept nodding his head at her words, but felt guilty because she kept gesturing to E-Soul like he was an inanimate object instead of a human being.
When she was done speaking and answering the few questions he dared to ask, she handed him a briefcase full of things he'd need and then promptly clicked away on her high heels.
To Lin Ling, the metallic sliding noise of the elevator doors closing sounded loud in the large room, like the banging of a foreboding gong.
They were alone, in pure silence. The only thing Lin Ling could hear at all was E-Soul's occasional gruff breathing. He wasn't heaving from working out, it seemed like his throat just sounded that way. Lin Ling wondered if it hurt to talk or if he was just shy or something.
"So, um, are you hungry?"
E-Soul didn't turn his head or move in the slightest.
"I can get you some water, Mr. E-Soul," Lin Ling offered.
The man didn't move at all until he suddenly stood up and walked away, which startled Lin Ling due to the sheer lack of warning.
Lin Ling watched as the man went over to one of the large floor-to-ceiling window panels and stood in front of it, his arms at his sides. He was clearly looking out at the city. Lin Ling walked hastily to stand beside him, wondering what E-Soul was thinking about. He marveled at the view for a minute too before looking up at the strong, imposing hero. He's so cool, Lin Ling mused again.
"Do you want me to leave you alone?" Lin Ling asked with a hint of trepidation.
E-Soul turned his helmet and tilted it down to him. Lin Ling stared at the reflection of himself in the metal, wondering if they were looking into each other's eyes. Did the big man hate him already?
Lin Ling offered him what he hoped was a kind and placating smile. E-Soul turned and walked away from both Lin Ling and the window after a moment, not giving him any sort of meaningful answer to his question.
Oh boy. This really wasn't going to be easy, was it?
And it certainly wasn't. It took about three full months for Lin Ling to adapt to E-Soul's schedule and even start to learn how to deal with the other man's total lack of verbal communication. It truly was difficult because E-Soul was outrageously frustrating, stubborn, and mostly unresponsive, but like the few times he'd babysat his friend's kid, he began to understand the man's "tells." Like how he got particularly grumpy around dinnertime, which was obvious by E-Soul's body language and the way he seemed to literally growl at people. It sounded like a mixture between clearing his throat and grunting. Lin Ling had realized quickly that that was E-Soul's way of telling people to "buzz off" as it were. He growled and grunted at the scientists when they bugged him too much, and also at the tailors who came by one day to fit him for new suits. E-Soul also got rather "snippy" if Lin Ling ever accidentally let him miss a meal. But it was so strange how the man never did much for himself. He let other people push him around and dictate his activities. He seemed habitually tense no matter what time of day it was, and Lin Ling couldn't ever be sure when he left in the evening if E-Soul really slept while he was gone.
Lin Ling also thought that there was something about E-Soul's general day-to-day demeanor that just seemed sad. It was a rather upsetting revelation for Lin Ling, who worried and wondered why no one else seemed to care or notice.
E-Soul spent most of his time working out and punching things. Even though the big man had never growled at Lin Ling personally, he'd given him some jerky body-language here and there that heavily implied, "Give me my space," in which the younger man obliged.
He'd also discovered that E-Soul disliked being in public unless it was to help people. He was rather stoic and reclusive unless it involved fighting bad guys. It was the experience of witnessing E-Soul fight a villain first-hand that first week on the job that made Lin Ling feel like whatever stubborn behavior E-Soul threw at him would be well worth the trouble. The one-way silence wasn't actually off-putting, and unfortunately or fortunately for E-Soul, Lin Ling was a chatterbox. He talked about his day, his favorite shows, the weather, and anything in-between when they were together. E-Soul's lack of words didn't bother him, and he didn't take it personally. It was hard to figure out what he wanted sometimes, but it wasn't impossible. The challenge of helping E-Soul when E-Soul refused to help himself was almost fun. It was like a game trying to figure out what E-Soul's actions and body language meant.
Lin Ling liked that E-Soul was also a great listener. At least, Lin Ling thought so. The slight incline of the man's helmet when he was around made Lin Ling think he wasn't being completely ignored. And since he'd never grunt-growled at him, maybe he didn't mind the conversation? Other people certainly seemed glad Lin Ling was around, because he was successful at being a translator of sorts and a general liaison to those around E-Soul.
A lot of the Mighty Glory employees he met rubbed Lin Ling the wrong way, however. They always spoke about E-Soul like he was a toddler whether he was there physically or not. Didn't they know how many people he'd saved? How strong he was? How hard he worked? E-Soul had trained harder in the months he'd known him than Lin Ling had in his entire life.
One day when the scientists were fitting E-Soul for new armor, one of them said, "How does he just keep getting bigger?" Another scientist laughed and added, "It's certainly not for the ladies. Dude's probably never had a date in his life. He'd probably be a basement dweller if he wasn't a hero." That got a huge round of chuckles from the other staff. That was about the tenth time Lin Ling had heard the scientists talk about E-Soul like that within the past few weeks.
E-Soul didn't respond or react in any fashion, he simply kept his arm out for them.
Lin Ling stared at them in shock. How could they just do that? His face burned in irritation and he couldn't take it anymore. He snapped. "Hey!" he yelled as he stood up. "How dare you talk about him like that! He's right here!" He pointed at the one who'd made the nasty comments. "Show some respect! What's wrong with you!"
The scientists got quiet, but didn't apologize. Instead, they got back to work dutifully and avoided speaking much about anything that wasn't technical. He was so angry. His eyebrows furrowed deeply and he put his hands on his own hips as they worked.
"Apologize, to him," Lin Ling said.
One of the scientists looked at Lin Ling.
"I'm serious. Apologize to him, that was uncalled for. Everytime we come to the lab you disrespect him." Lin Ling was so offended. He thought that scientists were supposed to be nice. He opened his mouth to speak again, but then felt a big hand on his shoulder.
He looked and saw E-Soul's scarred fingers out of the corner of his eye. He turned his body to fully face him, and the man dropped his hand.
"If they aren't man enough to do it then I will," Lin Ling said. One of the scientists made a groan behind him that heavily implied that he'd rolled his eyes, because they never seemed to treat Lin Ling with much seriousness either since he was their junior. "I'm sorry, E-Soul, that these people weren't raised right and that they clearly didn't get enough attention from their parents."
The scientists instantly began grumbling with offended mutters because that was extremely disrespectful for someone of Lin Ling's status to say, and it all went down hill when Lin Ling frowned before turning to them and firmly giving them his pinky finger. That immediately made them start loudly insulting and chastising Lin Ling about his manners.
They were all startled by a loud snort noise. It had come from E-Soul himself. The staff and Lin Ling all looked at E-Soul owlishly as the hero snort-huffed again. Then, what sounded like a genuine single gravelly laugh escaped the big man. They were all too stunned to speak.
Lin Ling grinned and started chuckling, overcome with joy at the fact he'd just made E-Soul laugh. He wondered how long it had been since E-Soul had done so. He blatantly ignored the lab crew, shoving down the intense urge to continue yelling at them or worse.
"Hey I have an idea," Lin Ling said as he ran behind E-Soul. He put both of his hands on the man's back and pushed him—disregarding that it was like pushing a brick wall. "Let's eat some ramen or something! You hungry? I'm not gonna stand here and let us be insulted for another second! You can—ergh, you're so dense—drink the broth or something!"
Surprisingly, E-Soul relented and walked forward toward the elevator calmly as Lin Ling struggled and uselessly attempted to push him to make him go faster.
Once they were alone, Lin Ling scoffed and crossed his arms, mumbling, "Jerks. I meant it though. I'll have some ramen delivered. All I've seen you eat is smoothies and shakes. Aren't you tired of eating the same stuff?"
There was no response, as usual.
"I'm sure you are. Let's get you home and showered. I swear the way those guys talk about you like you're not even there has been driving me insane for weeks. I seriously want to punch them!"
Soon they made the brief car-trip home and went back to the ninth floor of Hero Tower. Lin Ling had had ramen delivered to the lobby, and by the time he'd gotten it and brought it upstairs, E-Soul was fresh out of the shower and seated in his favorite chair.
There was a ratty, red, retro-looking chair that had certainly seen better days that E-Soul always seemed to like to sit in. Lin Ling wondered why he preferred to sit in a lumpy chair like that when the world's comfiest couch was only a few feet away.
"Here you go," Lin Ling said after opening the lidded bowl of ramen broth and sticking a straw in it.
E-Soul took it with visual eagerness and slurped up the soup so quickly he wondered if he was going to choke on it. In moments the bowl was empty, and the big man leaned back, shoulders sagging a little. His whole body seemed to relax, and Lin Ling heard him sigh.
"Thanks," E-Soul grunted.
"You're welcome!" Lin Ling said automatically.
A beat passed before his eyes widened, and he did a triple take.