"Lia's Resolve"

The man was confused at her question, but since a lot of customers have been asking about his daughter, he just answered her, "Yes, and she's about to graduate," the man said, feeling proud of her daughter. "She's taking up Zoology at Sambridge University."

Hearing this, Lia was happy, because it means that Aesop's sister is in a good condition, even after her heart transplant. After all, it was the reason why they gave Aesop to D.M. Cadre. But at the same time, she felt heartbroken for Aesop's condition. Why did he have to experience being fed by rotten meat? He doesn't deserve it. She wanted to tell his parents that Aesop isn't well in the research facility, physically and mentally. But if she did that, who knows where D.M. Cadre might bring her? She's needed by her brothers and her father who's lying in the hospital bed. Now that she knew what the scientists were capable of, she had to be careful in her actions.

"That's nice," Lia answered, and she didn't know how to leave the topic.

"If there are no other orders then, excuse me," Aesop's father smiled, before going to the cashier's table.

Lia took a deep breath.

"You okay, Lia?" Sanno asked, noticing her troubled look.

She was about to say something but realized that Leo was with them. She wouldn't want Leo to worry about her. He's her childhood friend; he had no other close friends besides her, that's why she understood how dear she was to him. Knowing him, he will surely scold her and make her quit her work.

But Aesop had grown on her, and he became someone who she wanted to help. Her resolve to help and take care of Aesop became stronger.

"I'll just go to the bathroom," Leo said, and the two nodded.

When he was out of sight, Lia said, "Sanno, have you ever thought about...getting your mutant out of there?"

Sanno was surprised to hear this from her. Yes, she's bothered by her mutant's condition, but he never thought that she would ask him this question. "No, I never thought about it…"

"Ugh, I knew it," Lia said, disappointed. "I wanted to get him out of there. But who am I? I'm just a caretaker, and I didn't finish college. Even if you help me, we couldn't stand a chance against those freaks. Besides, you didn't finish college, too. "

A sudden feeling of guilt surged through him. He wanted to tell her, "I graduated from Makylee University, Lia," but he couldn't. He wanted to tell her that his father is a doctor in Makylee Hospital, which is an accredited hospital that had records of patients' I.S. Codes. He wanted to say to her that it was his father who hid his true hospital records and edited his information, before applying to the research facility. "I'm sorry, Lia." - was all he could say in his mind.

"If only I had the influence and the power to get him out of there…" Lia uttered. It was a feeling of helplessness that took charge of her.

They traveled back to Makylee City after Lia and Sanno's hearty meal. As the sun shone brightly at the top of the skies, the cute, blue car swiftly moved forward on the highway, surrounded by green fields and rice paddies. After thirty minutes, they finally arrived at their home city. Sanno dropped Lia and Leo in the Brentvale residence.

"Thanks for everything, Sanno," Lia said as she smiled. "In the future, if you need something from me, I'd gladly help you."

"How about becoming my girlfriend?" Sanno asked, then glanced at Leo.

"What? Are you nuts?" Lia reacted, opposing the idea. "Nevermind then!"

Leo was glaring at Sanno, and this made him laugh. "It was a joke!" Then, he remembered something. "Hey, you should go inside now. Leo and I have something to talk about."

"Oh? Why am I not included?"

"It's between two highschool boys,"

"You're both old! Don't you dare dream!" Lia laughed at them, then went inside and waved goodbye before she closed the front door.

Leo was perplexed and didn't know what Sanno needed. He waited for him to open up the conversation.

"Hey, Leo. Here." Sanno gave him a plastic bag.

"What's this?" Leo asked.

"Oh, it's a gift from me. Use it," he said as he walked towards the driver's seat. "And yeah, you're welcome!" He waved his hands, closed the door, and drove off.

Leo peeked in the plastic bag. He took the item inside it. "Aren't these… face masks?" and he silently read the description, "Detachable on the mouth part."

He chuckled at Sanno's unexpected gift.

Soon after, Sanno arrived at the Angeldame residence, a mansion located in one of the exclusive subdivisions in the city. He entered the large, wooden double doors carved with a lion's face, leading to the elegant living room. A big chandelier covered with glass shards and diamonds was hanged in the middle. Sitting on the sofa was his father Dexter, who had just finished smoking his favorite cigarette.

"Sanno," Dexter called. He gestured to his son to sit across him.

"Dad, Professor Ken was looking for you," Sanno said as he sat down and placed the package on his lap. "He wanted you to come to your reunion next time. I just told him that you were busy."

"Hmm," Dexter gave him an affirmative look and lit another cigarette, which made the smell of the living room even more like grassier. "I will send him an email later. What did he give you?"

"I'll open it," Sanno removed the scotch tapes adhered to the kraft paper covering the package. He placed the top lid away and peeked inside. "Wow, it's a lot of different...stuff." said Sanno, and piece by piece, he showed these to his father.