15 ALMOST CAUGHT

Since he was a doctor, most of Eli's clothes consist of black pants and white shirts. He has other styles in his closet but he rarely used them because most of his time was spent with his patients. Wearing the usual black pants – white shirt pair, he put on his watch and his shoes before coming out of his room. To his surprise, Neon was already in the kitchen eating his breakfast.

"Did you cook?"

Before Neon could answer, a woman came into the kitchen and knocked Eli's forehead. "I cooked. How could you let the child wait for you without having anything? If it was before, sure, you can grab any unhealthy food you want. However, you chose to bring the child here and take care of him while your girlfriend is recovering so, you better take care of him properly. Forget about your unhealthy lifestyle. I brought fruits and … " His mother ranted on and on until Eli thought he has gone deaf. He was scolded early in the morning.

"Neon." The woman called and handed him a lunch box. "This isn't really something you can have for lunch but whenever you get hungry, just eat the food here. You don't have to wait for lunch. Eli will be taking care of your lunch meal later."

"Thank you, auntie."

"Oohh. You are very behaved. I can't wait for you to meet Andrei. He's a very lovely child. He's my grandson and …" Then, she went on and on once again. If it wasn't for Eli cutting his mother off because he was getting late for work, they would probably get stuck in his house with her endless chatter.

"Good morning, doc. Good morning, Neon."

"Doc, you look like a father to Belle's brother." The nurses laughed at this joke but at this moment, Eli realized that Neon's outfit was almost the same as his. The only difference was that Neon was wearing black shorts and no watch. Their hairstyle was even the same.

[It was most probably my mother's doing.] Eli thought and smiled helplessly.

"Neon, how was it living with Dr. Rivera, did you get photos of him naked?"

Ack! Eli knocked the woman's forehead and pushed her away from Neon. It was early in the morning and he came to work but the nurses and the other doctors were making fun of him. It wasn't a really a bad thing since Neon smiled at them but he can't let them talk nonsense in front of him or Belle will kill him.

"How's Belle? Did anyone of you check on her yesterday?"

"Camille visited her yesterday and assisted her during her morning and afternoon walk," said one of the nurses but her eyes were still Neon and Eli knew that he would become their food for gossip along with Neon and Belle.

Leaving the nurses and other doctors alone, Eli brought Neon to his office and let him read the picture books found in the mini library of his office. "The patients will start coming any moment from now so stay here and play for a while. I will ask someone to check on your sister and if she's awake, I'll bring you to her."

"Thank you, Eli."

At 10:00 in the morning, Belle woke up and sat on her bed. She removed the quilt from her body and checked the wound on her legs. For someone who took care of her skin since she was young, seeing the long and deep cut on her leg irritated her a little. Plus, she got small cuts all over her body and she didn't know if they would even heal properly without leaving any scars.

[I got scars all over my body; big and small, from different weapons that you can think of. I was not ashamed of them. I felt victorious because it was proof of my achievement. Anyway, don't worry about that. I heard that there is a huge derma clinic in D City. You can have your scars erased.]

"Girl, I am not rich like you."

[My money is your money. I don't really understand how the timeline works and why my banks exist in this world when my previous life did not even exist. The Raptors did not exist.]

"We'll investigate that. Those people whose identities you were using must be existing for real in this world."

[You know what, I never believed in reincarnation or soul transmigration. They're all imaginative for me. Now, that this happens to me, I just want to talk to those writers who wrote books like my situation. Maybe they'll have an idea of what is really happening.]

"What's there to ask about? You are here in my body. Period."

[But in those books I read, the previous owners of the bodies that the souls took have died. They died for some reason and a new soul came to take over their shell.]

"So, you want to know how it is possible for you to come into my body when I am still alive?"

[Bingo! Aren't you wondering about that, too?]

"No. All my life, I read books about science, medicine, and technology. I have no idea about reincarnations and whatnot. I have heard about them but I never wasted my time on them."

[You're boring.]

"Yeah? Unlike your life which is full of thrill and deception, and killing and hatred."

[I never wanted to live my life that way.]

"I know. Enough of this depressing topic. We just woke up and we're talking about this already."

[Do you want to do something else?]

"I have no plan but I could not get the idea of our souls being in one body. If what you said is the real theory about transmigrations and such; we need to talk to someone."

[And who do you have in mind?]

"A monk."

"Who are you talking to?" Eli inquired upon opening the door to Belle's room. He looked around but he could not find anyone there. "I heard you talking about souls and a monk."

"Good morning, Belle." Neon greeted and ran to his sister's side, ignoring the fact that Eli's inquiry wasn't answered yet. "Belle, I got something for you." He put down his bag on the bed, opened it, and took out a small lunch box. "Auntie gave this to me. I want to share them with you. I got apples, cookies, and milk."

This small act of kindness stunned Eli the most. He thought that Neon didn't eat his snacks because he wasn't hungry. In truth, he just wanted to eat them with his sister.

"Wow! That's very healthy. Did you say thank you?" Belle expressed and gave her brother little kisses on his face.

"Yes, I did. Auntie is very good to me."

Neon told his sister about the clothes, toys, and other things that Andrei gave him. He shared what he learned from Eli which caused the man to smile awkwardly. He did not expect that Neon would tell his sister about almost all the things he knew. Well, he didn't really ask him to keep it a secret. There wasn't anything embarrassing about it, too. So he just let him be.

"Belle, I have a question for you?"

"Hm? What is it?"

Neon looked at Eli before leaning closer to his sister and whispered. For whatever reason, Eli felt guilty and worried that Neon would say something bad about him. He didn't want the woman to have a bad impression of him.

"So, what is it?" Neon questioned and excitement was apparent on his cute face. "You have to be honest with me."

"I feel left out," Eli mumbled followed by deep-throaty chuckles.

"Well, who is this auntie that Neon is talking about?"

"It's my mom."

"Mom?!" Belle exclaimed in disbelief. "Your mom?! As in your mother? You let her see Neon? How else are we going to clarify our - well, you know what I mean."

"I didn't know she would come. She didn't tell me. When I got there to make breakfast for Neon and me, my mother was already there." Eli talked slowly and he sounded stressed from the same issue.

[You're doomed.] Ceres teased cheerfully without realizing that she was also in the same body as Belle.

"It's fine," Belle said and closed her eyes in annoyance. "As soon as I get to leave this place, I will find a new home for me and Neon."

"Don't forget to review. I'll be giving you another exam."

"Ah?" Belle's face mellowed immediately and grinned at Eli which brought goosebumps to his skin. "What's my prize for passing?"

"Think about the prize once you pass. The last time was just a trial since it was the first exam. This time, I won't let you off the hook if you fail."

"I already have something in mind. If I pass the test, you have to bring me to the nearest temple. Don't worry, I'll pay you for the gas and food."

"Sure."

[We are really going to find a monk?! Seriously?!]

"Got to check the bank first," Belle said which didn't seem out of place for a response even though she meant it for Ceres.

[Gotcha! I'm almost done with the preparation. My money is within our reach.]