Chapter 211
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The moment Alec's eyes locked onto the girl's form, he instantly felt like all the oxygen had been stolen right from his lungs.
Whenever he heard of Chers speak about how it felt whenever they met The One, it felt like a distant dream, or some sort of fabled myth that he would never be able to touch.
Love at first sight? That was a myth, even amongst the Systems. However, this world indeed had their version of one's fated partner.
Supposedly, it was like a part of your soul calling out for your soulmate – or so it was theorised – and it was a sentiment that many Chers liked to believe in.
Many books spoke about how Chers were mainly romantic, but Alec called bullshit. He was in no way romantic. At least, that's what he thought.
If you'd ever seen a Cher meet The One in front of your very eyes, you'd never be able to forget it for the rest of your life. It was an indescribable sort of yearning that had been born from the depths of their souls.
It was like their entire worldview had instantly focused onto a single person, and the devotion that sprung into their eyes was not something that was easy to ignore.
Alec just thought that sounded terrifying. Having your soulmate decided by your biology and Societype. There was no freedom in that.
Yet, even when Alec thought back to those words that had been spoken so reverentially, what he'd heard paled in comparison to what he was feeling right now.
It was like taking a sucker punch to the stomach, having your heart stop and feeling your body freeze all at once.
Distantly, Alec wondered to himself how he'd ever lived without this feeling in the first place, even as another part of him screamed at him to run – run as far away as he could.
Like the dragon Haphira, the girl had the same beautiful silvery-white shade of hair, but unlike the dragon, her hair was cut into a cute bob, and her fringe curled cutely over her forehead.
Like her father, she carried eyes of spun gold, but Alec thought to himself that her eyes were so much more beautiful than Haphira's.
While others might not have agreed with Alec saying that she was lovelier than Haphira, who looked so good he was practically unreal, to Alec, she was the loveliest creature that had ever existed on the planet.
She was everything and more.
So, this was love at first sight that the Chers talked about, huh?
His usually still heart skipping a beat in his chest, then thundering so hard he could hear the blood rushing in his ears, the System was feeling very overwhelmed right now.
While most Chers had their entire lives to get used to the fact that one day, they would meet The One, Alec had literally just been shoved into that situation without any preparation whatsoever, no thanks to his friend, Ye Sha.
Yet. Yet, he could not bring himself to regret it.
"Elysia, this is Alec. Alec, my daughter, Elysia," Haphira introduced, seemingly not noticing anything out of place in Alec's reaction.
Alec was panicking inside, but outside, he was the epitome of calmness and gentleness.
"Hewo," Elysia accidentally bit her tongue as she panicked over seeing another human for the first time in years. Her face flushed a fetching shade of pink in embarrassment. "Hello, Alec," she tried again.
Alec felt like he was going to explode.
How was she so cute?!
Holy. Shit. Alec was going to die young, and it was all Ye Sha's fault for putting him in this situation without any warning.
No, actually, it was the damn Mainframe's fault for putting him on this planet in the first place!
How was it that her voice was this lovely, akin to a soft, gentle chime of a bell in the breeze?
Ye Sha made a disgusted noise at the back of his throat, dragging Alec into his mindscape. He couldn't watch this tragedy any longer.
Alec was blowing it with The One!
Obviously, she wasn't a Cher either, if she wasn't staring at Alec with starstruck eyes like this moron was using to stare at her.
He could not, in good conscience, watch this train wreck without doing anything.
Though, it was kind of hilarious how out of character Alec was acting. Usually, Alec would just have nodded coolly even as he flashed his smile, reacting with perfect decorum, yet Alec had already been silent for a beat.
"Hey," Ye Sha snapped, when he realized that Alec was still staring blankly into space. "Hey." Ye Sha snapped his fingers in front of Alec's face. The idiot was completely lost now.
Alec looked at him with dreamy eyes, sending a chill down Ye Sha's spine. Alec was acting like he'd been hit with a drug. Well, a drug called love, that was.
"Snap out of it, Princess!"
The familiar nickname indeed drew a bit of ire from his friend, but it was muted, as if hidden under the haze of what he was feeling right now.
Ye Sha hadn't expected for the other to react so strongly to Elysia's presence.
Then again, his friend never did things by the halves, with how he was always putting his maximum effort into things.
"What?" Alec tried to say with his usual heat, but it was missing its distinct annoyance and anger. Instead, he just sounded like a lovestruck fool.
Ye Sha groaned. "I said, snap out of it!" he cried, headbutting the other in the face.
Both Systems hissed, grabbing their foreheads.
"What the fuck, Ye Sha!" Alec glowered.
"Finally! You're acting like a lovestruck idiot!"
A complicated mix of emotions swirled around Alec, and his earlier worries seemed to distant and small in the face of Elysia's loveliness. How could he have doubted that he would ever find love, if love was this beautiful?
Love at first sight… what a terrifying thing.
He never believed such a thing existed, but it seemed like it was hardwired into a Cher's biology.
It wasn't to say that he was completely comfortable with it, but he felt like he could let go of his reservations if it was Elysia.
Wait, no.
Alec slapped himself. That was the hormones talking, wasn't it?!
Ye Sha poured cold water over his friend. "You're a Cher. But Elysia isn't. So, if you want to win her heart, then you better get to know her instead of acting like this!"
Alec really did snap out of it this time, and he compartmentalized the softer side of his emotions after a struggle, allowing him to go back to his normally rational self.
Ye Sha didn't feel great doing it. Alec had obviously started to hide a part of himself behind a wall again, but in the long run, this would hopefully lead to the other's happiness.
Alec took a breath. Right. Elysia looked like she was his physical age, which was sixteen. He would *not* be touching her. Even if she wanted him to. For like… ten years, at least.
Gah, he was getting ahead of himself!
Ye Sha was right, pained as he was to admit it. He was already acting like a lovestruck idiot when he'd barely just met her, but how could he not?
With her biting her tongue in her nervousness, and the way she beamed at him with those clear, shining eyes.
Alec felt everything she did like cupid shooting an arrow straight to his heart.
He breathed in and breathed out.
He started locking the emotions behind a wall, where he felt it, but didn't show it.
Honestly, he didn't think he could survive if he didn't do this right now.
Fine.
This was fine.
He could do this.
He wore a mask every day.
He was a 'gentle' type character, right?
Wait. Wait, wait, wait, did this mean that Elysia's type was the 'gentle' type??
Suddenly, all the decisions he made in his life was thrown into confusion.
Ye Sha smacked him on the head again. "Stop overthinking it! I'm here to be your sounding board, so just be yourself!"
"But what if she hates my 'self'?!" Alec blurted, sounding like a teenager in love. Despite his age, he was completely uninformed in any act of love whatsoever.
"No 'buts'! Get out there!" Ye Sha sent Alec out of his mindscape.
Alec took a deep breath in his mind, even as he cursed his friend for not giving him a heads up.
"Hello, Elysia," Alec said, his smile reflexively slipping on.
He shed tears inwardly. In the end, he was still making good use of the 'gentle' persona, but when he got a returning smile from Elysia, he felt like all his troubles and struggles had been blown away.
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The moment Alec's eyes locked onto the girl's form, he instantly felt like all the oxygen had been stolen right from his lungs.
Whenever he heard of Chers speak about how it felt whenever they met The One, it felt like a distant dream, or some sort of fabled myth that he would never be able to touch.
Love at first sight? That was a myth, even amongst the Systems. However, this world indeed had their version of one's fated partner.
Supposedly, it was like a part of your soul calling out for your soulmate – or so it was theorised – and it was a sentiment that many Chers liked to believe in.
Many books spoke about how Chers were mainly romantic, but Alec called bullshit. He was in no way romantic. At least, that's what he thought.
If you'd ever seen a Cher meet The One in front of your very eyes, you'd never be able to forget it for the rest of your life. It was an indescribable sort of yearning that had been born from the depths of their souls.
It was like their entire worldview had instantly focused onto a single person, and the devotion that sprung into their eyes was not something that was easy to ignore.
Alec just thought that sounded terrifying. Having your soulmate decided by your biology and Societype. There was no freedom in that.
Yet, even when Alec thought back to those words that had been spoken so reverentially, what he'd heard paled in comparison to what he was feeling right now.
It was like taking a sucker punch to the stomach, having your heart stop and feeling your body freeze all at once.
Distantly, Alec wondered to himself how he'd ever lived without this feeling in the first place, even as another part of him screamed at him to run – run as far away as he could.
Like the dragon Haphira, the girl had the same beautiful silvery-white shade of hair, but unlike the dragon, her hair was cut into a cute bob, and her fringe curled cutely over her forehead.
Like her father, she carried eyes of spun gold, but Alec thought to himself that her eyes were so much more beautiful than Haphira's.
While others might not have agreed with Alec saying that she was lovelier than Haphira, who looked so good he was practically unreal, to Alec, she was the loveliest creature that had ever existed on the planet.
She was everything and more.
So, this was love at first sight that the Chers talked about, huh?
His usually still heart skipping a beat in his chest, then thundering so hard he could hear the blood rushing in his ears, the System was feeling very overwhelmed right now.
While most Chers had their entire lives to get used to the fact that one day, they would meet The One, Alec had literally just been shoved into that situation without any preparation whatsoever, no thanks to his friend, Ye Sha.
Yet. Yet, he could not bring himself to regret it.
"Elysia, this is Alec. Alec, my daughter, Elysia," Haphira introduced, seemingly not noticing anything out of place in Alec's reaction.
Alec was panicking inside, but outside, he was the epitome of calmness and gentleness.
"Hewo," Elysia accidentally bit her tongue as she panicked over seeing another human for the first time in years. Her face flushed a fetching shade of pink in embarrassment. "Hello, Alec," she tried again.
Alec felt like he was going to explode.
How was she so cute?!
Holy. Shit. Alec was going to die young, and it was all Ye Sha's fault for putting him in this situation without any warning.
No, actually, it was the damn Mainframe's fault for putting him on this planet in the first place!
How was it that her voice was this lovely, akin to a soft, gentle chime of a bell in the breeze?
Ye Sha made a disgusted noise at the back of his throat, dragging Alec into his mindscape. He couldn't watch this tragedy any longer.
Alec was blowing it with The One!
Obviously, she wasn't a Cher either, if she wasn't staring at Alec with starstruck eyes like this moron was using to stare at her.
He could not, in good conscience, watch this train wreck without doing anything.
Though, it was kind of hilarious how out of character Alec was acting. Usually, Alec would just have nodded coolly even as he flashed his smile, reacting with perfect decorum, yet Alec had already been silent for a beat.
"Hey," Ye Sha snapped, when he realized that Alec was still staring blankly into space. "Hey." Ye Sha snapped his fingers in front of Alec's face. The idiot was completely lost now.
Alec looked at him with dreamy eyes, sending a chill down Ye Sha's spine. Alec was acting like he'd been hit with a drug. Well, a drug called love, that was.
"Snap out of it, Princess!"
The familiar nickname indeed drew a bit of ire from his friend, but it was muted, as if hidden under the haze of what he was feeling right now.
Ye Sha hadn't expected for the other to react so strongly to Elysia's presence.
Then again, his friend never did things by the halves, with how he was always putting his maximum effort into things.
"What?" Alec tried to say with his usual heat, but it was missing its distinct annoyance and anger. Instead, he just sounded like a lovestruck fool.
Ye Sha groaned. "I said, snap out of it!" he cried, headbutting the other in the face.
Both Systems hissed, grabbing their foreheads.
"What the fuck, Ye Sha!" Alec glowered.
"Finally! You're acting like a lovestruck idiot!"
A complicated mix of emotions swirled around Alec, and his earlier worries seemed to distant and small in the face of Elysia's loveliness. How could he have doubted that he would ever find love, if love was this beautiful?
Love at first sight… what a terrifying thing.
He never believed such a thing existed, but it seemed like it was hardwired into a Cher's biology.
It wasn't to say that he was completely comfortable with it, but he felt like he could let go of his reservations if it was Elysia.
Wait, no.
Alec slapped himself. That was the hormones talking, wasn't it?!
Ye Sha poured cold water over his friend. "You're a Cher. But Elysia isn't. So, if you want to win her heart, then you better get to know her instead of acting like this!"
Alec really did snap out of it this time, and he compartmentalized the softer side of his emotions after a struggle, allowing him to go back to his normally rational self.
Ye Sha didn't feel great doing it. Alec had obviously started to hide a part of himself behind a wall again, but in the long run, this would hopefully lead to the other's happiness.
Alec took a breath. Right. Elysia looked like she was his physical age, which was sixteen. He would *not* be touching her. Even if she wanted him to. For like… ten years, at least.
Gah, he was getting ahead of himself!
Ye Sha was right, pained as he was to admit it. He was already acting like a lovestruck idiot when he'd barely just met her, but how could he not?
With her biting her tongue in her nervousness, and the way she beamed at him with those clear, shining eyes.
Alec felt everything she did like cupid shooting an arrow straight to his heart.
He breathed in and breathed out.
He started locking the emotions behind a wall, where he felt it, but didn't show it.
Honestly, he didn't think he could survive if he didn't do this right now.
Fine.
This was fine.
He could do this.
He wore a mask every day.
He was a 'gentle' type character, right?
Wait. Wait, wait, wait, did this mean that Elysia's type was the 'gentle' type??
Suddenly, all the decisions he made in his life was thrown into confusion.
Ye Sha smacked him on the head again. "Stop overthinking it! I'm here to be your sounding board, so just be yourself!"
"But what if she hates my 'self'?!" Alec blurted, sounding like a teenager in love. Despite his age, he was completely uninformed in any act of love whatsoever.
"No 'buts'! Get out there!" Ye Sha sent Alec out of his mindscape.
Alec took a deep breath in his mind, even as he cursed his friend for not giving him a heads up.
"Hello, Elysia," Alec said, his smile reflexively slipping on.
He shed tears inwardly. In the end, he was still making good use of the 'gentle' persona, but when he got a returning smile from Elysia, he felt like all his troubles and struggles had been blown away.
The moment Alec's eyes locked onto the girl's form, he instantly felt like all the oxygen had been stolen right from his lungs.Whenever he heard of Chers speak about how it felt whenever they met The One, it felt like a distant dream, or some sort of fabled myth that he would never be able to touch.Love at first sight? That was a myth, even amongst the Systems. However, this world indeed had their version of one's fated partner.Supposedly, it was like a part of your soul calling out for your soulmate or so it was theorised and it was a sentiment that many Chers liked to believe in.Many books spoke about how Chers were mainly romantic, but Alec called bullshit. He was in no way romantic. At least, that's what he thought.If you'd ever seen a Cher meet The One in front of your very eyes, you'd never be able to forget it for the rest of your life. It was an indescribable sort of yearning that had been born from the depths of their souls.It was like their entire worldview had instantly focused onto a single person, and the devotion that sprung into their eyes was not something that was easy to ignore.Alec just thought that sounded terrifying. Having your soulmate decided by your biology and Societype. There was no freedom in that.Yet, even when Alec thought back to those words that had been spoken so reverentially, what he'd heard paled in comparison to what he was feeling right now.It was like taking a sucker punch to the stomach, having your heart stop and feeling your body freeze all at once.Distantly, Alec wondered to himself how he'd ever lived without this feeling in the first place, even as another part of him screamed at him to run run as far away as he could.Like the dragon Haphira, the girl had the same beautiful silvery-white shade of hair, but unlike the dragon, her hair was cut into a cute bob, and her fringe curled cutely over her forehead.Like her father, she carried eyes of spun gold, but Alec thought to himself that her eyes were so much more beautiful than Haphira's.While others might not have agreed with Alec saying that she was lovelier than Haphira, who looked so good he was practically unreal, to Alec, she was the loveliest creature that had ever existed on the planet.She was everything and more.So, this was love at first sight that the Chers talked about, huh?His usually still heart skipping a beat in his chest, then thundering so hard he could hear the blood rushing in his ears, the System was feeling very overwhelmed right now.While most Chers had their entire lives to get used to the fact that one day, they would meet The One, Alec had literally just been shoved into that situation without any preparation whatsoever, no thanks to his friend, Ye Sha.Yet. Yet, he could not bring himself to regret it."Elysia, this is Alec. Alec, my daughter, Elysia," Haphira introduced, seemingly not noticing anything out of place in Alec's reaction.Alec was panicking inside, but outside, he was the epitome of calmness and gentleness."Hewo," Elysia accidentally bit her tongue as she panicked over seeing another human for the first time in years. Her face flushed a fetching shade of pink in embarrassment. "Hello, Alec," she tried again.Alec felt like he was going to explode.How was she so cute?!Holy. Shit. Alec was going to die young, and it was all Ye Sha's fault for putting him in this situation without any warning.No, actually, it was the damn Mainframe's fault for putting him on this planet in the first place!How was it that her voice was this lovely, akin to a soft, gentle chime of a bell in the breeze?Ye Sha made a disgusted noise at the back of his throat, dragging Alec into his mindscape. He couldn't watch this tragedy any longer.Alec was blowing it with The One!Obviously, she wasn't a Cher either, if she wasn't staring at Alec with starstruck eyes like this moron was using to stare at her.He could not, in good conscience, watch this train wreck without doing anything.Though, it was kind of hilarious how out of character Alec was acting. Usually, Alec would just have nodded coolly even as he flashed his smile, reacting with perfect decorum, yet Alec had already been silent for a beat."Hey," Ye Sha snapped, when he realized that Alec was still staring blankly into space. "Hey." Ye Sha snapped his fingers in front of Alec's face. The idiot was completely lost now.Alec looked at him with dreamy eyes, sending a chill down Ye Sha's spine. Alec was acting like he'd been hit with a drug. Well, a drug called love, that was."Snap out of it, Princess!"The familiar nickname indeed drew a bit of ire from his friend, but it was muted, as if hidden under the haze of what he was feeling right now.Ye Sha hadn't expected for the other to react so strongly to Elysia's presence.Then again, his friend never did things by the halves, with how he was always putting his maximum effort into things."What?" Alec tried to say with his usual heat, but it was missing its distinct annoyance and anger. Instead, he just sounded like a lovestruck fool.Ye Sha groaned. "I said, snap out of it!" he cried, headbutting the other in the face.Both Systems hissed, grabbing their foreheads."What the fuck, Ye Sha!" Alec glowered."Finally! You're acting like a lovestruck idiot!"A complicated mix of emotions swirled around Alec, and his earlier worries seemed to distant and small in the face of Elysia's loveliness. How could he have doubted that he would ever find love, if love was this beautiful?Love at first sight what a terrifying thing.He never believed such a thing existed, but it seemed like it was hardwired into a Cher's biology.It wasn't to say that he was completely comfortable with it, but he felt like he could let go of his reservations if it was Elysia.Wait, no.Alec slapped himself. That was the hormones talking, wasn't it?!Ye Sha poured cold water over his friend. "You're a Cher. But Elysia isn't. So, if you want to win her heart, then you better get to know her instead of acting like this!"Alec really did snap out of it this time, and he compartmentalized the softer side of his emotions after a struggle, allowing him to go back to his normally rational self.Ye Sha didn't feel great doing it. Alec had obviously started to hide a part of himself behind a wall again, but in the long run, this would hopefully lead to the other's happiness.Alec took a breath. Right. Elysia looked like she was his physical age, which was sixteen. He would *not* be touching her. Even if she wanted him to. For like ten years, at least.Gah, he was getting ahead of himself!Ye Sha was right, pained as he was to admit it. He was already acting like a lovestruck idiot when he'd barely just met her, but how could he not?With her biting her tongue in her nervousness, and the way she beamed at him with those clear, shining eyes.Alec felt everything she did like cupid shooting an arrow straight to his heart.He breathed in and breathed out.He started locking the emotions behind a wall, where he felt it, but didn't show it.Honestly, he didn't think he could survive if he didn't do this right now.Fine.This was fine.He could do this.He wore a mask every day.He was a 'gentle' type character, right?Wait. Wait, wait, wait, did this mean that Elysia's type was the 'gentle' type??Suddenly, all the decisions he made in his life was thrown into confusion.Ye Sha smacked him on the head again. "Stop overthinking it! I'm here to be your sounding board, so just be yourself!""But what if she hates my 'self'?!" Alec blurted, sounding like a teenager in love. Despite his age, he was completely uninformed in any act of love whatsoever."No 'buts'! Get out there!" Ye Sha sent Alec out of his mindscape.Alec took a deep breath in his mind, even as he cursed his friend for not giving him a heads up."Hello, Elysia," Alec said, his smile reflexively slipping on.He shed tears inwardly. In the end, he was still making good use of the 'gentle' persona, but when he got a returning smile from Elysia, he felt like all his troubles and struggles had been blown away.
