33. Ell-rom

33

ELL-ROM

E ll-rom didn't say much on the way to the pool.

Having the medic kneel at his feet and change his footwear should not have felt so awkward. After all, Julian had probably seen more of him than anyone alive and had helped him shower when he could barely stand, but it had still been a very unsettling experience.

It had felt like a setback.

Ell-rom had been so proud of his accomplishments and his modicum of independence, and the medic's gesture had shattered the illusion. He could have sat down and exchanged the flimsy footwear for the more substantial type himself. Julian didn't have to humiliate him like that. But he couldn't even be angry at the medic because his actions had come from a place of goodness and not malice.

Something buzzed, and Julian stopped walking and pulled out his phone from the coat he had put over his bathing suit. After reading what had been sent to him, he lifted his head and smiled at Ell-rom. "You will have visitors later today. I told Kian that you would need a long nap after exerting yourself at the pool, so the evening would be a good time for the Clan Mother to visit you."

Ell-rom's heart rate accelerated. "Did he tell you why she had not come yesterday?"

Julian shook his head. "She was probably busy fawning over her new grandson. The Clan Mother adores babies."

"She is incredible," Jasmine blurted. "Knowing she loves babies just makes her even more magnificent in my view. It means that she has a good heart."

Julian nodded. "The Clan Mother is all heart."

Ell-rom loved the way Julian talked about Annani. He did not fear her, and he did not even worship her. He just loved and admired her. If Ell-rom ever got to perform any princely duties, he wanted to be like Annani. Loved and appreciated by his people instead of feared.

Not that he was going to be a prince of anything. He was a very long way from Anumati, and even there, he would have never ascended to the throne even if he had not been an abomination.

His sister would.

Ell-rom frowned. Was that something he'd remembered? Or had he deduced it from what he had been told? Only females could rule Kra-ell. Males were not even allowed to be priests, and the belief that twins share a soul was the only reason he could have been conscripted.

That part he remembered being told and not actually living it.

He also had no memory of ever being in water before, but he was not afraid of the pool. Jasmine had explained that it had a sloping bottom and that they would stay where he could stand. There was nothing scary about that. It was like standing in a bathtub, only with cold water instead of warm.

What he was anxious about was Jasmine parading in that bathing suit that left most of her skin bare, and his reaction to that. He also planned to watch Julian's reaction to verify that what Jasmine had told him about the medic's inability to feel desire for her was true.

He didn't doubt Jasmine, but she might have been told things that were not true or were just partially so.

Why did he think that?

Ell-rom had no answer for that except a deep-seated knowledge that not all people were well-meaning and that it was naive to accept every statement as true.

"Here we are." Julian pushed open a set of double doors that had a small round window at the top of each panel.

The sharp scent that Ell-rom had been smelling ever since they had stepped out of the elevator intensified ten-fold, and he sneezed.

"Forgive me. The chemical smell is irritating my nose."

Jasmine turned to Julian with a worried look on her face. "What if Ell-rom can't tolerate the chlorine?"

"We need to test it." The medic took off his coat and toed off his shoes. "Let's start by just putting our feet in the water."

He led Ell-rom to the edge and helped him sit down on the floor, which was much more difficult than sitting on a chair.

"Do you need help taking your shoes off?" Julian asked.

"No, I can do it." Ell-rom copied what the medic had done with his own shoes and used the leverage of the floor to pull out his foot from one shoe and then removed the other with his toes.

Next to them, Jasmine pulled her shirt over her head, but Julian paid her no attention.

"You can keep your robe on if you are cold," Julian told him. "Pull it up if you don't want it to get wet." He scooted to the edge and put his legs in the water.

Ell-rom wasn't keen on removing the robe and letting Jasmine see the stark difference between his and the medic's physiques. Julian was covered with lean muscle, while Ell-rom looked like a deflated version of that. His skin wasn't stretched taut over his muscles, and he was gaunt and sickly-looking.

How could Jasmine be attracted to him?

If not for the scent of her desire, he would have thought that she had only pretended, but that enticing aroma had been unmistakable even for an inexperienced male like him.

Some things were innate.

Now was not the time to think of those things, though, and if he didn't want to embarrass himself, he needed to keep his eyes off Jasmine, who had removed her pants as well and was sitting at the edge of the pool with her legs dangling in the water.

Ell-rom scooted forward, imitating the way Julian had done it, and when he got to the edge, he scooped the robe behind him and put his legs in the water.

"How does it feel?" Julian asked.

"Strange. My legs feel as if they weigh less, and they float up."

The medic grinned. "That is why exercise in water is easier than outside of it."

Jasmine leaned forward so she could see Julian on Ell-rom's other side. "Do you know if Anumati's gravity is the same as Earth's?"

"It should be stronger by a good measure, I would think," Julian said. "The planet is much bigger, and gravity is directly proportional to mass. That should also explain, at least in part, why the gods, and by extension the immortals, are so much stronger than humans."

"Like Superman," Jasmine said.

"Who is Superman?" Ell-rom asked.

"He is a fictional character." Julian hopped into the water, which reached only to his waist. "You seem to have gotten used to the chemical smell, and your skin looks fine. We can proceed with the exercises."

"What about the teardrop?" Jasmine asked. "I meant to ask you if it was waterproof but given that you jumped into the pool with it around your neck, it must be okay."

"It is. The earpieces are waterproof, too, but we need to keep the teardrop out of the water for it to broadcast sound. That's why I shortened the string. I suggest that you do the same once you join Ell-rom in the water."

"I will."

Ell-rom had no choice but to remove the robe, and he dreaded the moment Jasmine saw him like that. Was there any way he could ask her to leave without offending her?

That was so cowardly that Ell-rom was ashamed of even thinking it. Jasmine was kind, and she had feelings for him. She wouldn't make comparisons between him and Julian and find him lacking. She knew he was still recovering and wouldn't always look like an animated skeleton.

As he untied the belt and shrugged off the robe, Julian offered him his hands.

"Grab on to me, and I will pull you in."

Reluctantly, Ell-rom followed his instructions and used the medic's hands to balance, but instead of waiting for Julian to pull him in, he slid into the water.

When his feet touched the bottom, the sensation was unlike anything he could remember experiencing. The water embraced him, supporting his weight in a way that immediately eased the strain on his muscles.

"Congratulations!" Jasmine clapped her hands. "One more step toward victory."

Was it?

Ell-rom was afraid to look at her, but his eyes were drawn to her of their own accord, and he saw her sitting on the edge of the pool, her lovely brown hair cascading down her front, hiding the fronts of her covered breasts, but leaving the swells exposed.

"Eyes on me," Julian said, most likely saving Ell-rom from doing something stupid.