A Little Obsessed

I did not look back at Kyle when Nurse Nancy said, 'he was ready to see me. ' I did not know who he was, but he was obviously the person who had orchestrated my kidnapping for unknown reasons. 

I followed Nancy, ignoring the strange pangs of withdrawal from Kyle.

It made a slithering cold sensation crawl down my back. 

I was disappointed, even disgusted, in myself for how I was behaving. 

How could I, the self-proclaimed feminist with a plan to march to the inevitable dark end as alone as I was born, feel desire for a man? Even more so, how could I have such feelings for someone I barely knew? 

The worst part was that what I knew of Kyle was horrible. He had even threatened my life and expressed his desire to keep me as if I were a stray kitten he found on the streets, starving.

Perhaps, I had been isolating myself so much that I finally lost my sense of self. There was no other way to explain the feelings I had in the presence of Kyle. I had become so basic that I would want a man who wanted to keep, no, own me. 

It was more cliché than every brainrot CEO romance novel I had read.

I tried to shake off the strangeness.

"He is quite captivating, isn't he?" Nurse Nancy said as we entered a lift after leaving Kyle's office. 

I did not pretend not to understand what she meant. The fact that she could spy on Kyle meant that she was not stupid. She was likely not only brilliant but manipulative. She would see through a lie.

"He is," I replied simply. 

Nurse Nancy looked surprised by my answer, but she did not react further to it. 

"Everyone says so. He has this power to charm those he meets, despite his obvious emotional limitations. He is a little unusual due to his mental disorders, but people say it is what makes him so capable and attractive." She continued. 

I snorted. "Should you be discussing your boss's mental state with a stranger?"

Nancy's jaw ticked, exposing a sense of annoyance. 

I felt a little amused. It was obvious that she hated that Kyle was technically her boss. I could only assume it was because she thought of herself as more important than Kyle, since she was the spy for the powers that be. 

"It is not a secret. Anyone with good observational skills can notice his peculiarities. All I am saying is that you should be careful. Dr Kyle tends to get a little obsessed with what he finds intriguing." Nancy said. 

I looked at her more squarely as the lift ascended. 

"I doubt I can be considered intriguing if that is what you are implying," I said with feigned amusement. 

"The fact that he found it necessary to kidnap you and send you to Kyle directly for a scan is intriguing enough," Nancy paused for a moment. "When Kyle gets obsessed with something, he will dig as deep as possible and tear it apart until he is satisfied. After that, he will destroy it."

My jaw tightened, but I refused to react to the subtle threat. My silence did not discourage Nancy.

"I suppose I did not tell you about his work on in vitro-derived gametes. In vitro gametogenesis is the technical process. The idea has been floating around in fertility tech companies for a while, but no one has succeeded. One night, he stayed up and wrote a complete procedure for the work."

I had heard something about in vitro-derived gametes and the possibilities. They were reproductive cells created by reprogramming cells other than sperm and ova. I always thought it was as theoretical as parthenogenesis among humans. 

However, the idea was intriguing to many people, especially in same-sex relationships. On the contrary, it was considered abominable to the religious. I did not take the concept seriously since it seemed like something out of a bad sci-fi movie. 

But apparently, it was not. 

"The technicians carried out numerous tests with incredible success. Then, he had one of his manic episodes and destroyed all the samples as well as several expensive machines in the lab. He threatened to quit and burn the entire building if the tests continued in the facility."

I was no stranger to similar-ish episodes, and I knew how they could play out. Still, it seemed strange that Kyle would be against his personal research if it was successful and in line with his speciality.

It was not like he would have moral reservations about 'unnatural' reproduction. 

But I did not want to become a pawn in this new drama I landed in. I was going to watch the story unfold. I could not get personally involved or invested. After all, I did not yet understand why I was here. 

At least, I had a pretty good idea of my current location. 

After all, there was only one place where pronatalism and fertility tech had dug their roots like a bad weed. From what I understood, the powers of this locale were like the Pawn. More ego and money than sense…

That is why they wanted to become gods by growing designer babies to carry on their legacy.

"Why are you telling me this?" I asked after a quiet moment.

Nancy looked at the numbers on the lift before speaking with some haste. 

"I know you have reasons not to trust me, but I will give you advice, woman-to-woman. Do not be drawn close to Kyle because his thorough destruction of you will be the best outcome for you. The alternative is that you will become a tool to control him. He might not be my favourite person on account of his difficult episodes, but he is doing good work. Do not take that from the world."

The lift dinged and the doors opened. 

I did not even get a chance to defend myself when the potential crime of preventing the progress of the entire world was placed upon me without cause. I could only push down my dissatisfaction and let the anger burn in my chest.