Don't Change

“Won’t it be a little awkward if I go in there?”

He stood and stared as Aliza rushed up to the front door, wanting to fulfill her new resolve.

*KNOCK* *KNOCK*

It seemed that he wouldn’t be getting an answer anytime soon.

“Aliza, is that you?”

A familiar voice called out from behind the door, Mila, who they had left by herself at her home.

*CLACK*

The door swung open, revealing her full canine appearance, which had a hint of confusion painted on her face.

“Where did you two go? A lovers rendezv—mmph--!”

“No!”

Aliza’s hand was shoved over top of her mouth before the words had a chance to escape. Ace stood and stared as the two displayed their normal acts of friendship.

It left a breath of relief within him, seeing the two alive. He knew that Mila’s dad wasn’t a horrible person, but he couldn’t help but feel worried when his friends stayed in the same house as someone who tried to kill him.

Anyone would be scared out of their mind to be within 5 meters of the vicinity of someone like that, but Ace knew this country’s circumstances and just how the citizens came to be, so he wasn’t as fearful.

“Hi Mila, glad to see you’re doing good.”

“What are you talking about? We just saw each other yesterday, why are you talking like it’s been days?”

“Oh, uhh, I don’t know why, it just feels like a lot of time has passed...”

“Haha, what’s up with that? Ace, you just get weirder by the day.”

Positions were reversed, and now Aliza was the one watching. Seeing Ace look normal caused another breath of relief, this time from Aliza. She admired how strong Ace could be in situations like this. Most people would be a little traumatized, or even slightly scared, but he’s only worried about if it’s going to be awkward between him and Mila’s dad.

“Okay, get in already, breakfast is almost ready.”

They stepped in, Ace’s hesitation clearly showing, as he walked in a few seconds after the rest.

---

------

“Hey, where’s your dad?”

Sitting at the table with breakfast on the table, Ace wondered where the one person who was missing was.

“Oh, he’s always woken up a little late on off days.”

“Oh, okay.”

Ace looked over at Aliza, wondering if he could rush his eating and leave so he wouldn’t have to cross paths with him.

She caught his signal and glared, not giving him the chance to run away from his problems. Instead of letting him run away, she sped up the process to get to the solution.

“We need to talk about something.”

“Aliza, stop, not now.”

He knew that she was trying to spill the beans right away, without even consulting him.

“No, this needs to be said immediately.”

“Aliza, come here for a sec.”

Ace pulled her away from the table, wanting to talk about how to approach this.

“Aliza, don’t go headfirst into this, talk to me first. I’m still hesitant to speak up.”

“Why? We need to start talking right away so we can move forward.”

“It’s because of what happened in my dream.”

Aliza tensed up hearing the word “dream”. Now that she knew his dreams were prophetic, she could not just brush off what he says whenever the word comes up.

“In my dream, Mila’s mom finds out about what her dad did and says he’s horrible. It goes downhill from there. If we say something now, we might ruin a marriage.”

“Ace, that’s their problem. Mila’s mom should have the right to know that her husband tried to kill somebody.”

“I know, but we need to go about this the right way. Just try to soften the blow a little bit. I don’t want to ruin Mila’s life, her mom’s life, and her dad’s life. You know how demihumans are, it’s only natural that he wanted to kill me. He lost his brother in the war too, so he had a reason.”

“Why are you like this?! He tried to kill you! Don’t worry about others' lives, think about yourself, or even think about how I feel! How do you think I felt when you told me that he tried to kill you! I’m trying to hold myself back from spilling it all, but you’re trying to stop me! Just let me help, please...”

She dropped her head, her ocean-coloredhair covering her scalp. Her calls were quiet, but had impact behind them, and he received them. He knows she wants to help, Ace hears her, but he still does not want to ruin their lives.

“I’m sorry, I should’ve considered you more, but I really don’t want to mess up their lives. We’re the ones who are freeloading here, so I don’t want to be the cause of any problems. We’ll tell them everything, just please, let me say it.”

Aliza peered up to catch his green eyes, which had a gentle, but determined gaze attached to his face. Just from his eyes alone, she could see that he was now paying attention to her, along with himself a little bit.

“Fine... you say it, but don’t make anything seem lighter than it actually is... I’ll speak up if you do.”

“Okay. Let’s go back.”

---

------

Five sat at the table, all eyes on Ace, after announcing that he had something to say.

“Okay, here I go. Wait, before I do, Mrs. Betano, I must request you to do something.”

“Oh, okay... what do you need Ace?”

“Please... consider your husband’s past before doing anything rash. What I’m about to say involves him, and I know I shouldn’t speak on private family issues, but please speak with him before doing anything that would change your lives completely. Same to you Mila, keep thinking of him as your dad, and know he wants the best for you guys.”

The two gave a slow, confused, but confirming nod.

“Okay... Ace, but what’s this all about? You’re getting really serious on us...”

Vanessa Betano said, as the representative for both the female Betanos.

“I’ll start now, and I’ll keep the story short, so you don’t have to keep anything held in.”

Ace’s hands moved to his knees and his eyes swung around the table to catch glances with everyone.

“Last night... Mr. Betano... tried to kill me.”

“Huh?!”

“---!!”

Mila jumped out of her seat, while Mrs. Betano had a clear, straightforward expression of shock exhibitedon her face. She was still a mother and an adult, so she wouldn’t jump out her seat like Mila did, but it was clear to see that it had impacted her.

“I’ll keep going. I woke up in the middle of the night with Mr. Betano standing over me, holding a knife. I talked him down to dropping the knife, then we talked a little more after. It will be a little awkward at first, but don’t hold him to it too much please. He just wanted to protect you guys.”

He kept his story short but made sure to include everything they needed to hear. The dream was a secret and was completely unnecessary, so Ace dropped it from his retelling. Now, he had to wait. Wait for them to process what they heard, find out what to say next, and take action.

It didn’t take long before the third step was achieved, and by Mila’s mother.

“Ace, your story doesn’t seem far-fetched, considering what my husband has been through. I’m sorry you had to go through that. I know he doesn’t like humans, but I did not think he would resort to trying to murder one of Mila’s dear friends.”

She stopped speaking for a second, listening back on what she had just said. It was hard to keep speaking after saying that her husband tried to kill a guest at their house. But she had not finished what she wanted to say, so she continued.

“It hurts to hear that coming out of my own mouth... but it must be said. I don’t know your thoughts on this, but please... if you can, forgive him, and go from there. I’ll make sure to give him a proper scolding, considering he may have gone through with it if you didn’t wake up.”

Ace’s thoughts were simple, a true adult. Responsible, considerate, well put together, and strong. Ace knew a messed-up adult when he saw one, but Mrs. Betano was not that. After hearing her response, his respect for her had raised immensely, but he wondered if she was keeping stuff back, after remembering what she was like in his dream.

“Mrs. Betano, you will talk to him, right? I just don’t want any problems stemming from me and my freeloader status.”

“Yes, I will make sure to speak to him. I love my husband dearly, I’m willing to be there for him in times of need, and his head is clearly in the wrong spot right now, so I will be there for him. Not exactly as support, but as someone to set him on the right track.”

“One more question... why are you treating me so nicely? Most demihumans I’ve seen have hated me, but I haven’t heard you voice a single complaint since meeting me...”

Vanessa Betano glanced over to her daughter as she brought upon her response, as if she was looking back on an old memory.

“I have taught Mila since she was young, not to judge someone because of their ancestors or lineage, but because of who they are as an individual. Someone’s parents could be the worst people in the world, but that is no reason to draw light to their children, who are their own people.”

The Betano family continued to surprise him... in many ways. Listening to their values left him speechless for a second, but not out of shock, out of gratitude. Ace knew when he needed to express his gratitude, and this was one of those moments.

“Thank you.”

Hearing his gratitude, Mrs. Betano conjured up a smile in response. He must have gone through a lot to bring up this topic, and she recognized that. It was tough to wear a smile right now, but seeing this young man be brave, she felt the need to.

“It’s my pleasure.”

“Haha... that’s exactly what Mila said when I thanked her. Like mother, like daughter.”

Now both were smiling, forming a small bond from what used to be a distant relationship.

---

------

The other Betano who had been silent as they spoke, now decided to voice her thoughts.

“It’s hard to speak after hearing mama so calm... but this is crazy! Papa... tried to kill you! It’s hard to take in... but even I know what happened to my uncle... so I guess it’s to be expect-- ahh! I don’t even know what to think right now!”

Mila stayed standing after jumping out her seat, unable to sit back down after hearing what her father attempted. It was obvious that she was at a loss of what to think, what to feel, and how to move forward.

She tried to calm down a little, but the expression showed in her voice. Now, she just wanted answers to her questions.

“The war ended a few years before I was born, so I don’t know all the details, but did it affect papa that much?!”

She shot her mom a shocked, questioning look, wondering if this whole story was true. Her gaze was not only for her question, but for everything. If her dad really did this, what they were going to do next, and an answer to her question.

Her mom nodded, confirming all of it. Mila’s expression lost its questioning look, and was now just a traumatized, disturbed gaze, directed at everything thrown at her.

“Yes, your father was impacted greatly. Your uncle was his only brother, and they took him away, it’s only natural for him to feel that way...”

“Yeah, I understand that... but, trying to kill my friend! How do you go from acting all nice to attempting murder the night of!”

Ace couldn’t stand watching Mila act like this any longer, it made him feel guilt and regret for ever coming here. He felt the need to do something, say something.

“Mila, I don’t know if this helps at all, but I think your dad was half asleep. His face was pale and looked like he just woke up from a nightmare.”

Ace knew he actually did wake up from one, but once again, that was not needed. He just needed to say anything to try to get her to calm down, but--

“A nightmare?! If he would do that to you while he’s half asleep, how do I know he won’t kill me or mo--!”

“MILA! Watch your mouth! I know this is hard to hear, but it all happened! Don’t forget, this is still your dad! He would never do anything to hurt you!”

“But...! But...! Dad almost killed him...!”

“Mila! Listen to me.”

Mila’s crazed, out-of-control emotions took a plunge after hearing her mother’s shouts. It was hard for her to calm down right now... but seeing her mom so calm made her want to rely on her.

“Mama...”

Vanessa Betano’s motherly instincts activated, and she stood up to wrap her arms around her daughter and speak properly with her.Mila leaned into her mother and decided to follow her mother with her decisions.

“Trust in your father. He’s not a bad person and you know that. He just has his moments, and we need to be there for him.”

“Mm...”

Mila nodded into her mother’s chest, and cried slowly, trying to stay strong, just like her mother had.

“...”

The two stoodand didn’t let each other go, showing the bond between the mother and daughter. Only one person was missing, and--

“What’s happening here...?”

Ricard Betano entered the room, witnessing his daughter’s tears, his wife’s embrace, and the faces of everyone at the table.