chapter 3

1. Do not leave AX3 alone for more than 48 hours.

2. Do not allow AX3 to consume more than 500 calories per day.

3. Do not anger AX3; he has the ability to kill.

That was not very helpful. Hell, that gum he swallowed was most likely over 500 calories. I looked on the back of the pamphlet. It was just a diagram of AX3. He was 6'5" and 230 pounds. I sighed and turned around. There he was, smiling at me dimly.

"Who are you?" I mumbled softly. He blinked at me, looking at me with a confused stare. AX3's eyes were a very pure, bright blue-grey color that seemed almost electric. God they were pretty eyes.

I had monolid eyes, the pupils brown in color, inherited from my paternal grandmother who was Korean. The rest of my ancestry was African. In high school, my best friend dubbed me the "Miniature Tyson Beckford." My freshman year of college I dyed my hair blond, and I was currently in my blue period, with a bold cerulean fade.

"AX3." He smiled again. "You are Casey."

"I know who you are. I was just thinking out loud." I didn't know what to do with him. Should I report him to the police? Should I just let him stay here? "Do you have a way I can contact your family? Your mom or your dad?"

"I only have Jomei," he said. It nearly broke my heart. I needed to figure something out, because unless I could find Jomei Tanaka it appeared AX3 would be a stray. "Do you know where Mr. Tanaka went?" I asked.

"Away," he said.

"Yes, but where?" He shook his head no. Whatever the relationship he and Tanaka had, it seemed to be a rocky one. I hated to keep bringing him up to AX3, but he was the only lead I had. "Did he say when he was coming back?"

"He's not coming back, because he doesn't want me anymore. Because I was imperfect. I failed too many times."

"What did you fail?" I asked, trying to figure out who AX3 really was--and I was getting tired of calling him AX3.

"The inspections, the tests. He said I was broken. He said they would kill him if I didn't pass the tests. I didn't like those tests." He looked angry, and it was an emotion that didn't suit him. He had such a happy-go-lucky attitude that this was almost like a different person. Looking at me, he panted ferociously. I stepped back, unsure of what he would do. He started punching the wall, over and over again. In a matter of moments, he'd punched three holes in my wall. I could kiss that safety deposit goodbye. I didn't want to yell at him to stop, afraid that would just make him even more upset. "They hurt! The tests hurt!"

"How--how about a cookie?" I asked, my voice shaky, uncertain if this would calm him down. He stopped, looking confused for a moment, then smiled at me. "C'mon." He followed me into the kitchen and I took out my cookie jar. They were oatmeal chocolate chip. I handed him one and he put the whole thing in his mouth.

"Can I have another cookie?" he asked, not even done with the first one. How many calories was this? I handed him another and he ate that one just as fast as he ate the first one. I had to tell him no more after the fifth one.

I was sure I broke the 500-calorie rule, but I was trying to satiate him. 500 calories was like nothing at all and he was huge. It baffled me that he would be able to live on only 500 calories a day. He was probably hangry. It was almost understandable he turned my wall into a punching bag. Maybe Mr. Tanaka had been starving him--though if he was, AX3 wouldn't look to be in such fantastic shape.

I spent the rest of the day talking to him, every so often bringing up little questions about Mr. Tanaka. I found out he was a single, older man. They'd lived in that apartment together for the last four years. He only let AX3 eat chicken breasts, celery, carrots, cottage cheese, and water.

I had hoped to find out more, but at around eleven I decided to call it a night. I made up the couch for myself and told AX3 he could sleep in my bed.

"I want to sleep with you," he protested. It had been a while since I'd heard that from a guy. I wanted to ask if he and Tanaka shared a bed but decided against it. "Please Casey." I would never do something this crazy under any other circumstance, but I went with him into my bedroom. He was still wearing the underwear and t-shirt I gave him earlier. I pulled off my jeans and pulled on a pair of athletic shorts. Normally I slept in my underwear, but that didn't seem appropriate considering the situation. I put my glasses on the nightstand.

We positioned ourselves on my queen-sized mattress and he held onto me. I wanted to push him off, but I didn't. He wasn't a bad guy, though I felt like one. He didn't know what he was doing, and truthfully, I let him in bed with me because I felt lonely.

My ex-boyfriend dumped me out of the blue over a year ago. It was during finals week, and I was completely overwhelmed with essays and projects. I got a text message saying he needed to focus on himself, and that he didn't have time for a relationship. I was devastated. He was a year ahead of me in school and very popular. The worst part was that I thought everything was fine. We'd gotten dinner the night before, studied in the library together for a few hours afterwards.

I still saw him sometimes in the coffee shop where we had our first date. My freshman year I spent most of my free time there, loving the atmosphere. It was special to me, and that was why I suggested we meet there. Now he was always there, and I was rarely able to avoid him. He always had something to tell me about how amazing his life was going.

Before long, with AX3 cuddling me, I was fast asleep.