By the third day, Xu Chen stopped assuming things would correct themselves.
Some habits fix with time.
People adjust.
Bodies respond.
None of that was happening.
Aum remained exactly the same.
Xu Chen decided to test it.
Not aggressively.
Just… carefully.
He placed breakfast on the table.
Two plates.
Everything normal.
Then he waited.
Aum stood near the table, looking at it.
Not confused.
Not interested.
Just....
aware.
Five minutes passed.
Xu Chen leaned against the doorway, arms crossed.
"You're not going to eat?"
Aum glanced at him.
"There is no requirement."
Xu Chen nodded once, like that answer made sense.
Then he walked over, pulled out a chair, and sat down.
"Okay," he said. "Let's try this differently."
Aum didn't move.
Xu Chen gestured to the plate.
"Eat."
"No."
Xu Chen rested his elbows on the table, hands loosely clasped.
"When was the last time you ate?"
"Yesterday."
Xu Chen blinked.
"…That's not a normal answer."
"I am functioning," Aum said.
Xu Chen held his gaze for a second.
Then nodded slowly.
"Right."
He stood up.
Walked to the kitchen.
Came back with a glass of water.
Placed it in front of Aum.
"Drink."
Aum didn't move.
Xu Chen inhaled slowly.
"…Do you drink water?"
"Yes."
"Then drink."
"I do not require it now."
Xu Chen closed his eyes.
A long pause.
Then—
He picked up the glass himself.
Drank it.
Put it back down.
"Perfect," he muttered. "We're both hydrated."
Aum watched him.
"You are frustrated."
Xu Chen looked at him.
"No," he said calmly.
Then after a beat, "I'm adapting."
Aum nodded once, as if that aligned with something.
"You are not adapting efficiently."
Xu Chen went still.
"…I'm sorry?"
Aum gestured lightly toward the table.
"You repeated an ineffective approach."
Xu Chen stared at him.
Then slowly pulled the chair out again and sat down.
"…Okay."
"New rule," Xu Chen said. "You don't analyze me before I've had coffee."
"I have not observed you consuming coffee."
"That's because I haven't made it yet."
"Then the rule is premature."
Xu Chen closed his eyes briefly.
"…I'm going to pretend that made sense."
Aum didn't respond.
Xu Chen sat back down slowly.
Looked at the untouched food.
Then at Aum.
"…If I stop eating," he said, "will you also stop?"
Aum considered that.
"Yes."
Xu Chen stared at him.
…Why?"
"You initiated the behavior," Aum said.
Xu Chen leaned back in his chair.
Looked at the ceiling.
"…That's not how influence works."
Aum didn't respond.
Xu Chen sat up again.
"…So if I decide to starve, you'll also starve?"
"Yes."
A pause.
"…That feels like unnecessary pressure," Xu Chen muttered.
A pause.
"…You know what, never mind. Eat. Don't eat. Survive on air. I don't care."
A pause.
"…Actually, do you survive on air?"
Aum answered immediately.
"No."
Xu Chen nodded.
"…Good. That would've been worse."
The second test happened without planning.
Xu Chen dropped a glass.
It slipped from his hand and shattered on the floor.
The sound was sharp.
Immediate.
Xu Chen flinched.
Aum didn't.
Xu Chen looked up.
"…You didn't react."
"I registered the sound," Aum said.
Xu Chen waited.
That was all.
"…That's it?"
"Yes."
Xu Chen crouched down, picking up the pieces.
"Most people would've flinched."
"Why?"
Xu Chen didn't look up.
"Because it's loud."
"It did not pose a threat."
Xu Chen dropped a shard into the bin.
"…That's not how it works."
Aum remained silent.
Xu Chen stood up again, brushing his hands together.
"…If something explodes next to you," he said, "what are you going to do?"
"If it is not directed at me," Aum replied, "nothing."
Xu Chen stared at him.
"…That's deeply concerning."
Aum tilted his head slightly.
"It is efficient."
Xu Chen looked away.
"…I'm starting to think efficiency is a problem."
By afternoon, Xu Chen had stopped pretending this was accidental.
He tested movement next.
He walked across the room.
Aum followed.
Not closely.
But consistently.
Xu Chen slowed down.
Aum slowed down.
He stopped.
Aum stopped.
Xu Chen turned abruptly.
"…You're doing that on purpose."
"Yes."
Xu Chen stared at him.
"Why?"
"You are moving," Aum said.
Xu Chen waited.
Nothing else came.
"…That's not an explanation."
"It is the cause."
Xu Chen dragged a hand down his face.
"If I walk into a wall, are you going to follow me?"
Aum considered that.
"Yes."
Xu Chen froze.
"…Why?"
"You initiated the movement."
Xu Chen stared at him.
"…So if I walk in circles—"
"Yes."
"…You'll also walk in circles."
"Yes."
Xu Chen paused.
"…We're not doing that."
Xu Chen looked at Aum. Then at the wall. Then back at him.
"…Okay," he said. "Stay there."
He pointed at the floor.
Aum didn't move.
Xu Chen took a step back.
Aum stayed.
Another step.
Still didn't move.
Xu Chen nodded once.
"Good. Progress."
He turned, Aum stepped forward.
Xu Chen spun around.
"…I just told you to stay."
"You changed position," Aum said.
Xu Chen stared at him.
"…That's not how instructions work."
Aum paused.
"…Clarify."
Xu Chen looked up at the ceiling briefly.
"I said stay."
"Yes."
"That means don't move."
Aum considered it.
"For how long?"
Xu Chen froze.
"…Until I say otherwise."
Aum nodded.
"Understood."
Xu Chen took a step back again.
Aum stayed.
Another step.
Still stayed.
Xu Chen narrowed his eyes slightly.
"…Okay."
He turned, Aum didn't move.
Xu Chen walked further this time.
Halfway across the room.
Still nothing.
Xu Chen stopped.
Looked back.
Aum stood exactly where he was.
For a second Xu Chen felt something close to relief.
Then.......
"You are now outside optimal range," Aum said.
Xu Chen closed his eyes.
"…Define optimal."
"Within observable distance."
"…I am observable."
"You are less observable."
A pause.
Xu Chen opened one eye.
"…That sounds like a threat."
After what seemed an eternity, Xu Chen exhaled slowly.
"…You can come here."
Aum stepped forward immediately.
Xu Chen watched him approach.
The movement was clean.
Direct. Too precise.
Xu Chen frowned slightly.
"…You don't hesitate," he said.
"No."
"Ever?"
"No."
Xu Chen looked at him for a moment longer.
"…That's not normal."
"I am aware."
Evening came quieter.
This time, Xu Chen didn't test anything.
He just sat.
Aum stood near the window.
The same place.
Xu Chen watched him for a few seconds.
"…You really don't get tired, do you?"
"No."
Xu Chen leaned back slightly.
"…That must be convenient."
Aum didn't respond.
Xu Chen looked at him again.
"…Or maybe not."
Aum turned his head slightly.
"Clarify."
Xu Chen hesitated.
Then shrugged lightly.
"…Never mind."
Silence settled again.
But it felt different now.
Not because anything had changed.
But because Xu Chen had stopped trying to fit it into something familiar.
He looked at Aum again.
"You don't fit," he said.
"Into what?" Aum asked.
Xu Chen gestured around with his both hands.
"This."
Aum held his gaze.
"I am aware."
Xu Chen watched him for a moment longer.
Then looked away.
"…Yeah," he said quietly. "I think I am too."
By the end of the day, the conclusion was simple.
It wasn't one thing.
Not the food.
Not the sleep.
Not the movement.
It was all of it.
Consistent.
Unchanging.
Precise in ways that didn't belong.
And once Xu Chen noticed the pattern—
he couldn't unsee it.