Love at First Hiss

[Miles is upset when Olivia doesn't let him look, but he can't bring himself to watch when she's giving him what he wants.]

[Why does the snake look like it just overheated?]

[Is Miles seriously about to explode from holding it in?]

The moment that comment popped up, the snake crawled onto the bathroom sink and turned on the water for itself.

It soaked in the basin, basically turning into a water snake. It even let out a soft hiss.

I tossed my worn clothes onto the sink, covering the black snake so it couldn't peek.

The black snake seemed upset and wriggled its way out.

I was lathering up and, out of habit, turned to check what was going on at the sink.

Next thing I knew, the snake froze, then it thumped and passed out. Its head smacked against the sink with a clear crack.

[Who would believe this? Miles got so excited from a full, unrestricted view of his girlfriend that he passed out!]

[That sounded like it hurt. Do you think he scrambled his brain?]

[Even if he did, it wouldn't matter. He never looked very smart to begin with.]

[What are you talking about? He's actually the smartest Richardson heir. He crushed a ton of rivals to become the CEO of Richardson Enterprise! He just turns dumb around Olivia.]

I picked the snake up and started wondering if Miles's on-and-off brainpower might affect our future kids.

-

I was curled up on the couch, scrolling on my phone, when a social media post popped up.

[Richardson Enterprise offers a huge reward for the return of its CEO's missing beloved pet.]

There was a photo of a black snake attached.

In the photo, the snake looked proud and imposing, a glint of intelligence visible in its vertical pupils.

It looked completely different from the silly snake now lying stiff and straight on my bed, still unconscious.

I checked the reward.

How much? Six million dollars?

Damn. I just hit the jackpot!

Without a second thought, I stuffed the black snake into a plastic bag and rushed to Richardson Enterprise headquarters.

The entrance was packed with people. Every single one of them was carrying a black snake. I suspected every black snake in Serlington had gathered here.

Right then, I noticed a young man with a briefcase trying to rush into the building.

An old man blocked him and lectured, "Kid, there's an order to things. Get in line."

The young man was sweating as he explained, "I work here. I'm about to be late. Please let me through."

The old man shook his head, looking like he owned the place. "Doesn't matter. You still have to wait in line."

The young man froze.

The chat completely lost it.

[Hahaha! That's the same thing they told me the last time I queued at a famous hotdog stall!]

In the end, their argument drew the attention of Richardson Enterprise security. With the guards escorting him, the young man finally made it inside.

After settling things down, the security captain turned around and noticed my clear plastic bag.

Yes, Miles was inside it.

To be fair, all the black snakes looked similar, but Miles was especially good-looking.

His scales reflected a gorgeous shine in the sunlight.

The security captain's eyes lit up, and he hurried over.

"Miss, please come inside as well." He personally escorted me while excitedly calling the executive floor. "Roger, we found it!"

I had always had unusually sharp hearing. Even though the voice from the phone was faint, I still caught the tired tone.

"Are you sure? We've gotten so many random snakes brought in lately."

The security captain felt a little guilty and scratched his head, lowering his voice.