“Hyejeong?”

Seolhyun’s heart was pounding against her ribs, but it felt wrong. It felt worn out and sluggish. Fire traveled up and down her back, but she knew she wasn’t hurt.

It was Hyejeong.

She slid her hand over Hyejeong’s chest, crying out as her hand came back soaked with the reddish-blue blood.

Somehow, somewhere from the distance, her name was called out. So was Hyejeong’s, but Seolhyun didn’t look to see what was happening. Her eyes were locked with hers. Hyejeong’s lips, leached of all color, moved, but there were no words.

“Wake up, Hyejeong! This wasn’t happening!” She screamed her heart out. “This could not be happening... right?”

They hadn’t survived everything that they’d faced, on top of an alien invasion, for Hyejeong to die like this.

“No! No. No!” Seolhyun searched for the source of the wound, but Hyejeong had taken the shot in the back.

It hadn’t been a normal gun.

Hyejeong’s form started to flicker, and horror kicked Seolhyun in the chest. She grabbed her cheeks as her lungs desperately tried to force air in. Hyejeong’s eyes were closed. “Open your eyes! Dammit, open your eyes!”

Seolhyun’s legs started to shake with the effort to hold herself up in a kneeling position, and then Yuna and Mina were there, and she couldn’t help but think of that horrible time in her house, when the situation had been flipped and it had been her lying on the floor. Then they thought they were purely connected, and if one died, so did the other.

Right?

“Actually,” Yuna drew out the word. “Choa didn’t tell you the truth.”

Seolhyun tensed. “What now?” Her stomach took a drop off the deep end. “The truth about what?”

Yuna’s lips pursed. She took a deep breath and then knelt down beside Seolhyun. “As you know, Icarus worked on many serums before we had any amount of success, and in some cases...” She paused, her voice hard. “The successes proved to be failures in the end. There was the Icarus serum, which was given to Jieqiong, Joongki, Jimin and so on.”

Seolhyun drew in a sharp breath. She hoped Choa was rotting in a special corner of hell.

“Then, of course, there was this Perdix serum,” Yuna said again, her eyes lighting up in hope. “The serum that was given to them mutated, just like the Hybrids that the most recent batch of Gwynths were created from,” she explained.

“Wait,” Seolhyun narrowed her eyes. “Choa was just testing out that serum when we were there.”

Yuna shook her head. “What she meant was that humans who were accidentally mutated on and off throughout the years were given the Perdix serum in test batches. Not ones like Hyejeong mutated, but people like you and me and anyone else out there who was healed by a Felix.”

Confusion poured into Seolhyun. “Okay?”

“The Perdix serum is different from the Icarus serum. It ensures that the mutated human, that the Hybrid, is not connected to the Felix.”

“Like when Hyejeong healed Dr. Park and he alerted us he fell ill?”

“Do you think he really knew what Choa was handing him?” Yuna closed her eyes. “My uncle believed what we told him and that was it. He was given the Icarus serum.” Her attention flicked back to Seolhyun. “He has weakened, but if he had died, Hyejeong would’ve survived. She would’ve gotten better. Life would’ve gone on.”

Seolhyun gasped.

Yuna took another deep breath. “It’s different with the Perdix, the serum you were given. Your lives aren’t joined like you think they are. If one of you dies, the other will feel it. Feel everything, down to the last breath, the last heartbeat, but the other one will take another breath and their heart will beat again.”

Seolhyun ignored the pain roaring through her body and the weakness creeping into her muscles, invading her very being, followed by coldness, a chill of death. Her overworked heart turned over.

“No!” Mina cried out, dropping down by Hyejeong’s head. Her hands landed on her sister’s shoulders and she immediately shifted into her true form. Her light was brilliant, much like an angel’s halo.

“Fix her, please.” Seolhyun’s vision blurred as she started to tilt toward the ground. “Please, Yuna, please fix her.”

Yuna caught her, but Seolhyun shrugged her off, clinging to Hyejeong as tears streamed down her face.

“What... do we do?” She couldn’t look away as Hyejeong continued to flicker in and out, her beautifully strong light dulling, and the coldness spread like a disease inside her. “It wasn’t a normal gun. It was one of those... weapons we were given. Please... do something...”

Yuna placed her hands above Seolhyun’s, her face twisting in concentration. “Dammit. We need to make sure the bullet is out. If it’s not, then...”

The words sank in as Seolhyun slid down to her side, unable to hold herself up. One of her hands slipped off Hyejeong’s cheek. She could no longer get her tongue to work, and she labored for breath. She threw everything in her into reaching Hyejeong.

“Don’t... leave me. You can’t leave yet. I’m not finished falling in love with you. Please don’t leave me. I love you... Hyejeong, I love you. Please don’t let go. Please!”

Yuna cursed under her breath as her gaze bounced between Mina and Seolhyun. “Seolhyun, I...”

Seolhyun didn’t feel herself falling, but she was suddenly flat on her back and staring up at the cloudless blue sky. Such a beautiful sky, but her heart hurt. Her chest seized, and her entire body went rigid.

No... No. No.

They were supposed to have tonight and tomorrow, and many weeks and months, but they didn’t have even another minute.

Seolhyun’s face was wet, soaked, and her heart was slowing.

Then the world started to slip away.

EPILOGUE

Fourteen months later...

Bright sunlight streamed in through the bedroom window of the house at the foothills of the Hallasan. An early bout of November snow had capped the tips of the mountains, turning them white.

It really was beautiful here in Jeju, the air fresh and trees everywhere. It reminded Mina of her home, her old home, but with easy access to a lot more cool stuff.

Like shopping mall?

Which had reopened two months earlier, just in time for the return of the cute dress, a sure sign (wo)mankind would trek on. Humans were probably the most resilient and stubborn creatures in all the universes.

Something the invading Felix, those who’d managed to escape the Kloom, had learned quickly. Days after the battle, while their little group had holed up trying to decide how and where to move on, the remaining invading Felix left.

But they all knew that there still could be some here, and there was no stopping them from coming back. Maybe one day they would, but if Mina had learned anything in the last two years, it was that she could not look toward the future if she lived in the past.

It was hard.

She glanced over her shoulder.

There Yuna was, resting against the headboard of the king-size bed, a bed big enough for half of her economics class. Her slender arms were folded behind her head. To this day, Mina had no idea how Yuna got that narrow form on either side of her hips. Like what kind of sit-ups did one do for that?

She winked one purple eye, and somehow, when most girls would look all kinds of y, Yuna made it look y. “Like what you see?”

Mina didn’t even dignify that with a response. Instead she faced a laptop, fingers hovering over the keys, the enter button to be exact. Her heart was racing like it had been when Yuna and her had submitted their applications, the day the Jeju National University had finally opened their enrollment and resumed classes.

That had been History major.

Still felt epic.

“Just do it,” Yuna said, her voice closer than Mina expected, causing her to jump. She kissed her softly, almost making her forget what she was doing, and when Yuna lifted her head, she grinned down at her cutey from behind. “You’ve been obsessing over those dresses for weeks. Buy it all. ‘Add to Cart’.”

Mina bit her lip, still tasting her. “I hate it when you do that Gwynth thing.”

Yuna winked.

After everything had gone down, Yuna and her had traveled back to her house. Doyeon had shown up with her brother, helping them pack up all of the stuff. They’d managed to get some of stuffs shipped to Jeju once Yuna and Mina decided that was where they were going to try to put down some roots.

Even Doyeon was human enough to accept everything about the whole alien mess. Losing a friend exceptionally would do that, as would the inability to find any closure. She was still the same girl in some ways: moments where she’d say something wholly inappropriate and she would laugh, and then others when she didn’t think Mina was looking, her eyes would cloud with misgiving. She, like so many others, would spend a lifetime wondering why and how it happened with Jieqiong. But not knowing the truth somehow created this strength to move on.

Leaning forward, Mina closed her laptop so she didn’t obsessively start ordering every boot and shirt out there. Her gaze danced over the stack of magazines piled on the corner of the desk, wedding gown after wedding gown staring back at her, stealing her breath a little.

“Well, can’t believe they are going to get married.” Two purple eyes narrowed, again. “The whole deal, with white gown, ceremony, bridesmaids, reception, DJ, and most importantly, the wedding cake.”

Mina nodded.

General Han had kept his promise. The Alien Relocation Program did not affect them, and as of today, no one had recognized either of them from the brief time the Gangnam videos had been up on the internet.

The program was General Han’s and the government’s answer to weeding out any Felix and Gwynth who may be flying the unfriendly skies. All Felix, Hybrids, Gwynths, and Kloom were required to register, all except them.

Now that the alien was really out of the bag, and with all the terrible things the invading Felix had done, aliens weren’t all that... accepted in communities. Every day, there was something in the news about an attack on a suspected Felix or colony. Many innocent Felix had been injured in the past months and some... they’d been killed just because of what they were.

Well, things weren’t easy or perfect, and the future seemed shaky at times, but life wasn’t wrapped up in neat little bows.

Yuna nodded secretly.

Rolling eyes, Mina ran her fingers over the multicolored tabs poking out of the tops of the magazines that marked pages with the gowns, decorations, and cakes she liked.

“By the way, how many minutes do we have left?” She asked innocently as Yuna climbed over the top of her, and as she leaned down, her front hair tickled her cheek. “I’ve totally forgotten about it.”

“Me too,” Yuna murmured against her girlfriend’s lips and curled an arm around her small waist, lifting her up so their bodies were pressed together at all the warm points. She trailed a path of tiny kisses across Mina’s forehead and then down, way down, where she lingered until she completely erased the whole idea of time and the fact they had things to do.

“Um, we have ten minutes before they went home.”

Yuna shot up. “Holy crap!”

Mina laughed as she scrambled off the bed. “Where are you going?”

Hurrying around the bed, Yuna twisted her hair high up. “I need to shower.”

“You don’t need to shower, Yuna.”

“Yes I do,” she threw open the bathroom door. “I smell like you.”

Mina’s giggle followed Yuna into the quickest shower she’d ever taken, which wasn’t surprising. Some soap here. Some soap there. That was all.

She wished she were a Gwynth.

There was enough time for her to grab the pink gift bag and run down the stairs before Yuna startled her at the front door. “What’s in there?” She glanced at it. She was already at the door, holding it open.

Holy freaking baby Gwynth...

Mina snatched up the bag. “Forgot to tell you. Something I had ordered.” Excited about it, she reached inside the bag and held up the one-piece sleeper for their inspection. “What do you think?”

Yuna’s eyebrows rose as she read the words in black block lettering. “’Girlfriends are Better in Books’?”

Mina folded it up and tucked it back into the bag. “I think they will appreciate it.”

Yuna looked confused. “I don’t get it.”

“I’m not surprised,” she responded drily as she stepped outside. “I think it’s adorable. She’s going to get her addicted to book girlfriends at a young age.”

“Her.” Yuna shook her head as she blew out a breath. “I don’t know how long it’s going to take for me to get used to hearing that.”

“What do you mean?” Mina asked.

Yuna shrugged as the door shut, locking behind them. “She’s one of the first female Gwynths ever. Who knows what that kid will be capable of.”

Mina was already sitting in the SUV. “Ugh, I can’t wait to see them all!”

Yuna nodded. “Well, Sehun checked in. He was wondering how everyone was doing.”

She’d heard from him and Irene a few months ago. The two had been planning on moving out of D.O’s house, heading south. Mina's mouth made an ‘O’ shape as she took Yuna’s hand off the steering wheel. “Did he move?”

“Yeah, he’s actually not that far from here. I think he settled in near Olle or somewhere close, since Irene’s from around here.” Yuna fished out her car keys and they picked up the conversation. “Anyways... I imagine us might be getting a visit from them with the baby, sooner or later.”

Mina nodded excitedly. “I’m going to squish her.”

Every Saturday, Yuna and Mina made the drive to their house. Even though the baby was old enough to go out and about, it wouldn’t be... um, the brightest idea. The baby had an odd habit of moving things without touching them, doing the eye-glowy thing, and last week, she’d levitated.

Right off the floor.

The house was on an acre of land, and thick trees gave the front of the house much-needed privacy. The host answered the door, grinning as she let them in. Mina frowned, because her sister looked different.

She stretched up, rubbing her head. “Is this a mommy haircut?”

Hyejeong’s hair was wavier now, growing longer along the sides and a little darker. It looked goddessly good on her, like a female Jesus. Then again, the two siblings could go bald and they’d still look great, though.

“I like it,” Yuna winked.

Seolhyun appeared in the doorway leading to the living room. Propped against her hip was a smiling baby with a head full of dark curls. “I ordered Chinese,” she said, wincing. “I was going to make lasagna, but...”

“Oh! Chinese is fine with us. Aren’t we?” Mina sent her best friend a look as she hurried down the hall, immediately going for the baby’s cheeks.

They were herded into the living room, and Mina couldn’t help but be amazed by how different Seolhyun looked. Her hair was pulled up in a high ponytail, her face fresh and glowing. She still had moments of... darkness, when she didn’t seem to have a tight grasp on reality. But she was much, much better.

Yuna’s eyes glimmered with agreement. “I second you that. Seolhyun is a Hot Mommy.”

“You really need to stop doing that.” Mina brushed past her, her thick, glossy curly hair trailing out behind. “Guys, you know what she did yesterday?”

“Do I even want to know?” Hyejeong muttered.

“We were at Hwadeok Pizza, and by the way, thank you for talking up the endless breadsticks crap, because I think we’ve eaten there like ten times this month, and I’m going to start smelling like garlic,” Mina went on, plopping in the recliner and tapping her ballet flats on the floor.

“I like their soup and salad,” Yuna said, shrugging as she walked over to the armchair and sat down.

Hyejeong’s forehead wrinkled.

“Anyway,” Mina said. “I thought our waitress was checking her out. Like nonstop. Like I wasn’t even there.”

Seolhyun chuckled.

“So I was, you know, doing something normal,” she said again.

“Normal?” Yuna laughed softly. “She was fantasizing running the poor waitress over with the car. Like in complete gory detail.”

One slender shoulder rose as she shrugged. “Like I said, you shouldn’t look into people’s thoughts and then complain about what you see.”

“I wasn’t necessarily complaining,” Yuna said, leaning down so brushed the curve of Mina’s ear. “If I remember correctly, you’d told me that it was kind of hot and that it made you want–”

“All right,” Hyejeong shouted. “That is stuff I just don’t even want to think about.”

Yuna laughed.

Mina frowned at her sister. “What? Excuse me, you think we don’t have wild–”

“Stop,” Hyejeong ewed playfully, waving her hand. “Seriously.”

“Where I go,” Mina chirped, “Yuna goes. Deal with it or get over it.”

Seolhyun’s smile grew when Mina’s eyes, so much like her sisters’, met hers. It was another thing she thought about a lot. The ‘what ifs’ of everything, like what if Mina hadn’t broken the hold the Felix held over her, or like what if she ended up choosing their side. Would she have died in the fight or would she have survived, only to leave Earth or be hunted down?

No one could predict the ending of their life story.

But they could create, choosing their own plots.

Seolhyun and Hyejeong had brought the surprise to end all surprises into the world when Seolhyun gave birth to a baby girl, so much so that the first thing Yuna thought of was a rebel son Kyu-like. Or, maybe, she would be the female version of him?

Blinking, Yuna shuddered at the possibility.

Hyejeong placed the gift bag on the end table where toys cov