Luhan awoke to the sound of footsteps in the hall, bacon sizzling in the frying pan and the sound of the TV blaring the news. He got up, made his bed and was prepared to go out for breakfast. What he saw surprised him.

                “Good morning Luhan. I trust you slept well?”

                “Zitao?!” he rubbed his eyes in disbelief. “What are you doing here?”

                “I happened to bump into Kris during his morning run. He asked if I would like to come in for breakfast and I said yes.” Zitao’s clothes were crumpled, and there were dark bags under his eyes. He looked like he didn’t sleep much.

                Oh god, could it be…

                “I was up all night with Jessica.” Zitao yawned. “I don’t suppose you have made a decision?”

                “Oh,” Luhan bit his lip unconsciously. “To be honest I haven’t thought about it much since the other day…”

                “Anybody want coffee?” Kris asked from the question.

                “Yes please.” Zitao chuckled. “I feel like I got hit over by a bus.”

                “Maybe you shouldn’t come in to work today.” Luhan said, taking his place at the table.

                “That’s alright. I have quite a bit of work to do.” Kris bought two cups of coffee and sat down next to them. “How’s your research coming?”

                “Actually it’s coming along quite well.” Luhan said. “Kris and I have been spending the weekend coming up with drafts and text trials of the serum in our home laboratory.”

                “Has it been tried?” Zitao asked, his fork digging into his plate of baked beans.

                “Not yet. We still have some more work to do before we want to test it on anyone.” Kris said.

                “If you need the perfect test subject I’m sure I can round up some trainees for you.” Zitao said.

                “That’s alright. I have my own.” Luhan smiled. A few days ago, Professor Kim had given him permission to recruit Jung Jaehyun and Kim Doyoung as his test subjects. The tests so far have been rather mild, the effect of Triple X still weighing heavily on them. However, every time Luhan gets a breakthrough, even a tiny one, he could see the look in Jaehyun and Doyoung’s eyes as they changed once they saw each other. Jaehyun’s eyes would soften, while Doyoung’s eyes would roam about. Once, he even caught tears coming out from Doyoung’s eyes.

                Tears. Actual emotion.

                “This could be a very dangerous serum.” Luhan was telling Zitao as they both made their way to work together. “E.X.O have reported fits and seizures over the course of their time down in the Hive. If this serum were to remove the effects of Triple X instantenously, or at the least faster than it did before, then it might have very negative repercussions on the body.”

                “You mean death?”

                “No, not really.” Luhan shook his head. “But they will experience very violent, and perhaps traumatic and painful seizures or fits. Think of it as a woman giving birth but 10 times more painful.”

                “That’s a lot of damage on the human body.”

                “Exactly. We need to come up with a way to reduce the harmful side effects or invent another serum to combat it.”

                They arrived at S.M.E and made their way back up to the laboratories. Zitao the lights in the lab, running a hand across one of the tables, checking for dust. Luhan went straight to his locker to put his stuff away. Zitao’s was just a few feet away from him.

                Just as Zitao was putting his things away, rummaging about in his locker, a small slip of thin paper fell out of his locker. Luhan reached over to pick it up. He turned the paper over to find that it wasn’t a paper, it was a picture.

                A younger Zitao was standing next to another guy, their hands around each other. Zitao had on a lab coat, and the background was a little unfamiliar, but Luhan guessed it was one of the S.M.E parks. What caught Luhan’s attention however, was the man in the photo.

                He looked just like Sehun.

                “Zitao…”

                “Oh!” Zitao snatched the picture from his hand, his expression looking very much like someone who was caught stealing.

                “Zitao, was that Sehun?”

                “I don’t know what you are talking about.”

                Luhan raised his hand up to his hip. “Zitao.”

                “You don’t need to know anything. Leave me alone.”

                “I’m not going anywhere until you tell me the truth. What is this photo and was that Sehun?”

                Zitao sighed heavily, his hands still clasping onto the photo behind his back. “Fine. Yes. It was Sehun. Happy?”

                “I didn’t know you knew him so personally.”

                “We were friends in high school. He came as a trainee while I came as a junior research assistant. I didn’t know he was a trainee for that long.”

                “Oh.” Luhan tried to not sound irritated or unhappy. He tried to mask his emotions as best as he could, feeling this ugly pit of jealously in his stomach. So what? It’s not like he and Sehun were together or anything. Sure, they did kiss but it was just an itty bitty kiss. It’s not a big deal, they weren’t…

                In love…or anything…

                “It was you.” Luhan suddenly realized what happened. The pieces came together, the puzzle was complete. An image formed in his head, and it clamped down on his heart like a million knives. “You kissed Sehun.”

                “Luhan, that was a long, long time ago.” Zitao scoffed, as if humour could help pass the moment over. “I was young, and foolish. Sehun was hot and handsome. We had a couple of drinks and I…”

                “You kissed him. You had feelings for each other.” Luhan pointed a finger at him, like a child accusing his mother. “That was what caused the nightmares, fits, seizures and the riot. You broke through the Triple X without knowing it.”

                “If I had known what this would turn in to, I would have never done it.” Zitao leaned against his locker door. The look on Luhan’s face pained him. He was so stunned, shocked and even hurt. All this time Luhan knew the pain Sehun was under, the torture, the guilt and the suffocation of being held against his will. It all happened because of a reckless night and a bottle of vodka.

                “You loved him, didn’t you?”

                Now there was a question Zitao did not want to answer.

                “I did.” He did anyways.

                Luhan took two steps back, slammed his locker door and ran.

******************************

                “You’re a little late.” Sehun teased. “Kept me waiting for two whole minutes. How dare you?”

                “Why didn’t you tell me?” Luhan asked the minute he stepped in.

                “Tell you what?”

                “It was Zitao. You two were in love and he kissed you.”

                “How did you...”

                “I found out by accident.” Luhan crossed his arms in the dark. “Zitao told me.”

                “Oh.” Sehun mumbled. An awkward silence passed through the room as Sehun bit his tongue. “I knew you were working for him, and I didn’t want you to feel awkward.”

                “Awkward? You think that’s all I’m feeling now?” Luhan scoffed. “I am working for the same man who put you in this state. How do you think that makes me feel?”

                “I’m sorry Luhan.”

                “Sorry?! If you and Zitao had a thing then why did you kiss me? Why did you make me come down here to keep you company all this time? Why did you say all those things to me?”

                “Luhan, I swear to god it was a long time ago,” Sehun stood up to hold Luhan tightly, but the young scientist was stiff to touch. “Yes, Zitao and I had feelings for each other. We were old friends and it was just nice to see a familiar face after coming from a strange place. He was drunk and I…” Sehun swallowed harshly. “I didn’t stop him.”

                “He did this to you. He was the cause of all of this. No wonder he…” Luhan remembered what Zitao was saying about the overwhelming feeling of guilt. The pain and the sleepless night. The Uprising.

                “No wonder what?” Sehun asked.

                “He…” Luhan took a deep breath, and with as much composure as possible, he explained what really happened to him a few days ago. How he was kidnapped by the Uprising, and their secret plot to rescue E.X.O and burn down S.M.E. He was hesitant to tell Sehun because he was so torn between doing the right thing and doing the only thing he knew. It pained him for days, haunting him and it stressed him out. Luhan watched Sehun’s face turn stone cold as he explained everything that happened.

                “Oh my god.”

                “I know.” Luhan breathed.

                “This is insane.”

                “I know.”

                “Don’t tell me you are going to go through with this plan.”

                “I don’t know! At first I wasn’t but lately…” Luhan bit his lip. “What if there was a method in their madness? What if that really was the only way we can get out of this torture chamber and into freedom?”

                “Luhan…”

                “Look at what they have done to you. Look at what they have done to your members.” Luhan reached for Sehun’s face in the dark, his fingers trembling as his voice shook. “You and Jongin can’t dance anymore. Kyungsoo was left here to die. His fingers were so cold and his face was so white.”

                Sehun took Luhan’s hands in his, squeezing them tightly. “There’s a little boy upstairs,” Luhan trembled, “that is no longer human. He is told he is imperfect when there is clearly nothing wrong with him.”

                “You are risking your life Luhan.” Sehun said. “Don’t do this. It’s not worth it.”

                “Who are you to tell me my decision is not worth it?” Luhan snapped back. “You don’t know what I have seen Sehun. You don’t know…”

                “Luhan I am a product of everything that you have seen. I am one of them and I am telling you right now it is stupid.” Sehun’s voice turned cold and sharp, as if Luhan was the most disgusting creature on the planet.

                “Sehun this is…”

                “Luhan stop it. It’s not your job to save the world. They are just using you!”

                “And what do you expect me to do? Sit here and just watch you suffer?!” Luhan was purely screaming now. A sharp knock came on Sehun’s cell door and a sleepy voice called from outside.

                “Luhan? Is that you? What the are you…”

                “ off Jungkook.”

                “Excuse me but you are the one who…”

                “I said: OFF!” Luhan screamed, his hands balled up into fists. There was a few seconds of silence as Jungkook trodded away, presumably going back to sleep and pretend that he was just sleepwalking.

                “I won’t let you do this. I just won’t.” Sehun said. “What if you get caught? You would be arrested and put to jail, and the rest of your future would be in jeopardy? What happened to your dreams Luhan? You told me you wanted to be a scientist who could make a difference. Do you know just what you are getting into?”

                “I cannot sit here and just watch you like this!” Luhan’s tears escaped from the corner of his eyes, a broken sob on the tip of his tongue. “How can I not do anything to protect the person I love the most?”

                “Luhan…”

                “You don’t understand what you do to me. Ever since I met you, you are all I think about. I dream about you. I can’t function without thinking about you, wanting you, kissing you.” Luhan sputtered out. “If I can get you free, then maybe, maybe we can be together. Maybe we don’t have to hide our relationship, maybe we can be normal again.”

                “Luhan, this…” Sehun bit his lip. “I…”

                “Is it a crime for wanting such a thing? Here you are telling me that this idea or this option that I have is a complete ing waste of my time when you…”

                “I cannot have you risking yourself for me!” Sehun snapped. “I have done enough of that. It’s because of me my members are in jail. I am not worth you risking your life for.”

                “How could you say that?” Luhan’s tears rolled down his cheeks like a waterfall, the hurt in his voice so evident, that it cracked Sehun’s heart into a million pieces.

                “You are so beautiful, so kind, so perfectly human. Look at me, I am nothing but a shell of a man they tried to create and failed.” Sehun dipped his head down. “You don’t deserve someone like me. You deserve someone who could give you the world, take you to the highest places in life. You need someone who lets you fly, not hold you down.”

                “I don’t want to fly.” Luhan gritted his teeth. “I just need you.” He reached for Sehun’s face, his fingertips feeling wetness on his cheeks. Sehun’s hands reached up to Luhan’s, his calloused thumb wiping the tears away. Luhan reached up, his lips coming forward to Sehun’s, but just as he could feel the warmth from Sehun’s lips, the other pulled away.

                “I’m sorry Luhan.”

                Luhan felt Sehun pull back from him, his arms loosing grip and his warmth dissipating from his touch. Luhan held back another sob, his tears hot as the stream down continuously. He opened the door and ran again.

                He doesn’t know what he’s running from, but no matter how far or fast he ran, the pain always catches up.

 

A/N: unfortunately the romance lasted only a few days LOL but trust me when i say this is when the story really starts to pick up. I hope you guys had an awesome Christmas!