“What?” Junhyung sat in Gikwang’s office. He was sitting in the chair across from him, separated by a desk. Junhyung had his face in his hands, his mouth hung open in disbelief. “What do you mean by that, exactly?” he asked. Gikwang shoved a file towards him.

                “This is what we dug up from the files, myself and HyunA from the Classified Intelligence Department. Everything about the project is in there. I suggest you go home tonight and study it.” He said. Junhyung took the file, and look back up at Gikwang.

                “Is it true? What you’ve said about him?” Gikwang shrugged.

                “Everything looks legit, but it’s hard to say. She found several other files just like it, but the units were destroyed, and the project discontinued for months, sometimes years before it was rekindled.”

                “What would he need with him though? What could he possibly be trying to do?” Gikwang sat forward.

                “Look, it’s hard to say at this point in time, but it’s a good assumption to say that it has everything to do with the data disk, and retrieving it.”

                “We don’t even know what’s on the goddamn data disk, how are we supposed to know what he’s after?” Junhyung shot back. Gikwang pulled out another folder and tossed it to him.

                “Then I guess you better getting studying then, shouldn’t you?” he asked. Junhyung looked from the folder to Gikwang as he reached for it. He rose out of his seat and bowed.

                “I will, you can count on it.”

                “Oh, and Junhyung,” Gikwang called out to him as he was about to leave. “Come to my office first thing tomorrow so we can discuss this.” Junhyung nodded.

                “Understood.” With that, he left.

*****

Junhyung sat at his desk, rifling through the papers. Sweat dampened his brow as he stared at the papers in disbelief.

                ‘This can’t be, there’s no possible way,’ he thought, as he searched through the documents. But then he found it.

                ‘Experiment 0330, otherwise known as: Yang Yoseob.’ He stared at the paper, his heart dropped down into his stomach. He realized now why Gikwang had been so worried about him.

*****

                “Junhyung, please calm down,” Gikwang had tried to calm him down as they talked in his office. He had told him that another man had talked about Yoseob; he even broke into his house and attacked him. “You’ll upset your stitches!” he cried, sitting Junhyung down in the chair.

                “There’s something you need to know,” he said, hoping to calm Junhyung down.

                “Like what?” he asked. His eyes were bloodshot; bandages covered his arm and shoulder. Gikwang could tell it had been a rough night for him, even without the bodily injuries.

                “About Yoseob…” Junhyung’s head perked up.

                “Yeah?” Gikwang sighed. Telling him this was going to be one of the hardest things he was ever going to have to do. He pulled out a file and handed it to him.

                “He’s a HomoDroid.” Junhyung raised an eyebrow.

                “A what?” he asked.

                “A humanoid computer. Artificial intelligence. A robot.” Junhyung shook his head.

                “I don’t believe you. He’s a human, just like you and I, he couldn’t possibly-” Gikwang slammed his fist on the table.

                “Open your eyes, Junhyung, has he ever eaten? Gone to the bathroom? When you first met him he didn’t even know how to put on clothes!” he ran his fingers through his hair. “He was one of the many experiments in the HomoDroid project. It’s been shut down plenty of times because of how unstable the units became.” He looked at Junhyung with pleading eyes. “Please Junhyung, listen to me.”

*****

                Junhyung read through the paperwork. His mind was swimming. How could he have been so blind? How was it possible for him to not see this?

                ‘Unit was activated on December 23^rd, 2012. Experiment was handed over to agent Yong Junhyung, otherwise known as Subject K.’

                ‘Subject? I’m a part of this experiment? This was all planned?’ he shook his head, unable to cope with the information. But he knew he had to read on.

                ‘Unit has been programmed with H.I.S, an E.M, an I.F.O.S and R.E.C.O.S.’ He looked up the definitions to the acronyms. ‘Human Interactive Software, Emotional Modem, Internal Functioning Organ System, and Reactive Emotional Comprehensive Operating System.”

                ‘This software allows the unit to comprehend human emotions, and normally interact with the human race and its surroundings. The organ system was put in place in order for the unit to appear more human in its functions.’  So, he wasn’t a human after all. It was just wires and programming. He kept reading.

                ‘On the last check up before the initial meeting of Unit 0330 and Subject K, the unit was upgraded with several fluids, including RABF, WABF, and AS&T.’ He looked up these acronyms as well.

                ‘Artificial Red Bodily Fluid, White Artificial Bodily Fluid and Artificial Saliva and Tears.’ He read on.

                ‘0330’s comprehensive operating system allows him to function in the most complex ways, such as everyday functions, the ability to learn skills, the ability to recall what it has learned, the ability to perform ual functions-” Junhyung stopped. He shook his head. This couldn’t be right. He made love, to a machine. Like a toaster, that’s all Yoseob was really, a toaster with legs. He got up and walked around his room. He looked up at the photo on the wall. It was of himself and Yoseob. They had just gotten back from the waterpark. He went back to the desk. If he was a robot, how could he handle water? Or extreme heat? It was really hot in the summertime, how could he not have malfunctioned. To his dismay, he found the answer quickly.

                ‘0330’s artificial epidermis is equipped with the latest water repellent technology, and is also equipped with the ability to control its internal temperature to avoid complete CPU melt down and malfunctions. During daylight hours, 0330 functions normally. As the CPU senses the change in hours, it readies itself for REM Sleep Mode. In REM Sleep Mode, the unit 0330 repairs any internal damage done that day, backs up its RAM and charges.’ Junhyung sat back, deflated. Yoseob didn’t tell him once. Not once, but could he really have done so? Was it even in his programming to tell Junhyung? He went back to the data, desperate for answers.

                ‘0330 is unable to communicate the intricacies of its programming to anyone but its creator unless spoken the code. Each unit comes with 12 codes. Each code performs a specific function. Certain functions change the outer shell of the unit, another restarts the unit, wiping its memory, a shut-down code that will cease the functioning of all systems within the unit. The most unstable and dangerous functioning code is the self-destruct code.’ A self-destruct code? Junhyung shook his head. Yoseob could be killed, no, he was a robot. Blown up. He could be smashed to smithereens. He could be shut down or restarted with the simple utterance of a phrase. He got up and went into the bathroom, stripping off his clothes and headed into the shower. He turned the water on as hot as he could. The water came down like bullets, pelting his back, reddening his skin.

                What was he going to do now? Did he need to save Yoseob? Did Doojoon have the codes? He closed his eyes.

*****

                Yoseob was standing away from the shower. Junhyung shook his head.

                “Yoseob, what are you doing?” he asked.

                “The water is hot, Hyung. It hurts.” He said, cowering in the corner. Junhyung went over to the shower knob and turned it a few inches.

                “There, it should be warmer now,” he said, stripping off his own clothes and stepping into the shower. He pulled Yoseob close to him. “Is that better?” he asked.

                “Yes.” He answered shyly, leaning on Junhyung’s chest. He could hear his heart beating. It sped up as he smiled.

                “Why does your heart race when you’re near me, Hyung?” he asked. “Do I make you nervous?” he asked. “Is it cuz I’m clumsy?” Junhyung smiled.

                “No, it’s because, well…” his voice trailed off.

                “Cuz why?” he asked. Junhyung turned Yoseob’s face to him.

                “Because I like you.” He said. Yoseob blushed.

                “Why?” he asked. Junhyung laughed.

                “I don’t know. I’m crazy I guess.” He said, planting a soft kiss on Yoseob’s lips. Their bodies tangled in a mess of limbs. Their moans echoed throughout the apartment, ringing in each other’s ears.

                They made their way into the hallway, and finished in the bedroom. As they lay there on the bed, Yoseob turned to him.

                “Hyung?” he asked.

                “Ne?”

                “I have a question.”

                “What is it?” he asked, turning towards him.

                “If one day, you woke up, and this was all a dream, what would you think?” he asked. Junhyung looked up at the ceiling, thinking about his answer. He smiled and turned to Yoseob.

                “I would still be happy. Because being with you has been the happiest time of my life. As long as I have memories of you and me, I think I could live with that.” Yoseob smiled.

                “I want to be with you forever.” Said Yoseob, reaching for his face. Junhyung grabbed his hand and kissed it. “I love you.” Junhyung smiled.

                “I love you too.” He said, kissing Yoseob on his forehead. “And I always will. Forever.”

*****

                Junhyung raised his head. Even if Yoseob wasn’t a real person, he still had feelings. They might have been programmed into him, but he could feel them, and Junhyung could feel them. Even if they weren’t real to anyone else, they could feel everything. He still loved him, circuits and all. He needed to find him. He got dressed, grabbed the data disk, and headed over to Doojoon’s headquarters.

*****

                A warm summer breeze floated through the air. The smell of grass and flowers swept past him. But none of that mattered. Nothing mattered now, except Yoseob.

                “He burst into the office, flying up the stairs. It was quite empty, and he was making a whole lot of racket. If Doojoon didn’t hear him coming, no one would.

*****

                It had been several weeks since he had seen Junhyung. Yoseob was afraid. He sat in the corner of Doojoon’s office, cowering. Doojoon had tied him down, and searched his body. He was looking for something, but he didn’t know what. He wasn’t told what he was looking for either.

                One day Doojoon had come in, pissed off at the world. He couldn’t find what he was looking for, and from what he heard, Junhyung had taken out one of his best hit men.

                ‘That’s my Hyung!’ Yoseob thought as he watched him pace the office. Doojoon had looked over at him several times. It was beginning to make him nervous. He finally came over and picked Yoseob up by the rope that was tying him down.

                “You don’t remember me, do you?” he asked. Yoseob shook his head. “What’s your first memory?” he asked.

                “I-I woke up on a metal table in a dark room. It was really big, with one big light shining down on me. I could see the light reflecting in the windows, but there was only me in the room.” He responded. He didn’t mean to give so much information. It just seemed to spill out. Doojoon smiled. He put his hand up to Yoseob’s face, but he shrank back.

                “Shy, are we?” he asked. “I can fix that.” He took a knife, and cut the top of Yoseob’s shirt. He began to rip it out from under the rope. Yoseob clenched his knees to his chest. Doojoon smiled.

                “Don’t be so coy, it’s not like you haven’t done this before, I’m sure.” He said, pulling down Yoseob’s pants.

                “No,” Yoseob whispered. “Stop.” Doojoon either didn’t hear him, or was ignoring him. He sat on Yoseob’s lap, running his fingers through his hair. He bent his head sideways, and ran his tongue along his neck. Yoseob shivered, out of fear rather than pleasure. He just wanted Junhyung to hold him. Tears ran down his cheek.

                “Stop!” he said louder, turning his head away. Doojoon smirked.

                “Why? Have you become that shy from me?” he asked, reaching out a hand, but Yoseob jerked his head again.

                “Only Junhyung can touch me like that.” He stated defiantly. Doojoon chuckled.

                “Junhyung? Is he your new master?” Yoseob looked at him in disbelief.

                “Master? I am not something you can own. He is my soul mate, and I refuse to be with anyone but him.” Doojoon stood up, and dragged Yoseob by his hair over to a mirror on the opposite wall.   He stood him up and placed his face just centimeters away from it.

                “Look into your eyes.” Doojoon commanded. Yoseob looked. He saw something tiny and green. “Focus on that. I know you see it. Focus as much as possible.” Yoseob focused as hard as he could. The more he focused, the clearer the tiny green shape became. It was numbers. ‘0330.’

                “What is that?” he asked, his voice shaking.

                “That’s your project name. You are nothing more than a computer with appendages and the ability to process information on your own.” He let go of Yoseob’s hair, and he dropped to his knees. “You are nothing more than a computer. You are an appliance. Nothing more. The blood in your veins, your skin, your hair,” he pulled out a strand, and dropped it in front of Yoseob’s face. “Is all artificial. The thoughts you think, the sensations you feel, are all programmed into your system.”

                Yoseob felt broken. He wasn’t real. He wasn’t a person like Junhyung. But how could that be? He had a birthday. He remembered when he was at the doctor’s appointment three years ago, his birthday was December 23^rd. You can’t have a birthday if you’re not born. He tried to rationalize everything that he knew. But everything that Doojoon had told him was beginning to contradict his knowledge.

                “But I have a birthday.” He said, looking back at him.

                “No, you have an activation date. The day you became aware. But that’s not your original activation date.” He said, walking over and petting his head.

                “What do you mean?” he asked.

                “February 13^th, 2009. I activated you here, in this office.” He patted the floor. “On this very spot. You still had your name, but you called me ‘Oppa’ by accident.” Yoseob’s eyes grew wide. Surely Doojoon was lying to him. This couldn’t possibly be true.

                “W-w-what happened then?” he asked. Doojoon shifted onto the floor, sitting next to Yoseob.

                “After a few years, they figured out where I stored my most precious information.”

                “Who did?” Doojoon looked at him.

                “The Agency. So they broke into our agency headquarters, Cube, and tried to find the information disk.” He smiled. “Of course, they didn’t find it, and I knew they wouldn’t.”

                “How?” asked Yoseob.

                “Because, I stored them in you.” Said Doojoon. “And you were at home with me.” Yoseob looked away. He didn’t want to believe that he and Doojoon had been together. It just wasn’t possible.

                 He stared at the wall. He just wanted to be in Junhyung’s arms. He felt a hand grab his chin, and gently twist his head. He was face to face with Doojoon.

                “Do you know why you called me ‘Oppa’?” he asked. Yoseob shook his head. He had just told him he couldn’t remember anything, how could he know. “One of the interns thought it would be funny to convince you that you were a girl. I punched him in his face and told him if he ever told you something like that again I’d throw him out the window.” He caressed Yoseob’s face. “But you wouldn’t call me anything else. I could never get you to call me ‘Hyung.’ I thought it was cute.” He drew him in and set him in his lap.

               “Just out of curiosity, what were we doing, the night they broke in looking for the disk?” Yoseob asked. Doojoon smiled.

               “We were making love.” He whispered. His hand traveled down to Yoseob’s privates, grabbing hold of him. He breathed sharply and twitched, trying to move away. Doojoon just moved him closer, planting kisses on his neck. He nipped him behind his ear. Yoseob didn’t like this feeling one bit. Whatever he had with Doojoon, it was over. All he wanted was Junhyung.

              “Don’t touch me like that! I don’t love you!” Yoseob turned his head, and scrunched up into a ball. Doojoon patted his head.

               “Do you know what’s on the information disk?” he asked Yoseob.

              “No, I don’t remember anything like that.” Yoseob shot back at him.

             “Your memories. Of me. Of us. And once I upload them into your CPU,” He grabbed Yoseob’s face and turned him so that he could look at him. “You will be mine again.”

*****

             “Damn, you’re loud,” Junhyung heard a voice call out from the darkness. He turned to see Gikwang.

             “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be at your office?” Gikwang stepped forward.

             “Shouldn’t you be there as well?” he asked. Junhyung shrugged sheepishly.

            “What do you think you’re doing here?” he asked. His eyes widened. “Were you really going to give them the data disk? Are you mad?” he asked. “Did you even look on the disk? Do you know what you’re handing over if you give that to Doojoon?”

            “He has Yoseob. I’ll figure everything else out when I get there.” Gikwang looked at him, flabbergasted.

            “I can’t believe you! He’s going to be able to control every computer in Seoul! Every business, every home, even the government! He could take over the country if he wanted, and you’re worried about some, some, APPLIANCE?” Junhyung punched Gikwang in the face.

            “Yoseob is more than that to me. He has feelings. Yes, they are programmed into his system, but they’re real to him. If he feels pain, if he’s sad, it’s real for him. Which makes it real to me. I’ll die before I let that scumbag touch him. Now get out of my way, I have to go save him.” He ran up to the landing and looked back down at Gikwang. “You might want to get out of the building.” He said before running off.

           “Junhyung! Junhyung, what are you going to do?” he called out, but he received no answer. He wanted to follow, but knowing Junhyung, he figured he ought to listen.

            Junhyung burst into the office. He looked around, and found Yoseob, lying on the floor. The shirt he wore wasn’t his, and he seemed a bit mangled. He couldn’t see Doojoon anywhere. This seemed too easy. He rushed forward, and turned him over.

          “Yoseob? He asked.” The boy slowly opened his eyes. He smiled weakly and threw his arms around him.

          “Junhyung! Hyung I was so scared, I thought I would never see you again!” he buried his head in his chest.

         “It’s alright, baby,” he said, lifting his head and softly kissing his lips. “I’m here now.” Yoseob smiled at him. “Baby, I know you’re scared, but I need you to do something for me.” He said. Yoseob nodded.

        “What is it, Hyung?” Junhyung whispered in his ear. Yoseob looked at him, frightened.

        “Are you sure, Hyung?” he asked. He nodded.

        “I see no other choice.” Yoseob nodded.

       “You’ll be with me, won’t you?” Junhyung nodded.

      “Always.” He gently kissed him. Yoseob leaned in savoring the kiss. It had been so long. He had missed him so much. They heard a knock at the door. Junhyung turned around.

      “It’s time.” Yoseob nodded, and sat back. The door flew open, and Doojoon stood there.

      “Well, well, well. Here we are. It’s about time you made it, Yong Junhyung.” Junhyung took the disk out of his coat pocket, and tossed it to him.

      “Now let us leave.” Doojoon shook his head.

      “I’m afraid I can’t do that.” He said, pulling out a gun. Yoseob looked from Doojoon to Junhyung, but he sat still.

      “All you wanted was the data disk. You said you’d let him go if you had it.” Junhyung said through clenched teeth. Doojoon shook his head. 

      “Wrong. I said I wouldn’t kill him. I never said anything about letting him go.” He slowly walked forward. Junhyung stepped in front of Yoseob. “You’re going to make this difficult, aren’t you?” asked Doojoon cocking his head. He knelt down in front of Yoseob. Doojoon cocked the gun.

       “Fine then, any last words?” he asked. Junhyung smiled, grabbing onto Yoseob’s hand.

       “Hopscotch.” A loud bang emanated from Yoseob’s back. Shrapnel flew all over the office, breaking the mirror and the window behind his desk.  Yoseob wrapped his arm around Junhyung, and rested his head on his shoulder. He started on fire.

        Doojoon backed away, falling onto his back. He turned to run out the door, but it suddenly shut, and the automatic lock malfunctioned. He looked over, the fire escape. As he headed for it, metal bars came flying down. He was trapped. He looked over, Yoseob was exploding. Junhyung had turned to him. They were now facing each other on the floor, embracing each other tightly, ensnared in an eternal kiss.

        Doojoon saw no other way out. He put the gun to his head, and shot himself. Blood and tissue spattered all over the floor as he dropped, the life leaving his eyes.

        Gikwang looked up at the exploding building. He dropped to his knees. Junhyung. He had done exactly as he had feared. But what had he expected? This was Junhyung after all.

        The last thing he saw before darkness shrouded his vision was Yoseob’s bright eyes, and his sweet smile.

“Hyung?” he asked.

“Ne?”

“I have a question.”

“What is it?” he asked, turning towards him.

“If one day, you woke up, and this was all a dream, what would you think?” he asked. Junhyung looked up at the ceiling, thinking about his answer. He smiled and turned to Yoseob.

“I would still be happy. Because being with you has been the happiest time of my life. As long as I have memories of you and me, I think I could live with that.” Yoseob smiled.

“I want to be with you forever.” Said Yoseob, reaching for his face. Junhyung grabbed his hand and kissed it. “I love you.” Junhyung smiled.

“I love you too.” He said, kissing Yoseob on his forehead. “And I always will. Forever.”

THE END.