Mir sat and stared blankly at the lying body on the bed. The stranger's chest was moving steadily. White bandage were wrapped tightly around the stranger's chest. Mir had done his best to treat the wound. Fortunately, the rod wasn't buried that deep to reach the guy's heart.

Mir's mind started to drift back to the real reason he was here in the first place. Mir stood up and walked around the room. He looked over the shattered glasses. The colorful liquid mixed with the guy's blood. None of them looked like the one that had been injected in his vein.

Mir was scanning through some liquid in a glass cupboard when a groan came from the injured guy. Mir turned back a bit and saw the guy's eyes blinked open. Shrugging it off, he continued his mission in searching for the liquid. 

The guy's breathing was heavy and irregular as he was trying to adapt to the pain on his chest. Mir made a bored face and grabbed a bottle of mineral water together with medicines that Sanghyun had packed in his bag for him. He waltzed to the guy and worldlessly popping up two pills in his mouth and supported the stranger's head as he helped the guy to drink.

Mir left the still more than half-filled bottle by the guy's bedside and went back to his work.

There was silence except the subtle shuffling noise as Mir kept inspecting every items in the room thoroughly.

"My name is Nickhun by the way." The stranger started with a hoarse voice.

Mir didn't bother to answer. He didn't even bother to turn around to face Nickhun as the tall boy kept talking.

"What are you looking for?" He asked.

"Things that she had injected in me. It look kind of like melted silver or something. Have you seen them?" Mir asked.

Nickhun's brows knitted, almost became one as he pondered on Mir's question. "I think I've seen a tube with that kind of liquid in the next room."

With that, Mir started to the door but as he was about to walk past Nickhun, the boy held his forearm. "You're not going to leave me, are you?" He asked.

Mir detected the hint of fear in the injured boy's voice. Mir shook his head. "But, I will still leave eventually. Just not right now." Nickhun's hand slid down and lied limp by his side. He looked away from Mir. "Do you want to come with me?" He asked knowing the boy had no one else and nowhere else to go.

To that question, Nickhun's head snapped to Mir, eyes glinted with something similar to hope. "To where?" He asked back carefully.

Mir pursed his lips and sat down again at the chair next to the bed. He leaned both his elbows on his knees. "You said you came from east fort?" Nickhun nodded. "Is it safe to assume you are one of the researchers for the pandemic?" At that, Nickhun shook his head.

"No. But, we do have a group of researchers there. Tiffany was one of them. I was in the defense area, guarding the fort." He revealed.

Mir nodded thoughtfully. "I'm planning to go there with that liquid. I'm pretty sure they will be interested with this new finding."

Nickhun frowned. "Are you sure? You'll probably be their specimen and being a specimen is not a good idea. Not even close to decent."

"Probably. Probably I will." He agreed but his eyes said something else. "Small sacrifice for greater purpose." Mir muttered, repeating what was once Tiffany said to him. What was once the sentence that he would never agree even at the price of his own life. But, if it was only him. If it was only him as the sacrifice, then, maybe he actually could agree to that statement. Mir's hand found the necklace Sanghyuk gave him. 'I'm not throwing away my life. I promise you.' He whispered to himself like he was talking to Sanghyuk himself.

Nickhun knew that look on Mir's face. The look that he, himself always bore. The look of someone who had lost someone precious to them. He knew, just like him, Mir too had lost someone he cherish probably more than his own life. But, the small boy still surviving. Still living. Still having a purpose. Having those undying glimmer of hope in his eyes even at this seemingly hopeless world. The boy was doing something. The boy was trying to change this world. The boy, with that small self of his, wanted to change this world. Wanted to heal this world. And, what had Nickhun himself done? Weeping around pathetically? 

"I want to." Mir looked up as Nickhun spoke. "I want to follow you." He said, trying to sat up, but Mir easily pushed the guy back down.

"Rest first. We'll go when you're strong enough." And Mir left to the next room to continue his search.