iRobot

“Where did you find it?” Dong Hoon asks looking at the item in question with interest. He takes a step closer, his eyes roaming around like a hungry wolf. The item –not really, it resembles a person- but when Dong Hoon reaches to touch the arm all he can feel is firmness, like a metal sheet. Therefore, he concludes that this item person thing is a real life mannequin made by NASA, he tells his finding to Jihyo.

This earns him a frown. “Are you crazy?” She chucks the pen she was playing with, hitting him on the chest. “Do you think NASA just leaves their junk behind a dumpster?” Jihyo asks, fondest in her voice. She has been with Dong Hoon long enough to know how imaginative her friend can be.

Dong Hoon picks up the pen and throws it back. He grabs a chair and places it right in front of the mannequin thing. He takes a seat and stares ignoring Jihyo. But he must admit, she does have a point, NASA isn’t careless. This thing cannot be the terminator from the future either, it just didn’t have the muscles and built.

Jihyo stands beside him also staring at the figure with concern. “Should we call the police?”

Dong Hoon snorts. “Let’s keep the cops out, Jihyo. You talk like you don’t know me at all.”

Jihyo clasps his shoulder her focus suddenly shifting towards Dong Hoon. “I thought you’re off of that?”

“I am! But drugs are hard to clean off the apartment, okay? Just leave the cops out, I don’t want to go to jail tonight.” Dong Hoon explains then adds before she can reply. “Okay. So, should we find the switch button?”

Jihyo laughs. “You and your imagination, honestly.” She goes to the kitchen and looks through the empty fridge. “It’s good you’re trying for clean this year, your head is too-“ Before Jihyo can even place her hands over her ear, a loud bang like a bazooka hitting a wall  at close range echoed throughout the apartment.

She falls over on the floor heart beating a thousand miles per hour. Her ears ringing and by the feel of it blood is oozing out of her left ear. Everything becomes fuzzy but she fights through the pain and ringing in her ear. Jihyo crawls soldier style to where Dong Hoon lays unconscious near the hallway to the kitchen.

There is a stillness in the air, no broken glass, no smashed wall or any unsettled dust particle. It’s like nothing happened.

“O-Oh my god, D-Dong Hoon…” She mutters tears forming around her eyes. “Oh my god.” Jihyo grabs the closest limb –Dong Hoon’s right foot- and pulls with all her might. She crawls upwards and cupping Dong Hoon’s pale face. “Please don’t be dead, please-“

Jihyo hears footsteps behind her. Her whole body becomes rigid but her brain working onto overdrive. A moment pass, with her breathing controlled, Jihyo rolls on her back and stands so quick she almost loses her bearings. Whoever the intruder is, Jihyo is going to put up a fight and it’s going to be worth it.

A fist clasps around her wrist from out of nowhere and yanks her backwards, her back hitting a hard surface. She lets out a scream, her legs flailing trying to get out of the iron grip she was in. With adrenaline pumping through her, Jihyo remembers the action movies she had watched and without a thought, she gathered momentum and bashes her head backwards hoping to hit her attacker on the face. Someone should have told talked her out of it because Jihyo feels a searing pain explode from everywhere and passes out.

Jihyo blinks awake her vision blurry but doable. Her senses catches up and she feels a couple of blankets on top of her making her feel safe and secured. Jihyo sighs snuggling closer to the blankets and pillows surrounding her.

“I must admit, I did not expect to cause so much trouble. Forgive me.” An unfamiliar voice whispers.

Jihyo’s breathing becomes labored.

“Don’t sweat it, man,” she hears Dong Hoon’s voice reply. Jihyo sits up and sees her friend smiling at a stranger.

Dong Hoon walks towards her, face full of worry. “Jihyo! How are you feeling?”

Jihyo closes her eyes to stop the room from spinning. “I have a really bad headache.”

She hears laughter. “Yeah. You hit your head pretty hard…” There is some shuffling. “Here, take a bite.” Dong Hoon gently places something soft against her lips. Jihyo takes the food –the bread- and takes a bite. That’s when Dong Hoon decides to ruin her snack, he starts his rambling with “his name is Gary,” ending it with, “from the future. I wasn’t betting on the terminator thing but-“

“You’re making my head throb.” Jihyo complains. Nothing was making sense so she keeps her eyes close and continues to munch on the bread.

There was a dip on the bed and some whispering that Jihyo didn’t bother to listen to. Then Dong Hoon says, “So, Gary needs to check your head.”

Jihyo frowns. “You called a doctor?”

“No…but Gary is a doctor though.”

Jihyo frowns. “Who is Gary?”

Dong Hoon sighs. “Gary is a doctor…from the future.” He says as if it explains everything.

This time, Jihyo chooses to laugh because of Dong Hoon’s overactive mind. “Is he any good?” She teases.

Jihyo feels a hand on her arm. “I’m not joking. And you know what the freakiest part is?” A pause then, “Gary is your husband from the future.”

Jihyo blinks open her eyes and came face to face with the man, with the mannequin she had dragged from the dumpster. She wanted to scream but nothing came out, only a lungful of air. The mannequin, the man –Gary- looks at her with so much familiarity she almost believed Dong Hoon’s earlier statement.

“I’m sorry but I don’t have a husband,” she explains, but the man is slowly but surely leaning closer, taking all the available oxygen in her bubble.

To her relief, Dong Hoon pulls a little at Gary’s green jacket. “Give her a moment, dude.” Gary hesitates but does what he was told. He steals one last glance befo