Since the day Sang-hyuk cried, a new person began to visit his room.

T52 did not visit every day like Sang-hyuk did, nor did he stay very long when he did. T52 did not speak much, only giving occasional grunts when asked certain questions, and he never looked him in the eye. He did not seem very nice, nothing like Sang-hyuk, and he did not understand why Sang-hyuk wanted them to become friends. It did not seem like T52 wanted to be there; the only reason he continued to try and talk with his occasional visitor was seeing the wide smiles Sang-hyuk would give when he saw them, loving the sound of his praises.

But he had promised Sang-hyuk, so no matter how T52 appeared to dislike being with him, he was determined to be friends. He wanted to hear Sang-hyuk tell him how proud he was.

He straightened in his chair when the door opened, already aware that it was T52 and preparing himself with the appropriate facial expression that would please him. He had long discovered the time T52 would come; always before Sang-hyuk and not long after the lights . There was nothing to base the time on when there were no clocks or other signifiers of passing time, and his perception depended on the lights and visitors alone. But this did not cause any problems since there was nothing required of him when alone, and this was the same when T52 carefully stepped into the room.

T52 was beautiful; it was a thought that passed through his mind every time the man stepped into his room. Since T52 started visiting, he began to compare himself in the same way he compared himself to Sang-hyuk, an action that did little more than remind himself of how lacking his body was. Both T52 and Sang-hyuk had light skin, a color that highlighted how dark his own was. T52 had large, shining eyes and dimples that decorated his cheeks; Sang-hyuk had mentioned numerous times how handsome T52 was, and it could not help but wonder why it was given such a face that Sang-hyuk could never say the same about him.

T52 kept his eyes on the floor as he silently shut the door behind him, his face expressionless as he walked to the bed. He made sure to smile widely when the man was close enough, keeping his hands on his knees as he greeted, “Hello, T52.”

T52’s eyes flitted up to his face, his lips pursing as he nodded his head, slowly settling himself into Sang-hyuk’s chair. While he had not been happy initially when T52 first sat in Sang-hyuk’s chair, he learned to accept it when Sang-hyuk told him it was okay. He waited silently as the man fell still, unsure of what to say that would hopefully be able to grab his attention. He still struggled with starting a conversation on his own, Sang-hyuk always the one to lead the conversation, and T52’s constant silence did not help.

Eventually, “It has been a while since you have visited.” T52 grunted, a usual response. It was not one that helped in any way, and it had absolutely no idea what to say. He instead watched how T52’s eyes were continuously moving, looking from the floor to the bed before looking back down again. His fingers were constantly shifting, gripping at the edges of his shirt before sliding down to rub at the turn of his knees, his hands smooth as they ran back up to grab his shirt again. His shoulders were just as uncertain, tightening with every second. He took all these bodily movements into account, aware of how Sang-hyuk moved the same way when upset, and settled his face into a small frown. 

Do you not want to see me?”

“What?” T52 finally looked up, finally meeting his eye as his body fell completely still. He did not know whether the surprise was because he had guessed incorrectly or not, though he did notice that it was the first time T52 had spoken to him directly. When T52 did nothing beyond stare at him, his eyes wide and his body so still, he wondered if he had made the man angry, unable to read his facial expressions as well as he could Sang-hyuk’s.

“I am sorry, I did not mean to upset you. I only made the assumption because you always appear unhappy when you are here. I am sorry if I was wrong.”

T52 finally shook his head, his hands the only part of him that relaxed as they slowly reached out to grab his own. He could feel his right hand jolt underneath the man’s touch, his skin prickling at the realization that someone other than Sang-hyuk was touching him. His body knew Sang-hyuk, able to recognize every fold and wrinkle in his skin. While the rest of the world still made his body uncomfortable with the amount of stimuli it would send, Sang-hyuk never gave him anything other than comfort.

But T52 was different. His skin did not feel as coarse as Sang-hyuk’s, having none of the hardened wrinkles that ran over Sang-hyuk’s knuckles. There were no chips in his nails, no indicators he chewed on them the way Sang-hyuk did. There was only softness, a softness he felt only when feeling along his own skin. Their skin felt the same, and it was a realization he did not understand.

“No…no, I would never think that,” T52 said, his voice low and quiet. It was so different from Sang-hyuk’s, so smooth and heavy, and he began to recognize those qualities as T52 himself. “I…I did not mean for you to have those thoughts. I always come here with the intention of seeing you.”

He could feel his whole arm shudder as T52 continued to run his thumbs over the back of its hands. He was not sure whether he liked the feeling or not, but there was a kind of familiarity that came with his touch, and it was that familiarity that kept him from pulling away. “I understand.” He looked up to see T52’s eyes down again, unable to look him in the eye. “Is it because of my face?”

“What?” T52’s hands tightened around his own, and he hissed. T52’s hands loosened immediately, though he still stared at him with furrowed brows and a tight frown. He realized he had made him angry, recognizing the same angry features that would appear when Sang-hyuk felt the same.

“I did not mean to make you angry, I am sorry.” He waited until T52’s face relaxed, watching to make sure the wrinkles in his forehead were gone. “I noticed you are unable to look at my face. Sang-hyuk had the same difficulty when he first saw me. He could not look at me without crying.”

T52’s eyes were wide as he spoke, his lips parted slightly before shaking his head fiercely, tugging on his hand until their faces were only inches apart. He did not know what the other was doing or what he was supposed to do, and could only stare as he waited to see what was expected of him. “No, do not think that. There is nothing wrong with the way you look. You have a beautiful face. You are beautiful. If anyone tells you otherwise-” His voice stopped midsentence, his eyes glazing over as his mouth fell slack, and it finally was able to relax as it knew what to do.

He fumbled with peeling T52’s hands away, settling him back in the chair, one hand on the back of his head to keep it from knocking back. This had happened to T52 on numerous occasions, and Sang-hyuk had instructed him to be careful and help him until he woke up again. He told him not to worry and that he would be fine until then, but he had to make sure he did not hurt himself.

It was not long until T52’s eyes flashed awake, taking only a few seconds before he shot up in his chair, his hands immediately shooting out and grabbing its own, pushing himself forward so he was just as close as before. His gaze was hard, his brow furrowed, and it blinked back curiously. “I will kill them myself.” He realized T52 was only finishing his previous sentence, and he nodded back when he deduced it to be the best response.

“You do not need to worry. Only Sang-hyuk and Seok-jin come to see me. Neither of them would say that to me.” He did not tell of the many times Sang-hyuk complimented him, of how he described him as ‘amazing’ or ‘beautiful’. Those words were for him alone, and he did not want to share them with anyone.

T52 eventually let go when he was finally reassured, his hands twitching in his lap once again as he sat back in his chair. It did not seem right to see T52 so upset, finding such a response to his observations unexpected. T52 acted like himself in many aspects, though when it came to reacting strongly with over-expressive faces and heavy voices, he was so much more like Sang-hyuk. While he found the reaction odd, a part of himself wished he could understand and feel the same.

“Your name,” T52 said suddenly, his eyes trained on their feet and his hands clenched around his shirt, “what do they call you?”

“My name is Y21.” The first thing Sang-hyuk taught it. Words that he would never forget.

T52’s jaw locked, the sound popping, and he wondered what he was feeling for such a thing to happen. “I cannot call you that.”

“That is fine.” At this point they were sitting as mirrors of each other, each with their backs straight and their hands on their knees, heads held high and their eyes unblinking. It was strange to see, him so used to Sang-hyuk and the natural way his back would slouch as he sat, or how he would tilt his head when thinking. Even Seok-jin had quirks to the way he moved, his one eye tending to blink more than the other, his fingers clumsy as they worked to feed him. But T52 had none of these, each movement steady and his body moving with the stiffness of water.

The door opened before either of them could think of anything more to say, and his lips pulled up the moment he saw Sang-hyuk step through the door. He did not see the way T52’s lips pursed at his reaction, only focused on the bright smile Sang-hyuk sent him.

“Hello Y21!” Sang-hyuk paused when he saw T52 sitting in his chair, his surprise quickly hidden behind an even wider smile. “And hello, T52. Are you two having fun?”

He opened his mouth to answer when T52 suddenly stood up, his head down as he shoved past Sang-hyuk and left, the door shutting behind him. Neither were surprised; T52 never stayed when Sang-hyuk came, and he was never able to look Sang-hyuk when they were together. He believed that was just how they were, and he had no reason to question it.

Sang-hyuk did not wait to come over and sit in his chair, his hands immediately moving out to cup its face and shake his cheeks, a touch he desperately wished he could feel. Sang-hyuk loved to touch his face, always holding his cheeks and brushing his eyes. He wanted to feel it. He wished Sang-hyuk would let them replace more of his body, but he did not want to see Sang-hyuk cry again.

“How is my Y21?” Sang-hyuk asked, his smile wide and his teeth showing. He watched how Sang-hyuk’s eyes crinkled as he smiled, the bridge of his nose wrinkling, every facet another detail he memorized. It was not often that Sang-hyuk was this happy, and he made sure to paint each second into his memory. “Are you and T52 becoming friends?”

“I do not know. He says he comes to see me, but I am not sure if he enjoys being here. He does not smile like you.” 

Sang-hyuk paused, his mouth open for a second before swallowing, the brightness in his eyes gone. “That…that’s just how T52 is. Believe me; he really loves coming here. He always looks forward to coming and seeing you.” He had no reason to disbelieve anything Sang-hyuk said, nodding appropriately so that Sang-hyuk would not continue to frown. It worked, a softer smile falling on Sang-hyuk’s lips. “I’m so happy you two are getting along. He’s treating you alright, right?”

He hesitated answering, unsure what exactly Sang-hyuk was asking of him, and Sang-hyuk realized that, quickly pulling back. “Ah, sorry. He is not bad to you, is he?”

“No, he is not.”

Sang-hyuk smiled again. “That’s good. As much as I want you two to be friends, if he ever hurt you, I would never allow him back here again.” Sang-hyuk took that moment to begin the daily tests, reaching out and grabbing his arm, checking the joints and feeling up and down the limb. He followed along, keeping a close eye on Sang-hyuk’s hands to make sure he was ready, doing his best to match the other’s motions. Sang-hyuk laughed at him, ruffling his hair before continuing. “You’re so cute. What kind of things do you two talk about?”

He did not know what kind of implications Sang-hyuk was insinuating with such a comment, and instead answered what he could understand. “I asked if he did not like seeing me. But he reassured me that he does not mind.”

“That’s great,” Sang-hyuk said, his hands sliding down to its waist. “Did he tell you any stories?”

“No.” He waited until Sang-hyuk was lifting his shirt, his fingers running over the expanse of his stomach, before adding, “He said that my face is beautiful.” Sang-hyuk froze, the shirt slipping from his fingers, and he was surprised when he looked up at him with wide eyes. When he saw Sang-hyuk’s face grow sad, he asked, “Was he not allowed to tell me? I am sorry, he only said so in response to what I told him. Do not be angry at him.”

Sang-hyuk shook his head quickly, purposefully avoiding his eye as he went back to finishing the tests. “No, there’s nothing wrong with that. As long as you’re okay with it, he can tell you anything he wants.” Sang-hyuk picked up his leg, his gaze locked on the hand hovering over his thigh. “What…what did you tell him, that he said you were beautiful?”

“I asked if my face was the reason he could never look at me.”

Sang-hyuk took a moment to breathe, his whole body shuddering when he was finally able to release his breath. His eyes were rimmed red when he looked up, but his smile so sweet. It was a feat he truly believed only Sang-hyuk was capable of. “T52 never lies, so if he said so, then it’s the truth.” He reached out again to take its good hand, making sure to be gentle. “You two will be wonderful friends, I know it. So please, don’t be afraid to talk to him. I would never let him be here if I didn’t know he would only treat you right.” He lifted his hand to press a gentle kiss to his fingers. “Will you give him a chance?”

He could barely hear Sang-hyuk’s voice over the ringing in his ears, focused on the feel of Sang-hyuk’s lips. They were soft, leaving a small trace on his knuckles.

“I will.”

When the lights the next time, he was not alarmed to find himself without clothes. There were many times when he awoke to find his clothes missing, though after the first time Sang-hyuk reassured him that he would always bring them back. Sang-hyuk never did tell him where they were taken or why, but he never asked, and thus only waited until they were returned. So, without wasting a second, he stood up and opened the desk drawer, finding the neatly folded shirt and pants inside.

It had taken many tries, with and without Sang-hyuk’s help, to learn how to clothe himself, and with clumsy fingers he was able to slide his feet through the pant legs, each stumble causing him to fall onto the bed. He relied on his good hand to feel the buttons, his fingers dexterous as they pulled the small zipper up. Sang-hyuk had offered to bring him easier pants to wear, but it had not missed the way Sang-hyuk’s eyes had lit up the day he wore these specific clothes, and he was determined to wear them forever.

He did not want to change.

He was in the middle of struggling through putting his shirt on when the door opened, and he poked his head through the collar to see T52 frozen at the door, one hand on the doorknob, his eyes wide. He did not know why he felt uncomfortable under the stare, quickly finishing and averting his eyes.

He could hear the door slowly shut, the following silence long enough he finally looked to see T52 still at the door, though his face was now blank. He wanted to apologize, deciding the most probable reason for T52’s reaction being discomfort, though was unsure how to begin such a conversation. Was he uncomfortable with seeing it unclothed? He was not sure how others viewed such things, his only knowledge being Sang-hyuk’s uneasiness when seeing him as so. He the edge of his shirt, the thin fabric soothing against his skin.

“Your clothes…” T52 finally said, his voice low and clear, “…did Sang-hyuk give them to you?”

“Yes,” he said, unable to lie. T52 gave a small smile at that, finally moving as he walked over to him, stopping only inches away.

It was the first time he had ever seen the other so close, T52 always keeping himself at a distance. Now so close, he was able to see certain details in the other’s body and posture that he could not before. He could now see T52’s skin seemed to be connected in patches, some parts of his neck darker than others, his whole face a completely different shade than the rest. The dimples he had always noticed were prominent only because of how sunken his face was, his eyes ringed with faint circles. The hair he had always assumed was messy like Sang-hyuk’s was because patches were missing, some curls longer than others to try and cover them. T52 appeared to be in a much worse shape than Sang-hyuk ever had, and he could not understand why he felt sad at the sight.

T52 smiled, reaching out and grabbing its wrist, his eyes sparkling as his fingers slowly slid up his arms. He wanted to watch to make sure he could see where exactly T52 was touching him, but he found himself unable. Instead, he was momentarily distracted by the way T52’s sunken cheeks seemed to disappear, his lips pushing them into small bundles that lit up his face. He was distracted by the way T52 tilted his head, the bald patches hidden by the way his hair bounced and floated around him. He could not look away from how T52’s teeth flashed from behind his lips, for a second filling him with a sense of comfort that not even Sang-hyuk had given him.

At that moment, he was distracted by how beautiful he was. It did not matter how often he and Sang-hyuk tried to convince him; T52 was more beautiful than he could ever attempt to be, and he had no interest in trying to change that.

“You feel just as before. They have not touched you yet. You are still everything I remember.”

He caught onto the other’s words, copying the frown Sang-hyuk had taught him. “Did you know me before?”

T52 did not answer his question, continuing as if he had never spoken. “You cannot feel this, can you?” There was a trace of emotion in his voice that he could not place, a crack that indicated he was feeling more than his face could express. He watched how T52’s gaze slowly lowered down to where his hands hung loosely at its waist, a low chuckle emanating through his chest as his fingers dug into the fabric of his shirt. “Even if I tore into your skin and forced you to bleed, you would feel nothing, would you?”

“I do not understand.”

T52 shook his head, both of them watching as his hands carefully loosened. “Do not worry, there was no answer. It was only an observation.” He finally looked up to meet his eye, smiling again. He found himself unable to not reciprocate such an expression. “I am sorry that I have been distant; I did not mean to make you think I did not enjoy your presence.” T52’s hands were suddenly by its face, his actions uncertain as he slowly ran through his hair. “I am ready now. Would you like to be friends?”

He nodded. “Yes. I want to be friends.”

T52’s teeth flashed. “Then let us be friends.”

The last word was barely off his lips when his body stiffened, his eyes glazing over in a way that he recognized. He wrapped his arms around T52’s chest before his body collapsed to the floor, his movements uneven as he dropped him onto Sang-hyuk’s chair, sitting back on the bed and waiting for him to reawaken. It was not long, T52’s eyes fluttering open and taking a few seconds before he realized where he was, sitting up abruptly. “Where—what…” He shook his head, holding his head in his hands. “What were we talking about?”

He did not waste time, reminding him, “We are friends.”

T52 did not move for a long time, staring at him before laughing happily, bouncing in the chair, “Yes, yes we are! I am very happy to be friends with you.” T52’s demeanor was different than anything he had seen before, the man laughing as he tucked his legs underneath himself. Every part of him was moving with his eyes trained solely on him. “Sang-hyuk has been constantly telling me to be friends. I wanted to, but I was too scared to ask you. I am very happy you are not angry at me.”

He could feel a smile grow on his lips despite not having any reason to do so, and felt his fingers tremble at the strange sensation coursing through his body. He was not sure what about T52 was causing him to feel this way, but he found that it was not a negative response. “I have no reason to be angry at you. You did not hurt me.”

“It is not just hurting.” T52 looked around the room, humming. “Your room looks just like mine. That is sad.”

“How is it sad?”

“I do not know. I only know that is what Sang-hyuk says when he tells me.”

“Does Sang-hyuk visit you too?” He did not know why he did not like the idea of Sang-hyuk seeing others beside himself, and knew he should not think such things. But he could not help wondering if the reason Sang-hyuk would be gone for long periods of time was because he was seeing other people, such as T52. He did not like that at all, and the sudden, vicious wish for Sang-hyuk to only visit him began to grow.

“Yes. He comes after he sees you.” T52 shifted in his chair again, bringing his knees up to his chest and letting his toes clasp onto the edge of the chair. He noticed the other tended to shift a lot depending on his mood, his movements much more casual the brighter he appeared. “Sang-hyuk talks about how he wants our rooms to look different. I do not know exactly what he means by that, but he mentions it a lot.” He slapped its knee, something Y21 would not know had happened if he had not seen. “Hey, have you met X39 yet?”

“X39?” Was there another one? Did he get to see Sang-hyuk too? The fingers of his good hand clutched at the hem of Sang-hyuk’s favorite shirt. He thought to the many times Sang-hyuk smiled with tears in his eyes, speaking so much of how beautiful and amazing he was. He repeated the words in his head, reminding himself of how Sang-hyuk continuously told him how important he was. When Sang-hyuk was his world, he depended entirely on Sang-hyuk appearing and reassuring it of its importance. But if there were others that Sang-hyuk visited, did he say the same thing to them? Did he tell T52 how beautiful and important he was? Did he tell X39 how amazing he was?

What did that make him?

T52 nodded, though his smile lessened slightly. “Ah, you probably would not. He is special; I do not think they would let him out even if he wanted to. I only get to come see you because they do not care about me.”

“Is X39 special to Sang-hyuk?” He did not care about any others—they did not exist in his world, and thus were only characters in a story Sang-hyuk had not yet read to him. Sang-hyuk was all that mattered.

“He is very special. X39 was Sang-hyuk’s first cyborg. Sang-hyuk works with him the most.”

His hand fell away from Sang-hyuk’s shirt, his eyes looking down to his feet and staring at the hem of his pants. Amazing, smart, beautiful, wonderful…those were words Sang-hyuk would say, but suddenly they did not ring the same. He had come to associate those words with Sang-hyuk’s hands touching his face, holding him close and smiling with tears in his eyes. He had learned that all of that encompassed the word ‘affection’, and had thought the affection Sang-hyuk had showed him was only for him, similar to the way the Prince had looked at Cinderella.

But Sang-hyuk did not feel the same. T52 and X39 were just as amazing and smart, were just as beautiful and wonderful. Sang-hyuk spoke to them and treated them with the same time and affection that he did for Y21. Everything T52 said seemed to counteract what Sang-hyuk had been telling him, and he began to wonder the validity of those things. He knew Sang-hyuk would never lie, but he was not able to fully understand the facts that he had been given until now.

He looked up to see T52’s eyes glazed over, his head lolled to the side, and he waited patiently for the other to wake up. He did not know if he wanted to learn any more about the things Sang-hyuk did when not with him, and hoped T52 forgot when he awoke.

T52 blinked when he came to, noticing him immediately and smiling. It was nice seeing him smile instead of the blank look he would give him, and it helped make the strange thoughts go away. “We are friends,” he said.

“Yes.”

T52 looked him over. “Seeing you like this is strange. You look the same, but everything is different. You are so pale, and your eyes are so smooth. They emptied you.” T52 tilted his head, frowning. “You should not look like me.”

His eyes narrowed at those words, matching T52’s expression as he began to understand. Those words, said to him after Seok-jin gave him the needle— “T-52-”

T52’s whole body jolted, his feet slamming to the floor as his whole back straightened, his eyes flashing blue and his teeth showing from how deep his frown was. “Do not call me that.” He did not know how to respond to such a reaction, and T52 continued, nothing in his expression lessening. “I do not want to hear your voice say that name again.”

“I am sorry.” It was the only thing he could think to say that would not make the situation any worse. When he saw T52’s shaking hands calm at his apology, he added, “What would you like me to call you?”

“I want you to call me what you did before.” He waited, his eyes searching as if waiting for him to speak or remember something it could not. His silence did not seem to be what he had wanted, T52’s shoulders falling when he did nothing to answer. “I want you to call me Hong-bin.”

“…Hong-bin?” he asked, finding the name strangely familiar. He had never heard Sang-hyuk or Seok-jin mention the name before, and could not understand why he would think so.

“Yes. Sang-hyuk will more than likely try to convince you that X39 is Hong-bin, but he does not know. I am the real Hong-bin. So, I want you to call me that.”

He was hesitant. “But if Sang-hyuk does not agree-”

“Sang-hyuk does not agree because he does not believe me. I am not able to explain why I know X39 is not Hong-bin, so he does not believe me. I cannot remember because they wiped me, but I know that it is not true.” He reached out and grabbed Y21’s bad hand, placing it on his own cheek and holding it there, closing his eyes and falling silent. Y21 only stared, unsure what to do or say as the other reveled in something he could not understand, watching as T52 shifted so his lips were pressed against his palm.

“I know it is true, so please, will you at least call me that?”

It could see no other reason to deny the request, nodding. “I will.”

Hong-bin smiled, closing his eyes again as he began to his face with Y21’s hand. Y21 had the sudden thought that he wished Hong-bin had grabbed his other hand, so he could feel the same warmth that the other was enjoying. “Please…call my name.”

“…Hong-bin.”

A small sound escaped Hong-bin’s lips, a sound that was extremely close to how Sang-hyuk would sound when he tried to hold back from crying.

“…thank you.”