It was 8 in the morning, but the weather outside is raining heavily, so the sky was dark as if the sun is not out yet. Youi woke up as she suddenly feels chill and she tried to pull the blanket higher to cover her small body. She was a little light headed, but she managed to sit herself up. She pulls the blanket but then she stops to scan around the room, and realized that she wasn’t in the orphanage. She looks around again to find something that can remind her of what happened, and she saw her bloody cloth neatly folded beside her.

“You’re awake? Do you feel better?”

Youi turns to the voice owner and it was Irene, standing by the doorway, smiling at her.

“Where am I? Wha…what happened?” asked Youi.

Irene approached Youi and she put her hand on Youi’s forehead to check on Youi’s temperature. Youi flinched a bit when Irene suddenly put her hand on Youi’s forehead.

“Your temperature seems okay, but I still have to take your temperature accurately for the record. Open your mouth.”

Youi obeyed and she open to make way for Irene to put in the thermometer. Youi couldn’t help but to admired Irene. She looks so beautiful and she understand why Wendy fell in love with this woman. Youi can’t help but smile and Irene was confused by her expression. Irene takes out the thermometer from Youi’s mouth and check the temperature recorded.

“36.5, your fever is gone, how are you feeling today?” Irene asked gently.

“Good? You haven’t answer my question yet, where am I? Where is Yeri and Wendy?”

“You’re in my hospital, you passed out and Wendy asked me to brought you here. I am amused at your speedy recovery Miss Youi. I am curious about you.”

Youi gulped when Irene looked at her with a sharp expression. Youi tries to avoid eye contact with Irene and she was saved when Yeri and Wendy burst into her room.

“Youi! You’re awake!” Yeri stated happily and she rushes to her sister side to give her a hug but immediately let go when she remembered that they are in awkward situation before, and Yeri didn’t want Youi to know that she had open up to her.

“Hey Irene, thanks for taking care of Youi for me. I brought you breakfast.” Said Wendy to her fiancée. She can see from the dark circle of Irene’s eyes that Irene had been staying up all night to watch over Youi.

“I’ll have it later.”

“Ugh…Irene can we go talk for a while? Outside…” Wendy cutely asked for her fiancée to follow her.

Irene didn’t hesitate and follow Wendy out. Yeri and Youi silently watch them on the side and once their parents are out of the room, both of them exchanges look “Oh wow…I never knew our parents is that tense around each other.” Commented Youi.

“They are tense, but I know they love each other.” Replied Yeri.

***

“What is it Wendy?”

“Let’s go out for lunch date later since our dinner date was cancel yesterday, let’s discuss about our wedding.” Said Wendy.

Irene looked at Wendy suspiciously “What makes you suddenly interested in our wedding? You weren’t interested in discussing the wedding plan with me. Are you cheating behind me Wendy?”

Wendy blinked at Irene in disbelieve for the accusation “What? With whom? Wait…are you jealous Bae Joohyun? You thought I was cheating behind you?” Wendy asked with a smirk on her face.

“You changed when you met those two…you weren’t interested in our wedding or me before this and now suddenly you said you wanted to be involve in our wedding planning. There must be something that happened for you to change your attitude so fast.” Said Irene with a pout.

Despite being the older one between the two of them, Irene always shows this cute side of her which made Wendy fall deeper and deeper into her. Wendy had never touches Irene, from the first day they met to the day they got engaged, Wendy had never once hold Irene’s hand or touches her. Hence, it led to Irene misunderstand that Wendy hated her and never wanted the engagement to happen but Wendy didn’t say anything about the engagement so Irene just go with the flow. But today, Wendy gather all of her courage to take a step closer to Irene and she holds Irene’s hand for the first time which made Irene to flinch a bit at the surprise skinship.

“Bae Joohyun, I promised you, I won’t cheat on you. I…I…I like you…” Wendy start to stutter as she gets nervous “I…I really like you from the first day that we met, I think you are beautiful and you’re gorgeous, smart, elegant, you shine brighter than a diamond, I…I was a awkward person…I can’t express my feelings well, and I wasn’t sure about your feeling either. Whether you’re okay with the engagement or not, I was afraid to ask you because I was afraid to receive a negative answer from you. Please don’t say that I am not interested in our wedding Irene-ah…or say that I’m not interested in you…I do.”

Irene was frustrated at Wendy sudden confession. She has waited for Wendy to confessed her feelings first but she didn’t expect it to be this sappy. She didn’t expect for the sudden confession at all, and things turn awkward between them as Wendy is waiting for her to reply.

“I…I like you too Wendy…” Irene finally said it.

***

Yeri and Youi were eavesdropping their parents behind the door, and they couldn’t stop but to make disgusted face at Wendy’s confession. Though, Yeri is happy that Wendy managed to come clean with Irene with her feelings. The mother daughter duo had a long discussion last night after Yeri spoiled to Wendy about Youi’s real identity and how she was conceived.

Yeri contemplate whether to tell Youi about what happened or not, but she decided to not tell Youi.

***

“You…you like me?”

“Yes.”

“I…wow…I thought you hate me.” said Wendy in disbelieve.

“Hate you? What makes you think that I hate you? If I hate you I wouldn’t agree to the engagement.” Said Irene with a frown.

“Oh, well because you always treat me coldly, and ugh you always had that resting face on…so I thought maybe you weren’t happy with your family choice, but since it’s benefited your family so I thought you agreed because of your family and not…not me.” said Wendy.

Irene cups Wendy’s face and silent her with a deep kiss. Wendy was so surprised that she forgot to close her eyes.

Yeri and Youi gasped behind the door and Irene immediately retreat as she got embarrassed that someone is peaking at them.

“I…I’ll see you during lunch! I gotta go!” said Irene nervously and she runs away from the baffled Wendy.

Wendy’s hand tremble as she touches her moist lips that Irene just kissed. She smiled like an idiot when she recalls the softness of Irene’s lips on hers and she crave for more. She turned around to face her daughters.

“The future me never taught you how to respect people’s privacy Yeri?” said Wendy with both of her hands on her waist.

“Pfffttt, was that your first kiss?” mocked Yeri.

“Wha..what no, that…that…”

Youi was anticipated at Wendy’s answer and when Wendy sees the innocent look on Youi she sighs and hesitantly nod to admit that it was her first kiss.

“Then is Irene you first love?!” Yeri and Youi questioned their mother.

“No, my first love was…well it was more of a crush, but she chose someone else.” Said Wendy with a little frustration at the end of her tone.

“Joy right?”

“How did you…” Wendy paused awhile when she remembered that Yeri and Youi came from the future “Forget it.” Said Wendy as she dismissed the topic. She scans Youi’s condition and she saw that Youi is already healed.

“Your wound, it…healed?”

“Ah yeah, it’s amazing right? Every time I got bullied and ended up getting wounded up when I was in the orphanage, I always heal up fast. So the kids always bully me and call me a freak.”

Wendy stood there with soft expression on her face, she slowly approaches her daughters. She puts her hands one on Youi’s shoulder and another one on Yeri’s shoulder then she pulled them to a tight hug.

“I am so sorry for abandoning you two…”

Youi and Yeri eyeing each other asking each other so many question but they let it slip for the moment and hug Wendy back.

***

Son Consolidated

“You want us to train them?” said Seulgi and Lisa as they eyeing Wendy.

“Yep.”

“We don’t need training!” Yeri protested.

“Okay…if you can defeat me I won’t let you train, but if you can’t you’ll have to go through a week of intense training with Seulgi, and if you can’t pass my assessment by then, you’ll go through the same training until you pass my assessment.” Said Wendy while she stands in her sergeant pose.

“Deal.” Said Youi and Yeri was about to protest but when Youi thrown her jacket on the floor, Yeri gave up and she too pull up her sleeve and get ready in her fighting stance.

“Oh wait, not here.” Said Seulgi “If you want to fight, fight at the arena. If you destroyed any of the things in here, Chaeyoung is going to kill all of us.”

“Alright.” Said Wendy and she leads the girl to the arena.

***

Bae Co Lab

Ryujin burst into Irene’s lab and she saw her sister was engrossed with her work, so Ryujin approaches her “Unnie, you hadn’t been home since last night, have you eaten yet? I can buy you something at the cafeteria if you’re hungry.”

No response from Irene and Ryujin tried to get her sister attention by clearing “Unnie.”

Irene slowly turns to Ryujin and she hands Ryujin a DNA report that she just printed “Ryujin ah…read the result for me.”

Ryujin takes the paper and look at the result “It said the similarity is 99.9%...who’s DNA test is this?”

“It’s Wendy…and that Youi girl.” Said Irene.

Ryujin’s eyes grew wider, Irene wasn’t supposed to know about this and now she knows. “Unnie…are you sure it’s not wrong? I mean the sample that you took?” Ryujin tried to reason with Irene.

“No, I secretly took Wendy’s hair strand and compare the DNA structure with Youi’s…It cannot be mistaken, you know how particular I am when it comes to things like this.” Said Irene.

Ryujin was speechless, she is always speechless when she had an argument with Irene, her brain always buffer whenever Irene suddenly question her or spit out some fact that never crossed her mind before.

“Wha…what are you going to do now?” Ryujin asked.

“I’m going to ask Wendy about that girl’s truth!” said Irene and she gather all of stuff and walk toward the exit, Ryujin tried to stop her but she can’t.

“Unnie! Unnie!”

***

Wendy Office

Wendy sat on her desk while her hand play around with Youi’s watch. She easily defeated the girls single handed and Seulgi had to drag the siblings to go train with her. Wendy throws her head back and rested it on her chair, what happened last night still fresh in her mind. She can’t believe what happened but she is willing to do whatever it takes to change the future after she learnt about what happened in the future.

Flashback

“Irene and you created Youi in a lab and then injected the embryo into Irene’s womb. In order words, Irene combined her gene and your gene to create an artificial embryo and injected it into her womb. And I believe Irene didn’t just combine hers and your gene alone, she must have modified Youi’s genetic code too, hence Youi’s capabilities to heal fast…it was just my assumption but it could be true…”

“Why…why would Irene do such thing?! It’s against the nature ethical!”

“Wendy…I’ve told you this, but can you promise me not to change it? I am risking Youi’s existence by telling you this! But you have to know! Youi…she suffered, I was fortunate that you and Irene hand me over to Seulgi and Joy to be taken care of, and they adopted me when the authorities announced that you and Irene were dead…”

“Wait…wait…Irene…died as well in the future?”

Yeri was quiet, she had gone too far but she wanted to tell Wendy the truth if that’s help to keep her parents alive. Yeri known what happened and she known what the T-ARA group is going to do. She had the power to change the past.

“You took something from Youi right?” Yeri suddenly questioned Wendy.

“No.” Wendy lied.

“I saw you took the watch that you gave her…” Yeri said again with a more intense stare.

Wendy sighed and she isn’t going to deny that Irene did raised Yeri from Yeri’s attitude, she can see Irene emerge from her. She fish for the watch from her pocket and show it to Yeri.

“Yves only obey yours and Youi’s command, would you like to ask Yves everything? Now I know I am putting my timeline in danger but if I can change the past, isn’t it better? I have no complain with my life, but too many people died, you died, mom died, Jisoo, Lisa, Jennie, Rosé, many other innocents’ life died…” Yeri said as she tried to make sense into Wendy’s mind.

“This doesn’t make sense…the woman who came to me told me, I was the only one who is going to die, she didn’t tell me anything about the others died…”

“Who was she Mom? Who was she?”

“I don’t know Yeri ah! I don’t know! I’ve been working hard ever since she came from the future and she told me about the catastrophe in the future and she told me only me and someone from the future can prevent it from happening, and I’ve been working so hard with Ryujin to make the time machine work! It worked but, meeting you and Youi…it’s…it’s just too much for me…” Wendy was in denial state when she said it out loud.

“Wendy! You think it wasn’t taking a toll on me? You and Irene neglected me when you had Youi, I felt as if I was left out, then you guys were pronounce dead! I had to live for 17 years thinking that my parents abandoned me! Then when my little sister appeared again, I learned about her truth and I learned about yours too, it was too much for me, and when I learned that I was adopted, I was agitated and frustrated! There must be a reason why we were fated to be here!”

“I…”

“Summon Yves and learn about the future Wendy…maybe that mysterious woman that came from the future knew this will happen? And and what if Yves is the key for you to change the future as what that woman had told you?” said Yeri as she tried to persuade her mother to learn about the future from Yves. Yves had all the information that Wendy need to know. Yves is like Wendy’s second brain.

“Go to sleep Yeri, it’s getting late, we’ll go visit Youi tomorrow morning.” Said Wendy as she tried to avoid discussing the matter further with Yeri.

Wendy gets up and left Yeri alone at the patio. Yeri hopelessly watch her mother left her. She sighed and then look up to the sky, she closes her eyes and pray that she can change the future for the better.

Wendy goes to her room and she goes directly to her bookshelf and pull a blue cover books from the bookshelf and the bookshelf move, to reveal a secret passage. Wendy walk down the stairs to reach to her secret lab. She connects the watch to her laptop and start to sync it with her computer.

“Yves?”

“Hi Wendy. It took you so long to finally get back to me.” Yves replied.

“Oh wow…you’re really Yves?”

“Yes…I am Yves. Your creation.” Yves explained.

“Yves…what do you mean I took so long to finally get back to you? I…I don’t understand what is going on!”

“Wendy, I believe this is the year 1994?” Yves asked.

“Yes, January 18, 1994…” replied Wendy.

“That means you’ve already started to upload your memories to my system?”

“I have…developed the memories recorder but it is still in beta process…I am still testing it.” Said Wendy.

“It work Wendy, trust me on this, would you want to download your future memories to your brain?” suggested Yves.

“I can do that?”

“You’re the genius here.” Replied Yves sassily.

Wendy regretted that she put sassy as one of Yves’s attitude when she created the AI. Wendy sighed and she search for her memories recorder. Wendy put on the memories scanner and asked Yves what she should do next.

“Connect the recorder to the watch. The future you had set the algorithm to download all of your future memories into the recorder.” Said Yves and Wendy followed as what Yves had said.

The moment she connects the memories recorder to the watch, all of her memories from the future flooded her brain, and it was too much for her. She had to take the memories recorder off and she fell off from her seat. Her nose bleed and she vomited, she almost had a seizure.

“I see the memories recorder really is still in beta mode.” Said Yves as is she is mocking the young Wendy.

Wendy grabs on the table to support herself to get up from the floor. Wendy wipes the blood that’s trickling down her nose.

“What was all that…” said Wendy.

“That was your memories from the future.” Said Yves.

“No…all of that is a lie right Yves? Irene…Irene she died, all of our friends they died…” said Wendy as she gasping for air.

“It’s not a lie Wendy, it’s all the truth, the you from the future is the hooded woman that you met.”

“After you were announced dead, you went to exile and never came back. When the second war happened, you emerge from you hide out and you were devastated by the result of the second war and you decided to use Ryujin’s last speed force to enabled the time machine again and you travel back to the past to warn yourself of the grim future. You regretted for everything that you had done in the future and you think only you who can change the future, and everything that is happening now is what the future Wendy had planned. She knew Yeri and Youi will be coming to the past…”

“Oh no…don’t tell me, the future me is planning on a time paradox?!”

“She did…”

“And the future me is still alive? If she is still alive why won’t she comes out and clean up her own mess?!”

“Her mess begins from you…you are the one who created the mess…Son Seungwan, the future you realized it too late, and there is nothing that she can do in the future but to put the whole future’s timeline in your hand. You are the one who created the whole mess, and you are the one who is going to clean it up.” Said Yves.

“…”

“Those kids…the reason why you adopted Yeri and created Youi is because of their time travel, the you from the future had already created the multiverse when she decided to come back to the past and warn you.”

“Multiverse…?”

“Yes…in some of the universe…Youi and Yeri will start a deadly war that ended up killing millions of people…in some universe the sisters are rival to each other…”

“What…but…”

“There’s another reason why the future you came back to warn you about the future, to avoid Irene’s death.”

“Wha…I don’t understand Yves…Why everything revolves around Irene’s death?”

“Irene survived the first war with T-ARA and she went to exile with you too. The two of you thought that you will be better off if people thought you were dead, but you were wrong, when Youi and Yeri met during Youi’s 18^th birthday and also the date where she gets a hold of yours and Irene’s properties, the two siblings can’t get along. Youi wanted to follow your path, the path of the vigilante, while Yeri supported the government agenda. A second war happen again, you and Irene were forced to come out from your hiding, but when the siblings where fighting against each other, Irene intervene because she can’t watch her daughters fight for her mistake, and Youi accidentally fatally stabbed Irene to death. Youi alter ego appeared when she watches her mother died in her arms.  The alter ego happened because of the constant bullying incident when she was young. The future you know it all happened because you and Irene weren’t present during Youi’s growing stage, and the trauma that she faced all happened because of you and Irene.  Yeri blamed Youi for everything and she declared a war against the human and uses Irene’s enhanced chemical R-17x to created tons of super army, and killed millions of innocent life…”

“So the me from the future came to me, so I can prevent the first war from happening.”

“She wanted you to prevent giving up Youi…the future you thought, giving Youi up will give her a better future but it isn’t…her future is dark. That is the greatest regret that the future you had.”

“…”

“In the end you died too…do you want me to play the last message that was recorded in my memories?” asked Yves.

Wendy looked up in tears and she nodded to give Yves the permission to play the last known video of Wendy Son Seungwan before she died.

“This is February 15 2020, hey Young Wendy…if you’re watching this, it means I’m dead. I’ve travelled to the past to warn you about the grim of the future. It all happened because of us. When we were young, we were afraid to fall in love, I want you to cherish Irene more, I want you to love her with you whole heart. When Youi is created, don’t abandon her…this is what’s going to happen if you abandon her.” Future Wendy stops talking for a moment and she pan the camera to her front to show the past Wendy the devastated state of K-City.

“All of this happened because of our mistake, I warned you and I tweak with Ryujin’s time machine to create a loophole and if Youi and Yeri are with you know means I success in bypassing the machine. Please Wendy…I beg you to do whatever you can in order to save the future. To save Youi and Yeri from turning evil…if anyone of us can do it, it has to be you. Be the parents that they need…No matter what happened, do not let Irene died in front of our daughters…please…I beg you…”

The video starts to goes in static and slowly losing signal. Wendy watch the screen turn black and she can hear an eerie screaming coming from the black screen before the video end.

“…”

End of flashback

Wendy snapped out of her day dreaming when Irene suddenly burst in her office.

 “Wendy!” Irene called for her fiancée as she barged into her office.

“I’m busy Irene.” Wendy replied without even looking at Irene.

“What the hell is this?” Irene asked as she throw the files on Wendy’s desk.

“That kid DNA and yours matched!” Irene replied with a slight anger tone “What is this?! Even if you are her long lost sibling the DNA wouldn’t be a direct copy of yours, unless she is your twins! What is the meaning of all these?!!”

Wendy patiently picks up the file that scattered on her desk and she reads through the report.

“What’s the meaning of all these?” Wendy question back.

“I should be the one who’s asking you this!!” Irene fires back.

“You conducted DNA test on me without my permission? Even though I am your fiancée but this is still wrong!!” Wendy raised her voice and she slammed on the table, which made Irene jumped a bit. She had never seen Wendy this angry before.

“I…I…”

“You…you what?! You’ve always make decision without consulting me Irene! Event about our wedding! You know why I wasn’t interested in our wedding? Because you decided on the theme, the venue, the guests without even asking me if I’m okay with such arrangement!!”

“Well if you’re not happy with my arrangement why would you said so?!!” Irene argued back.

“Because I want you to be happy with your choices!”

“This isn’t how relationship work Wendy! It’s not a one-way communication! It supposed to be two-way conversation!!”

The couple stop fighting when Lia enter the room trying to get her boss.

“Boss! You got a call from the…I’m sorry am I disturbing something?”

“No Lia…I’ve got no business here anymore.” Said Irene and she walked away from Wendy.

Lia asked Wendy but Wendy just shakes her head. Lia left the office too, to follow her boss. Wendy sighed and she slumped herself back on her chair.

“Do you have to do that?” Yves asked.

“I gotta distract her from knowing the truth and I know I acted wrongly…I’m such an idiot.” Said Wendy.

“You gotta amend your relationship with her…”

“I will Yves…”

Wendy takes the DNA report and she burned it.

***

“Boss! Boss!!” Lia keeps calling for her boss.

“What?!”

“It’s your father…on the telephone…”

To be continued…

Next chapter preview

“Joohyun ah, meet Eunjung, she is the head of the T-ARA project. You know we are currently working with government in genetic research, and I was hoping you will be involving in the project as well and guide Miss Eunjung here.”