Heejin POV

I ran after Luhan and joined the others in the foyer. I wouldn’t call it a foyer because it is practically just an underground common room with many many computers and equipments that I won’t risk touching.

I feel Luhan’s firm grip on my hand and sees my dad coming out from a room with two of the nurse-like girls on both his sides. He had his mask on since forever and today it seems even more intimidating than ever. I felt a shudder from within when he looks at me. That strong gaze stays on me for a brief second before moving on to the others. I realized there are two new faces. Dad doesn’t bother to introduce but they already know one another.

‘We’re going up.’ He says with a huskier and lower voice. From the corner of my eyes I see Luhan turn towards Yongguk and they both nod.

Following that, dad pressed something on the control keys and a man, the same man - Ji Hyun Jin appears on one of the big screen in the middle. I gasp involuntarily at the smirk on his face. Luhan gives my hand a squeeze and the video begins.

‘Hello there my friends,’ he begins and I scoffed. ‘Knowing you my old friend, you must be expecting me with your puny army.’ My jaws clench tightly at once at that smug on that old skin of his. He said army with that open and close inverted commas gesture with his fingers. I feel Luhan drawing small circles on the back of my hand again, a way to calm me. I sigh and look up at him, but his eyes are fixated to the screen. His jaws set.

He is mad too. Of course he will be. We all are. Even my dad’s fists are clenched tightly at his sides, so tight I can even see the veins and whites of his knuckles.

‘But I have a surprise for you. Whatever plans you have,’ he pauses and gasps mockingly, dramatically and then back to that smug. ‘will fail.’

And the video ended.

I look at my dad’s hands. They loosen slowly then relaxed.

‘Heejin, can you stay here? I don’t wa-’  I didn’t wait for him to finish his sentence, because that is never my intention.

‘No dad. I’m going. I am.’ I stare back into his eyes and I thought I saw them flicker then he looks away with an inaudible sigh. He must’ve sighed because his shoulders dropped a little.

‘Yongguk, you’ll lead section A to the West gate. Daehyun, Tiffany, Take B, C and D to the East gate and wait for my orders.’ Dad continues without another look at me.

‘Yes Sir.’ The three of them turn to their heels but Daehyun stops suddenly and turn to Luhan with an unreadable expression then his gaze flickers to me. My heart wrenches just a little and stuttered a soft goodluck before looking away. But I heard his chuckle before he was out of the room.

That was the best I could say and only smile bitterly to myself.

Dad took a deep breath and turn to the remaining two new faces.  ‘Dongwoo, Hoya, you guys will take E and F to South Gate. Wait for my orders. Dongwoo, this isn’t a simulation any more. Wait. For. My. Orders.’

‘Yes Sir.’ The one with red hair replies with his head lowered, and then they ran out too following the rest. Looks like the red haired have an impulsive character. I raise an eyebrow and shrug.  

‘Luhan take Heejin to the North Tower.’ Dad says and takes a few steps closer till he was standing between us and whispered something else to Luhan.

I frown. Is there something they’re hiding from me?

He takes a step back as if to take a good look at us. This is by far the gesture that suggests the most blessings he has for the both of us. He gives us a pat on our shoulders and turned his back to us. ‘GO!’ Then we started running, with Luhan running in front, pulling me along. He runs so fast I almost have difficulties catching up. He’s literally just dragging me along and his grip on my hand is too firm my fingers ached. Our boots clicked loudly on the floor and then we finally stop at an elevator at a dead end.

I turn to him with the puzzled expression I can ever manage hoping he will tell me something I don’t know. But he doesn’t. Instead he gives me a chaste kiss on my forehead just before pulling me inside the elevator.

The ride to the top is almost making me nauseous. It only takes us less than twenty second to reach the ‘MAIN’ level. Whatever that level is, it must be pretty high up. Damn right it is. When the lift door opens, I almost choked on my own saliva.

The room is similar to that of an airport control tower, a circular room with window-like panes that only occupies the first half of the circle. The room was dark at first but the lights click on as soon as we stepped in. Motion sensored? The lights are really dim though and orange.

Luhan walks to my left and presses a switch. This isn’t the first time he’s here. He is all too familiar with the environment while I almost trip over a chair in the middle of the room even with dim lights on. There is a loud gas compressing sound similar to that sound our doors make in the facility and the windows, or the cover for the window panes splits in half like eye lids and sunlight lit up the whole room.

I gasp in surprise. I haven’t seen real sun in a long while. But that wasn’t what actually surprised me.

The thing is, we are indeed high up. Except that we are in the middle of the desert-like environment and that this control-tower like space we are in is literally carved or built inside a mountain.

Carved, inside, a god damn mountain. Who the hell would even find out where we are?! I thought this is supposed to only happen in movies. Right I feel stupid the moment I thought about it. To think the past few weeks were any normal from them movies.

Below us is a large empty dry plain surrounded by...more rocky mountains. But when I see further away, I can see the top of what I think belongs to the 63 Tower. I turn to Luhan but he is already seated infront of a similar looking equipment that dad has in the foyer and keyed in a series of codes.

Dad’s face pops up in one of the screens.

‘Dad?’

But he ignores me completely. I turn away and walk to the other end trying to make out more buildings and then in the corner of my eye the ground opens up revealing Daehyun with Tiffany and four rows of black suited men marching behind them orderly, almost robotically. I watch as the group splits into two, with the left two rows following Tiffany while Daehyun lead the rest towards where I am. He looks up and I almost thought he is looking right up at me. Maybe he is.

I turn to my right and see Yongguk on the other side directly opposite them. There must be a few hundred men behind them in total or more. The formation looks almost similar to that of chess. Just that the enemy isn’t themselves.

The two other guys appeared from the ground directly facing us and the men in blacks behind them spread out orderly like ants into the same formation.

They formed a square but that is when I realized that the North Gate, directly below us, is unguarded. I turn to Luhan and he is already looking at me. I recognize that expression. It is the face he gives when he doesn’t have a choice.

‘You have to leave.’ I say. My voice sounds cracked. Without another word he pulls me into his arms. ‘I’m sorry but I have to keep you safe. This is the safest place in the whole of the facility.’ He begins and pulls me towards a row of control keys and begins telling me about the key I should press to communicate with whatever that I am not interested in.

‘I am not staying here without you.’ I interrupt and he stops speaking with his back to me. His hand is trembling and the back of my eyes sting with incoming tears. I wrap my arms around him pressing my ear to his back, the area where his heart will be and listen for his heartbeat. It is racing. His chest moves up and down slowly, or he is trying to suppress. I couldn’t turn him towards me. I couldn’t look at him. Not when I know how pained his expression will be.

He puts his hands over mine and pulls them apart gently till they fall weakly at my sides. I am staring at the ground, at my tears that stained the concrete a darker shade of grey.

‘I am not bringing you. Please. For me. Just stay here. Please. Please stay here. I can’t lose you. Not now.’ This is the first time he’s ever pleaded. My heart aches at every syllable that came from him. He turns around when I didn’t reply. There is nothing I can say. How can I be selfish and put myself in danger? That’s the last thing he ever wants to see happening to me. He isn’t a normal human compared to me. Who am I to be stubborn? I will only be a burden to them. Nothing must happen to them. I will not be their liability. I can now taste the fresh metallic taste of blood from my lower lip that I was biting so hard into.

Luhan doesn’t lift my chin and his hand tremble as he gently brushes my cheek. That movement was so gentle it almost felt like nothing. My heart ached and longed for something more but I held them back. 

‘I’ll come back for you. I promise.’ was all he said.

Then he was gone.

I am alone again.