" 5. " The machine was counting down.

They both closed their eyes just like how they were taught to do in training. *This is it! The starting of my very first mission!* He could feel nothing but excitement. He wasn't sure about Krystal, but he knew that it's her first time on a mission too. As he tried to contain his excitement and not move about too much, he heard the one on duty shout, " There's something wrong with the system! "

" 4. "

*Something wrong? What does that mean?* Even though they are enclosed in the machine surrounded by clear glass, he can hear footsteps rushing over to the control panel and the officer's voice boomed across the room, " What's wrong?! "

" 3. " The machine continued.

The one on duty quickly explained, " They are being transported to the wrong dimension! D5884 should be sent home, but- "

" 2. "

" -somehow they are not. 1804 and 1805 are wrongly sent to D5884 when it's supposed to be D5885! "

" 1. "

Before they could hear the officer's reaction, the surrounding sounds disappeared and before they know it, they have been transported away from their homeland into D5884. When they open their eyes, they are standing infront of an old school surrounded by trees as tall as 4 stories high.

*If we were transported to the right dimension, we would not have met each other.* He thought to himself. *Am I supposed be glad?*

He then picked up SunHwa gently, making sure not to disturb her sleep. He quietly make his way to the garden at the back of the school, his favourite place in this dimension. The only place that is peaceful and quiet but not scary like the other parts of the school. Even if the cold wind blow, it just felt smoothing and cooling, taking away the heat.

He carried SunHwa out of the school building and headed straight for the bench. He walked past the gigantic front gate and all the dead grass. With a big tree as shade, he placed SunHwa softly onto the bench.

He her silky hair and smiled sadly, " Only if we were from the same world. "

A tear rolled down SunHwa's cheek and he used his fingers to wiped it away, " Just how much pain we must have caused you for you to be crying even when you're sleeping. " He recalled how back in his world, getting into this job is such an honor. It was only now that he realised, all the things they were doing in their job was such a selfish act. One that have caused the other world to be in so much pain and sorrow.

They have known since young, that people in their world needed a particular material, substance R, to survive. However, it's getting used up, and when it depletes, the whole population of their people will be wiped out. In order to prevent that from happening, they invented a new machine that could transport people into a 3rd dimension and back.

Since then, they have been recuiting people to go into that dimension and get a human from the other world. Research have shown that human body from the other world processes this unique substance R that they need. However, the human must be willing to sacrify him or herself for the machine to be able to bring him or her into a world that he or she doesn't belong to.

Therefore they had created this plan to force people to willingly sacrify themselves. Thinking it's a noble job, he had willingly thrown himself into this mess, and caused pain to others. After 4 years of training, he had finally landed himself his first mission. The long waited mission.

" Omma! When's appa coming home? " He bursted excitedly into the living room. The woman smiled, " He'll be back soon. "

Just how glad the whole family was when they recieved the news that he will be going for his first mission soon. Later that night, they even had a celebration for their son with all their neighbors present.

Afraid she might catch a cold, he took off his jacket, and placed it on SunHwa. He then took out the silver keychain once again. But this time, he didn't put it back into his pocket after staring at it. He picked up SunHwa's hand, and slowly slide it onto her tiny ring finger. He smiled to himself, " Even if we cannot legally be together, you are now mine. " 

After a few more minutes of staring at her beautiful sleeping face, he stood up and left. He cannot risk being seen by her when she wakes up.

Never will he know, SunHwa slowly opened her eyelids as he walked away from her. She stared at the disappearing figure and tears welled up in her eyes again. She looked at the present he left behind on her finger. Clutching tightly onto his jacket, she cried herself to sleep again.

Minutes later, he stood infront of the classroom door. He had left SunHwa. Just like how he should have in the first place. He took in a deep breath and sighed before pushing the handle open. He took a step into the classroom and expected the students to stare at him suspiciously and asked him where had he been, what he did to SunHwa. However, it there was no students at the other side of the door to question him.

He blinked at the sight infront of him. He was back in the clear glass cylinder machine. He was being transported back home. It didn't took him long before he realised Krystal was beside him. Just like how it was before they got transported to the wrong dimension. It was a mixture of feelings, he didn't know if he should feel happy or sad. He gulped and stared puzzledly at his patner who was just as clueless as he was.

The glass door of the machine slided open, and in came the officer.

" Don't worry soldiers, the problems are all solved now. We've sent D5884 home and removed their memories of the second encounter. " His heart missed a beat as he heard his superior's words. *Removed their memories? Does that mean...*

That's right, removed their memories. They can no longer remember waking up to find YongHwa, their friend who sacrified for them, missing. They don't remember MinHyuk getting hung. They don't remember SunHwa running out of the classroom. They don't remember the conflict they had. They don't remember Krystal. They don't remember him.

And SunHwa doesn't remember why she had that silver keychain on her finger. 

The officer have totally erased Krystal and him from their memories. He felt a sharp pain shot through his heart, breaking it into tiny pieces. He stared blankly into space, the officer continued his speech, but no words could reach him. Soon after, he exited the machine. Krystal bowed slightly to the officer before turning to her patner.

She looked at him, his widened eyes due to the shocking news had now changed into one with doubt. He was questioning the words of the officer. He was in denial. 

" Accept the fact. " Krystal mumbled three simple words and his expression changed into one filled with pain and sorrow. He didn't look at her, he couldn't. How could he? She had reminded him tons of times that he shouldn't sink too deep into it, just like what ShinHye had adviced him. He's guilty, and broken. Krystal patted him lightly on his back and said, " Forget her, ... friend. "

Her sentences might be short, but that three words was enough. She then left him inside the machine, following the officer out of the room.

Friend? Krystal had never considered him as a friend. Or at least that was what she told him back in D5884. He was just thinking how he had gained nothing on this first mission of his, only to come back with a broken heart that cannot be fixed, and to see the cruelty of his job he had been training for. But now, perhaps he changed his mind. He had gained a friend, he had also learnt and experienced something new because of SunHwa.

He looked up from the ground and watch Krystal's disappearing backview, just like how SunHwa had watched his. The difference this time round was, he called out to her just before she closed the door behind her. " My new friend, th- "

Just like the day when they just met, she broke off his sentence, knowing exactly what he was going to say, " Save the thanks. "

--4 weeks later--

After realising the suffering this method was bringing to the people of the other world, he attempted to change it. For him, for the people in his world, for SunHwa.

*Soon enough, they will accept my proposal. Instead of taking out substance R from the human body they have captured, and allowing them to die, we should let them find their love from our world, and reproduce, so that people in our world will have this substance R in their body too. By asking everyone to donate a little of substance R once in a while, our world will be able to have enough substance R forever!*

As he tried his best to have his idea approved by the superior, he's making a difference to their cruel method slowly, bit by bit. Although he was hoping the speed would be faster than this. Reason? He was hoping that perhaps YongHwa could be saved in time before he disappear into thin air after they take out the substance R from his body.

YongHwa, together with the others who had sacrified, were being trapped in the biggest hospital in their world. All of them, sleeping soundly after being injected with a kind of medicine that would allow them to sleep up to one whole year. They would be unconcious, until the day they are brought to that room. That room where they will extract his substance R. When that happens, his body will vapourise in just one short minute. They were all laying in bed, paralyzed, waiting for their time to enter the room.

He wanted to do something for his poor sunbae. By saving someone so important to her, someone like YongHwa, there will only be two results.

One, ShinHye will get so angry that she will never talk to either of them ever again. She was trying so hard to forget YongHwa, but much thanks to her ignorant hoobae, he suddenly showed up infront of her, in their world. Of course she'll go crazy. Second, she will be extremely happy and glad, so much that she vouch herself to be his servant for the rest of her life.

He was hoping for the latter.

He's trying really hard to make a difference in his own world, but never will he know, in the other world, he had made a difference to someone's life too.

" Omma! Have you seen my silver keychain? " SunHwa panicked at realising that it have disappeared. She have been looking everywhere in her room but couldn't find it. Hearing her daughter's call for help, SunHwa's mother soon came into the room and held up the thing she have been looking for, " Is it this? " She sprinted over to her mother and snatched it from her hand, " Yup! That's it! Thanks! "

She smiled happily before asking, " Where did you find it? "

" It was on the dinning table, you must have left it there after dinner. Why do you care so much about that anyway? I can get one of that anywhere. " Her mother sighed. SunHwa shrugged, " I don't know. I just know it's important to me. Very important. "

Her mother rolled her eyes before exiting her bedroom, " You don't even remember where it's from. " SunHwa closed the door behind her mother and smiled to herself, " I don't. But before I do remember, I'll keep it close to me. "

SunHwa might never remember why it is so important to her. She might never remember how she got married to him at the back garden of her school. But at least he do remember. He smiled to himself as he stood at the middle of empty field. That empty grass patch would have been where her school back graden would be located at if they were in the same world. The place where he last saw her.

He would forever remember all the happy memories that they had made. Or more specifically, everything about her was a happy memory to him. He saw her cry, but one would only cry infront of someone they're close with. He made her cry, however, it showed just how much he meant to her. Not forgetting that he had stared into her eyes, wiped tears from her face, watched her sleep, had her head on his shoulder, carried her, and claimed her as his.

Those might be simple actions, but many people can't even do those with the one they like, he had learnt to appreciate the memories, no matter good or bad. 

Just then, his friend, his closest friend, the one that knows most of his secrets, came over. Krystal stopped walking and shouted over to where the big tree is, " Yah! " The girl had came to inform him that break time is almost over. If he wants to change their method of working, he have to get promoted quickly, to increase his credibility, he cannot afford to miss a single minute of work.

Since the day they came back to their world, he had been promoted from junior soldier, to senior soldier, to officer.

Although Krystal accepted him as her friend, she had never called him by his name. She always address him with 'yah', 'you', or just 'officer' when he insisted that he'sranked higher than her, especially when they're in uniform. He didn't know why, but he will find out from her sooner or later. He's determined to make his friend open up more. And maybe, he already did.

" Bell's ringing! Officer KwangHee! "