Chapter Text
In a dystopia, happiness can be as impossible as chasing comets. Subtle happiness comes like Halley, once in a lifetime.
Kai slams his fingers onto the computerized system, checking if everything is in check. “Looks like everything is okay,” he mumbles. He sees Lee Sooman patting his back, proud of his hard work. Kai glares at the older man. “Listen, don’t touch me. I don’t like you.”
Sooman just laughs as he removes his palm away from Kai. Kai rolls his eyes as he finishes reviewing everything. He slides his chair back and walks to the exit. Before he steps out, he grumbles, “Remember why I did this.”
--
He ambles through the hall, feeling this void inside him. He passes a few guards who are up and down, following commands. As he walks through, he finds a room where all captives are. As he glances inside, someone calls out to him, looking shocked, where his eyebrows are the most expressive. “Jongin,” he whispers.
Kai chuckles to himself. “What are you doing here?” the young man says.
“Oh Sehun, what’s the problem?” Kai looks over to an older man who is next to him in the next glass cage. “What is it, old man?”
The older man doesn’t seem fazed by Kai’s truculent demeanor. Kai squints his eyes and puckers his lips. The man does not say anything, just stares at him. As Kai takes a step away from the door, he heards, “Did I ever tell you about the day you were born?”
Kai retraces his steps. “The day I was born? Probably a hundred times.” Kai scoffs in between his sentences. “January fourteenth?”
“January fourteenth twenty-two sixty is your birthdate. I’m talking about the day you were born.” There is a bedlam in the room. Those words make Kai tilt his head.
The man continues, “You know, whenever a baby is born, they only stay with family for about two to three weeks after birth before they get taken away from them for the chip implant.”
Kai focuses on the man’s words. He faces his body towards him, crossing his arms.
“Every month, we tried to take them. In a more sane world, that would have been kidnapping. But here, their life would have been stolen. We couldn’t stop. I felt bad to be honest. But then I saw your mother. Your mother was not in tune to her real emotions. When she saw the baby was gone, she was calm. So, I just took the baby.”
“Such a heartfelt story,” Kai says sarcastically.
“Not quite. There was another baby. It never occurred to me there were two until I heard them come. I heard their cry, but I never looked back. That was the day you were born.” His turning back created Kai to who he is today. Void consumes him while hatred fuels him at the same time.
Kai walks away, stepping on cold tiles waiting for spring to come.
--
Jongin sits in the glass cage, feeling absolutely helpless for the first time. Maybe sitting here for his whole life would be better than to be turned in for something he did not do. He sits banging the back of his head on the glass. It feels like time has eaten bits of his soul. For how long? He is not sure. Maybe seven hours? Maybe eight?
Jongin keeps spiralling into his thoughts. He knows that he did not do it. What alibi could Kai possibly have? If Jongin could find out when the video recording was dated, he could possibly prove his innocence. But he cannot do that unless he gets out of here.
He recalls there was a certain tune Kai played. It is like his body was following a rhythm. Jongin tries to think back. He taps on the glass, trying to mimic Kai’s finger choreography. Nothing .
He tries again. And once again, nothing .
Jongin lays his back on the ground and looks up to the ceiling. The cold glass shoots shivers down his spine. Being trapped in this glass feels like being trapped in his thoughts. He can see everything around him as it comes, yet he is stuck, in one place, battling with himself.
Thoughts are pivotal to who we are as people. To not have thoughts is like losing a piece of who you are. Our thoughts can be deceiving at times. Jongin rather thinks for himself without someone controlling it. His mind drifts to everyone he has met here again. He starts thinking about the Cavern. If he does not try to stop Kai, Kai might just win.
Jongin closes his eyes, trying to recall the sardonic melody. He taps on the glass below him, mimicking the sound of rain drops. After several times of going over the tune, Jongin tries the glass wall again. He taps, hoping he got the right rhythm. He closes his eyes tightly as he taps the glass one more time. The glass door opens, making him smile from ear to ear.
He jumps out and runs to the elevator. Unluckily, the elevator is not operating. He scans around the room, and his eyes fall on Kai’s computers. Jongin runs to it and taps on the screen.
Password required.
It requires an eye scan and a password combination. Jongin uses his eye contacts to produce a projection of Kai’s iris. As for the password, Jongin plays around with different series of numbers and letters. It, ultimately, leads him to try one letter combination. K-I-M-J-O-N-G-I-N. It works.
Jongin is a bit spooked. Jongin shakes the thought because of time. He removes the eye scan but leaves the password. He figures there is something worth finding on it. He unlocks the elevator and anything else that Kai could have locked. He dashes through the lair, hops on the elevator, and goes up. He does not have much time left.
--
He sees the cancellation of Kyungsoo’s chip disablement. Mountains upon mountains of pressure sit on top of his chest. His face feels like there is a flame in front of him. He feels like he failed Kyungsoo. Albeit he still wants to make everything right for him.
Abruptly, there is a roaring round of an engine. He peeks through the blinds and sees Jihoon and Yixing in front. Jongin exhales as his face becomes warmer. He steps away and digs through Kai things. The Cavern disabled Jongin’s watch, possibly for the fear of him running away.
After browsing through Kai’s belongings, Jongin managed to get himself some of Kai’s tech gizmos. He straps on two thick metal anklets on each ankles. He packs a laser gun on his side, and an outdated wrist watch.
He climbs onto the stairs on the opposite side of where the window is. He goes on top of the balcony and runs to the edge. He looks down and sees Normani and Chanyeol guarding at the bottom. Jongin clicks his tongue, feeling like he is the world"s most wanted man. He glances to his sides and sees two other buildings. “Looks like I have no choice,” he whispers to himself.
He looks at his watch and tries to locate SM’s building. Fifteen minutes .
He spins his heel to the left. He takes a deep breath as he closes his eye lids. Once he opens his eyes again, there is an acuity that emerges. He sprints to the edge and jumps off, flying to the next building.
As he lands onto the top of the complex, he smiles. He sprints to the next one and, successfully, lands. He repeats again. As he is jumping onto the off building, he feels a presence behind. He turns his head and sees two people-- Normani and Chanyeol. He recognizes the look on their faces-- determination .
Jongin picks up the pace. He manages to jump on a few more buildings. The chase is beginning to tire him out but his persistence does not let him stop. Neither does Normani or Chanyeol’s. He tries tapping to his metal anklets but nothing. He quickly skims through Kai’s watch and sees an icon that resembles the ankets. Jongin taps on it, hoping for the best. His metal anklet pushes out silent rockets on the outer sides. He jumps one more time, flying off the building. This time, the rockets make him soar through the sky.
Ten minutes left.
Jongin quickly turns his head and sees Normani activating her skates and levitating off the roof. Jongin fears how close they will be able to get. Jongin tries adjusting the speed to its max but it is still not fast enough. As Jongin keeps going, his body abrupting comes to a stop and he feels something hard clashing to his face. He spins back but manages to stay in the air without crashing into anything.
He looks up to see what or who that was. His eyes land on a petite but strongly built figure. He flies down to the ground as she does the same, facing each other. Tension merges with the air, drying out Jongin’s throat.
“I don’t want to hurt you, Jongin. Please, just come back with us,” Normani tries to reason.
He chuckles at her statement. He slides his foot back and gets into a fighting stance. “Isn’t that already too late?”
Normani mirrors his movements. They focus on each other’s body, waiting to see the first move. Normani runs to Jongin and swings her arm at him. He catches it, causing her to swing her leg. He catches that as well, but Normani uses that to kick her body up and bull Jongin’s arm back, causing him to fall.
He quickly gets up and blocks all of Normani sudden swings and kicks. Jongin is holding back. He really does want to hurt her. As they fight, Jongin notices someone carrying an enormous Realms flag. Jongin tries to fight Normani towards the direction of the flag. Their moves are impeccable with each step, punch, kick, and turn.
Jongin pulls out a bungee cord, in his stash of Kai’s gizmos. He attaches one clip to his maroon shirt. Once Normani is in close proximity to the poll, he pushes against it. They continue fighting, and Jongin, sneakily, attaches the other clip to the flag.
They continue fighting, but Jongin starts walking in a circle. Normani spins in the pole. After a few steps, Jongin quickly runs around the pole, takes off his clip and attaches it to the flag-- completely trapping Normani.
“I’m sorry,” Jongin mumbles as he watches her struggle to get out of the flag. He turns his back and starts running and slips into an alley.
Five minutes left.
He tries to activate the rockets, but it seems Jongin used all of their energy. He groans as he quickens his pace. As he runs, a figure suddenly appears. The abyss between them has so much tension that the man’s usual tranquil face starts to look taut. He can see his ears peak through his chestnut hair.
“You know I didn’t do it, Chanyeol,” Jongin states.
Chanyeol presses his lip together. “Look, I have known you for the majority of my life. I know you would not want to do that, but you are capable of doing it. And the video …”
“What video?” Jongin interrupts. “You all talk about this video, but I have never seen this video. How will I be able to explain myself if I do not know what you guys are talking about?”
“We can look at it in court--”
“While SM has all those freakishly human-like robots baking up in the oven? Why are our people captured? You guys have no idea who you are up against. Kai is brilliant,” Jongin admits. “He planned all of this. He knew that the attack would make us come here, he knew he could pin this on me. He has been watching us, Yeol.”
“Let’s say this is all true. What do you want me to do?”
“Just believe in me. Let me go prove myself. Go back to Kai’s place. Go down to the lair, and go on his computer. I am sure you guys can get something from there.”
Chanyeol exhales and nods his head. “Okay, what’s the password?”
“My name. Kim Jongin.”
--
Jongin is finally able to get inside the SM building. He sees guards everywhere. Without his watch from the Cavern, it is a little harder to bypass everyone. As Jongin walks around, he sees a familiar figure passing by. Seeing him makes Jongin’s stomach do backflips. Jongin hides behind a bush, waiting for the man to pass by.
Once the man is close, Jongin takes him by the collar and drags him down. The man’s round eyes locks with Jongin’s. “Ka--”
“Kyungsoo, before you say anything,” Jongin pulls out a tube of pills. He pours one tablet out onto his hands. “Here, swallow this.”
“Why?”
“It is an important thing that I am doing for the government. I am just testing it out, don’t worry it is completely safe.”
Kyungsoo slowly takes the pill out of Jongin’s hand and swallows the pill. Jongin wants to wait for a few minutes before asking Kyungsoo, “Do you like your job?”
“No, I hate it,” he admits.
Jongin feels a subtle relief. “I need your help--”
“Help with what? Why should I help you? You are in cahoots with Lee Sooman. Why should I listen to you?” Kyungsoo"s voice begins to get a little louder.
Jongin places his finger over his mouth, trying to get Kyungsoo to lower his voice. Jongin whispers, “Listen, I am not Kai--”
Kyungsoo scoffs. Jongin continues, “My name is Jongin.”
“Jongin..” the name seems to flow perfectly in Kyungsoo’s mouth. “What about you? What does Jongin have to do with me?”
“You always wanted to go to the east tower, because it may feel like you can touch the sky, like you are leaving this godforsaken place. That’s what you told me. So we went.”
As Kyungsoo begins to go his usual bedlam, Jongin pulls out a camera. The one he made for Kyungsoo. For each memory, Kyungsoo captured it, so he can always go back to it since he would forget several hours later. “You see this…” Jongin says as he turns on the camera. He flips through each image, a memory. Jongin plays the video of Kyungsoo’s reaction to Halley’s Comet. “We did all of this each time I gave you this pill. You were able to have your own thoughts. I told you about my world, you read Frankenstein . We watched Halley’s Comet.”
Kyungsoo lost for words. Jongin is used to it. “Okay … Jongin … what do you need help with?”
“First, switch clothes with me.”
--
Jongin walks through the halls with no problem. He wears a short sleeve camouflage, military uniform shirt and matching pants. He tries to go back to where all the captives are. When he gets there, he finds no one.
Feeling a little anxious, he steps back, accidentally bumping into another guard. “Sorry,” Jongin whispers as he bows, lowering his face to make it less noticeable.
The guard walks away and is bombarded with demands. “Go check if everything is ready”, “Go gather more of the guards”, so on and so forth. As Jongin tries to pass them, he hears, “Go check on the captives.”
Jongin holds his breath for a second. He walks ahead and slides to the right, hiding in front of the wall. The guard, who received all those orders, walked out of the hall and went into another. Jongin figures following that guard will be his best bet.
Jongin keeps following him until he gets to where the captives are. Jongin slips into the room. To his surprise, there is no one from the Cavern here. Just a big room white walls and a white floor. Abruptly, Jongin hears someone talking in an intercom.
“ Welcome, Jongin. Took you long enough ,” the sound of an older man spoke. “ You must be looking for your people. Well, they are here to watch you die .”
“Lee Sooman, What do you mean?”
“ Your uncle can really help improve my androids, but he doesn’t seem to understand why I need his help. So, I will show him using you as my guinea pig .”
Jongin clenches his fists so tightly that his nails begin to dig into his palm, but he barely notices. Electrical storm emerges in his brain, making his head throb. Lee Sooman’s ominous idea makes Jongin feel quite anxious. He knows his uncle will not give in easily, calling Lee Sooman’s bluff. But Jongin feels like this is not a bluff. Jongin doesn’t admit to it; instead, he draws his foot back, another forward. Taking a step forward will always be enigmatic when you are not sure where your foot will fall.
The wall opens a bit and a human-like android appears. The movements of the android are so smooth, it seems like it is a living thing. His serenity is all an act; inside, he trembles like he has been electrified. The android begins to walk towards him. The only thing that sounds unnatural is the robot’s voice. Its voice is refined to such perfection that there is no humanity in it, almost like it was drained. “Come on, Jongin. Let’s play.”
At the sound of its voice, Jongin lifts his arms up and clenches his first. He takes a deep breath.Think twice, do once, he rehearses his thoughts. The android charges at Jongin with a green glow over its fingers. The android strikes, Jongin jerks back and takes its arms. He swings it around like a helicopter propeller. He realizes his grip and the android starts flying in the air, but its feet bounce off the wall and charge back Jongin and, unfortunately, strikes his face and pain blazes across his cheekbone.
The strong punches sent Jongin flying back. Jongin watches the android begin to fly. It has special abilities. Jongin will eventually get tired out or even die if he doesn’t have some technical device.
Jongin runs through his pockets and takes out another one of Kai’s devices. It was a black disk. Jongin flips it and sees it reads suit. Jongin tries slapping it onto his chest and a dark blue suit goes into his body.
Jongin takes a steady breath as he lifts his arms up again.
The android comes back. They fought, capturing each other"s moves, dodging each one. The android begins shooting lasers from his hand. Jongin jumps out the way. After feeling like twenty minutes, Jongin begins to lose strength.
Cold sweat trickles down the side of his head, glistening, as he furrows his brows. With hands clasped tightly in front of his face, he tries to swing at the machinery. Not only does he miss, he gets more hits. The android throws him on the walls, spins him around, and flings him to the floor. The android lunges across Jongin"s chest, pushing him down against the wall, crushing his throat with its left palm, lifting him to the achromatic wall. Jongin looks down, gasping for air that didn"t make it to his windpipe. His eyes gradually become red as he kicks his legs and pushes the android’s arm down. But nothing happens.
“ Mr. Kim what will be your answer ?” Lee Sooman says as another side of the room"s wall opens, revealing Jongin’s uncle, chained up. Jongin takes a glimpse of him. His uncle, bewildered red eyes and chapped lips, tries to make a sound but seems too scared to speak. “ Hurry, Mr. Kim, I don’t think he’ll last any longer, ” Lee Sooman sardonically speaks.
Jongin closes his eyes as a tear drips from the corner of his eyes.
“Okay! I’ll do whatever you want. Just let him go!” Mr Kim exclaims.
“ Alright … Android DNE-Nine. Let go .” The android loosens its fingers around his neck and drops Jongin down, who ends up coughing.
“ DNE-Nine ,” Lee Sooman continues. “ Shut down. ”
--
Kai walks out in the courtyard, feeling absolutely sick. He does not feel satisfied. In fact, his insides feels like they are slowly dying in toxicity, needing just a single spark of a match to set it ablaze. Guilt pesters him in a sardonic manner.
He leads his back onto the metal barrier in front of SM. He digs into his pocket and pulls out a match. The wrinkled toxic stick swirls a slow creeping stench in the atmosphere, invading who Kai is, toxifying his lungs. He smokes whenever he is overloaded with emotions.
As he lets out another huff and puff of toxic smoke, he sees a small group of people come to him. He drops the bud onto the ground and twists it with his foot.
One of them, hesitantly, says, “Kai?”
“Yes, what is it?”
—
By design, we are meant to have the capability to think beyond the borders in order to be able to be part of a socially, high tech, and complex society with dichotomies as well as gray areas. Instead of mind control, we need to obtain self control and the desire to follow a passion. To create a sense of self, individualized, as we exchange knowledge among each other and help each other.
What is deemed to be considered havoc, we create intelligent and accepting spaces, using empathy and sympathy-- our human nature. For a good environment, we need to be exceptionally good, not from external force but internal emotions and needs - that"s how we will ever achieve a lasting peace and thriving planet.
Here, there is no such thing as internal emotion or needs. Jongin stays locked away in high security. Now, the Cavern seems like a distant dream. Jongin is trapped again, to suffer with hopelessness and the tide to emotions it brings. Fall has just started yet it feels like they"re in the middle of winter. Its lack of warmth, its lack of light.
The callous government only cares about their selfish desires. They try to make this place a great place with their false propaganda of making the Realms a great place again. In reality, the Realms was never a great place. It is built on suffering of people who do not fit the standard. They fear actual liberation as it would be a threat to their tyranny.
Liberty and coercion are dichotomous to each other just like love and fear. Currently, the people unconsciously fear the government, making it tyranny. Only when the government fears the people, there will be liberty.
Jongin sulks in the corner in the glass cage. He feels completely defended. They won .
As Jongin curls up, he can hear tapping on the glass. He looks over and a small smile plasters on his face. “Kyungsoo…”
Kyungsoo silently tries to unlock the cage. Once it opens, Jongin slides out of it. Jongin jumps and tightly hugs him. He whispers into his ears, “Thank you…” He pulls away. “How did you know where to find me?”
“Well…” As Kyungsoo’s words trail, another figure appears-- Kai.
“What the fuck are you doing--”
“I am sorry,” Kai apologizes. Jongin tilts his head slightly, confused at Kai’s sudden apology.
“What do you mean you are ‘sorry’?”
Kai looks down at the ground while rubbing the back of his neck. “At first, I wanted to hurt you, because you got to experience a better life. Honestly, I was quite jealous. I was stuck here, being a mindless zombie until I reached the age of twenty. Then I started snooping around out of curiosity. But then, I saw your world, hidden. Then I saw you.”
“You saw me? And?”
“I just saw myself and what I could have had…I was quite angry--” Kai pauses again. “Lee Sooman saw the anger, and he used it,” Kai clears his throat. He leans his body on the gray metal wall, crossing his arms. “Well, I hope it is not too late to start over. I met your friends. They found everything in my computer. They are currently hacking through the system. We just need to stop Lee Sooman.”
---
Is it okay to trust Kai? When the dawn comes, when the light touches the land, the last specks of nature responds no matter what happened before. Jongin finds himself in Kai’s place again. He tries disabling Kyungsoo’s chip again. This time, successfully doing so.
Everything seems to just naturally fall into place. Jongin swallows dryly at the thought of it. Fingers wrap around his tense body. The mattress creaks as he turns around, facing Kyungsoo. This all feels too familiar. Kyungsoo trails a lazy finger down Jongin’s bare shoulder, and his skin prickles at his touch. “Are you okay?”
Jongin chuckles but the scratchiness of his voice is noticeable. “To be honest? Not really. I don’t know, I just have this feeling-- can we trust Kai? Is everything really gonna be okay?” His eyes leave Kyungsoo for a long moment, searching for the answer himself.
Kyungsoo manges Jongin’s arm, relieving some tension. Their eyes meet again, and they stay silent as if they are communicating telepathically. Jongin breaks the silence, “I wish I helped disable your chip a long time ago.”
“Me too. I think not being controlled would have been great,” Kyungsoo jokingly says. “But why do you?”
Jongin sighs, his fingers play in Kyungsoo’s short fringes like all those nights before. His fingertips send an electric sensation down Kyungsoo’s spine; his skin tingles in a frenzy of static as he feels Jongin’s gliding gently on his forehead. “In all those times, I think I have grown feelings for you,” Jongin admits. “But you cannot possibly feel that. Right now must feel like the very first day you met me as Jongin … but everyday, I’ve gotten to know more about Kyungsoo.”
Kyungsoo nods his head. “Yeah, I don’t remember anything. I just remember that you were Kai, now you are Jongin.”
Jongin nods his head, still very close to Kyungsoo. The atmosphere feels stuffy yet relaxing.
“This, however,” Kyungsoo adds, “feels familiar. Maybe … later we can .. start over. Us two, we can relearn everything.”
Jongin cannot suppress his triumphant smile, neither can Kyungsoo. Could this be what love feels like? An ecstasy that is so immense, you cannot tell the difference between a dream and reality?
--
Ryan and Baekhyun revise the plan with everyone. “Yixing and Kyungsoo will guard the front doors, Kai will be with Mr. Kim, Jongin and Chanyeol will destroy all the androids with this magnetic ball--”
“What will it do?” Chanyeol asks.
“Since Kai gave us more information on androids, we can use this magnetic ball to stop its electric circuits, once you guys get on it,” Baekhyun adds.
“The rest of us will keep tabs, making sure everything is working fine from here. Like tracking, screenings,” Ryan continues.
Jongin taps on his bottom lip repeatedly and gently. Kyungsoo seems to be the only one that notices his unusual tick. He intertwines his fingers with Jongin, soothing him a bit. Jongin stops tapping on his lip and slightly tightens his grip on Kyungsoo’s hand. Can they really trust Kai?
—
Tomorrow. They’ll have to see what it will bring.
Underneath the midnight sky, two souls watch the moon and the few stars that are evident on the last few warm days of the year.
Jongin and Kyungsoo lay underneath a thin blanket, legs mingling around each other, on a medium size mattress on the balcony, close to the edge, touching the railing. In the darkness their bodies release some warm, like a little touch of heaven. “What kind of old person would you like to become?” Jongin asks.
Kyungsoo looks at him, “Why?”
“Did you ever think you’d be able to picture yourself as an older person, in a way you want to become?” Jongin steals a look at Kyungsoo who shakes his head and slides over a bit, letting their arms brush each other. “Okay, what do you see yourself as when you’re older?”
“Long walks on a beach, singing in the morning and at night, exploring new things I never thought I could. Do anything and everything,” Kyungsoo utters. He turns on his side, now, facing Jongin. “Do you live more in the moment, or planning for the future?”
There’s a pause between them. Every time there’s this silent pause, they can hear the sound of their heart beating. “I live...I act on impulses, call me spontaneous, I just think there’s more to life than simply allocating your time for your next move.”
“Life is meant to be enjoyed…” Kyungsoo says.
“Exactly, meant to be lived,” Jongin adds as he turns his body to face Kyungsoo.
There is this tension that builds between as they stare at each other’s eyes. Getting involved with Kyungsoo has always been dangerous yet this is the safest Jongin feels. Can a simple word like “love” epitomize their true feelings?
Unknowingly, Jongin’s face slowly gets closer to Kyungsoo as Kyungsoo mirrors him. It is funny how human emotions work; it is not calculated and is quite unpredictable.
The taste of Kyungsoo’s lips feels like a drug. Jongin sucks on Kyungsoo’s bottom lip, before capturing all of it again. Their slow, gentle kiss becomes more deep and passionate as they both become more hungry for the taste of the other’s lips. Jongin feels Kyungsoo’s heart beat with his as they lock lips.
Jongin’s erection swells and throbs as he falls deeper into Kyungsoo’s lips. He pulls himself away gently, his breath quickens slightly. He looks down at Kyungsoo’s brown eyes, “We can stop here if you want—“
Jongin"s words get cut short as he feels a tug from his shirt and softly collides onto Kyungsoo’s lips.
Jongin takes off his shirt and goes back to dancing with Kyungsoo’s soft lips. Their kiss gets a bit messier but never sloppy. In between their makeout session, Jongin removes Kyungsoo clothes as Kyungsoo removes the rest of Jongin’s.
Jongin kisses from Kyungsoo’s neck, down to his abdomen and pelvic area, until he wraps his lips around Kyungsoo’s shaft. The tightness of Jongin’s lips makes a quiet moan escape from Kyungsoo’s mouth. Jongin presses on his own thumb as his mouth slides up and down, trying to suppress his gag reflexes.
From Kyungsoo’s dick, Jongin licks down Kyungsoo"s balls and hole. He flips Kyungsoo over, getting easy access to his hole. He grabs on Kyungsoo’s butt and sends the sweetest wet kisses down Kyungsoo’s spine. Kyungsoo’s body shivers as Jongin coats his fingers with spit and twirls on his hole. “We can stop—“
“No...keep going..” Kyungsoo interrupts.
Jongin slowly slides in one digit, making Kyungsoo gasp at the pain. Jongin waits for a few seconds, so Kyungsoo can adjust, nibbling at his ear. He adds the second digit, making Kyungsoo whimper at his touch. Jongin reaches Kyungsoo"s neck and sucks on it as he massages and relaxes Kyungsoo’s inner muscles. Then, the third finger slides in, putting Kyungsoo at the edge. He pushes his fingers in and out until Kyungsoo gets adjusted.
Jongin aligns himself in front of Kyungsoo’s hole, switching his fingers with his dick, pushing him slightly. Kyungsoo yelps at the sudden bigger size of his cock. Jongin waits for a moment before pushing himself in, completely, and slowly rocking his pelvic back and forth. Jongin thrust his hips, his full erection gliding between Kyungsoo’s quivering hole, squeezing onto his ass cheeks. Kyungsoo’s eyelids droop as he feels the alluring rippling effect of Jongin’s sharply defined abdomen flexing and relaxing. Their short breaths and grunts became the only melody that warms them up.
Once the pain goes away, there is an immense amount of pleasure fueling within them. Kyungsoo rhythmically rocks his ass back, his erections swells, feeling a burst of sensation as Jongin’s slick hard dick glides in and out of him. Jongin holds onto the railing, thrusting harder and deeper. In between each thrust, Kyungsoo manages to softly moan out, “Jongin … Jongin”. The sound of their skin clapping emerges the faster Jongin thrusts. The railing trembles slightly as the intensity increases.
They change positions; this time, Kyungsoo slides himself into Jongin’s cock as Jongin lays on the mattress. Kyungsoo bounces on Jongin, feeling everything, all of him. The look of ecstasy on Kyungsoo’s face makes Jongin’s erection twitch a bit. Kyungsoo quick slams on Jongin’s dick makes Jongin mumble, “Fuck..” He rides him wildly, clenching onto his own shaft, fisting it.
Creampy ropes of cum burst from Kyungsoo’s head, dripping down his shaft, and some drops lands onto Jongin’s chest.
Jongin lifts Kyungsoo and gently lies his back on the ground with his dick still inside him. He leans closer to steal a kiss. They enjoy each other"s wet lips, licking and sucking every inch of it. Jongin lifts his body up and a trickle of sweat slides down his back. He holds onto Kyungsoo’s ankles, thrusting deeply into him. Sweat forms on Jongin’s forehead as his glistening body moves back and forth, gliding in and out of Kyungsoo. His erratic movements have Kyungsoo rolling his eyes a little bit. Their grunts and moans, the wet sound of their bodies colliding, create the most beautiful cloud in the air.
Kyungsoo releases white blotches again on his stomach, and Jongin ass cheeks flex, bursting a warm cream inside him, exhaling deeply.
They collapse onto each other, legs intertwined, panting. They lay on the fluffiest mattress, crawl under the softest sheet, thinking they are catching the moon and sun when, really, they are chasing comets.
—
September thirtieth.
Everyone is where they need to be. Kyungsoo and Yixing guard the front entrance where Mr. Kim is. Kai slips into the room. Lee Sooman is not aware of his scheme. Kai looks up, and Lee Sooman is leaning on a railing on the second floor, watching Mr. Kim with his sinister smile. Kai’s eyes, then, fall on Mr. Kim as he frantically arranges some wires, occasionally looking at the computer.
“Kai, so good to see you,” Lee Sooman yells from the top, making Kai make eye contact with him. “We are almost done.”
Kai looks away, watching Mr. Kim. They’ll get him out, he just needs to wait a little longer.
—
“How much longer do we have to wait?” Jongin complains.
“When Kai gives us the okay,” Chanyeol grumbles, beginning to get agitated.
The two of them stay hiding in a spacious vent, only able to hear the sounds of their own breath. “Do you think this will really be the end?”
Jongin and Chanyeol’s wrist watches vibrate, causing them both to look down.
Kai: Okay, we are moving to the executive office. Go now, hurry.
“We will have to see,” Chanyeol says as they begin to crawl out of the vent and enter the room, seeing all two rows of androids lined up. Their very human-like appearance is quite deceiving.
The men pull out the magnetic balls and quickly run to each android and attract it to the back of their necks. Jongin sets the timer for five minutes. Within that time, all systems just shut down and all the data should be wiped out if it.
Jongin counts the robots and finds something odd. He counts again and notices the inaccurate amount. “We are missing one.”
Chanyeol furrows his brows and counts it himself. “You are right.” He taps onto his watch, but Jongin doesn’t see what it is.
“What should we do?”
“Maybe we can check in between those double doors. They might be one there. Just chatted Kai, there can be one there,” he points at the doors across from them.
Jongin nods his head, “Okay, let’s go then. We don’t have much time to waste.”
The two of them jog to the other side of the room. As they reach the door, on the other, another door opens, revealing Kyungsoo. He just sees Jongin slip inside. The last thing he catches is Chanyeol"s eyes looking into his. His sharp big eyes are a deep dark brown, as rich as the soil after torrential rain, but something about those eyes don’t seem right.
—
They enter the dimly lit room. Jongin uses his watch to flash some light. It is so quiet that the sound their footsteps are blaring. As Jongin walks deeper, he feels a vibration on his wrist. He glances down and sees a message from Kyungsoo. “ Where did you go?” Kyungsoo sent.
Jongin quickly slides the characters, ultimately hitting send. “ Missing robot. Kai told Chanyeol to check here. ”
Jongin flashing the light, seeing rough outlines and sketches of Lee Sooman’s project. Model one, model two, and model three. Progressively trying to mimic human features. Jongin grimances at the sight of it.
The lights suddenly turn out, causing Jongin to turn back at Chanyeol. “Good, you found the light switch.” He smiles but Chanyeol doesn’t react. In fact, Chanyeol does not say anything, just gives a stern look like what Jongin had said is completely wrong. Jongin’s smile slowly fades away. “Chanyeol, is there something wrong?”
—
Yixing and Kyungsoo wait in front of the door. Yixing notes, “They’ve been gone for awhile…”
Before Kyungsoo gets the chance to say something, the door opens, revealing Kai. “Alright, we’re good?” Kai inquires.
“What about Chanyeol and Jongin?” Yixing investigates.
“They should be put by now,” Kai replies, looking at them both. He notices how Kyungsoo’s eyes widen at his response. He looks more carefully at him, seeing how stiff he becomes.
Kyungsoo stammers, “Jongin …”. He clears his throat, trying to speak again, “Jongin said there is a missing android. He said that you told Chanyeol it is in a room, inside, across from this entrance.”
Kai stops breathing for a second. “I never said that.”
—
Chanyeol’s ominous demeanor makes Jongin take a step back each time Chanyeol steps forward. “What are you doing?” Jongin asks.
“It seems like you miscalculated, Jongin,” Chanyeol says emotionlessly. As Chanyeol takes another step, the floor abruptly rises, the ceiling open like curtains to the next act. They reach to another floor, every inch of it is white, completely lacking ornamentation. Terror kicks Jongin in his throat with every footstep Chanyeol takes. “My name is not Chanyeol. I am DNE Ten.”
Jongin cannot utter a second, his face remains stuck, horrified to what he is hearing, to what he is seeing. DNE Ten lifts its hard pointing its finger at Jongin. Its finger tip begins to glow. Jongin’s eyes widen at its brightness. A beam of light shoots out of DNE Ten’s finger. Jongin slows down time and jumps into the air, levitating. A new modification, flight .
Jongin watches the light fly through the air at an alarming fast rate. The light dissipates as it hits the wall. DNE Ten looks up, locking its eyes on Jongin, shooting another beam of light. Jongin does the same thing but this time flies behind DNE Ten.
Jongin snaps and swings at it, making it lose balance a little bit. Anger cannot epitomize how he truly feels. What happened to Chanyeol? Is this what the Realms is about? Oh, yes, Jongin forgot for a second. This place is all about mind games.
Jongin gives everything he has as he fights this thing. He is the spider, crawling onto a web, waiting for a fly. Albeit the artificial mind, nowhere near, has the intellectual capacity of the human mind, of course, its artificial body runs longer than even the most fit and strong humans. Jongin"s body begins to experience exhaustion, now realizing he is not the spider. He is the fly that got stuck. Now, he is getting torn up. DNE Ten clenches onto Jongin’s jaw with its dense fingertips, using its other hand to curl up into a fist. Ultimately, it smashes his face. Bits of blood splatter onto the white wall. The blood gives it some vibrancy like it was a blank canvas craving for paint. He lifts Jongin feets harshly, almost tearing a ligament. He holds him for a moment like a puppeteer holding his toy as the curtains close. The last thing DNE Ten swings Jongin’s leg around and flings him across the room. Jongin’s back bounces off the achromatic wall and lands on the matching ground.
DNE’s human-like arm unravels into its truest form-- a piece of machinery. Its arm becomes a huge laser gun, ready to turn Jongin into tiny atoms. As it is about to shoot, a beam of light bounces off its face, shattering half of its face. It’s eyes follow the direction it came from and sees Kai holding a laser gun, modified by Ryan and Baekhyun.
It regenerates, forming a perfectly structured face--Chanyeol’s face. It starts shooting laser beams at Kai as Jongin lays semi-unconsciously on the ground. Kai seems to enjoy the fight. There is an adrenaline flowing inside him. He laughs and yells as he battles the robot.
Meanwhile, Kyungsoo peaks his head in and sees Jongin inside. He is about to go inside, but Yixing pulls his arm. “What do you think you are doing?”
“He needs help!” Kyungsoo stresses. Yixing tries to pull Kyungsoo, but Kyungsoo is already inside before he could. He watches Kyungsoo frantically running in all the havoc. He can hear Kai yelling, “ Who told this one to fucking come inside? ” Yixing groans, waiting for more of the team to find them, but it seems it will still be a little longer. Yixing runs inside, helping Kai try to beat this android.
Its modifications are done by Mr. Kim, which explains the improvements it has. Faster and more efficient than the others.
Kyungsoo tries to lift Jongin’s body, putting his arm around the neck. Jongn looks pretty hurt, his bruised face and trembling body.
In the battle, DNE finally manages to fling Yixing and Kai to the ground in different directions. Its eyes scan the room and lock in the couple, walking out. It lifts its arm, a beam of light coming from its mechanical arm. The blue hue of light catches Kyungsoo’s attention, making him around. Kyungsoo inhales a sharp breath at the blast light.
He closes his eyes, waiting for the worst. He hears it bounce this direction but does not feel anything. He opens his eyes, seeing a familiar back that radiates a different aura in front of him. DNE Ten collides onto the ground as there is a magnetic ball on the center of its head.
At the same time, Kai falls to the ground, twitching. Kyungsoo’s mouth hangs open, exhaling the last few breaths he has. Jongin, slowly, lifts his head, seeing Kai breathing heavily. He slowly drops himself down and crawls to him. “Kai…” Jongin manages to say.
Kai looks at him, unable to his body. Jongin can feel the life slowly draining out of Kai with every few breaths he takes. He lifts his body with the little amount of strength he has left and lays him on his thighs. “You have always been this chaotic..” Jongin snivels, seeing Kai slowly smiling.
“Yeah, I am chaotic. I guess that is where we are different,” Kai quietly laughs. His breathing becomes less steady but the minute. “You know, it is nice to get to know my brother. Turns out he is not as bad as I thought he would be.”
Jongin gnaws his lips as his eyes glistens. He doesn’t say anything. He just listens.
“I saw a picture that he is terrible for enjoying everything while I suffered. I guess I painted this picture myself… I’m sorry.” His breathing stops, and the warmth of life is stolen away by death’s cold embrace.
--
The polychromatic leaves sway in the breeze as if they are dancing to the wind’s whisper. The gold and pink hues reflect on the fortified glass as the sun rises the ground. Mr. Kim and Jongin are in the middle of their usual practice session. Jongin sharpness and strength is impeccable, mostly better than before. Mr. Kim starts to grow tired, balancing his body on his knees.
“Okay, that is enough of that.” Mr. Kim tries to control his breathing as Jongin hands land on his own hips.
“What do you mean?”
“I am an old man, remember,” he jokes. Jongin tries to suppress his laugh. Mr. Kim looks at the serenity of the leaves as they scrape the ground gently. With winter in a few months, the Cavern has to switch the animals around so their surroundings can accommodate their special traits.
Jongin participates in his daily jog with Chanyeol throughout the Cavern to the Loues. Once they get to the top of the balcony at the Loues building, Chanyeol takes a deep breath, exhaling much of the fresh air around them.
Jongin walks inside the building, standing on the indoor balcony. He sees everyone, going back to how things were, radiating equanimity. Jongin can see Kyungsoo from here, accommodating how things are here. His heart shaped smile makes Jongin feel this warmness inside despite it becoming colder.
Chanyeol walks next to Jongin, looking at all the jovial people down below. “Coming back here, feels like we all woke up from a terrible nightmare,” Chanyeol admits, looking at Jongin then back the people.
Dreams and nightmares are temporary, not meant to leak into your reality. But, how can Jongin call it a nightmare if he does not feel his own presence when he is awake?
“Yeah …” Jongin pretends to listen. Albeit there is laughter filling the air, all Jongin can hear is “I’m sorry”.
Fin.