Artificial Intelligence (Stray Kids I.N//Yang Jeongin)

Twenty-five

The hallways were a lot quieter than they had expected which only fueled their anxiety. If the androids were spread out all over the place, were they huddled up somewhere?

The atmosphere between Jade and Jeongin was tense and neither said a word to the other. Even Jihyo, who was to look after them, couldn't break the thick wall between them.

After about five minutes of walking in utter silence, Jaydess just couldn't take it anymore.

"This isn't going to work," she sighed before looking at the boy who was still avoiding her gaze. "If we are going to be a team we need communication."

"Whatever," he rolled his eyes as he began to walk a bit ahead of her.

"Can you at least pretend you want to be with me?" She snapped.

"Just like how you pretended to like me?"

"Don't be like this. I'm just trying to work effectively."

"And I'm just trying to forget about you."

Jade sighed as she turned to look at Jihyo.

"You see how ridiculous he's being?" She asked.

The android only raised her hands up, showing that she didn't want to get involved.

"Look, Jeongin. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to mess with you like that."

"Let's just leave it, okay?"

"No, I want to make things right. I don't want you to be mad at me."

"I'm not mad at you," he mumbled before sighing and running a hand through his hair. "I'm mad at myself."

Jade's gaze on him instantly softened and she couldn't help but feel worse for what she had done.

She glanced back at Jihyo, hoping the android would give her advice but nothing escaped her mouth.

How on earth was Jaydess going to make it up to Jeongin?

***

"I thought I'd be seeing you here," Miss Charlotte's voice echoed around the room as she stood by the Main Chip. She wore a plain white pantsuit and had surgical gloves over her small hands.

Jihyo immediately aimed her gun at the android and placed her finger on the trigger, ready to shoot.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Miss Charlotte warned as a few more androids came out of hiding and circles them, all with their guns either aimed at Jihyo or the teens. "Let's not get our boots bloody for no reason. Just hand over the kids and no one gets hurt."

"As if," Jihyo practically spat. "You'd shoot me anyway then them."

"I would if I have to. Now put the gun away."

"Never."

Miss Charlotte raised an eyebrow as she sucked on the inside of her lip, clearly surprised by Jihyo's courage.

"Very well," the android uttered before beckoning to one of the other androids on her left who instantly shot at Jeongin's leg.

The boy fell to the ground, screaming in agony and he clutched his leg.

"Jeongin," Jade shouted before falling to her knees and pulling the jersey she had off her body. She placed it at the place the bullet had pierced him and applied pressure.

"Hand over the kids, Jihyo or the girl gets hurt too."

Jihyo didn't budge though.

Miss Charlotte rolled her eyes once more before nudging the other android again and he shot at Jade's stomach. Only it didn't ever get to her.

Before it did, Jeongin shielded her with his own body, taking another bullet to his already weak body.

Jade stared down at his once-white shirt that was now stained with blood.  Tears welled up in her eyes as she watched him clutch his stomach in pain.

"Jeongin? Why'd you so that? You're going to die idiot!"

"I told you I was going to protect you."

"Please don't hurt yourself any more. I'm not worth it."

"To me, you are."

Then other gunshot went off.

Jade was sure Jeongin was gone and closed her eyes, not wanting to see his dead body.

"Oh my goodness," she heard Rose's voice beside her and instantly opened her eyes to see Jeongin still staring up at her, still alive.

Turns out he wasn't the one shot.

Miss Charlotte was.

And behind the gun stood Megan, glaring at her old best friend.

"Don't you dare traumatise them any more than you already have. They don't deserve this."

"Are you forgetting you were their slave? They used you, Megan. They used all of us," Miss Charlotte spat out bitterly as she tried to reduce the amount of blood coming out of her stomach.

"I was a mother figure."

"You are a robot. You think they see as anything other than that? No."

"They saw you as a mother figure too, Charlotte. And you broke their trust in you. You broke my trust in you."

"Don't do this to me, Megan. Don't betray me like this."

Megan scoffed.

"You betrayed me first." And with that, she shot at Miss Charlotte's head, killing her instantly. And that was when the whole battle began.

By that time the rest of the androids on their team had showed up with loaded guns in their hands and Rose and Jade had to quickly pull Jeongin away from the scene to keep him safe.

The other teenagers soon arrived with a first aid kit and wrapped a bandage around both of his wounds. It was going to stop all the blood from flowing out but it was a good alternative as they waited for an ambulance to arrive.

The side for human and android equality was a lot bigger than the other one so it wasn't a surprise when they finished off Miss Charlotte's army.

Megan instantly pulled out several injection syringes from her bag and ran to the teenagers. She got a blood sample from each of them and quickly ran back to the Main Chip where she used the samples to unlock it. She placed the smaller chip than made all androids nice to humans in and just like that it was done.

It seemed like such a simple task but something everyone made a big deal out of.

Not long later Jeongin was rushed off to an nearby hospital where the bullets were taken out and he got stitches.

"That was stressful," Jade admitted as she sat down at one of the desks in the main office. It was big and professional office though it only had seven computers.

"It was," Megan said. "What a coincidence you sat at that desk in particular."

"Yeah, yeah, I know it's my mum's desk," Jaydess responded as she looked through her mother's drawers to see reports from years ago.

"Actually, it's now yours. The Headquarters will need someone like you to help run this place in the right direction again."

"Really?" Jade smiled before pulling Megan into a hug. "You're the best."

"Yeah, yeah, I've been told. But while I'm here I want to ask you something. Why didn't you tell Jeongin you liked him back?"

Jaydess sighed.

"I just don't want him to hurt me like dad hurt mum."

"But there's a difference in this scenario. Your father didn't love your mother back but Jeongin does love you back. So why are you here in this office instead of in that hospital room telling him how much he actually means to you?"

"I guess because I don't have a ride," Jade shrugged.

Megan smiled as she pulled her car keys out of her pocket.

"Now you do."