Y/N POV:
After a quick moment of fresh air and peace, you were able to reset your mind. Over the few days of being here, you could feel your willpower fizzling away. This, however, started the timer over again. That in itself is a bittersweet thought.
The sweetness is much more prominent than the bitter portion, though. No matter what, you would force yourself to live for your soulmates. That piece of bitter appointments and pain is something you are willing to endure in order to return to that terrifically sweet feeling. Your only concern is if the others are willing to push through the same thing.
After you returned inside, you felt several strange waves of pulsing in your mind. It felt like someone was carefully removing a wall brick by brick. Had you not been so tired, you would have embraced the odd feeling. Though, you were nervous about the idea that the Gatorade substance had negatively affected your body. You had been too exhausted to process the idea that it could have been a soulmate of yours.
As morning number five rolls around, you realize just how much you've slept as the dawn creeps higher. You had fallen asleep directly after your delivered dinner. Now, repeats the same schedule that commences with breakfast.
Lianna peaks her head into your room and meets your eyes. A soft smile graces her lips as she enters with her tray of food. You return the gesture as you fix your posture. She takes a seat next to you and begins the usual routine.
"Where are we, Lianna?" You ask bravely. Your question catches her off guard, but still, she thinks over the question. After she feeds you your first bite, she answers.
"A lousy town in the middle of nowhere is where we are." She scoffs, rolling her eyes. You nod your head slowly.
"How far do you travel to get here then?" You push a hint of concern out of your voice, but really, you just dig for just how far you might be out of town.
She chuckles a bit as she cuts up your meal. "Oh... I don't know. I drive about forty-five minutes each way to get here."
"Ah... I see. So that pay really is good, huh?" You laugh with her as she feeds you your bite. She nods with a chuckle before becoming more serious, hanging her head for a moment.
"Irwing." She says shortly. Your eyebrows scrunch together as you tilt your head.
"What?"
"We are in Irwing. It's a small town in the middle of three large cities, and it feels like the Bermuda Triangle."
"What do you mean?"
"Once you're in, you can never get out." She whispers the last phrase before shaking her head slowly. "I'm sorry. I've said too much. Please do not let the doctors know what I've said."
Her eyes widen as she begins to plead with you. Her hands grasp your own in each binding as she shakes them. At her frenzy, you nod slowly.
"Lianna, please calm down. I'm not going to say anything, I promise," you begin slowly, looking into her eyes. As you see her relaxing a bit, you continue.
"I won't tell anyone," you restate, "but are you able to help me get out of here?" You whisper as quietly as possible, inching your head closer to hers. Her eyes widen a second time.
"Uh... I really shouldn-... um. I can't!" She finishes finally, slapping a hand over her mouth. You nod slowly, pulling away from her.
"That's okay. I just wanted to ask. How about we finish with breakfast, hm?" You ask her softly, knowing she would likely return to normal while doing her job.
After she feeds you, she is quick to exit your room. With a heavy sigh, your head sinks backward onto the uncomfortable board. You wish you could face-palm because you had forgotten to ask Lianna about the doctors plans for today. Her little outburst had troubled you, but in return, you had gotten some good information. Well, if you could do anything with it.
After what may have been an hour, a pleasant knock sounds at the door, and Minghao peaks his head in before entering fully. Your expression remains neutral as you look at the familiar doctor. He looks at you expectantly before caving in and tilting his head.
"What? No snarky remarks?" He asks with disappointment. At this, you hide a smile and shake your head. You could think of quite a few things to say, but you choose to hold your tongue.
"Not today, Doc. I'm just wondering what my day looks like." You shrug your tired shoulders. He sighs and places his things down on the empty counter, like usual.
"Today will be quite a bit rougher than yesterday as progress in here tends to speed up rapidly." He states nonchalantly.
"What do you mean?" You try to hide your worry.
"I mean, we only have two more days of testing, so the tests get harder."
"Harder as in..?"
He smirks before shaking his head and erasing his thoughts. "As in: more needles, more poking and prodding, more medication, more of everything wonderful!" He clasps his hands together, a sick smile dancing on his chapped lips.
You scoff and roll your eyes. "Wonderful isn't exactly the term I would use to describe it." You mumble, fear beginning to close in on you.
He stalks towards the side of your bed slowly, each foot caressing the floor beneath for a moment before being picked up again. He leans towards you and asks, "Then how would you describe it?" He tuts at the 'T', emphasizing his phrase.
You feel your skin becoming dewy at the new atmosphere, and you turn your head so that you can see him but not quite face him. He waits for your description patiently, tapping his index finger over his clenched fist.
You face him boldly as you begin speaking. "I would describe it as a bunch of sh-"
A knock interrupts your claim, and both of your heads snap to the door. A sigh leaves the doctor as he calls for the person to enter.
"Ah! There you are. Luckily, we have not gotten started yet!" He clasps his hands together, quickly gathering himself and moving away from your bed.
Oaf one and two have arrived, making a not-so-epic entrance. They close the door behind them and wait around like they always do. Before you get a chance to begin your antics, Minghao starts speaking.
"We must begin right away to ensure the schedule does not get messed up!" He chirps, clapping his hands together again. The dread pool in your stomach grows a touch at his words, fearing for what may happen to you.
The oafs nod and walk towards the cupboards on the other side of you. Until now, the cupboards have not yet been touched by any doctor, of course, not that you've seen. This only makes you worry for yourself more.
The stoic doctor pulls out a large, neatly wrapped pile of wires that make your eyebrows scrunch together. The confusion wipes off of your face and is replaced with fright as you see the brainless doctor pull out several needles.
"What are you doing?" You ask while trying to mask your quivering voice.
"Well, what does it look like? We are preparing for your procedure, of course!" Minghao cheers, continuing to rummage through drawers.
"And what might that procedure be, Doctor?" You draw out, annoyance lacing your words. With every passing second, you feel your stress building. As it does so, you begin to lose control of your expression. Your face replicates your fear, and your damp skin shows the same.
"I'm not sure you'll be too happy to hear about it." He says slowly. His look almost dares you to continue asking questions.
It's a good thing you like dares. "I would be quite pleased, I think." You say as a matter-of-factly. If you had free hands, you would be tapping your chin.
"Suit yourself," he shrugs. "Today, we will firstly be putting you under anesthesia so that you feel no pain. While you are under, we will attach these wires to your head and monitor the activity inside." You shudder at his words as he continues.
"At the same time, we will be testing different serums as we inject them into your brain. This is what we are monitoring." He states. You cut him off before it can get worse.
"What are the serums supposed to be doing?" Your voice wavers as you speak.
"As they all have different purposes, it is difficult to explain." He sighs. Your blood boils at his lack of care.
"Then take your time and explain them." You snap at him. He flinched but recovers quickly, tsking at you.
"They are meant to replicate certain features about the soulmate bond. For example, we will be testing the feeling of love, sadness, happiness, anger, and the feeling of loss." He finishes slowly.
"Loss? Loss of what?" You ask fearfully.
"The loss of a soulmate. That is what it is going to replicate." He states. Your heart drops to your feet as he shuffles around the room as if looking for an escape.
"Will my other soulmates feel it?" You ask hurriedly, not wishing them any harm.
"That is the thing... We will not know until we monitor your other three soulmates. The hope is that it does so that we can distribute normal feelings to all of the world." His eyes begin to shine as he expresses his ideas.
You shake your head slowly at first, unable to believe the words he is saying. Soon, you work yourself into a panic as you try and escape your bindings. He sighs and snaps his fingers, calling for his minions. Instantly, they stalk towards your bed.
Remembering your old plan, you tear the weak fabric and jolt off of your bed. At this, the men gasp as you bolt out of the door. You wanted to play the escape intelligently with the intent of gathering your other soulmates, but now, you are running on instinct.
"Get her!" Minghao yells, pointing a finger at your back. His minions chase after you, one faster than the other, but you have quite a large lead.
Your feet pound against the floor as your breathing increases in volume. Your unwashed hair flails around as you recall the path to the exit of the building. Soon, you are sprinting past shocked nurses and confused doctors.
Doors open and slam behind you as your adrenaline carries you to the final pair of doors. As you push through them, your motion continues as quickly as possible. You can feel yourself slowing down as your mind repeats: I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
You are sorry for leaving your soulmates behind. You are sorry for not being strong enough for them. You are sorry for putting them in more danger. You are sorry for not waiting for the perfect moment to flee with them. You are sorry for messing everything up. You are sorry for not being the one that they deserve.
Your heartache only presses you to continue, but as you mentioned before, you are no track runner. You hear shouts, footsteps, and alarms ringing as you cut through the courtyard that you were once peacefully resting in.
You enter the trees in hopes of losing them, but you only slow down as you run on an uneven surface. Hopefully, this slows them down, too.
Unknown POV:
She's running. I see her running through the halls, the courtyard, and now through the forest. They are catching up to her, and she is no match for them. I chose not to chase after her, only watch out of the window as the people nearby shout in fright. I couldn't chase her. I couldn't catch her.
I've done enough, and it is time for me to make another decision. This time, I'm confident in my choice. There are only a few moments that I have to act out my plan, and there is only a sliver of a chance that everything will turn out fine. However, that is a risk that I am now willing to take.
I've done enough, and I will make the right choice. I will change my life and the other lives around me. Finally, I will be happy with myself and change the way I live. I won't have to live in shame and guilt anymore.