What makes a human human?
Jessica asked herself.
Was it their hearts? Jessica had a beating pulse.
Was it the air they breathe? Jessica breathes the same air as everyone, she also walked the same soil, looked at the same sky and stars like everyone
else.
Or was it love?
Because Jessica was in love. She was in love and she would give anything for it. That was the reason why she was playing the grand piano at the
rundown theatre Yuri had brought her to when they first met. The first place she looked inside Yuri's eyes and found shelter in them.
No human deserves to die, she thought. Jessica was afraid to die. But if her life can save thousands, can save Yuri's life then so be it.
Jessica gracefully moved her fingers from one note to another, filled the dusty theatre with melodies.
She pressed the note harder and her heart ached. She was scared. But Jessica shook her head, if it was Yuri, everything will be okay. If Yuri was the
one who will take her life then Jessica wouldn't mind. If it was Yuri, she will be ready for anything.
**
Hyoyeon stepped down her car and walked to Seunghyun who was standing in front of organization's agents crowd.
"Where is she?" she asked.
Seunghyun answered, "on the top floor."
Tower Palace as the world knows it was seventy three stories high, the tallest building in South Korea and the top floor was on fire. The policemen had
made a barricade along the building, pushing reporters and some curious people away from the scene.
"Sooyoung and Sunny?" she asked again.
"They're over there," Seunghyun pointed to a small tent about a hundred meters from the burning building.
Sooyoung and Sunny were there, all equipped.
Hyoyeon walked up to them. Sunny gave her a salute.
"You're going in?" she asked.
Sunny nodded, "we can no longer wait, Hyo."
Sooyoung raised her fist, "yeah. I want to make things right, at least with this I'll feel debtless."
"Debt?"
"I'm in debt for those I caught and threw in to the Blood Facility."
Hyoyeon understood and then she looked to the building. The top floor was falling to the ground. It shook the ground when it reached the bottom.
"A platoon went in and never come back," Sunny said.
"They're sending a backup platoon in two minutes," Sooyoung added.
"You're going with them?"
Sooyoung and Sunny nodded in unison.
"I forbid you."
"Huh?" Sooyoung frowned.
"My backup is still on the way," Hyoyeon crossed her arms and stared at the sky.
**
Jessica finished the song. She closed her eyes and listened to noises around her. She heard footsteps and when she did, her heart beats faster. Her
death was coming closer.
Jessica looked to the row of worn out audience seats and saw someone walking closer to her.
Jessica stood up and faced the person. When the dimmed light reached the footsteps owner, tears escaped her eyes. She looked to the stage floor and
sobbed.
"Eeteuk-oppa," she stuttered.
Eeteuk climbed the short stairs to the stage and stopped in front of Jessica. Eeteuk clenched his teeth, his fist and his heart.
He was standing in front of his friend, and now he has to kill her.
**
The backup platoon arrived in three armoured cars. The cars caused uproar in the crowd. Few reporters were automatically called in to their offices,
saying that they saw another campaign of unknown government instrument.
"Another platoon has arrived at the scene," a woman reporter said in front of a camera, "we are not sure what happened and we also not sure who are
these uniformed people. They have GDO initials on them but we don't what kind of troops they are. But as you can see, they are fully equipped."
Hyoyeon flinched at the sight of the agents that just arrived. Just how many of them lend their hands on catching the Gifted and threw them in to the
Blood Facility? She hated them and she hated herself more.
The platoon lined up in front of the building and briefed.
"Hyo," Sunny called her, "look up."
Hyoyeon looked to the sky and the clouds looked like they were upset. The sky was rumbling and a second later, thirteen lightnings struck down right in
the middle of the platoon line.
**
"Jessica," Eeteuk softly spoke.
Jessica raised her head and wiped her tears, "yes," she forced a smile.
"I didn't know you can play," he said.
Jessica chuckled as her tears dropped again, "it's the only song I know. Yuri taught me."
Eeteuk fully understood that Jessica was waiting for Yuri to come for her, to take her life.
"You must understand her," Eeteuk said.
Jessica nodded quickly, "I do, I really do, Oppa."
If Jessica was in Yuri's shoes, she knew she wouldn't be able to do what she had to do either. And Jessica knew that Yuri had tried her best, risking her
life to save Jessica's. But it still, Jessica's heart was writhing in pain.
Eeteuk smiled.
"I'm sorry it turned out this way," he said.
"I'm not," Jessica took a deep breath, "I don't regret my time with all of you, even now."
**
The platoon raised their guns as soon as they saw thirteen people appeared before them.
"They're Gifted!" Seunghyun yelled.
"We come in peace," Heechul said.
"They're my backup!" Hyoyeon shouted.
"What!?" Seunghyun roared, "you called on the Gifted!?"
Seunghyun furiously walked closer to Hyoyeon but Sooyoung and Sunny blocked her.
"Stand down, Oppa," Sooyoung said.
Hyoyeon ignored him.
"Top floor," Hyoyeon said as she cocked her own gun and walked closer to Yuri, "you've brought quite a bunch."
"I have my own army," Yuri smiled.
Sooyoung and Sunny put on their gas mask and stood beside Hyoyeon.
"We'll cover the ground," Sunny tapped Yuri's shoulder.
"Okay," Yuri nodded.
The twelve guys stretched their arms and cracked their fingers for warm up.
"Straighten up, people," Heechul blasted to the air, up to the burning upper floor.
"Yuri," Hyoyeon said.
Yuri looked to her.
"We can't fail," Hyoyeon nodded.
"We won't," Yuri smiled before she disappeared to the sky.
Sunny tightened her grip on her rifle and took a deep breath.
"Here we go," said Sooyoung from behind Sunny's back.
"Yes, here we go."
"Clear the premises. I want four blocks around this building empty. Do it now!" Hyoyeon shouted.
The top floor was blazing. There was no ceiling instead, sea of flames hung above the floor. There were corpses lying about the floor, men, women and
organization' agents. On the corner, the corner where fire danced the most, a girl was eating.
She was munching a meat when she felt a presence behind her. She smiled and stood up. She turned around and faced a familiar face.
"Kwon Yuri," she said.
Yuri grinned. "How have you been, Gaea?"
"How have you been? I hit you with a car," Gaea laughed.
The sea of flames on the ceiling opened up and twelve guys dropped in, surrounding Gaea. The girl looked around.
"You've brought company," Gaea smiled, "they've sent one before and I made them into snacks."
Snacks?
Yuri looked at Gaea's feet. There was a dead body, its torso separated from the legs and it had no arms.
Yuri choked when she saw Gaea was holding an arm.
"You are inhuman," Yuri hissed.
**
Eeteuk gathered his courage. Back at the house, when Yuri gave him Jessica's letter, Eeteuk was lost. He didn't know what to do.
"Oppa," Yuri sobbed, "I can't."
Eeteuk looked at the letter and read it.
"She wants you, Yuri," Eeteuk said.
"I'm not that strong," Yuri cried, "I can't take her life, it's too hard."
"She'll be sad," Eeteuk tried to convince Yuri, "she loves--."
Yuri pressed her hands to her ears, not wanting to hear the rest.
"It's too much for me," Yuri gave a gun to Eeteuk. "I'm afraid if I see her one more time, I will--I will fall for her again and it'll be too hard."
Eeteuk watched Yuri drowned in her sorrow.
"It's for the best."
Now Eeteuk stood in front of Jessica, gun in his hand, fifteen bullets, to kill Jessica.
"Oppa," Jessica called him.
Eeteuk looked at her with his brown eyes.
"Can you tell Yuri that," Jessica closed her eyes, "that I love her?"
Eeteuk nodded. "You know she feels the same way too, right?"
Jessica smiled.
And she was ready. She accepted her fate to die. She was in peace and then she smiled, the best smiled she ever made. Her last smile.
Eeteuk took the gun from the back of his pants, he cocked it. He could see Jessica flinched at the sound of the clacking bullet that entered the gun's
chamber. Eeteuk's hand started to tremble as he raised the gun and aimed it exactly between Jessica's eyes.
Jessica clenched her fists and tears wouldn't stop flowing down from her closed eyes.
Eeteuk gritted his teeth and whispered to himself, "I'm sorry," and then he closed his eyes. He pulled the trigger hard and the loud bang echoed the
theatre.
Eeteuk's heart stopped for a second. He cried.
"Oppa."
Eeteuk snapped his eyes open and saw Jessica. She was still standing. The bullet he shot was on the ground, near Jessica's feet.
"Jessica?"
The girl smiled. "I think, I want to see her first."
Eeteuk let out a heavy breath.
"I'll come for my own death."