Chapter 25
Faye? Faye, can you hear me? asked a familiar husky voice.
Jared?
You’re alive, he sighed in obvious relief. Baby, you shouldn’t let me worry like that.
Why couldn’t she see him? Where was he? And why was it so dank dark? She frantically reached out, trying to hold him, to touch him, to feel the reassuring warmth of his but her hands caught nothing.
Seemed you’re all right now. His voice was fading. You’re going to be fine. Don’t worry.
“Jared? Jared? Where are you?” She ran and ran in what seemed like forever, without any direction, only following his voice that was getting fainter by the minute. “Wait! Wait for me! I said wait!”
I’m so sorry, Faye. This was all my fault.
“Jared! You moron! Show yourself!” Hot tears traitorously escaped her unseeing eyes. She continued to pursue him in what seemed like an endless tunnel of emptiness.
Don’t follow me. Don’t come. This is not your place.
“What are you talking about? Don’t leave me alone! I want to be with you!”
Goodbye, baby.
“You couldn’t do this me.” She dropped down to her knees, tears streaming down her face in torrents. “At least, let me see you. I want to see you…”
Then, wake up.
******
The sharp, undulating agony brought her back from unconsciousness.
She was burning. She tried to scream, though no sound came out of her parched throat. It was meaningless for her to struggle, she realized. She couldn’t get rid of it.
She tried moving to no avail. She couldn’t feel her limbs. Her head swam as the fiery burning increased, but if she didn’t retaliate, the darkness would consume her. Darkness meant rest. Darkness promised no pain.
Should she resist it when it was offering her the better side of the deal?
She tried to oppose the darkness but in vain. She was tired, very, very tired. It seemed like giving up was the best option. It was pressing on her, and the only motivation in keeping her stand was her will, which was on the verge of slipping away. Someone was waiting for her. She needed to get back to him. She couldn’t be defeated.
But she was losing. No, no, no!
She had to fight… but why fight? Isn’t dying better? There was no one waiting for her. Her mama and papa were already both in heaven. She had thrown away the only life she knew, had disappointed and hurt everyone who believed in her and supported her. The boy she loved and the love they shared were nothing but meaningless lies.
No family. No dream. No him.
Why return? Why live?
She heard a muffled sound somewhere. A distraction. She strained to hear it. It became utterly silent after a couple of heartbeats. Then, there were the sounds again, this time getting nearer. It took all her energy just to distinguish them.
Slamming of doors.
Breaking twigs.
Footsteps.
Voices.
“Selena!”
It was a familiar voice, but not the one she yearned for.
“Selena!”
She could almost hear his labored breaths.
“Selena! Come on, you’re supposed to be around here.” The voice was louder now. “Selena Andrews, can you hear me?”
There was a gasp, and then a presence swiftly approached her. At that moment, the heavy darkness on her body disappeared, leaving the surging pain with nothing to counteract it. She was burning again, but she knew it was not because she’s on fire. In fact, it was the opposite. The cold was too excruciating that it felt like burning.
“Hey, hey!” She felt overly warm hands on her ice-cold face, then her chest. “You’re freezing! Brad! Joaquin! I found her! Bring out some jackets, turn the heater on and prepare the supplies! Her heart’s barely beating. Hurry!”
Her savior lifted her off the ground and jogged while being wary of her injuries. He carefully placed her on a makeshift bed inside the van.
“Erlev, drive towards the main hospital. It’s beside the museum,” instructed the man who found her.
“Why? I think we have enough here to help her, Sir,” replied man with rough, thickly accented voice. “The order was to bring her to the facility.“
“She needs special treatment! I think she hit her head on the fall. The facility is too far. She won’t make it unless she becomes stable first.”
“Sheesh. Troublesome woman,” Erlev snapped but started the engine. The two medics, Brad and Joaquin, checked on her, applying first-aid to the best of their abilities.
“Her lips are blue,” commented the small Latino. “Oxygen! She needs oxygen!” He dipped a sterilized cloth on a disinfecting solution and cautiously removed the dirt clinging on her open wounds.
“Her blood pressure’s dropping.” Brad opened the small oxygen supply tank and placed the plastic mouthpiece on her mouth. He monitored her vital measures, and responded accordingly.
“Sir, could you hold this?” The man nodded and moved out from his seat. Brad helped Joaquin with Faye’s numerous wounds, while the blonde man held the mouthpiece. He leaned closer to her ear.
“Be strong. I know you’re strong,” he whispered, and then he chuckled. “I don’t want 06 to bite my head off.”
Her lips trembled in response.
“J-Jared… w-where is..?” was all she could manage. She sluggishly opened her eyes though unable to completely focus her vision. Her throat was parched.
“Oh. You’re awake,” Alexey smiled. “You –“
“J-Jared…?”
“He’s alive.”
A tear slid from the corner of her right eye.
“You don’t have to worry. It’s all over now,” he reassured. She smiled back at him while he took her bandaged right hand and gingerly held it. His hand was toasty warm.
“Sir,” Joaquin interrupted. “Please keep her talking. Don’t let her fall asleep. I believe she had a concussion.”
Alexey nodded at the Latino and returned his attention to her.
Fortunately, Faye had too many questions to ask. She wouldn’t want to sleep unless all of them were answered. As her vision got clearer, she noticed something wrong with 04’s face. “Y-Your eyes…?”
“Huh? Oh, this?” His smile faded as he touched his bandaged right eye. “I just got careless and… and… she…” His cheerful voice instantly turned into sobs. Brad and Joaquin flinched in surprise upon seeing an Equation show such passionate emotion, but returned to work.
Faye tried to soothe him by squeezing his hand. She didn’t know what happened, or why was Alexey so upset, but his pained expression was something she didn’t want to see.
After a few minutes, he managed to compose himself. ”Sorry ‘bout that. It’s so shameful. Forget what you just saw.”
She shook her head and cleared her dry throat. “When you’re sad… release it. Better to… let it out than keep it…”
“Yeah,” he agreed in a clipped tone.
“What happened...” she swallowed painfully, “to Jared?”
The van abruptly stopped.
“We’re here,” Erlev informed them.
“Alexey!” Faye suddenly became agitated. “Stay! I have… questions…”
“After you get treated.”
“But –“
“Se-le-na.” He frowned as he let go of her hand. Brad and Joaquin carried the stretcher out of the van.
“Will you still… be here?” She was afraid that when she woke up, everyone would be gone.
“I don’t know.”
“Alexey!”
“I really don’t know.”
***
Her body was extremely stiff. Her nose burned because of the strong smell of alcohol. The annoying beeping sound beside her was starting to get on her nerves. She raised her right hand to hit whatever was making the stupid noise. To her surprise, she couldn’t find her arm. She couldn’t feel her body, as if by some miracle her head was detached from them.
Oh.
Remembering at once what happened, she felt alarmed. When she opened her eyes, she had the scare of her life. Her whole body was almost covered with white bandages. Why was she bandaged like a mummy? Also, numerous tubes were connected with her body. It was intimidating to look at.
She looked around. Where was she? This wasn’t a hospital. She knew how a hospital room looks like, and she was sure this wasn’t one. She was alone inside a bleached white room filled with lavish furniture and gigantic clinical machines. Whether she was inside a luxury suite or a laboratory, she had no idea.
“You’re awake.”
She uncomfortably turned to her left and saw a black-haired guy sitting on a wheelchair beside her. He was totally wrapped with bandages from head to toe as well. She couldn’t help but grin upon seeing that he looked far worse than her.
Hanade.
“How long was I sleeping?”
“A week.”
She gasped. “That long?”
“It’s only natural.”
Her eyes simply stung – weak and dehydrated as she was – while she removed her gaze from him and looked at the high ceiling.
“Where am I?”
“In our facility,” he replied in his usual monotone.
“Why?”
“What do you mean why?”
“Why am I here? Why not the hospital?” She paused. “Why am I not dead? I’m a witness.”
“We can’t.”
“Because I’m Gifted?” Her voice sounded flat, even to her own ears. Hanade remained silent. Taking his silence as a yes, she started hyperventilating. In her head, there was someone screaming and screeching.
You’re not normal! You’re not normal! Don’t dream about being one!
“Because that’s the order, and we can’t ignore our orders.”
She tried to keep herself calm, following a breathing pattern a certain someone taught her before to keep her emotions in check. She tried to think of other more important things. “Where’s Jared?”
“He’s gone.”
Her emerald eyes snapped open in apprehension. She wanted to sit up and face him, but her limbs simply wouldn’t move. She couldn’t find her lungs either. The aggravating beeping sound beside her raced. “What?! Where?! What do you mean?!”
Hanade sighed. “He was pulled out from the mission and returned to the HQ.”
Faye gave a huge sigh of relief. “Don’t scare me like that! I thought something bad happened!”
“It is bad for you.”
Faye looked at him curiously. His onyx eyes were boring into hers, trying to tell her something yet not reaching across. “I don’t understand.”
“Faye,” he raised his hand and stroked her cheeks, “he’s not coming back. He had returned to Creed. He will be reassigned to other missions. You won’t be seeing him again.”
“No.” Her face paled, denial evident in her eyes. She rigorously shook her head, as if trying to shake away the words from her mind. “No, I don’t believe you. He won’t abandon me. He couldn’t do that. No. You’re lying. Why are you lying?! Why are you tormenting me?!”
Hanade didn’t respond. His face became blank, his expression unfathomable.
“He can’t abandon me!”
He closed his eyes, made a small bow and then pushed himself out of the room.
“No! Jared is not that kind of person! He loves me!”
Hanade took one last peek before shutting the door close.
“He is not Jared. He is 01.”