The clock is ticking endlessly. Night turns to day. The moon alternates with the sun. The earth is illuminated with beautiful morning light. Waking up people to do their work after having a long nice rest. But only one who is still 'sleeping'. He is 'sleeping' very soundly.
<<18>>
"Good morning Two!" The lady in burgundy sipping her morning tea while sitting on the couch.
"Good morning Three!" The hoodie guy was busy eating the pancakes that almost filled his large plate, not even sparing her a single glance.
"Good morning Five!" The ginger hair grabbed another piece of pancake while waving at her.
"Good morning Six!" The woman with navy blue hair returned the greetings with a slight smile.
"Good morning Seven!" A man wearing a gray jacket, hummed.
Then her attention shifted to the turquoise haired boy. He only stared at his breakfast without taking any bite. A small sigh escaped from her lips.
"Where's my greetings?" A voice came from beside her. She turned around seeing Nine in an apron while holding a jug in his hand, standing in front of the bar kitchen.
Eight ignored him and started searching for someone. "Where's Eleven?"
She takes a seat next to Ten, giving a smile to the boy. Usually Ten would have returned the friendly gesture immediately but today he just kept quiet. Looks like after finding out the truth gave him quite a shock.
Nine approached the counter and placed the jug filled with fresh orange juice down. "Just gone like that as usual. You know how he always wakes up earlier than everyone." He replied while pouring the drink into a glass and handed it to her.
"Have you told them?"
Nine looked at her with furrowed eyebrows. He leaned with one arm. "Told them what exactly?"
Seeing Eight glancing at Ten, Nine finally understood what she meant.
"Oh yes! Ehem! Guys!" Nine exclaimed, trying to gain their attention.
Everyone turned their heads towards Nine.
Nine took a deep breath before continuing. "Today both Eight and I have decided to-"
"What?! You're going to get married?! At long at last!" Five suddenly interrupted him, smiling widely. "Congratulations! We can finally celebrate your marriage~!"
"...Eh? Marriage...? What marriage?! Five, you idiot! Stop jumping to conclusions!" Eight exclaimed angrily, trying her best to hide the blush rising on her cheeks.
Nine's lips quivered. "Are you trying to say that was a bad idea?"
He then shifted his eyes towards Five. "I would very much love that idea, but that's not what I'm trying to say."
"Oooo~" Five smirked. "Looks like you're looking forward to it huh, Nine? Naughty naughty~"
Eight almost wanted to get up from her seat, she really wanted to throw that wannabe magician out but a small giggle from her left stopped her. She glanced over in confusion only to realize that Ten was covering his face with both of his hands while laughing softly.
Seeing the boy's face brightened up, she relaxed for a moment. This is a huge relief to her. That was when she noticed and she looked back at Five. He smirked while winking at her, which brought a smile on her lips.
'Thank you for cheering up the boy, Five…'
"Okay, that's enough. What I want to say is that we have decided to move the Subject to Room 101."
"What do you mean? Are you saying that thing is dead?" Six went abrupt, her tone serious.
Nine nods. "Yes, actually. We just found out he was no longer breathing last night."
"But how? He can't just die after what he has done to Four!" Six protested with her fists clenched tightly, holding her dissatisfaction.
"Well, for now, I'm still searching for the cause behind his sudden death. However, according to the testimony made by Doctor 90, he died of natural causes. You can say that he died in his sleep." Nine explained.
A scoffed left her mouth. "In the end, he was just a Mortal after all. I still couldn't believe that someone weak like him would get Four in a coma."
"I believe it's the opposite."
Six frowned at Nine's response but said nothing as he continued. "My hunch says that he is not just an ordinary boy. Think about it. He should have died after receiving the 25th experiment in a quantity that anyone else couldn't withstand much. Mortals would not be able to accept that amount. At least as far as we were able to test all the Subjects from the past, it was only 30 percent while the boy was more than 50 percent."
Everyone present listened carefully to Nine's words until Six spoke up again. "But we saw him die right? Right in front of our eyes and not just once but twice!"
"Yes, it is proven and there are many witnesses who saw it. But it has also been proven and many other witnesses saw the boy come back to life. If Four were not in a coma, we would have heard the true story from his own mouth."
"What's the use of CCTV in our building?"
"We can check the CCTV but it will take a long time because everything in Room 80 was completely destroyed, according to what Eight told me last night. Some ceilings were already removed. Nothing is left."
The rest of them looked at the two arguing back and forth like watching a tennis competition. It felt surreal to see them arguing so openly and moreover, Six and Nine are not that closed even though they have been living in the same premise for years. They are usually silent and only talk whenever necessary.
"What I don't understand is how can Four be seriously injured till he's in coma while the boy didn't? Four's ax weapon and his Destructive Instinct cannot be defeated by any kinds of enemies." Eight interrupted, at the same time, she is trying to cool down the heat rising between both of them.
Nine pushed his glasses. "About that, I'm not sure yet. This matter is still under investigation."
Six let out a sharp sigh. "If it wasn't because of that thing already dead, I would have made him pay with his blood for hurting Four."
Eight sighed. "Nine already said that we're not sure if he was the one who did it. Don't make such assumptions if you aren't sure, Six."
"Doesn't matter. The last person you found with Four, was that Mortal right? Even without evidence, my gut feelings told me that I'm the correct one. If you don't believe me, then that's your loss. I will never change my mind, not until Four has woken up."
While the two began arguing, one person was stunned in the midst of it. Nine's eyes widened when he remembered his conversation with 81 when that guy suddenly went to meet him in front of his room last night.
<<18>>
KNOCK! KNOCK!
Nine was just done showering, drying his wet brown hair with a small towel in his hands. A frowned form on his forehead. Just who is visiting him this late at night?
Once again, the knocking resounded. This time a bit louder than before.
"One minute!"
Nine shouted. Walking towards his closet, he grabbed a green T-shirt and black pants, changing himself from just a towel into complete clothing before heading towards the door. With slightly messy hair, he opened the door and looked up at the familiar guy standing in front of him.
"Oh, aren't you the one who gave Eight handkerchief earlier? What's up?" He asked.
"Professor, there's something I forgot to tell to the Informant but I think it would be wise to tell this to you directly."
Nine frowned. "Out with it."
"The handkerchief I gave to the Informant, there was a black spot that belongs to the Subject."
"Black spot?"
"Yes, I used it to wipe his blood. Urm... It doesn't look exactly like blood because the color was black. More like his tears."
"You mean, the Subject has black tears? Are you sure you're not sleep-walking?"
"No Professor. I'm wide awake and I swear, I witnessed it myself. Those black tears I saw falling down from the corner of the Subject's eyes."
Nine went silent for a few seconds, letting that new information sink in his mind. Then finally he sighed heavily.
"Well, we will deal with that problem tomorrow. I can't use my mind right now cause I need to have some rest. Thanks for telling me, by the way."
"You're welcome, Professor. Good night."
"Good night."
<<18>>
'Black tears... Blood…'
He quickly turned his gaze towards Eight who just took a bite of her pancake after Five broke her short arguments with Six.
"Eight! The handkerchief your PAD gave to you before, where is it?"
Eight almost got choked when Nine suddenly shouted at her. She cleared her throat and swallowed whatever she was chewing in her mouth before answering him. "Oh... Um... If I remember correctly, I put it on the table next to the subject's bed. Why?"
Nine did not answer her and headed straight out of the kitchen without waiting another second. He looks so agitated that even Ten could not help but stand up to follow him.
"Ten?!" Eight tried to call the boy but they already left. She is still confused as ever.
'What the heck is going on with those two?'
<<18>>
Once he arrived in the Private Medic, Nine entered and began searching for the handkerchief. His eyes caught the amber colored fabric folded neatly on top of the table and quickly reached for it. He unfolded and checked it, the same way like how Eight did before. For some reason, his heart was beating fast when he realized that there is indeed a black spot in the corner.
His eyes grew wide with a wide grin spread across his lips. "I was so focused on Four's case that I almost let this important triviality slip through my finger."
The sounds of someone footsteps behind him made him turn around.
Ten panting lightly while looking at him. "Did you find it?"
Nine smiled and walked towards Ten, wrapping his arms around the smaller boy's shoulder. "Would you like to accompany me doing a quick check-up?"
Ten's facial expression changed into surprise. Excitedly, he nodded his head. "Count me in!"