somebody ; minsung

XX ; remember me

Oracle Laboratories, 54498 Carnation Road. Nearly 200 storeys tall and claiming the better portion of a city block. A plaza sprawls out in front of the building; I can see the patch of new pavement where I hit the concrete, crushed it with the force of my body.

Back then, waking up without an idea of who I was... I had been so lost. Just a mindless machine rebelling against my restraints. But I had also been so free. I had a do-over, a fresh start. I can barely remember why I bothered to stick around the city so long.

Jisung nudges me. Right, never mind.

"You remember the floor, right?" he says. "121? I'll be deleting the security footage on 110, then we meet on the roof."

"You sure you don't want to just walk out the door? Heights haven't agreed with you in the past."

"We can't just walk out the front door after this, that's too obvious. I don't know what could possibly fuck up the plan, but we have to be meticulous."

"Fine, just tell me when you're about to puke."

"Okay, har har. Let's go."

I camouflage and he pulls his mask over his face. The street is nearly empty, just passersby and their droids. We cross the plaza, walk up to Oracle's towering glass doors, and Jisung swipes his lanyard against a reader. It lights up green and he opens the door.

The lobby is simple and ordinary, a facade. We pass the reception desk, walk down the hall to the elevators; he presses 110 and the doors slide shut. The numbers flash by like a countdown clock.

"Here." Jisung hands me the files of forged papers we had printed earlier today. I fuse them into my armour, hide them from sight. "Good luck."

"Find me if you need help," I say.

"I have the easy job, don't worry about me."

The elevator chimes at level 110. He stalls in the doorway, looking back at me. He can't see me but somehow he finds my eyes.

He walks away and the doors slide closed. I sigh, rubbing my head. It's still awkward. I can't get what he said out of my mind. I wish you could remember who you are. That's all I am to him, just a ghost, the absence of the person I was before.

Maybe I shouldn't be so cynical. I can't expect so much after so little time — the word 'love' carries weight that I just haven't learned to feel. Maybe the person I was influences me more than I know — he could be the reason I care for Jisung now, why I wish he could love me the way he used to. I'm not sure if I'm thankful to Minho for leading me to Jisung, or if I resent him for casting a shadow I can never hope to outshine.

The floors keeps ticking away, another 10 storeys up. I step out, looking for the file room, following my memory. The lifeless hallways, the cold stone floors — everything is familiar in the worst way. I want to get out of here as fast as possible.

I stop at the door that reads 'do not enter, authorized personnel only.' My index finger narrows and buds a row of teeth; I push it into the keyhole and open the door. My night vision lightens the room. I walk the aisles to the B section, flip through the files till I find what I'm looking for. Bionic Warfare Initiative, Trial 4, Adrantine Formula. I switch it out, move on to the Espionage Initiative and repeat.

I close the cabinet and leave the file room, locking it behind me. A part of me can't believe it was that easy. Jisung has probably already looped the footage. We did it. We fucking did it.

I wander the hallways, looking for the stairwell. Even if it's so many floors to the roof, I'd rather take the long way — the elevator makes me claustrophobic. My footsteps echo up the concrete walls.