United - S.MG

= 14 =

     "Hyebin-ah! You might want to see this!" Euphrasia ran out of the kitchen to the living room when Yeosang called her, his eyes fixated on the television. It was the news channel, and the reporter looked... empathic, in a way. It was the first time the Euphrasia had seen a news reporter look empathic; usually they just looked like they were forced to say whatever was on their card, with no emotion.

     "It's about your home." Yeosang murmured softly, his eyes moving towards her to see her standing still, a little shocked. The news wasn't revealed yet, but Euphrasia had a really bad feeling about it. Yeosang stood up and helped her sit down on the couch, holding onto her arm and waist to steady her. He didn't let go of her hand even after she sat down, for he also had a bad feeling about this broadcast.

     The reporter spoke up, her voice a little shaky.

     "Hello, I'm Kim Mia, and this is the news of 8 o'clock. Seven months ago, 800,000 children were evacuated from Los Angeles, California without a clear reason. Today, the American government finally revealed why."

     A recent picture of her home city appeared in the background, and Euphrasia was shocked when she saw many destroyed buildings. "About a year ago, an experiment went wrong in a nearby lab. A chemically created creature escaped the building, and scientists could not track it down. At the time of it's escape, the creature, named Test B25, was still a baby. It was small, nearly too small to recognize. Seven months ago, it first reappeared in the outskirts of LA, the size of a dog. Test B25 was aggressive, and it killed animals and humans alike. Scientists ordered to keep an eye on it noticed how quickly it was growing, and how much more of a danger it became to the people inside the city."

     Euphrasia's heart dropped to her stomach when a video of a huge black monster was played, as it slammed it's tail into a house, leaving it to crumble. It looked like a mix between a giant worm and cockroach, and it was several meters long and very slimy. The kind of creatures you only see in supernatural movies.

     "The government decided to evacuate the younger generation as soon as possible, but by the time they were all gone and the adults were allowed to leave, the city had to be put on lockdown. Test B25 had gotten out of hand too quickly, and the people remaining in the city were stuck. There were barriers all around the city, and no one could get in, either."

     The reporter took a little break, sniffling softly, leaving Euphrasia to wonder if she lost someone dear to her in the LA incident. "Many lives were lost in these past few months. Thousands of people were never heard from again. But exactly a week ago, Test B25 was eliminated by the military. The government will first work on getting every survivor out and contacting the families of the deceased. Then they will work on rebuilding the city and eliminating any potential treats that Test B25 left behind. Thank you for your time."

      The news shut off, leaving Euphrasia and Yeosang in silence. Euphrasia was shaking all over, tears pooling inside her eyes. She reached for her phone with a trembling hand, and Yeosang grabbed it for her, pressing her finger against the scanner to unlock it.

     "Lorelei?" Euphrasia just nodded, still staring at the screen, which was now playing some skincare advertisement.

     "Sia? Did you see it? I was about to call you!"

     "Lorelei." Yeosang spoke softly, but firmly. "I think your sister is in shock, she's not moving, nor is she saying anything." He looked at the girl, who was still staring at the screen, unmoving. She wasn't even blinking.

     "Can she hear me? Put me on speaker." Yeosang did as he was told.

     "Sia? Can you hear me?" No answer. "Say something, Sia, please. Let me know you're in there. Are you there? Can you hear me?" Still no answer from the girl. "Euphrasia Sofia Hayes! Answer me, damn it!"

     "Huh?"

     "Thank god!" Lorelei sounded on the verge of tears, but she stayed strong. Konon and Sola were by her side, having watched the broadcast with her, while Riki was out with their parents. Both girls were hugging her tightly, trying to comfort her.

      "They're dead? No... they're not, right? They're not dead. They can't be. There must be no service, that's it. Once they get out they will call us back. They will. I know they will." Euphrasia had no idea who she was talking to, or who she was trying to convince, but she realized the harsh truth when she heard her sister sob through the phone, followed by soft words of comfort in a foreign language.

     "I'm sorry, Sia. It's been weeks. Mom and dad are dead, we're orphans now." Lorelei wiped her tears away, sobbing softly when she heard her sister whimper on the other end of the call.

     Yeosang sat down next to her, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her into his chest. He rubbed her back, keeping her phone close to them so she could still hear her younger sister speaking. "Sia? Don't cry, okay? Mom wouldn't want you to cry. She'd want us to be strong, you know that, right? It's okay to be sad, but don't let this drag you down. Don't bring yourself down. Mom and dad believe in you. They love you so much."

     Euphrasia hummed, snuggling closer to Yeosang.

     "Lorelei, I'm going to bring your sister to bed, thank you. I'll text you later to update you, and I'll make her call you tomorrow."

     "Alright, take care of her, please. Sia? I love you so much, okay? Goodnight." Lorelei hung up the phone, dropping down on her bed, filling the room with her sobs. Konon and Sola were on either side of her, holding her tightly, but she hardly acknowledged it.

     Her parents, the people she looked up to so much. Dead. Just like that. Gone from this world, never coming back. How was she, a mere fourteen year old, supposed to deal with that. She wasn't prepared to lose a parent so early, let alone both of them. She always thought she'd have until her 50's before her parents died.

     How wrong she was.

     How terribly wrong.