Zero only has one goal, to be human. Escaping from the cell that once contained her, the outside world, which she longed to see for so long, is filled with more darkness than she expected.
She is faced with a world that is determined to label her a...
Zero stood drenched in front of the large window that gave a view of the hideout. The place that had become her lighthouse when she was struggling with the harsh waters of her mind. Torrents of rain poured down from the grey clouds that hung low in the sky.
Her blood soaked clothes were getting cleaned by the cold showers. Drop by drop, the hungry brown soil beneath her booted feet drank up the crimson blood that dripped from the crevices of her body. Just like it had done so many times before. It wasn't the first time her violence ended in bloodshed nor would it be the last time.
The second she had been created, she was doomed to live as a monster. She was constantly walking the tightrope between humanity and monstrosity. Her childhood was a series of memories of her being broken in more ways than one. They made sure that they drilled the message that humans will always hate a monster like her, so she should kill them.
She watched as Nanna served everyone hot chocolate and they all gathered to watch Christmas movies, like they always did whenever it rained. In that house, she experienced what it was like to be accepted with open arms. However, she was aware that it was a fragile acceptance that depended on them not knowing what she was.
She was afraid to knock on the door. To see the painfully familiar look of disgust that humans gave her. Afraid that they will toss her out. That would mean that she was nothing but a monster to the first people who saw her humanity.
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'One of our only rules is that we never get involved with the government', he announced in a finalising tone.
'I'll help you only under one condition, I want to know exactly why you have some connection with them.'
She gave him a sad smile.
'It might be better if you don't know'.
'I'll be the judge of that.'
'I'm not fully human', she mumbled.
Her head hung in shame at the revelation. She was expecting Namjoon to toss her away. She looked up with wide eyes when his laughter filled the room.
'Did Tae and JK put you up to this?'
He fully believed that she was joking.
Zero pushed her chair back and grabbed a knife from the kitchen counter. She made sure it wasn't one of Nanna's favourites.
Namjoon was quick to catch on to what she wanted to do.
'Don't take the joke too far', he said as he held out his hand for her to give him the knife.
Instead, she closed her eyes and plunged it into her hand until it could be seen from the other side and then pulled it out. She was careful not to spill any on the floor.
She wined at the torrents of pain that shot out from her hand. But the pain subsided quickly as her hand began to heal. It was like watching time reverse until her hand was back to its original form.
Namjoon stood up in shock. He had seen it with his own two eyes but his brain was grasping at straws, trying to come up with a logical explanation. Like maybe she was a magician or maybe it was still a prank being orchestrated by Taehyung who took any opportunity to show off his newly acquired make up skills.
'What exactly are you?', he asked.
He walked over and yanked the knife away from her hand and placed it in the grey steel trash can next to the kitchen counter.
'A mutant'.
'What does that have to do with Sullivan?'
'She stole me from my parents and made me a monster', she replied as she used a clump of paper towels to wipe the remnants of the blood on her hand.
'I have to find the cure and become a human again but first I'll kill everyone who is involved', she responded nonchalantly.
Namjoon hoped he did not show any hint of the fear he was feeling as he sat back down. In reality his body was betraying him. There were goosebumps prickling his skin. He placed his hands on his lap in hopes of hiding that they had began to slightly shake.
'I'll only help you with finding the locations and then after that you are on your own', he answered in a firm voice.
She nodded in response.
'Promise me that you'll never hurt anyone in my crew', he pleaded as horrific images of his friend being hurt filled his mind.
' I promise I'll protect them', she swore in a solemn tone.
Namjoon paused in silent contemplation.
'When the truth comes out, it will be entirely up to you to earn the trust of the others'.
She nodded in understanding.
'Does that mean you trust me?', she asked hesitantly.
'My personal opinion does not matter. I have to do what is best for the gang, so if I decide that you're a threat to our safety I will act accordingly'.
His veiled threat carried his message loud and clear.
Whether she was trusted or not, Zero was just grateful to be able to stay there, even for a little while. All she had to do was act as human as possible so that suspicions against her never arose. It was better if they never knew about what or who she was. That seemed easy enough.
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Life had never had any meaning to her. It had always been an infinite repetition of the same cycle. Live,die,revive. She had lost count of the number and of times she had been on the verge of death, wishing that she could succumb to the eternal sleep that humans seem to fear. Those few moments were the only times when she felt at peace, until she got dragged back into her bleak reality.
She lived in between two opposing forces. Life and death. She knew that she would never truly belong to any. Every where she turned, she was an outsider.
Zero wished she could at least wear the scars that she accumulated on her skin like a badge of honor. There was never any proof of what happened to her. The scars faded and so would the painful memories.
After what she found out from the Facility she couldn't leave them unaware of what would happen. Even if she was afraid, she had to bite the bullet and let them know about the danger that was coming. However, they chose to react to her was up to them.
She clutched her heavy black backpack in one hand. The other hand was curled into a shaking fist.
Knock
Knock
Knock
A/N
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