You fill my lungs and take away the air [Global Examination]

Chapter 1: With the full force of a dying star

"154!"

154 glanced over at the stove where 922 was standing, having just finished grilling some beef steaks and was scooping them up onto plates.

The older man looked over at him, smiling heartily, as he placed a plate in front of 154, the younger automatically shuffling his papers to the side so they weren't unintentionally used as table mats.

"Eat up! Be sure to tell me your input later, okay?" 922 grinned cheerfully, "I know you said you didn't really like all those intense flavors, so I tried a new recipe today! Hopefully, it's more suited to your tastes."

154 never thought his life would come to this, and it all started with 922.

It always started with 922.

Everything started with 922.

It wasn't the first time that 922 had called him to taste test a new dish or recipe that he was trying out, only because he was trying to cater to his preferences, and putting in the effort to cook for 154, or had treated him like he was something, someone... nor would it be the last time; it would never be the last time, not as long as the System still stood strong.

And yet, it felt different, very different, so different from before... and 154 didn't know why it was different.

It wasn't like this was an injury of some sort, 154 could detect those easily enough. This was something else, was something deeper, far more human than the unneeded, unwanted program that had been thrown away and trashed 154 could ever hope to understand.

"Stop thinking so loudly." 922 reached out, gently rapped his knuckles against 154's forehead, "Come on, eat while it's fresh off the stove. Don't let my cooking go to waste, yeah? And see if you like it?"

922 didn't even get the chance to pull out "Please?" and the puppy dog eyes before 154 nodded mutely, having already known not long ago he would not be able to say no to 922, especially if what he wanted wasn't too unreasonable... or that was what he told himself; 154 knew fully well that 922 would be able to talk him into anything, and 154 would just go along with it, his complaints being nothing more than empty words to continue making it seem like he still had some semblance of control.

He could never say no to 922.

154's breath hitched as something settled, deep within his heart, causing it to stutter briefly.

He wasn't too sure what it was, or even whether something like that was normal or not, but it had stopped as quickly as it started, so he just ignored it as his hand automatically reached for the fork and knife that 922 was offering, watching a small smile forming on 922's face as his eyes light up, and wondered how the fuck his life had come to this, filled with so much kindness despite the literal hellhole they were trapped in.

Because ever since 154 learned the truth about the System, he had been prepared to die.

Or, to be more accurate, 154 already knew plenty about the System, with sensitive knowledge that even the Head Invigilators, who were human, didn't know about, but 154, who was a program, a former part of that disgusting homicidal System, at that, was aware of. But he had been trapped within the backup station, drifting aimlessly, formlessly, trapped in an endless slumber for who knew how long, so his first instinct when he had woken up was to get to safety, before taking the time to figure out just what had changed in the time he had been gone.

Which, granted, was a lot, and also absolutely nothing at all.

There were various new examination centers, so many new rules that barely made any sense, or were so contradictory that anyone with half a brain cell could tell there were issues with them, and even new kinds of punishments had been instituted... or rather, reinstated; 154 swore he remembered that using confinement rooms as punishments had long since been abolished since the exams officially started, due to the rules about privacy concerns...