Broken Masks

Chapter 13 - Memories

(A/N: Hello my loves. There's lots of secretive backstory in this chapter *tries to laugh evilly but chokes*. Anyway, try keep up and tell me your theories in the comment section!)

Subject A1M sat at the white desk, his hands flat on top of the polished wood, his partner A2M on his right and R1F on his left, along with four other subjects he didn't know. They all stared blankly at the tutor, a wiry haired woman with a pistol on her hip, as she spoke.

"...and if the people you are working with do not pay, do not accept a bargain such as drugs, weapons or alcohol. If the police catch you with drugs, or stolen weapons and alcohol, it could mean the end of your work with those employers, or worse, prison."

A1M processed this information, storing it in his memory for the time he could use it.

* * *

TJ never left Klaus. Every hour, he sat at the unconscious boy's side, holding his hand, talking to him softly, for days.

He never let go of the boy.

He couldn't.

Lena came in every day with food for TJ, and to check on Klaus. Jess had said that the boy's condition was getting better, but slowly. She also said that a prosthetic eye was being made for him, but it would take time.

TJ was sat on the futon next to Klaus's bed. In one hand he held a book, in the other he held Klaus's hand. TJ was reading out loud, seeing as thought Jess had said that Klaus might be able to hear him, as he gently rubbed circles on the back of Klaus's hand.

In what felt like another world, enveloped in rippling black, lay Klaus, listening to TJ's voice. He recognised the book as Timeless in London, the novel he and TJ had been making their way through together. Klaus's body felt heavy, and he could feel the hospital bed beneath him, but he couldn't twist round to look at it. He had a head ache, dulled by large doses of anaesthetics, and his muscles felt weak and overworked. He could feel TJ's hand in his, the pulse of his heartbeat transferring into his. Slowly, Klaus drifted to sleep, soothed by TJ's voice.

* * *

TJ had his back to Klaus, preparing that evening's dinner. Klaus smiled, stood at the door to the kitchen, leaning on the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest. TJ was humming along to the radio, dancing slightly to the music as he chopped the vegetables in front of him. Klaus slowly crept up behind his, placing his hands on the others hips, making TJ jump.

"Jesus Christ Klaus, you gave me a heart attack." He half shouted, half laughed. Klaus chuckled lightly, wrapping his arms securely round the other boy's waist, kissing the nape of his neck lightly.

TJ's small intake of breath made Klaus smirk before spinning them both around and lifting him up slightly to sit on the table behind him. TJ quickly pressed his lips to Klaus's, kissing him fiercely. Klaus dragged TJ closer to him, licking his bottom lip as a way to ask for entrance. TJ parted his lips slightly and Klaus impossibly pulling them closer as he explored the other's mouth. He was getting addicted, he didn't want to let go. When they finally pulled away, they rested their foreheads together, breathing heavily as they caught their breath.

"I love you, kitten." Klaus whispered. TJ blushed at the pet name, but secretly loved it.

"S-Shut up." He stuttered, face as red at the tomatoes he had been cutting. Klaus laughed lightly.

"You love me though." TJ smiled, and pressed his lips agains Klaus's lips softly for a small kiss.

"That I do. Now scoot, I gotta get dinner finished." TJ said, swatting the other boy's wandering hand. Klaus laughed, helping his boyfriend off the table, pressing another kiss to TJ's neck.

"I swear to god I'll beat you later." TJ threatened. Klaus smirked.

"Ooh, kinky! Is that a promise?" He said, a small amount of seduction in his voice. TJ grabbed a spatula and hit Klaus with it. Klaus ran off laughing, TJ doing the same as he ran after him.

* * *

Klaus could feel himself float back into existence. He could just hear TJ's soft breathing and feel his fingers intertwined with his own. He tried to squeeze TJ's hand, to try and let him know he was ok, but he couldn't. Klaus could only lay there, floating in the darkness of his own mind.

The downside of his coma, was that he was stuck in his own thoughts; his own memories. Flashbacks of his life before he moved to the city haunted him, reminding him of things he worked so hard to forget. Anderson would probably tase him again if she found out. Klaus knew that, had he been conscious, he would feel a shiver down his spine.

Klaus felt a tugging in his mind, like hands dragging him downward, and into another memory, fading into it like it were a dream.

* * *

The room was white. Four heavily armoured guards flanked the tutors desk. Anderson stood behind her desk, wiry hair had been dragged back into a tight bun hidden beneath a white military beret. A1M, sat at his desk, hands splayed out flat on the wood like he had been taught, his gaze blank. His hair had been cropped into what he thought was probably a horrendous looking bowl cut, identical to the other boys in his class.

"Not all of you will survive the final exam, but I assure you, those who do survive will be the elite-" Anderson stopped speaking abruptly. Outside, the sounds of running was echoing down the corridor. A1M looked over to the door, past A2M, with a glint of curiosity and slight fear in his eyes, where, through the clouded glass, he could make out the silhouettes of people sprinting past.

Anderson slammed her fist down on the table, the boy snapping his head forward again.

"Subject A1M, what is the first and seventh rule of the code?" A1M kept his blank stare.

"Rule 1: Pay full attention to the tutor at all times. Rule 7: Emotion makes you susceptible, show none."

"Exactly. If you keep breaking the code you'll never make it as a ri-" Anderson's voice was cut off by an explosion behind her. Her body was flung forward towards A1M, breaking her neck on the edge his desk. Blood sprayed from her open mouth.

A1M started, eyes filled with fear and shock, Anderson's blood splattered down his white uniform. His breath quickened, heart racing, eyes widened in terror, as soldiers in black uniforms with a blue band around their right forearms stormed into the room through the gaping hole blasted through the wall.

A1M scrambled under his desk as his classmates were killed left and right. A2M lay near him, eyes closed and blood leaking from her head.

He could feel himself hyperventilating as a fast beeping abused his ears, shouts for help rang out as he shook, his head spinning as the floor turning soft beneath him, choking on something sour as the scene around him faded in and out of existence.

* * *

TJ had been asleep when Klaus had a seizure. The boy's shaking had woken him up, and seeing the foam knew that it was serious. He screamed for help, till two doctors came in, held Klaus down and injected him with a drug that made him relax. TJ choked on tears as he watched his boyfriend settle back down, the foaming in his mouth disappearing and his shaking stopping.

"What happened to him?" TJ asked, wiping his tears. One of the doctors turned to him.

"A seizure. A bad one at that. Has he had one of these before?" One of the doctor's asked. TJ shook his head. "Does he have epilepsy?" TJ shook his head again. "Alright."

"Will he be ok?" TJ asked, his voice shaking. The doctor turned back to TJ.

"We'll have to monitor him. You don't usually get a seizure without something bad happening." The doctor explained. TJ nodded.

"Thank you." The doctor smiled.

"Your welcome."

(Oh hi. Imma pretend the conditioning memories wasn't infired by the N.O music video by BTS [smol inside joke fully intended], and the fluffy domestic bit wasn't inspired by the BL drama Obsessed [I fucking love that drama])