The room was silent, save for the ticking of the clock and the soft hum of the lights overhead.
Taerim stared at Juwon's unmasked face.
His features were sharper now, more mature, but undeniably familiar. The same crescent scar above his right brow. The same faint dimple that showed when he was unsure. But it was his eyes that hit her hardest—haunted, fierce, and unbearably sad.
"You've changed," she said.
"So have you."
They sat in the empty greenhouse, long past school hours. Outside, the sky turned dusky violet, the first stars blinking awake.
"How long have you known it was me?" she asked.
"I suspected it when you saved that boy last week. But I knew for sure when I saw you hesitate during the last mission. You only do that when you're protecting someone."
She swallowed, gaze dropping. "I didn't recognize you. Not until today."
"I'm glad you finally did."
Taerim traced her finger along the scar on her palm—the one she got trying to protect her brothers when the scientists pushed her beyond her limit.
"I thought you all died in the fire."
"I thought you died," he whispered. "They told us you didn't make it."
She looked at him, eyes gleaming with a mix of anger and sorrow. "Why didn't you find me?"
"I tried. We all did. But they wiped our files. We were scattered across the country. I only found the Guild two years ago… and they found me first."
"And the others?"
Juwon hesitated.
"They're alive."
She gasped. "Who?"
"Harin. Hajoon. Yulseung. Gyeongho. They're here. In this school."
Taerim's breath hitched. "What…?"
"They're the new transfer students."
Her world tilted.
"You're lying."
"I'm not."
"No. That—That can't be. I've been around them for weeks!"
"They've all changed. Just like you. Just like me."
Tears welled up in her eyes. She gripped the edges of the bench.
"All this time… they were right in front of me…"
"We didn't know if you were ready. You didn't remember. We thought maybe it was better that way. But now…"
"…Now?"
"Now you deserve the truth."
---
The next day, Taerim didn't speak much.
Her classmates noticed her distant gaze, the way she flinched whenever her name was called, the way her hands trembled under the desk.
In the hall, Siyoon caught up with her.
"President. You okay?"
She nodded.
He frowned. "You don't look okay."
Taerim gave a small, tired smile. "Thanks for worrying."
"…I always do."
Their eyes locked for a brief moment, and something in Siyoon's gaze shifted.
"…You still don't remember me, do you?"
Her lips parted.
"You were one of them?"
"I always stayed close. Just in case." He gave her a bitter smile. "You looked so lonely, Taerim. I wanted to be there when you remembered."
She looked away, guilt churning in her chest.
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be. We're all broken in different ways."
"Were you there… when the fire happened?"
Siyoon nodded, his expression dark. "I tried to get to you. But something dragged me back. Knocked me unconscious. When I woke up, everything was ash."
She clenched her fists.
"So much was stolen from us."
"Yeah."
Siyoon gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "But we're still here. Still fighting. Still alive."
And for the first time in years, Taerim allowed herself to lean on someone.
---
Later that evening, Taerim stood before the locked room in the guild's headquarters.
The door that required her code and her blood.
"Access: Code S001," she said, pressing her thumb to the panel.
The door slid open.
Inside were files. Photos. Videos. Reports.
Everything about the experiments.
Everything about her.
She stepped inside, heart pounding.
And there—on the far table—lay a folder marked:
"Project Echelon: Subject S001 – Joon Taerim."
She opened it slowly, trembling.
And she read:
> Code Name: S001
Subject Name: Joon Taerim
Category: Hybrid – Adaptive Regeneration / Memory Isolation / Energy Amplifier
Purpose: Base template for future adaptive experiments
Notes: Subject shows advanced emotional attachment to Subjects SM001 and SY005. Monitor closely.
Her breath caught.
SM001. Juwon.
SY005. Siyoon.
She flipped to the next page and froze.
It was a photo.
Of her crying in a cold lab room.
With Juwon and Siyoon holding her.
She fell to her knees.
Everything hurt.
But beneath the pain was clarity.
And fury.
She clenched her teeth. "They used us."
A voice behind her spoke. "They still are."
She turned. Her eyes widened.
There stood her three brothers.
Joonbyul. Joonseok. Joonhyuk.
She hadn't seen them since she was six.
They stepped into the light.
Older. Stronger. But still her brothers.
Joonbyul crouched in front of her. "Taerim…"
She collapsed into his arms, sobbing.
"You're alive… you're really alive…"
Joonseok wrapped his arms around her from behind. "We never stopped searching."
Joonhyuk ruffled her hair, tears in his own eyes. "You got taller, squirt."
She laughed between sobs.
For the first time in a decade… she was safe.
But then—an alarm blared.
WARNING: Guild HQ under threat.
Juwon's voice crackled over the intercom. "They found us. The scientists. They're here."
Taerim stood, wiping her tears.
Her voice was steady.
"Then let's finish what they started."
---