𝗔𝗪𝗔𝗞𝗘 [ UNDER HEAVY REVISION ]

AWAKE : FOURTY SIX.1

Mina's POV

It's my first night as an official soldier of the New Army.

Last night, Y/n and I stayed by Heechul's side to monitor his condition. He suffered some injuries because of his duel against Seungri. I admire his courage, especially during the fight. Even though he knew he wasn't going to win, he didn't surrender. He fought until he couldn't anymore.

Tonight, I'm on roving duty. I'm assigned to roam around the Institute's premises to make sure that the curfew is properly implemented.

"So, what's your story?" Jimin asks me suddenly. There are four soldiers on duty right now. Jimin is my roving partner. It's a good thing I got him instead of IU, Seungri's girlfriend. She's also on roving duty like me.

"My story?" I ask back. "Why do you want to know my story?"

He grins. "Unless they give us another task, we're going to be partners for a long time. It's better if we get to know each other, isn't it?"

I didn't answer him. I'm not in the mood to have small talk, anyway. I want to spend my first night as a soldier peacefully.

It's already midnight, and the whole place is quiet. The sound of our footsteps seems magnified because of the silence. Some areas of the Institute are engulfed in complete darkness, so we have to use our flashlights to see properly.

"It's kind of creepy, don't you think?" Jimin says without looking at me. "Come to think of it, the situation today is not far behind outside the Institute. Both silent and lifeless."

He's right. If I close my eyes and focus on the stillness, I can almost imagine that I'm back outside with Y/n and our other friends.

"How did you get here?" I ask out of the blue. Jimin glances at me before speaking.

"So you're in the mood to talk now, huh?" he says with a grin.

"Just answer the question."

Jimin shrugs. "My parents kicked me out the day the syndrome hit. I was looking for a place to sleep that night, so I sneaked into this school. There's no one here every night, so I thought I'd just sleep here."

We are out of the building now, walking on the school grounds. The cold night air sends chills down my spine.

"I was surprised when I suddenly heard voices," Jimin continued his story as we walked. "I walked out of the classroom I had chosen to sleep in, and I was surprised to see that there were a lot of people outside."

"But how did you survive?" I ask. "The syndrome, I mean. If you don't have any connections with the President and his scientists, why are you awake now and not asleep like the rest of humanity?"

"Kai. He approached me and injected some kind of vaccine into my left arm."

I see. That explains it.

"It's funny how things turned out that day." Jimin tilts his head up, briefly looking at the stars before returning his gaze to me.

"Why?"

"I thought I was very unlucky that day because my parents kicked me out. But as it turned out, what happened that day was a good thing. If that didn't happen, I would definitely be sleeping soundly right now."

I wanted to ask him why his parents kicked him out, but I realised that the question might be too personal, so I decided against it.

"I've told you my story," Jimin says after a few moments. "Now, tell me yours."