1996 | Y.Jw

| 1 |

I first met Li Yang and Emiko in 1986, when I was seven, Li Yang was eight and Emiko was six. They had evaluated us fit enough to be let in with other kids. 
From then we only had classes with one another, except the solo sessions they would take us to, away from the other two. We were a comfortable trio, getting used to one another immediately. After a year they had to limit our time together after lessons, because we chatted too much during the lessons. Our solo sessions increased in numbers as the hours together decreased.

In 1990 they let us see other kids. They moved us to what they called section 183, with three other test subjects. 24, 9 and 8. We prefer to call them Sunoo, Jungwon and Riki. They were the same age as us.
We all have a single bedroom in the facility. Li Yang, Emiko and I all have along the left side of the slim hallway in our section, across from our rooms. By the end of the hallway is a small common room where they let us spend time together after lessons, it is also the room where we have a common lessons. Our solo sessions are still on the first floor of section 72.

The teachers say the six of us fit well together and will soon begin on duo sessions with us. We still don't know which teams we'll be put into for the duo sessions. I think Li Yang and Sunoo might be put together as a duo. Their skills match each other nicely. So does Riki and Emiko's, which must mean I'll probably be teamed with Jungwon. I don't mind. He makes me feel comfortable.

I often catch myself watching Li Yang and Sunoo in the common room. He likes to lend out his creme colored sweatshirt to her during the winter, and the summer evenings. It was the most colorful he owned, the same did the rest of us. All our clothes were in white shades, making us blend in completely with the walls, floors, ceilings and furniture within the facility. I only recall ever having seen other colors through the textbooks we learn from, and on the teachers that come everyday to teach us, and of course the food we get served.

Another thing Sunoo likes to do is request for the teachers to get him the fairytale books from the children's library on the second floor, the one under ours. He reads them for Li Yang whenever she seems down, or has been looking out of the windows for too long. The windows where we only could see trees upon trees far into the distance, signalling to us we were in the depths of a forrest. He's also the one that started the whole ordeal of us calling her Lin instead of Li Yang, but now he is searching for new nicknames for her.

Riki and Emiko often spend time together too. They either rush around trying to hide from one another in a small game of tag. Lately Emiko has been winning their tag games, I think she has figured out Riki's pattern of teleportation, either that or she has noticed how the air gets foggy by his particles travelling from one space to another, before they gather to form him once again. Meanwhile Riki is struggling to trick Emiko to run in the right direction for him to win.
They only play the game when they're both in a good mood, it's often those days where Sunoo isn't reading to Lin. On the days they don't play the game they mainly just sit and play chess, unless Emiko and I have to study with Lin.

When we don't all spend time together and just part up during the evenings I sit by Jungwon. He likes to do extra studying, especially now that the teachers has begun experimenting the skill capacity of one person, and are trying to teach him a new skill. He has yet to tell me what other skill they're learning him, but sometimes he likes to whisper to me which trick Emiko will pull next in her and Riki's game of tag. I don't say much to him, I just find it comfortable to lean against him while he studies, and he has yet to complain so I suppose he doesn't mind my presence. I normally just draw in a small A5 notebook I have talked my solo teacher into getting for me. I think Jungwon watches my drawings every once in a while, I can hear him hum in approval - maybe it's just because of his studying and not my drawing, but I like to think it's his approval of my drawings.

"What's that supposed to be?" by the sound of Jungwon's quiet voice above my head questioned and I craned my neck around to look up at Jungwon. He was staring down towards my notebook, which I held against my bent legs.

When I didn't answer he tapped the page of my notebook, with the arm he had wrapped around me, to keep me steady laying up against his side.

"I uhm... I had a dream last night," I excused and frowned at the half-drawn creature on my page, "miss Hopkins said it would be good for me to try and draw my dreams."

"That looks horrifying," Jungwon commented, a small hint of disgust in his voice, "are you having nightmares? I'm sure one of the teachers will agree that we can move an extra bed into your room if you need company."

"I think I'll just do what miss Hopkins ask me to for now," I shook my head at him before returning back to shading in the creature on my page, "you don't think it's a bad thing I dream of these, do you?"

"I'm sure it's fine," he assured with a small chuckle making me crane my neck back once more to look up at him.

"You don't see some horrifying creature in the future, do you?" I questioned in amusement and he simply shook his head before his smile abruptly faltered and he stiffened up, "Jungwon?"

"Nope, nothing at all," he quickly shook his head, turning his face to smile down at me once again, "I just had to think hard enough to make sure. Sorry," he excused before ruffling my hair softly, "continue your drawing. I'd like to see it finished."

I hummed as I fixed the way I was laying, looking back down at my drawing. Quickly sending a glance towards Lin and Sunoo I could see him softly whisper into her hair while his eyes scanned the page in front of him.

They had done electric wave testing on her again today, and it always drained her from energy. Those days Sunoo was always extra attentive to her, reading her as many fairytales as he could in a night before the teachers had to force them back into their individual rooms.