A MILLION MILES AWAY | xiao

- ꕤ 2: THE WATCH

The rain had finally come to stop but the room remained dark. Cold, too.

You washed your clothes in the sink as best as you could. Though, the jumpsuit was beyond repair. The stains couldn't be removed no matter how hard you scrubbed. You decided to tear the chest area of your jumpsuit, wrapping it around your leg instead. The bleeding stopped but the pain only became throbbing.

The black sleeveless shirt and shorts you wore underneath the jumpsuit were clean but wet. You only wore your undergarments and wrapped a blanket around your shivering body. You held on to your name tag, the small badge serving as your only clue. Your name was Y/N.

Y/N L/N. You mustn't forget that.

Soon, the young 'Adeptus' came back with a bag of unknown items. He looked at you, confused.

"Are you wearing any clothes?" You looked away in embarrassment. "Everything I have is still drying up."

He coughed and looked away from you. He then placed the bag down on the bed and took some of the contents out. Herbs, water, and bandages.

"Give me your leg."

A little hesitant, you removed part of the blanket to reveal your covered cut. The Adeptus undid your attempt to stop the bleeding and took the herbs. He seemed to know what he was doing as he carefully placed the medicine. It stung, but quickly it turned into relief. Then, he wrapped your thigh with a bandage.

The silence between you two was... for a lack of a better word, awkward.

"So um-" You started.

"You can use this for your arm as well. I'm sorry for hurting you, I didn't mean to." He apologized once more. He seemed cold yet was kind enough to clean up your wounds.

"Thank you. I appreciate it. Um... I'm Y/N, by the way. I don't know anyone in this world yet but I'd like to get to know you!" You needed a familiar face.

The Adeptus looked at you before looking down. He was mulling over his next words but eventually replied with a simple, "Hm." Then he departed. You were left alone and confused, again.

You weren't going to lie, but you felt disheartened. You didn't even get his name. Some people don't talk much but you wished he gave more of a reply. Regardless, you were still grateful for all that he's done thus far.

With a huge sigh, you fell onto the mattress. You stared at the empty ceiling, feeling your rapid heartbeat. It slowly returned to a normal pace as you breathed carefully.

You let your mind linger for a bit.

Why did this world seem so familiar? You wondered if the screams you heard before opening your eyes were real. They were terrifying now that you think about it. They were so loud and so panicked. The way they called your name sent shivers down your spine.

Then you remembered the criminals who almost took you. You recalled the man saying they only wanted your watch. That was until you ran.

Right, your watch.

You looked at your left wrist, noticing a black electronic watch. It was pretty like the man said. It was weightless too. No wonder you forgot it was even on you. There were three buttons to its right and a monitor as its centerpiece. The big question was if it still worked.

You lifted your arm to look at the device, seeing a red button. You clicked it, assuming it would open the watch. Yet nothing happened. Its screen remained blank. Not until a second later when a green light started blinking on the monitor.

'Reconnecting' it said.

You thought nothing of it, for now. In addition, three question marks flashed at the right corner. It seemed like your watch didn't know what time it was in this world. That must be why it's reconnecting?

You removed the watch from your wrist and read what was on the back.

"L/N SCIENCE FACILITY: OTTO PROJECT."