February 19, 2028

11:10 AM

The buzz of several voices speaking at once surrounded her, all belonging to each their own conversations which Zero Two had no interest in. Some were poorly hushed whispers and others spoke as loud as they wished to without any regard of eavesdroppers.

She sat at her assigned desk in her classroom, elbows propped up against the refined wooden desk just below them. Zero Two looked out the large window beside her seat disinterestedly, watching a blue jay glean the seeds of a cherry blossom.

She never paid much attention to her classes, or the gossip passed around in school. Zero Two preferred to study at home alone and then pass all her classes by the end of the school year. As a result, her grades always dropped over the semester because of her poor attendance and late work. But when exams neared, she always came first out of everyone in her class. This never failed to surprise others or make them completely misunderstand her.

Zero Two didn't understand why her old man never pulled her out of the stupid school. It didn't suit her style, but she assumed it was because he owned the damn place. Even now, she was here against her will since her grades were pummeling even harder now. Her guardians were annoying her about them and the only way to get them to stop was to solve the problem.

However, the need to dissociate was stronger than ever today.

Zero Two could only hear her name on people's lips. People she didn't know personally whether they were her own classmates. She never took the time to sit down and put a name to each face that all looked the same to her in her eyes.

"Isn't that...?"

"Huh, so she finally showed her face."

"Did you hear about-"

"Selfish bitch. She didn't even attend her own father's funeral."

She pretended not to notice, pretended not to care when deep inside... Zero Two always did a little more than she was willing to admit to herself. It was more than a little to be truthful, but she didn't have the power to make the world stop pretending to care about her for a second.

Pretending to care about them.

What she lacked now was the drive to argue against others. Before, she hated how people would use her name so loosely and allowed it to break her thin patience which sometimes made a verbal situation astray into a physical one.

It was odd that she felt nothing now. Was her heart becoming hollow? Where she wanted to feel anger and disgust, there was another loud voice in the emptiness of her head that told her she fully deserved everything thrown her way.

The relieving sound of the lunch bell was her benediction. Zero Two slowly stood up from her seat while pocketing her small music player into her skirt before she left her desk. As students hustled out of the room and all headed down the same corridor, she took an opposite path that would eventually take her to the courtyard of the school.

The area was well polished with its freshly trimmed grass and the fallen cherry blossom petals disbursed all over the ground only helped to make the courtyard look more appealing than usual. She ignored the benches where students would often take their lunch to and walked straight towards a spot behind the school where the sun didn't meet.

Zero Two preferred the rooftop since it was easiest to get away from everyone else there after school, but unfortunately, it was a popular hotspot for students to have their lunch during this time. Therefore, the girl knew that was the last place she wanted to be when she sought total isolation.

Zero Two took a seat on the bench that was cold to the touch, not minding the dark shadow that was cast over her. It helped her feel unnoticed even if it was still likely that students could walk around to this area at any given time. So, she took out her music player from inside her pocket and then untangled her earbuds quickly.

After that was done, Zero Two then pushed each white bud into ears and leaned her head back until the back of the bench caught her head. Without looking, her thumb hit 'play' and she gently sat the device down on her lap, then proceeded to cross one ankle over the other.

As the music flowed into her ears, Zero Two's eyes looked up at the vast sky above her head. Sitting here like this was as pleasant as things could possibly get for her. While it didn't soothe the ache in her heart, it did make her feel a little at ease in this hell.

She ignored the light rumbling of her stomach. It was not that she wasn't hungry, but because as of lately she hasn't been able to stomach anything. Her body wouldn't allow her to hold any of her meals for long despite them being very light. Therefore, what was the point of trying?

It was easier for Zero Two to ignore her body's appetite and even more so when she had her earbuds in, concentrating on the soft music instead. As the sound rushed in and out of her body, and as the tempo elevated her senses. Working together at once, she could feel her waves of concerns slowly coming to a still but only momentarily.

Zero Two knew her peace had lasted only shortly when she picked up the sound of several footsteps approaching her at once. The soft soled flats made them light, but still audible to the ear.

Zero Two slowly reopened her lids and looked to the side without turning her head, her eyes recognizing the figures of five bodies within her peripheral. She didn't spare them another glance however, looking away just as soon as she spotted them.

The girl wasn't pretending to not have noticed them as it might've seemed. She simply just didn't care for their presence at all. They were each holding onto trays of food, so judging by the looks of it, they would walk past her and ignore her to find someplace to eat. Unfortunately, she couldn't be any more wrong.

Without lifting her head up, Zero Two could see in her vision that the small group stopped directly in front of her. Raising her head only confirmed her suspicion.

"What is it?" the girl asked apathetically, making it very clear to the group of five that she wasn't asking out of genuine interest, but because she wanted them to leave quicker.

"We heard the news! I assume it must be a hard time for you right now." The center of the group started to speak while twirling a dark lock of her straight hair around her finger. It was easy for Zero Two to determine whom the leader of the pack was.

Beside her, the girls all held a sly smile or a painstakingly forced one. She knew a fake smile when she saw it.

"Then again, it can't be that hard since you were a no-show to the funeral, right?"

Snickers dispersed from plump and glossed up lips as if the stranger's jab was honestly that good, but Zero Two's face remained flatly unamused.

"You know... With your father no longer owning the school, you're not as hot as you think anymore. Do you honestly think you'll continue to get special treatment now that you're.."

Zero Two wouldn't be able to tell anyone what else the girl said beyond this point because she decided to turn the volume up on her music player until their voices were completely drowned out. Her head tilted back now and she closed her eyes again, ignoring the five annoying presences in front of her.

The notes kissing her eardrums like small waves touching one's toes was a much better remedy. It didn't last however.

Only five seconds later did Zero Two feel a cold liquid pour down her head as if she'd run under water, rushing down her shoulders and to her once clean skirt. The chilly and nonetheless sudden sensation caused her to snap her eyes open, looking down at herself to take in what just happened.

Her uniform that was now drenched and the flattened, damp strands of her hair that stuck to it now.

Even before their chorus of laughter reached her ears, Zero Two was able to put two and two together. Apparently, they didn't take being ignored too lightly, but neither did she take being physically attacked.

Zero Two ripped the earbuds out of her ears, doubtful that they'll continue to work as well as they used to. She swiped her sticky bangs to the side with one finger right before she suddenly stood up. Of course, she needed to see her harassers if she wished to get them back.

...Stupid airheads. What do they know about me?

Evidently, the girls must've expected her to sit there and take it, or else they would've haven't taken a step back from her. Or else their eyes wouldn't have widened with a discernible emotion that made it seem as if they were facing an unexpectedly scary situation.

Zero Two reached out until her fist caught onto the front of her blouse. The abrupt movement caused the brunette's tray to slip from her helpless hands, various food splattering and dropping at their feet. No, she wasn't about to hit her—That would be an utter waste of her time. However, she could make sure these airheads never bothered her again.

Her mouth was parted to say something to them, but the first word quickly died on her tongue when she registered the wavering fear in the brunette's eyes. It made her feel sick.

Don't look at me like that.

Zero Two sucked on the front of her teeth, but her fist didn't loosen up on the student's shirt nor did the threat in her narrowed eyes leave.

...Tch. Is she going soft?

"Zero Two!"

Her breath stopped short for a second when the name reached her ears, her muscles tensing up almost immediately but not out of fear. She was startled. ...It was Hiro. Only a few people would call her that on school grounds, but the voice was too distinctive to not know who it belonged to.

"Zero... Tw–" Before the brunette could finish her words, the girl had already loosened her grip on the front of her blouse and sent her three steps back with a forceful push forward.

Her friends turned around to help her in case she fell, but she didn't.

"Never speak to me again. Got it?"

She watched their panicked heads nod simultaneously, arms hooking around each other to stay close to one another as they made their hurried leave. Despite not letting them get away with the assault, Zero Two didn't feel an inch relieved. Instead, she felt more stressed out than before.

Now Hiro was also here. The girl turned around to him to see the horrified look on his face.

Hah... Is that for her?

"Zero Two! Are you okay?!" He asked with that same nauseating concern for her, as he closed the distance between them.

She wished people would stop worrying about her; especially him. However, it did not seem within Hiro's nature to not be concerned about other people more than himself.

Moreover, she hated lying to Hiro whenever he had to ask her if she was okay. If she was... coping well. He's been doing his best these past couple of days to get closer to her, but she's only stopped resisting him as an outside appearance. On the inside, Hiro hasn't knocked down a single wall of hers and it made her feel even more like the villain here.

"I'm fine," Zero Two reassured him without a trace of concern in her voice. It was as if having someone's drink poured down on her was a normal part of her day.

She was sticky for sure because the sugar in the liquid was drying up quickly underneath the heat of the sun. The smell and the fizz bubbles she'd seen indicated that this was soda all over her, but so what?

"Hold on!" Hiro told her, as he pulled out a neatly folded, blueberry-colored handkerchief out from the pocket of his pants. He clearly didn't think the same as her, but that didn't surprise her.

Zero Two didn't move when he started to dab the front of her hair and blouse dry with it. The kind thought was indeed there, but the handkerchief was far too small for a mess as big as this one. Therefore, this scene was a little humorous to her.

He shouldn't waste more of his time on her. Hiro tried too hard sometimes and it caused her to feel even worse about what she was selfishly doing to him. All of her time spent with the boy still couldn't answer her question as to why Hiro would do so much for someone he knew almost nothing about, but...

They did say they were friends, right?

She was no better for encouraging all of this.

Zero Two, you're way too in your head here.

"I don't know what happened, but I ran over here as soon as I recognized you. Those girls did this to you, right? I can report them to Ichigo and then—"

"It's fine. I don't care that much about them," Zero Two brushed off the suggestion.

The girl didn't think she deserved that much nor did she wish to make a larger situation out of this.

"...Are you sure? I don't think that we should just let this go, Zero Two-"

A softly deflating sigh left her lips, before the girl took a step forward and placed one pointed finger against the front of Hiro's mouth. Just like how she silenced him that one night when he started to ramble on too much.

"Stop talking. It's alright, I swear. I'll just go home and wash up," she said, as simple as that. The girl assumed her reassurance worked when she watched Hiro's once tensed up shoulders drop, so she withdrew her finger.

"Zero Two... Are you sure you're okay?" Hiro asked her again. Even if he was risking having his concerns for Zero Two brushed off by the girl herself, it was a risk he still wanted to take.

For a few seconds, she went completely silent and it left an ominous feeling lurching in Hiro's stomach. Then, after a long and heavy thought, she said something to him. It wasn't what he wanted to hear however.

"I should head home now. Looks like now wasn't a good time to come back after all," Zero Two responded to him as her lips curved into a small, forced smile. Her arm held the other one behind her back.

She was avoiding the question, but only because the truth would be so much harder to admit. It was better this way, Zero Two told herself.

"Bye-bye for now, Hiro."

The girl took a step to the side and started to bypass him to walk towards the front gates. What raised Hiro's awareness though was the forlorn look she was holding back in her emerald eyes as she parted with him.

If you're okay, then why do you look at me like that...

Hiro couldn't stop to think. His body just acted when he turned his body halfway towards her and grabbed onto the end of her sleeve. It was a situation Zero Two was already becoming used to with him. She didn't even question him because she's more than aware that he'll do so first.

"You remember what I told you, don't you? You can talk to me about these things if you'd like," Hiro desperately reminded her, as if this would be the one time she'd actually listen to him.

Zero Two was not yet there, however.

"I know," she responded to him with a lingering sadness to her voice. Hiro didn't fail to notice it.

But he doesn't stop her even as her sleeve slips out of his grasp, only able to look at her retreating figure. It was as if they were still trying to hear each other from opposite sides of a field.

.

.

.

As Zero Two opened the front door to her mansion, she didn't feel compelled enough to announce her return for the other occupants within the manor to hear. She felt... very tired despite having not done much at all in a physical sense today. Although, that was not Zero Two's reason for choosing to enter mute.

Zero Two didn't feel up for interacting with anyone else — especially since they all voiced the same concerns to her, or chided her for not anything to change these things. Therefore, they all ended up sounding like a broken record to her ears and she was quite weary from the cycle.

As well as with larger things.

The soda her clothes had soaked up was already mostly dried up by now, leaving behind a dirty feeling on Zero Two's body, but she hardly cared for her current condition.

Moreover, it gave her an excuse to soak in a nice and warm bath. Despite her old interests that no longer sent excitement rushing through her veins, the feeling of water against her skin—no matter the temperature—has never betrayed her.

Her shoes were soaked with a brown stain due to the soda that reached them and walking with them on into the bathroom would track footprints everywhere. Her house manners have been trained into her brain so well that she still took the moment to do little things like this.

A week ago, it didn't matter. Now Zero Two felt bad about doing something he wouldn't approve of. It was a small thing, but it was important to her. If she could do anything useful then it would be staying true to Werner's habits.

But just as she started to lean over to reach her feet, Zero Two's felt her head become dizzy all of a sudden. The blood rushed to her head all at once and her vision began to blur. As this happened, Zero Two reached out towards what was nearest to her left to catch herself. Her hand found safety on the edge of a table, framed portraits aligned on the desk alongside other valuables.

They shook slightly with the weight of the girl's body suddenly being pressed against it.

...God, what is this?

It felt as if her consciousness was being quickly stripped away from her.

She can hear the muffled sound of hurried footsteps entering the room she was in. Voices spoke out to her, but they inevitably became drowned out to her ears the fuzzier her vision grew. Zero Two couldn't tell what Sawako was saying to her, but she can tell that she was speaking rather hastily to her.

Then, her strength on the table slipped just as soon as her world did.


January 2, 2020

3:46 PM

Tiny feet kicked back and forth in the air, belonging to a short little girl who sat in the center of an exam table anxiously. Right now she was in a doctor's office and the man, who she now knew as Werner, told her that he'd brought her here just to make sure her health was in good condition.

The reason went through one ear and out the other however. Zero Two didn't understand much beyond that and she wasn't interested enough to ask what he meant. She was too concentrated on her fear of misbehaving and making an unintended mistake, so Zero Two remained quiet and obedient this entire trip. She did whatever the adults told her to do since in her mind, it got them to leave her alone quicker.

Now she was alone in the office, but could see Werner and the doctor discussing something outside of the door through the window. The table propped her up high enough just for her to be able to see. Their mouths were moving, but she couldn't read their lips nor hear a thing from the other side. Zero Two concluded that their discussion was likely about her and that made her nervousness increase by a tenfold.

It elevated even more because she felt alone in this unfamiliar place, Zero Two bringing her roughed up knees to her chest in seek of temporary comfort. The doctor had been generous enough to hand her a light green lollipop, telling her that its sweetness was beyond compare to other candies as he did. With the taste of the treat slathered all over her tongue, Zero Two believed him too.

Its sweetness provided a distraction for her as she waited for either of them to come back into the room. As much as she was afraid of areas and faces she didn't recognize, Zero Two was even more afraid of her loneliness. She didn't want to be alone again.

The child felt nauseous just recalling those memories. Sitting beside her father's cold and rotting corpse, looking for shelter every night, scavenging for food... The sweetness of her candy helped push the sickening sensation down for now. She bit down on the small ball with her teeth, breaking it apart and then chewing on the fragments that spread in her mouth.

As the door to the office opened slowly, her body stiffened instinctively and she hurriedly pushed her legs back down to straighten herself back out. She expected both to reenter the room, but this time it was only Werner again. Her eyes observed his face to read his mood, but all Zero Two received from it was a look of... regret? He looked... sullen, but the child couldn't tell why. She was never taught how to communicate and deal with emotions. Much less her own.

"Sorry for leaving you alone like that, kid. We're just about done here for today. How are you feeling?" he asked her genuinely, not wanting to cut straight to the chase when speaking to someone who was still in the middle of living her childhood.

Despite the condition he found her in that one day, she was still a child underneath her layers of distrust and mental scars. Specifically because of those things, Werner understood he had to be gentler with her than others. The same blunt way he spoke to adults, he couldn't do the same to her.

Zero Two stayed quiet as a mouse however, unsure of how to answer the adult in a way that wouldn't provoke him. Much to her shock, Werner wasn't fed up by her lack of response and she didn't understand why. All he did was slide one hand into his pocket and shift his weight into the other foot.

"I see. Still unable to speak to me, huh? That's fine, you can take your time. I'm sure you want to know if the results are good or not though, right?"

Zero Two didn't nod her head, but she didn't shake it either. If she was speaking honestly here then Zero Two didn't care for the occasion behind why she was here in the first place. Regardless of her silence however and probably interpreting it as shyness (or more distrust), he continued nonetheless.

"The doctor found even more bruises on your body than I initially thought you had," He stuck out one finger and pointed to one of the dark and purple marks on the outside of her arm. It contrasted awfully with her whiter skin. "Bruises are these things."

His finger then moved to another one that was on a lower portion of her thin leg. She had quite a lot and it would be time-consuming for Werner to bring attention to each one.

"They fester when you hit yourself too hard onto something. Then, they usually swell up and turn into this color. If you put pressure onto them, sometimes they'll hurt." He wouldn't inflict unnecessary discomfort on her to give her an example.

"It's important that if you ever find any more of these on your body—no matter if you think they're new or old—you must tell me, or someone else close to you immediately. Do you understand that?"

Werner felt only a little content seeing Zero Two nod her head slowly. He could tell by the uncertainty in her eyes that she wasn't quite following his words, only nodding because she felt ordered to. Of course a ten-year-old wouldn't understand the severity behind this information.

"The problem is that you're... sick, so they'll continue to appear more easily than they would on anyone without your sickness."

Honest to God, Werner wasn't sure if he was breaking these things down plainly enough to the child for her to understand the matter with her body and health. However, he was trying his best here. His experience with young people didn't go far.

Werner never had to take care of a child before, only his projects. Now he had more than he imagined he'd picked up placed onto his shoulders, but this was tougher for Zero Two than it was for him. While he tried to find ways to keep the other safe and informed, she was the one who had to suffer from the symptoms.

"There are other things that you will feel because of your condition. It's important that you know them, alright?"

Again Zero Two nodded her head, still slowly and unsurely. In the child's mind, she couldn't quite grasp the importance of the subject at hand. She was sick? ...Like the common cold? That didn't seem too bad to her. The bruises didn't bother her either, so this cold wasn't very painful.

"Sometimes it may seem as if your head and body hurts for no reason. Other times you'll feel unusually tired, or you may want to throw up. When you do, you must speak up immediately so we, as adults, can take care of you and help you feel all better. Are you still following?"

He waited and watched the gears in her head turn as she tried to absorb all this information at once. It was a lot to push on a ten-year-old, but it also couldn't be helped. This was what fate chose for Zero Two. When her lips pursed into a small "o", Werner leaned into the fact that she was about to speak.

"...I-Is... Is it like a cold?" Her meek voice asked, as if reasonably doing so would earn her a punishment.

That wouldn't happen with him however. Werner would have to do his best to teach the girl that there are other people out there who are as human as she was. More human than himself, or her deceased father.

Werner had known about his former friend's odd change in behavior, but wouldn't have guessed that he was also abusing his own daughter. The test they ran on Zero Two showed them that all her bruises weren't accidental. It only made Werner's guilt skyrocket when he considered the fact that he should've reached out to the man sooner.

All he could do now was look after his daughter in his stead now. "...It's more serious than that unfortunately. I know it sounds scary, but you won't have to worry as much with me here."

Cautiously, the scientist reached out to place his hand over Zero Two's. He noticed her body stiffen, but she didn't move away from him or bite him as she would've reacted a few days ago. His hand succeeded in making its way to Zero Two's, her hand much littler in his larger, adult one.

So small and fragile the girl was. She didn't know how she would fair for the years up ahead, but Werner swallowed that dreadful thought. In order to prevent that, he'll do everything within his power to see her have a happier life than the one destined for her since birth.

Zero Two stared down at the hand that covered her own, conjuring her thoughts together before she chose what to say next.

"...When will I get better?" she asked him in a shaky voice, and the fear on her tone broke Werner.

Without thinking, his arms wrapped around the child's tiny form and pushed her head against his chest as he enveloped Zero Two in his comforting warmth. He pretended not to feel the slight dampening against his shirt.

"I can't say for sure yet, but I'll do everything to make sure that you will."


November 4, 2026

6:25 PM

She twirled around the green sucker in her mouth with a bored expression permanently situated on her face. Eyes gazed upon the bland and white ceiling that hung low above her head; a reoccurring sight she's long gotten tired of.

There was a needle going into her arm, squeezing out her fresh, red blood into its container. When Zero Two was younger, she always hated the pinching sensation that came with the whole process, but now her resilient skin doesn't feel a single thing. The needle hadn't injected anything into her body this time, so once it had what it needed, the blood was then transferred into a small vial.

She let out a small groan, already mentally tired from being here in the doctor's office despite having only been here for fifteen minutes so far.

"What's wrong? Do you feel nauseous again?" Werner asked her intently, but Zero Two interpreted it as the man worrying unnecessarily instead and that caused her to roll her eyes at him.

Most of the time Zero Two felt the need to hide her episodes from him just to prevent the attention it would gravitate towards her.

She did have the habit of becoming sick to her stomach, but it's become less frequent from the time she was a child. A lot of her vomiting at the time was triggered by emotional stress, but things started to ease out for her overtime. A long process surely, but eventually it happened.

She hasn't expelled any blood or food contents in forever now. Her head didn't hurt either, or none of those other things. Of course that didn't mean one or several of her symptoms couldn't return tomorrow, but Zero Two won't admit that realistic standpoint aloud. The old man shouldn't have a reason to be even more of a worrywart over her.

Especially since today she was fine, so why did she still have to spend her time in the doctor's office?

"No. I'm just bored out of my mind," Zero Two replied without any regard of hiding her true feelings.

She picked her arm up from the armrest now that it was done being used, the plastic band still stretched around the upper half. The girl folded both arms against her chest instead, her lollipop still secured between her lips.

He was expectedly displeased by her answer. Telling him this wouldn't make the process go any faster and it was important for her to have her regular blood tests done. Werner needed to consistently monitor the behavior of Zero Two's blood.

"Just bear with me. You go through these all of the time, so you should know what to expect by now," he chastised her which led Zero Two into sucking her teeth annoyedly.

He was right and she knew it, that was why the girl didn't say anything to counter that claim. In the meantime, she continued to suck on her lollipop that has gotten a lot smaller since the car ride here. Soon, Zero Two will have nothing left to help her endure this procedure more comfortably and that... would suck.

"Have you been feeling any pain anywhere?" Werner continued his 'interrogation' as she would call it. At the same time, he was multitasking by putting away the new vial of her blood with the empty ones in a plastic stand.

"No. Not since last time," she pulled the lollipop out of her mouth to answer him clearly.

The girl was being honest even if the lack of care present in her tone made it sound as if she were only saying these things to get the procedure over with quicker.

Zero Two wouldn't put it past him to assume this either. With her lollipop out of her mouth, she began to inspect it for no particular reason. She didn't have to look out the corner of her eye to know that Werner was writing her medical responses down as she spoke.

"Hmm, that's very good. I pray that you're aren't hiding anything from me though," His thick, black pen clinked against the plastic of his clipboard once he sat it down.

"You haven't manifested any noticeable bruising lately, but I'll still have to check to be sure. You must continue to take care of yourself properly. There'll come a day where I won't be around to do these things for you anymore."

A deep, regretful sigh expelled from him at the same time Zero Two's grip on the white stick of her candy tightened firmly.

Werner picked her vial up from the stand and slipped it into his white lab coat, turning fully to her before he would make his next stop. "I'll give this to the lab to examine and then return with a new fill of lenalidomide."

As Zero Two looked down at her low platform boots, she remained completely and unusually silent. Her light pink bangs prevented the other from seeing the frustration in her eyes, but Werner did not need to in order to tell something was up with her.

Her body language was always more revealing than her words.

"...Why?" she spoke, but her question was so vague that Werner didn't quite catch on to what specifically she was asking now.

"Why what?"

Her teeth bit down on the hard candy in her mouth, instantly breaking it into small pieces that scattered across her mouth. Zero Two didn't even stop to chew them.

"Why... Are you doing this? Why the hell are you working so hard for my sake?"

A thick silence spread across the room and whether Werner was silent because he was thinking about her question, or because he was that shocked that she asked it in the first place, it was still something she's been meaning to ask him for the longest.

The most direct question that's been building up in her chest, but Zero Two never had the heart to confront him until now. Perhaps 'confront' was not the right verb to use against someone who was doing everything within their power to make sure your illness didn't become terminal, but this was how Zero Two felt.

There was more to it than just the surface. She wasn't an ungrateful brat in the slightest. Far from it. The truths behind her constant disapproval of her monthly checkups and special medical procedures were finally coming out now.

"What do you mean by that?"

Zero Two felt her jaw begin to tighten. Crunch! Of course he didn't understand! She picked her head up and slid off the examination table until she dropped onto her feet.

"You know what I mean! Before you picked up a pitiful orphan like me, you were happier! That's the truth, isn't it? You were a famous scientist! You never wanted to become a medical doctor until you learned that I was sick!"

There was a knot tightening in her chest and the more she spoke, the more the uncomfortable sensation increased.

Learning an entirely new field, becoming a doctor... All for her sake. It wasn't a surprise that he could accomplish so much in such a short time since he was an intelligent and the most dependable scientist Japan had. He had plenty of influence, but Zero Two didn't see the glory behind his name. She saw the human being underneath.

"Had you never met me then I wouldn't be such a burden to you. You wouldn't be so stressed out over trying to cure me. Life already has its plan for me, so why don't you give it up and let me di—"

"Don't you dare say something like that!"

Zero Two's body stiffened. The rest of the words she planned to tell him never reached Werner's ears. Never before has he gotten visibly upset with her and neither has she ever gotten shaken up in front of him either.

He sounded so serious and there was a whole new tone to his voice that told Zero Two she touched a sensitive spot. Was that not what she wanted however?

Zero Two didn't believe she was wrong, so the girl didn't step down from her standpoint. "Why not? It's the truth!"

Had she never inherited the blood disorder from her mother, if he never walked into her life... And maybe her father wouldn't have ever...

God, she shouldn't have ever been born.

These were all things Zero Two has felt in her heart since she was as young as she could remember, her mindset being forced to mature due to her own upbringing. Due to what fate has put on her shoulders from the moment she was too little to know what to do with these responsibilities.

"Your life is more important to me than anyone else's! In no way was I forced into this decision! Why would you even assume such a ludicrous thing?"

No, no. That's not it at all, that's—

"That doesn't mean you should work as hard as you do! Do you think I'm happy watching you slave over this for someone as worthless as I am?!"

Her voice was loud and fixated with pure anger, but what stood out atop those two fiery emotions was her own sorrow trapped in her throat. Her hands were equally curled up tightly into balls, sharp nails digging into skin that she was tolerant to.

Her head suddenly shot up and her eyes which were filled with passion met with his. The girl decided that she would not have this argument while invading his gaze the entire time. She would face this solely because she was not weak!

Werner had a surprised look in his own pair of cedar, but Zero Two couldn't determine if that was because she was getting to the root of the problem. Or if the man was only surprised to hear her true, innermost feelings about his lifeline of work.

"I..."

Words wouldn't help him, no. Words just couldn't sum up what either of them was feeling at this very moment.

Heavy footsteps of Werner in his black clogs reached her ears and became nearer, and near until warm arms embraced her and pulled her into his chest.

"I do these things because I love you. Nothing more. When it comes to the people you care for in this world, you'll go to the ends of the Earth for them."

"...It matters not if the chances of you succeeding are unlikely, or not. It's the effort you put into the other person that matters most. If our roles were reversed, would you not want to do the same?"

It wasn't until a single tear slid down her left cheek did Zero Two realize her eyes had brimmed to the surface with her own tears at all.

Even if she tightened her jaw to suppress her squall of emotions and closed her lids as tightly as she could, it did nothing for her. Salty liquid still broke through her long lashes, and the rise and falls of her chest were still shaky as ever.

It was not long before until more tear stains joined her face and Zero Two's pale, flush red cheeks wetted more and more.

Finding herself in this same position as she was when she first learned about her condition six years ago, it dawned on Zero Two that nothing has changed for her since that day.

And just maybe things never will.


February 19, 2028

8:09 PM

Her eyes reopened to dull, cream and white colored room. Her initial thoughts were that this environment looked sickeningly similar to her. The next was about the antiseptic smell of iodoform that overpowered her nose. When her mind mounted through the fog in her brain, Zero Two knew exactly where she was.

This wasn't the last place she remembered being either.

Her muscles had a pulsating soreness to them as if all the strings to her heart had connected to every vein within her body and was pumping it with more blood than it could take.

Her movements were slower than usual when her hand went to feel the drape on her own body. The feeling of polyester against her fingertips confirmed what she thought: She was wearing a hospital gown.

When that realization dawned on Zero Two, the girl released a groan that flowed past her closed lips.

Out of habit by now, she raised her arm that was pulsating the most and was the only one which laid above the pale blue sheets. As Zero Two suspected, there was indeed a plastic tube going into one of her veins with a tape above it to keep it in place.

She noted that the liquid was clear this time and not a deep shade of red. No blood, but maybe vitamins were being flitted into her.

A resigned sigh pushed its way past her lips now at the same time as her hand moves to her head, running her fingers against her scalp. Beneath her head was a thick, white pillow where her pink head of hair was sprawled out on.

It took the girl a second to realize that... Nothing stuck to her fingers nor did a distinct sugary smell of carbonation reach her nostrils. She was clean. Of course she was... When they changed her into this gown, they must've wiped her down as well.

That was one fortunate thing about the situation she's awoken to. Although, Zero Two would rather be in a hot bath than here in a room that seemed too small for her own comfort. As well as being connected to a medical equipment.

She shouldn't be still complaining however because it seemed as if whatever she did, she always came back to this place. Now all Zero Two had left to do was wait for a nurse to walk in and explain the situation to her.

It was likely an enunciation that has become similar to a broken record to her ears. Needless to say, Zero Two wasn't all that curious to have her questions answered.

Rather, she'd prefer to know how soon she could leave. In the meantime, her eyes glanced over at the room that has become her own over time. This place was like her second home, although that did not mean the girl felt welcomed here.

Zero Two was completely alone in here minus one person who was situated on the opposite side of the room. Curtains were pulled around the hospital bed however which withheld them from Zero Two's view, but allowed the patient their privacy.

The girl wasn't curious about the other patient, not wishing to know why they were here or if they were awake with her. She preferred to stick to herself after all. Their presence didn't bother her either since even in a large room, Zero Two always felt mentally alone.

More glancing showed her that the window curtains weren't drawn in, allowing a way for the dull sun beams to cast light upon the room. Judging by the apricot orange that merged with the darkening blue sky, it was right at dusk. It couldn't be any later than 8 o' clock PM right now.

How many hours has she been here?

Someone who could answer that question for her then stepped into the room. The woman wore a traditional scrub with a white, short-sleeved shirt and matching pants. She held a clipboard held against her ample chest and had her dark brown hair tied into a low ponytail. There too were a few strands that stood out of place which showed signs of a long, busy day.

It only took the sight of her messy ponytail for Zero Two to recognize her, however.

The girl was moved from hospital to hospital frequently, eventually no longer suitable for what a children's medical center could do for her. As a result, she's had plenty of old doctors exit her life only for new ones to quickly take their place. The same naturally went with her nurses which she knew only fleetingly.

Kyou has been her hematologist for three years now, but Zero Two expected her to walk out that door and never come back one of these days. Despite it all though, her relationship with Kyou was better than anyone else who worked on her.

Yet that didn't mean Zero Two was happy to see her walk into the room. In fact, she shouldn't be seeing her at all. She didn't want to be back here! Not here out of all places, so it was frustrating that she indeed was seeing Kyou's face again!

She didn't notice that receivers inside of the heart rate monitor she was connected to had increased slightly. It maintained a normal frequency however and only exhibited the shift in Zero Two's emotions.

"Oh, good. You're up. How do you feel?" Kyou asked as she quietly closed the door behind herself, careful not to disturb her patients with unnecessarily loud movements.

"Like hell. Why am I back here?"

Forget chitchat, she wanted answers: For what reason was she here and how soon could she return home. Kyou lifted up a single piece of paper which was secured onto her clipboard with the rest, briefly scanning it with her dark grey eyes.

"Sawako brought you in about nine hours ago. According to her, you fainted as soon as you returned home. The dietitian examined your vitals and protein level which are very low. You show numerous signs of undernourishment. I compared your weight to your last visit and you've lost ten pounds. This implies you haven't been consuming the recommended amount of food. Right now, your body is weak and I believe the strain on your body caused you to lose consciousness."

Your body is weak.

Hearing that made her fingers curl as she grabbed onto the sheets laid out over her. What she hated more was the fact that she couldn't deny it, but was that the only thing people could say to her? Being weak didn't define her yet it was the one thing that took up her entire existence.

"Your health is very important, you know that. Can you tell me what led up to this?" Kyou asked, her tone softening up.

For a moment, she stepped out of her professional persona and entered her motherly one. They weren't that close in Zero Two's mind, but the girl was well aware of the woman's affection for her.

Kyou waited for the younger's answer to come, but what she received in return was Zero Two's natural silence. Walking away from situations was how she avoided confrontations. Only she had nowhere to run and hide now. Backed up into a corner, the only thing Zero Two had left was her lack of communication.

The woman wasn't dumb though. She knew Zero Two was starving herself due to emotional distress, but didn't want to openly make biased accusations. A professional didn't do that with their patient. Instead, she wanted to hear these things from the girl herself.

Several more seconds of silence continued.

The girl looked away from her doctor and out the window where the plain, cream-colored drapes were pulled back for viewing pleasure. Mint green irises watched as the orange sun started to calmly descent behind tall buildings she couldn't see past; only the small cracks in between where the bright rays leaked through.

A soft, defeated sigh from bedside her hospital bed followed by the clicks of one's heels as the other moved around told Zero Two she'd won her childish quiet treatment.

The harsh rush of water colliding with metal was heard from afar, her ears listening to Kyou wash her hands before she walked back to her to fiddle with her IV solution bag. Zero Two didn't have to look over to know that she was simply swapping the fluids with another fill.

"I understand your circumstance, but it's important that you eat three sufficient meals a day with plenty of nutrients."

Blah, blah.

Zero Two couldn't feel the need to listen to the rest, partially drowning out the woman with her own thoughts.

"Your father would've-"

Just the mention of him caused her body to stiffen and for her fingers to grasp at the sheet more tightly. Kyou noticed the reaction and with a gentle breath slipping past her lips, the doctor decided not to finish her sentence.

After all, her patient was already reluctant to speak to her. Clearly, this wasn't a place Kyou was meant to touch yet and she didn't want to make matters worse for the young girl.

In the meantime, Zero Two continued to gaze into the scenery just outside the window. The orange hues that painted the sky, blending into the hazes of dark grey and blue created a painting that was nostalgic to her. She wished to be freed from this place someday.

Freedom seemed to be always dancing at the tips of her fingers, but somehow still out of reach. Even when she spent several hours with the rest of the world, the places her chain allowed her to travel by herself to were limited. To think otherwise would be for her to live a lie.

"...That's not the only thing. You're two months behind on your shot. Also, you were in need of an urgent platelet transfusion when you arrived, but that's already been taken care of," Kyou informed her knowingly, not expecting the other to respond to her at this point.

Knowing that she had ears fully capable of listening was enough for her momentarily.

"While your undernourishment is a significant problem, there's a likely chance you're also relapsing, but haven't reported to me about it."

An exasperated sigh left Kyou's lips from the headache this child has given her as of recently. She was losing her patience with her.

"You need to accept that you're different. If you continue to push off your treatment, I know you're aware of what could happen."

Despite her important wake-up call, Zero Two was remaining quiet this whole time. Kyou noticed how her grip on the sheets hadn't lessened a bit though. Perhaps she needed space to process all of this information and decide on what she should do? She could only nudge her patient towards the right path, but unfortunately couldn't force her to take care of herself.

Kyou supposed she'll leave it at that for now.

"...Nutritional supplements are being delivered into your peripheral vein. I'll return in four hours to do a full assessment. Then, we'll discuss your diet plan and counseling for the next several days. You'll stay on intravenous therapy for the next three days until the decitabine is finished filling your body."

She picked up her clipboard from off a nearby counter.

"You'll have to stay under inpatient care temporarily, so we can monitor your progression. Once you've stabilized and met the nutritional requirements, we can release you," Kyou explained to her.

All of that information solidified the metaphorical chain shackled around her ankle.

"...Whatever," Zero Two uttered.

Her life... Was it nothing, but a pointless cycle by this point?

"You'll return to oral feeding tonight since you're awake. Dinner will be served shortly," the doctor informed her patient before the door gently closed behind her.

Zero Two didn't feel in the mood to eat, however.


February 20, 2028

3:20 PM

The sun bore down on an early Friday for Mistilteinn, its ray bleeding past plain colored curtains. Yet she couldn't feel them on her skin. If not for the light irradiating the room, she wouldn't have any concept of what time of the day it was. It was always difficult to keep up with those things when you frequently sat in one place all day.

Her eyes looked over to the untouched food on her left, a bowl sitting atop a silver tray on a hospital nightstand. ...If it could even be called 'food'. It was nothing more than unappetizing looking stew which was meant to be easy for patients to intake.

By now, it would be too cold to consume. However, her appetite never returned to her over the course of the night, so this was not a loss on Zero Two's side. She still did not feel up for food and somehow bottled water tasted a lot plainer here.

Despite Kyou's warnings, simply the thought of digesting something made her want to upchuck the contents in her stomach that weren't there in the first place. There was no point in consuming food that wouldn't stay in, was there?

Her muscles still felt a little sore, but it could've been from the uncomfortable slumber she had overnight. Her own bed at home was a lot comfortable and spacey than this at least.

Maybe it was even because she'd been prodded with tubes all night. In fact, there was still an IV drip going into her vein at this moment. The girl was tempted to pull it out of her arm altogether, but she knew better than to. Once it was out, where would she even go to?

There was never a place for her to go beyond this place. Whether she physically left this hospital or not, Zero Two was always still tied to it by an invisible shackle.

She has to use the restroom now.

With a discomforted groan rising from her throat, Zero Two managed to push the blankets down to her knees before a soft knock came from the other side of her door. The sound didn't halt Zero Two in her actions because she could tell that it was Kyou by the way she gently knocked only two times.

"Ms. Frank? You have a guest here to see you," she politely spoke, but Zero Two didn't think much of it. Most likely, it was Sawako, Mayuki, or Itsuo, she thought.

However, Zero Two wasn't in the mood to speak with anyone. Maybe if she hid out in the restroom long enough then they'll leave her alone-

"Zero Two?"

Her muscles froze and she felt the blood in her suddenly run cold. Instinctively, she pulled the covers back over her body in a hasty way. With the covers pulled back up to her stomach—the sleeves of her gown luckily low enough to cover the purple-like bruises that blemished her arms—she looked over to the unexpected guest in her room.

What the hell was Hiro doing here?

Zero Two wasn't even sure if she should break out into a forced smile, or not. Should she be happy to see him?

"H-Hiro?"

It was unusual for Zero Two to stammer, so she wasn't sure why she was becoming timid all of a sudden. The girl didn't feel as if she had the right to be happy to see him. More than anything though, she was.. shocked. How in the world did Hiro know she was here?

Kyou casually stepped out of the room she and closed the door behind herself to respect their privacy, leaving the two to themselves. Zero Two strongly wished she hadn't however.

She felt fidgety about being with Hiro in this place. He was practically looking straight into the most vulnerable side of her there was. A side she'd done her best until now to keep private from others and more importantly, him.

But Hiro has walked into it without her awareness of the approaching danger and now she was scared relentlessly that he'll learn something he shouldn't.

Even as these tremendous worries filled her head, Zero Two did her best to maintain her placid appearance on the outside as to not give Hiro any reason to think that there was something to hide in the first place.

As Hiro's feet brought him closer to her, her stomach shifted uncomfortably. However, instead of reaching her bedside, he stopped himself right in the middle of the room. She was secretly thankful that Hiro's modesty, or uncertainty to approach her closely, had come in between his goal.

"Zero Two..." Hiro said again upon seeing her a little more close up, his turquoise eyes looking her up and down from where he stood.

Zero Two didn't know what he was looking for, but she self-consciously pulled the sheets to her bed noticeably closer to her stomach. On her heart monitor, the frequency of her heartbeats started to increase and she could only pray Hiro somehow wouldn't notice.

Even if she looked into Hiro's eyes in which he always stored his emotions, Zero Two still couldn't tell what he was thinking right now. The sight of her in this state must be too much of a shock to him and reached the point to where he was speechless.

It was her turn to look him over now, Zero Two noticing that Hiro was still dressed in his school uniform; school bag slung over his right shoulder. Had he come straight here after leaving school?

Something inside her shifted again, but it wasn't from her own unease this time. ...Why was she still the first thing on his mind?

"I was worried when I heard that you were taken to here," He finally spoke up, managing to utter something other than her name. His comment raised a good question however.

"How did you find out I was here?" Zero Two asked, eyebrows slightly knitted together in question.

This fact shouldn't be out there to the public that she was here. Werner had always done his best to keep her identity under wraps, so that her life wasn't any more complicated. As ironic as that mindset was.

They just knew she existed, but didn't have a name or face to go by. It was only a mistake that those at her school knew the relevancy behind her surname. One day, she was seen conversing with Werner by a student and unfortunately, the people there weren't as stupid as they acted.

"Oh. Well... I called you last night because I was worried about you." A light rosiness blossomed on his cheeks in a way that helped Hiro look awkwardly cuter than he already was to Zero Two.

No, no. Out with those thoughts, she-

"I thought something might've happened when you didn't answer the second time, so I kept calling you. It wasn't until the third attempt when someone who wasn't you answered the phone. Then, ..they told me you were emitted to the hospital."

Oh. So, that was how... She closed her eyes and let out a small sigh of relief. When they reopened, Zero Two could tell that the other looked as if he was struggling with something internally.

Then, it came.

"I'm sorry," Hiro apologized seemingly out of nowhere, taking her aback. The two words were rushed and abrupt, as if the boy has been planning to say this since the walk he made over here. Just what was running through his mind?

"What for?" Her right eyebrow quirked up.

"I... I would've come here yesterday! But..." His shoulders slumped and his voice lowered again, "...Visiting hours were already over by the time I learned about your situation."

He failed to include that he only learned this after sprinting all the way over here to see her yesterday, failing to logically think things out at the time. He'd been too concerned for her and hasty to confirm with his own eyes that she was okay. That she was alive.

For the past several weeks, Zero Two has felt an unwavering guilt in her heart and as of now, it was spreading like an infection. As a result, her judgment became even more clouded and she could only see the selfishness of her personal desires.

Hiro was too caring and she didn't deserve him in the slightest. That's what she has always felt and always will. Who the hell did he think he was saying he was the one at fault here?

"It's okay," Zero Two told him, forcibly cracking a warm smile to cover up the negativity in her heart. It really was okay for him... Just not her.

His eyes flickered over to the lone chair that sat against a wall in the center of the room. Then, back to the space between him and her bed as if trying to decide on whether to take the initiative or not.

"...Is it okay if I?" He motioned with his eyes on what he was trying to ask her. A quiet nod from her was all Hiro needed to retrieve the empty chair and pull the seat up beside her bed.

He came close enough so that he could talk face-to-face with Zero Two, but also kept a respectful amount of space between them at the same time. Her coerced smile trembled once Zero Two was then reminded of when he used to sit on that chair. Werner... Her eyes lowered to her covered legs.

She still recalled the memory of waking up to the tired, hardworking man who would sometimes fall asleep in that uncomfortable chair while waiting for her to regain consciousnesses. How he did it, she didn't know, but the effects were dealt with whenever Werner complained about an unusual back ache an hour later.

The last time he annoyed her by chastising her felt like only yesterday. What she wouldn't give to return to those days. Maybe a second time around she'd do her best to show her gratitude towards the person who'd raised her. Next time, Zero Two would actually listen to his instructions and advice.

Hiro misinterpreted the other's sudden silence as her purposely ignoring him however, and that made him feel unwanted. Not to mention that this was an environment he hasn't been a part of in thirteen years. Only now he was here for Zero Two instead of his long-gone parents.

"Zero Two. I brought something for you," Hiro told her in hopes of breaking the tension between them, so he's happy when it brought her attention back to him, eyes curiously looking at his hands for the gift that he had yet to retrieve.

It caused him to smile warmly. She's so pure...

"Hm? Well, where is it?" she asked, looking past his shoulder now as if it would honestly be there. It evoked a small chuckle from him and a deeper confused expression from her.

Now Hiro can only hope that it isn't a disappointment when he pulled out her red scarf from his bag, washed with a fresh lavender scent to it—thankfully because of Kokoro doing the laundry that day—but noticeably with a couple of loose strings that was already this way when it was given to him. When he noticed them one night, he wondered why she's yet to buy a new one?

"Kokoro washed it for me... I mean for you," Hiro told her as he gently placed the accessory down on her lap since her hands weren't free from underneath the sheets. "Sorry that I'm returning it so late. I kept missing my opportunities because I kept getting distracted."

Looking down at her prized possession brought more of a genuine smile to her face. It erased the need for her to toughen through everything if only for a moment. The scarf was beginning to look worn out again, which meant it was in need of her handiwork but other than that, it looked the same as always.

Zero Two was never worried about her item in the first place however since she knew it laid in very great hands. Better hands than her own, she'd say. "...Thank you," she said lowly, a certain kind of gentleness taking her tone that Hiro has never heard before.

If he'd known she loved the scarf this much, Hiro would've forced himself to return it to her a lot sooner despite what she said.

A silence hushed through the room. The two then felt antsy over similar and dissimilar reasons unbeknownst to each other. Then, they both simultaneously find the courage to speak up.

"...Hiro-"

"...Zero Two-"

Unintentionally, they speak on top of each other and pause exactly around the same time to allow the other to finish speaking first. Inevitably, that didn't happen with either of them who remained there, silent and staring into each other's bewildered eyes.

Both of them are unsure if they should continue because they wanted to hear what the other had to say more than they wanted to get their own thoughts out.

This is silly.

Somewhere amongst the awkward silence, Hiro managed to get the first word in. "How do you feel?"

She had many responses to that question; descriptions that would go on for eternity if both of them truly had the time for it all. They didn't however, so there was only one way Zero Two could put it simply.

"I feel like I'm suffocating in here," the girl answered him, not hiding a thread of her true disdain for her situation. Hearing her answer then led Hiro to his next question.

"...Can I ask what happened?" The nervousness in his tone had come down a notch, reflecting the more serious side of Hiro as he calmly tried to get some more background from the situation in front of him.

The boy was trying to be cautious and considerate enough to respect Zero Two's privacy at the same time as he was trying to learn things about her. To reach her heart if she needed a hand.

As for Zero Two...

There it was. She felt her heart tighten in her chest and scamper into a small panic, but Zero Two made certain not to show this whirlwind of emotions on the outside. The heart monitor had only increased a tad, but when Hiro's eyes still shifted to the machine, Zero Two felt as if she needed to quickly say something to ease his suspicion.

"It's nothing worth fussing over. I just caught a fever a few days ago. It seems that there's still one spreading around from last season," she lied expertly to him, having been in this position to times and times before.

So, it was to the point that lying was so natural to Zero Two that it looked believable to those who did not truly know her. ...And she was an awful person for it.

She hated lying to Hiro, but it was better than having to hurt him by telling the boy the cold hard truth he wasn't ready for. She wasn't ready for that reveal either. As long as she was alive however, Zero Two would make sure that discussion never took place.

By that point, if her plan went properly, they should no longer be associated with one another. Thankfully, Hiro seemed to believe her lie judging by his processing nod.

When his eyes lowered to her bed to stare at nothing in particular, Zero Two noticed a sad glint in them. "I should've walked you home, Zero Two... If I had then—"

There he went again blaming himself, but why? It frustrated her every time he did this.

"What would that have done? You can't prevent the things that go wrong with me," she solemnly told him with the voice of someone who's long accepted this fact.

His lips parted in what seemed like it would've been a protest, but then his mouth slowly closed and his shoulders slumped. The defeated look on Hiro's face, as well as his silence, showed her that he knew she was correct too.

There's only so much a person can do in a situation that's beyond their control. Zero Two knows that the hard way. There was a couple of more silent seconds—in which the duo took the time to think to themselves—before Hiro's next question eventually came.

"How long will you be here then?" At least that was one question she didn't have to lie about.

"Until Monday. They need to make sure I recover properly before they can release me."

Of course, Zero Two never asked this in the first place because she already knew the usual duration for her inpatient care.

Despite the short length she offered, the creases around his lips deepened as his frown had. This made the girl feel a lot guiltier about putting that look there in the first place.

Even when she tried to cover up the severity of her situation, he still looked so sad. Unable to bear it, Zero Two had to look away from him.

"...I see. I hope you recover quickly then, I'll try to visit you every day. Eating usually helps us humans recover faster! So, make sure to, okay?"

The sadness in Hiro's eyes took a turn, replacing itself with something that looked awfully similar to hope. Was he trying to be positive for her sake, or his own? Zero Two didn't know how one could pick themselves up from a low point so quickly, but it was truly admirable how Hiro always looked for the good in every situation.

An amused smirk tugged at her lips now. "Are you my mother?" With her eyes now on Hiro, she had a great view of the rosiness that came faintly on his cheeks.

"Huh? W-Well, no! It's not like the, I just..."

"Alright," Zero Two interjected before he could continue to ramble. Her answer must've satisfied him too because everything in Hiro relaxed at that moment.

Ah, but she couldn't suppress the need to tease him!

"I didn't realize you were a certified doctor, but I suppose I can do that." A small and happy hum followed that the girl didn't realize she was even doing. Hiro always had a spell over her that she was subconscious to at times.

"I mean... I'm not trying to nag you or anything, Zero Two."

Ah, there he went sounding so serious again. She might be quite somber in her own head, but the emotion didn't look nor sound good on Hiro. He was supposed to be happy.

"I know, Da- Hiro."

His turquoise eyes looked at her with a newfound attentiveness. She swallowed thickly.

"You're trying to tell me to take care of myself, right? I've gotcha," she softly reassured him, a pure and genuine smile breaking onto her face for the second time that day.

Before the moment could last any longer between the pair, a lenient knock from the other side of the door was abrupt Zero Two's wakeup call.

"It's Doctor Kyou. I'm here to check your vitals."

And to reality she returned.

Kyou walked in on her own without her response needed because it was her job. Knocking beforehand was only common courtesy. Zero Two didn't want Hiro to be around when the rest of this situation carried out. So, the time to send him off would be now.

The girl looked over to him with resolve. "Hiro... I'll be okay from here on out. You should go home before it gets too late."

She can tell that he wanted to say more when his mouth formed into a small "o", but the protest died on his tongue before it could be heard, shoulders sinking and eyes dropping to the floor significantly.

Hiro then made a small and final reluctant nod. As good as he was at worrying about others, he was fortunately just as good at listening to them.

"You're right," Hiro responded as he stood up from his seat, returning it back to its original place in the room. "I'll try to see you tomorrow then, Zero Two."

He offered her a friendly smile as he said that, Zero Two completely unaware that he was only returning the one subconsciously sitting on her face.

When she watched Hiro's back retreat behind the door which eventually came to a close, Zero Two let out the largest sigh of relief.

That encounter caused her to feel too many things at once much to her own displeasure. Zero Two was now left to rethink over the much too close encounter she had with the boy.

"Your heartbeat has increased slightly, but it's not alarming. In fact, it's a great sign that you're healthy," Kyou informed her while she prepared a sanitized needle between her elastic, gloved hands that Zero Two already knew what it would be used for.

"Did that last guest make your heart race?" With crinkled eyes, the woman teased her with a knowing smile annoyingly sitting on her face.

Except there was nothing to know in this case, so Zero Two merely brushed her comment off with an exaggerated eye-roll. Mature laughter only followed her response.

"This will pinch," Kyou warned her before holding her arm with one hand and injecting the needle into her vein with the second.

She didn't need to be warned this since the initial pinch of a needle didn't hurt her skin, but perhaps Kyou never broke out of the habit since she used to handle small children before changing courses.

As the needle withdrew blood from her vein and filled its vial, her chartreuse eyes sought something else to focus her attention on in the room. They landed on the small and white, nicely shaped vase on top of the nightstand in between her bed and the next patient over. It housed a beautiful lavender hyacinth that added some life to the dull hospital room.

She noticed that there were parts of the flower where the sunlight unfortunately did not hit the petals yet it still thrived on its own. Just as Zero Two was beginning to think that the lone hyacinth was an oddly comforting sight, a single petal wilted and gently glided side to side until it fell limp onto the table.

Zero Two averted her eyes once she felt the needle leave her arm.


God, I know that this chapter took me a lot longer than usual. I got occupied with other things which slowed me down, but here it is alas!

Allow me to make a quick note that I've decided that Werner is not short and stubby in this story even at his old age. He's the same height he'd been as a young adult; just with grey/white hair like we've seen. So, that hug scene wasn't that awkward.

...So, this chapter revealed a lot and I'm not even near done with revealing stuff within this story. This is what I've been planning since the very beginning and if you caught the hint I placed in chapter two, then good job. I didn't want this story to follow the exact same path as the original. That's why I gave Zero Two an issue with her biology and her own existence through a more modern way. I wanted to make this story more unique and reflective to real life.

I researched heavily for this chapter. I'm not medical profession, so it's possible that I could've made some mistakes, but all of my references came straight from reliable sources. Therefore, I hope the things I put down made sense to you guys despite my concerns.

If you have questions that I wasn't too clear on, feel free to ask? Hopefully, the next update won't be too far away. Thank you for reading.

EDIT: I've redone Kyou's diagnosis to make it more medically accurate and detailed now that I'm more educated.

- Michie