Yesu opened her eyes slowly.
White ceiling, soft beeping nearby, the sll of disinfectant she didn't like.
'Definitely hospital.' she thought.
She stared upward for a few seconds before shifting slightly beneath the hospital sheets. A dull ache spread through her body imdiately.
Bandages were wrapped around the side of her head. Her left leg was elevated slightly, secured in a cast.
"…Hm."
Not dead then.
The room door opened quietly.
A nurse stepped in holding a clipboard, eyes lowered as she checked the chart in her hand.
Then she froze.
"You're awake?"
Yesu looked at her. "Looks like it."
The nurse blinked rapidly before hurrying closer. "Can you hear clearly? Are you dizzy? Any nausea?"
"Yes."
The nurse frowned. "Yes, to which one?"
Yesu tapped her ear.
That clearly wasn't helpful.
The nurse quickly checked the monitor beside the bed, visibly unsettled by how alert Yesu already seed.
"How long was I unconscious?" Yesu asked.
"Two days."
Yesu nodded slightly.
The nurse hesitated before asking carefully, "How are you feeling?"
Yesu didn't answer.
A strange silence settled.
"I… I'll get to the doctor." the nurse said finally before leaving the room almost too quickly.
Yesu looked around instead.
Flowers sat near the bedside table beside a bar of chocolate and a folded card.
She picked up the card slowly. The handwriting was ssy.
Get well soon, zombie.
Millie.
Yesu stared at it for a mont.
Then the door opened again slightly.
Trystia peeked into the room.
Her eyes widened imdiately. "You're up."
"Hey."
Trystia entered slowly, one hand wrapped in a cast while faint cuts still marked parts of her face.
"I kept coming every few hours," she admitted quietly. "They kept saying you might not wake up."
Yesu looked at her. "But I did."
Trystia laughed weakly at that. Then her expression softened. "Thank you… for saving ."
Yesu didn't know what to say to that.
"I'm being discharged today," Trystia continued. "My family wants ho for a while."
A brief silence followed.
"I hope we et again," she said.
The doctor entered with the nurse before Yesu could reply.
Trystia gave one last small smile before leaving the room quietly.
The doctor imdiately moved toward Yesu's bedside, flipping through her file.
"Vitals stable," he murmured. "Heart rate normal… unbelievable."
He looked at Yesu directly. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine."
"That's not what I asked."
Yesu looked away.
The doctor remained firm. "Miss Kaelitha. How are you feeling?"
Silence.
Then Yesu answered flatly. "I feel nothing, doctor."
The doctor and nurse exchanged a glance. Neither of them knew what to say.
***
Three CCD officers entered the hospital lobby in formation, led by MacKayden with Cee Cee just behind him.
Conversations lowered imdiately.
Patients, nurses and visitors watched quietly as they passed.
***
The doctor sat alone in his office, Yesu's file spread open before him.
Fractured skull. Internal bleeding. Multiple broken bones. And bone displacent correction during surgery.
He stared again at the scan comparison laid beside the report.
The arm had partially realigned itself before stabilization.
That was impossible.
A knock ca at the door before MacKayden entered without waiting.
The doctor looked up. "Officer?"
MacKayden placed an official docunt on the table.
"Yesuin Kaelitha is being discharged into CCD custody effective imdiately.
The doctor frowned. "She should still be under observation."
"Trust ," MacKayden said evenly. "She will be."
***
Yesu was halfway through the chocolate bar when the door opened again.
Millie stepped in carrying a small paper bag.
Her eyes widened imdiately. "You're awake?"
"Yeah"
"And eating?"
Millie stared at her for a second before walking over quickly. "You fell from the third floor."
Yesu stopped like she just realized. "Right."
"You make surviving things look annoying."
"Probably."
Millie sat beside the bed heavily. "How are you?"
"I'm fine.
"You don't look fine."
"I know."
Millie groaned. "Can you stop answering like a malfunctioning machine for once?"
"Yes."
That almost earned a laugh. Almost.
Then Millie's expression hardened suddenly. "Why did you jump after her?"
Yesu paused mid-bite.
"I don't know," she admitted. "I just knew I couldn't let Trystia die."
"And that was enough reason to throw yourself off a building?"
"I guess."
Millie looked down, wiping quickly at her eyes before the tears could fully fall
"You idiot."
Yesu quietly finished the chocolate.
Millie took a slow breath before speaking again. "The CCD's been asking about you."
That made Yesu look at her.
"I have a bad feeling," Millie admitted softly. "Like… really bad."
She reached into her pocket and pressed sothing into Yesu's hand.
A small card.
"I found it in your backpack," Millie said. "I think you're going to need it soon."
Yesu glanced at the card.
The room door slid open before she could speak
MacKayden stood there with Cee Cee and another officer behind him.
Millie imdiately went pale
Cee Cee spoke first. "Please excuse us."
Millie looked at Yesu one last ti, painfully. Then stood and left without another word.
Silence filled the room afterward.
Yesu looked between the officers. "What's going on?"
"You're being moved," MacKayden replied.
"Where? For what?"
"For testing."
Yesu frowned slightly and stood from the bed, cast and all.
Without strain.
Cee Cee visibly stiffened. The other officer stared.
"Why?" Yesu asked.
MacKayden didn't react. "Because of that," he said simply.
Yesu looked down briefly at her own body. "Can I refuse?"
"No," MacKayden answered.
"If you resist," Cee Cee added carefully, "we'll have to use force."
A brief silence followed.
"When will I be returned?"
Nobody answered.
Yesu looked at them for another second.
"Can I make a call first? I should probably tell my employer I might not be around for a while."
MacKayden stared at her hard.
***
Yesu stood next to a telephone on the hospital wall. The CCD officers watched from a distance.
She looked at the card in her hand, which Millie had given to her.
Ms. Vance's contact. She had never thought she would need it.
She dialed the number.
***
Rain tapped softly against the vehicle windows.
Yesu sat in the backseat beside Cee Cee, staring outside.
"Why does it keep raining all the ti?" Cee Cee said, mildly irritated.
"Where exactly are you taking ?" Yesu asked. "I have a right to know."
MacKayden kept his eyes on the road. "What happened during the fire three years ago?"
Yesu shrugged lightly. "I don't know. I just rember waking up afterward."
"You were the only survivor."
"I noticed."
MacKayden glanced at her through the mirror. "How long have you known you were like this?"
Yesu frowned slightly. "Like what?"
"Not a Zero."
She went quiet for a mont, then noticed they were leaving the district.
"Where are we going?"
MacKayden faced forward. "The Assessnt Facility."
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