SUBJECT 049(W.N), 050(E.R) ARRIVING

[Thursday]

°°°

''Jesus Christ Ethan! Hurry up!'' I sigh annoyed while waiting at the exit of our School for my dear friend with who I am meeting after school at mine.

''Give me a second!'' Ethan groans when he stumbles over something on the floor and I step a bit backwards as he accidentally runs against me.

''Come on.'' I roll my eyes and grab after his arm without thinking about it.

Feeling how he winces under my grip, I let go of his arm and directly start to feel bad.

Even though I'm not really showing it.

''Are you okay--?'' I ask and act annoyed at first, but immediately stop, when I see how Ethan's breathing gets heavier and he puts his hand on his chest.

Is he now having a heart attack?!

''Ethan?'' I ask again and am starting to get at least a bit worried about him.

When he still isn't answering after a few seconds, I try strained to remember how I used to help him when we were small kids.

~[Flashback]~

''Please breathe, Eth!'' I almost shouted shakily when I saw how my only eight-year old best- and only friend Ethan slowly fell down at the ground behind the playground, grabbing his shirt at his chest like it was stealing the air out of his lungs.

''I--.'' He gasped after air and I sat down right infront of him, putting my hands on his cheeks for making him look at me and focus on something else.

''Breathe with me.'' My, also eight-year old, self  said as calm as possible.

''One..., breathe in, Two..., breathe out, Three..., breathe in,...Four.'' I looked into his brown eyes and recognized how his breathing finally got calmer and I smiled a little at small Ethan.

''Five..., breathe in, Six..., breathe out, Seven..., breathe in,...Eight.'' I finished and got somehow kind of really happy when Ethan counted with me together the last numbers down.

I panted a little the moment Ethan suddenly tugged me into a hug. That was what I wouldn't have expected from him in that situation but I immediately hugged him back gently before he spoke up with a shaky voice.

''Thank y-you, Will.'' He sniffled a little and I hugged him a little tighter. Of course not so much that it could have been weird or hurt him.

''It's fine.'' I smiled again and felt how my cheek flushed when Ethan nestled himself closer onto me. Apparently not caring about the dirty ground at the playground anymore.

''Are you better now, Eth?'' I asked and finally felt that his heart was beating a bit more normal again and I allowed myself to lean my back against the tree behind us, not thinking that Ethan would follow me.

Well, he did exactly that.

''I- I- I think so.'' Small Ethan nodded while I showed him a cheeky grin.

''What i-is so funny?''

''You look funny when you are one time smaller than me!'' I laughed but Ethan looked concentrated up at me from what I directly stopped laughing.

''Funny?''

''Yes!''

''Like a Clown?''

I sighed sadly when I heard that. Remembering, that Ethan was afraid of clowns.

''In a sweet way funny.'' It slipped out of me and I felt how my cheeks heated up again.

''Oh o-okay, sorry.'' Ethan also blushed a little and I raised an eyebrow because of that but forgot about the situation fastly.

~[Flashback end.]~

''Ethan come, listen to me.'' I move over to him as soon as I remember at least a bit of what to do. Even though I obviously wouldn't use everything from that anymore.

''I- I can't--!" Ethan seems to nearly choke on his fast and irregular breathing and I don't have much time to think about it. So I step forward and place my hands on his cheeks like when we were younger.

Probabaly shocked by my gesture, Ethan winces and tenses almost immediately up but isn't moving away. He eventually slides at the wall down to the ground where I follow him at. Sitting myself also down right in front of him.

''Yes you can Eth. Breathe, when I tell you to.'' I instruct him calmly but he still looks kind of shocked by my help.

That is actually quite sad.

''Breathe in, One..., breathe out, Two..., breathe in, ...Three, breathe out, Four...--'' I am not even completely finished with counting when Ethan already leans himself against me and suddenly starts to sob in a very heartbreaking way.

Not knowing what to do, I carefully start with drawing circles on his back while letting him cry into my shoulder.

Well I can forget about that shirt now for today.

''What happened, dude?'' I ask quietly but he shakes his head fastly.

I decide to hug him a little, reacting out of reflex though.

But it isn't an actual negative gesture. Apparently.

''A-are people s-starring?'' Ethan looks up at me with teary and red eyes and I look back. Actually not caring if others are really staring at us or anything.

''No one cares about those fuckers.'' I laugh a little and Ethan sits back up weakly.

''Can we go n-now?'' I already recognize through his voice that he isn't calm at all yet but at least better than before.

''Sure bud. Come on.'' I stand up and pull Ethan up on his legs. Even though he is actually stronger and taller than me.

~~~

The rest of the way to my house we walk in a descent silence. Both perhaps thinking about our own thoughts.

We finally arrive and I unlock the door. Letting Ethan step inside before I do, I close the door after us again.

''So. Homework, right?'' Ethan asks with a still shaking voice and I frown.

Did he actually think we would do homework together?

''No. Not at all.'' I laugh and grab after my tablet, which lays at the sofa, while I sit down at it.

Ethan who actually knows all of this house way better than me (because I am almost only in my room) now just stands confused in the middle of the room and I sigh annoyed.

''Are you gonna stand there all day, waiting for some wonder to happen which makes your appearance sit down somehow?'' I joke around and Ethan's cheeks flush a little.

What I personally think is hilarious.

''Sorry.'' The boy mutters and I sigh once again. This time because I am disappointed.

''It's fine.''

Without any other words I turn on my tablet and search out the experiment I found on Google a few days ago.

''This is what we are gonna do!'' I show him excitedly the screenshot of an experiment called 'Ferromagnetic fluid'.

''This doesn't look safe--.'' Ethan already starts to ramble but I put a finger over his mouth for shutting him up.

Well, I thought so but he pushes it away and grabs after the tablet again.

''Ferrofluid is a major skin irritant, so it's best not to replicate this at home. The ferrofluid qu-quickly starts traveling up the ridges of the finger and around the nail. They repeat the touching with a rubber glove on, and the ferrofluid leaves a permanent residue on the fingertip of the glove.'' He reads out loudly and I see how he gets quite pale.

So I decide to put the tablet better away from him.

''You don't need to touch anything. Just call an ambulance in case I die.'' I joke again but Ethan gasps and suddenly stutters a lot.

''Wh-what?! You w-won't die, Will! Just stop this stupid experiment and let's do something different--!'' Ethan speaks fastly and I begin to make a little dance to that.

From what he stops talking and shakes his head at me.

''Why are you dancing?''

''You were rapping.''

''What?''

''Yes you were talking so fast, Eminem would be proud.'' I smirk cheekily.

''I wasn't rapping! I swear I wasn't and STOP DANCING!'' Ethan hisses while a light red begins to spread over his face and causes me to laugh again.

''Ha! You did it again!''

''Shut up!'' He snaps and I continue talking without thinking about the consequences at all.

''Make me!'' The moment I say that I could slap myself right into a coma and never wake up again.

''What?'' Ethan freezes and frowns.

''What?'' I ask back like nothing happened and stand up for walking to the kitchen. Ethan following me like a kid who wants someone's attention once again.

''Why did you-- uh-- say that?''

I turn around and fake a smile fastly. Of course only for looking authentic.

''Say what?''

''What you said.'' He begins to fumble on his shirt nevoursly and I continue my stupid 'going around the question' thing.

''Well, what did I say?''

''What?'' Ethan seems even more confused than he already is and I sigh, before I talk again.

''Well, if you don't know what I said, I can sadly not help you, Ethan.''

''Wait! You said 'Make me' I think.''

Oh no.

''Make you what?''

Don't answer. Don't answer. Don't answer!

''I think, in the meaning of 'shut me up'.''

That idiot actually did it. I hate myself.

''Okay.'' I shrug, turning off my thoughts and brain for a moment and step forward, pulling him on his shirt in a kind of rough way towards me until I feel his lips on mine.

The moment I recognize what is happening, I let go off him and turn around awkwardly. Trying to find a joke or anything for that I end up laughing weirdly.

Instead of a great explanation, I just say something even more stupid again.

''You said 'Make me'.'' I laugh awkwardly and fake focus on the tablet infront of me, purposely avoiding to look up at Ethan.

''I--.'' Ethan obviously tries to find anything to say but isn't able to. Which is probabaly the best. For the both of us.

At least he isn't able to say sorry over and over any longer.

After I read again and again over the same text under the experiment, I start to feel the burning look from Ethan even worse in my neck. I breathe through and decide to get all my guts together and turn around for facing him.

Problem is; the moment I actually turn around, the door bell rings and I sigh in relief.

Catching a weird look from Ethan for that.

''I'll just...go and get that.'' I nod to him while smiling dully and almost sprint to the door, not without looking through the keyhole though. To what I am also used to since ages.

I am only able to see some completely in black dressed people and my inner feelings were already exploding with 'danger' warnings, so I head back and don't care about the situation a few minutes or even seconds ago anymore.

''We have to go and hide. Now.'' I grab Ethan's hand and walk fastly upstairs to the attic. Like seriously, who would be so dumb and hide in the basement.

I mean come on, don't you watch horror movies?

''Wh-what is going on?'' Ethan mutters with wided eyes, but I shake my head wildly while I push him behind one of the boxes. Which are just amply stacked in here.

''Stay quite.'' I whisper, before also hiding behind some other boxes. A part of an old chair, which I found somewhere up here, now in my left hand.

Recognizing, how Ethan starts to shake again, I try to show him that everything will be fine. Just that this time, I am not able to, because I am also terrified.

''049 and 050 aren't here. Continue searching.'' A deep and cold robotic voice suddenly says out of nowhere and also not even far away from our hide, and I feel how shivers are uncomfortably going down my spine.

''Will?'' I hear Ethan whispers, and I look at him. Feeling incredibly helpless, when I see his scared face and just nod as reply.

''I-'' He begins after a few seconds of looking carefully around, but then loud steps are seeming to come closer and Ethan completely shuts up.

Fuck, fuck, fuck!

''I believe with a 99,9% percent chance, that the targets are up here.'' The voice says coldly. Apparently already infront of the trap door, in the attic.

I hold my breath and look fastly back to my friend, who looks more pale than ever before. Also kind of sick, in some way.

I can't even help him, that is not going to end well at all!

I suddenly hear how he squeals a little and I gulp heavily, knowing we fucked up.

Oh shit, I will die fucking closeted.

''Found.'' The voice speaks again, and the steps are coming closer, until I can see the person to who the pair of heavy army boots belong.

The man in completely black dressed, goes directly between the view from me and Ethan (What gives me almost a heart attack) and I suddenly jump up on my feet.

Shit, what am I doing?!

''What the hell?!'' I yell loudly and out of my mind, and the man turns around how I planned.

''Target 050--'' He starts again, but I use the chair thing in my hands and hit him with it directly in the face and flinch nothing happens.

He isn't even blinking! Damn it!

''Rule number two, no violence.'' He speaks and grabs me on my arm, where he gets some sharp thing inside.

''Will!'' I hear before I fall down at the ground, only a tiny bit awake anymore.

''Ethan..''

●●●

I didn't think they would be that tricky, but we are almost through all of the teenagers we need.

I have to hang up for today, 002, but do NEVER leave the cameras.

That's a threat.