> Back then, I was just a child. A little girl with bright eyes and brighter dreams. But dreams don't survive fire. Not when they burn along with the ones you love.
---
[7 Years Ago – The Underground Laboratory | Age 9]
Drip. Drip.
The cold, metallic room echoed with the sound of leaking pipes. Joon Taerim's tiny fingers trembled against the restraints. Her breath came in shallow, frightened puffs. She could barely move. The lights flickered above her as footsteps approached—heels clicking sharply against steel.
"Subject 021, heart rate stable. Begin stage 3 of Light Infusion," said Professor Baek Minsun, her voice devoid of empathy.
Taerim flinched as the syringes pierced her skin again. White-hot pain rushed through her veins. Her vision blurred. She screamed—but the sound was eaten by the soundproof walls. Her brothers weren't here anymore. Neither were her friends.
"Please... stop..." she whimpered, tears sliding down her cheeks.
The scientists didn't flinch. One of them—Dr. Seo Kyungjoon, the youngest but the coldest—merely noted her response.
"She's adapting too fast. Her emotional surge is destabilizing the serum. If this continues—"
Suddenly, the machines sparked. The lights surged. An unnatural glow burst from Taerim's body.
CRACK!
The containment glass shattered.
"No! Her power is reacting to her emotions!"
"I told you it was too soon!"
Alarms screamed. Red lights blared.
"Evacuate now!"
Taerim's body hovered, her eyes glowing white. Screams and explosions erupted around her. But all she could do was cry.
"Hyung... unnie... please... I didn't mean to..."
And then—
BOOM!
The lab went up in flames.
---
[Present Day – Hanseong Academy | Age 16]
Birds chirped cheerfully under the soft morning sun. The bell of Hanseong Academy rang in the distance, signaling the start of classes.
"Taerim-ssi! Wait up!"
Joon Taerim turned around with her trademark gentle smile. Her long dark hair shimmered under the sunlight. Her school uniform was neat, her steps light. But beneath her calm eyes was a silent storm.
"Good morning, Gyeongho," she greeted softly.
Im Gyeongho, one of her closest friends, grinned and ran up beside her. "You're early again. Did you patrol the grounds already?"
Taerim nodded. "There were some mana traces by the back forest. I erased them. Don't worry."
"Jinjja, you're like our guardian angel. Do you even sleep?"
"I do. Sometimes," she laughed quietly.
Inside, her heart whispered: 'Liar.'
Ever since the fire 7 years ago, Taerim rarely slept through the night. The dreams always came—memories soaked in blood, screams, and fire. Faces blurred by time but burned into her soul.
She believed they all died—Juwon, Siyoon, Joonbyul, Joonseok, Joonhyuk, Yulseung, Harin, Hajoon—all gone. Because of her.
Because she lost control.
She clutched her locket, the only thing that survived the fire. Inside, a photo: all of them smiling together.
"I'll protect this place," she whispered to herself. "So no one else has to feel what I did."
---
[Later That Day – Class 2-A]
"Class, we have new transfer students today," the teacher announced. "Come in and introduce yourselves."
Taerim didn't look up at first. She was doodling quietly—a feathered wing scorched by fire.
But then she heard it.
A voice.
Familiar.
"Annyeonghaseyo. I'm Kang Juwon."
Crash. Her pencil fell from her hand.
The boy had dark eyes, sharp jawline, and a lazy smirk. Something in his tone—it twisted her chest painfully.
"I'm Han Siyoon."
The next student was colder, more stoic. But his gaze swept the room like he was searching for something.
Taerim's breath hitched.
Two girls followed—twins. The older one had pale blue eyes and a fierce look. The younger had soft eyes but a mischievous grin.
"I'm Ryu Harin."
"And I'm Ryu Hajoon."
Then the last boy entered, spinning a pen between his fingers.
"Yo. Kim Yulseung, reporting in."
Taerim gripped her desk.
Her head pounded.
No. No. They're dead. I saw the lab burn. I heard them scream. I buried them in my dreams.
But then she caught Juwon staring at her.
Straight at her.
And he smiled.
"Yo... Commander," he whispered so low only she heard.
Her heart stopped.
---
[Background sounds: faint static, heartbeat racing, breath shallow]
Flash.
Juwon reaching for her hand in the fire.
Flash.
Siyoon screaming her name.
Flash.
Yulseung calling her "Boss Lady" with a grin.
---
"Taerim-ah?"
She jerked her head up. Her eyes were wide. Tears pooled in them.
The teacher frowned. "Are you alright?"
She forced a smile. "Nae, sorry."
But she couldn't stop her fingers from trembling.
---
[After School – Rooftop]
The wind was gentle. The sky turned soft pink.
Taerim stood alone, gripping the railing.
"I'm hallucinating," she muttered.
She closed her eyes, trying to breathe.
"You're not," came a voice behind her.
She turned. Slowly.
Kang Juwon leaned against the doorframe.
"You're alive," she whispered. "You're all alive...?"
He nodded. "And we've been looking for you."
Her knees gave out.
But he caught her before she fell.
"Don't cry," he said, brushing her bangs away.
She sobbed into his shoulder.
"I killed you... I thought I—"
"No. You saved us," he said firmly. "You gave us a chance to escape. We never blamed you."
"But I lost control. I destroyed everything!"
"You were a child," he said, his voice soft. "You were forced into something none of us should've faced. We survived because of you."
She shook her head.
Then someone else stepped out.
"Still as dramatic as always, huh, Squirrel?"
Joonseok.
Then two more followed.
"Missed me, Commander?" Joonbyul smirked.
"Can I hug you now or what?" Joonhyuk opened his arms.
The moment she saw all three of them—her brothers—Taerim screamed.
Then collapsed.
---
[Inside the Infirmary – Later]
"She passed out. Overwhelmed," said the nurse. "Her mind's been under extreme emotional suppression. This kind of shock... it unlocked too many memories at once."
"She was always trying to carry everything," Juwon muttered, brushing a hair from her cheek. "Even back then."
"Will she be okay?" Harin asked quietly.
"She just needs time," Siyoon said.
The group stood around her bed silently. The room was filled with tension—and grief.
Taerim stirred.
Her eyes fluttered open.
"...You're here," she mumbled.
All of them smiled.
"We are."
---