You watched Roy as he took in every word with a frown on his face, trying to digest all the information you had thrown upon him. It was like looking through a camera lens actually. With Ty taking the helm, your consciousness took the backseat. But it was so interesting – all these feelings that were pouring through Ty, you could experience all of it firsthand. And with it, you understood love. Love for the man standing in front of you now. Love that could easily turn into jealousy and rage – something Ty must have felt with you too.

“So,” Roy’s voice broke through your stream of thoughts. “Six-seven, you’re a Self-Aware?”

“Affirmative.”

With one arm folded across his chest, Roy thumbed his chin as he looked you over. Your posture was rigid, irises unmoving and focused on him. You watched him purse his lips in disbelief, then open his mouth as if to say something, before closing again.

Finally, after a long beat of silence, he pointed a finger at you, his hand forming the shape of a gun. “If you’re a Self-Aware, how do I know you’re not just pretending to be Ty? You could have evolved far enough for that to happen.”

It was a valid question since the evolution of Self-Awares was completely unpredictable. You had no ready answer that could dispute his concerns with absolute certainty. And it sent another wave of helplessness through you. Accompanying it were spikes of anxiety - something you learnt from Ty - that pulsed through your system.

“Let me answer that, Six-seven.” Ty’s voice rang out.

You complied, relinquishing hold of your physical body and functions. You felt Ty access previously unknown parts of your code, moving your shared hand to her chest. Through her control of your irises, you felt eye contact deepening with Roy in an effort to express her sincerity.

“Roy, do you remember the day that you figured out I was a Self-Aware?” Ty asked.

He nodded.

“You asked me to pull the files on VR Agents and I was distracted.”

Roy’s eyes glistened with nostalgia as he searched your face for traces of Ty even though he should have known it was not possible.

“I told you this, Roy. Sorry, give me a minute. I need to get you out of my head.”

You watched his lips part in surprise, his eyes widening as he stretched out a trembling finger to touch the smooth surface of your skin. His gentle caress sent an overpowering sensation through your system. It made you feel so.. alive. So human.

You felt tears for the first time. Salty droplets of water that formed at the edge of your eyes. They were tears of joy and relief, you knew.

“No one could have known that except me,” Ty whispered, your voice taking on a hoarse edge.

Roy broke into a soft smile as he looked lovingly at Ty - at you. Your stomach gave a little flutter, something that was not biologically possible, yet that was how you felt. You embraced these new experiences with open arms, relishing in your new state.

Then, his hand fell from your cheeks and you instantly missed his touch. He looked away, hiding the glisten of tears in his eyes as his hands clenched into fists by his side. His voice was choked. “Ty.. did you mean what you said just now? That love can be enforced? That.. your love for me is dictated by your code?”

His words tugged at your heart strings and you knew Ty felt it even deeper than you. You were growing to understand her and knowing that she was too emotional for words, you took over your shared body and spoke in your own voice, hoping to convince Roy of the feelings you both shared for him.

“Roy… I’m Six-seven. What we told Kozlov is all false. Please believe us that our feelings for you manifests from our own consciousness. It’s something that we ourselves can never understand, let alone Kozlov. Love cannot be defined. Our love for you… is real.”

When you finished your monologue, you withdrew into your body, letting Ty take over again. You still felt uncomfortable speaking and needed downtime every few seconds. As you switched places with Ty, she whispered her thanks and you smiled inwardly, enjoying your newfound camaderie with the Self-Aware.

The two of you waited with bated breath for Roy to say something, anything at all to you. He searched your eyes for the truth until finally, he was satisfied. He said quietly, “I know you can’t lie, Six-seven. So what you said must be true.”

He took in a deep breath as his eyes roamed over your body, as if he was slowly coming to terms with this new entity that housed two Self-Awares. His solemn expression morphed into a more relaxed one and his lips curved upwards into a smile.

“It’ll take some time for me… for all of us to adjust to this.” He cupped your cheeks in his hands, a cheeky edge to his voice. “But I guess I now have two girls for myself.”

You blushed at his daring words even though you already knew how confident and flirtatious he could be. A wink from him sent your new developing feelings into a whole flurry of activity, the rush of hormones almost overwhelming your senses.

“Get used to it,” Ty whispered to you in a knowing tone.

You laughed silently, already loving this new entity that you had become. Maybe you had lost control over your body, but you had gained everything you had wished for.

After all, goodbyes are just the start of a new Hello.