Lena stood amongst her peers.  Her heart beat anxiously as she glanced at the veiled container.  She knew behind lay the product of years of struggle and labour.  She thought back to him and to her surprise, found herself silently praying.

The murmurs died down as Director Kim stepped out onto the front and faced the crowd of scientists and privileged few reporters allowed to capture the moment.  She could see various looks of boredom on the reporters’ faces, assuming it was another minor experiment.  She smiled to herself, knowing they were in for a surprise.  Little did she know the truth of those words.

“My fellow esteemed colleagues and guests.”  He began, spreading his arms wide, a stern but excited look in his gaunt face.  “Today the future has finally been overtaken by the present.  Today we have taken a huge leap into technological advances for humankind and beyond.”

Lena fought not to smile as several of the scientists around her snickered at the overly passionate speech.  She caught Hyun Joon staring, his attention focuses solely on her.  She slightly nodded her head in a gesture for him to pay attention but he merely shook his head, a slow smile on his handsome face.  She knew he was quite popular with the girls in the lab but Lena refused to join his personal fan collection.  Her disinterest in him other than a platonic relationship only seemed to have caused further persistence.

With a sigh, Lena returned her focus on the director, ignoring his gaze that never left her.

“…and with great pride, I present to you the fruits of our labour.”

There was a hushed silence and a few bulbs went off on cameras out of courtesy as Dr. Kim’s assistant scurried with his short squat legs towards the velvet curtain.  With a flourish of his hands, Dr. Kim widely smiled as the curtain was pulled aside.

There were gasps and much exclamation as two males in separate capsules stood facing the crowd, their eyes closed.  They were bare with only the metal bands restricting their chest, hands and feet covering them.  Various lights went off as reporters huddled around the Director at once.

Lena felt Hyun Joon closely watching her as she could not tear her gaze away from the taller figure on the left.

It can’t be.

She fought to school her face in a neutral expression, her hand balled into tight fists from the effort and her face drained of all color.

It can’t be.

Her mind repeated the impossibility of the situation even as she knew it was him.  The dark hair, the serious mouth, the distinct cleft in his chin could only belong to him alone.  It was him and yet Lena could not bring herself to believe what was in front of her.

Lena blinked and looked away, a lump lodged in her throat.