~Park min ~
I barely slept. Just sat in that plastic chair outside Yu Jin’s sealed room, head tipped back against the wall, eyes burning, phone blowing up with notifications I kept silencing. Around four in the morning so nurse walked past twice, then a third ti, staring way too hard at her phone while she fild the door. I was too tired to even yell at her. Figured she was just gawking like everyone else. Big mistake.
By six the whole internet was on fire.
I woke up with my neck killing and Lee Know shaking my shoulder. "Min. Min, wake the fuck up. We’re viral."
He shoved his phone in my face. Screen full of blurry clips banging on the glass, Yu Jin arching off the bed, doctors puking in the corner. Hashtags everywhere. #EnigmaAwakening. #ApexInSeoul. #OgaNoMore. So asshole had even slowed down the part where Yu Jin said my na and added dramatic music. Comnts were a ss half freaking out, half thirsting like this was so k-drama reveal.
"Great," I muttered, rubbing my eyes. "Just what we needed. TikTok famous."
Fan Xiao ca barreling down the hall, Anning right behind him dragging her laptop like a shield. "Hospital’s on lockdown," he said before he even stopped walking. "Security just sealed the main doors. Reporters are stacked three deep outside. Drones too. Actual fucking drones."
Anning flipped her screen around. Live feed from so news channelour hospital, choppers circling, reporter yelling over the noise about "unprecedented Enigma presentation" and "potential threat to public safety."
I stood up so fast the chair tipped over. "They’re calling him a threat. He’s sedated, strapped to a bed, and they’re calling him a threat."
"Yeah, well," Lee Know said from the doorway of his room, leaning on the IV pole like a crutch. "Welco to being the rarest freak on the planet. Cos with bad press."
"Not helping," I snapped.
"Wasn’t trying to."
Fan Xiao moved Anning to check and while he was typing furiously. "The leak ca from inside. I traced the original upload burner account, posted at 4:17 a.m. Nurse’s break room IP. She’s probably crying in HR right now."
Fan Xiao cracked his knuckles. "Want to go find her?"
"No," I said. "We’ve got bigger problems. They’re gonna use this to take him."
As if I’d summoned them, the elevators dinged. Out stepped four guys in dark suits, two ard guards in tactical gear, and fuck , my mother.
Park Hana. Hair perfect, suit sharp enough to cut glass, face like she’d never smiled once in her life as usual . She walked straight toward .
The guys with her fanned out. One flashed a badge at the security desk. "National Dynamics Authority. We’re assuming jurisdiction over patient Han Yu Jin."
My stomach dropped. "You’ve got to be kidding ."
Mom stopped right in front of , eyes flicking over my wrinkled clothes, the stubble, the ss I was. "Min. You look terrible."
"Thanks, Mom. Love the reunion."
She ignored that, turned to the suited guy beside her. "Dr. Choi, secure the isolation wing. No one in or out without my clearance."
Dr. Choi nodded and started barking orders into his earpiece.
I stepped in front of her. "You’re not taking him."
"I’m not here to take anyone," she said, voice flat. "I’m here to offer protection. Voluntary registration. State-of-the-art facility. Full dical team. Suppressant research tailored to his unique profile. In exchange, he agrees to cooperate with non-invasive studies. No forced breeding programs, no military conscription. Yet."
"Yet," I repeated. "Real comforting."
"It’s better than the alternatives." She glanced toward the windows where cara flashes were going off like lightning. "The public is scared. The ABO county is scared. If we don’t act fast, soone less reasonable will."
Fan Xiao moved up beside , arms crossed. "And you’re the reasonable one?"
Mom’s eyes slid to him. "Fan Xiao. Still hanging around my son like a stray, I see."
He grinned, all teeth. "Woof."
Lee Know snorted from the doorway. "Damn, I like your mom. She’s savage."
"Shut up," I hissed at him, then back to her. "Yu Jin’s not so lab rat. He’s got a kid. He’s got a life."
"He had a life," she corrected. "That ended the mont he presented Enigma. You think you can hide him? Protect him? The world knows now. Every two from here to Busan is salivating. Every governnt agency wants a piece. I’m offering him safety. Structure. Control."
"Control," I laughed, bitter. "That’s always been your favorite word."
Her jaw tightened. Just a flicker, but I caught it. "This isn’t about us, Min."
"Everything with you is about control."
She exhaled through her nose. "Fine. Let’s talk about you, then. You’re bonded. That makes you collateral. You think they’ll let you walk away clean? You’re either with him in protective custody... or you’re a liability."
Anning stepped forward, laptop hugged to her chest. "Ma’am, with respect, we have other options."
Mom’s eyebrow arched. "Do you?"
Anning glanced at , then nodded. "The last docunted Enigma–1999 case. Official records say he died. But he didn’t. He’s alive. Underground. Been off-grid for twenty-six years. If he can stay hidden, so can Yu Jin, even better if he has found help ."
Mom actually looked surprised for half a second. Then she recovered. "Rumors. Conspiracy forums. No proof."
"I have proof," Anning said quietly. " Dropped into my inbox an hour ago. Coordinates. He wants to talk."
Silence stretched. Even the guards looked uncomfortable.
I stared at Anning. "You’re serious."
"Dead serious. He saw the leak. Recognized the signs. Says late presentations are brutal but survivable. Says he can teach Yu Jin how to live with it. Without cages."
Mom folded her arms. "And you trust a ghost from 1999?"
"I trust that Yu Jin deserves a choice," I said. "Not your version of safety."
She looked at for a long minute. Really looked. Then her voice went softer, almost human. "Min. I know you hate . You have every right. But I’m trying to keep him alive. Both of you."
I barked a laugh. Her mouth thinned. "I was wrong about him. Clearly. He’s not just any oga anymore."
"Wow. High praise."
"Min... "
"No." I cut her off. "You don’t get to swoop in now and play savior. You lost that privilege years ago."
Fan Xiao clapped slowly. "Damn. Family therapy’s going great."
Lee Know wheezed a laugh. "I need popcorn."
Mom ignored them, eyes still on . "You have until noon. Then the board votes on mandatory containnt. If you refuse voluntary registration, they’ll take him by force. And you won’t be able to stop it."
She turned to leave, heels clicking again. Paused. Didn’t look back. "I’ll stall them as long as I can. Don’t waste it."
Then she was gone, suits trailing after her.
I stood there shaking. Not sure if it was rage or fear or both.
Anning grabbed my arm. "We need to decide. Now."
"Decide what?" I snapped. "Run and beco fugitives forever, or hand him over to Mommy Dearest?"
"Neither’s perfect," Lee Know said, limping closer. "But running sounds more fun."
Fan Xiao nodded. "I’m in. Fuck the governnt."
Anning bit her lip. "The old Enigma... goes by ’Zero’ now says there’s a network. Safe houses. Suppressants that actually work on Enigmas. Not the experintal crap they’re pumping into him. But we have to move tonight. Before the vote."
I rubbed my face hard. "And if we wait? Let him wake up here, stabilized, maybe Mom’s deal isn’t total bullshit?"
Lee Know shrugged. "Then he becos a lab pet. Maybe they let you visit on weekends. Bring Rin in a stroller."
"Don’t," I warned.
He held up his hands. "Just saying. You know how this ends. They always start with ’voluntary.’"
I paced three steps, turned, paced back. "He’s still out cold. How the hell do we even move him?"
Anning was already typing. "I’ve got a guy. Ex-military dic. Owes big. He can forge transfer orders, swap IVs, keep him sedated but stable in transport."
Fan Xiao cracked his neck. "I’ll handle security. Borrow so scrubs, cause a distraction."
Lee Know grinned. "I’ll flirt with the nurses. Get them looking the wrong way."
"You’re half-dead," I said.
"Exactly. They’ll feel sorry for . Works every ti."
I stopped pacing. Looked at Yu Jin’s door. Imagined him waking up in so white facility, alone, scared, thinking we abandoned him.
Then imagined him waking up free. Terrified still, but free.
"Fuck it," I said. "We’re running."
Anning exhaled like she’d been holding her breath for hours. "Okay. Wheels up at midnight. Zero gave a rendezvous point outside the city. Van, no plates."
Fan Xiao fist-bumped . "Road trip with a comatose Enigma and a baby. What could go wrong?"
"Don’t jinx it," Lee Know muttered.
I pushed open Yu Jin’s door. The monitors beeped steady. He looked small under the sheets, tubes everywhere, face peaceful in a way that hurt to see.
I sat on the edge of the bed, took his hand. Cold. Too cold.
"Hey," I whispered. "I know you can’t hear , but we’re getting you out. We’ll figure the rest out later."
His fingers twitched. Barely. Maybe nothing. Maybe everything.
I leaned down, pressed my forehead to his. "Don’t wake up yet, okay? Save your strength. I’ve got you."
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