Understand

A month passed, and once again, Xiao and Ky could be seen fighting each other using their weapons of choice, dual swords for Ky and a Bo staff for Xiao. However, this time, it was evident that Ky had grown in terms of his fighting ability. Each strike with his dual practice swords was precise and had real intent behind them. Each attack was calculated, keeping Xiao on her toes.

Despite their power dampeners no longer being deactivated, the two mutants were fighting without using their abilities as things would just be easier that way. With only three weeks left, the two of them were training diligently and reluctantly for their lives.

Waller of course was happy about Ky's progress. His growth in strength would only mean Xiao would have to grow as well, which pleased Waller even further. Though there were others training in the facility, including Tom and his partner, Waller spent most of his time observing Ky and Xiao fight. However, their fighting wasn't the only thing that had him interested.

As if he were watching a drama, Waller was drawn in by the developing relationship between the two of them. This was something he hadn't seen before, two people becoming closer despite the dark fate that would await one of them.

Even if words weren't being exchanged, the way that they fought each other told the full story, a story being told so clearly that even the guards could comprehend it. With each clash of their weapons, a sense of solace resonated between the two mutants. With each body strike, reluctance, along with the feeling of trepidation could be seen through their body language and their eyes.

At first, it was just Ky who felt this way. There was no hiding it, he was falling in love with Xiao with every moment he'd spend with her. Those five minutes between every hour that he'd be able to chat with her were moments he sought after. Seeing her smile, though often faint, was like finding an oasis in the desert, giving him the strength to continue forward. He could also detect her voice going from cold, lifeless, and devoid of all emotion to being warm, sweet, and full of life.

Ky couldn't read minds, so he was unaware that his feelings for her were slowly being reciprocated. It was often forgotten by Ky that Xiao was not just a mind reader, but an empath. All of the emotions that resided inside of him were being felt by her with every last ounce of their intensity.

What she felt inside her was all foreign to her. After the incident at the mall, she never interacted with people outside of her father. She was home-schooled her entire life, only gaining a partial understanding of how humans acted and felt through TV and movies.

She was a curious girl by nature, always wondering what the outside world was like, always wondering what it was like when the girls on TV would talk about school problems or boy problems. She wondered what it would be like to feel such powerful emotions inside of her that it could drive her to tears. One of the things that fascinated her the most was the concept of happy tears. 'Why would one cry when experiencing happiness?' she'd think to herself.

However, the concepts that confused her the most were attachment and the idea of becoming enthralled by another person's presence. Of course, she was attached to her father and she loved him dearly, but that was a given. It's in human nature to love and feel attached to one's parents as it is simply a survival mechanism. At least, that's how she saw it.

When it came to loving a random person, she couldn't grasp the idea of it, especially since her first and only exposure to random men before meeting Ky went so poorly.

However, Ky made her understand.

He didn't explain it to her verbally, but the way his body and mind reacted to her presence taught her everything she needed to know.

The way his heart would stop when the two of them would greet each other in the morning.

The way his skin would warm up upon seeing her rare, faint smiles.

The way he'd describe her beauty in his own mind.

She could sense that feeling of hesitation when they fought, she could feel his desire to want to protect her, despite not having the power to do so.

It took a while, but she understood those concepts she failed to comprehend for so long. As they fought on that very day, knowing only that there were a couple of weeks left before they'd have to say goodbye, Xiao thought to herself about what she was starting to feel inside herself.

'I understand now.' she thought to herself.

'I understand why humans act the way they do when they're near a special someone.

The feeling of being weak at the knees because of that person's presence.

What it means when one's heart skips a beat just by looking that someone in the eye.

Feeling warm not only on my flesh but on the inside too.

Wanting to never see them go...

Being afraid to die.'

As the two continued to clash weapons, Ky could sense that something was off with Xiao. Her expressionless face had completely vanished, leaving behind a broken, solemn face. For the first time in the month and one week that they'd met, she was not looking him in the eye as they fought. She couldn't stand to do so.

Before Ky could question it, the buzzer sounded, letting them know that the hour was up. Just on schedule, Waller walked in with that same disgusting smile plastered on his face, looking directly at Xiao as he too could sense that something was off about her. "0111, is something the matter?" he asked her in a fake, concerned tone. He was really teasing her more than anything else.

He loved seeing this, seeing her broken. It wasn't that he had any sort of disdain for her, he was just that sick of an individual that seeing others in pain, especially mutants, brought him insurmountable joy. For him, these mutants were not even people. They were pawns used for his own enjoyment and entertainment. They were his toys.

Ky couldn't read minds, but he knew exactly what type of monster Waller was. He'd known him long enough. Seeing him look at Xiao in the way that he did pissed Ky off more than anything had in the last month.

"Are you afraid that 1226 here is progressing faster than you? Are you afraid to die, 0111? Or is it something else?" Waller smirked at her before placing a glass of the mysterious liquid by her side. He then walked over to Ky, immediately thrown off by the ghastly expression on Ky's face. Ky wanted to kill him, it was clear by the look in his eyes.

However, Waller did not falter, in fact, this pleased him more than any other outcome. The problem with Ky was that he wasn't a warrior. If Waller had what he wanted, Ken Thatcher would be the one standing before him, not Ky, the lesser brother. The weakling.

However, Ky's eyes showed him that there must have been a true fighter hidden within him this whole time, it only took Xiao to bring it out. 'Interesting...' Waller thought to himself, his grotesque smile growing, though chose not to think too much about it due to the mind reader behind him. 'What an interesting concept.'

Waller handed Ky his shake, placing a hand on his shoulder before telling him something quietly. "You can't save her, Ky." Waller tapped him on the shoulder twice before handing him his drink and exiting the training room with his guards.

Once the door shut, Ky glared at the one-way glass, knowing Waller was behind it. His mind was already set at this point. It didn't matter when or where, he was going to kill Waller one way or another. Hearing his own thoughts, Ky started to realize how much he'd changed. 'This isn't fair.' he thought to himself. He knew more than anyone he wasn't a fighter or a killer, at least before. 'They're turning me into one of them.'

"It's okay, Ky. I'm scared too." Xiao's voice snapped Ky out of his own head. He turned around, watching as Xiao stared blankly at the ground with that same solemn expression. "You don't have to lie to yourself. Resentment doesn't suit you."

She was getting good at reading Ky. She knew that the rage he felt was nothing more than a coping mechanism to hide the fact that he was scared more than anything. She could feel all of that fear within him, hiding behind the thin layer of false rage on the surface.

"I'm so scared Ky." hearing her speak with a quivering voice while also seeing her pained expression calmed Ky down. Seeing her like this was conflicting. He wanted to approach her, embrace her, and tell her everything was going to be alright. However, he knew he'd be lying, and lying to her was both figuratively and literally impossible.

"We can pretend." Xiao whispered, looking up at Ky with glassy eyes. "We can pretend everything will be fine. Please... please pretend with me." she knew whatever kinds of things Ky wanted to say would be untrue, but she thought perhaps hearing them could help her cope with the oncoming impending death.

Ky was hesitant. He wasn't sure if there would be any repercussions if he and she were to physically touch each other outside of combat. However, he didn't care about the repercussions. He knew that Waller was enjoying watching them too much to kill them as punishment if there was one, so he stepped forward. "Okay, Xiao. I'll pretend with you."

Ky approached Xiao until he was standing in front of her, smiling down at her softly. She looked up at him slowly as he extended his hand out toward her. She grabbed it delicately, feeling the warmth of another person skin-to-skin for the first time in a long time. She rose to her feet, her eyes trembling as she looked at Ky's which weren't wavering in the slightest.

She was so distracted by her own thoughts, her own feelings, that she was caught off guard by Ky suddenly pulling her in close, embracing her tightly. "It's going to be okay." he lied to her. "I promise."

At this moment, Xiao was completely overwhelmed by so many powerful feelings that she'd never experienced all at once before.

Anxiety.

Solace.

Dejection.

Contentment.

Along with so many more that she couldn't put into words despite studying definitions and synonyms of emotions in an attempt to understand them.

It was at this moment, Ky discovered another aspect of his powers. Through Xiao's touch alone, he found himself seeing fragments of her past in his own mind. This power is called psychometry. With this ability, Ky obtains historical memories or sensations concerning beings and objects he comes into physical contact with. He wasn't aware of the extent of it, but he knew that he was now able to learn one's general life history but he doesn't sense anything of what they were thinking or feeling.

He saw her past.

He saw her father.

Her life of isolation.

The incident at the mall.

The moment she was taken away from her human father, who could do nothing but watch as his adoptive daughter was taken away from him. Xiao still didn't know what his fate would be for harboring a mutant after all these years, but she knew it couldn't have been anything less than awful.

She knew Waller was lying when he told her that he'd reunite them both if she joined the Dark Angels, but she couldn't tell how deep of a lie it was. She wondered if he was lying about her father being alive, them being able to reunite, or both.

Her memories eventually caught up to the present, replaying her moments with Ky, all the way up to that very day when she was able to understand her feelings. Though Ky couldn't sense her feelings through the memory fragments, he was able to comprehend the facts nonetheless through visual storytelling alone.

Of course, being able to directly read minds, Xiao knew what had just happened. She also knew that she needed to keep quiet about it. This ability could perhaps prove to be valuable, being all the more valuable if it was kept a secret.

As Waller and his guards watched from the other side of the one-way glass, one of the guards spoke. "Is this allowed?" he asked, compelling Waller to laugh.

"There's only a few seconds left. Besides, isn't it intriguing?" Waller asked his guard, looking at him with his sick grin.

"I- I guess..." the guard didn't understand. It'd be cute if they weren't mutants while also being locked away in a secret facility, but that mindset was the reason why he didn't get it. To Waller, this wasn't heartwarming in the slightest. It was hilarious more than anything.

Robbing them of one other would only be all the more satisfying if he let things continue.

Ky used his pointer finger and thumb to lift Xiao's chin, prompting her to look up at him. His delicate, warm touch caused her face to overheat and begin to slowly transform into a shade of red. "Do it." she told him, knowing exactly what he was thinking at that very moment.

With his hand still on her chin, Ky closed his eyes and leaned in close. Xiao closed her eyes as well, pushing up on the tips of her toes to get closer to Ky in height. The two of them kissed, feeling the sweet embrace of each other's lips for the first time, while also giving Xiao her first kiss.

For a brief moment, the two of them forgot where they were, both taking a sip from the metaphorical oasis that soothed them.

However, their moment would be interrupted by the sound of a buzzer, bringing them back to reality where dread awaited them.