Everything was happening too fast for Adrian to process.
One moment he was a student.
The next, he was Version 17.
A name he didn't choose. A life he didn't remember building.
And Abbie—
Abbie was gone.
That was the thought that kept cutting through everything else.
Not the program.
Not Victor.
Not Black Orchid.
Just her.
Where did they take her?
He had no answer.
Only silence.
Only distance.
Only fear he didn't know how to name properly yet.
Victor's voice still echoed in his head.
"You are not meant to exist freely."
But Adrian wasn't thinking about that anymore.
He was thinking about Abbie.
Whether she was hurt.
Whether she was awake.
Whether she had called his name again and no one answered.
He left the hospital without thinking.
No plan.
Just instinct pulling him forward.
✦ TEMPORARY NORMAL
Two days later.
He stood outside his apartment.
The world looked normal again.
Too normal.
People walked past him like nothing had happened.
Like he hadn't been rewritten by reality itself.
Inside his room, everything was where he left it.
Books. Clothes. Silence.
He sat down slowly.
For the first time, his mind wasn't racing.
It was searching.
For Abbie.
"Where are you…" he whispered.
His voice cracked slightly.
Not from fear of himself.
From fear for her.
He pulled out his phone.
No messages.
No calls.
Nothing.
He tried again.
Still nothing.
A tight feeling formed in his chest.
Not confusion anymore.
Helplessness.
"She was there," he muttered. "She was holding my hand…"
A pause.
"And I let them take her."
His grip tightened on the phone.
For a moment, anger tried to rise.
But it didn't hold.
Only worry stayed.
Sharp.
Constant.
Then—
Glass shattered.
✦ THE PROOF RETURNS
Adrian dropped instantly.
Window blown open.
Three Black Orchid operatives entered.
No hesitation.
No scanning.
They already knew.
But this time, something was different in him.
He wasn't just reacting to danger.
He was still thinking about Abbie.
Even as he rolled behind the bed.
Even as adrenaline spiked.
What if she's somewhere like this?
What if she's alone?
A strike hit the wall beside him.
He moved.
Barely.
Instinct now mixed with something new.
Focus.
A device hit the floor and a voice came through.
Victor Hale.
Calm as ever.
"You returned to familiarity."
Adrian gritted his teeth.
"…where is she?"
A pause.
Victor understood immediately.
"Abbie."
Adrian froze for half a second.
That name landing in this moment made everything worse.
"Where is she?" he repeated, louder.
Victor didn't answer directly.
Instead—
"This is what I warned you about."
A beat.
"You are now attached."
Adrian ducked another strike.
Blood on his lip.
"Stop talking like she's nothing!"
Victor's voice stayed steady.
"She is leverage exposure risk."
A pause.
"And now your behavior confirms it."
Adrian's breath shook.
Not from fear of himself anymore.
From fear for her.
"She didn't do anything," he said.
Victor responded instantly.
"That is irrelevant."
A stun strike hit Adrian's shoulder.
He dropped to one knee.
Pain exploded.
But his mind stayed locked on one thought.
Abbie. Abbie. Abbie.
Victor continued.
"You are learning attachment in real time."
A pause.
"That is why separation protocol is necessary."
Adrian forced himself up again.
"…you took her because of me."
Victor didn't deny it.
"Yes."
A pause.
"And now you understand consequence."
Another strike.
Adrian hit the floor.
Breathing hard.
But his eyes didn't break.
Not anymore.
Victor's final line came through the speaker:
"This is what I meant."
A pause.
"You cannot live a normal life anymore."
Another pause.
"Because everyone you attach to becomes a target."
Silence.
Adrian lay on the floor, staring at the broken ceiling.
Not defeated.
Just realizing something painful.
Normal wasn't taken from him.
It was removed as a possibility.
And Abbie…
Abbie was proof of that.