All I see around me are the shadowy silhouettes of trees. The sound of raindrops hitting the ground reaches my ears. The smell of fresh pine fills my nose. Behind me, I can hear creatures whimpering, snarling and panting. I spot the faint outline of a house up ahead. I push myself to run faster.

Faster. Faster. Faster.

I sprint as fast as my legs allow me to. Soon, the foot of the hill the house is situated on comes into view. As I scramble up the slope leading to the house, I glance over my shoulder and see beasts chasing after me. Although it is a full moon tonight, it is still too dark to see how those monsters look like, but their silhouettes suggest that they are humongous creatures with large fangs. I can feel a shiver going down my spine as I struggle to climb the steep hill.

I look up, trying to find something to grab to hoist myself up. Unfortunately, I could not find anything that would do the task. My eyes dart frantically all over the place for a branch or something of the sort I could use, but to no avail. I can feel my fingers slipping from the rock I am holding on to. The rain suddenly turns into a heavy downpour. The oncoming raindrops loosen the soil above me and pebbles fall to the ground below. One hits my finger and I lose my grip on the rock.

I let out a strangled cry as I fall. I can hear the beasts down below. When I hit the ground, I will be right in the midst of them. Even if I am not killed by the fall, I will be devoured or torn to shreds by those ferocious monsters. I close my eyes, bracing for the impact, for the pain, for the death that I am not ready for. But it never comes.

The next time I open my eyes, I am in a room. No one else is in the room. It's just me. The room is brightly lit, although I cannot find the source of light. The walls are totally white and stainless. The blinding colour of the walls hurt my eyes. I have to squint in order to see. Aside from a sole chair situated in the centre of the room, it is completely bare. For some unknown reason, a part of me feels as though I have been in a similar situation before. Déjà vu. Then, something clicks in my mind and I remember. I remember why everything in this room has such a familiar feel to it.

It is because this is the very cage I have been trying so hard to escape from for as long as I can remember.

I thought that I had successfully escaped the lab with Wil. Evidently not. They might have put me on sedatives and allowed me to fall into a deep sleep. Maybe they want to monitor my dreams. But I was so sure. I was so sure that Wil and I escaped. So, how can this be? How am I back here? Something doesn't add up. Which also leads to the question. Where's Wil? I hope he's alright. He's the only person I can trust in this den of lions. He's my only friend in this world. He's the only reason why I haven't tried to kill myself yet. But then again, it's impossible to kill oneself in this world of ours, not with the Data Tree involved. However, that wouldn't have stopped me from trying. After all, anything can happen. Wil and I are living proof of that.

My hands start shaking uncontrollably and my breaths become shallow and jagged. My knees are trembling so much that it gives way and I collapse to the ground. Tears start welling up in my eyes and streams down my face. I bury my face in my shaky hands, not knowing what to do next. I am having a nervous breakdown. I don't know what to do in a situation like this. Although I panic very easily, I have never had a nervous breakdown before.

The sound of something like gears shifting brings me out of my trance. I look to the direction of the sound. The ceiling is not covered with needles. The once opaque ceiling is now transparent. Green liquid fills the container-like ceiling. It starts moving downwards, slowly but surely closing in on me. It moves at an even pace. Even so, it is moving too fast. Too fast for me to find an escape. Not able to find an escape path, I lay on the ground, trying to make myself as flat as possible, to not be pierced by the needles, but to no avail. I close my eyes, not wanting to watch as the needles close in on me and inevitably, pierce into my skin.

The first needle pricks my skin and too soon, I can feel countless needles piercing my whole body. I try to scream, but the needles keep my jaws in place. Excruciating pain spreads through my whole being. After a few seemingly never ending seconds of unbearable pain, I feel myself slowly slipping from existence. I feel myself falling. Falling. Falling endlessly into a black pit of nothingness.

I wake up with a jolt. Beads of perspiration dot my forehead. My breaths are shallow and jagged. My hands are trembling in fear and a shiver goes down my spine. When I realise that it's all just another nightmare, I breathe a sigh of relief. The dream was so vivid though. It really felt as though I was back in the lab and that I was dying. I never want to visit that place ever again. Not even in my dreams, though I know that it will forever haunt me in my nightmares.

I throw the blanket off my body and stand up, exiting the room. I make my way to the main room, just to find Wil, Aries and Aristelle talking urgently in hushed whispers. They seem to be discussing something that is in dire need of intention, of something important, although I cannot hear their conversation clearly. I wonder what they are talking about.

"Hey guys," I say as I approach the trio.

Noticing my presence for the first time since I stepped foot into the room, their conversation fades out and they fall silent. They make it seem as though they are not keen in letting me know about whatever they were discussing about.

"Had a good rest?" Wil asks, breaking the awkward silence that was starting to settle between us.

"Quite," I lie, not wanting to give them any indication that I hadn't slept well because of my nightmare. I don't see the need to inform everyone about those dreams nor do I want to describe what happened in them. I do not want to re-enact something as horrifying as that. Wil raises an eyebrow, clearly seeing through my lie, but he doesn't question me about it. I sigh in relief. Thank you, Wil, for not asking me about it.

"So, what were you all discussing about?" I inquire, taking a seat beside Wil on the couch.

"Nothing much," Aristelle mumbles, fidgeting uncomfortably in her seat, as though she has something to hide.

"Please?" I beg. I am involved in this situation as much as they are, if not more, than the twins, that is. I have the right to know whatever they are discussing about. So why are they so reluctant to tell me?

Wil sighs, turning towards me, looking me in the eye. His chocolate brown eyes bore into mine. He looks genuinely exhausted, tired of it all, but there is a hint of an unknown swirl of emotion in them too. It makes my heart skips a beat. I wonder why.

"Miri..." he says, pausing, as if to organise and collect his thoughts.

"Yes?" I reply, prompting him to continue.

He sighs. "I know you would never agree to Aristelle's and Aries's proposal, which is why I made the choice on your behalf. For the best of the two of us. I promise you, it's for our own good. I have thought this through. I weighed our options, how little we have, and I came to a conclusion that we have to accept their proposal."

I wait for him to continue. When he doesn't, I ask," What proposal?"

The way he relays the message to me makes it sound like a bad thing. The way he's so reluctant to enclose that piece of information to me makes me feel nervous.

He sucks in a deep breath of air, perhaps to calm his nerves, though I doubt that's the case as he is always calm. "Well, Miri, you see," he trails off, hesitating to continue. "Aristelle and Aries have promised to help us hide from them as well as get new identities for ourselves and all so that we can lead the life we have always wanted to."

For reasons unknown, my eyes tear up as he tells me the twin's offer. I honestly don't know if I'm upset that he accepted the offer or if I'm genuinely glad that there's someone in this foreign world of ours that is willing to help us, two mere escaped experiments, who just want to live a normal life like anyone else.

I blink. A tear escapes my eye and rolls down my cheek. I brush it away with the back of my hand. I stand up and walk towards the large, panorama window in the main room that overlooks the city. I lean against the glass and gaze at the lights of the city down below. For some reason, it calms me. Another tear rolls down my cheek but I don't wipe it away.

I can hear them talking in quiet voices behind me but this time, I don't feel betrayed. I don't feel left out. What Wil said just now about our options, if any, made me realise how hopeless we really are, as much as I have been trying to deny it. I ought to feel grateful that, in the very least, we will have the chance to start over, but I can't seem to be able to make myself. Endless possibilities and outcomes keep on running through my head.

What if they turn on us? What if they betray us? What if they report about us, our whereabouts and whatnot, to their parents? What if they are only offering us this proposal because they want to stall time and to keep us here long enough for the authorities and those in-charge to come and take us away, back to the dreaded and horrifying lab?

But at the same time, what if they genuinely want to help us? What if they want to help us live a normal life, free from all the nightmares we have lived through and experienced? What if they are giving us a second chance at life? What if they are our only chance at surviving in this foreign world that we have never stepped into?

So many possibilities. Anything could happen. We'd never know. We can only take the risk. We can only take that giant leap of faith. Because, honestly, what else is there to do?

I turn around and walk back to where the others are gathered. Wil gestures to the spot beside him, a silent invitation for me to sit with him. But I refuse the offer with a slight shake of my head. I run my fingers through my hair, untangling all the imaginary knots in it.

I sigh. "We don't have any other choice, do we?" I ask Wil, my voice barely louder than a whisper.

He shakes his head. "I'm afraid this time, we don't."

Then again, since when have we ever had a choice?

I nod my head slightly, giving him my consent half-heartedly. He turns to the siblings and starts talking to them, probably discussing whatever is needed for the proposal to follow through. I do not want to be involved. Thus, I go back to the window and continue staring out into the night, stars twinkling up above and lights from the city down below. A spectacular sight.

Another tear rolls down my cheek and falls to the ground. I feel sad, but I do not know why. I am starting to be consumed by melancholy, although I don't know the reason for this despair. Each tear that rolls down my cheeks is a sign of weakness. Each tear that rolls down my cheek is filled with emotion. Each tear that rolls down my cheek is a word left unspoken. Each tear that rolls down my cheek leaves me with a little more despair than before.

I don't know what I am mourning for. Perhaps I am mourning for the life Wil and I used to have, if you could consider it a life. Perhaps I am mourning for the life we were created for before we miraculously managed to escape the facility. Perhaps I am mourning for the bitterness that fills my heart and that can never be erased. Perhaps I am mourning for the nightmares we have lived through all these years. Perhaps I am mourning for the hopeless situation we are currently in, with no choice or options or directions. Or perhaps I am mourning for those things all at once.

I steal a glance at the other three people in the room. They are still conversing about, I assume, the conditions of the proposal, if any, and how they are going to help us achieve the life we both are longing for. I wonder how we are going to do it. I wonder how we are going to be able to erase our identities as experiments – failed experiments – and start from scratch. How are we going to create a normal life for ourselves?

None of them asks me for any suggestions or for my opinion on the matter. They make it seem like I did not exist. Perhaps it's because I don't seem rational enough at the moment – what with all my raging emotions and all – to make decisions or give relevant opinions. Even though I don't want to be disturbed, it still hurts a little that they don't even think about including me in their conversation. After all, this is my life they're trying to recreate.

The doorbell rings, snapping me out of my daze. Aries jumps a little, obviously startled by the sudden sound. He gets up and walks towards the door, disappearing behind the white wall that separated the main room from the entrance of the house. A moment later, I hear the door creak open.

A deep, resounding voice of a man echoes throughout the room. "Sir, we are from the Research department of the national facility and we are here, under the orders of your parents, to search this house for the escaped experiments: Experiment 426 and Experiment 782

Hey guys! So, here is the long awaited Chapter 3! I've finally had the time to finish it. I'm so sorry for the super late update but I have been super busy, what with the new school year and all. Well, better late than never, right?

So, I just had a pretty rough day today as I found out that my favourite member of my favourite band is leaving. That's Dalton Rapattoni of IM5 guys. I am very heartbroken by this, but I fully support his decision to leave the band. I love you Dalton, and I, along with all other 5ers, will support you and be with you in this new and exciting chapter of your life. Once a Dalton's girl, always a Dalton's girl.

Now, after all this, I shall leave now. I want to do a bit of studying before I go to bed. Bye guys! Have a great week ahead. I will try my best to post the next chapter as soon as possible. Hopefully it won't take another three months again. Chao!

Love, Angie