xiaomiau

The Two Sides

Liwei glanced over at the woman through the soft, white glow of fluorescent lights, reflecting off the sterile tiles below and illuminated her face, now growing red with emotion. Silently, he leaned forwards and set a large hand on her shoulder in a show of emotional solidarity. He gave her an emphatic look. He was of the same opinion that the woman below - looking like a scientist but also looking hardly qualified to touch a human being - was not to be trusted. She looked suspicious.

The Two Sides

Liwei's tan fingers grazed the smooth, metallic wall of the industrial-sized vent. The pads of his left digits scraped stray weld scours, left irresponsibly unsanded as the construction of the facility moved forward. As his hand dragged along the encasement, he felt subtle ridges and grooves like the surface of some flat rock, solid and even at first glance but quickly settling to the startling appearance of nooks and crevices in the face of the shape. Liwei regarded this with little confidence as his glistening gaze migrated to the shape of the shaft - evidently about six feet in height and three in width. The shaft was barely lit but by the distant glow of the aforementioned grate, illuminating a small area before it receded into rough and fiercely welded shadows.

The Two Sides

Liwei nods softly before ducking to enter the super secret listening area. He gave the woman an uneasy glance, though he wasn't sure why he was growing so uncertain. Was it fear of being reprimanded? Fear of what was happening in the experiments? He wasn't sure, but he wasn't intent on showing that hesitation. He continued with her plan without a complaint.

The Two Sides

Liwei shrugged. "As long as the walls aren't closing in. This isn't the setup for a horror movie, huh?" He grinned as he followed her. The facility was a bit of a maze in places, with a myriad of nooks and crannies he had never noticed on his runs between rooms. He trusted the woman to guide him.

The Two Sides

Liwei frowns. "We really need to look into better PR for this whole project. The poor kids probably don't even know what this is all about." He weaved behind her, glancing from side to side at the unfamiliar walls of parts of the facility he had never walked.

The Two Sides

Liwei shrugged. "Sounds like a plan. Of course, I could always just say you were escorting me to, uh.. look for last year's financial reports." He follows her with much less trepidation, eager to see more details of what the experimentation actually entailed. Of course, he had read the plans, but it was different to actually see their work in action. It made him feel a bit better about all the paperwork.

The Two Sides

Liwei lightly punched her shoulder, grinning. "Be nice!" At the question, he raised a finger to his chin and stroked a layer of stubble. "Hm.. You sure they won't get mad?" He did want to see what was going on with the experiments, but he wasn't sure if he was willing to jeopardize his trust within the compound.

The Two Sides

Liwei gave a friendly chuckle. "I sure how they'd keep us in the loop." His pulsing, muscular shoulders - obscured only by a thin and half-opened lab coat - shrugged subtly. "It seems like all the have me doing is some simple accounting. Keeping those finances in order so we can keep on..." He smiled. "Keeping on."

The Two Sides

Liwei busied himself at a computer terminal just inside the building, rapidly inputting data to an outdated spreadsheet. The internal air conditioning was powerful, but he could still feel himself sweating from every hot breeze that wafted through a crack beneath the compound door. He wiped a bead of sweat off of his chiseled neck. Eventually, he rose from the seat and retreated further into the building in search of somewhere cooler to occupy his interests. He paused when he recognized a familiar face. "Hey - [nameless girl #1] - how is the work with those kids going?" he asked casually.

The Two Sides

Misha stared up at the woman defensively. "I'm important? What, so you can cut me up and check out how weird and unnatural I am?" She hissed and scrambled backwards in a pained crab crawl.