`„ ☁ ──── 𝑩𝑬𝑻𝑻𝑬𝑹 𝑨𝑺 𝑨 𝑷𝑨𝑰𝑹 」

[middle child]

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𝑊𝐸 𝐿𝑂𝑂𝐾 𝐹𝑂𝑅 𝐿𝑂𝑉𝐸, 𝑁𝑂 𝑇𝐼𝑀𝐸 𝐹𝑂𝑅 𝑇𝐸𝐴𝑅𝑆.
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[middle child]

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𝑇𝐴𝐵𝐿𝐸 𝑂𝐹 𝐶𝑂𝑁𝑇𝐸𝑁𝑇𝑆 / 𝑁𝑂-𝑃𝑂𝑆𝑇 𝑍𝑂𝑁𝐸


001 .................................. foreword
002 ................. start of something new
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[middle child]

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𝐽𝑈𝑆𝑇 𝐴 𝐹𝐸𝑊 𝑊𝑂𝑅𝐷𝑆 𝐹𝑅𝑂𝑀 𝑇𝐻𝐸 𝐴𝑈𝑇𝐻𝑂𝑅
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this is an unplanned story that shall evolve
as I deem along the way . it revolves aroun
d characters zem and morie .. i have a gist
of who they are, except that their narrativ
es, development, etc. will be a surprise for
the both of us. let's watch this couple's life
unfold.
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[middle child]

𝑺𝑻𝑨𝑹𝑻 𝑶𝑭 𝑺𝑶𝑴𝑬𝑻𝑯𝑰𝑵𝑮 𝑵𝑬𝑾 ’
⟩
XXIpoint of view: morie
character colors: morie / #A61C3C
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXzem X/ #0A0082
⟨




This coffee barista had little to no obligations. Morie had so much spare time in her hands that it was almost a responsibility for her to fantasize about having a more action-packed timeline to compensate. Even then, Morie was content with that simple life. It was easy to manage, but she couldn't have had it so easy for her if Cousin Roman hadn't welcomed her to Washington.

Morie absolutely loved Roman to death. In return for his kindness, every day she would prepare and serve him his favorite for when he visited her café: a Ristretto. A perfect drink to ease Roman's stress from working for the LIA. It was clear that Roman was Morie's polar opposite and everything she would daydream about. He was a well-respected protective agent who accomplished all of his missions. Not one personnel had died under his protection. Of course, Morie wasn't allowed to know this, but her relationship with Roman had their compromises.

"Good morning, lil cuz," and that would be Roman's signature line. "I trust you have what I need from you."

"Shut up, try-hard," and Morie would slide his usual order to him. Days went on an endless cycle. Wake up, get ready for work, work, leave work for home, sleep. Please, meals were the most exciting times of Morie's routine. What Morie didn't foresee was that all things eventually came to an end.

That afternoon wasn't normal. Roman was two hours late for his Ristretto. He was never late, he couldn't even be late. Punctuality was his best (and a required) quality. Morie dialed her fifth missed call and couldn't stand the anxiety anymore. She opted for a quick leave from her shift to visit the LIA headquarters, which was only a few blocks away from the café. She would ask for Roman maybe, then be on her merry way. She didn't know how she was going to do it, but that didn't stop her from biking her way up to the building. The closer she was to the headquarters, the more in awe she was. The LIA headquarters had a distinct sound to it: a busy yet hushed cacophony of voices, keyboards, papers, and scribbling pens. Their motives seemed clear — keep the country safe through intelligence thing-a-mabobs — but was subtle enough to remain a mystery.

Morie watched the building become bigger. She watched faint figures pass by its tinted windows. She watched the trees lined up front dance. She watched a group of LIA employees return to the building from their breaks. Unlike her, they were probably on their own endless cycle... or so Morie thought.

The noise in the building slowly died down. What the hell was happening? Morie left her bike by the sidewalk, not wanting to make any noise. She was only a few running steps away from its entrance. Though difficult to peer inside, she was able to catch the worst possible glimpse. A middle-aged woman collapsed to the ground after the sound of a suppressed gunshot, her white blouse marked red. Then, came in one of the employees Morie had seen going into the building; except this time, she could clearly see he was armed.

Morie's heart pounded. She turned and was going to make a run for it, until she realized it was too late. The armed man faced her direction. "Shoot," She didn't dare look back the moment she sprinted away. The gaining footsteps behind her sufficed to say that the man was nearby. He was more fit than she was; she couldn't keep going straight or she'd be caught. Her fight-or-flight swerved her into a long alleyway that ended with a wired fence and a highway road beyond it. When Morie wished for a more interesting world, she did not mean running for her life whatsoever.

"Get back here!" The man bellowed only for her to hear. Morie knew he couldn't afford firing his gun and leaving bullets on the street. If she were to get shot, she'd be taken into the LIA building and get shot there.

With trembling hands, Morie toppled over a trash can to slow down her chaser. The man cursed and plowed his way through. As she neared the wired fence, she gained more momentum and leaped. The barista was about to make her first climb when she felt a firm grip around the hem of her shirt. "Let go of me!" She kicked the man in his chest and heard him puff. This was her chance.

Morie scaled the fence and fell to the other side. "You've got to be kidding me," She saw cars and trucks of different sizes zoom past her. Her brain tried racketing an alternative move, but it seemed like forward was the only option she had. "Hey!" The man roared again.

With all her willpower, Morie bolted for the highway. All she could make of her surroundings were the hiss of the wind and the rumble of the ground. And finally, the end of the road.



• • •


Morie knew exactly what she had walked into. The first thing that caught her eye was his grip on the mouse, that might as well have turned his knuckles purple. The soft glow of the computer screen was not at all complementary to the way he grimaced and shouted at the death of his teammates. Sure, they were bots, but Morie knew that didn't matter to him. Gun games composed his summer. "Bet," Morie tapped his shoulder. "A hundred dollars for you to talk to me and not get killed," She was never lucky on the first try of getting his attention, but of course this time was different.

"Mmm?" Zem faced her. She stifled a laugh. He was a charming fellow with those long lashes and plump lips girls would kill to have, that hair like a cloud, and that perfect tanned skin. He was the type to get glances from a crowd, yet Morie could barely take him seriously with his eyeglasses diagonally perched on his nose. "Don't tell me you burned our dinner." Really? Just because she wasn't the best cook in the house...

"Good guess, but no," Morie watched her boyfriend's sigh of relief. She fixed his glasses and pecked his forehead. "Boss wants us to come in early tomorrow. It's urgent."

"Let's call in sick."

"Babe."

"Joking!" Zem glanced at his monitor and watched his character get shot and collapse. "That could be us." True. Zem and Morie lived in constant danger, both as the finest agents of MOROSE. How they got to that point was a pain for Morie to recall, yet every detail around her was somehow reminiscent of the past. For one, Zem always had a knack for computers and money. His skillset easily landed him a job as an accountant of a local business. Despite this, his father never stopped trying to convince Zem to take part in the Leading Intelligence Agency; in short, the LIA.

The LIA was exactly what one would think. An agency that collected, evaluated, and analyzed intelligence information pertaining to national security. The LIA carried out covert actions in the interest of foreign policy — goodness, Zem had this entire description repeated to him over and over throughout his childhood. Those with Najjar as their surname were guaranteed LIA employees, and that too was expected from Zem. However, he refused to be associated with the LIA. He despised having a double life, needing to sleep with a gun under one's pillow, valuing every inch of one's surroundings.

"Instead, I'm a hundred dollars richer than you now," Zem cut Morie's train of thoughts. She smacked his head ("Oww!") and left for the kitchen. She didn't wanna give Zem the satisfaction, but maybe she was gonna burn their dinner.

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/ / author's note XXLIA is the equivalent of the CIA. It stands for Leading Intelligence Agency. Yas, Zem and Morie's universe is separate from, but XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXparallel to ours.
/ / word count XXXI1,296

[middle child]

𝑵𝑬𝑾 𝑵𝑨𝑴𝑬𝑺 ’
⟩
XXIpoint of view: zem
character colors: morie / #A61C3C
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXzem X/ #294C60
⟨




• Zem drives on the way to MOROSE, a fortified underground base hidden under a convenience store. The store was next to a gas station by which very few people stop, given its location at the heart of a countryside.
  
• When Zem and Morie get to the store, Zem notes a few things about his girlfriend. She is the one gaining access to the base.
• Zem recalls how he met her. (Backstory here. Revelation on how MOROSE came to be.)
• Zem is brought back to the present. He describes the base and considers it home.
• The pair meets up with the MOROSE head.
• They're assigned an undercover mission.

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/ / word count N/A