Hayat sat at the desk surrounded by scattered papers.
Maps, rough diagrams, and scribbled notes covered almost every inch of the table.
Some were crossed out, others circled repeatedly as if she had been reconsidering the same idea over and over again.
She tapped the pen against the notebook.
"I have three options," she murmured.
She wrote the first one.
Infiltrate the research center.
Her eyes drifted to the rough map she had drawn earlier.
"Security cameras… restricted access… perimeter guards," she whispered.
"That won't work without preparation."
She wrote the second option.
Ask Zara's father directly.
Hayat frowned.
"That depends on whether he decides to tell."
Then she wrote the third.
Threaten him with exposure.
Her pen slowed.
"I could report the facility," she muttered.
"Something illegal is definitely happening there."
She leaned back in her chair and stared at the page.
None of the options were safe.
The door behind her creaked open.
Hayat looked up.
Noor stepped out of the room, adjusting her scarf.
"I'm going to pray Maghrib," Noor said quietly.
Hayat nodded absentmindedly.
But Noor didn't move.
Her eyes fell on the desk.
On the maps.
On the plans.
"You're still doing that?" Noor asked.
Hayat looked up.
"Someone has to."
Noor folded her arms.
"You've been planning all day."
Hayat returned her attention to the papers.
"Planning takes time."
Noor's voice tightened.
"Have you forgotten something?"
Hayat finally looked at her.
"What?"
Noor's eyes were sharp now.
"We are in someone else's body."
Silence filled the room.
"What happens if their parents are contacted?" Noor continued.
"What are we supposed to say then?"
Hayat remained calm.
"That's exactly why I'm planning."
"But Fazil—"
"If we rush in without thinking," Hayat interrupted quietly, "we won't even reach him."
Noor clenched her fists.
"I don't care about plans right now."
Her voice trembled slightly.
"He's still our brother."
Hayat didn't raise her voice.
"And if we get caught, none of us will be able to help him."
For a moment neither of them spoke.
The faint call for Maghrib prayer echoed from a nearby mosque.
Noor sighed.
"I'm going to pray."
She turned and walked away.
Hayat watched her disappear down the hallway.
A few minutes later Hayat quietly spread the prayer mat in the corner of the room.
The room fell silent as she prayed.
When she finished, she folded the mat and returned to the desk.
The problem was still there.
Hayat picked up her pen again.
"If Noor decides to act without thinking," she murmured softly, "then someone has to think for both of us."
An hour later Hayat glanced at the clock.
7:30 PM.
She frowned slightly.
"I should check on Noor."
Hayat walked toward the room and opened the door.
It was empty.
Her eyes immediately moved to the open window.
Hayat rushed toward it and looked outside.
Noor was gone.
Hayat exhaled slowly.
"That idiot."
Her gaze fell on a folded piece of paper on the table.
A note.
She picked it up and read Noor's handwriting.
Hayat closed her eyes for a moment.
"I can't go after her," she whispered.
"If both of us get caught… then there will be no one left to save him."
She placed the note down and returned to the desk.
Her pen moved faster now.
More determined.
________________________________________
Inside the research facility, Zara leaned over the machine.
The laboratory hummed quietly with electricity. Multiple monitors surrounded her, each displaying streams of fluctuating numbers.
Her eyes were tired.
"I've tried recreating it five times," she murmured.
"And it still doesn't work."
She adjusted the dial and pressed a button.
The machine beeped sharply.
Zara froze.
Numbers flashed across the screen.
Her eyes widened.
"It worked."
But confusion replaced the excitement almost immediately.
"The first time… it worked perfectly."
She rubbed her temples.
"But I don't even know how."
Her gaze drifted toward the device on the table.
The watch.
The consciousness transfer device.
"It shouldn't have worked like that."
She leaned back in her chair slowly.
Then another thought struck her.
Her eyes widened.
"That clone."
She quickly typed something into the computer.
Lines of data appeared.
Zara frowned.
"I need that clone."
Her fingers froze above the keyboard.
"That shouldn't be possible."
Her voice dropped to a whisper.
"I need to find Fawdaa."
_______________________________________
The metal door opened with a sharp sound.
"Inside," the junior ordered.
He mumbled to himself, They are clones. Just copies of the original. Don't get attached. Do not sympathize.
Hewondered , how many times have I said that, how much longer can I convince myself.
Several girls wearing white hospital gowns entered the room.
The door slammed shut behind them.
The space was strangely peaceful.
Artificial grass covered the floor. Small trees were planted around the edges, and above them a glass ceiling revealed the faint outline of the sky.
An artificial garden.
The closest thing to freedom they were allowed.
The clones sat quietly across the benches.
Then another girl was pushed inside.
Fazil.
Or rather—
Fawdaa.
He stepped onto the grass and looked around.
His eyes widened slightly.
The grass.
The trees.
The open space.
As if he had never seen it before.
Clone 1011206 noticed immediately.
Her gaze narrowed.
They had been brought here many times before.
Yet Fouda was staring at everything with open curiosity.
She approached him slowly.
"Why are you here?" she asked.
Fazil hesitated.
" I don't know. "
"Wait–what ."
The words slipped out before he could stop himself.
The clone 2100710 tilted her head thoughtfully.
"What if they have started thinking of us as humans?"
Everyone looked at her , their attention shifted .
"They already know we have consciousness," she continued.
"They moved us out of the tubes."
She gestured around the garden.
"They even changed our environment."
"Maybe they're trying to improve things."
The clone 3150512 scoffed loudly.
"Oh please."
She kicked at the grass.
"I'm sick of this place."
The clone 4180114 leaned forward suddenly.
"We can escape."
All eyes turned toward her.
"We've already done it once," she said.
"We can do it again."
She grabbed the 6260818 clone's hand and started walking.
But after a few steps she stopped.
Her grip loosened.
Her expression became distant.
She slowly turned back.
"…Maybe we should plan it first."
Fazil blinked.
"You escaped before?"
Silence fell.
Every clone stared at him.
Fazil immediately realized his mistake.
He had exposed himself.
He inhaled slowly.
Then sighed.
"Alright."
He looked at them.
"Let me explain."
And he told them everything.
When he finished, the clone 1011206 stood up and gently patted his back.
"It's alright," she said calmly.
"You've been through a lot, Now rest ."
She turned to the others.
"We're all trapped here together."
But the clone 3150512 snapped immediately.
"How can you trust him?"
"He's not Fawdaa."
"And we don't even know where Fawdaa is."
The clone 2100710 spoke quietly.
"Maybe she'll come back."
The clone 3150512 exploded.
"How do you know that?"
"She has been gone for two months!"
Her voice echoed across the garden.
"If she was going to save us…"
Her voice cracked slightly.
"She would have done it already."
The garden fell silent.
And Fazil felt a strange chill crawl up his spine.
Because if he was inside Fouda's body…
Then somewhere out there—
Fawdaa herself had to exist —as someone she was not .
Would everything have been different if she had never cooperated with Zara?