Life With Agent 8 (Agent 8 X Agent 3)

#2 Hospital 🏥

Agent 3 slowly blinked her eyes open, the sterile smell of the room filling her senses. She felt bandages wrapped tightly around her body, and the weight of exhaustion still clung to her. As her vision cleared, she saw familiar faces—Agent Eight, sitting quietly with a gentle expression, and Callie and Marie standing by her bed.

Callie was intently poking at Agent Eight, a look of curiosity in her eyes. "Why isn’t she hostile like the other Octolings?" she muttered, her finger gently pressing into Eight’s cheek, making her squint but otherwise remain still.

Agent 3 groaned, her voice rough from lack of use. "Ugh… what happened?"

Marie’s gaze softened when she noticed Agent 3 waking. She stepped closer to her bed. "You were saved by this Octoling," Marie said, her voice calm but still carrying a note of disbelief. "According to Pearl and Marina, her name is Eight."

"An… Octoling?" Agent 3’s mind raced, trying to piece together the fragments of her broken memories.

Marie nodded, folding her arms as if still trying to make sense of it herself. "Yeah, I thought the same thing when the captain told us."

Callie, however, was completely unfazed by the confusion around her. She grinned and, without a second thought, lifted Agent Eight into the air like a ragdoll. "You guys are totally overreacting!" she giggled, spinning Eight around as the Octoling let out a small noise of surprise. "Look at her! She’s adorable!"

Marie sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Callie, I think you’re still feeling the effects of wearing those Octoling glasses. Please put her down."

"But she’s so cute!" Callie argued, holding Eight up as if presenting her as undeniable proof.

Meanwhile, Agent 3 stared at Eight, a flicker of recognition dancing at the edge of her thoughts. The memories were blurry, like watching shadows behind a veil, but they were there. And then it hit her—the fight. The struggle. The confusion.

"...I was mind-controlled!" Agent 3 gasped, her eyes widening in sudden realization.

Marie gave her a solemn nod. "Yes. You were exposed to sanitization," she explained, her voice heavy with concern. "We lost contact with you after that. For a while, we didn’t know what happened."

"You’re lucky," Callie chimed in, still holding Eight but now in a more relaxed stance. "It could’ve been a lot worse. You’re going to be stuck here for a bit."

Marie gently tugged at Callie’s sleeve, trying to reel her back into seriousness. "Callie’s right, though. You need time to recover. We’ll keep you at HQ to make sure none of the sanitization effects make it into the hospital records."

Callie waved her free hand in the air dramatically. "You’re gonna be stuck with us for at least a week!"

Agent 3’s eyes softened as she looked at Agent Eight, who remained quiet, a slight blush on her cheeks from Callie’s unrelenting affection. There was something about Eight—something she couldn’t quite put into words. Despite everything, she couldn’t bring herself to feel threatened.

As her body sank deeper into the bed, Agent 3 felt her consciousness drifting away once again, the exhaustion too heavy to fight off. Her last sight before her eyes closed was of Callie still cradling Eight like a plush doll, while Marie sighed in the background.

"That was fast!" Callie chirped. "Alright, let's get her back to HQ."

Marie shook her head but smiled. "Quietly, Callie. We don’t need to make a scene here."

Carefully and without attracting any attention, the team worked together to transport Agent 3 out of the hospital, maneuvering past staff and civilians with precision. Callie, still carrying Eight, led the way with a cheerful bounce in her step. Marie, ever the level-headed one, kept her eyes on the lookout, making sure no one noticed their escape.

As they disappeared into the night, the city lights flickering in the distance, Agent 3 remained in a deep sleep, unaware that the next chapter of her recovery—and her unexpected bond with Agent Eight—was just beginning.