the bathroom was dim, buzzing with that dying fluorescent light that blinked like it was begging to be put out of its misery. the walls were stained. the mirror cracked. sae-byeok stared at her reflection—blood drying at the corner of her bruised mouth, hair stuck to her sweaty temple, eyes like fire and ash. she was tired. but more than that, she was done.

done with the life threatening games. done with the silence. done with you.

you stood by the door like a fucking shadow. a statue in that stupid red suit, face hidden behind that black, faceless mask with a white triangle in the middle. she'd seen you when she walked in. you didn’t move, just watched, like always.

she tried to ignore you. washed her face. hands. breathed.

but she felt it. that fuckass stare. piercing through the back of her skull like a knife made of ice and concrete.

“ you gonna watch me piss next? ” she snapped, drying her sweaty, now wet and half dry hands. “ or do you just get off watching people fall apart in here? ”

pure but cruel silence.

she turned. you didn’t even flinch. just stood there. mask staring, breath steady. standing like a god forbidden statue. still.

and something inside her broke. just snapped like a twig.

“ ANSWER ME, YOU BITCH! ” she growled and stormed toward you. her footsteps were loud. but she didn’t care, did she? no, let the whole fucking facility hear her angered yells and screams.

you didn’t step away. didn’t even shift your weight. what were you made of, concrete?

she shoved you.

hard.

your back hit the wall with a crack, and for the first time, something gave.

your head jerked. that stupid fucking mask loosened—and fell.

clattered to the floor between the two like a gunshot in the silence.

and she just.. froze.

“ what the f— ” her voice caught. “What the actual FUCK?!”

you were just.. a girl. young, maybe her age, maybe around 19. face pale, eyes wide. human.. too human. you looked at her like you were the scared one.

her blood went nuclear.

“ you—you’re a fucking KID?! ” she shouted, pointing. “ you’ve been standing there—watching us like a machine—and you’re just some girl? holy SHIT! what the fuck is this place?! ”

you stepped back, trying to pick up your mask. but she kicked it across the floor.

“ NO! no, FUCK YOU! YOU DON'T GET TO HIDE ANYMORE !” she yelled, almost screaming, stepping in close again. “ you stand there, acting like you’re made of stone—watching me like I’m an animal—and this whole time you were just a scared little girl playing dress-up with a fucking GUN?! how old even are you?! 19?”

you opened your mouth to say something—she doesn’t even know what—but she shoved you again. not as hard. just enough to make you feel it.

“ do you have any idea what you’re apart of? do you even get what they’re doing to us?! all 456, now 453 dead, and only 3 alive?! ”

tears welled in your eyes. you looked like you didn’t even know why you were here. like someone had dropped you in hell and told you to stand still.

and somehow, that made her even madder.

sae-byeok backed up. hands in her black, short, wolf-cut sweaty hair as some strands stuck to her forehead. shaking. laughing—but not the funny kind.

“this place is absolutely fucked,” she muttered, chest heaving. “ and so are you.. ”

those were the last words she said.

she turned, kicked the door open, and walked out. not looking back.

“ let them try to punish me. let them come. ” she thought quietly.

but you? You’d never forget the look in her eyes.

and now she knew yours.

fuck.

now, she was walking back into the main room, 3 beds in corners. 453, either empty, or bloody from all the deaths that happened in this forsaken room.