PRISONERS (2/?)
Title: Prisoners (2/?)
Author: qrn
Pairing: OT6
Rating: M (Mature), for sexual & violent themes
Summary: Each of them has their own problems that may just be too hard to cure.
Author's Notes: Chapter Two already! Thank you so much for the great response for Chapter One (to be honest, I didn't really expect it XD). I hope you don't get confused by the change of POV from the previous chapter; from now on, each chapter will be narrated by the character specified by the title. I hope you guys don't kill me over the overly depressing & disturbing content >.< Feedbacks & comments are welcome, as always ^^ Enjoy!
2. DOOJOON
The cell was cold and damp. There was only a small yellow bulb of light, and it looked like it was going to go out anytime. The single bed was barely enough for one person, and it was literally breaking apart. The pillow was tainted with stains (I'd rather not know what those were), and it smelled like piss here. The guard locked the door, leaving me alone inside. Suddenly I missed the common room. And the others.
I peeked through a small window on the wall, but I couldn't really see anything out there because it was already dark. But really, why this place? The food was terrible (dinner only consisted of a small plate of gruel--not rice--that tasted like shit and a glass of water), the adults seemed creepy, and not to mention that the entire building looked like an abandoned mental institution. I still couldn't believe that I was sent to this terrible place. What the hell were my folks thinking? Only problematic people came here, and I wasn't one for sure. Well, the others--especially that kid Yoseob and Hyunseung--didn't seem to be having issues. On the other hand, it was obvious Junhyung and that poor kid Kikwang were pretty fucked up. Dongwoon didn't really talk much, so no judgment here.
I laid myself down on the hard, wooden board that was supposed to be a bed, staring hard on the ceiling. I didn't like this place, and I hoped we get out soon. They did mention an 'experiment'--and whatever it was, it didn't sound good at all. I closed my eyes, suddenly remembering my parents' words when they dropped me off a few hours ago.
"Look, Doojoonie," Mom said, placing her hands on my shoulders. "We wouldn't have brought you here if we wanted to," She shook her head. "But we had no choice."
I kept my hands inside my pockets, not saying anything. Dad patted my back assuringly. "Don't worry, son, everything will be fine."
I looked away. I didn't care. We walked through the giant metal gate, earning cold stares from the tall, hugely-built guards. A plump lady came and greeted us at the front door.
"Welcome," she smiled warmly. Her pleasant tone was very contrast to the environment there. "I'm Bae Jiwoo, vice-president. Is this Doojoon?"
"Yes," Dad said, a firm expression on his face.
"He's the one who--" The lady didn't finish her sentence. She looked at me from head to toe, and nodded. "I see."
"He's going to be alright, is he?" Mom asked, tightening her grip on my shoulders. She sounded anxious and I was starting to get worried myself. If this was a normal rehabilitation centre, then why were they acting so weird?
"Why, he's going to like it here," the woman said, taking out a notebook and a pen. "Leave him to us." She smiled again. "We'll take good care of him."
This whole place was still a mystery to me. I felt like a prisoner, having my own cell and all. I even had to call a guard (although a warden seemed to fit the description more) to go to the toilet, which was located on another floor. I looked at the old clock on the brick wall, slightly amazed that it was still working. 7:45.
It's time.
I pressed a small red button next to the door.
---
"In line, please!"
The next morning, we were awakened by a 7:00AM call. After we washed up, we were ordered to assemble in the dining hall for breakfast. Somehow, since the dinner was gruesome, I kind of hoped they had prepared better food for breakfast. The dining hall was packed (I didn't expect it to be, since I had dinner in a different room by myself), and for once, this place seemed livelier than usual. Long benches and tables were arranged in neat rows, and teenagers--both guys and girls--lined up in front of the food table, chatting and doing whatever they could to kill time until they got their food.
I looked around, searching for Yoseob and the others, and spotted them sitting a few tables away. Yoseob was waving to me, his plate already full of food. I noticed that there were only six people to one table, and I assumed that we all sat in our 'common room' groups, seeing the familiar faces on that table. I walked over to them and took my seat next to the blonde boy.
"Where were you last night?" he asked me curiously.
"I ate in another room," I answered.
"We thought you disappeared or something." He bit into his bread roll eagerly, frowning as he chewed. "This tastes... odd."
I sighed. Even the breakfast menu wasn't as great as I hoped it would be.
"Did you think they were gonna give us something edible?" Junhyung commented from the other end of the table sounding cynical as usual. He was trying to jab his vegetables with a fork, but to no avail. "Look how hard these carrots are," he said incredulously.
"You're not eating?" Dongwoon asked me, taking a spoon of his yellow-colored soup. "Whatever this is, I hope it's pumpkin," he said, wrinkling his nose. "Or corn."
I just realized I hadn't taken my share yet. "I'll be back," I said, joining the massive queue line. I stood behind a long, wavy haired girl who was talking to her friend, a small-framed girl with short brown hair and chubby cheeks.
"I can't even eat without having to wait for half an hour," the wavy-haired girl clicked her tongue, twirling her curls in annoyance.
"I know," the latter added, rolling her eyes. "This place is so depressing."
"You're actually going to eat, Sohyun-ah?"
"What's on the menu?" the small girl asked with a shrug.
"I'll say that this is our best meal yet," the long-haired pointed to the food table. "There's soup, vegetables, and some bread."
Her friend looked skeptical. "Well, it doesn't matter to me what the food is anyway."
"You don't mean--" The wavy-haired girl widened her eyes.
"What?" The other girl crossed her arms, taken aback. "It's not like I can help it."
The two continued talking, and I had no idea what that conversation was about. I knew I shouldn't be eavesdropping, but the line was too long for me to just be standing there like an idiot. I sighed in boredom, and suddenly someone tapped me on the shoulder.
"Are you new?" The tall male had short, cropped hair, and tanned skin. He was wearing a red polo shirt and black pants. "I've never seen you around here before."
I was startled. I didn't notice there was another person behind me. "Er--well, yes, I am."
The guy flashed a toothy grin. "I'm Taecyeon," he held out a hand. "Call me Taec."
I returned the friendly handshake. "I'm Doojoon."
Taecyeon stared at my wristbands. "Those are cool!"
That was random; nobody had ever praised my sense of fashion before. "Er... thanks?"
"You play sports?"
"Soccer," I said, nodding.
Taecyeon grinned again. "Me, too. So... what did they send you here for?" he asked.
The same question. "I'm not sure, actually."
He raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Really?"
The same reaction. "Well, all I knew was that my parents left me here yesterday. I don't even know when they're going to come pick me up."
The tall male stared at me, hard. "Is that so?" he asked, sounding doubtful. "Yesterday? So you're with those kids from Room Eleven?" He pointed to the table where Yoseob and the others were sitting.
"Yeah," I answered, frowning slightly. "Why?" I didn't understand why he referred to our common room as number 'eleven', because I myself didn't notice any numbers or signs on the door.
He shook his head. "No, it's just..." He bit his lip. "You'll never get out of here."
What?
"Huh?"
"Look, I'm not supposed to say anything, but..." The tall male lowered his voice to a whisper. "I heard that they do bad things to anyone assigned to that room."
They?
"What... what do you mean?"
To my disappointment, Taecyeon refused to say anymore. "Nothing, just forget what I said." He gave a thin smile, pushing me slightly. "Your food is ready."
I was too absorbed by the conversation that we were having to notice that I was already in front of the line. Although I wanted to ask more questions, my stomach was growling and I was immediately focused on the the available options on the food table: yellow chowder, knot bread rolls, carrots and peas, and milk. For a moment, I missed my high school's cafeteria food.
"Bread, please," I said slowly. I'd rather risk eating a stale bread than the weird-tasting soup Dongwoon had described.
The grumpy-looking, skinny lady behind the counter eyed me bitterly, before grabbing the roll (without gloves) and plopped it on my tray. I looked at it in disgust and grabbed butter, jam, and a glass of milk, and continued shuffling along down the line. Something was bugging me, so before I made my way back to the table I turned to ask him one last question.
"Why are you here, anyway?"
Taecyeon was still smiling, but it was a rueful smile. "I burnt a house down," he replied shortly, before filling up his own plate. That was an unexpected answer; I didn't say anything, and returned to my seat.
"You're late," Yoseob complained. "I've finished my bread, and it took me ages to chew!" He didn't look happy.
Dongwoon sipped his milk. "At least the milk is good," he commented.
I saw that Junhyung barely finished his food. Across him were Kikwang and Hyunseung, who had no plates in front of them. "You're not eating?" I asked carefully.
Kikwang was laying his head on Hyunseung's shoulder silently. His face was emotionless and blank, and it seemed as if he didn't hear my question.
"Are you guys, like, boyfriends or something?" Junhyung mocked. He smirked. "So you're not eating if he's not eating?"
Hyunseung glared at him. "None of your business," he screeched. "And leave him alone." He continued playing around with a small piece of paper on the table.
"Other kids have been giving us weird looks since we arrived," Yoseob said, motioning towards the other tables. He was right. Some people were staring at them just a few moments ago, but quickly turned away. "I don't know why."
"It's natural," I shrugged. "Unlike us, they must've been here for quiet a while."
"I bet they're already friends by now," Dongwoon said with a sigh.
"Friends?" Junhyung snorted. "There's no such thing."
Yoseb winced. "What did you say?"
"You gotta be tough and independent if you want to survive this crazy world," Junhyung continued. "You can't rely on other people. Friendships are only for cowards."
"Don't say that." The blonde boy slammed his hands on the table. A few heads turned in their direction. "Why are you so pessimistic all the time?"
"You can't trust anyone," Junhyung added. "You'll only end up hurting yourself big time if you do."
I exchanged strange looks with Dongwoon, and I could tell that he was thinking the same thing: this Junhyung person must have serious issues.
The brunette stood up, taking his tray with him. "If you don't believe me, just ask that kid," he said, jerking his head in Kikwang's direction. "He should know." And he left.
"Where are you going?" Yoseob yelled after him, but didn't get a reply. He crossed his arms angrily. "Geez, what the hell is wrong with him?"
Hyunseung didn't look up. "Maybe he has problems he doesn't want to share with us."
"Most of us don't, probably," I commented. "I mean, for example, that tall guy over there--" I pointed to Taecyeon, who was sitting at the furthest table, "--I think he's an arsonist."
"What?" Yoseob and Dongwoon's eyes widened. Hyunseung seemed surprised, too.
"Yeah, he told me he burnt down a house, that's why he got sent here."
"For real?" Dongwoon asked.
"Yeah," I said, taking a bite out of my roll. I cringed--it was bad. "So I assume that they are all here for their own personal reasons." I decided that it was better not to mention what Taecyeon told me before about Room Eleven, or else these two would freak out.
"You mean like dark secrets?" Yoseob leaned forward, interested. "Skeletons in the closet?"
Before I could answer, Hyunseung stood up. "We've got to go." He left, taking Kikwang with him.
"There goes another weirdo," Yoseob muttered. "Our room gets the most random people, I swear!" he said, moving his hands around in big gestures. "We have a Grinch, a vampire, and a mute!"
Dongwoon stifled a laugh. "What's with those nicknames?"
The blonde boy smirked. "Well, Junhyung always has a sour and mean face. Secondly, Hyunseung is so pale and thin that if I ever saw him on the streets at night, I swear I would run off screaming. And Kikwang just doesn't talk!"
I smiled, thinking that he was right about those three. I looked around, and realized there was no clock in the dining hall. "What time is it now?"
"Who knows?" Yoseob shrugged. "We're going to common room after this anyways, so probably the guards will tell us then."
"Guards..." I mumbled. Suddenly I remembered them mentioning experiments. "Hey, do you guys know anything about the experiment they mentioned yesterday?"
"Nope," Dongwoon said, finishing his milk. "For all I know, it could be happening today, tomorrow, even next week." He placed his empty glass on the table. "Or probably the week after."
"We tried asking the other kids about it, but they just gave us those strange looks," Yoseob added.
I rested my head on my arms, feeling hopeless.
What the hell is going on?
---
"Here is your schedule for the week." A guard approached my cell and handed me a sheet of paper.
My eyes scanned through a small diagram on the page. "Therapy?" I asked, pointing to a word written under 'Tuesday'.
"We like to call it experiment," he replied, smirking. "But I'd rather not scare you by saying so."
Well, you've scared me.
"How was today?" he asked.
All I did for the day was talking to Yoseob and Dongwoon (again), since Hyunseung and Kikwang didn't show up. Junhyung was sitting in the corner, smoking and giving evil stares at us. "It was... fine, I guess." What was I supposed to say?
"That's good to hear." The guard took out his set of keys. "Enjoy it while it lasts," he whispered in a Gollum voice, before closing the door on me.
"Thanks a lot," I muttered scornfully. His last words totally creeped me out. I looked at the clock. 5:30.
Just a few more hours.
I walked into the dark bathroom, leaving the guard to wait for me outside. Despite the seemingly-unkept impression of the place, the security was pretty strict. Making sure there was no one around, I slipped into one of the cubicles and sat on the closed down toilet seat. I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath as I took off my wristbands.
"Doojoonie?"
Mom saw it. I knew at that moment, I was done for.
"What are these?" She yanked my hands, her eyes widening. I didn't say anything and could only watch as her expression turned from anger to horror.
She wouldn't understand.
I reached down to my socks, pulling out a small razor blade. Come to think about it, I didn't know how long I had been doing this--but somehow, it had helped relieve some pain I'd been struggling with over the past years.
I don't deserve to be here.
"Here it goes," I said to myself subconsciously as I felt the sharp blade pierce through my forearm.
Author: qrn
Pairing: OT6
Rating: M (Mature), for sexual & violent themes
Summary: Each of them has their own problems that may just be too hard to cure.
Author's Notes: Chapter Two already! Thank you so much for the great response for Chapter One (to be honest, I didn't really expect it XD). I hope you don't get confused by the change of POV from the previous chapter; from now on, each chapter will be narrated by the character specified by the title. I hope you guys don't kill me over the overly depressing & disturbing content >.< Feedbacks & comments are welcome, as always ^^ Enjoy!
2. DOOJOON
The cell was cold and damp. There was only a small yellow bulb of light, and it looked like it was going to go out anytime. The single bed was barely enough for one person, and it was literally breaking apart. The pillow was tainted with stains (I'd rather not know what those were), and it smelled like piss here. The guard locked the door, leaving me alone inside. Suddenly I missed the common room. And the others.
I peeked through a small window on the wall, but I couldn't really see anything out there because it was already dark. But really, why this place? The food was terrible (dinner only consisted of a small plate of gruel--not rice--that tasted like shit and a glass of water), the adults seemed creepy, and not to mention that the entire building looked like an abandoned mental institution. I still couldn't believe that I was sent to this terrible place. What the hell were my folks thinking? Only problematic people came here, and I wasn't one for sure. Well, the others--especially that kid Yoseob and Hyunseung--didn't seem to be having issues. On the other hand, it was obvious Junhyung and that poor kid Kikwang were pretty fucked up. Dongwoon didn't really talk much, so no judgment here.
I laid myself down on the hard, wooden board that was supposed to be a bed, staring hard on the ceiling. I didn't like this place, and I hoped we get out soon. They did mention an 'experiment'--and whatever it was, it didn't sound good at all. I closed my eyes, suddenly remembering my parents' words when they dropped me off a few hours ago.
"Look, Doojoonie," Mom said, placing her hands on my shoulders. "We wouldn't have brought you here if we wanted to," She shook her head. "But we had no choice."
I kept my hands inside my pockets, not saying anything. Dad patted my back assuringly. "Don't worry, son, everything will be fine."
I looked away. I didn't care. We walked through the giant metal gate, earning cold stares from the tall, hugely-built guards. A plump lady came and greeted us at the front door.
"Welcome," she smiled warmly. Her pleasant tone was very contrast to the environment there. "I'm Bae Jiwoo, vice-president. Is this Doojoon?"
"Yes," Dad said, a firm expression on his face.
"He's the one who--" The lady didn't finish her sentence. She looked at me from head to toe, and nodded. "I see."
"He's going to be alright, is he?" Mom asked, tightening her grip on my shoulders. She sounded anxious and I was starting to get worried myself. If this was a normal rehabilitation centre, then why were they acting so weird?
"Why, he's going to like it here," the woman said, taking out a notebook and a pen. "Leave him to us." She smiled again. "We'll take good care of him."
This whole place was still a mystery to me. I felt like a prisoner, having my own cell and all. I even had to call a guard (although a warden seemed to fit the description more) to go to the toilet, which was located on another floor. I looked at the old clock on the brick wall, slightly amazed that it was still working. 7:45.
It's time.
I pressed a small red button next to the door.
---
"In line, please!"
The next morning, we were awakened by a 7:00AM call. After we washed up, we were ordered to assemble in the dining hall for breakfast. Somehow, since the dinner was gruesome, I kind of hoped they had prepared better food for breakfast. The dining hall was packed (I didn't expect it to be, since I had dinner in a different room by myself), and for once, this place seemed livelier than usual. Long benches and tables were arranged in neat rows, and teenagers--both guys and girls--lined up in front of the food table, chatting and doing whatever they could to kill time until they got their food.
I looked around, searching for Yoseob and the others, and spotted them sitting a few tables away. Yoseob was waving to me, his plate already full of food. I noticed that there were only six people to one table, and I assumed that we all sat in our 'common room' groups, seeing the familiar faces on that table. I walked over to them and took my seat next to the blonde boy.
"Where were you last night?" he asked me curiously.
"I ate in another room," I answered.
"We thought you disappeared or something." He bit into his bread roll eagerly, frowning as he chewed. "This tastes... odd."
I sighed. Even the breakfast menu wasn't as great as I hoped it would be.
"Did you think they were gonna give us something edible?" Junhyung commented from the other end of the table sounding cynical as usual. He was trying to jab his vegetables with a fork, but to no avail. "Look how hard these carrots are," he said incredulously.
"You're not eating?" Dongwoon asked me, taking a spoon of his yellow-colored soup. "Whatever this is, I hope it's pumpkin," he said, wrinkling his nose. "Or corn."
I just realized I hadn't taken my share yet. "I'll be back," I said, joining the massive queue line. I stood behind a long, wavy haired girl who was talking to her friend, a small-framed girl with short brown hair and chubby cheeks.
"I can't even eat without having to wait for half an hour," the wavy-haired girl clicked her tongue, twirling her curls in annoyance.
"I know," the latter added, rolling her eyes. "This place is so depressing."
"You're actually going to eat, Sohyun-ah?"
"What's on the menu?" the small girl asked with a shrug.
"I'll say that this is our best meal yet," the long-haired pointed to the food table. "There's soup, vegetables, and some bread."
Her friend looked skeptical. "Well, it doesn't matter to me what the food is anyway."
"You don't mean--" The wavy-haired girl widened her eyes.
"What?" The other girl crossed her arms, taken aback. "It's not like I can help it."
The two continued talking, and I had no idea what that conversation was about. I knew I shouldn't be eavesdropping, but the line was too long for me to just be standing there like an idiot. I sighed in boredom, and suddenly someone tapped me on the shoulder.
"Are you new?" The tall male had short, cropped hair, and tanned skin. He was wearing a red polo shirt and black pants. "I've never seen you around here before."
I was startled. I didn't notice there was another person behind me. "Er--well, yes, I am."
The guy flashed a toothy grin. "I'm Taecyeon," he held out a hand. "Call me Taec."
I returned the friendly handshake. "I'm Doojoon."
Taecyeon stared at my wristbands. "Those are cool!"
That was random; nobody had ever praised my sense of fashion before. "Er... thanks?"
"You play sports?"
"Soccer," I said, nodding.
Taecyeon grinned again. "Me, too. So... what did they send you here for?" he asked.
The same question. "I'm not sure, actually."
He raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Really?"
The same reaction. "Well, all I knew was that my parents left me here yesterday. I don't even know when they're going to come pick me up."
The tall male stared at me, hard. "Is that so?" he asked, sounding doubtful. "Yesterday? So you're with those kids from Room Eleven?" He pointed to the table where Yoseob and the others were sitting.
"Yeah," I answered, frowning slightly. "Why?" I didn't understand why he referred to our common room as number 'eleven', because I myself didn't notice any numbers or signs on the door.
He shook his head. "No, it's just..." He bit his lip. "You'll never get out of here."
What?
"Huh?"
"Look, I'm not supposed to say anything, but..." The tall male lowered his voice to a whisper. "I heard that they do bad things to anyone assigned to that room."
They?
"What... what do you mean?"
To my disappointment, Taecyeon refused to say anymore. "Nothing, just forget what I said." He gave a thin smile, pushing me slightly. "Your food is ready."
I was too absorbed by the conversation that we were having to notice that I was already in front of the line. Although I wanted to ask more questions, my stomach was growling and I was immediately focused on the the available options on the food table: yellow chowder, knot bread rolls, carrots and peas, and milk. For a moment, I missed my high school's cafeteria food.
"Bread, please," I said slowly. I'd rather risk eating a stale bread than the weird-tasting soup Dongwoon had described.
The grumpy-looking, skinny lady behind the counter eyed me bitterly, before grabbing the roll (without gloves) and plopped it on my tray. I looked at it in disgust and grabbed butter, jam, and a glass of milk, and continued shuffling along down the line. Something was bugging me, so before I made my way back to the table I turned to ask him one last question.
"Why are you here, anyway?"
Taecyeon was still smiling, but it was a rueful smile. "I burnt a house down," he replied shortly, before filling up his own plate. That was an unexpected answer; I didn't say anything, and returned to my seat.
"You're late," Yoseob complained. "I've finished my bread, and it took me ages to chew!" He didn't look happy.
Dongwoon sipped his milk. "At least the milk is good," he commented.
I saw that Junhyung barely finished his food. Across him were Kikwang and Hyunseung, who had no plates in front of them. "You're not eating?" I asked carefully.
Kikwang was laying his head on Hyunseung's shoulder silently. His face was emotionless and blank, and it seemed as if he didn't hear my question.
"Are you guys, like, boyfriends or something?" Junhyung mocked. He smirked. "So you're not eating if he's not eating?"
Hyunseung glared at him. "None of your business," he screeched. "And leave him alone." He continued playing around with a small piece of paper on the table.
"Other kids have been giving us weird looks since we arrived," Yoseob said, motioning towards the other tables. He was right. Some people were staring at them just a few moments ago, but quickly turned away. "I don't know why."
"It's natural," I shrugged. "Unlike us, they must've been here for quiet a while."
"I bet they're already friends by now," Dongwoon said with a sigh.
"Friends?" Junhyung snorted. "There's no such thing."
Yoseb winced. "What did you say?"
"You gotta be tough and independent if you want to survive this crazy world," Junhyung continued. "You can't rely on other people. Friendships are only for cowards."
"Don't say that." The blonde boy slammed his hands on the table. A few heads turned in their direction. "Why are you so pessimistic all the time?"
"You can't trust anyone," Junhyung added. "You'll only end up hurting yourself big time if you do."
I exchanged strange looks with Dongwoon, and I could tell that he was thinking the same thing: this Junhyung person must have serious issues.
The brunette stood up, taking his tray with him. "If you don't believe me, just ask that kid," he said, jerking his head in Kikwang's direction. "He should know." And he left.
"Where are you going?" Yoseob yelled after him, but didn't get a reply. He crossed his arms angrily. "Geez, what the hell is wrong with him?"
Hyunseung didn't look up. "Maybe he has problems he doesn't want to share with us."
"Most of us don't, probably," I commented. "I mean, for example, that tall guy over there--" I pointed to Taecyeon, who was sitting at the furthest table, "--I think he's an arsonist."
"What?" Yoseob and Dongwoon's eyes widened. Hyunseung seemed surprised, too.
"Yeah, he told me he burnt down a house, that's why he got sent here."
"For real?" Dongwoon asked.
"Yeah," I said, taking a bite out of my roll. I cringed--it was bad. "So I assume that they are all here for their own personal reasons." I decided that it was better not to mention what Taecyeon told me before about Room Eleven, or else these two would freak out.
"You mean like dark secrets?" Yoseob leaned forward, interested. "Skeletons in the closet?"
Before I could answer, Hyunseung stood up. "We've got to go." He left, taking Kikwang with him.
"There goes another weirdo," Yoseob muttered. "Our room gets the most random people, I swear!" he said, moving his hands around in big gestures. "We have a Grinch, a vampire, and a mute!"
Dongwoon stifled a laugh. "What's with those nicknames?"
The blonde boy smirked. "Well, Junhyung always has a sour and mean face. Secondly, Hyunseung is so pale and thin that if I ever saw him on the streets at night, I swear I would run off screaming. And Kikwang just doesn't talk!"
I smiled, thinking that he was right about those three. I looked around, and realized there was no clock in the dining hall. "What time is it now?"
"Who knows?" Yoseob shrugged. "We're going to common room after this anyways, so probably the guards will tell us then."
"Guards..." I mumbled. Suddenly I remembered them mentioning experiments. "Hey, do you guys know anything about the experiment they mentioned yesterday?"
"Nope," Dongwoon said, finishing his milk. "For all I know, it could be happening today, tomorrow, even next week." He placed his empty glass on the table. "Or probably the week after."
"We tried asking the other kids about it, but they just gave us those strange looks," Yoseob added.
I rested my head on my arms, feeling hopeless.
What the hell is going on?
---
"Here is your schedule for the week." A guard approached my cell and handed me a sheet of paper.
My eyes scanned through a small diagram on the page. "Therapy?" I asked, pointing to a word written under 'Tuesday'.
"We like to call it experiment," he replied, smirking. "But I'd rather not scare you by saying so."
Well, you've scared me.
"How was today?" he asked.
All I did for the day was talking to Yoseob and Dongwoon (again), since Hyunseung and Kikwang didn't show up. Junhyung was sitting in the corner, smoking and giving evil stares at us. "It was... fine, I guess." What was I supposed to say?
"That's good to hear." The guard took out his set of keys. "Enjoy it while it lasts," he whispered in a Gollum voice, before closing the door on me.
"Thanks a lot," I muttered scornfully. His last words totally creeped me out. I looked at the clock. 5:30.
Just a few more hours.
I walked into the dark bathroom, leaving the guard to wait for me outside. Despite the seemingly-unkept impression of the place, the security was pretty strict. Making sure there was no one around, I slipped into one of the cubicles and sat on the closed down toilet seat. I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath as I took off my wristbands.
"Doojoonie?"
Mom saw it. I knew at that moment, I was done for.
"What are these?" She yanked my hands, her eyes widening. I didn't say anything and could only watch as her expression turned from anger to horror.
She wouldn't understand.
I reached down to my socks, pulling out a small razor blade. Come to think about it, I didn't know how long I had been doing this--but somehow, it had helped relieve some pain I'd been struggling with over the past years.
I don't deserve to be here.
"Here it goes," I said to myself subconsciously as I felt the sharp blade pierce through my forearm.