GAME OVER | SQUID GAME

𒊹 CHAPTER TWO 𒊹

"You saved me..." Sang-woo said, earning a little chuckle from the older.

"Yeah...I did...ah we better go now." Gi-hun said, scrambling to stand up while taking up the credit card. He looked down at it and sighed, clutching it tightly before walking off, followed by Sang-woo.

"Please type your 3 digit passcode." Gi-hun heard a female robotic voice say to him. He entered the numbers 0456 without a word as Sang-woo stood at the side, looking at him with a mixture of exhaustion and worry.

For a moment, they were okay. For a moment, they celebrated both their lives. For a moment, they could smile. For a moment, they felt something.

"This is how much you needed, right?" Gi-hun asked the younger male, handing him the amount of money needed for Sang-woo to pay all of his debt. He carefully took the cash and nodded as he put them in one of his pockets. Gi-hun exited the bank and walked with Sang-woo to his mother's apartment.

"So...your mother...is she in the hospital?" Sang-woo asked as they walked. Gi-hun was silent before shaking his head.

"No. She wouldn't go before because..well..we didn't have the money. I'm hoping she'll agree to it now that...yeah.." Gi-hun replied, not wanting to talk about all the money anymore.

Sang-woo couldn't help but to think of his own mother. Even after everything that's happened, he couldn't get himself to just...stop thinking. He had the money on him. He had a chance to truly fix everything. Almost everything.

Sang-woo bumped into Gi-hun's back as he unlocked and opened the apartment door. Sang-woo was hesitant before stepping inside. He closed the door as his friend called out for his mother. Gi-hun briefly turned to Sang-woo.

"You can just take a seat there." He said, gesturing to where they normally ate. Sang-woo nodded and took a seat, patiently waiting. He felt uneasy but distracted himself by looking around Gi-hun's apartment. They had two completely different living environments; Sang-woo's was a bit bigger and tidier.

After a while, Sang-woo didn't hear Gi-hun calling for his mother anymore. Instead, a lot of shuffling until all sounds came to a stop. Raising an eyebrow slightly, Sang-woo got up and checked all the rooms to investigate. He tensed up when he found his friend laying next to his mother, his hand over her chest and both their eyes closed.

He couldn't tear his eyes away from them, more so Gi-hun. He went through so much to be able to pay his debt and save his mother but alas...it was too late. Sang-woo sighed and closed the door for them. He couldn't exactly go anywhere so he went back to where he was sitting. The whole thing made him think of his own mother.

'dammit...' he thought to himself.

- SQUID GAME: GAME OVER -

Silence. The type of silence that rings in your ears. It spread like wildfire in Gi-hun's apartment. Sang-woo looked over to Gi-hun, who had his hands clasped together. Not once did he smile over the few days they were back. He lost it forever but that was understandable. Sang-woo felt a rush over his entire being; he saw something in Gi-hun's eyes. He knew what it was and while he didn't exactly care before..it mattered now for some reason.

"I'm...sorry." He said, breaking the silence, "for your mother and...everybody else.." he continued, shaking his head slightly.

"It's alright...I thought I had more time.." Gi-hun replied, whispering the last part.

"Gi-hun-"

"And don't apologize for everyone else...I'm not gonna say your were right for it but..." Gi-hun lifted his head and looked at the younger dead in the eyes, "I know you were scared. Even underneath that murderous gaze, how willing you were to get your hands dirty...there was fear. I know that now." He said as he went to sit beside Sang-woo, who had a look of guilt washed over his face.

Gi-hun just looked at his old friend. Sang-woo was all Gi-hun had now; aside from Ga-yeong but he wasn't even sure when the next time he'd see her was. For now, he could only think of Sang-woo, who was very clearly thinking of Gi-hun as well. Although Gi-hun was angry and hurt by Sang-woo, he never wanted to hurt him. He could've killed him but he didn't. He played the game as it was supposed to be played and in the end, still wanted Sang-woo.

So much time lost, so many years gone by without communication that neither of them knew what was going on with the other.

"You killed others so you wouldn't have to kill yourself..." Gi-hun said in a whisper after moments of silence. Sang-woo averted his gaze. His still felt it was dangerous for him to live. Sure his debt was paid but he still had things to worry about. "I think you should speak with your mother...chances are the police have already told her about you."

"Then what, Gi-hun? I get arrested? I....I can't do that...it's impossible for me to do the right thing anymore, you know that." Sang-woo replied, fear and frustration building up in his eyes and in his body language. Gi-hun sighed and thought for a moment.

"We'll run away." Gi-hun said suddenly, definitely catching Sang-woo's attention.

"....what?"

"We'll run away. You can't get arrested so you've gotta keep away from the police. We'll talk to your mom and get her a new place to live as well. Ah...there's gonna be a few detours before we can leave."

"Gi-hun where do you plan to go?"

"Anywhere. But we'll figure that out later. For now, we have things to do."

Sang-woo's face softened as Gi-hun got up and went into the other rooms. Gi-hun wasn't giving himself time to process; instead, he was once again worrying about someone else. He'd been through a lot too but wasn't giving himself a break. It was obvious he was tired, angry, and sad. He just refused to take care of himself.

'Gi-hun...'

To Be Continued....🔺

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Sorry for the shorter chapter, I didn't want to put too much in ;) I'll be working on chapter 3 ❤️