The beating of the drum echoes in their mind in time with their heart and the pounding of their brain against their skull as they clutch their chest, not daring to peel their eyes away from the mirror behind them. They crawl forwards and begin to run again, the eel's laugh still echoing within their mind and sending a fresh wave of terror over them.
They round the corner and stumble on one of the carpets, sliding against the cold tile. Their arm screams in pain as they choke back a mix between a groan and a sob.
"Woah!" They hear rapid footsteps approaching them and feel a warm hand on their back. "Are you alright? That looked like it hurt!"
They quickly sit up, eyes wide and brimming with tears as their eyes meet ruby red ones, knowing all too well to not be deceived by the boy's kind looks. He puts his hands up, gold bracelets clinking softly against the bass of the music from the other room. "Hey, I'm not going to hurt you, I promise!" He smiles and they feel the wall being broken down brick by brick as they hesitantly let him step closer. He helps them stand and brush themselves off, pausing when he notices their pained expression once his hand brushes over their broken arm. "Do you need a drink or something? You look exhausted..." He doesn't mention or make any expression indicating the smell of blood and vomit that no doubt covers their entire body, nor the fact that they've been in too much of a slump to shower over the past few days.
"Hey, why don't you get cleaned up in our showers?" Nevermind. "We have a spare uniform you could borrow if you want Jamil to wash yours!" They shake their head, but pause. "I-I can... please, not the jacket, or... the bandanna..."
The boy beams, grabbing their uninjured arm and pulling them away from the music, into a lavish looking room as he rummages through his closet, throwing fabric upon fabric, expensive looking and some of them even clinking as the jewels embedded onto them clash with one another. He chatters absentmindedly as someone pushes open the door.
"Kalim, you shouldn't run away like that," A quiet, but stern voice calls from the doorway as it cracks open, revealing a boy with his hair pulled back into long, dark braids and a ponytail that cascades down his back. His bangs nearly cover half of his face, and he looks much more threatening than the student who was currently helping them- Kalim.
The white haired boy jolts up and nervously chuckles, motioning towards Yuu, who clutches their blazer nervously. They nod at the black haired boy, who scowls.
"Do I really have to tell you to not invite strangers into your room?" He sighs, stepping in and walking towards Yuu.
"Oh, come on!" Kalim pouts. "They fell, and look at how they look! I thought I would help them out!" He pulls out a few fabrics which, much to Yuu's relief, don't look nearly as expensive as the ones that he was rummaging through earlier. He holds them up, revealing clothing that was very similar to the uniform that the two boys were wearing, but without the gold accessories that decorated the dorm members. "My shower is in that room there, you can use the soaps that are there! I'm gonna go back to the party, okay?" They hesitantly nod. "Jamil is gonna stay in this room, through-" He leans in and whispers into their ear, warm breath fanning the blood that crusted along their hairline. "He thinks you're gonna try to steal from me. Silly, right? This isn't even my treasure room!"
They gulp and look over to the taller student, narrowed eyes unwavering in their direction as they nod and scurry off to the bathroom. Yuu first delicately unties Jack's bandanna, taking extra care to keep it separated from anything that could change Jack's scent that was embedded within the fabric, the scent that he said would keep them safe and protected. They pause for a moment, wondering if Kalim was truly trying to help them, like Jack and Ace and Deuce. A well meaning boy in a hellhole, as trapped as they were. Shaking their head, they slowly peel off the blazer, attempting to wipe off some of the blood and hanging it on the towel rack. They then struggle to take off the white dress shirt underneath, the blood dried and sticking to their skin. They remove the rest of their clothing and struggle to unwrap the bandages around their broken arm, biting into a towel as the dried blood glues their open wound and makes their arm throb with each tug. They sigh and pull, letting out a cry when the pain becomes unbearable and makes their world spin.
