paranoia / gyuricky

11: play 'till we die

Yujin was a few aisles away, in the kitchen section, seeking something to keep himself safe. His gaze is drawn to a frying pan, which he carefully grasps with both hands. A loud noise startled him, leading him to slowly turn around, his hands trembling as he gazed at the seafood section at the end of the aisle, with the only light coming from the fridges. Nothing was there yet, maybe it was just his mind trying to scare him.

Nearby and inside the large stock room was Gunwook, slowly making rounds around each shelf. He comes across a box cutter that he immediately picks up. It reminded him of Jang Eunbi, sending a shiver down his spine. Fight fire with fire, he thought.

A loud bang startled Taerae, who was standing around the exit of the store, a lighter in one hand and a large bottle of hairspray in the other. He didn't like being in close quarters with people who wanted to hurt him, so the best answer was to make a flamethrower that he was able to use from a distance. Double checking, Taerae tries to open the door, a sigh of relief leaving his lips as he finds that the door is still in fact locked.

"Everything all good?" Matthew asks, receiving a nod from Taerae. In his hand was the largest kitchen knife he could possibly find, which worried the younger he was with, as Matthew didn't seem too careful with it.

Ricky already feels the first pile of pills kick in, making him feel dizzy, but not necessarily in a bad way; his surroundings were wobbly and he suddenly felt extremely affectionate. He reaches out to Gyuvin, running his hands through the younger's hair, giggling softly. "You're pretty," Ricky mumbled.

Concerned, yet relieved that the pills were working, Gyuvin grabs the second pile from the container lid, leaning in close to Ricky, who thankfully, opens his mouth. Gyuvin feeds him the pills one by one, yet the blonde doesn't swallow them. "Ricky, you have to swallow it," he says gently, holding him by the jaw.

Groaning, Ricky leans into Gyuvin's touch, barely able to register what the latter was even talking about. He eventually remembered that he had to take the second pile; everything seemed to be moving so slowly that Ricky had already forgotten that he'd swallowed the first pile of pills in the first place.

Singing echoes throughout the stock room, putting Gunwook on edge. He squinted his eyes as he examined his surroundings, barely able to see anything through the darkness. With the murderer's presence in mind, Gunwook takes each step slowly, so as to not be caught off guard, his heart beating through his chest.

Yujin, still not too far away from the stock room, lingered around the seafood section, stopping in his tracks when heavy footsteps catch his attention. He holds his breath as he turns around, slowly letting it out once he comes to realize that, once again, nobody was there. With extreme anxiety and a creative imagination, Yujin could barely keep himself at ease.

"Come on," Gyuvin complained, impatiently staring at his phone, watching time pass by. In such a dire situation, a mere five minutes seemed like years to him.

Ricky retches and swallows to try and keep the pills down, but it's no use. He turns to the side to throw up, the pills that were once in his system now scattered across the floor. "I'm sorry," Ricky sobs, running his hands through his blonde hair. "I'm so sorry."

"It's okay," Gyuvin reassures, unsure of where to put his hands, eventually finding a place on Ricky's shoulders. "It's okay."

"Look," Ricky suddenly says, his gaze shifting to something behind Gyuvin. "Behind you." He brings a shaky hand up, pointing in fear.

Turning around, Gyuvin is faced with Skull Mask running straight toward him. He couldn't help but let out a scream, pulling Ricky into a hug to protect him with his body. Sure, Gyuvin was afraid of losing his life, but if he had to choose between him and Ricky surviving, he'd choose Ricky in a heartbeat.

Just as Gyuvin prepares himself for the worst pain of his life, it never comes. He looks up to see Matthew showing up behind the murderer, lodging the kitchen knife he was wielding into the side of Skull Mask's neck. "Go! Just go! I've got him!" he shouted in reassurance.

Gyuvin takes the opportunity to grab Ricky by the arm, pulling him to his feet, and fleeing into an aisle that was closer to the back of the store.

"I need to die," Ricky says, grabbing onto the collar of Gyuvin's shirt to hold himself up. "I need to die."

"I'm gonna figure this out, don't worry," Gyuvin replied, his eyes darting around the store as the two wandered around aimlessly. His gaze finally lands on the lobster tank that was in the seafood section. Drowning the person he liked was not on his bucket list, but it was something he had to do.

The heavy footsteps became more audible, and Yujin's heart began to race. He was most fearful of the axed man of all the murders, so hearing the familiar sound of the man's boots hitting the tiled floor terrified him. He braced himself as he turned the corner as the aisle ended, swinging his frying pan. Fortunately, it didn't hit anything; all that remained was Yujin and the buzzing of the neon sign hanging above him on the wall.

Yet the footsteps returned, this time only faster.

Yujin turns to look at the aisle he was just in, his jaw dropping as he watches the axed man run towards him. It's now or never, Yujin thought. With all his force, the boy swung, squeezing his eyes shut as his frying pan collided with the man's face. Yujin opened his eyes to see that he had knocked the Camp Planet murderer onto the ground, a thick pool of black blood leaking from his head. Taking no more extra time, Yujin ran away, finding a place to hide behind a fruit display, panting in fear as his blood ran cold.

Tossing the lobster that was once in the tank onto the floor, Gyuvin turns to Ricky. "Do you hear that?" he asked, alluding to what he assumed was Taerae's sudden high-pitched screams reverberating throughout the store.

"Finish it," Ricky demands, clearly disturbed by the fact that his friend was in dire need of help and that he couldn't do anything about it. "Idiot, did you hear me? I said—"

Gyuvin, with a hesitant gulp, prompts a hand on the back of Ricky's head, dunking him into the tank of water without warning.