The Party That Killed || Hyunlix

14 🕸️

Hyunjin pov.
Standing on the corner of the street, I shifted from foot to foot, feeling a knot of anxiety grow in my stomach. In the distance, I spotted Jisung, Felix, Seungmin, and Jeongin approaching me. Their confidence was almost palpable, while I felt trapped, unsure of what to say.

“Hyunjin!” called out Jisung, his voice a mix of concern and irritation. “What’s going on? Where have you been?”

“Guys...” I started, trying to gather my thoughts. “I was heading to Chan's. I need to sort everything out with him.”

Felix looked at me with worry. “Why didn’t you tell us what’s going on? People are disappearing, and you’re trying to handle it alone?”

I hesitated. I didn’t want to drag them into this. “I didn’t want you to worry. I wanted you to be safe.”

Seungmin crossed his arms, frustration evident in his eyes. “Safe? We’re the ones in danger! You can’t just ignore us when things get complicated.”

“The police were at his place the night of the party,” I said, feeling my stomach tighten. “I thought it was just a formality, but then people started disappearing. Each one of them was at that party. I think about it every day. What if it’s connected?”

Felix stepped closer to me, trying to reassure me. “Are you sure you won’t get into more trouble trying to solve this on your own?”

I swallowed hard. “I don’t know what to do... But I have to find out why those who were at the party are disappearing. I want to know why this whole thing started in the first place.”

Jisung, sensing the growing tension in the group, made a decision. “Okay, we’ll all go to Chan's together. We need to know what’s going on and what our options are.”

“Yes, together” Seungmin confirmed. “We won’t leave you to deal with this alone.”

I felt my heart calm, and a small smile crept onto my face. Together, we could face the uncertainty. Even though the situation was serious, my friends were ready to fight alongside me.

We set off towards Chan's house, determined to uncover the truth.

≈🎃≈

Chan pov.
We were sitting in my house, surrounded by a silence that was almost tangible. I was perched on the edge of the couch, watching the guys who couldn’t take their eyes off me. The tension in the air was thick, and questions swirled in their minds like vultures circling a carcass.

“Actually, you’re the most suspicious one” Seungmin said in a somewhat blunt tone. “The police came to your party, and you told us not to worry, without even mentioning what they were after.”

I took a deep breath, feeling the adrenaline pulsing through my veins becoming increasingly irritating. “Because I don’t even know” I replied, trying to hide my nerves. “They came and left right away, so I figured they must have received a false report. I thought it was unimportant and that we didn’t need to talk about it.”

Felix, sitting next to Jisung, looked at me distrustfully. “Listen, I know this sounds stupid, but I have no reason to do such things. I have money, I do well in school. Why would I ruin my reputation?”

“I don’t know, maybe you’re just bored” Jisung interjected, crossing his arms over his chest.

I sighed, feeling frustration rise. “I know, guys, I’m the most suspicious right now, but I didn’t kill them, I swear!” I shouted, feeling my heart race. “I’m just... I’m just trying to understand what’s going on.”

Seungmin nodded, still unsure. “But you have to understand that we’re worried. We can’t ignore the fact that people are disappearing, and you’re involved in this.”

“Someone tell me how I can convince you” I said, sighing. “I want to solve this, not be part of the problem.”

Silence fell again, and I felt that every word I spoke could affect our trust going forward. I wanted them to believe me.

≈🎃≈

Felix pov.
On the way back from Chan's, I felt the atmosphere in the car growing more tense. As I drove, I couldn’t stop thinking about what we had just heard. The guys were clearly on edge, and I was trying to figure out how to calm things down.

“But Hyunjin has known Chan the longest; he has a lot in common with him” Jisung said, trying to defend Chan.

I couldn’t stand it. I swallowed my anger. “Excuse me, but Hyunjin was with me the whole time! He wouldn’t do that.”

“So what about Jeongin?” Jisung shot back. “You got into that party with Seungmin because you have connections! Let’s think about what kind of connections those might be!”

“Excuse me, maybe Jeongin has connections, but he wouldn’t do it because he was with me the whole time” Seungmin interjected, defending Jeongin. “Besides, I know him well; he’s not capable of such things.”

I blinked in surprise as Jeongin pointed at Jisung. “Maybe it’s Jisung? He was the only one alone the entire time, and besides, he judges others.”

“Come on, are you serious? Just because someone is alone doesn’t mean they do bad things!” Jisung replied, anger resonating in his voice.

“The rest of us didn’t do it either. You were the only one alone!” I emphasized, feeling I couldn’t back down.

Then Jisung, feeling cornered, shouted: “Felix, you too? Against me? Stop!”

“Jisung...”

“Damn it, pull over this car!” he yelled, and I don’t know why, but I did.

Jisung immediately got out of the car, slamming the door and throwing one last comment:

“You know what? Go chase yourselves!”

“I shouldn’t have judged him” I said, looking after him with a worried expression.  “Honestly, any one of us could have done this, but at the same time, none of us could have. Besides, I have no proof that it’s Jisung.”

Hyunjin, trying to ease the situation, spoke up: “Don’t worry about it, Felix. We’re all scared, and any one of us could be a suspect. And Jisung... he’ll cool down, trust me.”

“I hope you’re right” I muttered, feeling that the uncertainty surrounding us was only growing. The car seemed to come to a standstill on that crowded road.

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Movie suggestion: Dark Shadows (2012)