|| Dreamers || <Seongjoong>

-||Forty Three||-

Seongwha
"Something in your eyes went cold."

Seongwha's heart raced as he watched Wooyoung, once vibrant and full of life, now twisted into a monstrous figure. The sight was surreal, a nightmare unfolding before his eyes. Wooyoung lunged at San, teeth bared, a chilling growl escaping his lips. Without thinking, Seongwha sprang into action, his instincts taking over. He wrapped his arms around Wooyoung, locking him in a headlock, desperate to restrain his friend from causing harm. "San, run!" he shouted, urgency lacing his voice.

"Seongwha, no!" San cried, his eyes wide with terror. "Let go of him! I can't leave him!"

"San, you have to!" Seongwha urged, tightening his grip as Wooyoung struggled against him, his strength fading but still fierce. "If you don't, he'll hurt you!"

Jongho, ever the reliable one, rushed over to help Yeosang up, their eyes wide with fear and disbelief. "We can't just leave him like this!" Jongho protested, glancing between Wooyoung and San.

"Look at him, Jongho!" Seongwha yelled, frustration bubbling to the surface of his watery eyes. "He's not Wooyoung anymore! We need to go!"

Hongjoong was nearby, his face a mask of horror as he reached for San, who was frozen in place, tears streaming down his cheeks. "Wooyoung! Come back!" San cried, voice breaking, but it was too late. The transformation had taken hold, and Wooyoung was lost to them.

Suddenly, the air was shattered by the sound of gunshots, echoing ominously in the tense atmosphere. Seongwha turned, his grip on Wooyoung tightening instinctively, but it was too late. Wooyoung fell to the ground, a gaping hole in his chest, the light in his eyes extinguished. San collapsed beside him, sobs wracking his body as he cried out for him to return, the weight of grief heavy in the air.

"Wooyoung?" San's voice was barely a whisper, filled with despair as he cradled Wooyoung's lifeless form. "Wooyoung!.."

Seongwha felt a lump in his throat, the reality of their situation settling in. "I'm so sorry, San," he said softly, his heart aching for his friend. "He's gone.."

Jongho knelt beside them, his expression a mixture of sorrow and anger. "This isn't right. We should have done something more. We could have saved him!"

"Stop it, Jongho!" Hongjoong snapped, his voice sharp. "Blaming ourselves won't change anything! He's dead."

Seongwha's gaze shifted to the distance, where the gunfire had originated. To his shock, he saw the gate standing wide open, the ominous horde that had threatened them now lying lifeless on the ground. A sense of disbelief washed over him as he processed the scene; the chaos had subsided, but the cost was unimaginable.

"What happened?" Yeosang asked, still dazed as he looked around. "Who did this?"

"I don't know," Seongwha replied, his eyes scanning the area for any sign of life. "But we need to figure it out. There might be more of them. They might be the guys from the radio."

San, still kneeling beside Wooyoung, looked up with tear-stained cheeks. "Those crazy fuckers shot him," he choked out, his voice trembling. "They fucking killed him."

"They saved us," Seongwha said, his voice steadying as he placed a hand on San's shoulder.

Suddenly, a figure appeared through the smoke and debris of the woods, a silhouette against a dimming light of a torch. Seongwha instinctively stepped forward, ready to defend his friends. "Who's there?" he called out, his heart pounding.

As the figure drew closer, they could see it was a soldier, their uniform tattered but still intact. "You're safe now," the soldier said, breathless but relieved. "We cleared the area. The horde is dead."

Seongwha exchanged glances with his friends, a mixture of relief and confusion washing over them. "You... you killed them?" Jongho asked, still processing the sudden shift in their situation.

"Yes," the soldier replied, looking at the fallen bodies. "But we need to move quickly. More could be on the way. Behind those gates is the camp-.."

San looked up, his eyes still glistening with tears. "You killed him? You fucking killed him!"

"San.." Yeosang mumbled through coughs of blood. Seongwha's heart ached.

"Wooyoung?" He mumbled, "wake up.. wooyoung, please?.." he lent his head down onto Wooyoung's, touching foreheads. "Wake up."

But he didn't. "Wake.. up..." he choked, releasing his tears. An ugly shout exhaled from him. "You bastards killed him!.." San brushed Wooyoung's hair gently, pushing it away from his face. He winced as his tears landed on Wooyoung.

"San.." Seongwha muttered, grabbing hold of his shoulder. San pushed him away.

"He's alive! Please.. wake up Wooyoung.. it's not a joke anymore.." except he didn't wake up. Suddenly the soldier was behind him, grabbing him by his arms as disconnecting his hands from Wooyoung. He squirmed in the tight grip as he tried getting back to him. "Wooyoung!.."

"He's dead." San darted his eyes up at him.

"I'll kill you.. I'll fucking kill you! You.." he broke down, his tears running faster down his face as he looked at Wooyoung who led there. Motionless. "We were almost there.." he cried. "Wake up.."

"San!" Seongwha shouted, tears filling his eyes as he watched his distressed friend. "He's dead."