The Party That Killed || Hyunlix

48 🕸️

3rd person pov.
Chan sat on the edge of the desk, staring at the blank sheet of paper in front of him. The pen trembled in his hand, as if the weight of the words he had to write was too much to bear. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself, but his thoughts were like a chaotic storm.

In a burst of frustration, he knocked a stack of papers off the desk, sending a few falling to the floor. He picked one up and looked at it—his earlier notes. The words “symbol,” “cult,” and “victim” appeared on it repeatedly, each written with increasing desperation.

"What am I doing?" he muttered to himself, crumpling the paper in his hand. He tried to throw it away but at the last moment unfolded it again and carefully smoothed it out with trembling fingers, as if by doing so, he could restore order in his mind.

He rested his forehead in his hand, his gaze drifting beyond the window. In his mind, he saw that night—the fire, the screams, the blood. The cult had punished one of their own for daring to defy them. Chan could feel their eyes on him, as if telling him he would be next if he so much as dared step out of line.

He returned his gaze to the paper. He had to write it. He had to give Seungmin a chance to understand, even though he knew that the price for the truth would be high.

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3rd person pov.
The recording began with a static image, as if the camera was struggling to focus. Chan's voice filled the room, trembling and full of tension.

“If you’re watching this... it means you’ve finally found the recordings. Maybe that's good. Maybe there’s still time,” Chan took a deep breath, his gaze seemingly piercing the lens as if he wanted to reach through it and touch each one of them.

“Seungmin… there’s something you need to know. Your brother came to me once. He was terrified. I don’t know what he saw, but he told me that what’s happening is beyond anything we can imagine. He told me that if something happened to him… I should keep a letter. For you.”

Chan wiped his face with his hand, a mix of fear and relief in his eyes.

“The letter is at my old house. You know where it is, Seungmin. It wasn’t easy leaving it there… but now I know you need to find it. You need to read it. Your brother deserves for you to know the truth. I know it won’t erase the pain, but… maybe it will change something.”

Chan lowered his gaze, then added softly, almost in a whisper:
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier. I was too scared. But this isn’t the time for fear. Do this before it’s too late.”

The recording ended abruptly with a cut in the sound and a flickering image, leaving the boys in silence, only the sound of their quickening breaths filling the room.

A heavy silence fell, broken only by the quiet ticking of a clock on the wall. Seungmin sat on the bed, staring at the screen where Chan's recording had just been. His hands gripped the edge of the mattress, and his thoughts raced uncontrollably.

“This is madness…” Felix spoke, leaning against the desk. His voice was tired, tinged with a hint of fear. “Do we really have to go there? To his old house? We don’t even know what we’ll find.”

“We’ll find the letter from my brother.” Seungmin interrupted, standing abruptly. His voice was firm, though tinged with a slight tremor. “Chan wouldn’t have done this without a reason. He must have known we’d come here one day.”

“But it could be a trap.” Jeongin looked at him with concern. “We don’t know what’s waiting in that house. Maybe someone’s still there, maybe something… is left behind.”

“I don’t care.” Seungmin squinted. “If there’s even a chance I can find out what really happened to my brother, I’ll go. With you or without you.”

Felix exchanged a glance with Jeongin, who shrugged his shoulders in a silent gesture of resignation.

“Fine.” Felix sighed heavily. “But we’re going together. We’re not leaving you alone in this, Seungmin.”

“Always.” Jeongin added, placing his hand on his friend's shoulder.

Seungmin nodded, though his eyes still burned with a mix of anger and determination.

“So, what now?” Jeongin spoke up, trying to add a bit of lightness to the tense atmosphere. “Do we go tomorrow? Or maybe today, before someone beats us to it?”

Felix stared at him in disbelief, but for the first time in a long while, Seungmin smiled.

“We’re going now.” He announced firmly. “No time to waste.”

Moments later, Jisung entered the room, his expression thoughtful.

“We leaving already?” he asked, peering inside.

Seungmin looked at him, then at Hyunjin, who stood in the doorway with a bag slung over his shoulder. Hyunjin slowly stood from his chair, wiping his hands on his pants.

“Yes, but…” Seungmin hesitated for a moment, feeling the growing tension. “We’re going to find the letter Chan mentioned. It could be the last thing he left for us.” He glanced at the others, including Jisung and Hyunjin, who had their doubts.

Hyunjin, always the more composed, sighed but his gaze was full of resolve.

“Even though this is crazy, we have to do it,” he said, not hiding his concern. “We know it won’t be easy.”

Jisung nodded, then looked at Seungmin with a serious expression.

“We know what’s happened to everyone connected to Chan, but we don’t have a choice. We need to understand what’s going on.” He added, still uncertain, but now more ready for whatever awaited them.

Seungmin looked at his friends, his hands gripping the edge of the desk. He knew this wasn’t just about uncovering the truth about Chan and his past anymore. He knew for each of them, this was the final step toward fully understanding what they had gotten themselves into.

“Alright, we’re going,” Seungmin decided, his voice carrying a firmness none of them had heard before. Moments later, they made their way to the door, where the morning light pointed the only way forward.

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Movie suggestion: Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988)