The Party That Killed || Hyunlix

58 🕸️

3rd person pov.
Chan sat in his small basement, hunched over a table covered with maps and scattered notes. The only lamp in the room cast a dim light, creating shadows on the walls. The silence of the night was interrupted by a soft knock on the door.

He furrowed his brow, glancing at the clock. It was late, too late for visitors. He slowly rose, heading toward the door.

"Who's there?" he asked, his voice firm, but inside, he felt a pang of unease.

"It's me, Jungmin," came the response from behind the door.

Chan immediately slid back the bolt and opened the door just enough to let the guest in. Jungmin slipped inside, nervously looking around.

"What are you doing here?" Chan hissed, closing the door behind him. "I told you not to get yourself involved."

"I don’t have time for your lectures," Jungmin replied quietly, but firmly. His eyes were filled with determination, but Chan noticed something else—fatigue and sorrow.

Jungmin pulled a crumpled envelope from his pocket. In the light of the lamp, it seemed thick, as if it contained more than one piece of paper.

"This is for Seungmin," he said, pushing the envelope into Chan’s hands. "If something happens to me, you need to give this to him."

Chan stared at the envelope, then at Jungmin.

"What are you talking about? Nothing’s going to happen to you. I’ll get you out of this."

Jungmin smiled bitterly and shook his head.

"Don't be naive. We both know how this is going to end."

Chan struggled to swallow. He took the letter, even though his hands were shaking.

"I don’t want to do this," he whispered, as if the words could change the reality.

"I'm not asking you to want to," Jungmin looked at him, his eyes cold with determination. "I'm asking you to do it."

Chan stared at the envelope, as if it weighed more than it should.

"What’s inside?" he asked, trying to steady his trembling voice.

"Explanations. And something that will make sure he doesn’t hate me," Jungmin lowered his gaze, as if his words were a burden for both of them. "He needs to know I had no choice."

Chan clenched his teeth, trying to find words that made sense.

"Promise me you’ll come back before I have to give it to him," he finally said, his voice almost pleading.

Jungmin was silent. He simply nodded, then turned and disappeared into the darkness of the night.

Chan stood frozen, holding the envelope. Even though it was light, he felt as though he was holding a stone in his hand.

≈🎃≈

Jungmin stood across the street, hidden behind a row of trees. He watched Seungmin, who stood with a group of friends in front of the school, laughing at some joke. His younger brother wore his favorite backpack, the one Jungmin had picked for him during their shared trip to the store.

A faint smile appeared on Jungmin’s face, though his eyes revealed sorrow. "You’ll manage... you always do," he thought, tightening his hands in his coat pockets.

He wanted to approach, to say something else, but he knew he couldn’t. Sometimes, silence was the best goodbye.

He slowly turned away and headed towards the parked car. He glanced back one last time, watching Seungmin, smiling, turning his head, gazing at the world ahead of him. A world Jungmin had to leave behind.

As he got into the car, Jungmin took one last look at the rearview mirror, where he could still see Seungmin in the distance. For a moment, he hesitated, but then started the engine.

He rolled down the window and felt the cool air on his face. "Goodbye, brother," he whispered quietly, before pressing the gas pedal and driving off, disappearing around the corner.

≈🎃≈

Jungmin felt his heart race as he turned off the main road, driving down an empty, deserted path. The car that had been following him for the past few minutes still kept close behind, like a shadow. He thought he saw headlights reflecting in the rearview mirror, and though he tried to ignore it, something inside him told him this wasn’t a coincidence. The car pulled up beside him, veering onto the shoulder, switching lanes, but the car did the same.

It was like a game of cat and mouse, but Jungmin no longer had the strength to run. He stopped suddenly, blocking the road, and his heart pounded louder as he turned his gaze toward the dark forest ahead. He felt a tremor running through his body, but he couldn’t stop it. When he looked back in the rearview mirror, his face turned pale, because the car that had been following him had stopped right behind him. A dark figure emerged from the vehicle, and Jungmin’s heart froze. As soon as he saw the silhouette, he found it hard to breathe. He wanted to start the engine, but what he saw made him unable to take a step.

Darkness surrounded them, and cold seeped into his veins. They stood facing each other, as if this were the final moment, but Jungmin felt there was no turning back. He inhaled deeply, feeling the silence become unbearable.

Then he heard a voice he knew, but now it carried an entirely different tone.

"We can't go back to what it was, Jungmin..."

The car behind him started moving, its lights fading, and he was left alone in the dead silence, knowing he would never be the person he was just moments ago.