The Party That Killed || Hyunlix

80 🕸️

Seungmin sat tied to a chair, struggling to break free from his restraints, but to no avail. His breathing was rapid, and questions swirled in his mind. Suddenly, the door to the room creaked open, and Yuto stepped in, smirking mockingly.

"You… I knew it! You and Chan are just as bad as each other!" Seungmin spat on the floor, glaring at him with fury.

"What are you…? Chan was, and always will be, a coward, whether he killed someone or not." Yuto shrugged as if the topic didn’t concern him in the slightest.

"What are you talking about?" Seungmin furrowed his brows, trying to make sense of his words.

"Well, it seems Chan wasn’t really into killing, unfortunately."

"But he did it!"

"Do you think he wanted to kill them?" Yuto let out a quiet chuckle, shaking his head.

"Did you force him?!" Seungmin felt his heart pound even faster.

"No one forced him to do anything. He wanted to."

"But you just said—"

"Too many questions, sweetheart." Yuto cut him off, leaning in closer.

"Don’t call me that!" Seungmin hissed, turning his head away.

"Tell me, do you know why Jungmin was so devoted to Chan?" Yuto raised a brow, watching him closely.

Seungmin froze at the mention of his brother’s name.

"You knew my brother?"

"Oh, if only I was the only one…" Yuto’s smirk turned predatory.

"What did you do to him?!" Seungmin lunged forward, but the restraints held him back.

"We only kept our promises… and followed the rules."

"You killed him?!"

"He broke the rules. He betrayed us." Yuto shrugged.

"Because you deserved it!" Seungmin shouted, clenching his fists.

Suddenly, another man entered the room. Yuto glanced at him with irritation.

"Yuto, leave him."

"But—"

"Leave him. Go finish those papers you were supposed to send."

Yuto sighed loudly but obeyed, leaving Seungmin alone with the stranger.

≈🎃≈

Seungmin sat on the steps outside the building, staring into the slowly darkening sky. Next to him, holding a cup of coffee, stood Chan.

"Have you ever seen a bird in a cage?" Chan suddenly asked, gazing into the distance.

Seungmin frowned.

"What?"

"A bird born in a cage thinks that’s the whole world." Chan stirred his coffee absentmindedly. "It doesn’t know there’s anything beyond the bars. Maybe it even believes it’s free… because it never tried to escape."

Seungmin sighed, not entirely sure where this conversation was going.

"But if someone opens the cage, the bird flies away immediately, right?"

Chan smiled faintly.

"Not always. Some birds stay. They’re afraid of what’s outside. Because even if the cage is small… at least it’s familiar."