· 。ﾟ☆: *.☽
▎A F T E R D A R K ▎

· 。ﾟ୧ ⋆. 𝗣𝗟𝗔𝗬𝗘𝗥 𝟬𝟲𝟬. ₊˚.༄
ACT ONE ━━━ CHAPTER TWO,
❝ red light, green light ❞

𝓙i-Yoo opened her eyes and saw that she was in an unfamiliar place. She turned her head to the side and saw someone laying on another bed across from her — actually, there were several beds.

Ji-Yoo sat up and looked around, the first thing she noticed was that she was in a room full of beds that had people on them. The second thing she noticed was that her outfit was different.

She was now wearing a matching green tracksuit, a stripe of white was placed on the sides of her jacket and pants. Ji-Yoo saw how her jacket had the number '060' on it, and that the plain white t-shirt she wore had a big number '060' on it as well.

What the hell did 060 mean?

This was a game of some sort, so maybe it was her player number?

As she looked at the people around her, she noticed how all of them wore the same confused expression as she did. She hopped off the bed she was laying on and went down the stairs since her bed was on the second level.

Ji-Yoo looked up and saw a sign above, it said the number '456'. That must be how many players there were.

She snapped her head to the middle of the room where player 101 and player 067 were fighting. People started to surround the two of them, wanting to witness the fight.

It wasn't long before player 456 interfered, but that didn't really help in any way possible since it seems that the girl did something to 456.

The sound of an alarm buzzing cut their fight short, the door slid open revealing a bunch of those red masked people. There were eight of them with a circle on their mask and one with a square.

"I would like to extend a heartfelt welcome to you all. Everyone here will participate in six different games over six days. Those who win all six games will receive a handsome cash prize."

People started to whisper amongst themselves while a man shouted out, "And why should we believe that? Y-You took all our stuff and put us to sleep coming here, and then brought us to this strange warehouse. Now you're saying you'll pay us if we go and play a few games? You really expect us to buy that?"

"We reluctantly took all of those measures to maintain confidentiality as we brought you here. We'll return everything once the games are over."

A woman spoke up, "You all . . . you all have masks. Why are you wearing those things?"

"We do not disclose the faces and personal information of our staff to any of the participants," The masked man answered. "It's a measure we take to ensure fair games and confidentiality. Please understand."

Ji-Yoo turned her head when another man spoke, player 218. "Well, I don't believe you one bit. You got that? You tricked us. We were kidnapped."

Ji-Yoo recognized him for some reason, he looked and sounded oddly like her cousin, Cho Sang-woo.

She shook her head, why would Sang-woo need to participate in a game that gives you money? From what she's heard, Sang-woo is incredibly smart, he graduated from Seoul National University and was currently in the US.

There's no way he would be here in Korea, she would've known. She is his first cousin, after all. Sang-woo's mother is her aunt, their moms were sisters.

"You can make as many excuses as you want to make sure nobody knows you broke the law in here. If you're going to make up for that, then we're gonna need something more."

"Player 218, Cho Sang-woo," The masked man spoke. Ji-Yoo's eyes widened at the words that came out of the masked man's mouth.

It was actually her cousin. There weren't many people with the name 'Cho Sang-woo', and it makes sense because he looked and sounded like him.

But why was he here? Wasn't he already rich?

The masked man clicked the button on the remote he was holding as the screen showed a video of Sang-woo playing ddakji.

"Age, 46 years. Former team leader of Team Two of Joy Investments." Ji-Yoo watched as Sang-woo gets punched in the face. "Siphoned money off from his clients' balances, then invested it in derivatives and futures options and failed. Current loss, 650 million won."

The masked man then started to state information of other players as their videos of them playing showed. And for some reason, he decided to mention Ji-Yoo.

"060, Park Ji-Yoo, 500 million in debt," He stated as a clip of Ji-Yoo getting slapped by the man in the suit played. Ji-Yoo winced at how badly she looked, she could feel a few eyes on her and one of them was Sang-woo.

As a few more clips played, Ji-Yoo realized that they were all playing with the man in the suit. She then wondered if he kissed any other girls other than herself.

"Why do I care if he kissed other girls?!" Ji-Yoo questioned herself in her head, "I don't even know him." She shook her head, wiping the creepy, but handsome, man from her thoughts and focusing on the guard with the square mask.

"Every person standing here in this room is living on the brink of financial ruin. You all have debts that you can't pay off. When we first went to see each of you, not a single one of you trusted us. But as you all know, we played a game, and as we promised, gave you money when you won. And suddenly, everyone here trusted us. You called and volunteered to participate in this game of your own free will. So this is it. I'll give you one last chance to choose. Will you go back to living your old and depressing lives getting chased by your creditors? Or will you act and seize this last opportunity we're offering here?"

Whilst the players were murmuring amongst themselves, thinking over the opportunity that the masked guard proposed, Ji-Yoo was trying to inch closer to her cousin.

It took her a while but she finally reached him, Ji-Yoo stood right behind the man with glasses. "Psst," she called out which made Sang-woo turn his head to look at who tried to get his attention, "Sang-woo!"

"Ji-Yoo?" Sang-woo's eyebrows furrowed and his eyes grew wide at the sight of his cousin, shocked that she was playing the game as well.

Sang-woo knew about how Ji-Yoo had tried to get in contact with her father, he once tried to help her with his 'connections'. He also knew that his aunt had passed away three years ago, which left Ji-Yoo to be alone. Sang-woo always cared for his cousin, she was the closest relative he had.

So when he saw and heard about her participating in the game, Sang-woo started to worry. Ji-Yoo was an intelligent girl, he knew that, but she was too young to understand the danger she was in.

"What are you doing here, Sang-woo?!" Ji-Yoo asked him, making sure only he could hear her because she didn't want to start an argument which would lead to more eyes on them.

"I should be asking you that question, Ji-Yoo. You shouldn't be here."

Ji-Yoo scowled, "Neither should you! Why are you here, Sang-woo?"

"That's none of your busi-" Sang-woo wasn't able to finish his statement since player 199 spoke up.

"Hey! Which games are we playing here?"

"In order to play fair, we cannot disclose any information about the games ahead of time."

Player 456 raised his hand and asked the question that no one seemed to ask yet, "One question. If we win, just how much do we get?"

The masked guard clicked a button again as the top door started to open, and a big pig lowered. Everyone looked up at the piggy bank that had a bright glow, which illuminated the dim room. "Your prize money will be accumulated in there after every game. We will disclose the amount to everyone after the first game is over. If you do not wish to participate, then please let us know at this time."

Soon after, everyone began to form into lines. Ji-Yoo tried to talk to her cousin again but Sang-woo just walked away from her, desperately not wanting to speak to her, which annoyed her.

Ji-Yoo stood at the front of the line now, she looked down at the sheet of paper that the masked guard held out for her to sign at the bottom. In the paper were the rules;

Clause 1: A player is not allowed to stop playing.

Clause 2: A player that refuses to play will be eliminated.

Clause 3: Games may be terminated if the majority agrees.

Ji-Yoo took a deep breath and looked to her left, narrowing her eyes when she saw Sang-woo signing the paper. Sang-woo met her eyes for a second before he walked away and to the beds, the look in his eyes screamed 'don't sign it'.

She shrugged and signed it, smirking. What's the worst that could happen?

Ji-Yoo then gave the paper to the masked guard and walked away with a smirk on her face. From the corner of her eye, she saw Sang-woo glaring at her but she ignored him.

If he can join, why couldn't she?

𝓙i-Yoo entered the colorful room with a blank look on her face. The place was gigantic, it was styled into a sort of maze. "Hm, must be like that so players get lost if they try to escape," Ji-Yoo assumed in her head.

"Please look into the camera. Smile."

Ji-Yoo fixed her hair before smirking into the camera, the camera clicked and took her picture.

Her smirk dropped and she followed the person infront of her, heading towards where the first game was. Ji-Yoo walked into the room, it was a large landscape that had grass as the wallpaper, making it look like they were in a meadow of some sort. Ji-Yoo looked ahead and spotted a large tree with a big doll. Hm, strange . . .

Ji-Yoo looked around and spotted Sang-woo speaking with player 456. She decided to head over to the duo, wanting to confront her cousin.

"Sang-woo," She called out which made the two of their heads snap in her direction, which was on Sang-woo's left. "Ready to tell me why you're here?" Ji-Yoo raised an eyebrow.

Sang-woo sighed, "I-"

"You know Sang-woo too?" Player 456 chimed in, cutting Sang-woo off.

Ji-Yoo nodded, "Yes, I do. How do you know him?"

"We were childhood friends," Player 456 nudged Sang-woo's shoulder playfully but Sang-woo just looked bored.

Ji-Yoo hummed in response, glaring at Sang-woo slightly for not answering her question. Player 456 glanced at the two of them, confused as to who this girl was to his childhood friend.

Thankfully for Sang-woo, 456 spoke up again before he could say anything. "Uh, miss? How do you know Sang-woo?"

"I'm his cousin," Ji-Yoo gave 456 a half-hearted smile.

"Attention, all players," A female voice spoke from the speakers. "After you enter the game hall . . ."

"We'll talk about it later," Sang-woo said simply, looking at the both of them, before walking away. Ji-Yoo clenched her jaw and walked away as well, leaving a confused Gi-hun.

". . . please stand behind the white line drawn on the field and await further instructions."

While the woman repeated the instructions, Ji-Yoo decided to start a conversation with the girl beside her. "Hello."

Player 067 turned her head slowly, "Hi?"

"I'm Park Ji-Yoo, what's your name?" She asked innocently.

The young woman stood silent for a moment, debating whether or not she should tell Ji-Yoo her name. Finally, she reluctantly answered, "Kang Sae-byeok."

"That's a really nice name," Ji-Yoo smiled at her and was surprised when Sae-byeok gave her a small smile in return. "What game do you think we're playing?"

Sae-byeok shrugged, "Not sure. I'm not from here."

Ji-Yoo furrowed her eyebrows before she remembered what player 101 said to her when they were fighting earlier. "Oh, right. You're from North Korea."

Sae-byeok just nodded, not sure how to reply. Ji-Yoo just gave her a genuine smile before listening to the woman who announce what the game was.

"Here is the first game. You will be playing Red Light, Green Light," the doll turned around, facing the tree. "You are allowed to move forward when "it" shouts out, "Green Light," stop when "it" shouts, "Red Light." If your movement is detected afterward, you will be eliminated."

Sae-byeok turned to face Ji-Yoo, "Do you know this game?"

"Yeah . . . it's a game I used to play as a child," Ji-Yoo pursed her lips and looked at Sae-byeok. "I'm not sure why we're playing a kids game."

"Those players who cross the finish line without being eliminated within the five-minute playtime will pass this round. With that, let the game begin."

Ji-Yoo and Sae-byeok shared one last glance before the doll spoke.

Green Light

A few players ran forward, but not Ji-Yoo. She wanted to see what would happen if someone were eliminated first before risking it.

Red Light

Player 324, the one with bleached hair, was currently in the lead. The doll turned around when he stumbled a bit. "Player 324, eliminated."

Player 250 smirked, "Dumbass got caught."

Just then, a loud bang was heard making Ji-Yoo's face drop in confusion. 324 fell down which made Ji-Yoo scoff at his 'dramatics'. Just because you got eliminated doesn't mean you have to drop.

The doll's head turned back around.

Green Light

Player 250 walked forward and hovered over 324, who was still on the ground. "Hey, you got eliminated, idiot. You can stop with the act."

Blood came out spewing out of 324's mouth which made 250 step back from shock and confusion. Player 250 turned around and ran, only for a shot—a gunshot—to hit him right in the heart. Ji-Yoo's face dropped in realization. He was dead.

Players screams and ran away, which resulted in them getting shot.

That's when Ji-Yoo understood what was happening. It seemed that the doll has some sort of motion detector. So if you move, you die.

Ji-Yoo stood frozen from shock, people were dying right by her feet and she just stood there. "Oh my God . . ." Ji-Yoo whispered, looking at the dead bodies that were surrounding her.

"I will now repeat the rules. You are allowed to move forward when "it" shouts out, "Green Light," stop when "it" shouts, "Red Light." If your movement is detected afterward, you will be eliminated." The woman repeated the rules once more before the doll turned its head again. "With that, let the game resume."

Green Light

No one moved except for the old man who had the number '001' on his jacket and shirt.

Red Light

"Ji-Yoo!" The familiar voice of her cousin spoke from behind her. "Please, for the love of God, do not move."

"I'm trying not to, Sang-woo!"

Green Light

Again, only the old man went forward. It seemed like he was enjoying it.

Red Light. Green Light.

This time, more people walked forward. But like before, Ji-Yoo didn't move an inch.

Red Light. Green Light.

Ji-Yoo decided to take three steps forward, she also heard footsteps coming up directly behind her.

Red Light

"Gi-hun, don't look back. Just listen. You too, Ji-Yoo," Sang-woo was the one behind her. Ji-Yoo's eyes flicked to Gi-hun, who was beside her on the ground, a dead player on him.

Ji-Yoo flinched slightly when another gunshot was fired. "You can't stay there much longer. I think that doll senses when you move around. You won't get caught if you're behind somebody else."

"You're using me as a shield?!" Ji-Yoo almost screamed, knowing that Sang-woo was literally behind her. "What the fuck, Sang-woo!"

Green Light

Both Ji-Yoo and Sang-woo ran, but this time, Sang-woo decided to stay behind somebody else.

Red Light

Ji-Yoo followed Sang-woo's tactic and stood behind someone, but the player she was hiding behind died right infront of her.

"Shit!" Ji-Yoo cursed loudly, her eyes set on player 389's dead body, which was right at her feet.

Green Light

Ji-Yoo decided to take a big risk and run for it. Out of everyone in her grade, Ji-Yoo was always the fastest runner. She always beat everyone when the PE teacher would let them run laps.

Red Light

So, thanks to her ability to run really fast, Ji-Yoo was now in the top 3 leading players. Ji-Yoo stopped a few inches infront of player 101, who had Sae-byeok hiding behind him.

Green Light. Red Light.

The doll started to say it fastly now, which made Ji-Yoo take a few long strides instead of running.

Green Light. Red Light.

She quickly ran behind the person that was closest to the finish line, using him as a shield.

It seemed that the player knew she was behind him because he spoke up, "Who's behind me? I heard you."

Ji-Yoo gripped the back of his jacket making him take a deep breath. "Your worst nightmare," she smirked.

Green Light

She pulled on his jacket and pushed him to the ground, quickly running forward.

Red Light

Ji-Yoo smirked when she heard a body drop behind her and a strangled gasp, telling her that he got shot and died. She chuckled humorlessly, "Loser."

Green Light. Red Light.

Ji-Yoo decided to use this time to risk it all and run the fastest she has in her life, grinning when she passed the red line.

"Player 060, passed."

word count: 3081

kara speaking . . .
second chapter, done! this was 3k words brooo wtf??!!! and omg WOW she's cousins with sang-woo, cry abt it. she'll meet joon-ho (loml) in the next chapter. anyways, #saebyeok4ever !

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© -𝙶𝙾𝙳𝙳𝙴𝚂𝚂𝙾𝙵𝙻𝙾𝚅𝙴, 𝟸𝟶𝟸𝟷