Santiago Guzman:

In all honesty, the tally process doesn't make a whole lot of sense. All I know is that I'm stuck in an empty room and the bald man definitely locked the door. I get the whole showing "superiority" but in all reality, how does killing someone make you any better?

"What am I doing?" There is absolutely nothing interesting about the room. I mean there was a chair and a desk. It was more of an interrogation room if anything. Plus, if you look closely, some of the cracks in the walls made some pictures. Hmm it's a bunny. Or maybe it's a squirrel. It could also be a cat.

"Ehem." Startled, I turned around to see the one and only...

"Holy shit, Miranda King?" The woman lifted her eyebrow, amused. Her figure seemed cold, even as her skin gave off a warm glow.

"Who else would I be?" She gestured towards a seat as if telling me to sit. Carefully, she began setting up my arm. With handcuffs. What the hecky heck am I gonna do? Run away?

"It's Trigger here, though." The woman gestured to the lanyard around her neck.

Trigger. Why Trigger? Does everyone get a name like that? Steph could pull off something like that.

The pain wasn't super bad, but I wasn't a huge fan of it. It was like lots of little teeth digging into my arm. Repeatedly. I could imagine a rat gouging into my skin, like the ones I used to get locked in my room with. Bro my muscles are gonna look so cool now. If I had these muscles three years ago I wouldn't be here.

"How's it going?" I looked at her, slightly startled. Apparently my arm was startled, too because I flinched, causing the needle to miss its mark. I'ma just call it a freckle. A really dark, very permanent freckle.

"Fuck. Sorry." I waited for her to continue before actually answering her question, "I don't know. Everything is so weird and-"

"Heard about the girl." My vision swam as my head began to pound. Of course she knows about Becky. You murdered her. That's why you're here.

"I want to leave. I can't do this-," I can't do this anymore. I want to go home. I miss mom.

"Aren't you proud? You're moving up the ranks." What? I don't understand.

"What?" I want some of mom's pozole.

"In this world, you can't succeed without sacrifices. I reckon she wasn't the best help." Stop it. Stop it. Take me home.

Finally, Trigger put up her needle and bandaged up my arm. As soon as she finished I all but lept out of my seat and left.

Throughout the day I could hear little snippets of whispers as Steph and I walked together. She could hear them, too. My sister, I can't believe I think of her as my actual sister now, seemed uptight. Clearly something had happened while I was gone, but I didn't want to push her.

And then there was Minhyuk. I don't know what happened, one minute we were fine and the next it's like he never existed.

It hurts.

I thought I had finally made a connection with someone who I could understand. But within the blink of an eye, it was gone. It was all gone.

The days were flying by, as were any hopes of going home.

People were watching us but it was far from the attention I was used to.

"It's them."

"Who?"

"The chick from this afternoon. And the guy who killed-"

"Oh my gosh."

I met Steph's dark in question. Instead, she turned her head away but moved closer.

"Look at him."

"He looks violent enough." Their whispers followed us.

"It must have been so easy for him to kill."

No, you're wrong! I'm nothing like him.

I can't do this.

Maybe Steph has secret powers or I was just obviously uncomfortable because she put her hand on my shoulder.

"Don't worry about it. We'll be fine." Easy coming from you. You're not being called a killer.

"I bet he snapped her neck without thinking."

"And all those other people..."

I want to go home. The tears were coming, ready to fall. I swallowed thickly, hoping to avoid a scene.

Steph and I sat at a table, huddled together, trying to shield each other from the stares. The eyes were burning into me, making me lose focus off my spoonful of soup. Apparently because my luck sucks, it plopped straight down onto my shirt. Steph giggled at me before I flipped her off.

"Bro, what happened to the other dude?" Without my knowledge, a small group had approached us. The one who asked was vaguely familiar. His grin mirrored his brother's, but his eyes were full of bitter hate.

"What is it? Jason?" Steph was as usual, unimpressed.

"Yeah, but you didn't answer my question."

"Who?"

"You know the Chinese-," a girl behind him whispered something to the boy, "-er Korean one."

". . ." Neither of us responded, after all, we didn't know either.

"If he shows up, have him meet with us." I think not, but okay.

After that weird exchange, we were left with our thoughts, leading to a rather cold atmosphere. I looked at my bowl, watching the grey sludge slowly thicken.

"You could have eaten from the other line." I had until now, picked food off of Min's plate, because apparently the more tally's you had, the better your food was.

"I didn't want to."

With a thud, another figure appeared at our table. Familiar dark hair and shining piercings. I had only ever seen him in the evenings when he returned to the cave to sleep. Only now could I see the dark circles under his eyes, and how thin he had gotten.

"Min!" I nearly hit my legs under the table with how I had jumped. He glanced up, before returning to his apple.

Fruit? You can't have that as a single tally.

I looked at his arm, seeing that it was bulkier with bandages. Oh my god.

"You killed someone." He turned away, for some reason, so did Steph.

"Stephanie Johnson, please come here," A voice called from the front of the room. Oh my fucking god.

"You killed someone, too." I can't believe it. Steph avoided my gaze as she stood up. Min had finished his apple and stared at his hands.

I can't...

I can't do this.