𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐞𝐫 | 𝐒𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐝 𝐆𝐚𝐦𝐞

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏: 𝐒𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐝 𝐆𝐚𝐦𝐞

His brown eyes twitched as bright light covered his eyelids and classical music hummed in the background. He breathed slightly before peeling open his eyes and being met with a black, metal ceiling above him. A jolt of panic awoke his body and he lifted his head from the comfortable pillow, snapping his head to the side before wincing at the new pain in his neck and letting his head fall back against the pillow. His left hand clutched the blanket laid on top of him while his other hand rested comfortably at his side. 

 He pushed himself upright, his elbows creaking in protest as they dug into the firm mattress. The blanket slid down his torso causing him to stare at the green jumpsuit that he was now wearing. The number '338' was etched onto a patch sewed on the jumpsuit and a look of confusion crossed over his face before it settled into realization. 

The classical music filled the room and thrummed in his ears, only spurring his anxiety. People's hushed murmurs of disbelief were drowned out by the blaring classical music and he couldn't even hear the pounding of his own heart and pulse in his ears as he gazed around the bland room, his gaze lingering on a few people whose faces' mirrored his own. 

He tore the blanket off his legs and the bed creaked as he swung his legs to the side of the bed and, using all his strength, pushed himself from the bed and landed on the black staircase below him. He walked down the black staircase in a haze of confusion and disbelief, glancing left and right at the identical bunk beds that filled the otherwise empty room. He slowed his steps as he came close to the bottom of the black staircase, his insides lurching as his feet landed harshly on the shiny concrete floor and he began to walk to the center of the room, lifting his head upwards as he spotted a TV on the green wall in the center of the room. 

"Number of players," he murmured and quickly glanced down at the number '338' etched onto his green jumpsuit. "I'm Player 338," he voiced.

"My doctor said counting numbers is good for preventing dementia," a recognizable voice said. 

He turned his head towards the familiar voice and relief flooded through him as he spotted the man sitting upright in his bed, conversing with the last player, 456. He opened his mouth to call out to the old man, but before he could, an angry voice filled the room, followed by the sound of flesh hitting flesh. 

"You bitch!"

His head swiveled towards the direction of a forming crowd and he walked into the crowd, ignoring people's grunts of protests as he pushed past them. He finally saw what people's attention was directed towards. A tattooed man in the center. Player 101. And a much smaller girl whose hair was chopped at her shoulders, blood covering her lips. Player 067. 

"Geez," he cackled, his shoulders straigtened and his chest puffed out. "Didn't think I'd run into you here. Look at those eyes. Your temper hasn't changed," he said as she stood up. Her eyes held a hidden rage and her green jumpsuit noticeably sagged as she stood fully upright, her bangs slightly falling over her eyes. 

"Then again," he breathed, his chest falling and rising, "nobody broke your spirit; you could always take a hit. I fed you, put a roof over your head, even taught you my skills." He tilted his head, "and you stab me in the back?" 

"You already took more than what I owe you," she said calmly. 

"If you're so confident, why did you run away?" 

"I didn't run away. I just went independent."

A mocking laugh escaped his lips and filled the silent room. "What?" he smiled, but it soon fell as he let out a breath of frustration  and swung his fist towards her face. She quickly leant back and dodged his punch with a certain grace to it, but he quickly retaliated and gripped her neck, his face remaining stoic while she let out a gasp of surprise. He quickly swept her legs from underneath her, causing her small figure to slam against the shiny, polished concrete floor. Player 101 stood above her, frustration visible on his stoic face.