𝐆𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 | 𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐔𝐬 𝐀𝐫𝐞 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐝

𝟓 | 𝐅𝐮𝐥𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐞

𝒇𝒖𝒍𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒆 - 𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒍𝒐𝒅𝒆 𝒗𝒊𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒍𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒍𝒐𝒖𝒅 𝒏𝒐𝒊𝒔𝒆
┈┈┈┈┈𖥸┈┈┈┈┈

The silence is suffocating in the aftershock of Ms. Park's parting following Na-Yeon's, but the brisk night breeze grazing past your skin is a welcoming buffer. You're still settled by the windowsill, unsure if enough time has passed to deem yourself safe after what transpired with Gyeong-Su earlier. No one has approached you—not even Su-Hyeok—since your adamant refusal for anyone to come near however long ago. Regardless, Cheong-San's penchant for risk-taking and blatant disregard for safety has him sitting opposite you on the ledge and staring down at the infested field below, knuckle all scraped and bloody from punching a wall out of prior frustration.

You don't decline the company this time.

Soft footsteps stop nearby, and even without looking, you can tell they belong to On-Jo. "Y/N, you know you can come back here near us, right? I'm fine, and so are you. If anything were to happen, it already would have. A lot of time has passed since this morning."

You turn to her. "Do you think we're immune?"

"Immune?"

"Don't use big words with her," Cheong-San teases.

"Are you calling me stupid?" On-Jo crosses her arms, almost pouting.

"You said it, not me." Raising both arms up in a show of non-offense, On-Jo finally catches a glimpse of the bloody mess that's Cheong-San's hands, your question long forgotten.

"What did you do that for?! Look at your hand!" On-Jo chides, but it's only chock-full of genuine concern as she clutches his right hand to inspect the cuts, oblivious to Cheong-San's flustered state as he attempts to look anywhere but where their hands are touching. He meets your gaze and you make faces at him mischievously, nudging your head toward On-Jo.

"Do you have a death wish?" Cheong-San mouths to you over On-Jo's bowed head, miming a slashing motion near his neck with his left hand.

"On-Jo, you should check the other hand too," you suggest, biting back a smile as Cheong-San narrows his eyes at you.

"You're not okay, idiot." On-Jo sighs, but doesn't let go of his hand. "I'm sorry that this probably isn't what you want to hear right now, but be strong."

Cheong-San recoils. "Don't comfort me. You've never been good at it." He almost pulls his hand away—almost—but thinks better of it. On-Jo's only trying to help after all.

"Just returning the favor." On-Jo rests her hand on top of yours where it's placed in your lap. "I-Sak was one of my best friends, but I never thought about how precious she was to me until I lost her. Thinking about the fact that she's gone made me feel like my whole world crumbled. I'm thankful for you guys consoling me then." She squeezes your hand once before facing Cheong-San. "I don't want you to wallow in guilt as I had, pondering on the what if's and how we could've saved our friends. Of course, we love them and miss them, but they would also want us to survive, and the only way we can do that is to move forward."