Taeyong and Taeil sit in anticipation of Jaehyun’s performance. It is strange; they swore never to see each other again, but for some reason, they anticipate. Something is making them connected. Was it the emotions they all share? Was it the experience they all encountered? Or was it the one thing they all have in common: their fear?

The two can already see the massive amounts of distress arising into Jaehyun’s soul as he continuously misses his shots. It isn’t surprising though. What happened yesterday determined Jaehyun’s fate. He is exhausted from the association with the terrible past that has reawakened.  

Jaehyun makes a shot, and all of a sudden, the shining lights are cut from existence. It is like they were never there. The approached darkness has confusion growing in the minds of the audience, especially Taeil and Taeyong. Whispers are transferred through the disorientation of the people. But what continues to stay bright is something that sends shivers down Taeil and Taeyong’s spine. The score, 27, that is the only matter which glows in a radiant red has the two guys shaky and wide-eyed. They’ll never get used to it: every hair on their body standing tall and straight, the ability to speak ripped out of their throats like it was never of importance, and the desire to disappear as if their existence is fiction. As that number glows and speaks to them without verbal interaction, they feel the need to scream in terror.

But they don’t.

Instead, they sit stiff and still, and their hearts accelerate without movement. They could be placed in a museum because of their statue-like nature. In this case, they would be statues full of horror and absolute fright on their faces like they’re being carved and chiseled by their bloody memories.

At this instant, the lights shine again and much relief is released by the audience until they hear an ear-thrilling scream coming from the center of the gymnasium. Taeil and Taeyong flinch from the cry in terror, and they realize they aren’t the only ones that are shocked from the occurrence of the power outage. They figure that Jaehyun is the one who screamed, and they are stunned to see the strong-willed guy on the ground, pushing himself away from a basketball with his feet and arms. Squeaks and stumbling is heard as he pushes and pushes in fear.

This is the worst state they’ve ever seen Jaehyun in. He has always stuck to his mature and composed nature, making the other three boys assume that he was the strongest in handling all the events, but they were wrong. Jaehyun has been experiencing the exact same astonishment and fear, and now it is being shown in its own light in front of the public.

“Oh my god! What is going on?!” Yuta and Hansol are worried from the screams coming from Jaehyun. Taeil and Taeyong don’t say a thing and just watch in enlarged eyes. Something isn’t right, and they all know that very well. Taeil’s encounter with the bloody scissors, Taeyong’s with the note on his computer, and Jaehyun’s with the writing on the basketball. What’s next?

In result, Jaehyun stumbles up on his legs and begins to run out of the gymnasium in desperation. Taeil and Taeyong would have done the same thing. Right then, Taeil’s attention is grabbed by something beside him. On the silver bench he sits on, there lays a piece of paper on his left. It wasn’t there before, but now it is which has his mind boggled. With shaky hands, he gently wraps his fingers around the piece of paper. Once he flips this piece of paper, the need to vomit is drawn. His face is dead pale and he tries to maintain his breath. Taeyong feels a firm, vigorous grip on his arm, and he comes back to his senses. He sees the immense horror on Taeil’s face as the guy looks down at a piece of newspaper like the world is about to end. Once Taeyong spares a glance at what is on the newspaper, his face turns paler and his eyes begin to turn red from how afraid he is.

SEO YOUNGHO, ALSO KNOWN AS JOHNNY SEO, FOUND DEAD IN A BATHTUB AFTER BEING STABBED ON JULY 2, 2012.

The statues that they once were are now crumbled by a hit of a hammer. None of them can move even a centimeter, but running is such a wonderful dream. If only they could.  If only they could run and hide from all the misery. If only they could scream and shout at the highest amplitude. If only they could erase all the fear with a simple brush of an eraser. But fear exists for a reason, and it is to tear to inner soul of a person layer after layer until the person fully deteriorates. It already feels this way though: the feeling of being destroyed by the mind and soul.

So much is coming at their presence in just a short time just like turning on a hair dryer—it does not give you time before it blasts. It just happens, and there is never time to be prepared.

At that moment, Taeyong spots a familiar figure walking out of the gymnasium at the left door, the opposite side from where Jaehyun exited. This figure is familiar because of the gray hoodie, the hunching like the person doesn’t want his face to be seen, and the mysterious aura. Taeyong swears he saw this same figure at the camp. If this figure was at the camp, why is he here at the gymnasium as well? Suspicion keeps Taeyong on his last straw.

“We should check on Jaehyun,” Taeil speaks soft yet broken in Taeyong’s ear, still gripping on his arm like his life depends on it. Taeil is afraid, and Taeyong can see it. He can feel the vibration of Taeil’s hand because of how shaky the guy is. Taeyong hastily nods a few times before telling Yuta that he and Taeil will be taking their leave because they need “to use the bathroom.” The basic excuse, but it is the only thing that will work for now. Taeil crumbles the newspaper article and stuffs it in his pocket like he is carrying an object full of misery and secrets. Taeyong and Taeil step down the stairs and hurriedly exit the gymnasium in order to find the broken man they once thought was the strongest. They have no idea why Jaehyun was reacting as he did. It would have been understandable if he was screaming in desperation from the scoreboard, but he wasn’t even looking at the glowing numbers. He was shrieking and pushing himself away from the basketball as if he was some psychotic figure—at least to the public eye.

If only the world knew what really happened—what really happened to Johnny Seo.

The whole situation that occurred was minimal. It was like no one knew what really happened because the event was broken in tiny pieces that no one could figure out. No one has figured out the true culprit of this mysterious murder for three whole years. Even star investigators have tried to uncover Johnny’s murder, but there was such little evidence that they’ve given up. By all means, they’ve just never realized that there were witnesses—four of them. They just never came out in the open.

“He should be hiding in the storage room,” Taeil states while panting. Taeyong is irked because of how Taeil seems to know where this guy is. This entire time, Taeyong has been following Taeil like a little fly. This has him questioning whether Taeil acts like he doesn’t know Jaehyun that well. He has noticed this ever since the car ride yesterday, but those two have been avoiding eye contact and during Taeil’s runaway, Jaehyun was the first to start dashing after him.

“How do you know that?” Taeyong questions while running, often cut off by his own panting. It is a bit unusual for Taeyong to act like he has the right to ask, but he does anyway. Taeil stays quiet for a few seconds as he thinks of a proper answer before telling Taeyong something desirable.

“He used to do that a lot at the camp,” he informs honestly as they rush through the hallways to look for a storage room that Jaehyun may or may not be in. They both turn to the right into a hallway that definitely looks like a storage room could be there, and their faces show relief once they see a cold-colored blue door with “storage room” engraved on a small, beige plate on the door. Before Taeyong can even respond to the guy’s answer, Taeil opens the door in a steady motion, and the sounds of soft weeping is heard. The two already conclude that the weeping is Jaehyun’s, and Taeil pulls the door open with all his strength. A short gasp escapes the guy who is sitting on the floor with his knees covering his face.

Jaehyun sits in the storage room, in the dark, crying to himself. Jaehyun crying would probably be the biggest news because of how rare it is. He always stands tall, maintains himself even with pressure, and is the most calm and composed guy on the planet Earth. But now, he is a crushed toy in the bitter darkness, waiting to be glued back together and hoping to function again. Unfortunately, reality never gives sincerity and will let the brightest rot until his or her radiance decays.

“Jaehyun!” Taeil and Taeyong shout his name in victory of finding the guy who is shocked to hear his name being called. Jaehyun lifts his head slowing, processing the light blinding him from seeing the faces of these two guys. The two rush inside the storage room and kneel down beside the guy who is beginning to recognize the two’s faces. Taeyong places his left hand on Jaehyun’s shoulder with a worried expression, and Taeil keeps his distance and worries for him without touching him. Taeyong notices it.

“Hey,” Taeyong softly voices in a comforting way just to let Jaehyun know that there is actually someone willing to comfort him. “Will you tell me what happened?” Being a writer, Taeyong knows exactly that asking if someone is okay is the worst thing to ask because the answer is most likely a no. And the saying of one understanding his or her situation will allow a punch in the face. So Taeyong stays in a low-key nature and advises that Jaehyun tells him and Taeil the story by his own will.

As a result, Jaehyun bites his lower lip, about to break down again. He is embarrassed. He is ashamed. He is wishing this is all just a stupid dream that he will wake up from. In the end, he lowers his forehead onto Taeyong’s left shoulder and attempts to quietly sob. It is like crying was never an option for the guy, so if he ever cried, he had to attempt to do it silently.

Taeyong and Taeil kneel there bitterly as they hear the guy have a mental breakdown. Before they even know it, it has been twenty minutes of comforting him, and the basketball game is starting to end.

“The basketball,” Jaehyun finally speaks but his voice is as ruined as a scratched voice recording, “it had a note on it.” Just then, Taeil and Taeyong freeze and stay as stiff as they were when the saw the newspaper article in front of them. Taeyong is especially the one who stays silently stiff with his body shaking like he’s seen a ghost in white. “Someone knows.” Now Taeyong and Taeil want to take Jaehyun’s place and cry with all their might.

“Did the note say something like ‘I know one of you did it’?” Taeyong says in a morose tone. If Jaehyun says yes, Taeyong is going to rip all of his hair out because this is absolutely insane. Jaehyun stares at Taeyong with wide eyes, swollen and full of red.

“How do you know that?” The exact same question that Taeyong asked Taeil appears for himself, but this question has now changed its entire meaning. Jaehyun sits up with horror on his face and grips onto both of Taeyong’s shoulders with both of his hands. “Tell me!”

“I got the same exact note,” Taeyong speaks in pain because of Jaehyun’s tight grip. “I got it last night when I got home.” All three of them sit in silence, the atmosphere ripping them into pieces.

“Someone knows,” Taeil speaks in shock, and his hands slowly reach his head where he begins to grab his hair as he loses his mind.

“We need to leave,” Taeyong declares, already on panic mode. “Come with me.” Taeyong’s intentions are outrageous considering all three of them are in this state, but each of them need to figure out what is going on and the only way to do that is to get them altogether once again. The three stand up while shaking like three puppies, and they leave the storage room into a bright, annoying light that contradicts their current emotions. They speed walk down the hallways as if someone is chasing them from behind. This is truly insane. This is a complete nightmare.

What is going on?

“Stop. Again!” He swears that he has heard him say that about ten times already. He repeats his movements once more, gliding and popping his upper body, and again, he messes up. “Ten!” Ten flinches from the shouting of his name. He knows about his mistakes, but he can’t help it. His mind keeps getting distracted by an unfriendly memory that interrupts his inner thoughts. “What is going on with you today?”

“I-I’m sorry, Taemin,” Ten apologizes with regret as he bows ninety degrees, hoping that he’ll accept the apology again. “I promise—“

“It won’t happen again,” Taemin finishes his sentence. Ten absolutely hates making Taemin, the team leader, upset and the worst is when he burdens his entire dance team. “You said that a million times, Ten. Is there something wrong?” Taemin asks this simple question, but this simple question has Ten’s mind and heart full of unfavorable events that he desires to disappear from.

“N-Nothing. I am just distracted today. I really am sorry,” Ten apologizes once more. Ten is a star dancer in the crew, but today his moves are not flowing, they are not smooth, and they are definitely not right. Taemin sighs in defeat as he feels terrible for scolding the guy. Ten is such a sweet kid; Taemin’s heart always hurts whenever Ten says he is sorry. “We’re going to take a break, but Ten, you will stay here and practice the steps a little more, alright?”

Ten hates this. He hates disappointing people. He hates being the cause of everyone’s troubles. He hates being the source of disappointment. His day keeps getting worse almost like luck has suddenly become a myth after yesterday night. All of the other dancers in the crew leave to take their break while they leave Ten behind regrettably. Ten shows a bitter smile as he waves them goodbye. They are all probably going to go out to eat while he stays behind, dancing his life away.

Dance is a source of enjoyment for Ten. It has always been his outlet and his best friend. When he is happy, he dances. When he is sad, he dances. When he is angry, he dances. He just always dances. It has always fascinated him that he could do something he loves as a job—earning money for something he would do for free. What is even better is that he could enjoy it, but something is stopping him. Something is stopping him from enjoying his favorite interest.

Three years ago, someone close to him died—no, “died” is such a broad term. This person was murdered. That means someone wished for this person’s death and intended to dispose of his existence. There has not been one day that Ten has ever forgotten. Afterall, Johnny was someone who Ten has known ever since elementary school. They knew everything about each other from their first loves to the colors of the shirts they wore on each of their birthdays. Now Ten can’t even say what color shirt Johnny wore for his birthday anymore because Johnny is no longer of flesh.

“Baby blue, tenth birthday. Gray, eleventh birthday. Yellow, twelfth birthday. Maroon, thirteenth birthday. Navy blue, fourteenth birthday. Black, fifteenth birthday. Gray again, sixteenth birthday. Red, seventeenth birthday,” Ten whispers all the colors under his breath as he counts each birthday with his fingers. A bitter expression appears on his face once he stops counting because there are no longer more shirt colors he can name. “Black is what I wore on your eighteenth birthday, Johnny,” Ten speaks gloomily as he remembers there was no eighteenth birthday they shared together.

Much of his family and friends have shown their pity to him because of the loss he experienced, and he despised it. He wanted to believe Johnny was still with him. Isn’t that what he was supposed to do? Their pity made him begin to believe that Johnny really disappeared from his life.

In the end, Ten decides to sit down as he is tired from all the dancing he has been doing for the past hour. He is beginning to develop a headache from all the stress he has been going through since yesterday. Once Taeyong came to his house, it was like he was some sort of healing medicine. Ten feels terrible about how relieved he was to see someone else cry in front of him. He felt evil and despicable, but it was nice to see someone else in pain because it made him feel better about himself. It made him glad to see Taeyong in pain, and that makes him feel like a despicable brat who only thinks of himself. But he truly cannot deny that having someone else feel as emotionally pained as him felt satisfactory.

Ten places two fingers of each hand beside both of his eyes and starts rolling his fingers back and forward in order to demonstrate the stress he feels. And just when he is starting to become calm, the lights are cut and the studio becomes utter darkness. He hears a click which is the locking of the only door that can allow his escape.

Ten’s eyes are enlarged as he looks around, not seeing a thing. His heartbeat accelerates as it desires to pop out of his chest. His breathing becomes shortened because of how cold he feels even though the temperature in the studio is quite high. The only thing he hears at the moment is the air conditioner, and for some reason, he is afraid of it. Ten hates the dark; it is the whole reason why he sleeps with the lights on. And now he is by himself, in the darkness, with no one helping him. Someone locked him in, and he has no way out.

Although he is afraid, he is intelligent enough to not call out a “hello” or a “who’s there?” because if someone were in the room, they would be following his voice. So he remains quiet and tones down his breathing, trying to remain calm, but it is nearly impossible.

All of a sudden, a lovely song plays through the speaker making him jump a little. Wait, this song is familiar to Ten—way too familiar. Reality hits Ten once he realizes what the song is and a chill runs down his spine like a spider trickling down his back. His face grows paler and paler and he gasps for air because of how hard it is to breathe.

You knew you had a reason,

It killed you like diseases,

I can hear it in your voice while you’re speaking . . . you can’t be treated.

Mr. Know-It-All, had his reign and his fall,

At least that is what his brain is telling all.

Ten knows this tune. It was Johnny’s favorite song.

Ten covers his ears as his body endlessly vibrates. He is short of breath and he can’t handle this monstrosity anymore, so he decides to run towards the door like he has a chance at escaping this hell set up for him. Once he tries pushing down the silver door knob, it does not budge which has him panicking even more. The song continues to play at the same volume, but for some reason, the more it plays, the more it feels as if it is growing in volume and forcing its way through his ears. He covers his ears once more and starts to break down from all the noise. He weeps and sobs and screams, but nothing can be heard through the door. He kneels onto the ground and curls up like the formation is his safest, but nothing can keep him away from the hell that wants to consume him. Right at that moment, the door is opened slightly from a person from the other side, and once it opens, the music stops and the lights turn back on.

Ten remains kneeling on the floor while crying in desperation and a head pops through the gap of the door opening.

“Ten? Oh my god! Are you okay?” It is Taemin who luckily forgot his wallet in the dance studio. Taemin hastily tries to make his way through the gap of the door because Ten is breaking down right in front of the door. “Ten, hey Ten! I-I’m sorry, was I too harsh earlier?” Ten lifts his face up, and Taemin sees the reddened whites of his eyes and the tears running down his cheeks.

“T-Taemin!” Ten cries his name which has Taemin feeling at his worst for the guy.

“You can go home for the day! You don’t have to practice anymore, just take a break, okay?” Taemin is speaking so hurriedly because he feels as if he is at fault for Ten’s crying. “N-No! You can’t drive. You are not in that state right now.” It is at this moment that Ten decides that his team leader is definitely not good at comforting. “Is there someone who can pick you up? Where’s your phone?” Taemin runs over to Ten’s bag which is at the other side of the studio and reaches in all of the pockets before he actually picks out Ten’s phone. He wishes he can take the guy home but the whole dance crew is waiting for him, and Ten definitely is not in the mood to go for lunch. Taemin swipes through Ten’s phone before he can reach for the contact list, hoping he can contact a parent or guardian, and he taps on the name “Lee Taeyong” which he finds first.

He waits for someone to pick up after hearing the continuous tone of dialing in his ear, and thankfully, someone picks up.

“H-Hello?” It seems like this person is out of breath as well.

“Hi! Is this Ten’s friend? Well, um, he is kind of breaking down right now and I was wondering if someone can pick him up!” Taemin panics because he literally just called a random contact on Ten’s phone without knowing the relations.

“Are you serious? Where is he? I’ll pick him up,” Taeyong, who just happens to be at the parking lot with Jaehyun and Taeil, talks in a worried tone. The three are next to Yuta’s car, and Taeyong pulls out a key from behind one of the car door handles because Yuta keeps one taped behind there in case he forgets about his main key.

“He is at the Neo Dance Studio,” Taemin answers while running over to Ten to pat the guy’s back.

“I’ll be right there,” Taeyong answers and hangs up without a second thought as he rips off the key from behind the car door.

“Is Yuta really that stupid to tape an extra car key behind his door handle?” Taeil questions with no remorse, Taeyong nods fair and square because even he thinks his best friend is idiotic.

This is great for Taeyong because he needed to pick up Ten anyway in order for discussion. Jaehyun and Taeil climb into the back seat while Taeyong climbs into the driver’s seat. Taeyong doesn’t forget to leave Yuta the text:

I am stealing your car. You can get a ride from Hansol. You’re very welcome. Have fun, lovebirds.

“We need to figure this out. These are obviously not coincidences. First, the bloody scissors in Taeil’s present. Second, the note I received. Third, the basketball game,” Taeyong announces to the back seat passengers who are still in dread.

“Someone knows about what happened, but who else could it be? We were the only ones there!” Taeil is going crazy, and the other two can tell because of his big eyes that can fall out any second.

“Were we?” Jaehyun says in a deep voice which sends chills down everyone’s spine. It wasn’t something they would ever consider, but truly, what if they weren’t the only ones there?

Taeyong arrives at the Neo Dance Studio in order to pick up Ten who seems to have broken down from an unknown situation. Taeyong hops out of the car and enters the studio with rushed intentions. He spots a tall male with dark hair trying to comfort a short male who resembles Ten. Taeyong realizes that the guy must be the one who talked on the phone with him and dashes over to the two.

“Ten!” Taeyong shouts his name while running over which grabs both of the male’s attention.

“Taeyong!” Ten looks cured of his dread once he sees Taeyong running down the hall in order to reach him because he knows he can talk to Taeyong about the situation he was just in. It is unusual for Ten to have someone to rely on after all this time. Taemin allows himself to leave after Ten nods his head, and Taeyong and Ten bow to the dance crew leader as he exits the building. Once they see the door close, Ten grabs Taeyong’s arm and gives him the expression that calls for emergency.

“We need to talk,” Ten speaks quietly yet urgently. “Somebody knows we were there.” Taeyong’s eyes are widened because something must have happened at this dance studio that caused Ten’s break down. This has become more serious. All four of them have experienced something which means this anonymous soul that has been messing with their brains definitely knows that the four were at Cabin 27 three years ago at the time of Johnny’s death.

“What happened?” Taeyong is truly uneasy because he knows that if Ten went through something, he would definitely be the breaking down the most because he was the closest to Johnny. He can see Ten’s swollen face from all the crying and he hears the fresh sniffing that Ten makes which earns Taeyong the knowledge that Ten has been breaking down a lot.

“I kind of want to speak about this in a more private place,” Ten assures and Taeyong can understand because this hall is out in the open where anyone passing can hear what they are saying.

“Good idea. Jaehyun and Taeil are in the car, and we are going to discuss something at my apartment. I have something to show all of you,” Taeyong speaks clearly yet softly which has Ten nodding and following Taeyong’s lead.

All four of them are now in the car, all like dead dolls just as they were last night. The only difference is that Yuta is not with them to break the silence. All of them have gone through fresh tears, and as a result of that, sniffing breaks the silence all on its own. Taeyong tries his best to not get distracted while on the road because at this time, everything will distract him and the others. No one is talking, and no one dares to speak. How could they speak after all they’ve been through?

They arrive at Taeyong’s apartment where the note on the computer awaits. Taeyong wants to show them. He wants to show them the note that he received in order to discuss inside closed doors about what is happening. No one knows, though. No one knows what is going on. All they know is that what is happening is not a coincidence and not welcoming. All of them step out of the car and walk up to his door. It feels like almost a lifetime of obstacles that Taeyong has been through in order to stand in front of here even though it has only been barely a day. He punches in the pass code, and he has never been so afraid to open his own door. How awful it is to be afraid of your own home.

Each of them step inside without a thought, and they all stand inside this small, dark apartment in which Taeyong lives in. Taeyong sees how far away his chair is from his desk because he remembers himself pushing away from the desk once he his computer. Other than that, everything remains the same: the tidiness because of how clean he wants everything to be, the chips and snacks that are left on his desk because of stress eating, but one thing is different. The one thing that changed is something not seen by the eye: the aura. The aura is dreary and sabotaged.

“A note was put on my computer yesterday after I got back home from the party, and I wanted to show you guys. But I would close your eyes first because there is a picture attached to it with him in the bathtub.” The other three feel like vomiting. Taeyong’s had to be the worst one yet: having to see what he saw three years ago on his computer screen.

Ten now understands why Taeyong came to his house last night in such a terrible state. Honestly, he feels that he would have reacted worse. None of them want to see it, but they prepare themselves anyway.

Therefore, Taeyong walks over to his computer along with the other three following him from behind. They stand behind him as far away as they can, not prepared for what they are going to see. Taeyong’s heartbeat is so fast that he doesn’t know how to breathe anymore.

“Alright, I am going to turn it on,” Taeyong announces before he counts down, “1, 2, 3!” Everyone holds their breath and closes their eyes even though they tried to prepare themselves. Even Taeyong avoids looking at the screen. They all slowly peel their eyelids apart slowly and gradually, and Taeyong stares at the bright screen in shock.

The note and picture are not there anymore.

No.

Instead, it is a new note that makes each of the four want to curl up onto the ground and beg for their lives.

The red starts to pour,
And you start to scream.
In the deep of the night,
You hope it’s a dream.

Blood and gore,
What a score.
Give me a clue,
It’s one of you.

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The first half of the poem is by Tyler Olsen, but the rest is by me. Thank you for reading! <3
Can you guess what Johnny's favorite song is?