A/N: Happy Friday 13th y'all

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Jongin's stomach growls as he lies down on the stiff and musty mattress in his room, if one could even call it a room. His ankle is becoming sore and the surrounding skin raw from the shackle rubbing up against his skin whenever he walks around. He adjusts himself so that he's now lying on his back, staring up at the moldy and stained ceiling. He needed to get Baekhyun alone. 

His plan, the one that he has yet to act out, mostly consists of Baekhyun. He needs Baekhyun to map out the place for him. Since he's been here longer it would make sense that he'd memorize the house size and what door leads where. At least that's what he was hoping for. If he could get Baekhyun to map out the place, maybe Jongin would be able to come up for a way for the two to escape. He already had the vents in mind, they'd just need to find a way to get the chains off their ankles. That part might be the hardest, he's sure that Rei and Jaeyul had already thought of all the different ways they could try to get them off. 

A soft sigh leaves him as he turns onto his side, now facing the cement wall. He wasn't sure how long he could live here. He's not sure how Baekhyun's managed to live here for so long without going completely insane. His fingertips tap alongside the edge of the mattress, his eyebrows furrowed as he tries to come up with something. How could he get these chains off? Once they were off the rest was golden. Him and Baekhyun were definitely thin enough to get into the vents-- as long as the vents led somewhere safe. He'd have to ask Baekhyun that. He's sure the other surveyed the vents at least once before. 

He jolts up when hearing his door open, afraid that Jaeyul would somehow be able to read his thoughts. 

"You shouldn't look so guilty. You'll make Jaeyul or Rei think you actually did something wrong." It's Baekhyun, speak of the devil. "You did a good job with serving them dinner tonight." He lingers by the doorway, though ultimately closes the door and steps in. Maybe he wanted privacy, though his chains gave him away. There was no such thing as privacy here. 

"Thanks." Jongin mutters under his breath. "Hey, can I talk to you?" He's not sure why he's asking if he can talk to him. He's never done that before. "How well do you know this place?" He asks when Baekhyun nods his head. "Do you know where the vents lead to?" Baekhyun looks skeptical, eyeing the other carefully as if he's afraid of giving away too much information. "We can't stay here forever, Baekhyun. You can't stay here forever. This place is insane. One day either Rei or Jaeyul will snap and kill us. They've had you for two years. I think they've made it clear that they won't let either of us go." 

Baekhyun shifts uneasily in his spot as he glances around the room unsurely. "We shouldn't be talking about this." He whispers anxiously. "If Rei or Jaeyul find out that we've been talking about this..." His voice trails off as he thinks about all the possible punishments in store for the two of them. 

"But we can't wait here like sitting ducks. Don't you miss freedom? You don't belong here, Baekhyun. All you did was turn someone down. That's not a life sentence." There's a sadness in Jongin's voice as he speaks, laced with a hint of anger as well. "And when we get out we can report them. They can't get away with something like this." He purses his lips into a thin line as he thinks about their options. Baekhyun looked awful. His mental state was understandably ruined, Jongin even wondered if it was repairable. His physical state on the other hand was even worse. Jongin knew Baekhyun was reaching the end of his limits. He's seen sick; he's seen his grandfather die of illness and Baekhyun had a similar look to his grandfather on his final days. No, Baekhyun wasn't dying of an illness like his grandfather, but he could tell that Baekhyun wasn't made to live in an environment like this. No one was. He needed to get him out of here, even if that meant risking his own life. Jongin would do anything for Baekhyun. We are one, right?

"Baekhyun, I will do all the hard work. If we get caught then I will take the fall." His words are sincere. Jongin didn't want Baekhyun getting into any trouble because of him. "I just need you to map out the house. I'll figure out how we can cut the chains loose and then we can get through the vents." Baekhyun's hesitant and looking around the room before finally making eye contact with him. 

"Only because," he sighs heavily as he tucks some hair behind his hair, "only because I don't want you being exposed to the things that I've been exposed to. Rei and Jaeyul can be nightmares. Rei especially. I thought Jaeyul was ed in the head before this but Rei...she takes it to a new level." He wraps his thin and frail arms around himself, shuddering at the thought of her. "Do you want to know something funny?" 

"What?" Jongin looks up slightly, an eyebrow arched as he tries to think what could possibly be funny in this moment. 

"Before you came here I forgot that my name wasn't Kura." Jongin narrows his eyes and furrows his eyebrows slightly as he thinks over what the other just said. "When you're continuously called something else for two years and you never hear your birth name, you forget that you don't go by what they call you." He pulls at the ripped fabric of his shirt. "But then I saw you and I could barely recognize you. Not because you changed or anything-- you look the same, actually. It had been so long and everything about my past life seemed to be just a dream at this point. But then you called my name and it's like everything hit me for a split second." His eyes widen as he speaks and Jongin can see the animated Baekhyun he used to know come back while he watched the other use his hands and arms while he spoke. 

"I'm sorry this happened to you." Jongin can feel a familiar wetness at his eyes as he quickly blinks away the tears. "If I didn't stick my nose into things, if I didn't tell you that you should leave Jaeyul...I feel like this wouldn't have happened." He raises a hand and wipes away the tears that stream freely down his flushed cheeks. "It wasn't my business and I made these calls without knowing him. I didn't know how personal he would take something like this. This is my fault." Jongin didn't need anyone to talk him out of this. Baekhyun could tell him a thousand times and then some that he had nothing to do with anything that happened, but his situation now spoke louder than words. He's clearly at least somewhat responsible for what happened. He shouldn't have made these decisions without knowing the kind of person that Jaeyul is. He should have taken Baekhyun's concerns more seriously. 

He feels a pair of hands on his cheeks, long and dainty fingers brushing away the tears that fall from his face. "Ah, Jongin," Baekhyun sighs as he sits crouched in front of the younger man, "this had nothing to do with you. I would have left Jaeyul one way or another. He would have taken it just the same, except maybe I'd still be here alone." Even in a time like this, Baekhyun was still acting like an older brother to him. Jongin had no idea how he could remain so strong. All he wanted to do was cry and he'd been here for what--- a day? A week? He wasn't really sure. The timeline was becoming blurry for him. The point is, Baekhyun's been here for two years and he was still handling this better than him. Maybe because he was used to the horrors here. "I know that this is a scary place, Jongin." His fingers comb through his messy hair, brushing out all the knots. "But we'll get out of here. I promise." His voice is gentle as he speaks, his skin flushed and pale as his shaky hands retract from the other. "Meet me tomorrow in my room. It's two halls over. We'll meet up at eleven at night; both Rei and Jaeyul are asleep by then. I'll help you draw out a map. I just need you to sneak a pen and paper for me and we'll be set. I know this place like the back of my hand. The hardest part will just be finding something to get these," he lifts his foot slightly, "off. Rei and Jaeyul keep all the knives and other sharp objects stashed. They only use them when they want to." As he finishes speaking he's back on his feet, taking a few steps back. "I'll see you tomorrow night, okay? Be lowkey about it. They will kill you if they find out. And if they don't...you'll wish they had. Oh, and Jongin?" Jongin looks up when Baekhyun calls him. "You need t