They were on their way to the stairs when they heard a piercing scream.  “Oh god that came from upstairs!” Taemin cried fearfully, his face draining of color.  “Come on Key we have to go see!”   He grabbed Key’s arm, yanking him towards the stairwell.  The door slammed against the wall as he threw it open in his mad dash up the stairs. 

The scream came again, closer this time, and Taemin flew ahead of Key, bursting through the door ahead. 

The scene he stumbled into, panting from exhaustion, made his blood run cold. 

It was Minho. 

He was screaming continuously now, but it was a terrible scream, a sound of raw, pure terror.  Taemin could see exactly what he was screaming about. 

Minho was on the ceiling. 

Literally, on the ceiling.  His body looked like it’d been pinned to the ceiling, except there was nothing physical holding them up.  His arms and legs were outstretched so that he looked like a human “x”.   His eyes were wide and his mouth open, and Taemin found his own feet seemed frozen to the floor.  He wanted to help his friend, but his body wouldn’t respond, whether out of fear or a force beyond his control he didn’t know. 

All he knew is that he couldn’t move and Minho was levitating.

Suddenly a large red stain appeared across Minho’s shirt, a line going across his stomach.  Taemin watched as a drop of red fell to the floor, splattering as it hit the wood. 

The chilling realization hit, a few seconds too late. 

Blood.

That was blood. 

The sound of the door slamming open behind him seemed to break whatever spell was over them—both of them. 

As Key burst into the room, Minho’s screaming cut off and he fell.  He just dropped, plunging towards the floor and landing hard.  He didn’t get up. 

Taemin shouted, “Minho!”   Now able to move, he leapt forward to kneel beside his friend’s crumpled body.   Key stood stunned while Taemin shook Minho’s shoulder frantically.  “Minho!  Minho, wake up!” 

The only sign of life they received was a weak groan. 

Taemin called to Key, “Come help me roll him over!”

Key shook his head to clear it and moved to the other side, helping the blonde to turn over the taller boy.  “Oh gosh, he’s bleeding!” he exclaimed, noticing the crimson stain on his white shirt, expanding by the minute.  “Taemin,” he ordered, “Take off your shirt.”

Taemin nodded, not taking his eyes off Minho.  He tore off his t-shirt and handed it to Key, whimpering, “Do you think he’ll be okay?” 

Key sighed.  “I’m sure he will,” he tried to reassure the boy, but inwardly he was worried.  Neither of them had medical training, and a t-shirt wasn’t going to stop the bleeding for long.  He pulled back Minho’s shirt, exposing a long, almost perfectly straight incision across his stomach. 

Key bit his lip; the gash was deep, and it looked as if it’d been made with a scalpel or a knife.  Blood was seeping out, not as bad now that he was flipped over, but enough to coat Key’s hands and the fabric as he pressed Taemin’s shirt onto the wound. 

Minho groaned again at the contact and Key apologized.  “I’m sorry Minho, but I’m trying to help you.”   Key gulped; the blood had already soaked through the shirt.  “Hang on Minho,” he told the taller boy.  He removed his own shirt, grunting as he ripped the bottom off, making a long strip of fabric.  He wrapped it around Minho’s midsection, tying it tightly on his side in an effort to staunch the bleeding. 

The door slammed open again, and both Taemin and Key whipped around. 

“Jonghyun!” Taemin cried. 

Jonghyun rushed over.  “I heard voices, and I came to investigate,” he explained, approaching the pair.  When he noticed Minho he gushed, “Holy cow he’s bleeding!  What happened?” 

Taemin glanced at him with wide eyes.  “You won’t believe me if I tried to tell you,” he muttered, looking back down at Minho. 

Jonghyun sighed.  “Taemin, after what I’ve seen, I’ll believe anything.” 

Taemin shot him a questioning glance, and Jonghyun quickly explained what he’d seen in the living room, narrating how Key and the toy had both disappeared when he’d touched it. 

“So that’s what happened?” Key asked, “I thought I just out or something.”

“Nope,” Jonghyun disagreed, “It was the strangest thing.  And that voice started talking to us again—to Onew and me.  It—well, she—said that this was part of the game, so I guess that might have been the point.  Find the toy and get out.”

“But we’re not ‘out’.  We’re still all alone, just in a different building,” Key argued. 

Minho moaned again, and all three bent down. 

“Well at least we’re together,” Taemin decided, placing a hand on Minho’s chest. 

“Yeah, you’re right Minnie,” Key agreed, looking nervously at Jonghyun. 

Meanwhile Onew, standing in the open doorway quietly, felt his heart break a little, and he turned away without a word, clutching his backpack tightly.    

A/N: POOR ONEW!! :(  And what the heck happened to Minho? Keep voting!