The place on the map turned out to be an isolated building along the river. It was as big as a warehouse but I had no idea what it was used for. All the windows were shattered and the shards of glass were hidden amongst the shrubs and weeds which surrounded the lonely structure. There were five floors because the windows stretched upwards towards a high roof and a chimney. The eerie atmosphere was haunting but I brushed it off carried on walking towards the building.

“This is the place, I remember coming here when I was little because my uncle used to work here,” Lay said.

“Are we supposed to go inside then?” Kai asked.

“Why not,” Xiumin said and kicked the mental door.

It was twice the size of him and the kick only sent some ruffles of rust raining down onto us.

“Let’s all push it,” Lay suggested and I went over towards the door and gave it a hard push.

The heavy metal door budged an inch so we pushed again. It scratched against the concrete floor and the screeching sound was the same as rubbing a piece of chalk against a chalkboard. It echoed around the room and sound of hurrying feet of little animals and loose debris fell. Inside was lit with the sunlight from outside. It was a factory. There were countless rows of tables and chairs and it stretched onwards. Stairs on both sides led up to the second floor and there was a big lift too. Everywhere was smothered in dust and fallen parts from the building. I just hoped that the building won’t collapse while we’re in it.

“What are we supposed to do here?” Kai asked.

While everyone was thinking of an answer, the book in Lay’s hand opened. The timer still had an hour left. So we arrived here with plenty of time to spare. Then, on the next page, our names appeared beside a number ranging from one to five.

“I think that’s the number of the floor we need to go to,” Lay suggested.

“Seems like it,” I said.

“I’m on the ground floor so I’m staying here,” Chanyeol said and pulled out a dusty chair nearest to him and sat down.

“I’ll take the stairs to the second floor then,” Xiumin said and started climbing the stairs on the left side.

Kai, Lay and I followed him up the stairs. The layout was exactly the same as the ground floor. There were lots of tables and chairs with notice boards all around the walls and small hallways leading to bathrooms and offices.

Xiumin sat down on the table, “Here I am, have fun climbing those stairs!”

“Stay safe Xiumin,” I said.

On the next floor, I said the same thing to Kai. Lay and I walked up another set of stairs.

“Be careful,” Lay said and put his hands on my shoulders, “Don’t get hurt.”

“I won’t,” I promised and looked up at his soft brown eyes, “You must be careful too.”

“Don’t worry,” he said and tucked away the few lose strands of hair which have escaped from my ponytail, “I’m so sorry.”

“Why are you saying sorry?” I said, a little shocked, “You haven’t done anything wrong.”

“You’ve been through so much and you don’t deserve any of it.”

“It’s an adventure and if it means being able to meet you, I wouldn’t mind going through it again.”

His lips lingered on my forehead for a while before pulling me in for a tight hug. I didn’t want to let go. I wanted it to last forever but nothing lasts forever. Eventually, we pulled away and I walked up the final flight of stairs to the top floor.

When I got to the top, the layout was different. There was only one big table and a massive screen. The projector flicked on as soon as I sat down on the seat in front of the big screen. The screen flicked on and off with little speck of darkness appearing every so often like an old fashion black and white movie.

Then it cleared and the screen focused. It was a CCTV. I was watching what was happening on all four floors. Without me pressing anything, the screen from the ground floor zoomed in and I could see Chanyeol still sitting there, kicking dust around his feet. Then it zoomed out and focused on the floor Xiumin was on. Like Chanyeol, he was sitting there but staring around and doodling on the thick layer of dust. Similarly, Kai was also sitting and pulling on the loose thread on his jeans. The floor Lay was on, the setting of the room was exactly the same as mine. He was also sitting in front of a screen watching the others including me.

There was a camera above the screen. The red light was on and it was staring straight at me. Out of nowhere, mental hand cuffs circled my wrists and ankles, strapping me to the metal chair. The same happened to Lay but the others were still sitting around doing nothing. Then I noticed the screen started to go cloudy. The ground floor which Chanyeol was on, the floor became cloudy with black smoke. He jumped onto the table but the smoke was rising so quickly that before long, all I could see from the CCTV was a black screen. Then it cleared away and I could see what was happening to Chanyeol again.

It wasn’t the ground floor, the setting has changed. It was a bedroom with clothes everywhere on the floor. Dirty socks and books were strewn everywhere but the area around the drum kit in the corner of the room was clean and tidy.

“Clean your room, Park Chanyeol!” a motherly voice shouted from outside the room.

Something in the bed, under the covers moved and Chanyeol’s tuff of black messy hair appeared from the top of the covers. A woman walked in; who I assumed was his mother. She picked up a magazine lying on the floor and rolled it up.

“Get up!” she shouted and tugged the covers back, revealing Chanyeol in his boxers, “It’s nearly noon and you’re still sleeping, I’ve made lunch, get up and eat it before it gets cold.”

“Mum,” Chanyeol mumbled in an early morning voice, “I’ve got something for you.”

“What?”

“I haven’t forgotten it’s your birthday,” he said.

He bent over his bed and stretched out to get something out from under his bed. It was a biscuit tin.

“I know how much you want to open up a café, so here’s the money I’ve been saving up,” he said, suddenly wide awake and sitting up on his bed, half .

“Where did you get the money from?” his mother asked, shocked and happy.

“I won the annual music competition and the prize was cash this year. I’m not sure if there is enough money but I want to give it to you as a birthday present.”

“Son…Thank you” she sobbed and gave him a hug, “I’m so proud of you.”

“That’s all I wanted to hear, I love you mum.”

The screen I was watching from suddenly went fuzzy, like it was losing signal. The factory setting from the ground floor appeared but Chanyeol was nowhere to be seen.

“Chanyeol,” I said to no one in particular, “Where did he go?”

Before I could process what was happening, the same black smoke clouded the floor Xiumin was in. Then again, he disappeared. This time, the camera was outside a set of iron gates. There was a small booth and a policeman walked out with someone by their side. They were holding a brown envelope. Xiumin came into the scene and walked up to the man.

“It’s good to see you again my friend,” he said.

“It’s nice to see you too Xiumin, it has been a long time,” the man said in a deep, emotionless voice.

“I hope you don’t have to go back in there again.”

“Prison is like a living hell. I don’t want to go back in.”

“I’ll treat you to something nice, let’s go,” Xiumin said and placed an arm around his shoulder and walked towards the car park.

Then it was fast forward and they were in a dark and dingy room. A single light bulb dangled above the table, shedding light onto the briefcase which was placed in the middle. A hand stretched out and pushed the case to the other end of the table. A clicking sound was heard and a laugh.

“Do you think I’m stupid?”

A loud gunshot was heard. A continuous mess of guns and fists and overturned furniture was heard and under the lighting, the view of the man from earlier was seen with a gun pointing directly at Xiumin’s head.

“This is revenge,” he said with menace and a little out of breathe, “I did not deserve those years in hell, it was your fault!”

 “I know, but if you shoot me now, you’ll only end up in the same place but for a lifetime,” Xiumin said, not scared or worried at all though there was a gun pointing directly at his head.

“Well at least then, I know you’re dead.”

“I knew this day was going to come. I’m sorry you took the blame; I just couldn’t go into jail so I had to push the blame onto you,” Xiumin said.

“You’re not sorry at all, otherwise you wouldn’t have given me fake money!” he shouted and it ended with a bang.

I turned away as blood splat onto the camera.

“Xiumin,” I said in a light whisper.

Then the screen came back to an empty factory. Xiumin was no longer there. 

Thanks for reading! ^^