The Forty-First Tale

When they first took step on that Mansion, they thought of nothing of the danger that was up ahead.

When that Thing had first attacked them, they all thought it was merely a ludicrous and inconceivably good prank perfectly executed by their youngest member, P.O. 

After all, he was essentially responsible for spreading rumours amongst their fellow artists and peers about the supposedly haunted mansion situated just beyond the boundaries of an old reserved park.

They were only there to sneak a peak around the mansion.

None of them expected to see so much red splattered against the walls and floors. None of them expected to smell the horrid metallic scent of blood hovering through the air. 

None of them expected to see so much blood belonging to their friends... and oh, god help us... their arms and legs and limbs scattered all over the floor and their bodies twisted in the most revolting ways.

Tao was gone.

Daehyun had died protecting Youngjae.

Bambam, Yugyeom and Jackson were nowhere to be found.

Amber was maimed and bleeding to death.

Sojin was in a comatose after a sickening concussion.

"H-hey, you're only joking, right? You're not seriously blind, right? I'll prove that monkey wrong! Hey, Kyung! How many fingers am I holding up?"

A wry smile managed its way on his cheeks. "Sorry, Zico... but I can no longer see anymore." 

Time seemed to have stood still as the leftover survivors halted and gazed at the two with detached and grief-stricken eyes. There was a growing tension that grew in the air before Zico's hysterical shouts broke the silence.

Kyung simply sat and listened as his friend released his inner turmoil, shouting fumingly and swatting any object that got in his way. He felt his throat tightened into little knots and his eyes prickling with tears as he heard his friend eventually choke into a fit of broken sobs.

"I'm sorry... I'm sorry..." he mumbled incessantly. To whom, for what? He didn't know. Was he apologising to himself? Was he apologising to his friends? Was he apologising for becoming blind? Was he apologising to Jiho?

Kyung never realised that a few tears had left his eyes until he felt Zico wrap his arms around him.

Sacrificing his eyes was something Kyung never regretted. Despite being uncertain if what he did was anything more than futile, or if it actually made any sort of difference in their current situation, Kyung had succeeded on protecting those he deeply cared about.

His friends were safe; well, alive and breathing, and that was all that mattered to him.

"This is only a nightmare... an incredibly long one, right?"

"Haha, Kai? Dead? As if! I bet he's waiting for us to wake up back in our dorm. He's probably pissed I haven't woken up yet to do breakfast!"

"Don't worry, we'll wake up soon."

"If only we could."

A/N: Inspired by the fanmade RPG game HetaOni, specifically England and America. Lots of sad right there. You know what's more sad? They're not planning on continuing it.

And I'm just here crying and wondering what happens next because they all need to survive and live and they're all my precious babies and seeing all the blood makes me want to shove a stick up on Steve's because they don't deserve to die. Sorry I'm ranting.