How could she offer up Seok-jin like that? She had thrown so many bombs at him at once, telling him her mother was teaching her how to make dolls, she could take the dolls apart, she wanted to use Seok-jin to experiment; he wouldn’t let her do that last one. He was thankful that she even offered to try and free them, hell that had been something he’d been dreaming of since the first day. But it would be over his dead body that he would allow her to use Seok-jinnie. 

When they woke up the next morning, her mother was still in the basement, and he wondered just what she was doing with that new doll that she stayed there the whole night. He still wasn’t sure how to deal with her new doll, the fact that she was even able to get the cop who was trying to save him frightening. He had seen how terrified the cop had been when she leaned in and whispered in his ear, speaking so sweetly to him while she held his life in her hands. He knew the feeling, the feeling of helplessness and fear, and knew how frightening it could be. It was something he still felt to this day.

It wasn’t until well in the afternoon that her mother emerged from the basement, her cheeks still bright red and her hair a mess. He subconsciously wrinkled his nose at the sight, knowing exactly what had been going on. It was sickening, and he could only pray Seok-jin didn’t have to see it. Saet-byul was sitting next to him when the woman came out, and he glanced over to see her staring innocently at her mother. She had no idea what her mother had been doing, and he hoped she didn’t ask him. 

At the sight of the two of them sitting silently on the floor, she coughed nervously and fixed her hair. “What are you two doing?” He didn’t say anything, the anger inside him threatening to bubble over, when a small voice came out from next to him. 

“Nothing.” 

Her mother seemed to be just as surprised when she spoke, though she hid it better than he did. “If you’re doing nothing, then come with me. We can continue your lessons.” 

His fists tightened as he tried not to show how disgusted he was when Saet-byul hurriedly scrambled to her feet, following after her mother. He had been fooling himself; no matter how innocent and sweet Saet-byul acted, she was that woman’s only daughter. It was only natural she would teach her how to make dolls, and one day it would be little Saet-byul who would be bringing men home. Saet-byul glanced back at him and bit her lip before stopping. Her mother frowned.

“What are you doing?” 

“I don’t want to leave N alone,” she said softly, glancing at him again. “C-could you bring S-S-Seok-jinnie up so he could play with him?” He blinked in surprise at her request; he knew how afraid she was of her mother. 

Her mother’s eyes darkened and Saet-byul cowered under her gaze, though after a few long, agonizing seconds, she finally shrugged her shoulders. “Go and wait in my room. I’ll be there in a couple minutes.” They watched in muted surprise as she actually went over to the basement door, unlocked it, and headed downstairs. He wasn’t given any time to marvel it however, Saet-byul nearly jumped into his lap as she latched onto his arm. 

“Saet-byul-”

“I’m sorry,” she said hurriedly, her fingers on his arm digging into his skin. “I know you don’t like me learning, I’m really sorry.” He opened his mouth to cut off her apologies, though she continued to barrel through without looking at him. “But Mommy will be angry if I tell her no. I have to go. So have fun and play with Seok-jin, okay? I’ll try and take a long time so you can play for a long time.” 

He finally pried her hand from his mouth when they heard someone coming up the stairs, both of them panicking. “Bye N,” she said, crawling out of his lap, “I’ll see you later, okay?” She waved with a forced smile before running out of the room, only seconds before her mother opened the basement door.

He jumped to his feet when he saw Seok-jin stumble his way out of the door, his eyes blindfolded like always. He caught his brother and pulled the blindfold off, cradling his head and glaring daggers at the woman who only scoffed as she locked the door. “Oh please, don’t give me those angry eyes. You’re in no position to complain when my daughter is the one that got you your playmate in the first place.” He was about to say something in retort when Seok-jin grabbed his arm, stopping him. “Food’s in the fridge; eat whenever you’re hungry. If you dare eat everything I’ll skin you alive.” 

They both waited until she closed the door to her bedroom before Seok-jin let out a heavy breath, nearly collapsing in his arms. “Seok-jin-”

“I’m fine hyung, god. You don’t need to be holding me like a baby.” 

He looked into his brother’s tired, bagged eyes and felt his stomach clench, wondering if he got any sleep last night. Probably not, not with what was going on with that new doll. “Are you hungry?” As if in response, his brother’s stomach rumbled, his cheeks tinting red. “Here, sit here. Hyung will make you lunch.” 

Seok-jin weakly protested to his manhandling, though in the end silently sat down at the table. He made sure to continuously check on him while he warmed some of the food, cursing the woman for not being a better cook. When he finished, he placed the few bowls in front of him, handing him a pair of chopsticks. “Sorry there’s nothing better. That woman is a horrible cook.” 

“Yeah, well, it’s not any better than what I’ve been getting.” 

His face flushed guiltily, “I didn’t mean-”

“It doesn’t matter.” He watched his brother messily shovel the rice and kimchi into his mouth, wondering sadly what he could be eating that this would seem delicious. He suddenly coughed, grabbing his throat and making a gesture for a drink. His eyes widened as he jumped to his feet, running to the fridge to grab him some water.

“Sorry, I forgot. Here you go.” He carefully placed the glass in his brother’s hand, waiting until he downed the whole glass before sitting back down. “Are you really that hungry?”

“She didn’t feed us last night. Of course I’m hungry.” 

“Was she…did she really do it with that guy?”

“What? No, I don’t think that ’s capable of having .” He wrinkled his nose at the crude language.

“Then what was she doing all night?”

“Think of it like an initiation. Every new doll goes through it, and no, I didn’t. She doesn’t do anything she does with the others to me.”

That did little to comfort him, though he was happy Seok-jin wasn’t being hurt. “What does she do?” He could see Seok-jin pause, and while he wanted to know what he was going through, he didn’t want to force him to tell him. 

“Just…don’t worry about it hyung. It’s not something you have to worry about anyway.” 

“Of course I have to worry! You’re my brother, I-” 

“Just stop! You don’t need to do anything!” He immediately clamped his mouth shut, not wanting to upset his baby brother any further. Seok-jin eyed him warily the rest of the time he ate, even when he hurriedly took his bowls and washed them. He could feel his brother’s eyes on him the entire time, and winced when he turned to see his intense stare on him. “Spill it hyung. You aren’t this nice, even at your most annoying.” 

“I’m not-”

“I’m not an idiot. You’ve been staring at me like a lost puppy this entire time. What did Saet-byul do this time?” 

“How do you know it was because of her?”

Seok-jin just rolled his eyes as he leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms across his chest. “Did you get mad at her again and now want to make up? Or let me guess, you somehow managed to piss her off? I wouldn’t put it past you with all your nagging-”

“She told me she knows a way to free us.” Seok-jin’s arms fell to his side as his jaw dropped, and he took this chance to sit back down at the table. He pulled the chair close to his brother’s, not wanting to get caught and leaned in. “She told me about it last night, after her mom took that cop downstairs.” 

“That was a cop? No wonder she was so vicious last night.” He wondered briefly if he should tell Seok-jin about their connection with the cop, or about their mother. He scanned his brother’s face, deciding it best to keep it to himself. “So, what’d she say that made you all sad face today?”

“She suggested we take the doll apart.”

“…that’s it?”

“She’s been learning how to make dolls from her mom. I know, I didn’t like that she was learning either, but it’s only natural she’d learn eventually.” He ran his hands over his face, . “She said to make a doll was to use blood and hair, so if we take them off, it shouldn’t work anymore. I don’t know if it’ll work, it sounds far-fetched, but who knows? It’ll be better than just sitting around here forever. It’s just…she was so excited about it because she wanted to use you. But I-”

“Use me.” 

“Seok-jin!”

“I’m serious hyung! It’ll be better if we use me. If it works and I run away, it’ll take her longer to notice me than you, especially since Saet-byul can’t live without you. She’d notice you missing a mile away.” 

“But we don’t even know if it works! How can I let you try it when it might not work?”

“If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work. We won’t know until we try. And I’m not about to let you try first. I was here first; I should get the option of leaving first.” He stared at his brother in shock, taken aback that he would offer himself up like that. Every fiber of his being screamed no, to hide Seok-jin downstairs and keep him safe, but he knew better. He knew how angry Seok-jin would be if he tried to protect him; no matter how much he tried, his brother absolutely hated it when he tried to protect him. 

A brief flash of guilt passed over his brother’s face. “Don’t tell me you’re going to cry.” 

“I’m not going to cry! I just…I don’t want you to get hurt.”

“God hyung, stop being so paranoid. We can talk it over with Saet-byul first and see what she thinks. It’s not like we’re going to die or anything.” 

“But you don’t know-”

“Stop being such a worrywart and just listen to me for once!” He clamped his mouth shut when Seok-jin raised his voice. “You always try and tell me what’s right or wrong; it’s so annoying! I don’t need you to control my life, I can do it fine myself! If I get in trouble, I get in trouble! I don’t need you to tell me what to do!” After that outburst, he collapsed into his chair, running a hand through his hair. “Just…believe in me for once. I want to try this.” 

“…are you sure?” When he was only given a hard glare in response, he somberly nodded his head. “Alright…just…promise me you’ll be careful.” When his brother opened his mouth to threaten him again, he hurriedly pulled him into a bone-crushing hug. 

“Hyung-!”

“You’re my only brother,” he whispered lovingly, crushing his head into his shoulder when he squirmed. “I want to protect you because you’re special to me. My little baby brother…I love you.” 

“Ugh…you’re so cheesy,” Seok-jin muttered, though he didn’t fight anymore. 

“N!” He barely had time to react before a small ball of excitement jumped into his lap, scrambling to sit up and hug him around the neck. She grinned brilliantly as she pulled away, squishing his cheeks in her hands and giggling happily. He and Seok-jin exchanged glances before he hesitantly returned her smile, pushing gently on her shoulders to sit her down. 

“What are you so excited about?” he asked, never having seen her so happy and willing with skin ship. 

“I missed you,” she said simply, still beaming. However, the smile slipped from her lips when her mother came in the room behind her, burrowing herself deep in his arms. Understanding dawned on him as he held her protectively in her arms, giving the woman a warning glare when she stared at them. 

Surprisingly, the woman didn’t say anything as she clicked her tongue. “I’m heading back to the basement. Seok-jinnie.” He stiffened when she called out for his brother, and he glanced over to see Seok-jin resolutely stand up. She reached out and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, smiling innocently, a finger tickling his chin. “Did you enjoy your play day? I don’t know when you’ll be up next-”

“Stop!” Her sharp nails dug into Seok-jin’s face as she slowly turned around, ready to breathe fire. He gulped nervously. “Don’t take Seok-jin.” 

Saet-byul shifted slightly in his arms, her hands shaking at the mere idea of talking back to her mother, nowhere near the idea of actually doing it. He tried to ignore the growing fear inside as the woman he innately feared straightened, her expression impassive. With infuriating leisureliness, she turned Seok-jin around to face them and rested her arms on his shoulders, one hand cupping her chin. “And why I should do that?” 

“You’re going down to see that new doll…right? You won’t need Seok-jin…he can stay.” He attempted to keep his voice as steady as possible, trying to hold his head high. The woman cocked an eyebrow before laughing, patting Seok-jin’s head facetiously. 

“You want to keep little Seok-jinnie up here to play some more?” Seok-jin flinched slightly under her touch, and her hand around his shoulder stiffened. He nodded uncertainly and her face darkened. “You don’t need anyone. The only one you should be concerned about is my daughter.” She moved to drag Seok-jin back to basement. 

“Wait! Seok-jin-”

“Can Seok-jin stay?” Everyone stopped as they turned to the trembling girl in his lap, the girl looking absolutely terrified. She pulled his arm to wrap around in front of her as protection. They watched as her mother’s hand grabbed a handful of Seok-jin’s hair, yanking so hard it made the normally tough boy cry out in pain. He made a move to jump to his brother’s defense but stopped when Saet-byul pressed hard into his side. 

“Do you really want to play?” her mother asked, her voice icy. He could feel the girl shaking as she forcibly nodded her head. He silently comforted her by patting her head, knowing how scared she was. Her mother played around with Seok-jin’s head a little while longer before shoving him at them, Seok-jin barely catching himself before he tripped into the table. “Play all you want. I don’t have time to deal with you right now.” It was tense for a few seconds before her mother headed straight to the basement, not giving them a single glance as she slammed the door behind her. 

“Hyung!” Seok-jin exploded, stalking up close to him. “What the hell was that?”

“What do you mean?”

“Why did you ask to keep me here? She was pissed…can you imagine what she’ll do to the others?”

“Why would I worry about the others? You’re my brother-”

“You can’t even imagine the she does down there! How can I stand here, knowing that what they’re going to be going through is because of me? Because of you?” 

“Of course I can’t imagine!” he shouted, standing up and Saet-byul nearly tumbling out of his arms. “None of you will tell me what it’s like down there! All you keep telling me is how I’m lucky this, lucky that. But when I try and keep you from going down there, you tell me how ignorant I am! If you don’t like it, just goddamn tell me!” 

“N…” He stopped mid-rant when he felt a small tug on his arm, and he looked down to see Saet-byul tearing. He looked from her tear-stained face to Seok-jin’s surprised one, and realized his outburst, inwardly wincing. She crawled up off her knees and wrapped her arms around his waist, and he sadly hugged her back. “I’m sorry Saet-byul.” 

“Hyung…”

“Sorry Seok-jin. I…” He ran a hand through his hair as he tried his best to reign in his emotions. It wasn’t fair to take out his anger on his brother, especially when it was true that Seok-jin was having the worst of the two. “I shouldn’t have shouted at you.” When he looked up at his brother, he expected him to glare or say something, but instead he was confused when his brother sent him an almost guilty gaze. His rant wasn’t any different than any of his other rants, was it? “Seok-jin-”

“Hyung told me you can free us.” His eyes widened as he quickly looked down at Saet-byul, feeling her tense up before looking back up at him. 

“N-no…N told me he didn’t want to try…”

“It’s fine. You can use me, I want to try.” 

“But N-”

“It’s alright.” Saet-byul’s head shot up as she stared at him in surprise, and he could feel his stomach drop. “I…I said it was okay.” She hesitated, still unsure, before lowering her head as if in thought. 

“…will it make you happy?” He paused, taken aback, his stomach twisting at the fact that no, it would not make him happy. He glanced up at Seok-jin, now seeing the signature glare waiting for him. He could feel the ‘no’ on the tip of his tongue, but he held it back as he sighed resignedly. 

“…yes.”

She didn’t say anything for the longest time before finally agreeing, nodding her head so slightly he could only tell because he was holding her. “Wait here,” she said, patting his hand tenderly before running off, he and Seok-jin watching her as she hurriedly ran next to the basement door, pushing piles of clothes off of a box. She reached behind the box and pulled out a key, unlocking it and flipping open the lid. He frowned when Seok-jin shivered, and he bit his lip at what could be inside. “Here.” 

He ran to her side when she pulled out a doll eerily similar to his, Seok-jin ever so tenderly taking it out of her hands. He couldn’t help but stare at the crude doll, never having seen one besides his. Seok-jin’s doll was made from different fabric, looking to be made of corduroy. It looked better kept than his, though that was probably thanks to Saet-byul carrying his everywhere she went. He reached over and the doll’s cheek, running his finger through the small tufts of hair. 

“Hey,” his brother snapped nonthreateningly, “I can feel that.” 

“Sorry,” he said, forcing himself to laugh. 

Saet-byul closed the box back up and locked it, not wanting them to touch any of the other dolls. She turned around and took the doll back from them, cradling it as she ran back over near the fireplace. “N,” she said as she grabbed her mother’s sewing kit and flipped it open, “could you start a fire?” 

“A-ah, yes,” He ran over and threw a few logs in, grabbing the discarded box of matches and starting a fire. 

“Are you sure about what you’re doing?” Seok-jin asked carefully, watching as she pulled out scissors and a knife. 

“Mommy just showed me how to stitch the doll together. This should work.” 

“Have you practiced?” 

“I practiced on fake dolls. I’ve never tried on real dolls.” 

“Wait, what-?” Seok-jin unceremoniously yelped when she cut through one of the stitching on the hair, holding his head. His eyes widened as he looked back between his brother and the doll, his hand shooting out and grabbing Saet-byul’s hand, stopping her. 

“Did that hurt Seok-jinnie?” 

“N-no. I was just surprised she cut it so quickly.” He reluctantly let go of Saet-byul’s hand, watching her carefully as she cut off the hair. He reached out and took Seok-jin’s hand in his own, for once his brother staying silent as he squeezed back. When she finished, she stopped, looking back up at them. Without saying anything, she wiggled the doll’s arms, their hopeful looks vanishing when Seok-jin followed suit. They waited a couple of seconds, though those seconds felt like an eternity to him, to see if anything bad would happen. Luckily, Seok-jin was still in one piece. 

her lips, she grabbed the knife and carefully began to pick at the bloodstained heart, chipping gently. He noticed grimly how his brother subconsciously rubbed his chest, and he wondered worriedly if he was hurting. He turned back to watching Saet-byul, flinching himself every time she flicked off another piece. She went to pick off a piece and accidently pierced the fabric slightly, and Seok-jin screamed, falling over and clutching his chest. 

“Seok-jinnie!” He ran to his brother’s side and pulled his shirt up, his mouth hanging open when he saw the small sliver in his brother’s chest. He moved to check it when his brother caught his hand. 

“It’s not that bad,” he mumbled, struggling to sit up. “It just took me by surprise.” 

“Like hell it did,” he snapped viciously, pushing him back down. “We’re done. You’re already hurt.” 

“Hyung!”

“I said no!”

“But we’re almost finished! Saet-byul! Keep going!” He whipped his head to warn the small girl to not even dare, but Saet-byul was already working again. When he opened his mouth to stop her, Seok-jin’s grip on his wrist tightened. “Don’t stop her. I want to do this. We already started; we’re going to take this to the end.” 

“Seok-jin-”

“I’m almost done,” Saet-byul reassured, picking off another piece. “I promise.” He wanted to say no, he wanted to wrap his brother’s cut and keep him far away, he wanted to do so much; but he sat there, stupidly nodding his head at Saet-byul’s words. He just took Seok-jin’s hand in his own, squeezing it and praying everything to go well. He frowned, another flurry of worry coming over him when Seok-jin put a hand on his forehead, breaking out into a sweat. 

“Seok-jin-”

“I’m just hot,” he interrupted. “We’re right next to the fire.” 

“We should stop-”

“One last piece!” Saet-byul shouted, showing them the doll and the nearly clean heart. “This should work!” 

His hands shook as he watched the knife come down on that doll, time seeming to stop when the knife pressed down. He swallowed heavily. This had to work, this had to work. He snuck one last glance at his brother; his little Seok-jinnie that acted so old when he was still so young. This had to work, his Seok-jinnie hasn’t seen the world yet, he has so much to do. Seok-jin…he had to go back home, see their mother and fix their relationship. He couldn’t be trapped here. His baby brother who didn’t even know his own feelings and childishly snapped at everyone…this had to work for his baby brother’s sake. 

Saet-byul picked off the last piece, leaving a completely bare heart. 

She moved the arms around, and no one moved when Seok-jin lay completely still. But before any of them could fully take it in, before he could hug his brother one last time...

Seok-jin burst into flames.

Hello!

So...yeah. I actually planned for Seok-jin to die since the beginning of the story, so it was just a matter of when it happened. It wasn't going to be that easy to free them. The next chapter will be the start of the more mature chapters coming up- I just wanted to state that now. There will also be reminders before each chapter just in case.