Hak-yeon curled up despondently on Taek-woon’s bed, clutching the pillow desperately against his chest as he buried his face deep into the fabric. It held Taek-woon’s scent so beautifully, every breath he took feeling as if Taek-woon was still here, still safe and still alive. As his tears slowly soaked into the pillow, he pulled the blankets closer on himself, almost imagining his little Hong-bin curled up beside him. His baby Binnie, he missed him terribly. Missed both of them so, so much.  

He couldn’t protect anyone. He promised so much, promised Taek-woon he would come back, promised Hong-bin he would never let anything happen to him again, promised that he would never leave them alone…and he broke every single one of them. He should have gone home, should have went home instead of letting Chan-yeol talk him into staying the night. He should have taken his Taek-woonie and Hong-binnie and run far away. But again, again he had done nothing and let the world continue around him as he merely watched from the side. If they were really gone…if Saet-byul really killed them like she said she did… He buried his face into the pillow again and took a deep breath, let his lungs be filled with the reassuring, sweet scent of Taek-woon. 

If she really did take the only things he cared for in this world away, Hak-yeon would follow right behind them.  

He didn’t know how long he laid there clutching that pillow, his mind filled with only harrowing possibilities of what she could possibly have done to his Taek-woon and Hong-bin, each passing second filling him with only more and more hopelessness. He had provoked her, pushed her over her limits and ignited in her the deep desire to kill everyone to keep him. To have him. To own him. He had made her this way, had made her into the monster she had become. The monster he knew she had tried so hard to avoid.  

He thought he heard the sound of a phone ringing, but he couldn’t even lift his head, his hands refusing to pull away the pillow. He couldn’t bear to part with the one thing that still reminded him of his Taek-woonie. He couldn’t. Eventually the ringing went away, and he was just about to close his eyes and try to sleep when the ringing came again, this time louder. Whimpering, he tucked the pillow under his chin as he blindly reached out to the nightstand for the phone, never registering that it was Taek-woon’s phone that was ringing. It wasn’t until he looked at the screen to see his own name that he shot up in shock, answering the call and bringing it up to his ear in one quick motion.   

“T-Taek-woon-”  

“H-Hak-yeon hyung?” Hak-yeon felt his heart stop at the broken sound of Hong-bin’s voice, gasping at what could possibly have happened to his baby that he sounded like that.  

“B-Binnie,” he stuttered out, shaking as he fought to keep his voice steady, to appear calm and reassuring for his little Binnie. He could hear Hong-bin crying on the other end, Hak-yeon’s name the only coherent thing he could hear, and Hak-yeon panicked. “Binnie, don’t cry. Hak-yeon hyung is here. I’m right here. Are you okay? Where are you? I’ll come right there-” 

“Hak-yeon hyung-” 

“N?” another voice interrupted, and he felt his blood run cold at the sound. That voice had at one time filled him with nothing but warmth, had belonged to a person he had cared for deeply. But that meant nothing now, not when that voice was the reason for Hong-bin crying. Saet-byul continued. “N, are you there?”  

“Saet-byul, where are you? Where did you take them?” 

“Come home N,” she continued, ignoring his questions. “I miss you so much. I haven’t been here in so long, it feels so empty here without you." 

He struggled not to yell right there, was afraid that any wrong move would cause her to hang up. He couldn't afford that, couldn't afford losing his only connection to finding Hong-bin. "Saet-byul...where are you? Hong-bin...did you hurt him?" 

"I'm at home, N," she said sweetly, her voice so soft and soothing, and Hak-yeon wanted to cry. "I've gone home. You'll come back, right? It's so nice and warm here, I'll even start a fire. You remember the fires my mother used to have? You used to hug me by the fire to keep me warm, you remember that, don't you?" 

He broke into a cold sweat as goosebumps ran across his skin, his heart pounding dangerously against his chest. Home...that wasn't her apartment. That wasn't Taek-woon's apartment. It wasn't anywhere in Seoul. Home...his whole body shivered at the thought of that one house that held so many terrible memories, memories that would haunt him for the rest of his life. He couldn't...he couldn't...no...that house...those memories...he couldn’t. 

"N? Are you still there? You'll come home won't you? We're all waiting to see you, don't you want to-" she grunted as she slammed something hard down, a scream that sounded terrifyingly similar to Jae-hwan in the background, "-come see us?"  

"Saet-byul! Who do you have there? What did you do? Saet-byul, please let them go!" 

"Come back home, N," she continued on, still purposefully ignoring him. "Don't make me wait. I'm not sure you want to leave them all alone here, do you?" Jae-hwan screamed again, Hong-bin's pleading so loud in Hak-yeon's ear, and Hak-yeon hurriedly scrambled to his feet as he ran out the door. No, he would never leave any of them there alone. Nothing mattered other than keeping them safe, of saving them and keeping them far away from dolls and everything of its kind. He didn't care how terrified he was of that house, how his every pore was filled with terror at the idea of going back. He had already failed everyone one too many times, had allowed his fears and weaknesses to stop him from protecting the ones he loved.  

He wouldn’t let it happen again.

Not this time.

He was hit with a wave of nostalgia and growing dread as he boarded the bus he and Saet-byul used to take every day years ago. He shivered at the amount of people crowded onto the bus, shriveled and shook as people pressed up against him. He eventually slipped into one of the back seats, pressed himself against the wall and tried to make himself as small as possible. His eyes trailed down as his arms wrapped around himself, remembering how he used to let little Saet-byul sit on his lap, how she used to lean against him and sleep, her face so peaceful and happy. How...why did it become like this? When he had seen her in the coffee shop, holding a job and looking so bright and beautiful, he had been so proud of what she had become.  

How had she changed so fast, to so quickly crumble and become an exact replica of her mother? 

How could he have let that happen? 

His legs shook as he stood in front of the house, the seemingly quaint, little home a stark contrast to the horror it filled him with. The air was so cold, his body shaking despite the sun shining warmly over him. Every part of his body screamed at him to run away, to hide away from the terrible memories that bombarded him, to hide from the place where he had killed his brother. He tried to take a step forward, but found his feet frozen, his fingers trembling as he pulled at his sleeves. Seok-jin had died here; he had been tortured here, his body ripped apart and sewn together, his blood spilling yet unable to die. He couldn't...he just couldn't...he couldn’t go back. H-he...he had to think of another way, a way for her to bring them out or something but he just couldn't go back. He couldn't- 

"N!" He jumped, his arms instinctively wrapping protectively around himself, to see Saet-byul running towards him, jumping on him in a hug. She was smiling so widely, her eyes shining. "You came back! I knew you would!"  

"S-S-Saet-byul," he stammered, his teeth chattering as his eyes refused to look away from the house. "I-I can't...please don't make me go in there... somewhere else...anywhere else...please..." 

"But this is where we first met," she trilled, forcibly ripping his hand away and holding it in her own. She ran her thumbs over his fingers, bringing them to her cheek. "Everything we did together was here, don't you remember?" She tried to pull him inside but he refused, pulling back and whimpering. He had never wanted to cry in front of her, always trying his best to be her protector and caring for her, but he couldn't stop himself. The anxiety he was trying his damn hardest to keep inside was quickly billowing out, causing his breath to quicken and his eyes to water. No, no no no no no no— Saet-byul's smile vanished as her hand tightened viciously, yanking him forward. 

"Come on, N," she grounded out, "we should go inside. I made us dinner, don't you want to eat? I'm sure you're hungry."  

"I-I can't— Saet-byul I can't. Please, don't make me go in there. I can't-" 

"I've been waiting years for you to come back, and now that I have you here, I'm not going to let you run away because you're scared. Don't make me hurt anyone to get you inside."  

He froze at that, eyes wide, breath short. "Y-you...who do you have? Where are they? Do you...do you have them in the basement?" 

"I'll tell you later. We should eat first. I'm sure you're hungry and I worked so hard to make this for you." At the thought of his little Binnie chained to the wall, of Jae-hwan or Won-shik or Taek-woon strung up and dying, his feet finally moved, mechanically following her. He couldn't, wouldn't be the reason anyone was hurt again. Too many people were hurt because of him, died because of him. Not again.  

When they stepped inside, the main room was lit by a small fire, the heat making the air near stifling. His eyes honed in on an old scorch mark by the fireside, and he swallowed heavily, tears in his eyes, as he imagined his baby brother lying there, burning to death. Saet-byul noticed him staring and quickly pulled him along, sitting him down at the table where a meager spread of chicken and side dishes was laid out. She excitedly handed him a pair of chopsticks, helping him settle before sitting across from him.

“I asked Taek-woon to help me cook this,” she said conversationally, though his head snapped up at the sound of Taek-woon’s name. “I asked him for your favorite food, but I didn’t have much food to cook with. I’ll make it next time.”

“Taek-woon…d-do you have Taek-woon here too?” His voice cracked at the end of his question, the chopsticks in his hand shaking.

She glared, chopsticks pausing in . “Eat first N. I won’t answer any questions until you’ve finished your dinner.” He watched her continue to eat for a few more minutes before finally starting to eat, each bite tasting like paper. How could he be sitting here eating when they were downstairs, possibly starving or dying? He was barely able to eat anything, Saet-byul looking at him disappointedly as she moved to put the food away.

"Can we go see them now?" he asked pitifully, staring at her pleadingly as she washed the dishes.  

"You just got here," she laughed without looking at him. "Why would you want to go right away? You should rest. The fire's going, we could-" 

"Saet-byul, you said we'll go after eating. We've eaten, I want to go see them." 

"You don't get a say in anything!" she snarled, chucking the bowl into the sink as she whirled around to glare at him. "You ruined it, not eating anything! I want to enjoy you being here but the more you ask about them the angrier it makes me! They'll be there regardless if you go now or later." He didn't dare open his mouth again as she visibly tried to control herself, taking deep breaths before pushing her frayed hair behind her ears, smiling again. "I'm sorry for yelling at you. Here, let's go sit by the fire for a while."  

She bounded over and took his hands in hers, her hands still covered in soap and water, and led him over to the fire, sitting him down in her mother's old chair. She wasted no time jumping in his lap, wrapping his arms around her as she leaned back comfortably into his chest. He glanced down at her and saw her close her eyes, and for a second it was as if these past few years had never happened, that the girl in his arms was the same little Byullie he had loved. He reached up and tenderly pushed some loose strands of her hair from her face and she smiled up at him.  

"I love you N," she murmured, pressing her cheek against his chest. "I love you so much." 

As those words fell from her lips, a sense of calm descended over them, all other thoughts fading to the back excesses of his mind. He smiled down at her as he pulled her closer to him, kissing the top of her head and her hair sweetly. She reached over and took his one hand, putting it under her cheek so she could rest against it. As he watched her slowly fall asleep in her arms, he felt a sudden, fervent urge to protect her, to keep her safe and let nothing ever harm her. His hold on her tightened, and she grimaced.  

"N, you're holding a little too tight," she whined, still smiling, and he took a long breath as he loosened his hold. She looked up at him. "This was all I ever wanted, just for you to come back. I...I don't care anymore what it will do to you if you stay with me. I just want you here with me."  

He didn't quite understand what she meant, but he agreed all the same, nodding silently.  

"I'll figure out a way to stop you from losing yourself, to stay my beautiful N forever." 

Again he nodded, found he could think of nothing to say against her. Everything she said was correct, was absolute.  

She sighed contently as she closed her eyes again, still holding his hand as her thumbs ran sleepily over his fingers. “I love you so, so much N. Everything about you…I love it all so much.”

“I love you too,” he breathed, and her smile widened.  

“We can live together…just the two of us. We don’t need anyone else. Just you and me…far away where no one could find us.” He twitched, trying to figure out why her saying that was causing his stomach to churn, his heart to clench painfully in his chest. “We can stay here if you want, my room is still the same. We could sleep there again, you and me.” Something was wrong. There was something wrong with what she was saying. He just couldn’t figure it out. Why, what was wrong? 

“After a while, we could run away. Depending on how we feel, we could either let them go or leave them there. I actually don’t mind leaving them, that way they’ll never find us. It makes me sad that I would never be able to hear someone say your name again, since I can’t say it, but it’ll be okay. Once I free you, I’ll be able to say your name all the time.”  

“M-my…name…” he breathed, unable to figure out why it was so hard to move his tongue, to speak.

She quickly shushed him with a finger to his lips, grimacing. “I absolutely hate that that annoying Hong-bin can say your name all he wants, but I can’t. I-” 

“Hong-bin!” he shouted breathily, his mind suddenly clear as he quickly shoved her off his lap, gasping. He took long, shaky breaths as he realized that for a good moment there, he had completely forgotten the others, forgotten his Taek-woonie and Hong-binnie locked in the basement. For a moment he had forgotten everything other than Saet-byul. As she sat back up, looking at him confusedly, he stared back in disbelief. Had she done that on purpose, make him forget everything? Was that what she had been doing? 

“Saet-byul…” he whispered, the hurt palpable in his voice, “you… what did you do to me…? I…” 

“I didn’t do anything. I would never do anything to hurt you, N.” 

“Bring me to Hong-bin,” He lowered his gaze, unable to even look at her anymore. He could hear growl, raising her voice as she started to protest, but he cut her off. “Saet-byul. Bring me to Hong-bin. Now.”  

She hesitated, staying still and silent for so long he looked back up at her, stunned at the blank way she stared at him. Then, very carefully, she pulled a doll out of her pocket, the thing so small and delicate. He had never seen a doll so small, couldn’t imagine whose it was; she reached over and took his hand, pulling him to his feet. “Is…that Hong-bin’s?” he asked, and the small smirk on her lips only confirmed his deepest fears. He wanted to rip it out of her hand, keep her far away from these things he no longer trusted her with.   

She brought him over to the door hidden in the corner of the room, had him wait in the same spot her mother had forced him to stand when she brought Seok-jin up. It took all his willpower to stand confidently as she unlocked the door, to not fall to the panic attack that was bubbling slowly inside. She held her hand out to him, waiting patiently for him to take her hand. Swallowing heavily and crushing his rising panic, he took her hand, let her lead him down the stairs.  

She stayed silent the entire time, saying nothing as she unlocked the door and swung it open, giving him no time to ready himself for the sight before him. He didn't even register who were in the cages at first, just the sight of the dungeon that had once been his torture chamber overruling any other coherent thought. When Saet-byul tried to pull him inside he froze, refusing to budge as his eyes jarringly shot across the room, his breath quickening.  

There was where she shoved him into the rocks and dirt that lined the basement floor, where she ruthlessly played with his doll before slicing his leg open with a knife. There was where she had left him to die, where he had nearly bled to death. The floor was stained red, stained with his blood mixed with all those who had died before him. The light hanging from the ceiling swung unsteadily, the light that when showed the true horrors of what she did to the people she hated. Saet-byul tugged on his hand again, frowning, but he could barely breathe, everything feeling as if it was closing in on him.  

He could almost hear her laugh over him, mock and taunt him as she attacked his doll, left long, searing scars that decorated his chest and back.  

"N," he could hear Saet-byul say, though it sounded as if he was underwater, everything so muffled and small.  

"S-Saet-byul," he could barely hear his own voice, "I-I can’t—I can’t— please...no-" 

"H-Hak-yeon hyung?" 

The heavy force that had been bearing down on him vanished completely at the sound of his Binnie's voice, and he shoved past Saet-byul as he ran across the room, reaching over the sharp glass and cupping his little Hong-binnie's face in his hands. "Binnie," he cooed, Hong-bin crawling forward as far as he could so that Hak-yeon could pull his head into his arms. "My baby, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry Hong-binnie."  

"Hak-yeon hyung," Hong-bin sobbed, lifting his hands as high as he could to hug him back, Hak-yeon pulling away so he could finger the chains and bandages around Hong-bin's wrists. Hong-bin...he shouldn't be here...shouldn't be back here... He started crying, looking to see how he could possibly take them off. "Hak-yeon hyung shouldn't be h-here. Don't belong here." 

"I'm so sorry," he hiccupped, showering his face with kisses, wishing that he could just kiss away all his Binnie's worries and sufferings. "I promised you I would keep you safe, and I let this happen to you. Hak-yeon hyung is so sorry."  

"Get away from him," Saet-byul hissed, squeezing the doll in her hand. Hong-bin whimpered as he clung tighter to Hak-yeon, his whole body tense, and Hak-yeon pulled him closer as he backed away.  

"Stop it Saet-byul, don't hurt him!" 

"Don't let her fool you, Hak-yeon," Taek-woon's voice came from behind him. "Hong-bin's not a doll, she can't hurt him."  

"T-Taek-woon?" Hak-yeon whispered, his voice breaking as he turned around to see Taek-woon and Won-shik in a cage, Taek-woon pressing himself against the glass. He gave Hong-bin one last kiss before running over, slapping the glass and sobbing. No, no no no no no no no no— not Taek-woon! Not Taek-woon ah! Everything he did, everything he sacrificed was to keep Taek-woon safe. Tears streaked Taek-woon's cheeks, and Hak-yeon cried that he had been locked away in a way he couldn't touch him. Couldn't help him. "Taek-woonie...no...my Taek-woonie..." 

"I'm okay," Taek-woon reassured shakily, resting his hand over Hak-yeon's head, "I'm not a doll. She only locked me in here to torture Won-shik."  

"Y-you're not?" he whimpered, looking back to see Won-shik shivering, his hands tied together and a rag shoved in his mouth.  

"It's his failsafe. It's the only thing we could do to stop him from hurting himself."  

Hak-yeon whirled around, fire in eyes as he glared at Saet-byul standing by the table, the tiny doll still in her hands. This wasn't Saet-byul, his Saet-byul would never have done something like this.  "Yoon Saet-byul...what the hell is this?"

"I did it so you could come home. Now no one can confuse you or keep you away from me. You had to come home."  

"Do you seriously think locking them up like this will make me want to stay with you? Will make me even want you? Saet-byul, I loved you because you didn't do anything with this, because you were good. What the is this?" He hadn't cursed in so long, had it nearly tortured out of him so many years ago, but felt those years vanishing with how furious he was. "Do you think hurting them the same way I was would actually impress me? Bring me back?"   

She looked genuinely confused as she floundered for an answer. "N-no, I never hurt them l-like that. I only used the needle-"

He cut her off with an obnoxious laugh, near hysterics. "You think she didn't use the needle on me? You think she only played with me?" He lifted his shirt up, something that he had been ashamed of for so long, his mind running on overdrive. He could hear Jae-hwan gasp to his side, Taek-woon’s soft whisperings of his name at the sight. “Do you see this Saet-byul? This is what your mother did to me, because I was a worthless doll. Do you think I would want this to happen to anyone, let alone the people I love? Is that seriously what you think?”

“N-no,” she cried, so confused. “T-they said you would come back i-if I did. N, I did it all so you could come back! A-and you did, you’re here now-”

“Stop it,” he hissed, dropping his shirt as his hands bunched into fists. "I...I believed in you, trusted you. Even when everyone told me it was you, I didn't believe them. But you...you did something like this..." 

"No...it's not like that N...it's not..." 

"Then what is it? Why-" 

"Hak-yeon..." Hak-yeon's whole body froze at the sound, both waves of relief and disbelief rushing through him, "...is that you? I...can't see you..."  

"Sang-hyuk?" he called out, looking over all the cells and passing over all the emaciated faces until he found little Sang-hyuk huddled in the corner of the farthest one. He ran over and fell to his knees, reaching through the bars to try and reach him, his heart racing when Sang-hyuk only cried, unmoving.  

"I-I can't move...I can't move my body." 

"No...t-this can’t— why you, Sang-hyuk? Why Hyukkie?" He looked over to Saet-byul, all his previous anger replaced by only a heavy heart and broken spirit. Why was it that everything he did always hurt others, killing and trapping them in the same torturous position he had once been? Why did he only bring misery to others? Saet-byul bit her lip, eyes looking between Sang-hyuk and him in growing panic.  

"Y-you told him, N, I couldn't let him go after he found out. I had to, or else I would have to kill him. I couldn't kill Hyukkie, couldn't hurt him..." 

"I didn't tell him anything," he lamented, looking back and barely brushing Sang-hyuk's foot. "I didn't tell him anything about the dolls. I just told him to go home, to stay safe. Sang-hyuk didn't know anything...Sang-hyuk was safe..." He turned away from Saet-byul's horrified face to look at Sang-hyuk, the younger boy staring at him with understanding in his eyes, tears decorating his cheeks. "I'm sorry Hyukkie," he whispered, his fingers tugging on the younger boy's foot enough to grab his ankle. "We were ignoring you to keep you away from this...you were the last person who should be here." 

"N-no, I'm sorry Hak-yeon hyung," he stuttered right back, and Hak-yeon let out a small, regretful laugh at finally being called hyung, "I hated you all this time, but everything you did was because of this. I'm sorry."  

"N-" 

"Sang-hyuk loved you," Hak-yeon roared as he got to his feet, stalking over until he hovered over her, ignored how she cowered under him and clutched the doll to her chest. "He genuinely loved you, how could you even think of doing this, regardless of what I told him? Did you not love him at all? Not even consider him anything?" 

"He was my friend-" 

"You would never do this to a friend! You wouldn't do this to anyone! Saet-byul, dolls are ed up; there is never a time that it is okay! Never!" He looked behind her at Taek-woon, eyes watering. "You saw with Seok-jinnie...there's no escape. No matter what you do, the dolls die the moment you take apart the doll. You saw what we did; saw what..." His voice broke off, the memories of his baby brother burning to death in front of him so vivid and painful.  

"We didn't do it right," Saet-byul argued, finally finding her voice and standing tall. “Seok-jin was an accident. I've been trying to figure out different ways, there has to be a way-”

"That is my brother you're talking about! My baby brother! Don't talk about him like an experiment, like something so trivial."  

"Hak-yeon hyung...you killed Seok-jin...?" Hak-yeon looked over to see Hong-bin staring at him in shock, hands gripping the broken glass and shaking. His little Binnie's eyes were wide in horror, shaking his head slightly and scrambling back when Hak-yeon took a step toward him. "N-no, Hak-yeon hyung wouldn't do that! W-wouldn't kill Seok-jin— no! Not Hak-yeon hyung!" 

"We both did," Saet-byul cut in before Hak-yeon could say otherwise, walking straight up to Hong-bin and grinning evilly down at him. "We took his doll apart and he burned to death, right upstairs above your little head."  

"Stop it Saet-byul!" Hak-yeon screamed, watching helplessly as Hong-bin started crying, gripping his head in his hands as he wailed.  

"Hak-yeon hyung wouldn't! He wouldn't! No! Saet-byul— you're lying! You're lying!" 

"Why do you think N never told you? We did it together, took him apart and killed him. Would you like to know how? How he screamed, how he-"  

Hak-yeon wouldn't let her finish as he roughly shoved her aside, reaching out to try and comfort his Binnie, his heart feeling as if it was crushed into little pieces when the other flinched away. "H-Hong-binnie," he whimpered pitifully, but Hong-bin only shook his head fiercely, crawling into the farthest corner and curling into a ball.  

"S-Seok-jin...Bin loved Seok-jin...but he never came back. Told Bin he would be back..." Hong-bin peeked up at him, tears running down his face. "Hak-yeon hyung...did you really kill Seok-jin? You didn't, right? Hak-yeon hyung wouldn't do that...right? Seok-jin— Hak-yeon hyung wouldn't kill him, right?" 

Hak-yeon faltered, sobbing on his own as he tried his hardest to say the words he had kept locked in his heart for years, that he had worked so hard to hide and suppress. His hands trembled, the memory so vivid he could almost feel Seok-jin's hand in his, could almost hear the words flowing from his own lips that his baby brother was going to be alright. He remembered flinching away when he suddenly burst into flames, remembered burning himself when he tried to put the fire out all the while screaming himself hoarse. That had all been his fault, Saet-byul wasn't wrong. But it had been something he had wanted to hide away, never let his Binnie know. Hong-bin couldn't know. "I-I'm sorry Binnie. Hak-yeon hyung is so sorry."  

He tried to reach out, reassure his Binnie that he was so, so sorry, but Hong-bin flinched again, shivering. "Killed— like she did. B-burn, kill them— Hak-yeon hyung...killed like she did. Stop!" He shrieked when Hak-yeon tried to touch him again. "Don't touch! Kill like Seok-jin— Hak-yeon hyung's hands— burned! Don't touch! Hurt— hurt Seok-jin— like the others..." Hong-bin's words faded to nothing but blubbering, and Hak-yeon collapsed to the floor in tears.  

"Hong-binnie...no...I didn't mean it...I never meant it...please..." 

"N," Saet-byul's loud voice came from behind him, but he didn't have the willpower to move, leaning against the cold glass on his knees, one arm strewn across the sharp tips to try and reach Hong-bin. She called out again for him, voice louder, but he couldn't be bothered to even look at her, his eyes never leaving Hong-bin's terror-stricken face.  

"Hong-bin...hyung is so sorry...hyung is so, so sorry..." 

"N!" Saet-byul screamed again, her footsteps echoing as they came up right next to him, but he couldn't look away. Hong-bin was still crying and Hak-yeon couldn't do anything. Hong-bin didn't want him. He had lost his little Binnie, all because of his terrible decision to try and free his brother. Taek-woon tried saying something, slapping the glass to get his attention, but Hak-yeon didn't look, couldn't bear to see what his Taek-woonie thought, thought of him.  

"Look at me N!" Saet-byul demanded once more before another scream echoed off the hollow cages, and Hak-yeon immediately turned around at the sound. He looked behind Saet-byul to see Sang-hyuk wailing in pain, unable to move or do anything as painful rivets shot throughout his body. Hak-yeon let out shallow gasps of disbelief as he slowly looked back over to Saet-byul, his heart plummeting into the pits of his stomach to see her jamming the needle into the tiny doll she had been carrying, and all Hak-yeon could think of was that she had been holding Hyukkie's doll that entire time, had been threatening to hurt Hyukkie's doll the entire time.  

He wasn't the only one in pain at the sound of Sang-hyuk's screams, Jae-hwan trying to reach through his cage bars to help, Taek-woon slapping uselessly at the glass of his own. Even Won-shik looked pained, struggling against the heavy weight of the failsafe at the sound of Hyukkie’s cries.  

"What...what are you doing, Saet-byul?" he whispered in awe, completely unable to recognize the girl in front of him.  

"I brought you down here because you wanted to see Hong-bin. Well, I've let you see him and he obviously doesn't want to see you." Hong-bin whimpered. "I've done what you wanted, and it's time to go back upstairs. It's getting late, we should be heading to bed."  

Sang-hyuk's cries softened to just mewling.  

"Saet-byul...if I...if I stay with you...will you let them go?"  

"Hak-yeon, don't!" Taek-woon cried, but Saet-byul ignored him as she grinned, tossing the needle away and stuffing Sang-hyuk's doll back in her pocket. She came over to Hak-yeon's side and squat down so she was eye-level with him, resting her chin on her knees and tilting her head to the side.  

"Of course not, I don't trust you. You'll just run away the moment I'm not looking. But," her one hand reached out and brushed his, her voice light and airy, "if you convince me that you will never leave me, I'll let them go."  

"How...how do I convince you?" His voice was no louder than a whisper, spirit so broken and crushed he could think of nothing other than doing whatever he could to let them go.  

"Kiss me."  

"Saet-byul-" 

"Kiss me, and I'll let them go."  

"I...I-" 

"Don't do it Hak-yeon ah," Taek-woon cried brokenly, collapsing to his knees and Hak-yeon just stared sadly at him. His Taek-woonie, he should never look like this. Taek-woon was so good, so kind, he should never have had to see a place like this, to meet someone as twisted and dirty as himself. Taek-woon called his name again, pleadingly, when Hak-yeon's shaky hands reached out to cup Saet-byul's face. He could hear Jae-hwan crying something too, their voices loud and overwhelming as he leaned in, silent tears filling his eyes.  

"Please Hak-yeon," Taek-woon begged one last time, "please don't do this...don't." Hak-yeon's nose bumped Saet-byul's, her eyes closed as she waited expectantly, and Hak-yeon suddenly remembered the feeling of Taek-woon grabbing his face, awkwardly pressing his lips against his with the same hesitant expression that mirrored his own. He gasped as he shoved her away, panting at the fact that he had almost pressed the same lips Taek-woon had claimed onto someone else. 

Saet-byul blinked in numbed shock for a few seconds before her face twisted in rage, leaping to her feet and grabbing his arm. “I will never let them go, they can stay down here and rot for the rest of eternity,” she growled, and Hak-yeon started crying again. Why, why couldn’t he have just kissed her? He should have ignored Taek-woon, ignored every part of him screaming no and just kissed her, done whatever it took to let everyone go. She yanked on his arm, his body putty in her hands despite his every effort to try and stay on the ground.  

When he was brought to his feet, her dragging him away, he looked back one last time to see Hong-bin still huddled in the corner, Jae-hwan and Taek-woon sadly watching him go from the front of their cages, Sang-hyuk’s eyes staring at him despite being unable to move his head. He paused, tugging gently on Saet-byul’s hand. She whirled around, ready to breathe fire, but he merely placed a tentative hand on her shoulder, confusing her.  

“Saet-byul…” he murmured, “…if anything…could you move Won-shik? The failsafe…that…please don’t do that to him. Anything but that…I’m begging you, Saet-byul.”  

Something in his voice must have appeased her, her suddenly smiling as she nodded, sweetly telling him to wait there while she moved him. She held Sang-hyuk’s doll the whole time she unhooked Won-shik from the wall to stop Taek-woon from trying to run away, the latter not having any chains to hold him. Hak-yeon was relieved at that. She hesitated for a moment as she tried to figure out where to put him, the sight ridiculous as she held his chains in her hand and Won-shik standing obediently by her side, shaking from the after-effects of the failsafe.  

He choked up when she looked to him for help, having to take a few seconds before managing, “P-put him with Jae-hwan.” He jumped when Jae-hwan screamed and scrambled away, hiding behind the couch as Saet-byul opened his cage. Hak-yeon wondered what else Saet-byul could have done to them, to make them hurt and broken like this.  

He wasn’t sure he wanted to know. 

He didn’t think he could handle it if he did.  

She was silent as she locked Jae-hwan and Won-shik’s cage closed, turning to give him a smile before slowly coming over and taking his hand in hers. Her smile softened as she opened the door, gently pushing him up the stairs before closing the door behind them.

The door shut just quick enough that he was unable to hear Hong-bin cry, the younger boy crying out for his Hak-yeon hyung.

Hello!

So, we're getting to the of this incredibly long story—there's only about five chapters left. A lot is happening at once, and these next few chapters will be having a lot of torture/mention of torture scenes. I will still put warnings before chapters, but I just want to let you all know that it's going to be pretty consistent for the next couple chapters.

That being said, thank you all for reading this far and thank you for all the wonderful comments!