Death Wish

Act III - Fears

Yoo Chan looked at Hee Chul, "What do you think the next game will be?", he asked. Hee Chul clears his throat, "I don't know either kid", he said. "But I think the next round will be a team game", he added. Ree Na pushes her lips forward and brings his brows downward, "How do you know?", she asked. Hee Chul smirks at her while raising his left eyebrow and giggles. He puts his right hand on his chest, "Of course, I have watched all the seasons of the wishing game when it began", he was proud of himself. He looks down on Ree Na and inflates his nose hoops. Ree Na cringe, "Does it not disturb you?", Yoo Chan asked with a disappointed face. "No, I am a bad guy, things like these don't bother me, I lost all my conscience long ago", he said.

Ree Na ignored him and wrapped her, "Don't listen to that heartless bastard, kid", Ree Na reminds Yoo Chan. "So, don't ever be like me", Hee Chul said. "Even if you face the presence of death", he added. Ree Na doesn't want to feel anymore, she doesn't know if Hee Chul is a good bad guy or just a really bad guy. She thinks avoiding him is for her own good.

Yoon Ho noticed the bad relationship between the two. If the two won't get along then they aren't going anywhere, "It's good that you watched the wishing game every year", Yoon Ho said. "What do you mean?", Ree Na asked. Yoon Ho fold his lips, "He has a lot more knowledge about the game than us", Yoon Ho answered. They immediately catch on, "So, Jang Hee Chul", Yoon Ho called. "What do you think the second round will be?", he asked. "I watched some of the wishing games myself but I think it isn't enough", he added.

Hee Chul smirks, "Sure, if you insist", he giggled. "I think the second round will be a team game since the first round was a single player game", he stated. "Team game?", Yoon Ho wanted to confirm. "Yeah, but I don't know which element will be conducted", he was unsure since the round mechanism of games is random, "I only stated what I observed in the past wishing games", he added.

Yoon Ho nods his head, "That wam

s enough information", he said. Yoon Ho rubs his chin with his finger, "Let's consider other possibilities too", he said. All of them agreed and the discussion went on, "There's a lot of possibilities on what kind of game is going to happen next round so let's cut it down and put them down to pieces", he directed. "Let's list down all the games that have happened so far", Jin Suk said and Yoon Ho nodded.

Yoon Ho raises his fists, "We have single, pair, random pair, team, random team, all out, battle royale, solo, face off", each thing he stated he lifts one finger by another. "It's gotta be one of them", Yoo Chan said. "Since Hee Chul said that the possibility of the next round is a team game then we should remove solo, single, all out, face off and battle royale", Jin Suk stated. "How about pairm", Ree Na asked and flicked her eyes. "Pair is also a team", Yoon Ho replied. Ree Na opened her mouth slightly while raising her eyebrows and nodded her head to show that she understood.

Yoon Ho snaps his fingers, "So we are left with pair, random pair, team and random team", he confirmed. "What's the difference with the random ones?", Yoo Chan asked as he c.ocks his head. "You will get a random teammate and you can select your own teammate", Yoon Ho answered. Yoo Chan smiled, " Ahh, I see. Thanks, Hyung", he said.

"So we are just going to check out on these", Ree Na said. "Yes, but we still have to be wary if it isn't", Yoon Ho said and Ree Na nodded her head in response. Yoo Chan took a deep breath, nervous. He isn't ready to take another round, he won't be able to, no matter how long the time is, "I hope we-", they heard a broadcast alarm, Yoo Chan was cut off by a voice that he wishes not hear again.

'The second round of the twelfth wishing game will begin shortly', the voice finally showed his presence and the eerie came back again.'Please gather at the center before the given time ends', the voice instructed.

Ree Na began to sweat and couldn't control her breathing, "Already?", she said. Yoo Chan was the same too but he was hiding his own fear, he was trembling but he was trying to fight it back. He gulps, "It's gonna be alright, Unnie", he reassures Ree Na despite being in the same situation as her. Hee Chul was smiling, he was excited, the thrill came back to confront him again, he was up for a beating with death again. Jin Suk and Yoon Ho stood with their deadpan faces, no one knows what kind of feeling they have inside that poker face of theirs.

"Ahhhh!!!", they heard a scream from outside. They look at each other, telling each other that they must know what was going on. Yoon Ho immediately opened the room. Five of them went out of the room. They saw two women with their knees on the ground. One was crying out of demise and the other woman comforted her. Other wishers look at the two and they conclude that the woman who screamed was the one who is crying.Their faces were covered with their messy hair so they weren't able to find out their identities.

"It's going to be fine, don't worry", the woman reassured her as she rubbed her back. The woman continued to sob and her cries were echoing inside the dome. There was no noise beside the crying woman, the noise had all disappeared as soon as the transcendent voice appeared. For some reason, Jin Suk couldn't help but look at them, his eyes locked to them. "What's wrong, boss?", Hee Chul noticed and asked. Jin Suk flicked his eyes and looked away, "Nothing", he replied. Hee Chul splints his eyes as he pushes his lower lip forward. Hee Chul looks at them and his boss changing glances several times.

They heard a glossy sound, the clock was ticking. They look above and the ten minute mark has been reduced greatly, there was only a minute left, "It's finally starting", Hee Chul mutters as he chuckles. Ree Na was devoured with fear, Yoo Chan was agitated but was pretending that was ready. Hee Chul was excited, Jin Suk was calm, and Yoon Ho was unbothered. Ree Na couldn't help but think that the men who stood in front of her are brave, she thinks she doesn't belong in their group. "Are you not afraid or scared?", she couldn't help but ask.

Everyone knew that she was scared and terrified, everyone could see the fear in her eyes. Locking herself inside with various emotions crumbling in her mind, "Of course, we are scared", Jin Suk gave an answer without looking at her. "We feel fear, we feel anxious, yet we are stupid enough to take the daring choices, we chose to be here and we are here standing confronting the time of our death, over and over again", Jin Suk said. "But you know what?", Jin Suk gulps and let one breath out, "Thinking about these won't help you, fear goes stronger when you feed it with your thoughts, if thinking doesn't help you overcome fear then-", Jin Suk paused and looks at Ree Na, "Your actions will", he said with a plain face along with his deadpan eyes. Jin Suk wore his poker face but Ree Na saw a different face, she saw the other way around, she saw the face of a good man. The cloth of fear that was hovering Ree Na fades out in her mind, she gets a little courage, and that is all she needs. It wasn't only Ree Na who uplift the veil of agitation but Yoo Chan too, he couldn't help but be fluttered on what Jin Suk said. Yoo Chan also gained the courage to confront on what lies ahead

'The twelfth wishing game is now live', the timer reaches zero and the dome was quiet as the deep sea. Heartbeats were thumping, minds are mumbling, and sweats are popping, 'The second round is now open', the next round is here and there's no turning back.

Ree Na heard the announcement but she didn't feel downhearted, she accepted the fate that was written for her no matter what it is. "Good luck to all of you", Yoon Ho said. "I hope I'll get to see you all back here", Yoo Chan said and smiled. Hee Chul taps his back with his palm, "Of course we will, kid", he said. "I hope the best outcome will appear before us all, good luck", Ree Na said. All of them nodded. "Let's go", Jin Suk said as they walked through the gates of the second round.

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[End of Act III - Fears]

[Next - Round 2, Buttons]