among us | minsung

hwang hyunjin: task two

“How the hell did you get that, Jeongin? Answer me!” Seungmin’s screaming faded into a strangled sob, and Jeongin fell to the floor. Hyunjin wanted to reach out and pull Seungmin into his arms, but any contact may snap his last ounce of self-control, and Jeongin would be dead before the voting began. 

Jeongin grabbed Seungmin’s hands and pleaded for him to stop crying. “Seungmin, I didn’t do it. It’s not me, I promise. Seungmin, please! I snuck the knife in, okay? I wanted to kill myself here and-and let people call it murder.” Seungmin swatted his hand away and Jeongin hurled himself at Seungmin, chanting his name like a scratchy record. “Please. You have to believe me. You’re all I have.” 

Hyunjin couldn’t watch the excuses unfold any longer, not while Felix sat in the corner, smiling like he was seeing Chan in his dreams. He didn’t deserve to be mistreated, especially not in death, and especially not at the hands of a selfish teenager. Hyunjin dropped the knife and slapped the glowing report button, transporting them all to the cafeteria. The Beyond’s Instant Teleportation System was designed specifically for the games, and every time it left Hyunjin feeling queasy. He’s lucky he threw up his food, or he may have spilled his guts on the cafeteria table all six players were gathered around.  

The five boys stared apprehensively at Hyunjin, minus Seungmin, and Minho, who was known for his stoicism. The meetings typically sounded the same, with three common questions: where? Who? Was anyone near? And usually in that order. 
Hyunjin wiped his eyes and spoke before he was bombarded with questions. “In Electrical, it was-” He sucked in a sharp breath and continued shakily. “It was Felix.” Changbin cursed across the table from him, and Hyunjin could see the tears collecting in his eyes. “And Pink was holding a bloodied knife in Electrical, staring at the body.” 

Minho visibly startled at the allegation, but no one noticed except Jisung, who placed a warning hand on his shoulder. 

“I didn’t do it! It wasn’t me!” Jeongin howled, clutching at Seungmin and leaving indents where his nails dug into Seungmin’s hands. Hyunjin reached over to shove Jeongin off and pulled Seungmin to stand on the opposite side of him, glaring all the while. Unfortunately for Jeongin, the person standing in Seungmin’s spot was Lee Minho and the moment he grabbed his arm, weeping, Jeongin was slammed against the table. 

“Touch me again and you’ll spend your last breath wishing they voted you out instead,” Minho growled, pinning Jeongin to the table by twisting his arm behind his back. Jeongin whimpered and Minho turned his attention to the group. “Let’s vote, and make it snappy, or something else will.” Minho twisted further, and Jeongin cried out in pain. 

Everybody agreed, and Hyunjin’s Taskbar screen switched to a list of the players, conveniently armed with photographs and full names. He selected and confirmed his vote for Yang Jeongin, and he saw Seungmin do the same. Minho let up long enough to make his selection and the timer began. The alarms in the cafeteria beeped with each number, and when they reached zero, a voice came over the intercom. Hyunjin was surprised to hear a woman’s voice, and most of the table shared his surprise. Chan or Daehyun did the announcements during the Games, and Hyunjin figured if Chan wasn’t able to, at least his father would. 

“Yang Jeongin will be ejected,” she stated, and Hyunjin could hear muffled yells in the background, paired with the occasional slam of bodies on metal. It sounded exactly how Jeongin had when Seungmin had him trapped against the electrical box. The woman cut out after a particularly loud “fuck you!” that sounded like Chan, and the chaos started. Three men, burly and buff, came into the cafeteria and seized a screaming Jeongin from Minho. They tossed him into a small room, about 3 feet wide and 5 feet long, and locked the heavy doors. A camera was set up inside the room, and when the broadcast crackled to life, Seungmin ducked under the table, covering his ears and singing to himself. 

Jeongin was beating against the door, screaming Seungmin’s name until his voice cracked, and Seungmin sang louder. The men pressed a button outside the room, and the wall behind Jeongin opened like a hatch, exposing the vastness of space. Jeongin pressed his back against the door and planted his feet. Even if he didn’t float into space, the room would eventually be sucked of all oxygen, and that it did. Jeongin gasped for air, clutched at his throat, and kicked the door so hard it rattled. It was all fruitless when the kicking finally stopped and his lifeless body floated into the cosmos. The men pressed the button again and the hatch closed, air pumps adding oxygen back into the room. 

Hyunjin ducked under the table to pull Seungmin to his feet. His hands were clasped over his ears and he kept singing, refusing to open his eyes. 

“Seungmin, it’s all over.” Hyunjin coaxed, trying and failing to pry Seungmin’s fingers from his ears. “Please, angel? It’s alright now.” 

Seungmin opened his eyes and uncovered his ears, watching Hyunjin through his wet lashes. His eyes searched Hyunjin for answers. What was he going to do without his best friend? They asked, and Hyunjin didn’t answer. How could he when he was asking himself the same thing?

The intercom beeped, and the woman’s monotonous voice filtered through the cafeteria. “Yang Jeongin was not the Impostor. One Impostor remains.” 

Seungmin crumpled in his arms.