"Greetings to all ladies and gentlemen."
The lights dimmed and a spotlight shone at the TV that showed the roulette glitched. Now replaced by an animated person with no hair and no face. Only its head that had the shade of white was seen through its screen.
Beomgyu frowned.
What the heck was going on?
All the other guests were murmuring and panicking silently until the speakers boomed the same exact voice that had greeted them all.
"Ah~ what pleasure it is to have some of the most wealthiest and prestigious guests all in one place. My, what delight!....."
The voice said with a hint of sarcasm and mockery in its low robotic voice.
Soobin scoffed. "Delight it says, well killing two people is quite the delight of greeting," he grumbled, tightening his grip on Yeonjun's waist.
"Is that a joke?" Beomgyu chuckled dryly, holding Taehyun close who squeaked by the gesture. Eyes still on the TV.
The older male flashed him a glare. "Note my sarcasm, brother dear."
"Seriously, how can you two be arguing when we're literally in the face of danger here!" Kai whisper-yelled, clinging to Soobin's left arm.
"I sometimes wonder that too, Kai. And hyung can you let me go?! Your nails are like digging into my skin!" Taehyun hissed, which the brunette quickly replied.
"No Taehyun-ah, I am not letting you go. You can never be too sure when that stupid roulette comes back and starts spinning and taking lives."
"I do sincerely apologize for such a boring night...."
Kai scoffed at the fake sad voice. "Of course you do."
".....So I decided to set up a game that all of you can play until the party is over!"
The five boys looked at each other, worry screaming throughout their features. Because the knew that this game this person spoke off,
has already begun.
"But do not fear! The game is quite easy if I do say so myself. You, my delighted guests will be playing a game of color coded russian roulette!"
"Well this should be interesting," Beomgyu jested.
"The rules are simple, stay alive, and don't get killed. The game will continue until the hour hand strikes ten, but until the given time. And a friendly advise, don not take off your armbands. I wish you the best of luck!"
And with that, the animated image disappeared, the lights went back to its regular brightness and was now replaced by the bloody themed roulette.
It took only a second of silence and the entire room was filled with panicked individuals. Some were trying to break the heavy doors of the museum, others were crying while the rest somehow have accepted their fate.
Taehyun gulped, as the room became a cage of havoc. Everyone was in a state of mental instability, chaos lingering the air.
It was terrifying.
"You don't have to be terrified Taehyun-ah," said Beomgyu, earning a scoff from the younger.
"Yeah right because you're here? Pfft, no offence hyung but that line's as old as time itself. Do you really think I'll feel any safer when I'm with you?"
Beomgyu rolled his eyed at the blonde. "I didn't say that. What I'm saying is that all five of us need to stick together. That way we can alert the others if someone were to ever try to kill us. Don't you agree hyung?"
Soobin nodded. "That's right, but before that. We need to familiarize the armbands we're wearing, so whenever the roulette stops on a specific color. We'll know exactly who will we be looking out for."
"Well, I'm purple!" Kai exclaimed, showing his armband.
"Mine is pink," Yeonjun says rather calmly.
"I'm blue," Soobin spoke.
Shifting his stand for the rest to see his armband, Beomgyu tapped it before saying.
"I'm red."
Taehyun glanced at his colored armband. It was bright yellow.
"Yellow," he says plainly, ignoring the loud hammering of his heart.
Soobin let out a shaky sigh. "Alright, now that we-
The lights turned off.
"Shit!" Soobin muttered, quickly pulling Yeonjun and Kai into a tight embrace.
"What the- the roulette hasn't even spun yet!" Beomgyu hissed, tightening his grip on Taehyun's waist before dragging him to -what he believes-is where Soobin was standing.
But as quick as it was turned off,
The lights were back on.
Soobin let out a breath that he didn't know he was holding before averting his gaze to his companions. So far, none of them were stabbed, sliced or diced.
Which was a relief-
"KYAAAHHHH!!"
A scream echoed through the museum, again.
"There!" Kai pointed at a distance where a woman in her late 20s lied on a pool of blood.
Without hesitation Beomgyu walked over to the body, the other followed suite. Kneeling down, he began inspecting the now deceased woman.
"Well, it's obvious that she's dead. No signs of any struggle, possible murder time..." Beomgyu checks his watch. "Five minutes after the lights were back on. Four deep stabs in the abdomen, possible murder weapon..." he took a quick glance at the stab wounds that were still oozing with blood.
"An army knife."
Soobin furrowed his brows. "An army knife? But the stab wounds are quite small, for it to be one. Don't you think?"
Beomgyu glanced at him and gasps in a dramatic way. "Oh my, did I say army knife? Pardon my misinterpretation, I meant a swiss army knife. And by the looks of the wounds, it is at least the size that can fit perfectly in a pocket-"
Oh?
The brunette inspected the woman's arms. They were as pale as a sheet of paper, but there was no colored armband wrapped around them. Trailing his eyes down to the women's hands, Beomgyu noticed that one of them were balled into a fist.
With his latex gloved covered hands, Beomgyu unclenched the woman's fist. Finding a yellow colored armband crumpled under her palm.
"Huh, well look what we've got here." he muttered.
"What is it hyung?" Kai spoke standing beside the older male.
Up onto his knees. Beomgyu held out the crumpled yellow colored fabric in his hands.
"Looks like taking off our armbands isn't a good choice. Seeing that this poor lady here took hers off and faced an untimely demise." the brunette explained before facing his companions once again.
"So what do you suggest we do then?" Soobin asked his brother.
"Well... it's either we follow the games' rule and stay alive until ten. Or we find the killer whose been carrying on this stupid roulette game of theirs," the younger told him.
"Well what do you suggest we take?" the ravenette asked again.
"Uhh... guys?" Yeonjun uttered, staring at something behind him. Earning everyone's attention.
"The roulette is spinning."
The two boys spun around to face the roulette. Its arrow was spinning fast as every color that it passed lit up and off again. The sound of its jiggling echoed throughout the museum hall, making it so horrifying, especially with the virtual blood stain flicking and splatting.
After a minute, which felt like eternity. The roulette's arrow began to slow its pace, every slot it passed made Taehyun's hands felt cold, he holds his breath. His heart was pounding so hard in his rib cage, anxiousness slowly raising as the arrow moved slower and slower.
Then it completely stopped at purple.
And the countdown started.
The four boys averted their attention to Kai who was visibly scared. Clinging onto Soobin's sleeves like his life depended on it.
"Alright guys, we need to make sure Hueningie stays alive before and until the lights go off." Soobin says calmly, slowly tugging the youngest into an open space and gestured the others to follow him.
"Hyung, why are you dragging me into an open space? S-Shouldn't we be in the more crowded places? Where it's more safe?" Kai stammered, looking at Soobin with watery eyes.
"Being in an open space is more advantageous than a crowded one Hyuka." the ravenette says briefly.
"B-But, why?"
"Because we can pay attention to our surroundings." Beomgyu says from behind. "Being in a crowded space can somehow confuse a killer to who they want to kill. But since this one kills a random person by what colored armband the roulette arrow lands on. It's best to be in a wide and quiet space, that way even if we can't see anything because of the dark. We can use our other senses to detect who enters our safe zone."
Once they have reached a corner with no individual insight. Soobin quickly says, "Hyuka, stay in the corner, make sure your back is pressed on the wall. And do not, move, understand?"
Kai nodded and shakily says. "I-I understand, hyung."
"Good, now the rest of us will turn our backs to cover the latter. Got it?"
The three boys nodded and quickly formed a small protective circle around Huening Kai, their heartbeats got faster as they heard the slight ticking of the countdown.
"Alright everyone, on my count, be on guard. Don't relay on your eyes, observe using your ears and your instincts. If you sense something wrong, alert the person beside you. Got it?" Soobin says.
"Got it!"
Letting out a heavy sigh, Soobin locked eyes with the digital timer that was on three.
"Three..." he muttered.
"Two..."
Soobin gulped.
"One..."
The lights went out, the small group huddled closer to the youngest who was in the center of the circle. Every footstep, every nudge of furniture and even the slightest sound of breathing could be heard. Taehyun, who was the nearest to Kai heard slight whimpers coming from the poor lad. The blonde male quickly grabbed Kai's sweaty hand, squeezing them to reassure the latter that he was gonna be okay.
Then after what it seemed like an hour.
The lights were back on again.
The five boys let out sighs of utter relief as they broke off their protective circle. Kai slid down the wall onto the floor, glad that he was still in one piece.
"I think we got away from that," Kai laughed, wiping off the cold sweat he had on his jaw.
"For someone whose life was almost in the brink of danger you really have the audacity to laugh?" Yeonjun chuckled, slumping beside the younger male.
"Well what can I say?" Hyuka shrugs. "Fear makes you feel alive."
Soobin let out a sigh of relief, however he spotted a crowd in his peripherals.
"Looks like someone didn't get lucky," he muttered, eyes on the small crowd.
Beomgyu followed his brother's eyes which his soon landed on the said crowd Soobin was looking at.
"I better check it out. Maybe the suspect (hopefully) left some clues," Beomgyu muttered, marching towards the crowd.
"I think I should probably go with him. Who knows if the suspect lurks in the light as well," Taehyun says, following Beomgyu suit.
Sensing another person's presence behind him. Beomgyu halted before sighing, "Go back Taehyun-ah." looking over his shoulder to see the young lad.
The blonde male crossed his arms and a challenging smirk etched into his lips. "I won't, and you can't make me."
'Tsk, this stubborn squirrel.' Beomgyu thought in a chuckle.
"Well, no time for arguing here. Just stick close to me and don't wander," the brunette said as he continued to walk to the crowd.
As they reached the somewhat small crowd. The two boys slid through the small gaps of people and had finally reached the center. In the middle of all was a man, it wasn't as gruesome as the first kill, but there was bleeding on his head and a big cut on its neck. His eyes were dilated and his mouth was covered in blood. The crimson liquid soaked his gray blazer.
'Hmm, he must've been hit by something before getting this cut.'
Beomgyu kneeled beside the body and examined the huge cut. It was certainly from a swiss army knife, judging by the size of the cut's gap. As the brunette was focused on the cut, something had caught Taehyun's eye and slipped past the crowd.
Searching for any identity on the victim. Beomgyu came across the man's hands, his left was covered in blood. But his right one was wiped clean, the brunette blinked his eyes.
'Wiped clean?'
A mischevious grin once again graced Beomgyu's lips as he hoisted himself from the floor.
"Yah, Taehyun-ah. Looks like we.... Taehyun-ah?" his voice fainted into a murmur as he realized the younger was no longer beside him.
Quickly Beomgyu snapped his head to the roulette on the stage. His eyes widen when it was already on its countdown to five and his stomach fell to what color the arrow landed.
Yellow.
Muttering a cuss, Beomgyu began pushing everyone out of his way. Mentally scolding himself for being too focused on the victim's corpse and not noticing the sudden disappearance of his dorm mate.
"Yah Taehyun-ah where are you!?" He shouted, dodging every person or even pushing them out of his way.
"Beomgyu-hyung!"
Whipping his head to where he heard his name. Beomgyu saw Taehyun jumped from afar, a panicked expression laced on his face.
"Stay right there Taehyun-ah. I'll come get you!" the brunette shouted, dodging and slightly pushing people in a hurry, along with a series of sorry's.
Unconsciously the brunette averted his at the virtual countdown. His eyes widen, heart almost stopping.
It was on three.
Adrenaline slowly crept into his veins, his breathing became shallow as possible images of Taehyun being the next victim.
No.
Not Taehyun.
Not his sweet, precious Taehyun.
Beomgyu was almost there, but before he could reach out his hand.
Darkness swallowed the museum hall once again.
___________________________________________
I hope you liked the chapter:)
Okay that was kinda insensitive because I know you guys didn't like it. Especially the cliffhanger, I'm so sorry😔
Anyway, see you next week! (Yes next week because I need to update My Son Beomhyun, hehehe❤️.)
-Ria