It was as if the two of them had forgotten where they were. In each other's embrace they could almost feel the golden sun's rays hitting their warm cheeks. They felt free and happy, both emotions that they currently were in no situation to express.
Y/n pulled away from Jun-ho and her eyes widened in recollection. Jun-ho seemed to come back to his senses as well. In a synchronous motion the two of them pulled on their masks and began their journey back to the leader's room .
The two of them crept silently around the black room until Jun-ho pulled the trigger to blast open a door. The couple found themselves in a room full of documents. Looking at one of the binder Y/n gasped.
SQUID GAME 1999
"Jun, these games...they've been going on for decades. And there's multiple ones a year" whispered Y/n running a finger along the various binders.
Jun-ho was silent as he flipped through the list of players of the 2021 Squid Game. "He's only been gone for a few weeks. In-ho can't be in any of the early ones."
The alarms started to blare. Y/n was certain the leader was looking for the two of them. "Jun-ho maybe we should–"
"He's here somewhere" said Jun-ho determined. "I can feel it." Y/n watched his eyes wander toward a gift box that was enclosed in one of the drawers. Jun-ho pulled out a sheet and Y/n walked over to peer over his shoulder.
LIST OF PLAYERS
Y/n's eyes glanced down the sheet until they landed on a familiar name.
2015 28TH SQUID GAME PLAYER 132, HWANG IN-HO
"Hwang In-ho" gasped Jun-ho.
"2015" whispered Y/n. "But then–"
"In-ho" sighed Jun-ho rubbing a free hand against his temple. Y/n began snapping pictures of the evidence and the two of them were back in the leader's room when the phone began to ring.
Jun-ho calmly pulled Y/n towards a cabinet and the two of them shut themselves inside. Both of their masks were in their hands. If the leader happened to look inside the cabinet...
Y/n didn't want to think about that. She didn't really have the time anyway because as she glanced up she realized her proximity to Jun-ho. His head was right above hers and Y/n was forced to look at his chest. She could feel her face getting warm as Jun-ho looked down at her.
The leader was now by the phone and Y/n distinctly heard the receiver click.
"Front Man speaking. Yes. A minor disturbance took place. But it's being addressed" the deep voice paused for a moment. "No need to worry. We'll make sure there's no trace of the disturbance by the time the VIPs arrive.
Yes, sir. The game will begin on time, in line with the schedule"
Y/n heard the footsteps recede and heard the main door lock. She reached for the door and almost leaped out of the closet. Jun-ho followed after her quietly and picked up the receiver.
Y/n was fanning her face as Jun-ho examined the phone. He clearly couldn't trace the call so he placed the receiver down and walked out with his mask secured on his face. Y/n took one last glance around the room and followed after him.
....
The fourth game was brutal and Y/n and Jun-ho were lucky enough not to be assigned to its supervision or cleanup. Instead they were assigned to night duty.
Y/n didn't know if this was routine, but she noticed that Player 067 asked to step out to the bathroom. Jun-ho was wearing his square mask and after a small debate, he gestured for Y/n to take Player 067 to the restroom.
They were far from the rest of the guard now. Player 067 leaned closer to Y/n and whispered "It's you isn't it?"
Y/n didn't say anything.
"Number 030. I've wanted to see you again"
When they reached the restroom, Y/n followed Player 067 in after looking around the deserted hallway.
"What did you want" asked Y/n bluntly. A part of her thought of being gentle considering that Player 067 was dealing with the death of her closet friend, but another part of her didn't want too get too close to any player .
Y/n had no guarantee that Player 067 would make it out alive and Y/n had dealt with enough sorrow in her lifetime. She didn't want to become friends with a woman who was basically on her deathbed. The woman only had a 1/16 chance of coming out alive. Y/n wasn't about to get attached.
"Take of your mask. I want to talk face to face" replied 067 steadily.
Y/n took a deep breath. She pulled off her mask. "Make it quick, I don't–"
"You have a partner don't you?" stated 067 rather than asking.
"I don't–"
"Number 029. I'm not an idiot. It's obvious. He's not like the others. Tell him to be more harsh or your cover won't last much longer."
"Did you have a reason for all of this?" asked Y/n raising her eyebrows. "because I really–"
"You have a better chance than me of making it out of this place. You've got a partner and you're a detective" 067 paused and let out a small chuckle. "You're going to live."
Y/n waited.
"The name's Kang Sae-byeok" she said waiting for Y/n to reply.
"Shin A-Yeong" muttered Y/n.
"I remember" she muttered smiling slightly.
Sae-beyok regarded her for a moment. "My brother isn't like me. He's a sweet boy. His name's Kang Cheol and all he wants is for his family to be together."
Y/n shut her eyes tightly for a second. She knew what Sae-beyok was saying.
"Look, I'm not–" began Y/n.
"I can trust you–"
"You don't know me. You don't know anything–"
"Your name is Shin A-Yeong. You work for the Seoul Police. You're young around 24 if I had to guess. You're risking your life for your partner and want to save hundreds of strangers for no benefit of your own . You're going to make it out of this hell-hole, I can see it in your eyes and that's more than I can say for myself. I know enough, A-Yeong."
Y/n could feel a few tears slip past her eyes. Sae-byeok wasn't crying. She stared straight at the detective and whispered. "He's at the orphanage. Please take care of him, he doesn't have anyone else ."
Sae-byeok turned away. Y/n was left to wipe her tears and fasten her mask. Her wish of not getting attached to any of the playes shattered with each step Sae-byeok took.
....
"Front Man speaking. I'm happy to hear you enjoy the game, sir. Yes, sir. The host is currently waiting for the VIPs to arrive."
The Front man placed the receiver backwards and cocked his gun as he reached the door.
"Are you in here right now?" asked the Front Man as he began to bang open doors. "You're good, but you two made one mistake. I always put the receiver down the other way."
"I know there's two of you. One person can't be in so many places at once." The Front Man banged open the cabinet that Jun-ho and Y/n had hid in the day before. He sniffed the air slightly and bent down to pick a strand of longer black hair. "And one of you is a woman" he added.
"At least one of you is in the police department because the bullet you shot was from a Smith and Wesson M60 revolver, standard issue for Korean police. What is a cop doing here?"
The Front Man moved around his rooms. "I am sure you both have lots of questions. It's not too late to come out and talk. I don't know how you got in, but you can't leave this place without my permission ."
The Front Man was now in the room with all the files. He glanced around the room but his radio began to beep.
"We found two bodies" came the speaker's voice.
"Where are they?" asked the Front Man.
"The northern coast of the island"
...
"We need to get close to those VIPs" said Jun-ho as he and Y/n rushed along the hallways trying to find a relatively secure spot that the waiters would follow. "You should probably stay a high ranking guard just in case, Y/n"
"Are you sure this is going to work? The last time you made a plan–"
"We landed by a large ship with no idea on how to proceed. I know. Just trust me this time?"
"I always trust you" replied Y/n sincerely. Jun-ho glanced at her.
The two of them heard a waiter's footsteps approach.
"Your shift's over" stated Jun-ho as he pointed his gun at the man's head.
They did not shoot the waiter. Jun-ho shrugged off his suit. under which he had a thin layer of clothes, and handed it to the waiter. The waiter in turn stripped (Y/n had kept her eyes trained on Jun-ho ) and gave Jun-ho the black uniform.
The former waiter hurried out in the number 029 suit and a circle mask covering his face.
Y/n thought Jun-ho would wear the black uniform on top of his thin layer of clothes, but turned bright red as he began to pull his shirt over his head. Y/n swiftly turned around.
"It's not like you haven't seen me shirtless before" said Jun-ho chuckling.
"You didn't look that last time. You had arms like sticks and you were 12."
"And how do I look now?" asked Jun-ho. Y/n could almost hear the smirk in his voice.
"You know I'm all yours now" whispered Jun-ho once he was fully clothed. He wrapped his strong arms around Y/n's waist and bent his face towards her ear. "Body and soul."
"Shut up" said Y/n slapping his arms away. Jun-ho grinned as he put on his black mask.
"Be careful" he muttered. Y/n was at the door when Jun-ho called out her name.
"I love you"
Y/n smiled under her mask. "I love you too."
And she walked out, her boots thudding against the floor.
{1716}
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Woah I actually updated??? What a shock!
It was a rare day where the desire of writing a chapter was overwhelming. Definitely doesn't mean the chapter is good tho....