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N O W P L A Y I N G
» [ The Vivace Strings - Song Jin Seok, Hwang Seung Pil ] «
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───── ❝ R U B Y F R I D A Y ' S P O V ❞ ────
║ Gregorian Calendar ║ 01 - 18 - 2027 ║
║ Monday║ Class Day║
"Just what vivace strings you all pulled to help me succeed in my grisly dare?"
My voice echoed through the room as I glared at Killian, Leo, and Maeve in front of me.
The shadows danced in the warm light of the day, casting their ominous forms across the room. I stared at their faces, searching for any sign of emotions, but found only blank innocence staring back. Their expressions remained neutral, yet a slight tension hung in the air.
My hands curled into fists as questions swirled in my mind.
What dark secrets had they kept from me all this time?
What vile tricks and manipulations had they employed to aid my sinister cause?
Those question burned within me, demanding an answer that they remained reluctant to provide. Suspicion crept into my thoughts, dimming the warmth of our friendship and filling the silence with unease.
Damn, I knew they had aided my success, but the means through which they achieved it still remained a mystery. Part of me was grateful for their assistance, yet another part wondered at what cost this help had come and if their intentions were truly altruistic.
Yet before my emotions could flood my whole system and thoughts, Leo suddenly raised his pinky finger, which was now covered in blood stained bandage. That view disrupted the never ending saga of queries swarming within me, and I can't help but to perked up my eyebrows, my lips still processing on what should I do nor say, "W-wait, I thought... I thought Killian was the one who was injured..."
The blood-stained bandage sent an uneasy feeling through me. Something wasn't right. I had always suspected there were details they kept hidden from me, favors granted with strings attached. But seeing the physical evidence of their mysterious ways left me unsettled.
With my words hanging in air, I just sat there unmoving, looking, and observing them as they exchanged nervous glances, clearly unsure how to respond. But, then as if sensing my confusion, finally, Killian decided to spoke up his words cutting through the tense quiet, "I wasn't the one who suffered the dare, Ruby. It was Leo. That night of the games, we switched places and Leo secretly sneak out to the dare room in front on where your dare room also lurk off."
I studied Leo's face for confirmation, but he refused to meet my gaze. Instead, he stared down at the bloodied bandage, fidgeting within its loose end, "But don't worry, Fridays. There was no harm done with my pinkies. It was still intact, since I know ways on how to fake a finger cutting scene."
Their story seemed plausible yet something felt off, as if they were concealing crucial details. Their mysterious ways left me wary, though I said nothing more and let the issue drop for now. But, then inside, with their words adding a fuel to the fire of my mind, more questions swirled in through it.
Why had they switched?
What exactly had they done?
And why had they lied to all, claiming it was Killian who had been hurt, and even dressing his hands as if he was the one who was vividly injured?
Though Leo assured me no true harm had been done, something about the whole affair felt unsettling, even sinister. The casual way they spoke of dares and games left me uneasy, wondering what other secrets lay beneath the surface.
I am sure, my queries reached them even though it was beneath all my subconscious thoughts, since once again, they tried so hard to refuse my gaze, the three of them are now either staring down the table, or staring at the sides.
For the moment, I could only guess at their intentions as they withheld the truth shrouded in their ambiguous responses.
"I don't get it, guys. Please, enlighten me on this. I do not wish to step out of this room, oblivious about the truth of your plan," I said, my voice hinted a lace of begging I am not usually familiar to go on about. Leo's evasive gaze and vague reassurances only heightened my unease. Their overall deception hinted at motives I couldn't comprehend, motives that made me question how and why did they had to twist the games. For what reason?
My curiosity burned, yet they remained silent, their hidden agenda left undisclosed. The growing distance between us felt impossible to bridge without the clarity only truth could provide. But for now, I remained in the dark, left only to speculate on what really happened and what they planned that midnight hour.
Minutes run out, and many ticks of the ticking clock already chummed out, yet still the mystery only deepened my unease, leaving me with a sense that I knew little of the truth beneath their casual facade. Their secretive ways hinted at complications I suspected were far more complex than their evasiveness implied.
I was so damn ready to uncover the depths of their scheme, but the three of them remained reluctant to divulge the full extent of their plans. They seem to be unprepared to blabber all of their plans out to me as if they're still hesitating.
The fog of secrecy only fed my skepticism, fueling suspicions of plots and intentions beyond their innocuous demeanor. But without candor or confession, I was left in the shadows, left to discern meaning from the scant clues and fragments they let slip.
For now, I could only speculate on the realities they avoided speaking, the details they chose not to disclose. I remained on the outside, unaware of the full story they kept to themselves.
Fuck it. A curse ran down my spine as darker possibilities crept into my thoughts. I knew so little of their secret affairs, only what they casually revealed.
And the rest remained shrouded in shadows and half-truths.
Sensing their unpreparedness to tackle further their plan to me, I just forced a thin smile and said, "You all seem to be just not in the mood for a truth revelation today. So, I'll guess I have no choice but to just go back to my dorm and try to get some fresh air,"
Without waiting for any of their response, I rose in my seat, my feet almost ready to exit the room, but before I could, their hushed voices made me halt to an abrupt stop as Killian revealed something worth for me to stay for, "We discovered a path of escape, Ruby. And the only way to get there is to be freed out from this institution walls,"
I turned to face them once more, eyes searching for any sign of remorse or guilt amongst their ranks. But all I saw were cold, impassive faces reflecting back at me. Still, I had come this far and would not be deterred, "What are you talking about?"
Killian shifted uncomfortably under my gaze but began to speak once again, divulging the secrets best left buried in the dark, "After we had known Ms. Rose setup, likely a trap for you that night, Leo also overheard through the grapevine that who ever suffers the consequences of your dare, that person will be sent through the nearby town's hospital just beyond the outskirts of this forest, beyond this institutional walls, just like what they always do every start of the semestral games. And though, none of us experienced it, rumors flew out that being sent outside means two things — either you'll make it or break it. Either you die or be alive."
"Yet, thinking out of the box, it also means... a great chance for escape we so long to embrace. Our plan still stands for that. I will pretend to be the badly injured one, so that the school has no choice but to sent me out and I will grab that chance to alert the officials about this treacherous place, since it's too risky for Leo to be the one 'cause — One, he's perfectly fine. Two, he doesn't know how to act nor play along. And three, his face is known out there for the police 'since he's a wanted fugitive," he continued, voice lowering to a near whisper.
The sunset wind whispered ominously through the trees as I listened to Killian's tale, a cold tendril of unease creeping up my spine. His words painted a picture of conspiracy and treachery, of plots hatched in the shadows to ensnare the games.
I saw again in my mind's eye that fateful midnight at the school gala, the masked figures dancing beneath the glittering chandeliers as plans of them were made, that has a potential to alter the course of events of that night forever.
The prospect of escape hung in the air, a faint glimmer of hope in the oppressive darkness of this place. But I knew better than to trust in rumors and half-baked plans. More likely than not, Killian's injury would be real and his chance of escape slim to none. Still, the idea took root in my mind, an insidious thought that I could not shake...
What if we really could get out?
I wanted to stay suspicious of their secret assistance, but part of me believed they were telling the truth. Against all odds, outside these walls, we could slip away into the night, vanishing without a trace if we play our cards right.
The risks are high but so is the prize of freedom, no longer caged like animals in this place.
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T O B E C O N T I N U E D...