Chapter Text
Daeho successfully managed to recruit a fifth player, giving them just enough to continue the game. As the new member introduced himself, a girl shyly approached the five men, her big eyes carefully scanning them individually. Inho’s eyes immediately went down at the girl’s belly. He noticed her delicate hand resting against her small bump. He found himself unable to look away.
“Excuse me, can I join you?” She softly asked, her voice trembling. “Please help me, I’m pregnant…” She pleaded, putting her hand on her belly.
Something stirred in Inho’s chest, his heart pounded loudly in his ears and he wasn’t sure why. It might have been because this girl resembled his deceased wife, although she shared no features as her, she was pregnant the same way his wife was before she tragically passed away. He immediately felt connected to her, he felt responsible for her, and he wasn’t going to let her down like he did with his wife. The universe was giving him a second chance, he couldn’t afford to fail again.
In that very moment, in the middle of his own twisted games, he claimed her. She now belonged to him. She might have a husband back at home, waiting for her to come back with 45.6 billion won and their baby, but to Inho it didn’t matter nor did he care, she was no longer his.
After that moment, his eyes were glued on her. Throughout the games, he watched her every moment closely, making sure she wasn’t in pain or in discomfort. He would constantly ask if she was alright, and if she wasn’t, he would not hesitate to stop the games entirely and help her out.
Inho quickly realized that he wasn’t the only one who felt an instinctive urge to protect the pregnant girl. From the moment she joined them, Daeho’s behavior had changed. He stayed close to her, constantly lingering by her side. He would hold her whenever he got the chance, whether it was placing a hand on her shoulder, helping her walk, or holding her arm for too long. It all infuriated Inho, he tried his absolute hardest not to push him off of her and beat him to death. He kept telling himself that it wasn’t worth it, that loser was going to die soon anyway.
But he couldn’t help the growing possessiveness he felt towards her, it kept getting worse and worse as time went on. He managed to maintain a cold, detached expression, not letting anyone know how much he was suffering inside.
Junhee sat quietly at the bottom of the stairs, nibbling at her sandwich. She looked so frail and helpless, Inho couldn’t help but pity the girl. As he stared at her in silence, he finally started to notice her features. She was incredibly cute, she reminded him of a lost puppy. But despite her innocent appearance, there were things about her that irked him. Like her awful bleached hair that was mostly hidden by her natural colored hair and that eyebrow piercing. None of that suited her. But it was a reminder that she was still a dumb immature girl who made poor choices, too young to understand the consequences of her actions. That was how she got pregnant in the first place. It was now his duty and responsibility to fix her mistakes, once she was out of here he would raise her child and help her find her true self.
Meanwhile, the other men in the group began to make conversation with Junhee, they seemed fascinated with her and her pregnancy. “That baby is going to have so many uncles.” Daeho said. “Some of us are old enough to be grandfathers!” Jungbae joked while glancing over at Gihun and Inho.
“Yeah I guess so, you have all been so kind towards me…” Junhee awkwardly laughed.
Inho forced a weak smile while trying to keep his food down. He felt sick. Every sweet smile and shy glance she gave him was simply out of kindness, she saw him as a father figure, nothing more.
The conversation around him faded, his mind was only focused on one thing. It was hurting him, though he didn't know why. He didn't love the girl, she was simply a replacement for his dead wife, but something about her comment made him uneasy. He didn't want her to see him as a father, but what did he want? For her to see him as a lover? The thought of that wasn’t so bad.
After lunch, Junhee got up and excused herself to the bathroom. Inho’s eyes followed her carefully, watching as she waddled on over to the exit. He smiled at how effortlessly cute she was.
As soon as she disappeared, Daeho suddenly blurted out, “I think I like her—”
The three men immediately turned their heads over to him, confused as to what he meant.
“What?” He asked defensively.
“She’s pregnant…” Jungbae said bluntly.
“So?” Daeho responded with a shrug.
“So, she might have a husband…” Jungbae continued.
Daeho sighed, feeling defeated. “But she’s so cute, I don’t know… I just have this strong urge to protect her and hold her forever!”
“You might be confusing your emotions. It’s natural to feel protective of her, especially since she’s so vulnerable right now.” Gihun chimed in.
“Yeah but…” Daeho hesitated, his face turning bright red as he struggled putting his thoughts into words. “I want to do more… like kiss her…” He quickly looked down, avoiding the judgmental eyes of the other men.
Inho glared at him, pure disgust in his eyes. His jaw tightened, the thought of another man being interested in Junhee felt sickening.
No one seemed to notice Inho’s dark expression as they continued teasing Daeho for his silly crush. Though, he didn’t find any of this funny.
After a while, Junhee finally returned from the bathroom, she made her way towards the group. But before she could get too far, a young man suddenly appeared next to her and grabbed her by the arm. The sight made Inho flinch and clench his hands into fists.
From a distance, he watched as the boy offered her food. Junhee refused. This act seemed to encourage the boy to try again, this time grabbing her hands and began pleading with her about something. He looked so pathetic.
Junhee only looked more annoyed and bothered, her brows furrowed as she tried pulling away. The boy just continued pestering her, following her around. He figured he just had a silly crush on her too.
But the way Junhee acted towards the boy was what confused him. She wasn’t the type to engage with people unless it was absolutely necessary, always keeping to herself in a quiet and reserved manner. But there was something different about her, she looked at the boy with pure resentment, a look Inho never saw before. The way she glared at him was so unlike her, but then it clicked. Maybe they knew each other before the games.
Eventually, Junhee appeared to give up resisting and reluctantly sat down with the boy on one of the nearby beds. The boy looked relieved and gave her a goofy grin. It was painfully obvious he had some sort of infatuation with Junhee, much like Daeho.
The two seemed to bicker some more before he picked up his bowl of soup and began feeding Junhee. She looked terribly embarrassed and uncomfortable. Inho’s heart was racing in his chest out of pure anger and disbelief.
Just when things couldn’t get worse, player 333 scooped up a spoonful of soup and leaned down, mimicking airplane sounds as he guided the spoon towards Junhee’s belly. He could hear Junhee’s soft distant giggles. Usually his heart would feel warm and fuzzy hearing her giggles, but right now his chest ached.
Judging by Junhee’s reaction, Inho’s worst fear seemed to be confirmed. Player 333 wasn’t just some random kid with a silly crush, he was the father of her child, no doubt about it. There was no explanation for the familiarity between them, the way she allowed him to hover so close or the playful gestures.
Inho tried his absolute hardest to stay seated and not strangle him to death. Every instinct in his body screamed at him to intervene, to pull Junhee away and kill the boy. But he couldn’t, not here, and not now. So, he forced a blank expression and let his harmful thoughts eat him alive.
It was the last round of mingle and Inho’s eyes were glued on Junhee. He knew during the last round, they needed to find a partner and quickly get into an empty room. He was determined to take Junhee, this was his chance to show her how he can protect her and that he could be the one she relied on.
The rotating platform abruptly stopped, the number two was announced in the intercom. Inho quickly turned to Junhee and bolted in her direction. His legs moved as fast as they could, he had to reach her before anyone else did. But just as he got closer, player 333 had already grabbed her by the hand. His heart sank as he watched her get pulled away with a forceful urgency. Junhee didn’t resist.
Inho froze, unable to move or even fully process what had just happened. That boy had stolen her from him. He was seething in rage, but before he could even react, he felt a hand grab his arm. Jungbae dragged him toward one of the remaining empty rooms.
Unfortunately for them, all the rooms were taken, it was time to fight for one. Fueled by anger and frustration, he fought his way into a room. He punched, shoved, kicked, and even pushed his way through.
Time was running out, one player still remained inside the room, refusing to leave. Inho’s eyes narrowed, without much thought, he lunged at the man. He put him in a headlock, the man thrashed wildly under his arms, trying to break free. But it only made him tighten his grip more, he didn’t care about anything, his anger was in control now. The player’s struggles grew weaker, his body slowly becoming limp in the man’s grasp.
Jungbae watched as Inho dropped the lifeless body onto the ground, he looked terrified.
The remaining players were all escorted back to the lobby. The walk back was silent, and while everyone mourned the deaths of the people they were attached to, Inho was still seething. Despite killing a man in cold blood, hoping it would somehow calm his rage, he was still fuming in jealousy.
After finishing their meal, Inho and the three other men headed to the bathroom together. Upon entering, he felt the strong tension in the air. A man with bright purple hair, who he confronted one time, was leaning into Player 333’s face.
“You little shit.” Thanos snared, “You have time to fool around with a girl?”
Next to him stood another man with a ridiculous looking bob, he grinned. “I’ve been watching her carefully, she was walking a bit funny, and her belly looked-”
Player 333 cut him off, “Leave her alone, you bastards!” He shouted, his voice echoing through the room.
The two men glanced at each other before bursting into laughter. They enjoyed teasing and mocking the boy. Gihun whispered, saying that they should leave since a fight could break out at any moment. Inho wanted to stay and see the boy get beat up.
“I’m going to cut off your finger, give it to her,” Thanos threatened before leaning down and whispering into his ear. “and ask her out. She’ll love it.”
“You asshole!” The boy shouted, using all his strength, he swung his fist at the purple haired man, but completely missed.
Thanos swiftly dodged the blow, stepping back and throwing a punch back, he however did not miss. It sent the boy flying down to the ground.
Inho stood near the entrance, observing the scene in silence. The three other men had quickly abandoned him. All that was in mind was how that purple haired freak was talking about Junhee. Ask her out? The audacity was laughable.
The fight quickly got ugly, several random men joined in, turning the bathroom into a chaotic brawl. Fists flew in all sorts of directions, grunts and shouts were heard from all over. Inho didn’t want to get involved, not yet at least. So he swiftly and silently slipped into an empty stall, locking the door behind him. He pressed his forehead against the door and watched the scene unfold through the small gap.
Through the thin slit, he could see Thanos pin player 333 down, his expression terrifying and sadistic. The boy could barely defend himself as Thanos threw brutal punches, each blow landing on his face. He could see the boy’s face already swollen with red and purple bruises, the sight made Inho grin.
“Your money, your girl, your life— they’re all mine!” Thanos declared loudly as he threw more punches. “It all belongs to me, Thanos the great!”
Inho’s chest felt heavy, it was getting hard to breathe. It was the same feeling as before, he was seething in jealousy and possessiveness. His fists clenched at his side as he watched the two boys throw punches. He was on the verge of bursting out of the stall, ready to attack Thanos for the disgusting and vile things he had said about Junhee.
But then he paused, he watched as player 333 pulled something from his pocket, it was a fork. Inho’s gaze sharpened, he felt a little excited to see what would happen next. Sure enough, player 333 lunged the fork at Thanos, aiming it to his throat. But before he could get close, player 124 swiftly kicked his hand away, the fork slid across the floor.
The failed attack only enraged Thanos further. He grabbed the boy by the throat. “You fucking— you son of a fucking bitch!” Thanos spat in his face, his grip only tightening with every second that passed.
Inho could see the desperation into the boy’s eyes as he thrashed around on the floor, trying his absolute hardest to break free. His attempts quickly became weaker, his gasps for air more frantic. And then, all at once, his body went limp. Player 333’s arms fell to his sides, and he stopped moving entirely. Thanos had killed him.
Inho felt a strange mix of emotions. Of course he wanted to kill that idiot himself, but now that he was gone, he could only imagine Junhee’s reaction to his death.
Thanos wasn’t completely satisfied with simply killing the boy, he slowly stood up from the ground and raised his foot, he began viciously kicking the lifeless corpse over and over again. Inho had seen enough, he hadn’t forgotten Thanos’ words about Junhee.
Inho stepped out of the stall, his eyes scanning the floor until they landed on the discarded fork. He bent down and picked it up, and without hesitation, he charged at Thanos. Before the man could react, Inho slammed him against the cold tiled wall.
“What the fuck?!” Thanos shouted, his eyes widened at the recognition of the old man. “What do you want?” He grunted and gasped, trying to breathe.
“I want you to apologize.” Inho calmly replied as he threw his fist into Thanos’ stomach with a brutal force.
Thanos doubled down, gasping for air, “For what?!” He managed to choke out between breaths.
“Apologize for the way you spoke about Junhee.” Inho responded as he threw another punch to the man’s face. Blood began dripping out of his mouth.
Thanos blinked, dazed and confused, “Who the fuck is Junhee— oh you mean Myunggi’s bitch?” He sneered, spitting blood onto the floor.
Inho didn’t bother to reply, he was too enraged and disgusted. He simply threw his fist harder into Thanos’ face over and over again. The sound of bones crunching and loud grunts filled the bathroom, but Inho didn't stop, he couldn’t.
Thanos tried to fight back, weakly swinging his arms. But Inho was much stronger and more precise with his hits, he grabbed Thanos by the throat and slammed his harder against the wall. He immediately brought the sharp fork up to his throat. Without much thinking, he pushed the fork deep into the boy’s throat. A choke escaped his lips as blood spilled down his neck. Inho didn't stop there, he pulled the fork out slowly, then pushed it right back in again. Over and over, he repeated the motion, each thrust fueled by disgust and rage he felt toward the purple haired man.
Thanos’ struggles grew weaker, the life in his eyes slowly disappearing. His body slid down the wall as Inho released his grip. The man dropped to the floor, a pool of blood spreading beneath him.
Inho stood over the corpse, his chest heaving, his knuckles bruised, and his entire body covered in blood. The room was silent, the rest of the players had either run out or were too scared to move. The man simply walked over to the sink and tried his best to clean himself.
He didn’t feel any regret, only satisfaction. Thanos had disrespected Junhee, and now he was dead, it was that simple. Without looking back, Inho calmly walked out of the bathroom with ease, his expression cold and unreadable.
As Inho made his way back to the group, he could hear murmured whispers and judgmental glances on him. But none of that mattered to him, his focus was solely on Junhee. His eyes were glued on her the moment he spotted her in the crowd. He immediately noticed how distressed she looked. Her face was pale, her hands nervously fidgeting with each other, and her eyes darting around to search for someone.
Her eyes landed on Inho, she rushed over to him. He couldn’t help but feel his heart skip a beat at the sight of her running to him.
“Where is Myunggi?! Is he okay?!” She asked, her voice trembling with desperation as her eyes frantically scanned around.
Inho froze for a moment, unsure how to respond. Was he really the one who was going to tell her that Myunggi was gone? His thoughts were caught off by the loud intercom.
“The following players have been eliminated; Players 230, 268, 299, 331, 333, and 401. End of the list.”
He watched as the words slowly changed Junhee’s expression, she looked completely devastated. Tears welled up in her eyes, immediately spilling over. A violent sob escaped from her lips as she stumbled forward, her legs felt weak and useless.
Inho reached out and gently placed his arm around her shoulder, he quickly guided her towards the back row of the beds, away from the crowd. Before he could do or say anything, Junhee collapsed into him, her body trembling as she buried her face in his chest. He was afraid she would feel his heart beat at a ridiculously fast rate.
He looked down at the girl, she fit so perfectly in his arms. Her small frame trembling, her hot tears soaking through his shirt, and her soft whimpers— he felt his pants tighten.
This wasn’t supposed to be happening. He shouldn’t love her or feel these new feelings towards her, yet he couldn’t stop. From the very beginning, he viewed her as a replacement for his wife, she was almost like a surrogate in a way. He was supposed to take care of her and raise her child as his, something he failed to do before. That was the plan. Yes, he felt a little possessive over her, but that was normal, she was carrying a baby. It wasn’t normal for him to feel insanely jealous whenever another man looked at her. Or when he desperately craved her attention, to want her eyes on him and only him. And it especially wasn’t normal for him to get a hard on from her crying.
Yet here he was, holding her tightly and letting her stain his shirt with her tears. He was letting a stupid little fragile thing like her ruin him. And he loved it.
“I’m scared, Youngil…” she whispered in his chest. “He was all I had, and now— I’m alone…”
“You’re not alone,” Inho responded, his voice steady and low. “I’m here, and I promise to take care of you.”
Junhee didn’t respond, she was too lost in her sorrow to fully register his words. She continued to sob, his hand gently stroked her hair.
“I want to leave, Youngil…” she quietly said in desperation. She pulled back slightly, just enough to look up at him, her wide teary eyes pleading with him.
Her desperate pleas flipped a switch inside him. It was as if, subconsciously, he had been waiting for this very moment. Waiting for her to turn to him, to beg for help, to need him, and to use him. With those tear-filled eyes, Junhee was in full control of him, and she didn’t even realize it. He belonged to her as much as she belonged to him.
“You will.”