"Talking to you is a complete waste of time!"
Ryan snapped angrily and got up from the chair, storming out of the room.
"Oh please, I thought you'd grown up a little by now,"
Aya shot back, that same mocking smile playing on her lips.
Silence filled the room again.
Maria stood between them — one storming toward the door, the other busy typing something on her phone.
"When will you two stop fighting?" she said, frustrated.
"It's the same drama every time!"
"It's not drama, it's reality," Aya replied coldly. "Some people never change."
Ryan, who had already reached the door, turned around and said,
"At least I'm not a liar… like you."
"Enough!" Maria stepped between them. "Not another word."
All three fell silent.
But even in that silence, the air was thick with tension.
Maria had a feeling — if she didn't do something soon,
these two would end up killing each other one day.
But she had no idea —
a few hours later, the three of them would be trapped in a game
where survival would matter more than their arguments.
It was around 11 p.m.
Thunder rolled outside, lightning flashed, and Maria sat in front of her laptop.
She was about to try out a new game called "The Dangerous Game."
"Just a few minutes… then I'll sleep," she muttered to herself.
But the moment she clicked Start, the screen went blank —
and the whole room was swallowed in darkness.
Suddenly, her phone rang —
it was Ryan.
"Maria, did Aya come to your place?"
"What? No…"
"Then why does her location show she's near my house?"
Maria was about to reply when —
a loud knock echoed through the room.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
"Who's there?" she asked nervously.
No answer.
She slowly got up, walked to the door, hand trembling on the knob…
And then —
the whole room flashed bright, as if lightning had struck inside it.
Everything spun —
and when she opened her eyes, she was standing somewhere strange.
Darkness. Fog.
Strange glowing lights on the walls.
"Where… am I?" she whispered.
Two figures appeared in the mist ahead.
Ryan… and Aya.
Both looked just as shocked as she was.
"Is this some kind of joke?" Aya yelled.
"If it is, it's your stupid prank, Ryan!"
Ryan glared at her. "If this was a prank, I'd be laughing, idiot!"
And then, a robotic voice echoed from above —
"Welcome, players… to The Dangerous Game."
The three looked at each other.
For the first time — the fear on their faces said everything.
They just stood there —
fear, confusion, and a bit of anger all tangled together.
Maria's voice trembled, "Does anyone understand what's happening?"
Ryan looked up. Floating in the neon mist were glowing words —
"Level 1: Escape the Maze."
"I think… we have to get out of here," he said quietly.
"Oh wow, what a genius idea!" Aya snapped. "Like we didn't know that already!"
"Just shut up, Aya!"
"You stop talking first!"
And there it was — another fight.
Maria groaned, "Oh God, you two are going to kill me before this game does!"
Suddenly, the ground shook — like an earthquake.
The walls started moving, shifting into new paths.
"Wait! What's happening?!" Maria screamed.
Ryan grabbed her hand. "Run! Now!"
The three of them ran in different directions —
surrounded by endless walls and twisting passages.
A moment ago, it was reality —
now it was a terrifying maze.
Aya slammed into a wall. "Ah! These feel real!"
Ryan shouted, "Because this isn't a game — it's a trap!"
Maria gasped for breath, "You mean… we're actually stuck here?"
The voice returned —
"You have ten minutes to find the exit."
A timer began.
10:00… 9:59… 9:58…
Ryan said firmly, "If we want to survive, stop fighting and stick together."
For the first time, Aya didn't argue —
she grabbed his hand.
All three of them ran in the same direction —
while behind them, the maze walls slowly closed in.
Blue and violet lights flickered all around.
The walls were no longer made of bricks — they looked like some kind of digital grid,
as if the entire maze was built inside a computer.
"This place… it's not real," Ryan muttered.
Aya touched the wall — a wave of light rippled through it at her touch.
"It's all made of code," she whispered.
Maria's voice trembled, "Then someone must be controlling this game…"
Suddenly, a hologram appeared in front of them —
a face, half machine, half human.
"Welcome to Level 1. Your minds are connected. Your bodies are no longer in the real world."
The color drained from all three faces.
"What do you mean, 'not in the real world'?"
"You mean… we're actually inside the system?" Aya asked, her voice shaking.
Ryan clenched his jaw. "Some psycho hacker must've created this setup."
The hologram smiled.
"You're smart, Ryan. But let's see how long you survive."
Suddenly, the ground started cracking open —
glowing wires and electric circuits burst out from below.
The timer reappeared.
09:00… 08:59… 08:58…
The walls began to shift again,
as if the maze itself wanted to swallow them alive.
"Run!"
They all sprinted forward.
A laser beam shot past Aya, scorching a chunk of the wall beside her.
"Shit! That thing could actually kill us!"
"Told you, this isn't a game — it's a trap!" Ryan shouted.
Maria spotted a faint blue glow in the distance.
"That might be the exit code!"
The three of them dashed toward it —
but suddenly, a cyber-monster materialized before them.
Half human, half machine —
red eyes glowing, electricity crackling from its metallic body.
"Welcome… players," it growled.
"Level 1… begins now."
The cyber-monster's red eyes blazed in the dark.
With every step it took, sparks shot up from the ground — as if the entire system bowed to its command.
The three of them slowly stepped back.
"Maria… what do we do now?" Aya whispered.
"How should I know?" Maria stammered, her voice trembling. "It feels like a game, but the pain is real!"
Ryan's eyes darted around — glowing codes running across the walls, floating lines in the air, and above them, the timer counting down:
07:23… 07:22…
"We don't have time," Ryan said firmly. "We need to reach that blue light."
Aya snapped, "And what if it's a trap?"
"Then we'll die — but not standing still," he said, stepping forward.
The cyber-monster roared and slammed its fist into the ground —
neon blocks shot out from below, slamming into the walls and reshaping the entire maze.
"Shit! The path's gone!"
"Go the other way!" Maria shouted.
Ryan waved his hand in the air —
a glowing digital screen appeared, like he was hacking the system itself.
"I'm trying to break through the firewall…"
The monster was moving straight toward them now, its heavy mechanical footsteps echoing —
"RUNNERS detected. Initiating termination."
Aya grabbed Ryan's arm. "Hurry up!"
"Just… a few more seconds…"
"Ryan!"
"Got it!"
He slammed the Enter key —
a section of the wall glitched and split open.
"Now!" Ryan yelled.
They ran.
A laser beam shot past them, missing by inches.
Maria almost tripped but caught herself.
"This game is insane!"
"No," Ryan said through gritted teeth. "This is a game made by a psychopath."
They sprinted through the glitching passage and burst into a large hall.
The room was completely empty —
except for a console-like machine in the center.
On its screen were the words:
"Only one can move forward."
They froze, staring at each other.
"What does that mean?" Aya asked. "Only one?"
Ryan's voice dropped. "I think… one of us has to stay behind."
The room fell silent.
And then, that same robotic voice echoed again —