Part 12
Felix, still reeling from the confrontation with Hyunjin, stormed back toward his cell. He didn't stop until he was back inside the oppressive familiarity. He slammed the heavy metal door shut behind him and frantically threw the deadbolt home, a futile gesture against the coming threat
He stumbled to his bed and collapsed, the crushing weight of his isolation hitting him fully. He immediately clapped his hands over his head, burying his face in his palms, trying to mute the panicked thoughts that were screaming in his mind, He sat there for a long time, paralyzed in the silent dread, forcing his mind to search desperately for a solution
After the initial shock wore off, a cold, desperate resolve took hold. He needed confirmation. He couldn't trust Hyunjin's mocking words
He cautiously left his cell and walked quickly toward the main yard where a few guards were posted near the equipment shack. He spotted a guard he recognized as slightly less hostile
"Excuse me," Felix said, keeping his voice steady despite the anxiety twisting his gut "Can you tell me where the 0034 prisoner is?"
The guard didn't look up from his clipboard, his tone flat "0034? He's serving punishment. Isolated"
Felix's heart sank like a stone. The guard finally glanced at him
"He's been moved to the solitary room" the guard ordered, dismissing him instantly
Felix stumbled out of the yard, the guard's confirmation "solitary room" acting as a final, fatal seal on his fear. Jae-bum was gone, and the path was clear for Hyunjin. The image of Sang-woo's desperate end flashed in his mind, sharp and sickening. Is that what awaits me?
Instead of returning to the cold dread of his cell, he was drawn to the one place that offered a semblance of peace: the small, dusty chapel
He sank onto a rough wooden pew, clutching his hands tightly in his lap. He closed his eyes and began to pray, the words a frantic whisper against the overwhelming silence
But his prayer quickly dissolved into a torrent of memories, focusing on the people who had shaped his life
First came his father a man of quiet strength. Felix remembered the pressure and expectation but also the profound kindness in his eyes after his first wife's death. He had done his best to raise a grieving boy alone, a memory that now brought a sharp sting of regret for the failure that had led Felix here
Then came the ghost of his mother. Her face was a hazy photograph in his mind, a smile blurred by time. The car accident had taken her when he was only ten, leaving a permanent, hollow ache of absence. She was a beautiful, sorrowful ghost from a life he barely recalled
Finally, his mind settled on his stepmother, This was the memory that shattered him. She hadn't tried to replace his mother instead, she had built a new kind of love beside that memory. He saw her face radiating unshakable kindness, her laughter a gentle sound that had slowly filled their quiet house. Her embrace had been warmer and truer than any bond of blood. And with her came his stepsister with her bright, mischievous eyes and the joyful echo of her voice chasing him through the halls of their home
The contrast between that radiant past and his crushing present was too much to bear
A choked sob tore from his throat, then another. Felix doubled over, resting his forehead on the pew in front of him as his body convulsed with silent, desperate weeping. He cried for Jae-bum's suffering, for Sang-woo's death, for the family he had failed, and for the terrifying fate Hyunjin now held in his hands
He stayed there for a long time, hollowed out by grief and fear until only a cold numbness remained. He finally rose, his eyes raw and his face streaked with tears but his mind, stripped bare by sorrow was now cold and focused. Tears were a luxury he could no longer afford. He had to prepare, He had to fight....
A slow, predatory smile spread across Hyunjin's lips as his gaze swept the chow hall and found the space at Felix's usual table conspicuously empty. The absence was a confession. So the little rabbit thinks it can hide in its burrow, he thought the irony bitter and amusing. It chooses to starve rather than face the wolf. How noble. How utterly stupid...
His decision was instantaneous. He shoved back from his table, the legs of his stool screeching against the grimy linoleum floor. He strode toward the serving line, his movements fluid and deliberate, cutting through the crowded room. The low murmur of conversation dipped as he passed other inmates instinctively hunching over their trays or finding a sudden interest in their food
"Load up a tray" Hyunjin commanded the inmate server, his tone a low, sharp whip-crack that brooked no argument. He didn't ask; he stated a fact
The server, a lanky man with a nervous twitch, looked up from ladling a watery stew "But... you already ate..." The words died in his throat as he registered the glacial coldness in Hyunjin's eyes
Hyunjin leaned forward, his palms flat on the stainless steel counter, invading the server's space. The air around them seemed to grow cold "Let me be clearer" he ground out, his voice a menacing whisper "Are you going to put that food on a tray or am I going to climb over this counter and take it? And I won't be just taking the food"
The server paled, his Adam's apple bobbing in a frantic gulp. His eyes darted toward the senior guard stationed by the wall a man named Briggs whose face was a permanent mask of weary cynicism. Briggs gave a single almost imperceptible nod. The message was clear: Don't cause a scene. Give him what he wants
His hands trembling, the server scrambled to assemble a tray, slopping stew over the rim of the bowl and nearly dropping a plastic spoon. He shoved the loaded tray toward Hyunjin who took it without a word of thanks, his condescending smirk thanks enough
Tray in hand Hyunjin turned to leave the mess hall but his path was blocked by a new, fresh-faced guard one who hadn't yet learned the unwritten rules of this particular hell
"Inmate! You know the rules. No food leaves the hall" the young guard stated, puffing his chest out with textbook authority. He stood firm in the doorway, a barrier of naive principle
Hyunjin didn't break stride. He stopped mere inches from the guard, forcing the man to look up slightly to meet his gaze. He slowly ran his tongue along the inside of his cheek, a gesture of pure, unadulterated mockery "Are you going to stop me, hmm?" he purred, his voice deceptively soft
A tense silence fell over the nearby tables. Before the new guard could formulate a response, the senior guard, Briggs, spoke from his post, his voice laden with bored finality "Let him pass"
Hyunjin's triumphant grin was a flash of white in the dim hall. He reached out and gave the stunned young guard a firm, almost paternal pat on the cheek a gesture far more demeaning than a pat on the back. It was a blatant, public humiliation
"You should listen to your superior," Hyunjin said, his voice dripping with false camaraderie "He knows how things work here"
And with that, he walked out of the chow hall, the heavy metal door clanging shut behind him. The tray in his hands was no longer just a meal; it was a weapon, a provocation, and the opening move in a game only he knew the rules to
Felix was in his cell, attempting a few clumsy practice fighting stances, though he knew it was far too soon for him to acquire any real skill. The exercises were more about channeling his frenetic anxiety than preparation. He had pulled his hair back into a small, tight knot and stripped off his outer tunic, revealing his undershirt. He was desperately hungry but he forced himself to focus, trying to fill the time. Finally he sat down on his cot and closed his eyes, trying to impose silence on his racing thoughts
Suddenly, the silence was shattered.
"Did you really think skipping lunch would save you from me?" a voice purred from the doorway, its self-satisfied tone cutting through the air like a razor.
Felix's eyes snapped open, his heart hammering against his ribs like a trapped bird. A cold wave of pure, instantaneous terror washed over him, rooting him to the spot for a second before he scrambled to his feet, his body coiled tight with shock. The metallic taste of fear flooded his mouth
"W-what are you doing here?" Felix stammered, the words barely a whisper, stripped of all strength
Hyunjin glanced down at the metal tray he held, its surface dull and scratched. "What does it look like I'm doing?" He took a single, deliberate step into the cell, and his presence seemed to suck all the oxygen from the room, making the walls feel as if they were closing in. "Don't skip your meal"
"What business is that of yours? Stay out of my cell!" Felix retorted, a spark of resentment briefly cutting through the paralyzing panic
"Take it, I'm not in the mood for a long conversation" Hyunjin said, shoving the tray toward Felix's chest. The cold metal pressed against him, a promise of violation
"Did you tell them to take Jae-bum to the solitary room?" Felix demanded, his voice gaining a tremor of raw accusation as he ignored the food
Hyunjin gave a bored smile, tilting his head back as if seeking patience from the ceiling "I said, I'm not in the mood for conversation. Aren't you hungry?"
"I would rather starve to death than eat anything that came from your hands" Felix spat, every word rigid with definitive, seething rejection
The shift in Hyunjin was immediate and chilling "Yaa, I'm genuinely trying to be calm with you here" he warned, the false sweetness in his tone evaporating, leaving behind something utterly toxic
"Why did you do it? Jae-bum did nothing! He has nothing to do with this cursed game you're playing with me!" Felix cried, the questions bursting from a place of deep, helpless anguish. Then came the fatal blow "Is this because you want to finish what you started? Make me like Sang-woo?"
The name acted like a trigger. A visible, explosive shock ripped through Hyunjin's controlled facade a flash of genuine, unbridled rage that twisted his features. With a violent roar that echoed off the concrete, he slammed the entire tray against the floor. The sound was deafening a shrieking clatter of metal that made Felix flinch violently. Lukewarm gravy and clumps of rice exploded outward, splattering across Felix's legs and the cell floor, the greasy smell instantly filling the air
Hyunjin was on him in an instant, his face a mask of fury, backing Felix hard against the cold, unyielding wall. The impact drove the air from Felix's lungs
"I said I was trying to be calm but you clearly don't want that" Hyunjin snarled, his voice a guttural whisper, his breath hot and sour against Felix's face. "So, that bastard dared to tell you, huh?" A vicious, terrifying smile stretched his lips "Yes, those were wonderful times, watching Sang-woo writhe and beg us to stop" He savored the memory, his eyes glazing over with pleasure
"You are disgusting! You sick bastard!" Felix screamed. In a flash of reckless, suicidal fury, he gathered his saliva and spat directly onto Hyunjin's cheek
The world seemed to stop. Hyunjin froze, his eyes widening in cold, profound disbelief. A single, agonizing heartbeat of silence hung between them. Then his face reconfigured into an expression of pure, lethal fury. Hyunjin drew back his arm and delivered a savage, open-handed slap. The crack of the impact was sickeningly sharp a sound that seemed to reverberate in Felix's very bones. The force was overwhelming, whipping his head to the side and sending him collapsing to the floor. A coppery tang of blood immediately bloomed in his mouth, a thin line welling from his split lower lip
Dazed, Felix slowly raised a trembling hand to his throbbing mouth, staring in shock at the bright red smear on his fingertips. Before he could process it, Hyunjin dropped down with brutal swiftness, roughly seizing a thick handful of his hair and yanking his head back
"This is the last warning I'm giving you, you damn pest" Hyunjin hissed, the words dripping with venom. With deliberate slowness, he pressed his thumb against Felix's bleeding lip, grinding it into the cut to draw more blood before dragging it downwards. He held his thumb up between their faces, inspecting the vibrant red stain with a clinical curiosity. Then, in a gesture of horrifying intimacy, he moved his hand to his own mouth, never breaking eye contact, and slowly, deliberately ran his tongue along the length of his thumb, tasting Felix's blood with a predator's relish
He smiled a cold, terrifying expression of triumphant ownership and then yanked Felix's hair again with excruciating force, sending fresh tears of pain springing to Felix's eyes. Then, Hyunjin grabbed a handful of the spilled, grit-embedded rice from the floor, squeezed it into a tight, filthy ball and forced it painfully into Felix's mouth
"Stop it! Get off me!" Felix choked out, the words garbled around the disgusting mass. He fought back, his hands scrabbling weakly at Hyunjin's arms, his body thrashing in desperate, futile resistance
Hyunjin only tightened his grip and threw his head back, laughing a loud, maniacal sound that bounced deafeningly off the cell walls "Eat it! Aren't you hungry?!!"
He finally released his grip on Felix's hair, leaving him gasping, choking and utterly broken on the floor. Hyunjin leaned close once more, pulling Felix's face near his own. Felix's vision was blurred with silent tears but his eyes burned with undiluted hatred
"To survive here, to stand against me, you need to be strong. Don't waste your energy trying to starve yourself" Hyunjin instructed, his voice now a deceptive, soft caress. He brushed his fingers almost tenderly across Felix's swollen, burning cheek. "I'm leaving now, Felix"
Hyunjin stood and walked out, leaving the door ajar. Felix stared at the filthy, congealed mess on the floor, the throbbing in his lip and the sharp pain in his scalp a symphony of his violation. He spat out the grainy, dirty rice, his body wracked with a dry heave
"Psychopath... bastard" he finally managed to whisper, the words a raw scrape in his throat but this time they were not just a curse. They were a vow