«­-(¯`·´¯)-««

Minseok had been, not exactly close, but within sight of the exit when he had watched the reflection of Junmyeon reaching his hand out for Sehun and the two of them running out of the maze together. Ignoring the calls of the others behind him, he had followed as quickly as he could, somehow managing to avoid walking into the mirrors that had been obstructing him for the past twelve hours.

'Almost there,' he thought, his once cautious walk escalating into a full-on run, ‘just a little more, just a little further.’

The air in the maze felt hotter, drier than when he and the other four had just entered it. The mirrors he passed were increasingly fogged, so streaked with condensation that every time he faced one head on, the reflection staring back was cloudy and distorted. The sweat that had dripped from his forehead wasn’t just from the exertion, the pressure of finding that long sought after exit. Neither was the sweat that had collected on the back of his neck, that had made his collar stick stiflingly close to his skin.

It was so close though. He was so close.

Minseok could almost feel a hint of the chilly autumn breeze, beckoning him closer to the exit. Could barely see the distant lights of the rest of the damn park, the familiar silhouettes of five people running towards those lights.

“You guys!”

Before his eyes, the exit had started to disappear, darkness on both sides inching closer and closer to each other until there was only a thin strip of light between them. He sped up, his feet hitting the ground harder than ever, faster than ever, his arm outstretched as he reached for the light.

“Wait!”

His hands slammed on the doors, cold and heavy and far too solid to give way no matter how much he pushed and pulled. The gap in-between was too narrow for even his hand to pass through, and all he could do was peek through and watch as one of the silhouettes slowed, turning to look back at the maze, at the house, at him.

It was the briefest of moments, and Minseok felt his heart leap into his throat before sinking to the very bottom of his stomach as that last figure turned back around and continued running.

The screams of first Zitao, then Yixing and Chanyeol and even Kyungsoo started to echo somewhere in the maze far behind him, ringing in his ears, neverending. He swallowed, painfully, bitterly. Closed his eyes and tried to take several deep breaths, the last coming out as a startled gasp as he felt sharp nails trailing along the skin of his exposed arms, digging into him, dragging him away from the closed exit and into the darkness.




Now.

Every joint aches. Every bone creaks. Minseok tries to roll his shoulder and hears a pop instead. His mouth hangs open from that last gasp, frozen in place. His limbs feel too stiff to move, his eyelids too heavy to lift, and yet he still manages to open his eyes in spite of what must be crusted blood trailing down his face over them.

The first thing he sees is the moon, still high in the sky.

The first thing he remembers is the shadowed face of one of the others turning back to look, and leaving him behind anyway.

It isn’t anger he feels. Not exactly. Whatever pushes him to sit up regardless of his protesting body is both stronger yet duller than pure rage.

Resentment. It bubbles under his skin, his flesh already discolored after hours of rotting away. The sweat has long since dried on his skin, the terror that had caused it evaporating along with it.

He struggles to stand, all while taking in the trees he’d been so desperate to see just hours before with numb disinterest. A short distance away, four bodies mimic his stiff movements as they too rise, stumbling over their own limbs.

The lights of the amusement park are further away still. He remembers reaching for them, but they feel somehow closer now than they had then. Although the process is slow and stilted, no thanks to how his leg has somehow become heavier than lead, he attempts to take his first step in their direction, only barely managing it. His other leg is too much of a pain though, and he settles for dragging it behind him instead.

This time, he’ll make it back into the light.