FIVE Safe Zone
WHERE'S MY SAFE ZONE

THE FOLLOWING DAY tensions were clearly high. Listening closely, Minseo often overhead the disgruntled conversations of the opposite team and their distaste towards the red team, claiming their fears were perjuring them all. Minseo decided to keep that information to herself and better yet say nothing, not wanting to provoke further trouble in the room.

She lined up like everybody else, standing in front of Jung-bae as she waited for her food. "I hope it's something tasty," she heard Jung-bae mutter from behind. "This reminds me of school lunches."

Minseo laughed quietly. "Thank you," the pink haired girl bowed slightly as she received her packaged meal, contently skipping back towards where her uncle awaited for both her and Jung-bae.

Since the results of the voting, Gi-hun had been more on edge than ever. With the addition of his confession, the older man had felt overly aware of everything around him and began to fear other contestants would come for him. He had confided in Jung-bae that night as Minseo slept soundly beside them, confessing his worries that he would be taken away from Minseo due to the pent up anger the opposing team felt.

"Don't worry," Jung-bae had told him confidently in the quietness of the still room. Minseo's soft snores echoed in their bunk, making both men chuckle. "I came here to make money, but now I'm here to protect her, too. She's my niece just as she is yours."

Gi-hun instinctively looked up as Minseo neared, her presence radiating a familiar warmth that only she could bring. He mustered a smile as best as he could, but the worry in his eyes was undeniable.

"You haven't even opened yours yet," Minseo pointed out, sitting beside her uncle. Her food was already open and seconds way from following through into her stomach, her hunger aching away. "You need to eat, Gi-hun."

Gi-hun nodded, grunting lowly as he flipped the lid open. Jung-bae then appeared, smiling cheerfully whilst taking a seat beside Minseo. She sat comfortably between the two men, chomping away at her food contently.

"I remember when your uncle and I packed lunches like this for you when you were little, Mimi," Jung-bae chuckled, forking his food around its container. His words brought a brief smile to Gi-hun's face, one of nostalgia and remembering. He nudged Minseo, "What kind of banchan did they put in yours?"

Minseo hummed. "Jangajji," the younger girl huffed, her distaste for the side dish being a well-known trait since young. "You got Jorim!?"

"Swap?" Jung-bae grinned boyishly. Without another word the two swapped dishes rapidly and were happily munching away on their favoured foods.

Minseo shrunk back as Jung-bae and Gi-hun spoke, her uncle clearly getting annoyed with his friend's constant nattering and egging for him to eat. Her eyes shot up when her uncle uttered the following words, a heaviness settled in her heart.

"I heard someone say the exact same thing three years ago," Gi-hun said slowly, referring to Jung-bae's short monologue of getting through the next games. "And by the end of it, they were dead like everyone else."

His tone was direct and dark, frighting Minseo momentarily as she shuffled closer to Jung-bae, who looked as equally terrified.

"Then why don't you help us, sir?"

A small yelp fell from Minseo's lips, her fork falling on the floor from the sudden shock of a third voice. Jung-bae's eyes darted towards the voice ahead of them. Her uncle carefully picked up the fork and placed it on the stair beside him, removing his own fork and handing it towards his niece so she could continue eating.

Standing before them was Player 001. Minseo wasn't sure how to feel about the man. Before, he had been ever so encouraging and comforting, his words reassuring as they were the last to vote. Then, out of the blue, he had gone and voted for the opposing team. A flicker of betrayal sowed a seed into her heart, one which would inevitably grow throughout the games, but Minseo couldn't blame him entirely. She was a girl who tolerated sympathy more than she should, also seeking reason for other's sores, just like now.

"You said that you'd been here before," Minseo recalled his name being Young-Il. He looked over at her, smiling softly. His eyes fell back on to her uncle. "You're the reason I ended up voting to stay."

       Minseo looked at Jung-bae, clearly confused as he. Her uncle had been advocating for their departure, his voice sore and scratchy from the sheer volume at which he had been protesting for the opposing belief. So, logically, how did Gi-hun's words convince him to stay?

          Gi-hun looked up at his words, frowning deeply. "It's true," Young-Il confirmed strongly. "After the first game, I thought I was gonna quit. And then I saw you. And I thought to myself, one more, then I can go."

          Whilst other players murmured their agreements, supporting Young-Il's reason, Minseo couldn't help herself but wonder.

        Throughout the first game she had been darting from side to side, covering nearly every inch of the field when running from her uncle to Su-bong, and even when attempting to rescue Player 444. During the game, Minseo had caught sight of nearly every player, both dead and alive. She racked her mind of fleeting memories, assuming it was the trauma blocking it from her mind, or her lack of glasses━but still, Minseo could not remember seeing Young-Il in the first game at all, not even crossing the finish line.

          "You know what's next, don't you?" Asked Young-Il lowly. He neared closer, leaning down to reach their eye level.

          "Oh yeah," Jung-bae then realised, setting his food as side. "You won this whole thing before so you know what game two is. So. . . What are we playing?"

          Gi-hun sighed. "The second game we played was Dalgona." As he spoke, he looked towards Minseo.

          Minseo could vividly remember the days when she and Taesuk would go over to Gi-hun's house and with his mother they'd play Dalgona, each shape carefully etched by the intricate hands of Mal-soon. Minseo missed Mal-soon dearly, along with the games of Dalgona which she played with Taesuk. Minseo always won at Dalgona, and Taesuk was quite frankly terrible.

         A clatter of metal rang from above them, and upon looking up, Minseo saw Dae-ho on the bed above. His spoon was in his hand, wafting as he spoke. "Dalgona? Like, the honeycomb you carve the shape out of?"

       Minseo hummed. "That's Dalgona."

        Dae-ho looked towards Minseo, his spoon dropping into the container. He cleared his throat and immediately straightened up, fixing his posture and plastering a small, awkward smile on his nervous face.

        Minseo continued looking at Dae-ho, that flicker of hurt still humming in her heart as she focused on the blue tag on his jacket. Dae-ho must've followed her gaze, as his hands instinctively floated up to touch the tag, a look of bitter regret casting a shadow over his once smiling face.

        "We had to pick one of the four shapes they showed us," Gi-hun caught the attention of the two again.

        Jung-bae inched closer. "Out of those, which ones the easiest to do?" Gi-hun frowned. "The triangle."

        "And which ones the hardest one?" Jung-bae asked again, leaning in with a look of hope flaming over his grinning face. Sighing, a foreign look crossed over Gi-hun's face as a hint of regret seeped through his voice. "The umbrella."

        The conversation continued and Minseo found herself zoning out. Her eyes unfocused and the figures before her began to blur even more. She shook her head, a nagging feeling tugging deep from the bottom of her heart. "It might not be the same game, though."

          Her comment went unheard, sinking into nothing as Player 100 pushed forwards and urged everyone to stay silent. "We keep this quiet," he whispered menacingly, fingers pointing.

          Minseo's eyes unconsciously narrowed. Player 100 caught her obvious glare. "What, girl? Feel the need to argue, again?"

          "We can't do that," argued Minseo as if it was obvious. She glanced towards her uncle, he nodded solemnly. "The whole point is to save people, not kill them. If we don't tell them, then their blood will also be on our hands."

          Player 100 grunted. "Some of us don't mind getting a little dirty."

          Minseo stood up, grimacing at his words. "You're already dirty. In fact, you're disgustingly filthy."

         Gi-hun pulled Minseo back down, his hand resting reassuringly on her shoulder. "When I'm positive Dalgona is the next game, then I'll tell every single player here what I just told you people."

          Dae-ho was still chewing as other players sauntered back to their bunks with unhappy looks on their faces. He watched Minseo as she stood back up, shuffling on her feet to leave.

          "What did you say before?" Dae-ho questioned suddenly, taken aback by his own audacity to speak after his previous actions. He cleared his throat when Minseo turned to look at him, her face indifferent. "You said something before but━but I didn't properly hear you."

          "Oh," Minseo faltered. She hadn't realise anybody was actually listening. "I said that we don't know whether it'll be the same games."

          Dae-ho nodded, mulling her words over. "That's true. But we can hope so, right?"

        Minseo wanted to agree with him, to smile and nod her head. "I'd rather be realistic. I'm not going to get my hopes up of it being that easy. These games were made to kill people."

       Minseo had never been a morbid girl. No, not at all. Hyeon Minseo was once known for her beaming smile and bright eyes, the colour of her hair which changed like the wind from blonde to blue and every colour in between. She was never one to speak so pessimistically, always holding a high outlook for the future and the life she'd live. A chef, is what she claimed to be, and a chef she was. She cooked dinners for her family, friends and customers, each and every meal from a recipe of love and passion. But love was now a factor lacking in the life of Hyeon Minseo, and passion was falling from her fingers quicker than money.

          She hated to hear herself sound so dull and negative, a loss of hope in her voice reflecting the inner turmoil she was facing. But she couldn't pull herself for the pit she had fell into, one of debt and darkness, one where light was as bright as a dead torch or a distant fire.

       Dae-ho straightened up. He abandoned his food and moved to the edge of his bunk. "Well, whatever the next game is, we should team up."

       "And if it's an individual game?" Minseo then asked.

        "It doesn't matter," replied Dae-ho firmly. "We'll stick together."

        There was a softness in Dae-ho's smile which momentarily relaxed Minseo, and she suddenly felt as if the troubles of the next game weren't waiting for her. She liked the sound of sticking together, of having a companion, a partner, but the deep rooted fear of loosing not only the game, but then him, summoned itself in the back of her mind.

          "I don't mind the sound of that," Minseo shrugged, suppressing a smile. "But you have to keep your effort at an all time high. No slacking allowed."

          Dae-ho's eyes widened. He shook his head furiously. "Of course not. I promise, Minseo, we'll keep each other safe."

Her name sounded nice from his lips. It sounded gentle and delicate, as if her name was honey it was sweet dripping from his mouth. She wasn't the biggest fan of her name, but whenever Dae-ho said it she wanted to play it on repeat until she got a sugar rush.

"Good," Minseo laughed lightly. She retracted her steps and walked towards his bunk, now standing before him and only inches away from the back of her uncle. "Shake on it."

Dae-ho gazed down at her outstretched hand. He swallowed before carefully wrapping his hand around her own. His hands were much larger than hers, but they both met at a warmth which heated the adrenaline bursting through their bodies.

"To keeping each other safe," Minseo grinned. Dae-ho lightly shook her hand, so carefully as if he was afraid of hurting her. He breathed, repeating her words firmly. "To keeping each other safe."

Minseo glanced back towards her uncle and Jung-bae, now seeing how Young-Il had taken a seat beside them.

"How'd you meet him?" Dae-ho asked, nodding his head towards Gi-hun. "He's so cool."

Minseo giggled. "He is, isn't it?" Dae-no bobbed his head. Minseo focused back on Gi-hun, smiling fondly, almost proudly. "That's my uncle."

She heard Dae-ho gasp. "No way!" Dae-ho shuffled down from his bed and stood beside Minseo. He was much taller than her, his shoulder meeting the mid-way of her head. He looked down at her, "He's your uncle?"

Minseo stretched her neck looking up at him. She nodded proudly.

"Mimi!" Jung-bae's call beckoned her over. He waved her over theatrically.

Minseo strolled over. She looked back at Dae-ho, who was stood in place, and took his hand in hers to tug him over.

"We were speaking about working as a team," Jung-bae informed her in a hushed whisper, his eyes darting around to see if anyone was listening. "Your uncle has already won the games once. You're extremely smart, and fast. Together, I reckon we can knock this out of the park."

"Uncle?" Questioned Young-Il abruptly. His head danced between Minseo and Gi-hun. "You two are related?"

"He's my uncle," Minseo affirmed nobly. Gi-hun recognised the humility and pride in her voice. Hunched over, his elbows resting uncomfortably on his knees, Gi-hun smiled softly up at Minseo.

Interrupting the tender moment accidentally, Dae-ho agreed valiantly. "That's right, my friends!"

All eyes turned to Dae-ho, including Minseo, whose neck was starting to ache with the pain of looking up at him.

"You say we should work as a team," Dae-ho repeated Jung-bae's words confidently. "Well, I agree. I'm with you all the way."

It was Gi-hun who spoke next. His voice was firm and on edge, a sharpness never heard before. "And who are you?"

Jung-bae followed Gi-hun's eyeline and bristled upon seeing Minseo's smaller hand enlaced either Dae-ho's. He puffed out his chest, boastful and intimidating. "Yeah━Who are you?"

"Excuse me, sir," Dae-ho apologised genuinely. He simpered down at Minseo, finely letting go of her hand as he turned towards the older men. "Dae-ho. At your service. Kang Dae-ho━that's me."

Minseo couldn't help but giggle at his words. However she immediately shut down when seeing Gi-hun's and Jung-bae's beady glare.

"Ah, Dae-ho, sure," Jung-bae said unsure. "How do you know Mimi?"

Dae-ho ironed himself up at the mention of the girl. "We agreed on being a team," he said with a note of caution. "I thought we could all be one big team. Considering you're Minseo's uncle━" he nodded towards Gi-hun, who was still staring with underlying fury, and back towards Jung-bae. "━And you seem to know her very well, too. It makes sense for us all to work together, to protect each other."

Unexpectedly, Jung-bae rose to his feet. They all watched him intently as he grasped hold of Dae-ho's arm and lifted the sleeve of his shirt.

His muscles unconsciously tightened at the random act, instinct of pulling away. However, he caught Minseo's reassuring gaze, and she nodded gently. Dae-ho relaxed, allowing Jung-bae to inspect his arm.

"Marines?" Jung-bae hummed thoughtfully. "Er━Yeah. . . Why?"

Minseo giggled quietly. Jung-bae was one proud former Marine and fondly remarked every other Marine he had ever met. She could remember his reaction to when Taesuk revealed his position as a Marine, the overwhelming pride making Jung-bae cry.

"Which cohort?" He then asked. Dae-ho chuckled uncertainly, looking between the man and Minseo with skeptical eyes.

Jung-bae unzipped his jacket to reveal his matching Marine tattoo. As if a curse had been casted upon Dae-ho, he stepped down and raised a hand to his forehead. "Victory at all costs! Sir! Cohort 1140, sir!"

Jung-bae mimicked his movements. "At ease!"

Minseo shuffled closer to Gi-hun, nestling herself between him and Young-Il. She nudged Gi-hun playfully, "Glad you weren't a Marine?"

Gi-hun chuckled. "Jung-bae's been high on Marine pride since we were young. And here he is, still riding that same high."

Young-Il thrummed. "Admirable though, isn't it? My younger brother always wanted to be a marine, but his medical condition held him back."

Minseo glanced over towards the elder man, a gentle smile gracing her face. "My older brother was a marine. Jung-bae cried when he found out━I've never seen someone so proud."

"What about when you graduated high school?" Gi-hun remembered swiftly. "Jung-bae also cried then. More than Taesuk."

Minseo laughed, a warm feeling spreading over her chest as she remembered the day of her graduation. Every body had shown up, even her father, and they stood in the front row with wide smiles and clapping hands as she graced the stage in her gown, receiving her diploma with a happiness not another moment has ever matched.

"You've known him a long time, I assume," Young-Il wondered out loud.

"Since I was a little girl," Minseo replied admiringly. "Jung-bae is another uncle. He was there from the first day of school til the last."

Young-Il smiled attentively, his eyes fixing on the mentioned man and his younger Marine as the two went back and forth on their ranks.

          Minseo felt an unfamiliar sense of belonging in their little team. It was unfamiliar, and at first slightly uncomfortable, but she welcomed it nonetheless. And there it settled right in the ruins of her broken heart, the aid of its arms reaching out to slowly, with every interaction, tape the fractures from which love seeped out. Each gesture, each word of reassurance, felt like a patchwork attempt to heal the wounds left by past betrayals.

          The support was tangible, grounding her, yet she knew━deep down━that no tape would stay stuck forever. No matter how many times it was mended, the cracks were still there, hidden just beneath the surface. It only took a force as big as betrayal to come and tear down its framework. And though she had tasted the warmth of connection once more, Minseo couldn't shake the feeling that the next gust of wind might undo it all, leaving her heart exposed and raw once again. Yet, in spite of this, she clung to the hope that perhaps, one day, the walls she was building would withstand the storm.

━author's note!

sorry for the delay i got
ghosted by a man and have
been on a spiral ever since

anyways this daeho x minseo
content healed a part of me

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