with no hesitation, taehyun immediately sprints to kenta's position, briskly removing the rope that is tied around his neck. kenta coughs, blood tremendously spilling out of his mouth. donghan could only stand frozen at the back, taking time to digest what was going on.

the blood that remained on his lips flowed down his chin, forming red stains over his shirt.

"kenta, are you okay?" taehyun finds it hard to calm down, but he knew that panicking wouldn't be an option at this situation. he gestures at donghan to take the first-aid and the younger boy immediately understood. taehyun gets back to kenta, locking their eyes as if kenta would have no permission to get out of the place lifeless. tears stream down taehyun's face. "kenta.."

"i told.. i told you not to open the door.." kenta murmurs quietly, his words coming out rather like a hum. "hyunbin-ah.. listened.."

hyunbin. taehyun glances at the unopened door next to where they were . the door handle is also tied along the rope that went around kenta's neck, and the reason the boy is still breathing right now is because not both of them got out, but only one. taehyun calls out. "hyunbin, ggukie, are you okay?!"

the two roommates immediately got out heard their names being called. they were surprised to see the sight of kenta being all dreadful on the floor. "what happened?!" hyunbin shrieks, his head stinging at the sight of blood.

and to all honesty, taehyun didn't also understand what had happened. instead, he had his hand on kenta's hair, stroking him in comfort. donghan finally returned from the kitchen with first aid, and the paralyzed kenta finally had the guts to explain.

"i.. i don't know what happened." he starts explaining. "all i remember is that i woke up here, both of my hands were already tied to the ceiling, but i could still operate my phone that i was holding on to tightly despite the minimum ability to move. my senses kicks in when i saw both of your doors were connected to my rope, and i was worried that any of you'd open it without warning. i tried begging for help, but it didn't work as i am alone here."

"where's sanggyunie-hyung?" donghan asks, a sudden realization hits the group when they realize that they were missing one member.

kenta shrugs. "i-i don't remember how i get here, let alone the whereabouts of him."

"perhaps he's still sleeping. i'm going to check him out." yongguk volunteers as he makes his way to kenta's room.

taehyun sighs conceitedly. he reaches his phone and immediately dials his emergency number; his manager. unfortunately, what answered him was a voice operator, saying to check his phone connection before making a already phone call. taehyun stares at the notification blankly. "it has never been like this."

"yeah, it's been doing that." hyunbin replies, slightly waving around his phone. "i tried calling our manager earlier too but it said there's no connection. but apparently, we're able to call each other or in specifically the people in this house. when you point it out, it does seem strange—"

a distant scream was heard, they immediately recognized it as yongguk.

hyunbin and taehyun rushes to kenta's room to see a petrified yongguk staring at the body laying down on bed. "what's wrong?" taehyun breaths heavily, adjusting his pace back to normal. yongguk wasn't able to answer. instead, he points a finger to the sleeping sanggyun.

but the red sheets covering the boy wasn't dark enough to hide the blood.