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HYEJIN HAD HER KNEES drawn up to her chest, sitting on a bed near the back whilst Gihun sat on the floor beside Jungbae. After they had been ushered back down to the room, it was deathly quiet, Hyejin could basically hear her own heartbeat in the silence. She knew 380 was sitting just in front of her, head resting against the metal pole of the bunk bed.
Hyejin allowed her eyes to linger on the girl for just a moment, resting her chin on her arms that were propped on her knees. She tuned out Jungbae and Gihun's whispered conversation. Her eyes were shut. It was like she wasn't in the same nightmare as the rest of them. Or maybe she was just better at pretending.
Hyejin's eyes traced the curve of her jaw, the sharp line of her nose, and the subtle rise and fall of her chest. It was a brief, unintentional observation, but she caught herself lingering and quickly looked away, her cheeks warming. What the hell was wrong with her?
"Gonna stare a hole in my face, or are you planning to say something?"
Hyejin blinked, her eyes snapping back to 380, who had cracked one eye open to smirk at her. The teasing lilt in her voice made Hyejin's stomach flip uncomfortably.
"I wasn't staring," Hyejin muttered, her tone sharper than she had intended as she quickly looked away again.
"Sure," 380 replied with an exaggerated drawl. She shifted, turning so she could properly face Hyejin. "You've been glaring at me like I owe you money since the second we got back here."
"I wasn't glaring either," Hyejin shot back, her brows knitting together.
"Right." She gave a slow nod, her smirk widening. "Just... observing?"
Hyejin groaned, leaning her head against the bedframe. "Why do you talk so much?"
380 chuckled softly, the sound low and surprisingly warm. "Name's Semi, by the way," she said, her voice losing its teasing edge. "Thought you might want to know, considering how much time we're probably gonna spend stuck here."
Hyejin hesitated for a moment before answering, stretching out her legs. "Hyejin." Semi gave her a look. "It's my name."
"Nice to meet you, Hyejin," Semi said, and there was an honesty to her tone that caught Hyejin off guard. Before she could respond, Semi tilted her head slightly. "You always this grumpy, or is it just the whole 'life-or-death games' thing getting to you?"
The urge to blurt out the truth, that she was here with someone who had played these games before, danced on the tip of her tongue, but Hyejin just huffed, crossing her arms. "I'm not grumpy."
