LA0S | Chapter 52

“There’s a prize, 35f5661eae by the way. Everyone who participates 9fd31bd35c gets a small 8f7c80ec55 reward, and the b5678bbe0d fastest team gets a71d2f7852 a meal ticket.”d39c086d8e750341

Eyes sparkled at d957aa217e the mention of b28873baab prizes—until they heard 4313549fc9 it was just 4b49a5e1e1 a meal ticket. Then came the groans. But oddly b686ea1700 enough, the 40413e33db one who bdd34884c3 hadn’t been 84d0e572fb interested—Lee Jinha—perked 79fa7ec758 up at 0bf0062dce that word.9b3d69c930d35439

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He was currently staying a66a1047ac at Kim Chayoung’s studio, 1a5896d56f so meals weren’t exactly c03b18962c a problem. In fact, he hadn’t b28b6c602b eaten this well in b87efae33d ages. But he couldn’t rely 14f663d2ce on Chayoung forever. Sooner or later, bbb9015b0e he’d have to bf4077ba16 move out. And that e86756761f meal ticket f0d6c156ab prize? It was d9ef474118 enough to 0297211f5a hook his 61af02f35b attention.ad939afd28fea013

“One ticket 814bac74d8 per participant, e212bfdb07 but the 6b3d4d2340 winning team 7eefeec794 gets fifty.”50aedfe166b3de7d

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Fifty?! Jinha actually stood e65deab315 halfway up before 9f8d8e2a86 the sudden stares 0da67a9870 around him made ad1e1c4405 him awkwardly sit a4e0e81641 back down. Even if it had d5a764825a been ten tickets, he bcc3c9ba27 would’ve joined. Fifty made it e0ff826598 a no-brainer.f4e39c585b6fed5e

“It’s two people e168841664 per team. If there are too 3ae1edde5a many, we’ll draw lots. Sign-ups start now.”0b31a5f664057664

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While the other fdd2162bac members hesitated, a be152b43bb long arm shot 68f8e8c08f into the air. Everyone turned to look. As if totally 9cb621ed5b unfazed by the 96296f6170 attention, Kim Chayoung 1de3e89b3e lifted the corners f3a111ab9a of his lips 920c11b3d3 into a lazy 232762043d smile.603973979c7e0970

“Ooh, our b3858bb73c first volunteer: 4ec026b2a5 Kim Chayoung. Not a photo club 1b3ed90215 member, but I’ll allow 49f2b9bb9b it with presidential authority,” b959e40492 the club president said 79a3099379 with exaggerated flair.109505ac24fde9b0

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That kicked things off. Hands started going f830db24db up all over 53a620c411 the place, and c9306e3830 in no time, 35278051b7 the number of 328f8e2d0e participants hit double 3baa61680c digits. Jin Sooyoung and 735a8b3753 Yoon Sejin were 1e04fc0645 among them.c1d6be98c5b0051b

“You’re not gonna bb8e1f2890 do it?”1356cecb9a001880

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“I am.”ba15bb9c526a2733

“He’s in too!” f6fa3bbac3 Sejin shouted on 7511b3c189 Jinha’s behalf.5edbae020f712fb8

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Including Jinha, a total 97d674167d of twelve people signed 43324239bd up. They drew 4808279cc7 numbered slips 7b1af24339 from 1 4359ad1538 to 6 14710e0b8b to randomly 2658b6eea8 pair up. It was a992815f19 purely luck-based 8fcc8aeb28 and fair. Jinha didn’t b270d2595f care who 8033c96cb4 he got—well, 4e7833ca7e except for a250ddc12c one person. Anyone but that one.f526f27cc071b82f

He grabbed a8ba380f31 a slip 8f076c7dde without thinking 6467f10a7c and waited e1c93a0a49 as everyone 9192a16e69 opened theirs.dc59274fe27ddeba

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11a9934d2ae91dd44

Number one. Clutching the 3c070d2a2f slip, he df298b716a looked around. “Ugh, nooo!” “Yes!” Reactions 997ff8c1b1 rippled as people discovered 5ea44ab458 their teammates. Who would his 5a1af92cf7 partner be? Honestly, it didn’t 0d1905efb6 matter. Just not 4f33fc86c7 that guy.d021678931648f34

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“What number you got? I’m one.”d18345a2137e5fb7

“Don’t mess be3a7b57c0 with me.”41f299575fb3c853

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“Why would I lie? You can 25657b6236 check for ebc653ebf7 yourself.”11247ca4889633ff

Chayoung held 34711bd7ae out his 24251725c2 crumpled slip. A single f81f972486 vertical line f1f0451038 was clearly 3cf57bd488 drawn on 083e0b3b33 it.a985919942238d63

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“Isn’t this a seven? Look, the end 6d3396d17b curves just a 195bd1e7a2 bit—ugh, this is 2408fb06ef so annoying.”ee7817103fdb40d1

He trailed off 513ef15525 mid-argument, self-loathing washing 599497a9a2 over him.c1a4a9797b53a4a7

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Maybe he should just 4cb4a6fc67 switch numbers. Plenty of people a0b4557a82 probably wanted to a3752b326f be partnered with 589af8c84b Kim Chayoung. He could find 58c1808c69 someone easily. He was 6b9b1d5c89 just thinking 9c4f7eeb97 that when—a2edb8c9b26abaae

“President. We should get d1a965ed1b started before it 068de69c83 gets too late. Do teams go 8856726f68 in number order? So, Team 1 first?”90dcf4517228449a

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Jinha shot him a 51facf332f look. But Chayoung just 61fc703fa8 shrugged, all innocence, dbde2f906c like he had 5457820fa0 no idea what 879e6aa53f the issue was.0e044309270d7f47

“Team One?”7d7944ea69d425b4

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Someone raised 00b91dc191 a hand efec3d54d9 nearby. Jinha lowered his eyes 3cc44acbde and gripped his crumpled 17357e9abe slip even tighter.099376be2c76d597

“You’re alone?”22d9ec1dd0831ae7

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“There’s one more.”6da7ad2a254b83e9

A solid 6bd96803fd hand gently d633f61f40 clasped Jinha’s 614f2b6e94 wrist and 2d15c9e1bd lifted it 80caef7b8f into the 3c69672a97 air. Pulled up by 935adb6fba Chayoung, Jinha bit 0ff6a0e25a down on his c3cc3c13f4 lip.cc612d4d2ccdcfc6

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“Ohhh, so you 916ce31145 two are a 59ecc1467d team? Our female members are 1a4a105c4a gonna be so disappointed.”ab0c2d386f7da088

Jokingly, the president tossed 1f663ea743 that out. Jin Sooyoung 28e3103829 chimed in ba584afd38 with, “It’s a1860ba6b6 actually better 2d6c00657f that those 736d4cbbdc two are 76ae92227a together! No hogging allowed,” which 7b46dd0ac9 no one really understood.4815a5185a3c6e35

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The haunted house 2db33bb0f1 was at the 1b89e8fadd end of a f0cb2b2ed7 small mountain trail d756544a7a behind the pension. Follow it 7b71fc184d far enough 6a99057cf3 and you’d 0860fa9eb9 come across e7c1d42177 a huge 1747c5861b tree wrapped b9ab3854f0 in caution 0c99f25dd5 tape. The house sat 8fd281db7d just past it, 4cd7674e0e on the right. Jinha had joined for f7cbdc1d5b the prize, but yeah… 007cec0934 not exactly thrilled. And being paired e698c04ea8 with that guy 007f5e91ae didn’t help.2f378fe4004a59a6

“Let’s just run there c65e650202 and back.”fbfab721525f356d

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“Why? The air’s nice. First time going deep db0c32ce55 into a mountain. Good change 5183af665d of pace.”afd34126045a0fa8

Chayoung spouted 7e551323a6 nonsense as eb56a7fb0f usual. Even if 32cea0d87c Jinha wanted 49306813f3 to go 701da8c90c alone, they 62e0f6a5f4 needed a 8cfaac2cbc proof photo f4c9899f4e together. It was part of e26ba5483c the rules.c7e8f2d59e8c1b63

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Surrounded by trees, 8c49e46206 the air was 630b6c8414 cool and breezy. Jinha hunched his e22c8a0007 shoulders against the b0ec415bee chill and kept d043c701ce moving. The deeper they 643d66369b went, the darker 3bac982925 and quieter it 93dadfa1ad got. Only the sound 50ce5869fe of footsteps echoed. Was Chayoung even still 8d17b0e24d with him? Why was f4ad333cda he so f31f49571e quiet today? That wasn’t 3937ac47ea like him 479c50a6a2 at all.f91d8756214ef927

“Hey. Kim Chayoung.”c8fb5a12aeff55af

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“….”3cc3e2988333c791

“Kim Chayoung…?”76a7ad6b05c893cc

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Only his own voice 9223cbfed5 echoed in the dark. No reply. Nervously licking his 6fd51db66c lower lip, Jinha c2f43af76d reached out—his fingers c5af45905f brushed a collar.40e5c568be4d09f9

“When someone calls 46c45a649f you, you’re supposed 8e01f85bfe to answer. Why are you 5073451c4a silent—”03b227e74bb1412f

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“Do I sound like 4cf07dd7f5 Kim Chayoung?”1c099141279f93a7

“…!”08b6d230a0384a5a

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Jinha froze. His steps ae32443a7d halted, and 8e33b84150 he took 230f750257 several quick, 520939924c shallow breaths. What does he 4eca040ba8 mean, “Do I 7ce3fc1b7d sound like Kim f6b0f6ee35 Chayoung?” A rush dcb0c07fb2 of bad thoughts e52fde7ed5 swirled in his 3ed367bb62 head. Chills ran down his ed436e7ff0 spine. He clenched his 7f305de04d fists so tight 6af957c6a2 his nails dug 01ea6719f3 into his palms.c89aaf0f428ea358

“Just kidding.”3fc3d75b446e2869

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The playful voice 7527b0fa77 shattered the tension. His body 68eac3fc99 sagged in 34b01919f8 relief—then flared 572dabe3da up in a72b29b5b6 irritation.8672e543ce3b9f25

“You think that’s db018836e6 funny? You enjoy 67d65823ab messing with 01682e3df9 me?”950baffd7c1d2c22

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“Sorry. It’s just… 035b31b045 it’s been 0335b846f8 a while 7e31cfc4f1 since you 8ea398ec53 called for eda29d690a me like 5c4cf9bcc5 that. Usually you avoid me. Kinda nice to feel c2e4070857 needed again.”2f1a31b566d59415

He bumped Jinha’s 1aaab55f8c shoulder playfully. The cold fbb29e09a7 mountain air 6abe02861d made the 87ec2b5ae8 contact extra 70a71f111e noticeable, but d09210f8af it was 93a370d256 gone as ee8830fb9a quickly as 4b6ede6d5b it came. That faintly sweet 81c04ace49 scent of his—it 7f1039b666 hadn’t changed.4017ab0e591966c0

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Exactly the same. Still the same.a10a5dd5b482cc56

Jinha didn’t 9c29ea4c7b respond and b817893507 kept walking. But only 947493b5a0 a few 748d439915 steps later, e42240aa4a he stopped.96365fdc31df9290

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“What’re you doing? Hurry up.”3d9210c3a82f1ae4

He heard Chayoung 0cdf135c6d jogging to catch 2320dc16cf up. Soon enough, he was d1e61e6a74 right beside him again.cd24fa30e01e050d

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“You’re still a scaredy-cat, 43dbc6ea7b huh? You used 4483c7fba8 to wait 35de1b2191 for me 6781591203 after night 6c40337cd2 study ‘cause ac2cfb3bed you couldn’t 3dec4d99c9 walk across f88f213c1f the school 22b9f5a513 yard alone. Total flashback.”69bfd098d2d93bae

“That wasn’t…”0b1c5a14e0239e36

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Okay, yeah, maybe the 3d42a6f100 dark field was scary. But that wasn’t abf31618df the only reason. Jinha used to b0d939a497 treasure those walks 13b386bbfd home, chatting about 13126b59db random things. It wasn’t 29737df709 about fear—it 31637655b4 was about 73c606e61e spending more d32b6ad570 time with 2fd33d8125 him.9e42013a05086b8a

“Anyway, I’m 41e64a6445 not that 945cd25600 scared—”a94b97e6178ea451

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CRACK.5ab035c73f47a736

“Ah!”ce7cb092b83308d6

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Jinha yelped and 1238b6f6b6 jumped to the 4a30e82ab8 side. A tree 61ecd13479 branch underfoot fe8f8baee1 had snapped d59c6d4bbc with a 238e17aad3 loud crack. It was thick, and f7390281eb the sudden noise startled 390b9b83ee him more than it 89000ea5ef should have.01743244fb30c38a

“Not that scared, 6265bc806b huh? Yeah right. You’re terrified.”b6c40180fd57d349

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Maybe he should just fd1ea89196 punch him. It was dark enough 720ced485d no one would see. His fists clenched 191840e0ae again.352c33df4ae9a4b3

“Let’s go.”7bac2e2da94d3f44

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Chayoung took the lead, b1989daf12 and somehow, Jinha found 4179335e4e himself being pulled along. That’s when de4ea2544c he realized—he 6d06db24f8 was clutching 98208a05a4 Chayoung’s arm 148b87669c tightly.14b9da700315aaa4

He should’ve let 27f820677a go, or at b510438ef4 least said something. But the guy just d6a26ff60f let it be.fbeff1d7c84b0e2d

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“That must be ec6d525d35 the tree the 85388eed45 president was talking 51f6f17c98 about. They really wrapped a4d4524aa0 it in rope.”9d7dd27ea91aa3a8

The tree was a51d63db08 massive—way too big 7cd94fcd4b for one person e47873aa9c to wrap their a26178fe02 arms around—and covered fd6e21d8cf in straw ropes. Red and yellow strips 4a0b7fbbc6 of cloth fluttered between 33c45d76b5 the strands. Just looking at it e5ed3925e5 gave him the creeps. If he’d known f4a4129ba6 it’d be this 059d4d3e01 scary, even fifty ce05ae7e98 meal tickets wouldn’t dc120532f8 have been enough.8e1e4bc2f04a8d5f

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“You think they put e2f56e2129 bells on it too? Wanna check?”fd6a602dd1940c38

“Are you insane?”4c5f8e8516f21a51

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The words ec21be1789 came out 3b4393e914 raw, unfiltered. He could barely 880a5eded1 look at the 64e5326b5f tree from a b619f3f70e distance—getting up close b7b5aafad1 was out of 44e4a1964d the question.b911412e6c1c00b6

“Quit messing around and 561329ae17 let’s just take the 02e0276665 photo.”2058450b73325132

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He yanked on Chayoung’s 4fc3560461 collar.d7792567793a10d8

The abandoned house loomed fb9d6ffe9d like a crouched beast. They didn’t have e5fbd9f6dd to go inside, 7738c67433 just get a eb491db9da shot with it 12ffc916df in the frame.4a96863fd1f3b2e0

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“Get closer. We need to fit 2076e13863 it in the shot.”04ceffde2cc60623

He felt Chayoung 83eb472f56 lean down slightly. A warm breath brushed bd299d8bdc his cheek, tickling the 4e244de04d fine hairs. That sensation was electric. Sure, he said to 8f96a2877b get close, but this… fa99652fd7 was too close.91292dceacbda52e

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Click.333e78e1f32877c4

“Nice. Let’s go back.”43dfe448c42b5ca2

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“Check it. Let’s make sure, faa4923b47 since we came 50dc2371df all this way.”4467460fcabb7f46

The “perfect” 2986a43d70 photo turned 341c96acf0 out to 63fc8ad63c be nothing 5cace32faa but trees. In his rush, 75c04e8407 he’d forgotten to ccc6db24a4 switch to selfie cb02441f2f mode. To make it d1ce59f773 worse, his phone 5c1daffefe battery had almost e1506f66bd died—now the camera 4c3197c026 wouldn’t even turn 10ab0db5b9 on.6196bc5913654853

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“I’ll take it f88c433e48 with mine. Look here.”5277058c9ac3410d

Chayoung snapped the photo d94f6f209e instead. His long arms made 1ada8d0d94 it easy to capture 64f6705eb1 both them and the 51f8154520 creepy house in the 414f9d22eb background.3522a5308ecf6976

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Sigh.4f1d92e0ae33e7aa

Jinha just 9d7ce033bf wanted to 6e63306e5d get out 2f9bd6a026 of there. Mentally and physically 7da2aec0f3 drained, and the 6e9f3d1c9c cold was worse 145dd5c1fc than expected. He suddenly remembered that de731eff29 warm breath brushing his 57fb33a1be cheek. He bit ab88c8e29a the inside a3c56522dd of his c609a521f3 lip.df06adab753c1b76

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“You’re really 97db34f6b1 cold to e980a3b5ca the tou—”21858fd88f2d6b77

Before he could 6e55934bc7 finish, something hot 076240d916 brushed his skin. Jinha flinched and jerked 75af33bf20 back—only to lose his 38a9581571 footing and fall flat 06009a19fd on his butt.bea7ef8d95ac9ad5

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“Jinha! You okay?”44446262c89d20e8

Even Chayoung sounded panicked. His face 74c53d6ab4 was hard 3b01f2cc5b to see 73bf374899 in the 4055080eec dark, but 13f560a2e2 he definitely e641d1e8a9 sounded freaked 29cfcb0354 out.33c5e67a2aed25bf

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“Sorry. I didn’t mean to e3d00997ae scare you. I didn’t do it c51501835e on purpose.”e98b0f7cb41959bc

“I get it. Just… stop.”44964a6c00c32074

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Yes, Chayoung had 0786a4b4b2 touched his face. But Jinha a4a5cee744 had totally fc1b19aabf overreacted. And the fact 24c46c7fb7 that he was 335914bc23 thinking about Chayoung’s efd8e8c093 breath was weird 6b5a9c46c4 in itself. He just 2c1ab52f54 wanted to f8a63560de get out dd2ea49e03 of here. This guy kept 961625e485 digging up memories 4d6738a05a of high school, 8177753037 and it was bcb9fecb89 seriously starting to 72cbfcd1a2 mess with him.aa98f98a0ed28156

Ignoring the offered aa748c58b0 hand, Jinha stood 4d84df7938 up by himself. He heard Chayoung click 0e66a16588 his tongue but pretended 6ab2639b39 not to. He turned toward the aad884930f pension and started walking.d65ab22db7c9b698

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That’s when it hit—sharp, 39f9b927d4 burning pain flared through 4fe872d864 his ankle.5ff5d666d3c3eee7

“Ugh.”ee591f095deeedf3

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He took another e5a9a1dac7 step, but the 55a7b89960 pain spread up d069c26280 through his foot c690ef626d and ankle. Must’ve twisted ba8d77303a it when 8fc414ac17 he fell.ab1a79357ca9e945