1

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I couldn't breathe. Darkness surrounded me and the smell of chemical sweetness assaulted my senses. I struggled, fighting against my captor but it was no use. My conscious was slowly slipping and I was outnumbered.

I didn't need my sight to confirm this since I could feel several hands holding down my body. The last thing I heard before I blacked out was a deep voice that said, "put him with the others, they're expecting him.

*****

I slowly opened my eyes, blinking several times before they adjusted to the dark. My body was stiff and I could feel the hard ground beneath me. I willed my limbs to move and I sat up, taking in my surroundings.

Surely this was a dream, not a dream but a nightmare. How could I be here? Only a few hours ago I was tucked away in bed but now all I could see was black metal bars surrounding me. I was in a jail cell.

Panic rushed through my body and instinct took over as terror penetrated my mind. Loudly, I shuffled back as far as I could until I hit a wall. The feeling of the concrete against my back rattled through my bones as I realized I needed to find a way out instead of sitting in the corner like a cowering idiot.

Pushing aside my fear, I rushed forward to the cell door but stopped short. I realized I had no real knowledge of prison escapes or what to do in this scenario. It wasn't something I was taught, like I had been about fire drills and earthquakes because this situation was entirely absurd.

How was I supposed to get out? The space between the bars were far too small to fit through and cell door wasn't budging without a key. There were no windows to be seen or even a crack in the wall behind, I was only met with darkness and silence.

I rattled the door becoming desperate, pushing and pulling with the little strength I had. The metal clanged loudly but I didn't care, in that moment I was beyond logical thought. I frantically screamed, "help! Is anyone there? Please if you can hear me, please help!"

"It's no use," a voice replied. I whipped my head around in the direction of the noise and realized I wasn't alone. In my panic, I hadn't seen the boy sitting in the next cell staring at me. "Every one of us had the exact same reaction but it's no use, you might as well save your energy."

I edged closer, crouching so I was eye level with him. As I neared him, I noticed he looked around my age—nineteen—with symmetrical features and fair skin. He was still handsome even though he looked worn and dirty, making me assume he had been here a while.

Uneasiness spiked through me, I didn't want to end up like him. It seemed as if the spark of life had been sucked out of him and there was no joy behind his dark eyes. Confused I echoed, "every one of us?"

He let out a sigh. "Look around you," he said, so I did. In every cell held a boy, similar to me, with black hair and Asian skin making me wonder if they were also Korean. They were watching me in silence with cautious gazes and I started feeling wary of the attention so I took a step back.

They all looked varying shades of worn, some worse than others but the boy who had spoken earlier looked the worst of them all. When my gaze landed back on him he explained, "I was the first one they took. Each day they've brought someone new and locked them in a cell. 8 days later, you've arrived, filling the last cell."

I was the last boy taken. 8 days later? There must be nine of us then. I looked around, counting the cells and confirmed my assumed calculation. What would they want with nine boys? Why were we taken? There were too many questions filling my brain but instead I asked, "who are you?"

"Suho," he said simply and I realized his name stood for guardian. "And you?"                 

Clearing my throat, I replied, "Chanyeol."

He assessed me and I wanted to shy away from his focus but instead I stayed put. I didn't know who he was or why he had also been taken but there must've been a reason.

There had to be a reason because I couldn't accept the possibility of this being a random choosing. I didn't want to believe that this was the hand fate had dealt me.

"Do you know why we're here?" I asked, hoping Suho would have an answer.

He opened his mouth to reply but a booming voice interrupted him, "play time is over boys."

Suho quickly stood up in attention and the other boys followed suit. Unsure what was happening, I stayed frozen in my crouched position.

"Stand up!" Suho whispered sharply to me and then added full of warning, "or else you'll get beat."

At those words, my body instantly reacted and fear propelled my movements. I had already been kidnapped, I had no idea what else these people were capable of. A man entered the room and stopped in front of my cell.

"Well, well look what we have here," he taunted with a smirk. I was surprised because he spoke Korean well even though he was Caucasian. "Finally, now that everyone is present, the real fun can begin."

Shivers ran through my body but I told myself not to cower from his gaze, so I met it in defiance. This man was the definition of huge. I was tall but he was at least 6ft 5 and had muscles bulging in places I didn't even think was possible. Not only was his size intimating but the mean grin on his face was even more so.

"I am Vic Archer and I'm here to keep you boys in check, so you'll be seeing my lovely face very often," he said as he slowly paced up and down the cells. "First, let's go over a few rules that will make everyone's stay here a lot easier. Rule number one: you will address me with full respect at all times and only call me Sir. Rule two: don't step out of line or do anything stupid, for example, try to escape. You won't succeed. Lastly, rule three: behave and follow orders. If you obey then I promise you won't have to feel any unnecessary pain, it's a win-win for everyone."

A win-win for everyone? Anger shimmered beneath the surface and I clenched my hands into fists trying to conceal it. I was shocked how well I was handling this situation but I realized my anger was just acting as a defense mechanism. All my other emotions were hidden behind the heat of my rage and I was grateful. I didn't want to feel fear or panic. I wanted to be strong even though on the inside, I wasn't.

I didn't know how to process any of this, everything was happening too fast. Part of my brain was still in denial and I was trying to convince myself this wasn't real. That I was still at home with my family and I hadn't been kidnapped and caged in a jail cell.

A loud bang jolted me from my thoughts, bringing me back to reality. Vic had hit a long black baton against the cell opposite me.

"Why am I not hearing an answer?" he thundered. Instantly a chorus of unsynchronized voices replied, "yes Sir."

"Louder," he demanded. We repeated the phrase, loud and clear and he nodded once, satisfied.

Suddenly men dressed in black entered the room and even though not all of them matched Vic's height, they were nearly as big in size. They proceeded to open the cell doors and forcefully drag us out. After we were restrained, they brought us to the center of the room, so we were standing in a line.

"Follow me," Vic ordered quietly and we began walking. As we moved, the men nudged us with their batons when they thought we were too slow but my focus was elsewhere. I told myself to memorize every detail of the route since it could be a way out.

We went up a staircase and walked along several hallways. I concluded that our cells had to be underground since it was all concrete and there was no light whatsoever. However, past the stairs it became more modern. It was still dark and dirty but at least there was some light coming through the rare windows we passed.

Finally, we entered a large room and I could tell we were in an old warehouse of some sort. It was bright though, too bright. The florescent lights shining off the white sterile surfaces caused my eyes to squint whilst waiting for them to adjust.

On one side of the room, there were beds lined up with an IV drip beside each one. I was smart enough to figure out we were about to be experimented on. There was no other explanation.

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