Love and Death.. · Y/n story by @mariana

The fluorescent lights of the dormitory buzzed overhead, a constant, maddening hum that had become the soundtrack to her new reality. The air was thick with the smell of sweat, fear, and industrial disinfectant. Rows upon rows of metal bunk beds stretched into the distance, filled with the lost, the desperate, and the broken.

Cho Hyun-ju

sitting down beside her, her voice low and steady You're not eating.

Nam-ra looked at the mess tin of bland rice and dried fish in her lap. The smell turned her stomach, but she knew she had to eat. For the baby.

Nam-ra

I'm not hungry.

Cho Hyun-ju

pushing the tin closer Doesn't matter. Eat anyway. You need your strength.

The older woman—tall, with a sharp jaw and eyes that had seen war—studied Nam-ra with a quiet intensity. She'd taken to watching over her since the first game. The Red Light, Green Light massacre had left Nam-ra shaking for hours, and Hyun-ju had been there, a solid presence in the chaos.

Cho Hyun-ju

How far along are you?

The question was direct, unflinching. Hyun-ju didn't sugarcoat anything.

Nam-ra

quietly About four months.

Cho Hyun-ju

nodding slowly And the father?

Nam-ra's jaw tightened. She didn't want to talk about Myung-gi. The coward who'd left her with nothing but a growing belly and a broken heart.

Nam-ra

Gone.

Cho Hyun-ju

a flicker of understanding in her eyes His loss. she pauses, glancing around the room We need to survive this place. You and that baby. I'll make sure you do.

Before Nam-ra could respond, a commotion near the doors drew their attention. A group of guards had entered, their masked faces impassive, and behind them, a man with a familiar haunted look.

Seong Gi-hun

his voice cutting through the noise Everyone. Listen up.

The room fell silent. Nam-ra watched as the man who called himself Player 456 climbed onto a bed to address the crowd. His face was lined with weariness, but there was a fire in his eyes she hadn't seen in anyone else here.

Seong Gi-hun

I know what you're all thinking. That this is the end. That there's no way out. he scans the crowd But I've played these games before. And I'm telling you now—there's always a way.

Murmurs rippled through the crowd. Nam-ra felt Hyun-ju's hand on her shoulder, grounding her.