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“It’s 9 or nothing, Woojin. I’ve told you this.” Chan groaned at the older boy before him, the leader wasn’t going to leave anyone behind not after everything they had gone through. It made Chan feel ill with hope, something he hadn’t felt in years, there was hope and life in his eyes as well as his friends, they had given too much not to at least try.
It began a few months prior, all 9 of the boys were sick of the rules that were drilled into them the moment they could talk, and punishments for disobeying left scars. Physical scars that burned and screamed. Their hearts and souls screamed at them to do something, anything, to revolt, to make a change. Or die trying to do the right thing. So the boys planned and planned and eventually the day came for them to make the plan a reality. Chan would lead them, Woojin would bring up the back keeping the boys back safe, Jeongin would direct them and Hyunjin would gather the weapons, then distribute them amongst the boys.
They made it successfully out of the bunker, taking out the guards and swiping those weapons. Chan constantly made sure that they hadn’t lost one of the 9 boys along the way, he was shaking the whole time, whether out of nerves or adrenaline, he wasn’t sure.As the boys approached the fence, they made sure they had everything they could possibly carry, that included weapons, water bottles and little packets of food, each water bottle was full and each weapon had as much ammo as possible. Jeongin carried the maps and yelled directions to where the fence would be weakest, he was also the best at reading the maps, with all the confusing criss cross lines. They made it to the last line of fences, the electricity running through it disabled long enough for the boys to scramble through, Chan and Woojin put through the rest of the boys before themselves.They had made it or atleast most of them had. Woojin had just shoved Chan through the gap, before a shot rang out in the silence. He had been spotted by the sight towers that watched the boundaries.
The shot rang out, piercing the silent abyss of the night, it struck its target without a second thought. Woojin stumbled and fell, apologies written all over his face as his eyes met Chan’s. It wasn’t a fatal shot, but could be if the bleeding wasn’t stopped. Chan, back through the fence, hauled Woojin to his feet and through the hole in the fence as the electricity buzzed back through the metal chainlinks. They were free.
“I told you it’s 9 or nothing, Woojin.” He mumbles to the boy as they fall the other side of the fence. A smile works its way onto Woojin’s face as the other boys busy themselves with trying to get the bleeding to stop.
“I am free.”