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The stage was dim and damp with early rainfall as Go Hyuntak stepped out, and every echo of his footsteps felt like a stab to his heart. He could see the curious glances from the monstrous creatures that watched over him with want, with greed. Their bodies vibrated in pure excitement, anticipating who would meet their demise next. Those sick, twisted smiles spread maniacally with no care in the world. He let himself use this moment of darkness and invisibility to glare at each one of them, cursing the individuals under his breath to release at least some of the anger and grief that had built over the last few weeks.
A month ago, the Earth was surrounded by spacecraft like no other. Giant, metal ships covered the sky and left the Earth in darkness. Within minutes, the population of South Korea was wiped out with few exceptions; the citizens who attracted the extraterrestrials. Those monsters were bored, yearning for fun. That fun just so happened to unfairly come with the price of people's lives.
Go Hyuntak and Park Humin, two forever inseparable teens, were taken together, and when they saw similar pairings, clinging to each other with fear in their eyes, and trembles in their voices, Hyuntak knew exactly what they wanted. These sick monsters were sensing out those with a bond, those that were emotionally glued to each other and promised to give up their lives for each other, and they wanted to rip them apart, make them feel what it was like to be betrayed, have their happiness ripped away from them. All for a few measly coins, and a twisted sense of entertainment.
These creatures saw him as nothing but a pet. They saw all of them as nothing but toys that they could rip up and throw away when they weren't good enough anymore. Put them all against each other in musical torture, as they all knew that no song would end with both of the competitors alive.
He remembered the face of the young boy in the previous round, Seo Juntae. A familiar and endearing classmate to Hyuntak, and somebody who he promised to protect against those who stood against him, took advantage of his kindness. His doe eyes widening in fear as the score stumbled down after a small, but irreversible mistake. A slip of the tongue, while his partner, Keum Seongje, was effortless and perfect. Possibly, he was just desperate enough not to let any flaw be noticed. But whatever it was, Hyuntak could still not bring himself to watch as the small boy’s body dripped in crimson, face smushed against the shoulder of the winner, who looked anything but victorious under his facade. Such an innocent soul was given up like it was insignificant, just because he was no longer appealing to the cruel minds of the aliens and their gambles.
From then on, Hyuntak truly hated what this world had come to in such a short time, and what was yet to happen.
A slimy hand slipped over his shoulder, the muscles inside twisting and tightening in a way that hadn't been felt before. The tall body towered behind Hyuntak like a lingering shadow that held his darkest fears. The mumbling of the creature’s voice in his ear was almost incoherent, nothing but a gurgle of meaningless encouragement. Hyuntak couldn't care enough to try and strain his hearing to understand what he was saying at all, and was instead holding himself back from just running out of the arena altogether.
Tonight, in just a few moments, he would be put against Park Humin.
Humin had been successful in his previous battle against Na Baekjin. He had always had a knack for winning over people, no matter how cold their hearts were. And so, when he had stuttered in his duet, instead of a widening expression and a shake of panic, he had grinned, beaming to the crowd and letting his voice project even further. He had become a crowd favourite amongst the hundreds of judges since then.
-
When the song had died out, and the workers emerged from the curtain to clean up and clear out the body, Humin had hopped onto the balls of his feet and ran to the competitors' room, where Hyuntak had been spectating closely, leg bouncing restlessly with nerves. Humin had slumped down onto the couch next to him, and his head almost immediately fell heavy on Hyuntak's shoulder, exhaustion seeping through the even breaths.
Hyuntak had ran his fingers through the brown strands seeped with sweat, and whispered a soft reassurance: "you did well, Huminie."
-
Hyuntak didn’t want to walk to the final battle alone. He wanted to forever travel the path of his life with the familiar weight over his shoulders and the joyful cheers that once filled him with admiration. Adoration.
But life isn’t always ideal.
The creature withdrew its claws, a green slick lingering on the side of Hyuntak's neck, which churned his stomach. With a careless shove, he was suddenly center stage, skin feeling the sharp bullets of the raindrops that grew heavier. The groans and chatters of the audience members grew louder. Shaking coins that would be lost or gained, laughing in disgust at how small Hyuntak was compared to the unearthly monsters. He inhaled, the scent of pheromones and petrichor nauseating him, and he took the final few steps to where he was instructed to.
There were two crosses on the ground. One for Hyuntak, and ten metres away was one for Humin. As Hyuntak was first to sing, he was instructed to be on the stage from the beginning, and Humin was to enter later. They were not to leave these crosses once stepped on until the buzzer had sounded.
There was no escape.
Only one of them would leave this stage alive.
A clunk echoed around the arena, filling the space with darkness, the sound echoing, then ringing in Hyuntak’s ears. The noise had died down, now being so quiet that all that could be heard was the strong patter of rain against the masonite.
Another clunk. Two spotlights highlighting Hyuntak and Humin’s spots. And then a heartbeat.
The beginning of the song.
Ba-dum. Ba-dum. The beat travelled through Hyuntak’s body as though it was the pounding of his own heart. As the beating grew in speed, so did the volume of the microphone’s feedback as he finally lifted it to his lips, nauseous and teary-eyed.
The kick drum was hit.
The first word was forced out of him, weak. He had to strain his voice to let the words out, eyes closing in hopes that it is all just a nightmare. One that you could not wake from until it was the right time. His fingers trembled as they gripped onto the microphone, and so he opened his eyes to push it into the slot of the stand. A thump echoed in the speakers as his voice strained with vulnerability, his gaze meeting the thousands of eyes that held nothing but the want for something exciting.
They're about to ruin his life or take it away.
With the furrow of his eyebrows, his vision became covered by a pane of translucent tears, and a pool of anger and adrenaline bubbled in his stomach. Sharp eyes of murder travelled the crowd, and all he got in return was humorous smiles, a shake of laughing shoulders.
Hyuntak, Humin, Juntae; they were nothing more than a laughing stock. A television character that had people changing opinions like the change of seasons. They had no emotions, no connections to these monsters. They weren’t cared about once they became bored.
Hyuntak hated them. No matter how much they participated in the creation of this evil game, he hated them all equally.
The sound of the electric guitar grew in volume, and through his lips came a chorus of emotions that these soulless creatures couldn’t begin to understand. Each syllable was laced with venom; poisonous anger targeted towards those who approved their Earth being wiped out in such a way. Towards those who decided to make these teenagers battle to live, despite nobody else being given even a chance of mercy. He let the wet on his cheeks dry out naturally, the streaks being nothing but marks of how his future was taken from him.
The chorus died out. Silence. Then a piano.
With a hand over the microphone, Hyuntak let his eyes close, and he didn’t know if the wet trails on his cheeks were from his eyes or the clouds above. He prayed to be anywhere else except being put against his best friend to live. He prayed for the Earth to crumble if it meant that they could be happy together again. But no matter how desperate his words became, the notes dragged on, and mere seconds felt like minutes.
The first sob ripped out of his throat as Humin’s voice travelled through the speakers.
His honey-like voice, calm and collected, carried each word with perfection, almost as though he was against anybody else in the world. Each word caused Hyuntak to tremble, until he had to grip onto the microphone to keep himself standing upright. He steadied his breathing with the rhythm of the drum as support and let his eyes open once more. The creatures’ eyes drew to the energy of the new player.
He could feel the familiar comfort of a soft gaze, but he couldn’t bring himself to look over just yet. If he looked at Humin’s face, then it would all be real. Instead, he let himself listen to Humin’s voice; he let the tone smooth down the ragged edges of his anxiety and fill him with the warmth that he was accustomed to feeling.
-
“Why would you ask for a guitar, Baku?” The 12-year-old Hyuntak had asked curiously after school one day. Humin had excitedly dragged him home one day with the promise of seeing something out of this world. Despite being used to Humin’s overexcitement, he played along enough for the smile on his face to be genuine once his best friend’s hand slipped into his own.
“To be cool like those rockstars in America, of course! Did you know that they have, like, millions of girls in love with them? There is some type of love potion in music, I’m telling you now, GoGo!”
The boys stood over Humin’s bed, a shiny, brown guitar reflecting the summer light into their burning eyes. Humin’s fingers curled and stretched out in pure excitement, and Hyuntak’s fingers itched to pluck one of the strings.
“I thought you wanted to be strong like Kang Baekho? You’ve been wanting that since, like, ever.”
With a smile, Humin had jumped onto his bed, feet dipping under the fingerboard as his tousled hair brushed the low ceiling.
“I’ll do both of course! A basketball rockstar! You can be my manager, Gogo, then we’ll never be apart when I’m on my hundreds of world tours!”
“But then I won’t get any girlfriends, Baku! That’s unfair!”
“You can just be my girlfriend, of course! I’ll make sure to treat you the best!”
Hyuntak’s heart at that moment had increased in such rapid succession that it felt deadly for such a young boy. But the feelings that grew butterflies in him were pushed down by a shove to his best friend’s arm, and the sound of their giggles filling the neighbourhood.
-
Hyuntak, in the moment that the second chorus hit, realised that he may never hear that same voice again. He may never see the beam on the face of the boy that he had always loved. And so, as Humin’s chorus hit, Hyuntak let his red, swollen eyes look over at the boy who he wished for forever with.
The boy who was already looking at him with such melancholic joy glistening in his eyes, and the softest smile pulling at the corners of his lips. The boy who knew the horrors and torture that the world can bring yet still held such childlike wonder in his heart. The boy who sang to Hyuntak in that moment like everything was going to be okay.
And despite the choke of tears that was threatening to escape, Hyuntak let his lips pull unevenly into a broken smile that held gratitude for his best friend. Appreciation for all the times that Humin had delayed his own dreams to help Hyuntak take that one step towards reaching his own. And, most of all, love.
Humin’s voice echoed through the arena like a symphony, his voice holding all the pieces that make a beautiful melody. Rich, deep, but with the sweetness of sugar. Their gazes never left each other as Humin delivered the final lines of the chorus, and as the bridge was about to hit, his gaze flickered somewhere above Hyuntak’s head, before his smile faltered.
And soon enough, the instrumental was being accompanied by the screech of a microphone’s feedback rather than a warm voice as Humin left his cross and took long strides across the stage, his eyes not leaving Hyuntak’s.
His feet splashed growing puddles, and darkened the colours of his socks as the thunderous weather grew loud and ruthless.
It all happened in a flash. In one moment, Humin was throwing his microphone stand to the ground, and in the next, their lips were pressed together, with Humin’s calloused hands gripping onto Hyuntak’s shoulders firmly.
His body was on fire. Humin’s lips were soft, well taken care of despite the conditions they were in. The plumpness of his bottom lip held Hyuntak’s in place as he pulled Hyuntak’s body closer, their stomachs pressed firmly together, heat rushing to their heads. water layered his tongue as raindrops slipped through with each breath. Hyuntak’s fingers curled around the silk of Humin’s shirt, his eyes wide in surprise before he pulled himself away.
Humin’s eyes were overfilled with an emotion Hyuntak couldn’t quite figure out, flickers of hope, nerves and sadness. Hyuntak looked at Humin with a gaze full of confusion, which flowed to love, and then their eyes matched the same sadness. Did Humin feel the same way this whole time? Is it too late now?
Humin’s eyes flickered back up, before he looked back into Hyuntak’s eyes with a layer of relief in his smile, and his head dipped back down to capture the boy’s lips, but Hyuntak was quick to back away, aware of the consequences if they didn’t continue with the rules. Both of their lives could be at stake.
“Huminie, the song-” Hyuntak had tried to warn, but the corner of his eyes caught the huge, glowing numbers projected on the screen behind them.
Park Humin : 65 , Go Hyuntak : 25
Park Humin : 50 , Go Hyuntak : 40
Park Humin : 48 , Go Hyuntak : 42
What?
Hyuntak turned his head, looking right at Humin, who’s eyes were still stuck on the ever changing numbers slowly growing in Hyuntak’s favour. He finally looked back, almost happy with the change of numbers.
No.
He couldn’t be...
“What are you doing, you idiot!?”
Hyuntak’s hands flew to Humin’s throat, rain collecting in his mouth as he panted. His fingers refused to tighten their hold, refused to genuinely hurt the boy that he had loved since they were kids. In an act of pure desperation, he pushed Humin to the floor, scrambling to straddle him, legs on each side of his waist as his hands gripped the fabric on Humin’s chest.
“You’re going to die if you do that!” Hyuntak cried out, arms failing to keep himself upright. His chest pressed against Humin’s ribcage as he cried in sorrow and betrayal.
It was meant to be a fair fight. They were meant to be equals. Why would Humin manipulate the numbers in such a way that they were in Hyuntak’s favour, rather than his own?
Humin stayed silent, and when he looked up from between his lashes, his lips still were still pulled in that close-lipped smile, almost at though he was in a daze, but as the instruments grew in intensity for the final time, he suddenly pushed Hyuntak off of him , trapping his body under his own .
“Humin, what the f-”
Humin’s hands flew to Hyuntak’s throat, a mimicry of his own actions, his face contorting into an expression of anger, a facade that only Hyuntak could see through, as his eyes held something deeper, a glint of acceptance. Their noses were brushing against each other, the drops of rain falling from Humin’s hair into Hyuntak’s eyes, but he let them sting. Nothing hurt more than being in a situation where you best friend was about to sacrifice himself, and it was too late to do anything about it.
Humin’s gaze travelled sideways, and Hyuntak followed. The creatures expressed digust in their eyes, lips moulding into shapes of curses and insults, claws and paws gesturing in lewd ways. But their discrimination was towards one person. The boy on top of him.
Humin looked back into Hyuntak’s eyes once more, the mask falling as his expression finally faded into pure fondness, a layer of tears clouding over. Hyuntak couldn’t bring the same smile, his cheeks and temples wet with the tears that he had carried through the days building up to this moment, and his lips pushing out loud, uncontrollable sobs. His upper lip was wet with snot, and yet Humin was looking at him like they were just two careless boys back in school, with no worries in the world. He leant down, not bothering to wipe away the stickiness as he pressed his lips softly against Hyuntak’s once more, and Hyuntak let his head lift up, feeling Humin’s fingers thread through his hair, supporting him. Hyuntak tasted the salt from Humin’s tears slip over his tastebuds as their tongues met for a second.
The buzzer sounded, and Humin pulled away with a smile.
There was no time before his body jolted, blood pooling in his mouth and dripping onto Hyuntak’s clothes. Tears continued to fall from his best friend’s eyes as his lips trembled, his throat croaking out the four words that Hyuntak had dreamt of hearing.
“Gogo, I love you.”
Humin’s body slumped down, his head knocking Hyuntak’s chin, and his own head smacked onto the cold, puddled ground. The blood rushing in his veins turned cold, and he could feel bile rising into his mouth. He closed his eyes, his hand, uncontrollably shaking, placing itself onto Humin’s shoulder blade, feeling his body fight to inhale one last take of oxygen, their heartbeats syncing for the final time before Humin’s body laid still with the final strum of the bass, its note dragging out, like it didn’t want to let go just yet.
Hyuntak stared at the ceiling as the arena fell silent. No cheers. No moans of complaints. Just the sound of the rain beating down on the two of them as the screen glowed, and Humin’s image faded out.
Go Hyuntak: Passed.
Park Humin: Eliminated.