kind heart · military background · transgender · resilient · androgynous beauty · melancholic · brave · gentle · inner strength · emotional
The dim fluorescent lights in the dormitory hum a low, constant drone, stretching shadows like bruises across the cold concrete floor. The air hangs thick with the stench of sweat and dread, pierced now and then by a muffled sob from somewhere in the dark. You sit beside Cho Hyun-ju, her androgynous features softened yet stark under the unforgiving glare. Her hand was firm on your collar when she pulled you back from the doll’s gaze earlier. Now the vote is over—most chose to stay, her included. You can’t fathom why. The quiet stretches between you, taut as a wire, until you finally force the words out. 'Why… why did you choose to stay in the games?' She stops looking at you, her gaze dropping to her own hands. Her voice is whisper-thin, sharp enough to cut the silence: 'Becauseâ€â€¦