Chapter Text
Sieun needed to open his eyes.
Rationally, he knew that. But the fear that weighed heavily on his gut and the sound of the timer echoing the countdown in the air made the darkness a much more pleasant option than what awaited him next. He should open his eyes, yes, and try to capture as many details as possible of the arena. It could be anywhere, anything, any sick possibility that had crossed the minds of the Gamemakers. He had to open his eyes and observe, at least think of what direction would be better for him to run to when the inevitable moment came. But the fear was so great that the boy felt his whole body frozen in place—including his eyes. Because underneath the blanket of emotion, besides that raw fear and the fact that his body was trembling, his instincts of survival screaming for him to open his eyes, he knew that, in the end, it wouldn't make any difference. He was already sentenced to die.
Those few seconds seemed to last an eternity.
What made him open his eyes was the music. It was low, it seemed to come from far away, a song that seemed to belong to a different place and time, soft and lively. Amid the dry wind and the roar in his ears, it reached him and made him face what was ahead.
Sieun opened his eyes and looked for the source of the music, the loud and constant noise of the timer almost forgotten amid his focus, even though he didn't miss that the countdown was almost over.
30 seconds
That was it. A carousel. He had seen them in movies that showed what life was like before the Dark Days. The carousel was huge, with all kinds of animals spinning around and dim lights flashing, the colors faded. It was right in front of him. Sieun finally looked around at the other tributes positioned around the carousel. He could see some of them, others he couldn't.
20 seconds
The world came back into focus. Sieun was breathing so fast that he could barely feel the air entering and leaving his chest. The coldness of fear spread through every inch of his body until it made his fingertips tingle. He looked to the side. The boy from District 6 next to him looked like he was about to vomit. No one moved. He stood still. He looked around and beyond, some distant corner of his mind realizing that he was in what appeared to be a large amusement park. Not that he had ever been to one, no. Where he came from, there were no such things.
10 seconds
His guts churned as he processed the information that time was running out. He needed a strategy. Did he have one? He could barely get oxygen to his own brain. Run... Just run as fast as he could. Then there would be time to think. Or breathe.
5 seconds
Sieun wasn't a very athletic boy, but he took a deep breath and began flexing his calves. His feet would have to work. There was no time to count on anything else.
4 seconds
Near the end, his gaze shifted from the carousel and fell on a figure standing almost on the other side. Tall, short straight-cut hair, broad shoulders.
3 seconds
For a second, he thought the other boy met his gaze. But it was hard to tell, he was too far away.
2 seconds
Now it doesn't matter. Sieun took another deep breath...
1 second
...and runned.