Somewhere out there is a beautifully tragic universe where the stars are aligned and the timelines matched up to where In-ho and Gi-hun experienced their first games together. No "Young-il," no lies, no deception. Not between them, at least. The two of them meeting at their lowest. In-ho being a bit on the reclusive side, keeping to himself mostly at first, simply observing from afar, but he can't help but be drawn in by Gi-hun, the latter's trusting nature balanced by In-ho's suspicious tendencies, and vice versa.
In this universe, Il-nam still presents In-ho with the knife the night after the dinner. In-ho still goes through with it, kills everyone while they're asleep in their beds. Well... almost everyone. He saves Gi-hun for last out of a foolish sense of sentimentality, but he hesitates too long.
Gi-hun wakes. They struggle, fighting until the guards intervene and separate them. (Il-nam pitting his two favorite players against each other.) Gi-hun stares at In-ho with hatred burning in his eyes, but In-ho doesn't try to justify what he's done. He deserves the full extent of Gi-hun's wrath. Part of him welcomes it even.
Then, during Squid Game, Gi-hun proves more resilient than he anticipated. Once he gains the upper hand, In-ho is bracing for him to deliver the killing blow, except it never comes. Gi-hun calls to end the games like he does in canon.
And when Gi-hun offers his hand out to him, something inside In-ho shatters.
Because he's seen the worst in In-ho. He's been betrayed by him. In-ho knows that forgiveness is not on the table, yet Gi-hun still chooses to believe that there is good in him nonetheless. There's that familiar spark in his eyes, that stubbornness that In-ho mentioned reminded him of his wife. Gi-hun isn't giving up on him. And for a moment, he's blinded by this man, this light in the darkness. In-ho knows he should take advantage of the moment, that he should turn the tide and kill him. Victory is so close that he could almost taste it.
Having Gi-hun as your favorite character is both a curse and a blessing cause his whole life is literally suffering but you can draw him wearing a pink thong and put him in pretty dresses in your fic
@alatariel-gildaen Part two of your prompt fill with more In-ho POV in the Vegas AU, this time for the "after" portion. At this rate, I should just post to ao3. Also if anyone's not into In-ho being a little masochistic freak, then yeah might want to skip this one. 😂
Waking up the next morning felt like resurfacing after a night spent underwater.
In-ho gasped for air as he darted up in bed, his entire body trembling, his hand clutched against his heaving chest.
Gi-hun.
A relieved sob clawed its way out of his throat at the sight of him by his side. Safe, warm, asleep.
It was too real. That dream—That nightmare felt all too real, but it wasn't. Gi-hun was here, not in the games. More importantly, he was alive, each rise and fall of his chest proof enough to confirm that.
Yet that alone didn't stop In-ho from reaching out to him. Pressing his middle and forefinger against his neck, he sought out his pulse with an experienced touch, whimpering when he felt it beat strong and steady underneath his fingertips.
"You're here. You're alive," In-ho repeated aloud, to reassure himself more than anything. "You're still with me."
When he caressed his cheek, Gi-hun grunted, his eyes opening up into a weary squint, half-asleep as he mumbled, "Young-il?"
In-ho tensed.
Who?
He didn't recognize that name…
Not that he got the chance to ask about it either, Gi-hun slipping seamlessly back into his slumber without a second thought.
Okay, not the time to jump to conclusions. What mattered was that Gi-hun was alright. Nothing happened to him over the course of the night. In-ho could calm down, knowing that for a fact.
After all, who cared if his husband just called him by another man's name the morning after their wedding night? Not him. Not In-ho. He was fine. It was fine. This was all fine.
… He needed to pull himself together, preferably before Gi-hun woke up. After Gi-hun's strange behavior last night, In-ho couldn't let him see him like this. The last thing he needed was to wake up to the sight of In-ho falling apart, so the least In-ho could do was offer him some stability and comfort rather than another matter to stress over.
Routine. In-ho should fall back on routine, if nothing else. Maybe the familiarity will soothe the frayed edges of his nerves, smooth them out into a state that resembled composure.
Easing his way out bed, he took a moment to stretch through any lingering morning stiffness, and a sweet release of tension accompanied the slight popping of his joints. Once he made his way into the bathroom, In-ho began brushing his teeth first, allowing his mind to drift back to bed, to where Gi-hun slept on, oblivious to the possibility that anything was amiss.
In-ho ducked his head to spit into the sink, but the moment he glanced up to look into the mirror, his reflection was nothing less than a punch to the gut.
The masked man from his nightmares stared back at him.
Jaw clenched, In-ho didn't look away. He couldn't.
Instead, he shut his eyes, slowly counted to ten, then opened them again.
Thankfully, the masked man was gone, but In-ho's relief was short-lived.
His reflection didn't match up with reality.
The man in the mirror stared back at him with a blank expression, clad in a black, fitted tank top whereas In-ho's chest still laid bare. His doppelganger's hair was already styled for the day, not a single strand out of place. However, in spite of appearances, the dark circles underneath his eyes gave testament to an equally restless night.
When their eyes locked, In-ho experienced a strange sensation of a foreign presence wrapping itself around his mind. Unable to break their stare, he fell victim to whatever spell it had him under. One by one, the tendrils of a separate consciousness enveloped his own. His vision blurred around the edges until all he could see was this lone figure.
Without warning, the presence clamped down around his mind, and pain erupted inside In-ho's skull. This mirrored version of himself slowly cocked his head at an angle. And like a puppet guided by its master, In-ho copied the movement, then did it again when his reflection gave an experimental tilt to the other side.
Stop, In-ho warned, but the tendrils only continued to completely surround In-ho's consciousness, burrowing inside as they wove themselves within. No longer was it solely a matter of exerting control, but it grew into a means to consume as well.
Gritting his teeth, In-ho fought back against the intrusion.
His hands braced against the counter, he growled out a firm, "No."
Warmth trickled down his nose and over his lips, soon accompanied by the taste of copper on the back of his tongue.
The image of Gi-hun, surrounded by that halo of blood, flashed before his eyes, and that gave In-ho the resolve to force the other out completely. Pain sharpened into agony. Every attempt at resisting was like untangling himself from a briar patch. The more he struggled, the deeper the thorns sank into him, but he refused to give in.
"You can't have him."
At first, In-ho couldn't tell which of them the statement originated from, but he had his answer the second the other's gaze darkened with sinister intent. An echo of his murderous rage burned deep inside him.
In the blink of an eye, he seized control again.
"I will." He didn't raise his voice. There was no screaming or yelling, only the whispered promise of someone whose mind was already made up.
Before In-ho could think twice about it, he drove his fist into the mirror. Cracks spread throughout its surface as a sharp lance of pain raced up his arm. He instantly felt the difference as the presence retreated, their connection severed. A weight lifted off of his mind, and the fog around the edges of his vision withdrew.
Now, only his true self stared back at him through the mirror's shattered remains.
What was that?
Was he losing it?
Dazed and disoriented, he began plucking the shards of glass out of his hand, allowing them to fall into the sink below. Thankfully, none of the cuts were deep enough to require stitches from what he could tell. Once he handled the worst of it, he stumbled over to the shower, turning it on long enough for the spray to grow lukewarm before stepping inside.
He watched distantly as the blood from both his nose and his hand was washed away by the steady stream, the water tinged red as it swirled down the drain. In time, it started to run clear, and In-ho had enough presence of mind to start working his body and hair up into a warm, rich lather. Familiar hints of vanilla greeted him, the water now steaming as the heat worked through knots of tension along his back.
His eyes started to drift closed, only to snap wide open when he thought he heard Gi-hun's voice, instantly alert.
For a moment, there was nothing but the sound of water pouring over him, then what sounded like a muffled curse filtered in through the bathroom door.
Yeah, that was unmistakably Gi-hun.
Quickly, In-ho finished rinsing off and shut off the shower, rushing to towel himself dry.
He spared a final sigh when he saw the state of the mirror again, already resigned to the added expense.
"Jagiya?" In-ho called out, ignoring the stinging cuts scattered around his knuckles. "Did you say something?"
As he stepped out into the bedroom, running the towel over his hair, he watched Gi-hun turn to look at him.
Of course, the man had absolutely no shame, not even bothering to hide how openly he was ogling In-ho. Not that the latter or his ego was complaining at all. Desire stirred inside him at the very sight of Gi-hun, at how he drank In-ho in from head to toe.
Everything else paled in comparison to him. All of the strange mishaps since the previous evening were long forgotten, In-ho ready to start over with a brand new day awaiting them.
"Gi-hun," he whispered, "how are you feeling?"
It was at that exact moment that Gi-hun's gaze honed in on his cock. In-ho couldn't help but to chuckle when his eyes widened to the size of saucers, his mouth left slightly agape.
"D–Dick," he stammered out, to which In-ho snorted, a brow raised at Gi-hun's silly antics.
"It's nothing you haven't seen before —or felt, for that matter," In-ho said, tossing his towel aside onto the floor as he closed the distance between them. "Of course, if you need a reminder…"
He'd be more than happy to provide.
Gi-hun started to say something, but In-ho interrupted him, swooping in to seal their lips into a passionate kiss.
At first, Gi-hun froze, but that tension quickly melted away when In-ho's lips moved against his. He returned the kiss almost tentatively at first, as if he didn't quite know what to make of it, then continued with a rapidly growing fervor that made In-ho's head spin.
Out of nowhere, Gi-hun sank his teeth into his bottom lip.
In-ho winced a little at first, but the metallic tang of his blood on their lips only spurred him on.
So that's how they were going to play this?
Gi-hun's tongue swiped over the broken skin, the sharp, stinging pain coaxing a low moan from the back of In-ho's throat. At the sound, Gi-hun's fingers grabbed hold of his hair, then yanked.
The kiss broken, In-ho whimpered at the loss of contact, his scalp tingling. "Please."
At the sound of his voice, something in Gi-hun's eyes darkened, his pupils blown, bloody lips parted.
The loud smack! resonated throughout the room before In-ho could fully process anything else. His head forced aside, pain spiked where Gi-hun's hand made contact with In-ho's face.
"Fuck, jagiya." Definitely one of those mornings then, and his brat of a husband had not held back for his sake. In-ho worked through the lingering ache in his jaw as he met Gi-hun's eyes again with a challenging smirk. "Do that again."
For some reason, Gi-hun didn't seem to expect that sort of response. He stared at In-ho like he had sprouted another head, unable to move like a deer stuck in headlights.
Brow furrowed, In-ho started to ask what was wrong, what he had done wrong, but Gi-hun lashed out before he could form the words.
He jerked his knee up right between In-ho's legs with as much strength as he could muster. The impact hit hard, and In-ho's vision went dark for a single second as a white-hot agony exploded throughout his lower body. His muscles locked up, and Gi-hun took advantage of the opportunity.
"Get the fuck off me," he grunted, shoving In-ho off to the side. There, he curled in on himself with a groan, tears pooling in his eyes.
"I would have done that if you just asked, asshole!" In-ho snapped, his voice cracking as his body trembled against the sheets. When he heard a thud, he tilted his head up in time to catch sight of Gi-hun rolling out of bed. "Wha–What are you doing?"
Eyes narrowed, Gi-hun didn't answer as he rushed towards the bedside table. It all happened so fast that In-ho could barely keep up. One second, Gi-hun was snatching the lamp off its surface, the force alone enough to dislodge its plug from the outlet. The next, he had ripped the lampshade off, smashing the lightbulb on the edge of the nightstand.
Well, that wasn't good.
Armed with his makeshift weapon, In-ho yelped when Gi-hun turned its jagged edges on him, throwing himself off the opposite side of the bed in a tangle of sheets to put some distance between them.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Carefully, In-ho pulled himself up off the floor, sore and tender as he stood, his hands held out to Gi-hun to try and placate him. "Let's not do anything hasty, okay?"
"Hasty?!" Gi-hun snarled, his eyes alight with malice. "You had the gall to kiss me after everything you've done. I think we're past the point of 'hasty' by now!"
What did In-ho do to him?!
Of course, that would have been a more reasonable question to ask. Instead, In-ho couldn't help but to snark at him. "Funny, you didn't seem to have any issue with me when you kissed me back."
In-ho ducked just in the nick of time to avoid the remote that was launched at his head.
You know what, he thought, that was fair.
"I swear, if you did anything to me while I was asleep, Young-il—"
His patience worn thin, In-ho snapped, "Who's Young-il?!"
Gi-hun stared at him as if he was stupid. He looked pointedly around the spacious room, only for his eyes to eventually land back on In-ho.
"Since I'm not talking to myself and you're the only other person in here, it's anyone's guess, I suppose." Gi-hun shrugged.
"But my name isn't Young-il," In-ho protested. "You know that."
"Do I?" Gi-hun shot back. "Because that was the only name you gave me."
"No, it wasn't!" In-ho ran his fingers through his hair, blowing out a frustrated breath. "My name is In-ho." He enunciated each syllable in hopes that it sank in. "In-ho. Hwang In-ho. Got it?"
Did Gi-hun have some sort of amnesia? Maybe In-ho should take him to the hospital. Then again, after the whole mirror incident, maybe In-ho should take himself to the hospital. Ugh, he didn't know what to think anymore.
Actually, come to think of it, the American healthcare system scared him more than whatever he and Gi-hun had going on at the moment, so he'd handle it himself for now.
That would be his last resort.
Adjusting his stance, Gi-hun started to speak again.
But not before sparing a brief glance downwards, quick to avert his eyes, his face flushed.
"You pervert," he scolded, "are you hard again?"
"Why are you looking?" In-ho huffed, placing his hands on his hips, not even the slightest bit ashamed. "And 'pervert,' really? Oh, you do not want to go there with me, Seong Gi-hun, because the stories I could tell about you…" Trailing off at the sight of his glare, In-ho backtracked. "Right. Not the time. Listen, in my defense, I've never seen you try to attack another person like this, let alone myself, so we are both learning something new about me today."
This time, he didn't even bother dodging, catching the pillow thrown into his face.
"Pull yourself together."
"I'm trying!"
"Try harder," Gi-hun huffed.
"Is it such a crime that I find you attractive?" In-ho whined. "It's not as simple as switching it off, and you just had to go and wear those damn panties, you tease."
Admiring the way the fabric hugged Gi-hun's hips, In-ho sank his teeth into the pillow, imagining it was the swell of Gi-hun's ass he was biting instead.
Unimpressed, Gi-hun curled his lip into a sneer.
"You're pathetic," he said.
"Maybe," In-ho allowed with a grin, "but I'm not the only one affected, am I?"
The bulge was undeniable from where he was standing. Outraged, Gi-hun tried to angle his hips away from him, which only served to give In-ho the perfect view of his ass.
"Hngh," he muffled his groan into the pillow.
"Stop staring!"
"I'm sorry!" He pouted, fixing his eyes on a spot above Gi-hun's shoulder. "You know, this isn't how I expected our honeymoon to go."
Gi-hun didn't acknowledge that, all too ready to change the subject for In-ho's liking.
"Wait, hold on. A minute ago, did you say that your name is Hwang In-ho?" he asked. "As in Jun-ho's brother?"
"Umm…" That smarted a little. The implication that he would only know of him by association through Jun-ho first. "Yes?"
And if nothing else, bringing up his brother certainly put a damper on In-ho's previous mood. Which was probably Gi-hun's intent, now that he thought about it.
"That bastard—"
"Hey now," In-ho said, "I know he can be a handful at times, but that's a little rude, don't you think?"
Gi-hun's brows pinched together, his lips pursed.
"Did he know that you were the Front Man this whole time?"
"Excuse me. That I was the what?" Whatever accusations In-ho expected, it certainly wasn't that. "Do you mean the game master? As in Oh Il-nam's game master?"
Gi-hun looked him up and down, watchful, searching. "What else could I possibly mean?"
"I turned down that offer years ago."
Something about that revelation must have caught Gi-hun off guard, enough so to give him pause before responding.
"Why?"
But there was a more pressing issue at hand.
"Since when have you known about the games?" In-ho panicked, and because today was apparently In-ho's lucky day, that seemed to be the wrong question to ask.
"Since I've been through them twice now," Gi-hun bit out, his jaw clenched. "Look, whatever twisted trick you're trying to pull this time, In-ho, I'm not buying it."
"I'm not playing any tricks on you, I swear," In-ho sighed, using the pillow to shield himself from view, along with any further damage. "Gi-hun, I've known you for nine years and counting. Trust me when I say that, in all that time, you've never needed to go through the games. I've made sure of that."
"Nine years. No." Shaking his head, Gi-hun tightened his grip on the lamp. "I won the games in 2020. That was the first time we ever met. We talked in the limo…"
"I'm sorry," In-ho cut him off, "but I have no clue what you're talking about."
Under any other circumstances, In-ho would have thought that Gi-hun was losing his mind.
However, given what In-ho had experienced in the past twenty-four hours alone, he was willing to set aside any skepticism to hear him out.
"In 2020," In-ho continued, "I lived with you and your mother that year. We helped her manage things after she got diagnosed with—"
"Diabetes."
"Yes." At least there were some consistencies between their stories. "I would suggest calling her right now, but she'd have both our hides for waking her up so early."
Gi-hun's breath hitched.
"Don't screw with me," he warned, his lower lip wobbling. "You're saying she's alive?"
Why would he ask—
Oh.
Oh, no…
In-ho's heart broke at the thought.
How much have you suffered on your own?
"Jagiya, I'm so—"
"Just answer the question," Gi-hun sobbed, his hands shaking. "Tell me the truth. You're saying she's still alive."
It was less of a question and more of a statement at that point, but In-ho still nodded in confirmation.
"We celebrated her eightieth birthday earlier this year. Here."
Careful not to make any sudden movements, In-ho reached out and grabbed his phone off the nightstand on his side of the bed. He scrolled through the gallery one-handed until he found the video he was looking for.
Slowly, he stepped forward, then slid his phone across the bed towards Gi-hun.
"Have a look for yourself," he encouraged.
Gi-hun stared down at the phone, suspicious, as if it was a snake, poised to strike at any moment.
In time, he reached out and tapped the screen when it grew dark, pressing play before the phone could lock up.
He dropped the lamp at the sound of her voice.
"Eomma," he whimpered. He picked the phone up with all the care in the world, watching closely as the video unfolded onscreen.
In-ho didn't need to see it to know how it would play out. He remembered that day like it was yesterday, a memory that he would cherish for the rest of his life. Ga-yeong, Jun-ho, and even Eun-ji had joined them to celebrate Mal-soon's birthday. They had all worked together to make dinner that evening, her home filled with so much joy and love and laughter that it made In-ho's heart swell just thinking about it. He could hear it over his phone's speakers, Mal-soon fondly scolding Gi-hun for sneaking in bites here and there before everything was ready, Eun-ji, Jun-ho, and Gi-hun all groaning at some terrible joke In-ho made while Ga-yeong giggled at him…
Once the video ended, Gi-hun couldn't quite meet In-ho's eyes, tears streaming down his cheeks.
Clutching the phone against his chest, he mumbled, "It could be a fake."
"It could be," In-ho agreed, "but I think we both know it's not."
They both found themselves at a loss.
"What's happening?" Gi-hun murmured.
"I don't know," In-ho said, "but whatever is going on, we're clearly remembering two completely different timelines of events. Let's take it back a step. Gi-hun, what's the last thing you remember?"
A haunted look fell over him, his expression equal parts enraged and saddened.
"I—I—"
Before he could come up with an answer, a knock on the door interrupted them.
If Gi-hun and In-ho were penguins, In-ho would look for the prettiest stone for him. Gi-hun would accept it, and he’d be the one to stay in the nest and keep the eggs warm
Real question, would it be too far for Inho to sound with a screwdriver that Gihun had in his mouth???? Context, Gihun is a mechanic and he had the metal end in his mouth while contemplating what tool he should use. He ends up using a different tool instead but Inho seeing this, steals it and is DESPERATE to have even his saliva inside of him. Idk
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