I made banana muffins from a Jiffy mix because I only had one egg and I was in a hurry and couldn’t very well show up empty-handed, not after people invited me expecting I would bring something grand and impressive, something decorated with pink flowers and piping all around that took weeks to prepare and required cartons of eggs, each one cracked by hand and admired for its perfect orange…
The writing workshop that I’ve been going to the past two or three years is sponsoring a writers’ showcase at a famous local club called ComedySportz. I figured I should do it, you know, just to keep that dread/stress/anticipation thing in good working order.
My husband asked what I was going to read. I told him I was going to read The Fall, a weird tale involving my falling down at a little…
For as long as anyone could remember, the world outside the stone wall had been in ruins. The wall stood at least 50 feet tall and stretched for miles around the city. The city, known as Serenity, was one of the biggest cities. In fact, it had been the only city that withstood the storms that brought the ruin. It decayed everything in its path. Trees would spark in a bright orange flame and the buildings came crashing down with one gust of wind. It was amazing that the city still stood after all of that.
Its neon lights at night were enough to brighten any dark alleyway. People often spoke of those outside the walls. There were a few names for them- like outlanders, outsiders, and the lost. They were only stories though. No one could survive on the outside of the wall, at least that’s what they said.
It was written in the history books that, after the storms finished, the city was in partial ruins. It took years for the inhabitants to rebuild and make everything the way it was now. Within their texts were stories of a few survivors who turned to monsters and fed on other people. But again, no one knew if they were true or not. Some believed that there were some survivors out there. Others just called it fairy tales. For the most part, the people lived happily in the city. The wall protected them from whatever was out there.
In the center of the city, stood a tall and large building. The city folk called it the elite’s house. Which was a good name, since that’s exactly who lived there. All of the cities important persons lived there. From the founder to the city council members. Guards stood outside the glass doors armed and ready for anything. Especially from Founder Park’s daughter Ji-Yeon.
She was a spunky girl, who didn’t care much for her father’s strict rules. For instance, he forbid her from coloring her hair. She did it just to spite him. As well as how she dressed. Since her father was an important person, she was expected to dress well. Not saying she didn’t. But she just didn’t ware what her father wanted. Instead of the nice dress suits, she’d occasionally an oversized sweater with black tights, and black knee-high boots. Or a baggy shirt and ripped jeans with either heels or converse.
She would argue with her father constantly about anything and everything. She always felt cooped up in that building. Not to mention the constant feeling of being watched. Her father always told her that it was for her protection. Which she never quite understood. Protection from what? Who’s out there wanting to take on one of the most powerful cities in the world? She would protest and mention all of the armed guards that were stationed at the top of the wall. He just would never listen.
“Enough!” He shouted.
“Whatever,” Ji-Yeon replied.
Slamming the door behind her, she let out a sigh. He was always so stubborn when it came to beyond the wall. Ji-Yeon had been curious about what was really beyond the wall for years. She had compiled all of the information she had gathered but nothing was ever concrete. Until one day, a mysterious message was written on the outside of the wall. A large black ‘X’ had been spray painted on the side like a target. And maybe that was the reason for her father’s stern words.
She weaved in and out of the crowds of people. Given that it was so early in the day she was surprised to see so many people out. As she made her way through the narrow streets of Serenity, she had finally made it to her destination. The wall. Along the wall where several staircases that, when put into a larger image, made it appear to be one long stairwell. Stationed at the bottom were a few guards. They all wore heavy black armor, with all their weapons slung over their shoulders or attached to their waist.
“JI-YEON!”
She smiled at the familiar sound and noticed Ren running down the stairs to greet her. Out of all the guards, he was the only one who never wore a helmet, thus exposing his silver hair. She had asked him if that was his natural hair color, which it wasn’t. At one point in his life –back when he was a child, he had the blackest hair. She never believed him though. She had only met him a few years ago and he became her closest friend on day one.
Ren was slightly taller than the other guards but looked the weakest among them. Ji-Yeon knew he wasn’t weak. She had seen him take down a smuggler bigger than him once, and that was a freaky experience. Ren was usually the quiet one, well until she would show up. Somehow he would always become more talkative when she was around.
“Ren,” She called back, “Any news from beyond the wall?”
“None,” Ren replied as he leaped from the last few steps to greet her.
He wrapped her in a warm embrace and clung to her tightly.
“Are you sure?” she asked. He always had news from the wall.
The guards often spoke of their findings in secret meetings. And Ren would often tell her about them. Given that she was the Founders daughter, the other guards often found her presence to be a nuisance. Ren pulled her to the side so no one could hear and pulled out his phone. His fingers flew across the screen until he came to a photo of the wall. Her eyes grew as she saw the black ‘X’ sprayed on the wall.
“Another one?” She whispered.
“That’s the third one,” Ren replied quietly, “There’s talk of a town not far from here. There’s people there. People who hate us. Who hate how we’re protected and they’re not.”
Ji-Yeon fell silent. There were people out there, beyond the wall. Her heart skipped a beat. How exciting?
“Why are you smiling?” Ren asked.
“This is incredible,” She replied, “There are people out there. Actual people. Survivors of the storms that brought ruin to the world. They’re alive.”
“If your father heard you speaking like this, he’d have your head,” Ren said with concern, “I know you don’t like him. But he’s been keeping us all safe for years.”
There it was. The one thing she didn’t like about him. He always praised her father for protecting everyone. Out of the millions of people who loved her father, Ji-Yeon was the only one who felt trapped. Like her father was keeping her locked up. There was so much of the world she wanted to see.
Suddenly, Ren stood straight with his hand tilted at an angle over his left brow. Ji-Yeon lowered her shoulders and rolled her eyes. There were only two people who could make the guards stiffen up. That was either their commanding officer or her father. As she turned, she let out a sigh. Her father stood straight wearing a black striped suit. He looked pissed.
“Father,” She said flatly.
“Home. Now,” He said sternly, “We’ll talk about your ideologies later.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” She said, “Ren tell him.”
“Ji-Yeon, please don’t make a scene,” Ren said softly.
Ji-Yeon waited at home as the rain started to pour over the city. She liked the rain. Somehow it made her more relaxed. It came down like waves and slid quickly down the window. She began to wonder how long her father would be, not that it really mattered. The longer he took the more likely he may forget the incident at the wall.
Time ticked slowly by. She looked at the clock and realized hours had passed since she saw her father. Her heart began to race. No matter how much she hated him, he was still her father. As she reached for her jacket, the lights in the building began to flicker. They flickered slowly at first with a few minutes wait between them. An Uneasy feeling crept up to Ji-Yeon and she soon found herself attempting to lock all the doors.
Her uneasy feeling soon grew to fear as a loud siren began sounding off around her. She placed her hands over her ears, hoping it would help drown out the sound. It didn’t. She tried to find something else to help, earplugs, earbuds, anything. As the siren grew louder, she could feel the building shake. Was it an earthquake warning? No, the siren was never one long tone, it was several short ones.
One by one the lights began to burst. Ji-Yeon was surrounded by nothing but darkness. The city outside her window was also pitch black. Whoever or whatever was behind this must have had a well thought out plan. Ji-Yeon darted into the kitchen and fumbled around for a knife. Something inside her beckoned her to be prepared for anything.
Then there was nothing. The siren stopped leaving behind an unbearable silence. Ji-Yeon stood holding the knife out and ready for the attack. Her heart pounded against her chest, echoing in her ears. Her breathing became short sporadic breaths. She knew it was the wrong thing to do. Ren had told her several times, that in any intense or panic ridden moment, she needed to remain calm. To take deep breaths.
As she tried to calm herself down, she started to hear soft taps. She looked out to the large window that overlooked the city in the living room, she noticed at least five or six dark figures climbing up. They stopped right dead in the center of the window. Ji-Yeon felt her heart race again as she ducked behind the counter. Maybe they didn’t see her.
Ji-Yeon closed her eyes tightly at the sound of the window crashing in. She held her breath as best as she could. When she opened them, she let out a gasp of air. A large dark figure towered over her. His helmet looked like a gas mask but was completely black. It looked as though there was no way to see out of. She let out a shriek before her world became black.
Summary: Trapped, divided, and injured – when a major earthquake hits South Korea and destroys part of BTS’s dorm, the members are left in a dangerous and stressful situation. Stuck on the ninth floor, half the group is trapped after part of the building collapsed and the other half…well, you’ll see.
