Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Gwak Jaegang looked curiously across his office desk at Kim Soleum. Kim Soleum stared back, blithe expression at odds with the disciplinary meeting. "Well, a certain troublemaker looks happy."

Kim Soleum's smile grew wider, if that were even possible. "I had a great day today. That's all."

"A successful wish simulation, I see... Did the mirror hurt you?" Gwak Jaegang pointed at the cut on Kim Soleum's cheek. 

Kim Soleum's eyes were fixed on the outstretched index finger. It took a few seconds for him to respond. "Ah, no, it was my own button." 

The clock on the wall ticked. It was already 8:30 PM. Finally, Gwak Jaegang broke the silence with a sigh. "Not going to explain yourself, are you? Your Dream Collector shows that you left the cleanup guy behind and went off on your own. Seriously, Kim Soleum! This is grounds for disciplinary action." With a peculiar glint in his eye, he asked: “Do you have a strong aversion to sending colleagues into dangerous situations or something? You seemed to know Heowoon personally, after all.” 

"...Do I?" Kim Soleum asked with a blank smile. 

Gwak Jaegang's eye twitched. "Yes, you do. You were rookies together."

"Ahh, right. Yes, I remember him now."

Gwak Jaegang let out a laugh and leaned in closer. "Well, then why did you disobey the order to bring Heowoon along? This is some important data we're collecting, you know." 

"Let me think..." A pause. "I told Heowoon about the Darkness at 12 PM. At 1 PM, I ate a sandwich. Then, I went in at 2 PM, which was 3 hours before I told Heowoon to meet me." 

Strangely enough, he seemed to be spontaneously piecing together what had happened. 

"I think... I wanted to get the Darkness over with. But it would've been inconvenient to reschedule with Heowoon." With this, Kim Soleum straightened up like somebody who had answered correctly in a job interview. His eyes had a sudden gleam to them. "Hey, can we get this meeting over with too? I had a children's cartoon I wanted to watch today."

Gwak Jaegang was kind of speechless. That was the worst excuse he had ever heard. "That's... To clarify, you ditched Heowoon so that you can watch children's cartoons sooner rather than later?" 

"They're rather fascinating," Kim Soleum said, and didn't elaborate.

...Gwak Jaegang didn't really know what to say to that.

 "I will accept the disciplinary decision with no complaint. Are we done here?"

"Yes, fine, we're done here." Gwak Jaegang had certainly seen everything he wanted to.

As Kim Soleum left the office of Research Team 1, Gwak Jaegang could hear him mutter in the hallway: "I thought disciplinary meetings were supposed to be more thrilling than that... ah, well! It was plenty interesting as it was. What other errands did I have today? Hmm..." 

Gwak Jaegang leaned back on his chair, alone now that all the other employees had already gone home. Then, he slowly started laughing. "Actions speak louder than words, Kim Soleum. You can't hide your weakness from me. And children's cartoons? As if! Such a terrible lie..."

--

Pale and clammy, a bead of sweat trailed down Baek Saheon's neck from where he sat stiffly on the living room couch.

"I love green tea!" The 3D-animated girl in front of him held a teapot out, smiling. "What's your favorite drink?" A few seconds passed. "Wow! That’s so tasty!" 

At the kitchen table, Kim Soleum raised an entire roasted chicken to his mouth as he stared intently at the TV. He was surrounded by an elaborate spread of dishes, including Baek Saheon's own dinner, which Kim Soleum had forcibly co-opted.

How did this happen?

--

One hour earlier: 

"A change of heart? Haha, you can say that... Like I said, I had a great day today."

The sound of footsteps grew closer to the apartment. That voice... Baek Saheon instantly jerked up from where he was reclining on the couch. Dammit! Kim Soleum was back. As the lock on the door clicked, Baek Saheon picked up the remote control and frantically lowered the volume of the war drama he was watching.

Until the day he figures out how to off his lunatic roommate, Baek Saheon was willing to sacrifice his pride. Even if that meant spending half of his waking hours walking on eggshells. It was a good day if they mutually ignored each other. Sadly, that was not often the case.

Baek Saheon grit his teeth as he schooled his face and turned back to the TV screen. 

"Ahh, I'm so excited. You haven't tried any of these either, have you, Braun? Well, maybe I could make a smoothie bath for you. What do you think?" 

Oh God, he was talking to his pet demon? hallucination?? bunny keychain again. 

As Kim Soleum pushed the door open, plastic bags swung back and forwards on his arm. Groceries? Except... Baek Saheon knew for a fact that the freak only ever ate convenience store sandwiches. It had been a blessing to avoid negotiating fridge space with that psychopath, but that peace couldn't last forever. 

Baek Saheon braced himself. But Kim Soleum didn't head towards the fridge. Instead, he set his haul on the kitchen table and started pulling things out. Gimbap. Chicken skewers. Gimbap again. A box of fried rice. Packaged mochi donuts. Gimbap again . Yonsei bread. Roasted Chicken. Raindrop cake. Caplico mini cones. Stir-fried noodles. Before long, the entire kitchen table was submerged. 

And after opening the fridge door: "Hey, Baek Saheon. Are you going to eat this?" 

Kim Soleum held up a container of seaweed soup.

"Uh," Baek Saheon said. "Yes, that's my dinner... I'll eat it later."

From Kim Soleum's blank expression, it was clear that that fact meant nothing to him. "Okay. Can I eat it?" 

You already have a mountain of food, why would you want mine?!

But it was clear what Kim Soleum wanted to hear. "S..sure..."

"Great." Kim Soleum closed the fridge door without even a "thank you" and honest-to-God whistled as he set the miyeokguk on top of a precarious stack of box meals. 

What was wrong with this bastard today? Baek Saheon should've expected mood swings from someone so mentally unstable, but Kim Soleum had never been like this before. As Kim Soleum stepped towards the living room, Baek Saheon did his best to inconspicuously get up and leave. 

"Where are you going?" Kim Soleum asked, picking up the remote. Baek Saheon froze in his tracks. "Come on, keep me company."

Oh God. What was Kim Soleum about to do to him?

--

Currently:

"Now, now, Park Hayoon," a cartoon adult tutted as she tapped her slippers on the floor. "It's nice to share with your friends. Now what do you say, Kim Minsoo?"

"Thank you," a cartoon boy chorused, holding a piece of candy in his hand. 

Baek Saheon didn't dare to move his neck as he stole a glance at Kim Soleum, who was vigorously drinking the seaweed soup. Surrounded by plastic packaging, he had devoured half of the items he brought back already. 

"The world is so beautiful, Braun," Kim Soleum said suddenly, setting Baek Saheon's dinner down and picking up a donut. "I didn't know food tasted so good. And you have excellent recommendations, of course. We have to see about that soup bath sometimes." 

The pink rabbit plushie he had placed on the table didn't move.

"Of course I'll add blood to it. Who do you think I am? Haha."

Baek Saheon was going to fucking piss himself. This freak had to be doing this on purpose-- it was clear now that Kim Soleum wanted to see him squirm. Why else keep Baek Saheon here for "company" while ignoring that he existed? Actually, Baek Saheon would prefer it if his roommate were only pretending to talk to the rabbit for the sake of creeping him out. What was more frightening was the alternative... 

Baek Saheon shuddered. 

"Are you enjoying the show, Baek Saheon?" 

Dear God. Please let this man go back to ignoring him. Baek Saheon chose his words carefully. "It certainly has... a complex plot..." 

On the screen, a girl burst into tears and ran away from the playground. 

Kim Soleum shot him a look of pure derision. "This was made for children. It's so simple, a dog could get it." 

Then why are we watching it!? 

Despite his words, Kim Soleum remained riveted by the screen. "But it's compelling, isn't it?"

Baek Saheon's eye twitched. "What about it?" 

"You can tell a lot about people from the way they treat children. People are so interesting." There was a hint of longing in Kim Soleum's voice. "Would you show this episode to a kid?"

"...I don't see... why not?" 

All of a sudden, Kim Soleum's demeanor switched. "Why would you! It's trash! 'Sharing is caring?' Humans love to tell themselves pretty lies. Nobody gives things for free, you have to win it!" He seemed strangely agitated.

'Humans?!'   Baek Saheon felt faint. "Well... what do you want, then? 'Nobody is kind, take everything by force?' Elementary school would be a mess...."

Kim Soleum was silent for a moment. "Maybe some people are kind."

At this, Baek Saheon looked over. Kim Soleum was staring down at a pen mark on his own hand. What a nutcase. 

--

OMAKE: 

bsh: how are you eating so much anyway

mirror kse: i'm eating for two ^_^

bsh: ...YOU'RE PREGNANT?

meanwhile, real-world kse: i've haven't eaten for three days but i'm not hungry?? must be a fluke

Chapter Text

It was that time of night where the entire apartment complex was, for once, quiet. At this moment, an individual in a tattered suit was standing alone in the bathroom. The artificial light from the ceiling cast his skin in a pallid grey as he stared at the pane of black in front of him. Despite its shadowy appearance, it was a mirror.

Movement! Light spilled into the looking glass as a hand brushed the light switch. The owner of that hand stepped into the bathroom-- a groggy man with the same face as the other. As this man's eyes flickered towards the glass, he nearly jumped out of his skin.

[...It's you!] From within the mirror, Kim Soleum's mouth moved noiselessly. 

"Finally," Kim Soleum said, as motionless as he had been when he started standing in the bathroom two hours ago. "You're late."

The reflection pointed at him. [You're still in the mirror? Ah, I see. You just exited your side of the elevator...]

"I have... a question for you." Silence, for a moment. "What are you trying to do, here?"

[I can't read your lips. Can you write it down?]

A huff of frustration, then the sound of rustling. A cap popped off. 

[WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO DO WITH ME HERE WHAT'S THE CATCH]

[What do you mean, what's the catch...?]

Furious squeaking as the marker rubbed on the mirror. [GRANTED I LOST THE GAME BECAUSE YOU'RE A FUCKING CHEATER BUT I STILL LOST WHY WOULD Y]

The man in the reflection cut him off. [I didn't cheat, I just used what I knew. You were a telepath playing rock paper scissors. What do you think you were doing?] 

The two of them just stared at each other. Then, the man in the reflection opened his mouth again. [What, it's okay when you play dirty, but not when--?]

Unpleasant squeaking pierced the air as the marker pressed onto the glass. [IF YOU DON'T FEEL BAD ABOUT CHEATING THEN WHY DID YOU LET ME OUT]

[...Your entire darkness is structured around you not being able to leave the elevator. If neither of us had to lose... if I could figure out a way for both of us to win... why wouldn't I do it?]

The marker hovered over the glass for a long time, its holder wearing a strange expression. At last, he wrote: [IF YOU GET BACK TO YOUR ORIGINAL WORLD I'LL DISAPPEAR WOULDN'T I?? WE'RE STILL PHYSICALLY CONNECTED]

The man in the reflection reeled back. [You know about--?]

[I KNOW WHAT YOU KNOW - WELL MOST OF IT ANYWAY - I SHOULDN'T HAVE EVEN BOTHERED ASKING - I KNOW I WILL DIE KIM SOLEUM]

[...I can't promise to stop trying to go home. So I guess you're right. There was a catch.]

[YOU LET ME OUT JUST TO KILL ME??? WOULD YOU REALLY DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT????? YOU'RE A KIND GUY I CAN TELL I THINK NOW THAT THERE'S THE TWO OF US WE CAN WORK OUT A]

[I have to go home. I have to. I'm sorry.]

The writing jerked to a stop. 

[But if you had just changed places with someone, you would've died eventually anyway. Humans aren't immortal. And then you would've trapped someone else in the elevator... Is this that bad, in comparison?] 

A trembling hand wrote: [FUCK YOU I WOULD AT LEAST DECIDE MY OWN DEATH + ALSO WHO CARES ABOUT WHOEVER IS TRAPPED IN THE ELEVATOR THAT'S JUST HOW IT IS]

[...Do you remember your life before the elevator?]

The marker hovered above the glass for a moment. [ONLY A FEW SCANT DETAILS - NOT NEARLY ENOUGH TO TRACK ANYONE DOWN - I PROBABLY KNOW MORE ABOUT YOUR LIFE THAN MINE]

[I'm sorry.]

[THERE YOU FUCKING GO PITYING ME AGAIN IF YOU REALLY PITIED ME YOU WOULD PROMISE NOT TO GET THAT WISH P]

[If you hate it out there that badly, you can always go back to the elevator, you know.]

A hand clenched the marker tightly.

[You can wait for someone to lose the game and then you'll have total freedom. That's what you said you want, right...? You can do that.]

[SCREW YOU KIM SOLEUM I'M NOT GOING BACK IN THE FUCKING ELEVATOR YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND HOW IT] 

With a vicious stroke, the marker crossed out the last few words. 

[GOOD FUCKING LUCK TRYING TO GET YOUR WISH POTION YOU KNOW I CAN'T JUST LET YOU DO THAT]

[Outside of our link, you can't alter my world. I can't alter yours, either. Our game is over.]

[YOU STILL THINK YOU'RE BEING NICE DON'T YOU? JUST BECAUSE I DIDN'T EARN MY FREEDOM MEANS I SHOULD JUST LET YOU TAKE IT AWAY AGAIN????? I DIDN'T ASK FOR YOUR FUCKING PITY] "--Get that into your fucking head!" 

And without a second thought, Kim Soleum seized a ceramic cup from the counter and launched it at the mirror. 

As the mirror burst, he could see, in the patch that clung onto the wall, that pieces of it must have struck in his face; his reflection was raising a hand to touch where a cut had opened on his cheek.

"That's right! We're still physically tied, aren't we!" A furious haze of energy coursed through Kim Soleum as he slammed his hand into the mirror. Then slammed it again. And again. "How do you like that!" Shards of glass cascaded onto the counter. "You know, I'm not your fucking pet! And if I'm going to die anyway, I'm going to take you down with me! Think about that before you get your wish potion!"

But as his bloodied fist landed on the last center shard, he could see the other man hastily slap a smiley sticker on himself. 

-

Baek Saheon jerked awake at the sound of a massive crashing noise that reverberated through the wall. With bleary eyes, he picked up his phone and squinted at the time. 3:04 AM. Damn that Kim Soleum. Baek Saheon put the phone back down and laid his pillow over his face.

But that didn't muffle the rising sound of shouting. What the hell...? A fight? Ha ha. Maybe an assassin was trying to take Kim Soleum out once and for all. Baek Saheon certainly wouldn't complain. 

Oh shit. But what if they go after Baek Saheon next?

As quietly as he could, Baek Saheon slipped out of bed. The light of the hallway trickled into the room through under the door. Baek Saheon cracked the door open and peered out of it. 

Unsurprisingly, Kim Soleum's door was open, but the lights were closed. The shouting was emanating from the bathroom, as did the crashing noise, presumably. Baek Saheon could hear the words loud and clear-- Kim Soleum was hardly trying to be quiet.

"Hahaha... a smiley sticker... a fucking smiley sticker!? You're fucking kidding me!" 

Was Kim Soleum talking to himself again? Was he arguing with his rabbit plushie or something? Baek Saheon was going into a C Class Darkness today, and he should probably be well-rested for that. But, knowing what was up with the psycho that he lived in was a top priority. Baek Saheon gripped the door tightly. 

"He... hahahaha.... That guy!" Another resounding crash . "He still thinks he's so nice!" 

Oh, okay. Kim Soleum was losing his mind. Before Baek Saheon could react, the bathroom door flung open and Kim Soleum stalked out, looking murderous and dripping... blood?

Hold on, blood!?

...Baek Saheon didn't close the door fast enough! Kim Soleum's gaze seized on him immediately from where Baek Saheon was peering through the crack of the door. The backs of his hands were littered with gleaming cuts that weeped scarlet. 

But Kim Soleum was looking at him now with a blank expression. To appease him, Baek Saheon opened the door wider. "Uh... sorry for eavesdropping. You woke me. I mean-- it's not your fault, obviously. I just happened to wake up..."

Kim Soleum didn't say anything. He just stared at him. A bead of sweat rolled down Baek Saheon's neck. 

"I mean... don't worry about it. I'll just go back to sleep and forget this ever happened...?" 

After a loaded pause, Kim Soleum said, "I don't care. Do what you want." Then he stalked into his room. Kim Soleum didn't shut the door behind him, nor did he open the lights. 

As quickly as he could, Baek Saheon slammed the door closed. But he didn't step away-- he just breathed as quietly as he could as he pressed his ear to the wood.

The sound of rustling. Kim Soleum's footsteps resounded again. He was inhaling jerkily, clearly still in the middle of whatever fit that seized him. "Let's not waste all of this blood, right, Braun? Let's give you a bath..."

Oh God. Kim Soleum was talking to his demented rabbit plushie again. 

Baek Saheon could hear the bathroom door swing shut. After a few minutes of silence, Baek Saheon slunk back to his bed. 

-

He couldn't fall back asleep. At around 5:00 AM, Baek Saheon gave up entirely. 

As he stumbled out of his room, he was greeted by the sight of Kim Soleum sitting in the kitchen surrounded by the contents of a whole bakery. Swirling a bowl(??) of coffee and staring blankly at the arrowed bald kid on the TV, Kim Soleum ignored Baek Saheon entirely. That was usually a good sign, but the ominously closed bathroom door didn't bode well. 

Baek Saheon opened the door and flipped on the lights.

Broken glass, littered everywhere. Covered in specks of blood. And strangely enough, on the counter was a miniature ceramic bathtub with... droplets of red liquid clinging to its side? 

Aghast, Baek Saheon looked at the mirror. The only part left on it was at the bottom right corner. It was nearly unusable, with black dry-erase ink scribbled over it. "Deal with the consequences!" 

Was Kim Soleum actually talking to himself...?!

Wait. Baek Saheon leaned closer to the mirror. Between the translucent ink, Baek Saheon could see the reflection of the bathroom counter... except it didn't reflect any of the broken glass or blood on it. In the reflection was a dark, totally normal bathroom. Stunned, Baek Saheon reeled back. He must have not gotten enough sleep or something. Yes, that's right, Baek Saheon was sleep deprived. He couldn't trust his eye right now.

Frantically casting his gaze around the counter, Baek Saheon seized what was left of his toothbrush cup and held it up. Even his cup was broken.

That psycho...!

Seizing all of his courage, Baek Saheon walked back out to the hallway leading to the kitchen. "Er... Kim Soleum, sir..."

"What."

Baek Saheon was absolutely not going to bring up the reflection thing. Or his cup. God, did he hate Kim Soleum's guts. "The bathroom is currently... unusable... and I was wondering if you had any plans to...?" 

Actually, he didn't even know what he could reasonably request Kim Soleum to do without getting his head bitten off. Kim Soleum was silent for a moment.

"Oh, haha. Yes, right, I forgot about that." ... How could you forget about your own breakdown!? "Don't move the mirror bits. I'll take care of it."

"Then I'll take care of replacing the mirror...?" Baek Saheon offered extremely generously, despite how it was totally within his rights to make the asshole fix everything. 

Kim Soleum's arm seized. "No, no, no, don't do that. Look, I'll take care of it."

"Er, when do you expect that it'll be done, sir? It's just that... the bathroom is unusable..." 

Kim Soleum looked at him strangely. Then: "Oh, right, humans need to do those things." 

'Humans' again!? Baek Saheon only nearly stopped himself from shivering. 

Letting out a loud sigh, Kim Soleum pushed his bowl away. "Fine, let's do it now."

-

As Baek Saheon stood there silently, Kim Soleum unerringly zoned in on every glass speck littering the room and deposited them in a bucket with his bare hands. The weirdo. The bathroom ceased to be a reeking biohazard, but when Baek Saheon meekly brought up replacing the mirror:

"No, no, don't do that," Kim Soleum said again. "Look, I'm sure you can live without a mirror."

"But the property damage--!"

Kim Soleum flapped a hand. "Whatever. I'll pay whatever fine we get for it. See, I'll even write in my will to buy you a mirror after I'm gone." Then, he laughed creepily to himself. 

This adrenaline junkie was that blasé about his own death? Well, as long as Baek Saheon was kept out of that psycho's death wish, it's not like he'd complain. Actually, Baek Saheon would pop out the champagne the day that Kim Soleum died.

Against his own will, Baek Saheon glanced down at the mirror shards in the bucket. The bathroom lights were on right now, but the glass pieces reflected nothing but darkness. Baek Saheon couldn't help but point down and ask-- "Hey, are these also reflecting something different for you, too?"

He regretted it as soon as Kim Soleum turned to look at him with a suddenly blank expression. 

A pause. "What are you talking about? These are reflecting everything just fine."

Why did he ever think he could trust Kim Soleum about anything? But Baek Saheon couldn't help but double down on it. "So these... the mirror pieces are reflecting you and the lit bathroom and everything?"

Kim Soleum's eyes flickered down to the bucket. "Yeah, they are. Baek Saheon, are you feeling well?"

Baek Saheon was grinding his teeth to dust. "Perhaps I just didn't get enough sleep last night."

"Yes," the culprit said. "You should be more well rested."

-

OMAKES: 

mirror kse: shit is everything i do going to make some mirror out there off-kilter?

mirror kse: well i'll worry about that when someone actually important starts noticing

bsh: ...am i not important to you

-

if canon-bsh used the bathroom instead of canon-kse:

mirror kse: (pacing in front of the bathroom mirror waiting for himself to show up) 

canon bsh, who woke up wanting to take a piss: HOLY FUCK KIM FUCKING SOLEUM IS IN MY FUCKING MIRROR

mirror kse: (dives under the counter)