Finn's POV 
Emery’s voice echoed across the battlefield, her tone sharp and cold as she announced, “The next round of players will now begin.” 
I glanced up at the clock. Five minutes. They had five minutes to fight. But honestly, I couldn’t care less about the next fight. None of us could. We were all focused on Noah, who was just sitting there, eyes closed, doing absolutely nothing. 
What the hell was he doing?
“Time’s ticking, Noah!” I shouted, my frustration boiling over. “You said you were going to find the cure for Nathalie! What the hell are you waiting for?!”
I could feel everyone’s worry starting to build. Alex glanced at me, then back at Noah. Lucas shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Even though Nathalie was as serious as ever, I could see it in the way her fingers tapped rapidly against her shoulder—she was worried too. Deep inside, she had to be terrified.
I couldn’t just sit there anymore. I had to do something. I laid Nathalie down on the seat next to me, pulling her body close to mine for a second before I stood up. “Stay here,” I ordered, my voice hard, leaving no room for argument. “Don’t follow me.”
I didn’t wait for a response. I didn’t have time for that. Nathalie’s life was on the line.
As I made my way towards Emery’s position, James—her ever-loyal lapdog—stepped in front of me, blocking my path. Of course. 
“Move,” I growled, my patience wearing thin.
James didn’t respond. He just stood there, stiff as a board, his hand hovering dangerously close to the gun strapped to his side. 
I let out a bitter laugh. “You really think you’re gonna scare me with that gun?” I asked, shaking my head. “Emery would never let you shoot. She’d rather see us all struggle and suffer in this damn game than take the easy way out.”
James’ face didn’t flinch, but I could see the tension in his jaw, his shoulders tight. I stepped forward, about to push past him, when I heard a soft click behind me. I didn’t even need to look to know what it was. James was pointing his gun at my back.
I’d had enough. I spun around, grabbing his arm and twisting it, forcing him to drop the gun. In one swift motion, I kicked his legs out from under him, sending him crashing to the ground with a pained grunt.
James struggled beneath me, his face twisted in agony as I pinned him to the floor. I didn’t care. He deserved it. 
“Finn,” Emery’s voice cut through the chaos, calm and smooth like she wasn’t fazed at all by what was happening. “There’s no need for this violence. Let him go.”
But I didn’t move. James had crossed the line. I pressed harder, feeling the bones in his arm shift under my grip.
“Finn,” Emery said again, her tone sharper this time. “Now.”
I clenched my jaw, fighting the urge to snap James’ arm right then and there. But after a moment, I released him, watching as he crumpled to the ground, clutching his arm in pain. Before I turned away, I made sure to drive my heel into his hand, hearing a satisfying crunch as his fingers bent awkwardly under my weight.
Emery watched the whole scene unfold, not a flicker of emotion crossing her face. She didn’t care. Not about James, not about me, not about any of us.
“What’s your excuse for showing your face to me, Finn?” Emery asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Did you really think a traitor like you would get any sympathy from me?”
I didn’t answer her right away. Instead, I let the silence build between us, our eyes locked in a tense stare. I could feel the pressure rising, the tension thick in the air. Emery was waiting for me to speak, and I was waiting for the right words.
“Noah is not doing anything,” I finally said, my voice low but steady. “He’s not moving, not looking for the cure. Nathalie’s going to die if he doesn’t do something soon! I’m using my pass for her.”
The second the words left my mouth, Emery let out a sarcastic laugh. “Your pass? You really think you can save her? How far are you willing to go, Finn? You keep putting your emotions on the line. You’re weak. Pathetic.”
I felt my blood boil at her words, but I didn’t flinch. I couldn’t. Not now. 
She straightened up, her face hardening as she stared me down. “One participant at a time, Finn,” she said, her voice firm. “I made the rules clear. Noah already made his choice.”
I couldn’t hold back anymore. “Nathalie is going to die!” I shouted, my voice echoing across the battlefield. “Stop playing this stupid game for your own satisfaction and do something!”
But Emery didn’t respond. She just stood there, closing her eyes, letting out a long, deep breath. When she finally spoke again, her voice was calm, emotionless. 
“No.”
That was it. No explanation, no reasoning. Just... no.
I clenched my fists, feeling the weight of her words settle like a stone in my chest. There was nothing I could do. Nothing. Nathalie was slipping away, and Emery didn’t care.
I turned to leave, feeling the frustration burning inside me. But before I walked away, I stopped, my voice cold and bitter. “You have become a real disappointment, Emery,” I said, not bothering to hide the venom in my words. “You can’t even make the right choices for the people who once mattered to you.”
That's it. I didn’t look back as I left, but I knew those words hit her. Hard.
And I didn’t care. She deserved every bit of it.
I didn't go back to where Nathalie and the others were. I couldn't. My head was pounding, my chest heavy with anger. Everything inside me was burning. Instead of walking to the side, I marched straight to where Noah was laying down like nothing mattered.
How could he just sit there?
I could barely hear anything, my own heartbeat drowning everything out. But then, Lucas's voice cut through the noise.
"Finn!" Lucas yelled, but it was too late. I wasn't thinking anymore.
Without a second thought, I gripped my hand into a fist and swung it straight into Noah's face. The punch landed hard, and Noah's head snapped to the side. But he didn't even move. Not a flinch. Not a sound.
Before I could throw another, Mr. Aurorium stood up, trying to calm me down. His hands grabbed my arm, trying to pull me back, but my rage was too deep, too raw.
"Get your hands off me!" I shouted, my voice breaking with fury. I shoved Emery's father back so hard he stumbled, struggling to regain his balance.
But I didn't care. I didn't care about anything anymore except making Noah get up and do something. He just sat there, his eyes still closed, his face calm like nothing was happening. Just like Emery
"You're just like your sister." I spat, bitterness and anger dripping from my voice. I threw another punch, this time even harder than before. My knuckles cracked against his jaw, but still, Noah didn't react. He just sat there, still.
"What the hell are you doing?!" I yelled, grabbing him by his collar, shaking him. "Get up! Find the damn cure! You volunteer for a pass. and you're just sitting here doing NOTHING!”
Noah didn't say a word. He didn't even open his eyes. His silence was driving me insane. Every second that passed felt like a lifetime, and every heartbeat reminded me how close Nathalie was to dying.
"WHY WON'T YOU DO ANYTHING?!" I screamed, pulling him closer, shaking him harder. "You could save her, Noah! Why the hell are you just sitting here?!"
Before he could answer, the loud blare of the game rang out through the battlefield, signaling the next round. One last fight before the fifth round began.
I felt the frustration in me grow even more. Time was running out, and instead of helping, Noah was still sitting there, doing absolutely nothing. I tightened my grip on his collar, slamming him against the wall, my eyes burning into his.
"You're going to let her die," I whispered, my voice low and broken. "You're really going to sit here and let her die."
I felt my heart race faster, my fists trembling as I held Noah there. He didn't even seem to care. His face was calm, no emotion, nothing. Like he wasn't even human.
Then, Lucas's voice broke through again, louder this time. Desperate.
"Finn! Nathalie collapsed!"
My body froze. For a second, it was like everything stopped. The air in my lungs disappeared. Nathalie collapsed?
I turned my head slowly, seeing Lucas kneeling beside her, his face full of fear. Nathalie was lying on the ground, her skin pale, her breaths coming in shallow gasps.
No... No, no, no...
I felt my heart shatter in my chest. Nathalie... my friend, my childhood... she was dying, and Noah... he didn't even care.
I snapped. I couldn't hold it anymore. I turned back to Noah, my eyes full of rage. "This is because of you," I growled. My voice cracked with anger and pain. "She's dying because of YOU."
With all the strength I had left, I threw one last punch, my knuckles slamming into Noah's face. This time, I felt something crack under my fist.
But I didn't wait to see if he reacted. I turned and sprinted towards Nathalie, my heart pounding in my chest.
"Damnit, damnit, damnit!" I cursed under my breath as I reached her. Nathalie was getting paler by the second, her skin almost translucent. The veins in her body were darkening, spreading out like roots, taking over her entire body.
"Stay with us, Nathalie," I whispered, dropping to my knees beside her, my hands shaking as I touched her cold skin. She wasn't moving. She wasn't responding.
Panic filled my chest, threatening to crush me. "Damnit! Don't you dare die, Nathalie!"
Three minutes. That’s all Nathalie had left. I could feel it, in the way her breathing started to slow, the way her skin turned pale, her veins darkening under the surface like something ugly spreading fast. We were losing her. I was losing her.
“Nathalie, just hold on, please,” I said, my voice cracking. My hands were shaking as I held onto her, trying to keep her here with us.
She smiled weakly, a painful, broken smile that only made everything worse. “You guys look... so scared,” she whispered, her voice barely there. “Don’t worry... I’m not crying... I won’t cry. It’s... it’s disgusting, right?” She tried to laugh, but it was more of a gasp, her body too weak now.
None of us could laugh. How could we? I could see the panic in everyone’s eyes. Lucas was kneeling next to her, his hands pressed to her shoulder like he could keep her grounded by just holding on. Abigail stood there, frozen, tears streaming down her face, and Alex... he had his fists clenched, staring at Nathalie like he was trying to will her to stay alive.
“Stay with us, Nat,” I whispered, my throat tightening. “Please, just stay.”
Nathalie’s smile faded as her eyes fluttered, struggling to stay open. Her breaths were getting shorter, slower, and I couldn’t take it anymore. My heart was pounding out of my chest, my mind racing, screaming for something, anything to help her.
Then, out of nowhere, I saw movement behind me. He stood up, moving toward us, his face calm as ever. 
I whipped my head around, barely holding in the anger bubbling inside me. “What are you doing?” I snapped, my voice raw.
It's was Noah. He didn’t even glance at me. He walked up and, in a quiet voice, said, “Move.”
I froze. Did I hear him right? He was telling me to move? While Nathalie was dying?
“Move,” he repeated, his tone even, emotionless. He didn’t wait for me to react, didn’t even give me a chance to argue. He just stepped closer, holding something in his hand.
A syringe. 
I stared at him, my mind blank for a second. The cure. He had the damn cure this whole time.
Before I could process it, Noah crouched down beside Nathalie and, without a word, pushed the needle into her arm, injecting the cure. 
All this time. All this damn time, he had it?! 
The fury inside me boiled over. “You had it?! You had the cure and you didn’t—” I couldn’t even finish my sentence. My body moved on its own, my fists clenched, and I lunged at him. I was going to tear him apart for making her suffer, for wasting so much time.
But Noah caught my fist before I could land the punch. His grip was firm, his face still calm, like none of this was affecting him. Like he wasn’t even human.
“Why?!” I shouted, my voice breaking. “Why the hell did you wait? She almost died because of you!”
Noah didn’t flinch. His expression stayed blank, unreadable. Slowly, he lowered my hand, his voice quiet and calm. “I had to wait for the right time.”
“The right time?!” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I grabbed him by the collar, pulling him closer. “You let her suffer, you let her almost die, for the right time? What the hell are you talking about?”
Noah looked at me, his eyes still so calm it made my skin crawl. “The injections... each one works differently,” he said, his voice steady. “The first round, those girls had ten minutes before the injection spread just like Emery's instructions. The second round, the player that had failed had six minutes. I had to wait and see... Nathalie’s was different. I had to time it.”
My grip tightened, my heart pounding in my chest. “So, what? You let her suffer just to test your theory?”
Noah didn’t say anything for a moment, then he finally spoke, his voice even colder than before. “It’s the only way to survive this game. I had to think like Emery would. She wouldn’t make it easy for anyone.”
I stared at him, unable to believe what I was hearing. The rage in me was boiling over, and I wanted to punch him again, to make him feel even a fraction of the pain I was feeling right now.
“You’re just like her,” I spat, pushing him away.
Noah didn’t fight back. He just stood there, looking down at the ground like none of this mattered to him.
Before I could do anything else, Alex grabbed me, pulling me back. “Finn, that’s enough. Nathalie’s going to be okay. Don’t waste time fighting him.”
I wanted to scream, to hit something, anything. But I knew Alex was right. Nathalie... she was going to be okay now.
But I would never forget what Noah did. Or how close we came to losing her.