So, the first time I saw that guy was probably about two years ago.
I was walking around the school like I usually do. Since it was the time when students were in class, I could only hear the voices of the teachers here and there. Of course, there were almost no students walking around, but in one classroom, there was a boy sitting blankly. He looked nervous and anxious. In any case, he was far from looking happy.
'Are you a dwarf student?'
But honestly, I can't help but look at a handsome guy. And since I'm a ghost, living guys can't see me. I thought that guy would be the same, so I shamelessly approached him and circled around him, looking at him. And I was amazed. 'He's so handsome.'
“No, didn’t you say you were married?”
“They say a handsome man is a treasure. No matter how wealthy a man is, if he has a precious treasure, his eyes will inevitably be drawn to him.”
“…Is that so?”
"Of course, I'm a normal person who knows the subject and doesn't covet treasures. So I just quietly looked at them with my eyes. And you're also included in that treasure group?"
"Oh, thank you?"
Anyway, at the time, I was confident that the other person wouldn't recognize me, so I didn't feel any pressure.
Then, the boy who had been blankly staring up at the ceiling suddenly turned his head towards me and looked straight into my eyes. Seriously, I don't think I've ever been more surprised than that since I became a ghost.
I was so shocked that it felt like my heart was beating fast even though it wasn't there. My heart had been gone for a long time!
"hello?"
"You, you can see me?"
"Are you Kim Chun-ok? My name is Ha-min. Yoo Ha-min."
"Ghost, ghost!! Oh, that's right! I'm a ghost too!"
“I’m not a ghost….”
I was surprised to see him smiling brightly while calling my name, which I had never told him. Up until now, only a few people who recognized me were either fellow ghosts or religious people with strong spiritual energy.
In the former case, there is no need to be overly cautious unless the opponent is an evil spirit, but in the latter case, a little caution is needed as they might try to exorcise me.
First of all, he said with his own mouth that he was not a ghost, and his appearance and the aura he gave off were so far from that of a ghost that I thought he was the latter.
From then on, I started to feel a little creepy and started to take steps back away from that kid without realizing it.
"Are you going to exorcise me?"
“No. I’m not an exorcist. And you’re not a bad ghost.”
After that, other people came into the clubroom, so we couldn't continue the conversation, but I ran into that kid often. In fact, I visited him a lot. It wasn't common to communicate with a living person.
"You're not a dead soul, nor do you seem to be a spirit disguised as a human. Even if you disappear, no one would notice, but you blend in naturally with people... Are you perhaps a divine being?"
"Hehehe - I wish that were the case."
"What brings you to this school? That club? Something to do with kids?"
"There are things that you absolutely must do. Things that you absolutely cannot fail at, and if you fail, you have to start over again."
"Isn't that a bad thing for school kids?"
"Of course. I'd bet everything on that."
I didn't feel like asking for details, so I just heard that it wouldn't cause any harm to others and didn't ask any more.
I remember that when he was hanging out with his club members, he seemed quite cheerful, but when he was alone, he seemed a bit lonely and tired.
Like someone who has been holding on to something for a long time without any assurance of success, even though the end is in sight.
"People don't recognize you. What is that? An illusion? A spell like being possessed by a fox?"
He seemed to care more about the people in the club than anyone else, or to be exact, about Nam Ye-jun and Han No-ah, but he would sometimes keep his distance. Surprisingly, when Ha-min stood a step away from the students and watched, no one noticed his absence and they naturally got along as if nothing had happened.
"You must be a gumiho, judging by the way you can charm people!"
"Pupupu - Wrong. No, that's not it."
"If you're not a ghost or a monster, then what are you really? I can't figure it out. Can you tell me?"
"First of all, I'm a living person. The rest is secret."
All of the expectations were wrong, and Ha Min could only tell with his own mouth that he was alive.
Eventually, as time passed, I decided to let go of my curiosity about Ha Min's true identity. He was someone who would not harm this school. Just knowing that fact was enough.
Because I didn't want to force the truth out of someone who wanted to hide it, and lose the few people I could communicate with.
* * *
"How is it? Are some of your questions answered now?"
“First of all, it’s certain that Ha-min isn’t a ghost and won’t hurt me, right…?”
"I've only known him for about two years, but I've never seen him harm anyone. If anything, he'd rather help people."
Just knowing that the chances of my life being threatened had been significantly reduced made me feel somewhat relieved.
To be honest, the image of Ha Min that I had seen was quite distant from the type of person who would hurt someone, but in movies and such, there were so many clichés of believing only what you see and getting into big trouble, so I was actually a bit nervous - no, tense.
By the way, the reason Ha Min stays at this school and in our Play Club is because of 'something that must not fail and if it fails, it must be started over', right?
"You don't know what that is?"
"I asked him once, but he seemed to avoid the answer, so I just didn't ask him again."
“Umm…. You probably don’t know where he lives….”
It was a question I blurted out as if I was talking to myself, without thinking that you would know since I was a spirit who couldn't leave the school.
But when the ghost sister heard what I said, she seemed to remember something and let out an 'Ah!' sound and slammed her fist into her palm.
"I once asked him where he goes after school, and he said it's a place normal people can't go."
“…. The afterlife?”
"I told you he's not a ghost?"
The guard that had been slowly falling suddenly popped up again. As I unconsciously shook my shoulder, the ghost sister looked at me with cold eyes as if she found it a bit bewildering.
"What if you become a man and still have so many fears?"
“We don’t use that expression very often these days….”
"Yeah, I'm old."
Still, looking at the ghost sister with her arms crossed, I felt like my prejudice against ghosts had disappeared considerably.
If you look at the famous ghost story, Janghwahongryeonjeon, it’s about a ghost who goes to see the magistrate at night to get his grievances resolved, but the weak-willed magistrates end up dying one after another… isn’t that the story?
If this story were true, I, a weak-willed person, would have ascended to heaven as soon as I met Ha-min, knowing that he was no ordinary person.
"Oh, someone is coming."
"Huh, yes?"
While I was lost in thought, the ghost sister suddenly turned her head toward the door and spoke. Startled, I turned back toward the door with her, and soon the door opened with a creak and the school nurse came in.
"Huh? Where does it hurt?"
“Oh, hello. I just… I feel sick and dizzy. I think it’s because I slept late last night due to club practice.”
"Oh my, you should sleep well. At your age, if you stay up all night, you won't grow taller."
It was true that I felt dizzy and nauseous, so I wasn't faking it.
So I took the medicine that the school nurse gave me and got the right to stay in bed during the club activities. I went to the bed, grabbed the curtain, rolled my eyes and looked at Ghost Sister. I saw her waving at me with a smile on her face.
"Rest well! You said Bonggu, right? See you later. Bye!"
She waved goodbye to me and naturally passed through the wall and went out of the infirmary. As I stood there stiffly, startled by the sight of her gliding through the wall, I heard the infirmary teacher ask me why I was doing that.
"Oh, no. Then, I'll go rest for a bit."
I shook my head and lay down on the bed, then closed the curtains. As I lay on the bed and stared at the white ceiling, all the information I had learned today was swirling around in my head.
“Hamin… Where on earth did you go?”
I guess I won't be able to see you again until I graduate. I closed my eyes with this thought.
* * *
The sound of hurried footsteps echoed through the space. The smell of iron that reached the tip of my nose made me frown, and the urgent feeling of someone running away from the dark space made my heart pound.
It was suffocating.
It wasn't just a feeling of being strangled, it was a creepy feeling of having a wire tied around your neck and being pulled, your flesh being cut and your passageway being blocked at the same time.
“…. Not yet. I have to hold on a little longer.”
The black-haired boy grabbed the fishing line-like string that was choking his neck with his hand and tore it. A red liquid dripped down with a metallic smell, but the boy paid no attention. Instead, his eyes were shaking with urgency.
The boy who had succeeded in shaking off the thing that was chasing him slumped down, leaning back against the wall. As he slumped down with a thud, his body began to disperse into a green light with a crackling sound as if the computer graphics were broken.
“I don’t want to be alone…. Hyung.”
I miss you.
The boy buried his face in his knees and spoke his loneliness as if he was monologuing, but unfortunately there was no answer.