I wish I didn't know - Painkiller

After my encounter with that strange person, I returned to my daily routine and told my friends about what had happened in the forest. To my surprise, their reaction was different than I had expected.

"The forest? Where are you talking about?"

"We've never been to a place like that."

A chill ran down my spine. My friends didn't even remember visiting that forest. Except me. Could it be he had placed a curse on anyone who entered? Or maybe I'd gone mad.

"Han Yeo-seul, did you have a dream?"

"Oh... I guess so! The dream was so vivid."

I couldn't find anything to say, so I just mumbled something. If I continued, I'd just end up looking like the weird one.

Days passed like that, and Saturday was fast approaching. Curiosity about the man in the woods made me want to go back there again. It's bizarre, isn't it? Wanting to visit the place I'd been so afraid of? But I'm the type of person who can't stand curiosity, so my body moved first. It was 6 p.m., and I'd probably arrive around 7.

"Now that I'm here, I can't go."

I reached the forest entrance and stopped. The sun was slowly setting. Should I go back now? I didn't lie and say I was going to the study room.

'Still, I need to know the identity.'

I clenched my fists and took a deep breath. As I stepped into the dark forest path that threatened to swallow me whole,

"hey!!"

Startled by a thunderous roar, I looked around. I saw a figure walking through the trees in the distance.
He stopped in front of me and grabbed my shoulder with an angry face.

"Didn't I tell you not to come here?! Why did you come!"

Even though he was blazingly angry, he wasn't scared, just confused. Rather, it seemed like he was trying to hide his anxiety.

"I just came here because I was curious about your identity."

"what?"

He narrowed one eye, as if he couldn't believe what I was saying. He rubbed the back of his neck with a puzzled expression.

"Do you really need to know?"

"I came here because I was curious, so I have to know!"

Where was the look of cheerfulness he had when I spoke, and for some reason the corners of his eyes were drooping sadly.

"It's better not to know."

Despite his pleading eyes, begging me to just give up and go, I stubbornly turned my head away. "I've come this far, I need to know your identity." He finally assumed a surrendering stance.

"Okay, my name is Choi Yeonjun. First of all, I..."

He instantly pulled me into his arms. I was flustered by the embrace, then shivered in surprise at the icy coldness of his skin. I couldn't feel any human warmth.

"Already dead."

"No..... That doesn't make sense."

"You can decide for yourself whether to believe it or not."

It was hard to believe, but from the moment we first met, something was off. The disheveled hair, the pale skin, the gray eyes, even the occasional glimpse of dark blue veins. It was just too questionable for a human, yet I tried to ignore it.

"Are you thinking of going home? What time is it?"

"I have more questions to ask."

"Then do you want to stay in this position?"

I was so focused on the shocking story that I forgot I was in his arms. I quickly took a few steps back.

"Don't be surprised. Don't look for me anymore. Think of me as someone who doesn't exist."

As I rode the taxi home, I mulled over those words. It seemed like they meant, "Don't pretend to know." It seemed like there were more secrets to hide. He was a completely unpredictable person. Common sense dictated I should avoid him, but my heart felt the opposite. And it wasn't just curiosity.