GRR 4

“What’s this? It’s creepy…”

Jion rubbed the goosebumps on his forearm, glanced at the alley entrance once more, and then turned his gaze back to Suho. Suho was struggling to bend his fingers, which wouldn’t move properly. His hands had stiffened just as they had been injured in the accident.

“N-nine…”

Not long after, Suho held out his hand toward Jion. His left hand was formed into a loose fist, and on his right hand, all fingers except the pinky were folded down.

“Nine? The ninth floor?”

“Uh-huh. Mom said to just press nine for Suho’s house…”

It likely referred to the elevator button. Jion smiled brightly, he was unable to hide his satisfaction at the greater-than-expected gain.

The ninth floor of Saebit Apartments. The search range had narrowed significantly, but without knowing the specific building, he would have to check the entire complex. Feeling anxious again that it would be a race against time, Jion finally spoke up after much deliberation.

“By any chance, do you remember which building it is?”

Suho began to bite his lower lip nervously. Judging by his wandering gaze, he was struggling to come up with an answer. Jion didn’t rush him and waited patiently, but unfortunately, Suho only shook his head.

But it was better than having to search all of Siheung-dong. Jion reached out to stroke Suho’s head. Although he could see ghosts and talk to them, he couldn’t touch them, his hand passed back and forth through the air. Yet, Suho beamed as if he could actually feel Jion’s warmth.

It was then. Once again, he felt a bone-chilling cold sweep down his spine.

“…”

This time, it was from above. A black shadow momentarily covered Jion before vanishing without a trace. Jion turned his head up to look at the sky. However, the sky was blue, with no presence threatening him.

It was strange. The flow of the air had changed, but Suho was still the only one visible.

“Hyung…”

Jion, who had been nervously looking around, came to his senses only after hearing Suho’s call. For some reason, Suho was trembling while curled up.

“It’s so cold… I’m scared…”

“…”

“Hyung, stay with me… I’m scared…”

It seemed he wasn’t the only one who felt the chill. Suho, whose already pale face had turned even paler, stuck to Jion’s side. While comforting Suho, Jion kept an eye on their surroundings.

“…”

Could it have been a ghost? It was a reasonable suspicion, but ghosts don’t have shadows. Then, a bird flying overhead? But wasn’t the shadow too dark and big to be a bird’s?

Jion looked up at the sky once more, constantly swallowing saliva through his parched throat. In the cloudless sky, something glowed dazzlingly before vanishing without a trace in an instant.

“Hyung…”

“Ah… sorry.”

It was only after hearing Suho’s tearful voice that Jion came to his senses. He felt sorry for Suho and wanted to stay by his side, but unfortunately, Jion didn’t have much time. He had to go to his part-time job soon, and he had thought it would be a good idea to stop by Saebit Apartments before then.

“Um… Suho-ya, I don’t think I can stay with you the whole time…”

“…”

“I’m sorry. Instead, I’ll come back as soon as I finish work.”

Jion crouched down to match Suho’s eye level and spoke with the brightest smile he could muster. Suho bit his lip to hold back tears, then nodded several times while sniffing. Seeing him try to endure it like an adult made Jion’s heart ache.

Fortunately, Suho quickly calmed himself. Jion smiled at him and then checked the time. He had about thirty minutes before he had to go to his job.

“Suho-ya. I’ll really come back as soon as I’m done with work.”

“Uh-huh…”

“You can wait for me, right? Our Suho is brave.”

After saying his goodbyes, Jion looked around one last time and left the alley. Even though he had finished the conversation without being caught by anyone, he still was uneasy because of that strange chill he felt twice. The frigid air, which did not suit a season where one sweats when moving, weighted on his mind.

It’s probably nothing. It’s just that the atmosphere in that alley is a bit spooky. Or maybe the ghostly energy grew thicker because Suho has been there for a long time. Jion shook his head and stepped forward. Seeing the pedestrian signal turn green just in time, Jion gripped his bag straps and ran at full speed.

He hoped that nothing would happen to Suho until he finished his shift and returned to the alley.

‎

‎

As soon as his part-time job ended, Jion hurried out of the convenience store. His destination was the alley where Suho was staying. Jion’s footsteps were much lighter than they had been hours ago when he parted ways with Suho.

When he had gone to Saebit Apartments on a whim, Jion met an elderly woman out walking her dog. With a “nothing to lose” attitude, he had subtly brought up Suho, and as luck would have it, the woman lived in the same building as Suho and was able to help.

He discovered that Suho’s family still lived in the apartment and even got the exact address, Unit 905, Building 205. Jion headed straight there. Hoping that Suho’s mother wouldn’t treat him like a crazy person and turn him away, he pressed the doorbell, but there was no answer.

Although he couldn’t wait any longer and had to head to the convenience store for his shift, he was so relieved to have found the home address without having to look through all twenty buildings. Jion even hummed to himself as he hurried along, wanting to tell Suho this happy news as soon as possible.

“Suho-ya, I’m he–”

Jion, who was looking for Suho as he entered the alley, stopped abruptly in his tracks.

Suho was trembling under the broken streetlight, and a black silhouette stood in front of him. A dense, ominous aura hung over the air. And as if the entrance to the alley was a portal to another world, the very air touching his skin changed the moment he crossed the boundary.

Jion shuddered as he felt the ominous feeling he had sensed hours ago again.

“Hyung…!”

Suho, who hadn’t moved a single step from under the streetlight since meeting Jion, suddenly flew through the air and hid behind Jion’s back. Jion gasped as the figure that had been confronting Suho turned toward him.

It wasn’t a ghost. If it were a ghost, the outline of the figure would have appeared slightly hazy. The figure before his eyes was so clear that it felt alien, so it must be a person, not a ghost.

However, the fact that the figure was a human was even more shocking to Jion.

Why is a person here? And standing right in front of Suho as if he can see him?

“Hyung, hic, why did you come so late… I was scared…”

The thought occurred to him that this person might be someone who, like himself, could see ghosts. Ghosts are scary, but not people…? Let’s not be afraid. Jion gulped and finally took a proper look at the figure.

A pitch-black suit that could instantly blend into the background behind him. The white shirt worn underneath had the top couple of buttons undone, and the tie was loosely hanging. His attire could still be considered fairly ordinary, but…

“…”

In the man’s left hand was a menacing blade of unknown identity. Attached to a long shaft, the blade, which glowed even more eerily in the moonlight, resembled an axe.

Suddenly, an unpleasant memory flashed through Jion’s mind. It was an old memory from more than ten years ago that he had struggled to push far away because he didn’t really want to recall it.

‘You’d better let go of your lingering attachments and leave this place quickly.’

The low voice falling from above his head was threatening, even when he thought about it now that he had grown up.

‘How many times do I have to tell you that the longer you stay, the higher the chance you’ll fall into hell? Your karma will pass to your child, so stop dragging this out and just leave now.”

That voice hadn’t been directed at him, but at his mother, who was already dead and wandering the living world as a soul. When the man’s heavy yet cold voice echoed through the house, Jion just closed his eyes tightly, curled up, and trembled. Even when his mother tried to comfort him, telling him not to be afraid and that everything would be alright, he only cried.

When he finally looked up after crying his heart out, his mother had already been pulled away from his side and was floating in the air. Jion, who was scrutinizing the retreating figure of the unknown person, who had likely hurled cruel words at his mother, with fearful eyes, discovered a terrifying axe in his hand and was so terrified that he could not say a word.