The morning sunlight woke the young man from his sleep. Rubbing his eyes, he closed the curtains so the glare wouldn't hit them directly.
Someone approached him while carrying a tray of food.
"Already morning and you still want to sleep again?"
"Whatever. I'm not going to school today anyway," the young man replied.
"I brought you breakfast. I'm feeling generous today."
"Thanks, Jay," he said.
"Did you sleep well?"
The young man nodded in response, then walked into a mysterious room. In the middle of the room stood an open coffin, and inside it someone lay peacefully as if asleep.
"Why do you keep coming into my dreams? Is it really my fault that I managed to catch you that night?" he said while staring at the figure.
"You should feel lucky. Your only task is to sleep here. You don't have to feel fear like your other friends," he continued with a small chuckle.
"Just stay quiet here. No need to haunt me through dreams."
The young man then walked into another room to meet his companion.
"What are you doing now?" his friend asked while sitting in the dining room enjoying a cup of coffee.
"I've already stored some of my things here. We just need to go somewhere quiet," the young man replied casually.
~~~~~~~
"You're awake too? I just finished dealing with your friend. The medicine worked a bit slow."
"J-Joan…"
"I moved the mat so it looked like he slipped, but actually I pushed him. He's a smart kid though—he noticed the strange smell on the cloth and tried to hold his breath. Too bad I knew."
"That injury could get pretty bad if it's not treated quickly."
"Get your filthy hands away from my friend!"
"Why? Didn't you already give up? That means I can swit–"
Unfortunately, the conversation had to stop because Joan completely lost consciousness.
The two voices sounded identical, but one of them was clearly frightened. Joan was sure that was the real Hesa's voice.
Then who was the other one? Hesa's twin?
Everything felt so real—the hit to his head, the strange smell forced into his nose, and that conversation.
Joan truly doubted that what he experienced was only a dream.
"Did Hesa really give up? Why would he do that? Damn it, I passed out before hearing everything."
Joan grumbled because he felt he had missed something important.
If only he had been able to hear it all. Even so, it answered his question about why Arkha and Hesa often talked so seriously.
It definitely wasn't something simple like talking about idols. That meant Arkha had tricked him back then.
Joan let out a rough sigh. His head throbbed.
"Hmm… this song is nice, but it sounds a bit creepy too."
"Setta?"
Joan stared in horror at the fox-like boy. Since when had he been standing beside him?
"You're finally aware. I've been calling you and you didn't answer," Setta said irritably.
"S-sorry. What are you doing at the library?" Joan asked.
"Mr. Suho told me to pick up a book, but then I saw you sitting here alone," Setta replied.
Joan immediately stood up and tidied the books on the table.
"You go first? One of your AirPods was with me," Setta said, returning it.
"By the way, what was the title of that song earlier? I want to search for it… or maybe I'll just ask you later."
The song?
Joan opened his phone and instantly felt nervous.
Hadn't he seen the music video yesterday? The one about camping, then moving to another place where the members were being watched and strange things started happening—and… why did that memory return?
"Jo, are you okay?" Setta asked, noticing his friend spacing out again.
"S-Setta," Joan said, half nervous, half scared.
"What's wrong?"
"N-Nothing. Sorry, I'll head out first."
Joan quickly left, leaving his confused friend behind.
"Tch, I just realized…"
Joan wasn't watching where he was going and ended up bumping into someone.
"Watch it," Arkha said while helping gather Joan's fallen books.
"Y-yeah, thanks. Sorry for bumping into you," Joan said.
"Relax," Arkha replied.
Joan stayed silent for a moment, staring at Arkha.
"Why do you look scared?" Arkha asked.
Joan shook his head. "No. I… can I ask you something?"
"Go ahead," Arkha said.
"About the camping trip, do you agree with it?" Joan asked.
"Honestly? No. Why?" Arkha replied.
"Me neither. What if we tell the others later?" Joan suggested.
"Yeah, I'll tell them," Arkha said.
"O-okay, I'll go first then," Joan waved briefly and walked away.
That's strange, Arkha thought.
"Get away, huh… looks like he's already watched it," Arkha muttered with a light chuckle as he walked down the empty corridor.
~~~~~~~~~
"I can go home today."
Hesa looked at his hand, freshly bandaged again. He had injured it yesterday when he forcefully pulled out his IV. Fortunately, he no longer needed it today.
Knock, knock.
Who could it be? Hospital staff never knocked; they usually just said "excuse me" from outside.
"Yeah, come in."
Hesa pulled the pillow behind his head to lean against while sitting up.
Creak.
The door opened slowly, revealing the red-haired boy.
"Morning," he greeted politely.
"Morning too, Kal," Hesa replied.
Kala sat on the chair beside the bed.
"How are you feeling?" Kala asked.
"I'm allowed to go home, but the administration isn't settled yet," Hesa answered.
"Can I take care of it?" Kala offered.
"No need. Jae said he'll handle it," Hesa replied.
"Hmm, okay," Kala said.
"You're not at school?" Hesa asked, noticing Kala wasn't wearing a uniform.
"My school has an event," Kala explained.
"Oh, so you're off?" Hesa said.
"Not exactly. We still have school, but we don't have to come as early as usual," Kala replied.
"Did Jae tell you to come here?" Hesa asked.
"N-No, I just stopped by," Kala answered.
"I feel bad. You came last night too," Hesa said.
"I-It's fine, really," Kala replied nervously.
"Well, we're still technically neighbors, right?" Hesa said.
"Y-Yeah, that's true," Kala laughed awkwardly.
"Oh right, I just remembered. When you came to my place to borrow a pan, and when I fell asleep, you used more formal 'I-you' language. Am I remembering wrong?" Hesa asked.
"Oh, that… I get a bit awkward using slang with new people," Kala explained.
"But not now, right? You consider me close already?" Hesa teased.
"Y-Yeah, because you're Jae's friend," Kala replied.
"Yeah, that makes sense," Hesa said.
This kid really did hang out with Jae a lot. That could be good, although it might become worrying later.
"Jae's a bit crazy sometimes. Just keep some distance," Hesa added jokingly.
Kala only nodded. "Um… it feels a bit awkward if I talk too formally."
"Haha, it's fine. But this is better. It feels more relaxed. You're an introvert, right?" Hesa said.
"Y-Yeah. Is it that obvious?" Kala asked.
Hesa smiled at the red-haired boy.
Even though he used casual language now, it didn't hide his attitude at all—he still looked nervous and stiff.
For an introvert, it certainly wasn't easy to be as cheerful as he had been the previous night.
Hesa felt he wouldn't be fooled that easily.