Chapter 10
The fact that the air in this house felt as cold as midwinter had been forgotten.
Holding the warmest thing in the world against him, something like clouds swelled inside his chest.
Was it because of the ominous aura of this haunted house?
Or was it because of the burning heat of the woman beside him?
As though intoxicated, his whole body heated up until he grew dizzy and languid.
‘The most thrilling… or maybe the most exciting moment I’ve ever experienced in my life…’
Su-hyuk forced himself to stop being distracted by the strange phenomena the ghost was stirring up, and instead focused entirely on what he was doing with her.
He was drawn, almost spellbound, toward this mysterious bride of the night—his fake bride.
Seol-ah hugged his back tightly, burying her face against his shoulder.
Bang! Clatter!
Things shook, shattered, and fell all around them.
But Su-hyuk and Seol-ah no longer cared, as if they were in a world of their own.
Their bed felt like it had been placed inside a giant snow globe.
And there, they indulged in each other, safe and at peace.
The shaman’s earlier instructions—to act exaggeratedly, to pretend it was good—were completely unnecessary.
When the two of them finally shared their first night together, the house fell silent as if nothing had happened.
Yet the evidence left behind was too obvious for them to pretend otherwise.
Except for the area around the bed, the rest of the room looked as though burglars had stormed through.
“There’s going to be massive property damage here,” Su-hyuk muttered, glancing around at the typhoon-like wreckage.
“It’s fine. Thanks to this, I became a VVIP at the one-dollar mart. Honestly, that was the only happy thing I’ve had in the past three years.”
Hearing Seol-ah’s weak, bittersweet smile of a reply, Su-hyuk finally began to notice the details of her home.
Though there were no children here, sponge mats were spread around the floor. Most objects were kept low or made of plastic.
The kitchen cupboards and drawers were tied shut with cable ties or taped over. Every knife was wrapped tightly in newspaper.
Ever since the hauntings began, Seol-ah had hated coming home. She volunteered for overtime at every chance.
She often endured snide remarks about wasting company electricity, but she bore it.
On weekends, she would either take part-time jobs or wander busy streets until she was too exhausted, then drag herself home.
With knives sealed away, even cooking was impossible. Falling asleep as if she had fainted was at least a way to suffer a little less from the spirits.
Ever since losing her parents in an accident three years ago, her life had been like a shattered windowpane.
She’s already ruined. She’s already unhappy, so what’s a little more unhappiness? Better to heap more wounds on this miserable girl than to taint someone else’s happiness.
It was as though the whole world was saying that to her.
With no siblings, Seol-ah’s world was unbearably cold. Even in summer, her heart lived in winter.
I have relatives. I have friends. So why am I still alone?
That’s how she felt at first.
But after the ghost appeared, her life became utterly solitary.
“Won’t you catch that ghost too if you get tangled up with Seol-ah?”
“It’s unlucky. It just feels gross to be around her.”
There was no one left who would risk that danger just to stand by her side.
Now that she was a “bad omen,” romance had become impossible.
Why me? Why did something like this have to happen to me? Her heart ached with injustice, and the shaman’s blunt explanation only made her feel more wretched.
“In short, your thread snapped. And nothing is easier prey than a girl whose thread has snapped.”
No parents who would cling to her no matter what. No partner who would love her despite her flaws.
To the spirits, she was even weaker prey than a newborn impala separated from the herd.
It was unfair enough to live without protection or love from the living—yet now she was looked down on even by the dead.
So this is why people must be happy. Because unhappiness only summons even worse misfortune…
She truly believed this night might be her last in the world.
Crash!
A trinket that had been precariously perched on the bedside table finally toppled to the floor.
Su-hyuk instinctively pulled Seol-ah’s shoulder closer toward him.
Protected. It feels warm…
In his arms, Seol-ah’s three years of accumulated fatigue melted away like Olaf before a fireplace.
Even half-asleep, her reason remained intact.
This is the last time I’ll ever see him. Don’t give him your heart. Who else would do something like this for me? There’s no man alive who would date a woman haunted by ghosts. Especially not someone as good-looking as him.
And yet…
It’s so comfortable. I feel so safe. Having a lover… really is wonderful…
Leaning against Su-hyuk’s chest, Seol-ah slowly closed her eyes.
Sleep overwhelmed Su-hyuk as well. Perhaps the ghost had drained his energy, but his eyelids grew unbearably heavy.
“This is so nice…”
Hearing Seol-ah’s drowsy murmur, he barely forced his eyes open to look at her again.
“No, I just… it’s just having someone beside me… feeling warmth… it makes me feel safe…”
But before she could finish her fumbling excuse, she was already lost in deep sleep.
Su-hyuk wanted to respond, but he was too drowsy. Instead, he simply held her closer.
That was the last memory the two of them had before falling asleep, unaware of the rest of the world.
Brrrrrr—!
The alarm for work buzzed, jolting Su-hyuk awake.
Scrape, shuffle—
Across the room, Seol-ah was already tidying up the mess from last night.
“You’re awake?” she asked, glancing back.
Even after a night pressed against him, seeing his bare torso in the sunlight embarrassed her all over again.
She hurriedly turned away, pretending to be busy cleaning.
“Did I wake you? Sorry. I have to head to work. I’ll finish the rest later, so you can go back to sleep.”
But Su-hyuk, already dressed, came over to help.
“No! The area outside the bed is dangerous!”
Startled by her sudden protest, Su-hyuk stepped back and sat down on the bed again.
“Please, don’t step off the bed. Not even one step.”
“I have to go to work too…”
“Oh! Right, of course. Then… just be careful. Follow the talisman path by the door… you’ll be safe.”
Seol-ah gave an awkward smile at the thought of him leaving.
How should she see him off? She couldn’t say thank you—he’d told her not to. She couldn’t say, Last night was fun, either.
“Did you sleep well?”
His morning voice was lower, calmer than last night. Just an ordinary question, yet it warmed her heart.
“Yes… for the first time in a long while.”
Too embarrassed to meet his eyes, she smiled shyly and added,
“By the way… you’re not hurt anywhere? Nothing feels off?”
She fussed, checking him over with her eyes.
“No nausea? No aches or chills?”
“I’m fine. Really. Don’t worry.”
“Oh… thank goodness.”
Another awkward silence fell between them.
“Well, I should get ready for work. I’ll be going now.”
Standing up, Su-hyuk seemed even taller now that she saw him sober and fully awake.
“It’s past midnight, and yet the glass slipper is still here. That means it’s over, right?”
He gestured toward her sneakers by the door—the same pair she had lost one of on the bridge last night.
Seol-ah just smiled, letting the question slip unanswered.
They were about to part ways when she suddenly spoke.
“Um. There’s something I haven’t told you yet…”
Will he think I’m being greedy, like asking for more after he’s already saved me?
Her worried eyes wavered as she continued.
“Do you… have a girlfriend?”
Su-hyuk froze, and after a brief silence, finally replied.
“A girlfriend… I don’t.”
