Chapter 3
Heo Narim didn’t know how long she had been holding her breath.
When the sounds finally faded completely, she bent forward as if about to collapse. The little ghost seemed surprised and came closer.
“Haa…”
She exhaled, but couldn’t breathe properly. Even a headache started. As she struggled to catch her breath, she felt a hand gently patting her back.
[Slowly.]
Ah, again.
[Breathe in through your nose and out.]
The tone was a bit firm, but the gentle touch soothing her back was comforting. The ghost calmly helped her deal with her hyperventilation, a symptom she sometimes got when stressed.
‘It’s Yeo-hyun.’
Heo Narim slowly exhaled and closed her eyes. Even as her mind blurred, the comforting touch on her back remained.
Then she lost consciousness.
How much time passed, she didn’t know.
When she came to, the little ghost was quietly watching her.
[I didn’t make the woman’s voice in the basement.]
That was what the little ghost said while looking at Heo Narim lying on the bed. Was that ghost the one who moved her after she fainted?
She couldn’t bring herself to ask, but instead asked what she was curious about.
“Then why did you say I’d die if I opened it? Do you know something about the person in the basement?”
[No. But I judged it to be dangerous.]
That was probably true for itself as well.
Swallowing the irritation rising in her throat, Heo Narim said,
“Can you explain a bit more? Why did you suddenly appear, why did you tell me to hide Yeo-hyun? And… when will you disappear?”
Her last question almost came out as a whisper, but the little ghost noticed.
Its eyebrow rose in a displeased way.
‘That’s just like him.’
With no answer, Heo Narim asked again.
“You know my name, you know Yeo-hyun betrayed me. You look like him because you have some connection, right?”
[I don’t want to say.]
The little ghost paused briefly, then continued.
[But it’s for your sake.]
For my sake.
Baek Yeo-hyun, before he died, had come to Heo Narim and said it was to protect her.
That was the same. Pretending to care without even knowing what you truly want.
“For my sake?”
Heo Narim pinched her forehead, looking tired, and muttered. Even though she was alone with the ghost, sunlight came through and brightened the room.
“I don’t need that. I’m sick of that kind of care.”
[…]
“If you’re not going to explain, then leave. Whether you turn yourself in or whatever, I’ll handle it.”
[You didn’t kill him.]
She already knew. Only Heo Narim and the ghost knew that.
[You’re not at fault.]
“Yeah, but people will suspect me. Once they hear what happened, they’ll think I took revenge.”
The little ghost opened its mouth as if it had a lot to say.
Was it trying to defend Baek Yeo-hyun? She didn’t want to hear it.
“Go away. I hate ghosts, but I hate you even more since you look like Baek Yeo-hyun.”
[Narim.]
“Don’t call my name!”
Irritated, Heo Narim threw a pillow nearby. Unlike when the ghost moved the washing machine, the pillow passed through it uselessly.
Maybe it wouldn’t let anything touch it if it didn’t want to.
“Don’t call my name with that face… I don’t want to hear it.”
Her chest heaved as she breathed heavily. Seeing that, the little ghost turned its head.
It seemed like it sighed inwardly.
[Alright, calm down. Breathe slowly.]
Who do you think you are, worrying about me?
She swallowed the words rising in her throat. Still, she carefully calmed her breathing to avoid hyperventilating again like yesterday.
She hated listening to the ghost, but there was no one else to help if something happened. So she had to be careful herself.
The little ghost’s body grew faint. Was it about to disappear? She watched closely.
Suddenly, a vibration echoed through the quiet house. It wasn’t Heo Narim’s phone.
Her gaze landed on the black phone case on the bedside shelf.
It was Baek Yeo-hyun’s phone.
‘Oh right, today was the wedding.’
The groom not showing up at the wedding—of course, a call was expected.
She thought it might be a call from Heo Naryeon, the bride-to-be. Slowly, she walked over and grabbed the phone. She wasn’t sure if it was lucky, but it wasn’t Naryeon’s call.
Instead, a message was displayed.
[Don’t answer.]
‘Mother.’
Heo Narim looked down at the three words. She had never seen Yeo-hyun’s family, even when he was hospitalized.
She hadn’t heard much about them or met them.
‘Even if I answer… I won’t have anything to say, and it would probably just make things worse.’
Her head understood that, but her mind couldn’t stop worrying.
Sensing Heo Narim’s feelings, the little ghost came closer and spoke again.
[Don’t answer it, and throw it as far away as you can.]
“What?”
[…There’s location tracking. If you don’t throw it away, you’ll be suspected.]
Location tracking?
How old was Baek Yeo-hyun to have something like that?
She looked at the little ghost in disbelief, but it again avoided eye contact as if by habit.
‘But if that’s true, I can’t just ignore it.’
The ghost knew too much to be ignored. But she was also worried about the corpse hidden in the laundry room and the mysterious voice from the basement. She was stuck.
She was worried about leaving the house too—truly stuck in a dilemma.
‘Besides, sooner or later people will suspect me anyway. Maybe it’s better to tell the truth now.’
If she reported the disappearance, they would find out this place was the last place Baek Yeo-hyun stayed.
Even if she threw away his phone, her fingerprints were already on it. A perfect crime was impossible and never intended.
[…Don’t answer it, please.]
Despite the ghost’s warning, Heo Narim slowly pressed the call button.
Then, as if waiting for her, a voice came through.
—Where are you now?
She expected a worried or angry voice, but it was chilling.
—Baek Yeo-hyun, answer me.
It was as if speaking to a stranger, not her fiancé.
