Being the only inhabitant of the first floor of his house by night, Minseok soon began to be scared about the possibility of ghosts haunting him. Although it was summer, he would sleep with his blanket, either hugging it, or taking cover under it; he supposed ghosts could not see him if he hid beneath his quilt.

He would feel safe till the lights were kept on; but since he was not able to fall asleep in a brightly lit room, eventually he had to turn them off. Half of him wished to go sleep in his parents’ room, but he wanted to be brave – he was a boy, he should not be afraid – and he knew his mom and dad would not allow him to sleep with them for more than a night. They said he had to get accustomed to sleeping alone. Even baby Minseo was sleeping alone.

He missed lodging in between his grandparents on their bed, missed feeling their protective arms around him.

Every night he would listen warily for any strange sounds, fearing for his door to creak open slowly, something to crawl out from under his bed, a pale hand to shoot out of his wardrobe, a knock on his window – all the horrible imaginations would assault his mind. He would pretend to be asleep then, hoping to fool ghosts, and he would remember Jongdae’s radiant smile to