(“I hate my life.” 15-year-old Nayeon suddenly blurts out. She, Sana, and Momo were hanging out at Momo’s house. It was a summer weekend, and they didn't know what to do so they simply stayed indoors at the comfort of Momo’s bed and air conditioning.

Nayeon had an argument with Yoona. Again. Momo found her sulking by their front door, a clueless Sana sitting with her.

“Why do you say so, Nabongs? You look fine to me.” Momo tells her, her back against the headboard of her bed. “You’re in a nice school, and you’re about to graduate from middle school. Your family is financially stable–”

“And they are swindlers, I tell you.” Nayeon cuts her off, blowing her bangs off. She sits beside Sana on the floor, who is currently lying down while drawing on her notebook.

“Why do you think so?” Sana asks, not looking away from her drawing. Nayeon sighs.

“Haven’t I told you? They run a store for ghost-related stuff. How is that not swindling?” She huffs, crossing her arms on her chest.

Sana perks up, and she switches into a sitting position facing the older girl. Her eyebrow raises, surprised by Nayeon’s statement.

“You don’t believe what they’re doing?”

“She isn’t just unbelieving. She hates it.” Momo answers for her. “But it’s not like that is the only source of income your family has. Your mom is a physical therapist. That’s normal. And Yoona-unnie’s about to go to college on the other side of Seoul.”

“But they still do it. Gosh, Momo, they fool people. I refuse to take part in that.” Nayeon spats.

Sana drones their conversation and goes back to her drawing, ignoring the slight hurt she felt when Nayeon expressed so much disgust on what she has grown up with. She feels hurt, especially when Nayeon is being insensitive about it. She may have spat on her family’s legacy, but Nayeon will never understand. Not when Sana’s whole clan was murdered in front of her. Not when berserkers haunt her every time.

She shuts her eyes, trying to prevent tears from falling, and she rushes out of Momo’s room.)

Sana sighs at that memory. She looks back as Nayeon’s home disappears from her sight, her driver turning right headed to her own home after dropping a sick Nayeon to her home.

She remembers Nayeon apologizing that day when she returned to Momo’s room after crying and fixing herself, not knowing why exactly she walked out and cried. It was for politeness, Sana thought to herself, but she couldn’t spite someone ignorant of her situation and her world. She simply smiled at the senior, telling her it was nothing.

Nayeon knew it wasn’t okay, and Sana is thankful that she doesn’t bring the spiritist topic up, at least when she’s around. Sana believes Nayeon is not an unbeliever of her family’s legacy. If that wasn’t the case, why would Nayeon avoid the topic when Sana walked out on them? Or maybe the older girl was just being sensitive with her friend. Whatever the reason is, Sana just attributes it to Nayeon’s ignorance and closed spiritual eyes. She sighs deeply, shaking her head from too much thinking

“It looks like Miss Nayeon is having a hard time recently.” Her driver, Mister Choi, snaps her out of her thoughts and straightens her back against the backseat.

“Yes. She’s probably confused, too.” Sana answers, and she looks outside the car window, her chin propped up with her hand. “That’s why she’s pushing us away even more.”

“It’s because she doesn’t know you’re a medium yourself.”

“Yeah, but she doesn’t open up to Yoona-unnie too. She’s just scared since her beliefs are suddenly being tested.” She chuckles. “I couldn’t believe it at first, at that time. An Im who has her eyes closed.”

“Well, it’s being opened now, and most painfully, too.” Mister Choi comments as he parks the car by the curb, unlocking the doors. “The ghost she’s seen must’ve been so desperate. She’s a proclaimed unbeliever, too, at that.”

“Whoever the ghost is, he or she must be special for me not to see even though he or she was just at the corner of the school infirmary.” Sana sighs and opens the car door. She heads straight to the door and to the living room. She drops her bag on the sofa and takes a deep breath before going into the dojo behind her house her parents set up.

She let her katana materialize, and, without changing from her school uniform, began to train her sword skills. After a while, she walks and plops in front of the altar further into the room. She looks up at the double spear hung up on the wall and at the scroll set on top of it.

“Denial days are over, Nayeonnie,” Sana says to herself with conviction.

“All this time? You knew about…this medium stuff?” A nod. “And your family has sworn to protect our family because mom saved you.” Another nod. “That’s the most preposterous thing I’ve heard in my entire life, Sana.” Nayeon stares at Sana incredulously. The latter frowns. “But it makes sense.” The senior adds.

Nayeon, Sana, and Chaeyoung were still in the senior’s bedroom. Yoona left them a while ago to tend to a customer. They all sat on the floor in a circle.

“I mean, you were clingy ever since we saved you from those nitpicks during middle school. I thought it was because you’re afraid of being in a new environment and all that yadda yadda as a transfer student. Then you got clingier with me when we reached high school.” Chaeyoung snorted.

“Snake.” Chaeyoung smirks. Sana glares at her.

“Shut up, kitty. Respect your sunbae.”

“But you, sunbae, touched my . And my s.”

“It was an accident!”

“Anyway,” Nayeon clears , stopping the two girls from bickering further. “As I was saying, you were so clingy. I thought you liked me until you accidentally told me you like Jeong.”

“I knew you were a narcissist, unnie, but really?” Sana snorts. “Yeah, I was stupid that time, I kept tripping in front of her the whole day.”

“I didn’t know you like my hyung. I have blackmail material.”

“She already knows Chaeng, and she rejected me. You have nothing against me.”

“Taxi,” Chaeyoung says with a poker face and Nayeon snorts. Sana’s face contorts in horror.

“No, I take back what I said.” The two other girls laugh at a horrified Sana’s expense. When their laughter died down, they stayed silent for a while, relishing each other’s company.

Sana stares at the ghostly Chaeyoung and she can’t help but frown. It’s been days since the freshman went missing, and not even Jeongyeon knew what exactly happened. Seeing the younger girl as a ghost after four days didn’t sit well with her, especially when Jeongyeon told them that Seungwan told her the police had given up finding Chaeyoung alive.

“We’ve got to find your body Chaeng.” She whispers, earning the attention of the two other occupants of Nayeon’s room. “I don’t like seeing you like this.”

“I don’t like it too, unnie, but how are we gonna do it?” Chaeyoung shakes her head. “I couldn’t even remember what happened that day. It’s been four days.”

“Your body is alive, so it might be easier for us. Don’t worry, leave it to us mediums, right Nayeonnie?” At Sana’s prompt, Nayeon flinches, reminded of what has happened to her for the past few days. Noticing the mood shift, Sana shuts and shrugs apologetically.

It has been a rollercoaster, Nayeon thinks. From somebody loathing the idea of ghosts and spirits, here she is, suddenly a medium with powers and abilities she can never imagine. A part of her still denies everything, but she knows deep inside that she must face the fact that she has indeed become one. She clenches her fist, feeling her spirit thrumming through it.

“It’s still a shock, isn’t it?” Sana asks carefully. “I’m sorry you had to open your eyes like this.” She checks the clock at Nayeon’s wall clock and she stands up, dusting herself off. “Well, it’s late. I better get going.” She passes by Chaeyoung and Nayeon. She pats Nayeon’s shoulder and tries to ruffle Chaeyoung’s hair, but her hand goes through. Nayeon snorts, and Chaeyoung ducks her head in embarrassment.

“Unnie can’t you stay?” Chaeyoung, with her head still down, asks. “It’s just that…it’s been four days since I had human interaction, and I’m scared. What if that bad black thing goes after us?” Chaeyoung looks up with glistening eyes at Sana and the latter coos. The older girl’s hand glows blue and she successfully ruffles the cub’s hair.

“You’re so cute even if you’re like this.” Sana sighs. “But, really, I should go. I still have to meet up with Dahyun tomorrow and–”

 “What?” “Dahyun-unnie?” Nayeon and Chaeyou