It was eerily quiet as Suzy made her way throughout the house. Her footsteps were light and her breathing even, not giving away the rapid beat of her heart. She was slowly counting down in her head, and with each step her heart beat faster.

She stopped when she reached the final door at the end of the hallway, and took a deep breath before she sat, sinking down with her back against the wall. It was silent beyond the door, as she had learned to expect, but Suzy smiled nonetheless as she leaned her head against the hard surface.

"Hello, Myungsoo."

Kim Myungsoo was the neighborhood golden boy. He was popular and charismatic and well-liked, and it seemed as if everyone and their mother's loved the boy. Growing up with him, Suzy had always admired her old neighbor. Even after moving away to a new city with her family, she continued hearing news about Myungsoo.

He was the perfect, ideal boy that every guy wanted to be and every girl wanted to date. He was the one person Suzy knew who seemed to have a perfect life, and so it came as a genuine surprise to her when she heard the shocking news from her mother.

"What do you mean, Myungsoo hasn't left his room?" She asked, not understanding. Her mother had just shook her head.

"I don't know the full story," She said sadly, "But his mother called and said he hasn't left his room for two years."

"Two years?" Suzy gasped, "He hasn't left his room for two years?"

Suzy had listened in disbelief as her mother explained to her the story. That Myungsoo had been fine until his second year of high school, that he had been his usual, perfect self, until everything fell apart.

"Hey, Myungsoo." Suzy said, exhaling deeply. "Myungsoo, why won't you talk to me?"

She was met with silence and a low sigh escaped her lips. The house was empty save for herself and the boy inside the room, and Suzy couldn't help but feel bored as she rested her chin upon her knees.

"Myungsoo, are you never going to talk to me?" It was already the third time that she had planted herself down in front of the boy's door, and each time he had refused to say a word.

Suzy picked absentmindedly at her fingernails, but she couldn't help the nagging feeling of uncertainty that had begun pooling at the pit of her stomach. She glanced back at the door that remained closed firmly shut behind her, and shook her head, trying to squash the doubt away.

It worked for a few minutes longer but it wasn't long before her apprehension returned. After all, it had been three days already. The boy should have at least given her some kind of response, right?

"Myungsoo?" She called nervously, her voice an octave higher. "Myungsoo, you're listening, right?"

She sat listening in tense silence, and sat up in alarm after she failed to get a response. Suzy could feel her eyes widening in apprehension as she pressed her ear against the door.

"M-Myungsoo?" She stammered nervously. "You're not dead, right?" She held her breath, and when she didn't get a response she felt panic begin settling in on her mind.

"Myungsoo?" Suzy called again, her voice growing louder as she reached for the door handle. "Myungsoo, please say something." She began tugging on the handle, her alarm growing. "Myungsoo!"

Suzy wrung her hands, glancing down the empty hallways. She didn't have her phone with her, and she wondered how long it would take for her to run next door and find it.

"Myungsoo," She said again, her voice shaking nervously, "Please answer me, Myungsoo. You're okay, right? You're not dead, right? You're─"

Before Suzy could finish speaking, she suddenly heard a soft rustling from beyond the door, so quiet that she almost missed it. A relieved sigh escaped her lips when she heard the noise again, and her hand fell from the door handle limply to her side.

She sank back down to the floor, suddenly feeling foolish as an embarrassed blush spread across her face. "I was really worried about you, you know." She muttered darkly, picking at her fingernails in irritation. "I really was, Myungsoo."

Of course Myungsoo wasn't dead, how could she have been so stupid? He had gone two years like this for all she knew. If Suzy had reacted in such a way, she wondered how his mother must have felt. The thought made Suzy feel angry, and for the first time she felt her patience snap as words began spilling from her lips.

"You're too much, Myungsoo. Do you even know how worried your mother is? If you don't want to talk to me you should at least talk to her. Why don't you ever respond? Do you even know how hard this is for her? Do you even realize what she's going through?" Suzy took a deep breath before continuing, unable to stop herself. "She's not the only one, though. Your father is worried too. I'm worried. Your classmates─"

Suzy's sentence was cut off and she froze when she felt the door shake behind her as the sound of a loud crash reached her ears. From the other side, Myungsoo had kicked the door.

When Suzy was in the fifth grade, she was constantly teased by her upperclassmen who never seemed to be satisfied with her. None of her friends had stood up for her, none except for Myungsoo.

"You shouldn't listen to them." He had told her, "They're just jealous because you're prettier than them."

That was the way Myungsoo was; he was always able to make Suzy feel better about herself, even when she didn't always believe his words. That was how Suzy had always remembered him, as a strong, confident person. Someone she could look up to, someone she could always, always rely on.

Myungsoo wasn't a person who would care about what others felt. He wasn't someone like that, or so she had thought.

"You don't think Myungsoo was bullied, do you?" Suzy asked softly into her phone. She was lying sprawled out on her bed, staring up at the ceiling.

"Why do you think that?" Her best friend, Sungjong replied over the line.

"He was fine until I mentioned his classmates," Suzy said slowly, rolling over onto her stomach. "He's never reacted like that before. I don't think I've ever even seen Myungsoo get angry."

"You should ask some of his friends."

"I don't know any of his friends, though."

"Ask his mom for their names."

"She doesn't really approve of what I'm doing." Suzy sighed, propping her chin up onto her pillow. "She won't help me. I think she's given up on him. Both of his parents have."

"If even his parents have given up, I don't understand why you're getting so worked up over this." Sungjong sighed, "You're causing a lot of unnecessary trouble for yourself in my opinion."

"Sungjong, he hasn't left his room in two years."

"But it's not like this involves you."

Suzy sighed, rolling onto her side once more. "I know." She said softly, playing with her hair. "But I can't just leave him to rot away in his room like that. He was my friend."

"He was?"

"He is."

"Well, I can't stop you if that's what you've decided." Sungjong sighed, "I wish you would come home soon, though."

"I do too, but my mom is still visiting her relatives so I'll be stuck here until she's done."

"How long will you be staying?"

"Until the end of summer."

"Well, I miss you."

"I miss you, too."

"Hi, Myungsoo." Suzy said cheerfully as she plopped down in her usual seat outside of the boy's door. "I'm back. Don't think you can get rid of me so easily." She held her breath as she leaned her head against the door, listening intently for any kind of noise beyond the wall.

For a moment it was quiet, and then suddenly she heard the soft rustle of fabric.

A smile spread across Suzy's lips and she began to hum softly to herself. A comfortable silence settled over them, but it wasn't long before Suzy was speaking again.

"Hey, Myungsoo, you remember me, don't you?" She was met with silence, and she turned to the door in alarm as realization slowly dawned on her.

"Did you forget me?" She asked in disbelief. "It's me, Suzy! Bae Suzy! I was your neighbor! We used to walk to school together!"

Suzy glared at the door before turning around once more, a pout forming on her lips. "I can't believe you don't remember me." She grumbled to herself, "Do you even know how many people would kill to have known me back then.. If only you could see how pretty I've gotten─"

She was interrupted by a noise that sounded strangely like a scoff, and she turned to gape at the door, offended. "I'm very popular, thank you very much!" She snapped defensively. "Consider yourself lucky, Kim Myungsoo!"

Suzy continued to growl angrily at the silent boy behind the door, but she couldn't help but smile to herself because she could swear Myungsoo was laughing.