Chapter 7: Confusion of Clarity

[Jonghyun POV]

“AAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!”

I ran out and nearly stumbled to find the dumbstruck guys in the living room.

“Hyung!! What happened?” Taemin inquired, half-shouting, with full worry in his eyes.

“T-there’s so-some-one there. I, I’m not sure what it is. B-but..”

“AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!! A thief?! Let’s call the police!” Key panicked and ran to his room to retrieve his phone.

“Well then,” Minho emerged from his room with a baseball bat, his game face on and ready to battle the “thief”.

“No, no. Y-you don’t understand. She’s.. she’s..”

Then, recognition struck me like a bullet. With a snapshot of her standing there near the door, I started to visualize everything that I saw in that split second. She was standing straight, wearing a black skirt which flow right above her knees, black sneakers and plain white spaghetti strap top that show her fair skin on her shoulders and arms. Her hair was in a loose bun with strands falling upon the sides of her face. The whole of her face was covered with both her hands except her eyes and that was her most identifiable feature. Her big eyes that seem to look through my soul. It was her, everything about her was like my loyal fan, except that her face was slightly ashen.

But how? And why?

[Chun Hei POV]

What. Just. Happened?

Jonghyun tried to hold me, but for some reason, he wasn’t able to. I don’t understand.

With my back against the wall of JongTae’s room, I started to slid down in confusion, surprise and unexplainable crumpling feeling inside my chest, like I was struck by a lightning. I found myself collapsed on the floor, looking at my own hands that Jonghyun failed to touch.

What happened?

How did I even get here?

Am I dead?

My brain started to malfunction. I was panicky and my cheeks were starting to get drenched with the waterfalls from both my eyes, this time not in awe or firey relief. The lights flickered again.

But I can touch things; ghosts can’t right? I lifted my shaking hands and tried to “get it through” the wall.

Bump.

I was able to touch it. I can’t go through walls. I stayed seated there, the gush of a thousand emotions weighing all on my shoulders and my eyes. I was shaking furiously.

I just wanted to make sure. I just wanted to confirm.

I pushed my palm on the floor in the attempt to stand up, grabbed the handle of the door as I was halfway to straightening up and held the wall with my left hand. 

I will go and find out.

I forced my shaking knees to take careful steps to go out the room. I opened the door and my tears wanted to go back in my head with the scene that unfolded in front of me.

Taemin was standing in the living room, his legs spread forming an inverted V. A crucifix was in his hands, the whole of it shaking but he maintained a tough face. Behind him was Minho, holding a baseball bat, ready to strike me any moment. Onew was hiding behind Taemin, too, I can only see his eyes peeping from Taemin’s shoulder. Key was nowhere to be seen so I’m guessing he’s curled up into a ball on the sofa. Jonghyun, however, had a blank expression. If it was of shock or horror, I didn’t know. He was near Taemin’s feet, holding onto the maknae’s legs like he did in the Everbody choreo, except that he was seated firmly on the floor.

All of them were looking straight at me with disbelief and shock, like they’ve seen some ghost.

With the little sanity that’s left in me, I voiced out my side. “F-first, I’m sorry that I’m here. I am as confused as you as to how I got here.”

“In the name of God, leave this dorm immediately.” Taemin said while starting to come near me, his right foot doing all the movement to go forward and his left one dragged in the back. He was so awkward. I never thought I’d see Taemin, the dancing machine, move so awkwardly in my life.

I raised both my hands up to indicate defeat and that I wouldn’t fight. Slowly, I tried to go near them. They were, however, retaining the distance by following my every movement, the four of them circling the living room and not destroying their formation; Jonghyun dragging his across the room. 

When they revealed the sofa, I saw Key, both his feet touching his chest and both his arms covering his face.

“Yah!!! Don’t leave me here!!” Key shouted to the idiots who were already in front of the flat screen television. When he opened his eyes, he saw me looking down at him.

“AAAHHHHHHH!!!” Like a bullet train, he ran to s for protection.

“I’m really, really sorry. But can I try something? After that I would go and never come back.”

Jonghyun got up, took a deep breath and with a confident look, looked behind his shoulders and said, “I got this.”

“Go ahead.” He turned to me and nodded cooly, but I can tell he’s freaking out inside.

I got down to my knees, and positioned myself as if I’m at the start line of a race, got up and ran towards Jonghyun.

Whoosh.

I..

Just..

Went..

Through..

Kim Jonghyun..

And as if there was a gun fire to signal the start, all six of us shouted in unison.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!”

And it stopped.

“A GHOST!!!” Key shrieked on the top of his lungs and all the screaming resumed.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!”

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One minute after, a knock on the door stopped us from the never ending shouting. Onew walked and passed beside me, making sure that he doesn’t touch the ghost.

“Ah, ne. Joesonghamnida.” Onew kept bowing to the person at the door. “We’ll keep it down. Joesonghamnida ahjumma.”

He turned around and gestured for us to keep it low and quiet and everyone went “aaaaaahhhhhhhh” with mouths open and no sound produced.

Just as soon as they have recovered from all the shouting, no matter how befuddled I was, I bowed to them and said sorry for the trouble I’ve caused.

Jonghyun seemed to be supressing something before I go out but I didn’t want to hear it. I hurried to the door grabbed the knob and

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I was thrown back; like there was a force field or whatever they call that in physics. I stood up again, tried to go out and failed. I looked up to the same shocked faces of the guys that stood behind me.

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I’m trapped.