From the distance, I made out two red specks, vague and yet prominent among the darkness surrounding it, like an airplane in the night sky. Taking a step closer, I squint my eyes to determine its true identity, except my legs held me in place, preventing me from progressing forward. However, there was no need for me to do so. The source of light started moving closer towards me, and what seemed like two red dots in the distance is slowly starting to look like the headlights on a car, glaring right at me. As it approaches, I can feel my own heartbeat increasing with speed, beating vigorously in my chest as the distance between us decreased.

It wasn't lights. As it reached an interval in which I was able to make out just what it is, I came to a realization that those two red dots were nothing close to lights. 

It was a pair of eyes, its orbs red and glistening among the darkness that surrounds the both of us. I tried to make out a face, try to determine just where its body is, but it was too dark. All I could see was those two irises, burning like fire in a dark forest and glimmering like blood under a darkly lit sky. It's continues it’s descend towards me, and I willed my legs to more. This time though, my aim wasn't to move towards it, but to get as far away from it as possible. It was dangerous, I can feel it. It's going to harm you, a voice inside my head tells me. As I struggled to move, I notice the eyes just a few feet away, and as if watching a horror film unfold before me, I witness as it, taking step after step, presented itself in front of me, closing any last gap between us. 

My own eyes snapped open and I was greeted by a pair of eyes, except this one was black. I jerked back in surprise, leaning too far back and hitting my head on the window pane behind me.

"Oww," I groaned, my hand instinctively moving to the bruised spot as I focused on the person sitting beside me.

"Talk about a big reaction," Shinbae chuckled, eyes filled with amusement as her lips curved into a big smile."What were you dreaming about in your sleep that got you so frightened?"

"I dreamt about you and your freaky face," I grumbled, shifting in my seat so that I was facing the front properly. Apparently, I had just missed half of Chemistry and am proceeding into Literature now.

"No really, what were you dreaming about? You were frowning the whole time," Shinbae explained, a concerned expression on her face replacing the amused one before.

I'm not sure why she should be, or maybe I did. She had been noticing me frowning in my sleep a lot more often these days, and has been asking me about it. I could never bring myself to tell her what I was dreaming about though, and I don't understand why either.

Eyes. I've been dreaming about eyes that came in red, in blue, in green. It's been the same ever since three weeks ago, and until now, I just kept pushing it away as a bad dream, or maybe just this unhappiness I have within me for having ordinary black eyes. That could be a possible reason too.

"It's nothing, just a nightmare," I told her, hoping she'd stop pursuing the matter.

"About?"

I looked at her with a dead panned expression. "I already told you. I dreamt of your freaky face, Shin."

This earned a roll of the eyes from Shinbae."Oh, come on. My face is worthy enough to be a dream, not a nightmare. You should be smiling if you even dreamt of me."

I grinned, and she caught on to my playful expression and couldn't help but give me back a smile. I knew then that she had decided to drop the matter.

"So I'll meet you downstairs tonight at seven, okay?" Shinbae confirmed our dinner and movie date.

I nodded and gave her an okay sign with my hands. She waved goodbye and skipped into her boyfriend's arms as I turned the other way to walk back home. Since I was going to be spending the night out, I thought I should at least finish up the homework I had to hand up tomorrow, or else procrastination will be greeting me with open arms when I come home in the middle of the night.

The walk home from school only took me ten minutes by leg, and five minutes by bus. I arrived home just in time to see my brother come out of the shower.

"Why are you home so early?" Daehyun asked, drying his hair with his towel.

"I could ask the same for you," I replied, ignoring his question and walking past him into my bedroom. However, his hand reached out to grab me by my bag strap, and I stumbled back.

Swatting his hands away, I glared at up him."What?"

He raised an eyebrow and tousled my ponytail, in the end causing a few strands to come unloose.

"Hey!" I shouted, punching his arms though that weak hit probably felt like wind blowing on his skin.

"Don't you what me, young lady. Mum told me to tell you she saved some baked rice in the chiller, so just warm it up and have it if you're hungry."

I stared at him expectantly, waiting for him to continue.

"You can go do whatever you want to do now," Daehyun said after that moment of silence.

I gawked at him."That was what you pulled me back for? You could have just told me!"

This earned a smirk from Daehyun, and he shrugged nonchalantly before strutting into the kitchen, calling out after him."And what fun would that be?

I huffed in mild annoyance and stormed into my room. I wasn't exactly mad, but brothers tend to do such nonsensical stuff it drives me insane. He's twenty for god's sake; he should at least act like one and be the role model an elder sibling should be to their eighteen year old sister.

I sighed as soon as I pulled out my work from my bag, the same horrible feeling filling up my heart and mind and every being in me as I stared at the two stacks of Arithmetic worksheet and the blank piece of paper I have to fill up with Literary. Laziness, I acknowledged was what I was feeling now, and gave one last long sigh before picking up a pen and forcing myself to start.

"Just get it over with, Danbi. And then you can play till you drop dead," I mumbled, giving myself my own form of encouragement.

"Talking to yourself won't get you anywhere, kiddo," Daehyun's voice filled my ears, and I turned towards my door to see him leaning against it with a cup of whatever liquid there is inside it in his hands.

"The only thing I need to get anywhere is you. Get out," I say. With a scowl, Daehyun made his way back to his room and I went back to facing the black and white monster.

Four hours and many lazing around moments later, I was done with my homework. It was now eight, and both my parents were home from work, having dinner together with my brother in the kitchen. Because I was going out, I informed my mother not to cook my share.

Moving to find an outfit to wear, I skipped the shower I had planned in mind since I was running late. Picking out a simple jeans and blouse, I later on pulled out my knitted sweater in case for cold moments in the cinema and rushed out of my room.

"Going out with Shinbae, right?" My mother asked as three pair of eyes followed my movements to towards the door.

I nodded in response."I'll be back around, say, two?"

"That late?" My father complained.

"Daddy. It's a midnight movie, what did you expect?" I rolled my eyes as I took a pair of sneakers out of the shoe cabinet.

"Where's all your belongings?" My mum questioned me.

Looking down to my sides, I noticed I haven't prepared a bag. And most importantly, I didn't have my stuff with me. Grinning sheepishly at my mum who sighed and shook her head, I rushed towards my room to grab a duffel bag, dumping all the necessities I would need inside. 

"Can Shinbae walk you home?" My father asked as I came out of my room once again. I paused and looked at him in exasperation.

"Shinbae's a girl, dad!" I cried out.

"I know. But I trust her to take care of herself better than you do," He replied calmly.

My mother and brother laughed at his words, and I couldn't help but crack a smile at that.

"We'll see. I'm going now, okay?" I say and slipped into my shoes, giving them one last wave goodbye before stepping out into the chilly night.

What greeted me was a cool gust of wind, and Shinbae standing by the side of my gate, her arms wrapped around herself in attempts to keep warm. She had on a leather jacket and a red plaited skirt, wearing protective leggings underneath and paired with platform boots. 

"Get out here! It's freezing cold!" She shouted, glaring at me. The red beanie she had on her head stood out against the dark background, and I got a sudden flashback of the dream I had in school today. 

"Nightmare would be a better term," I thought to myself.

"It's not that cold," I teased, knowing full well she was a person with a low cold tolerance.

"Hurry, I'm cold and starving," She says, and linked her arm through mine as soon as I stepped out of my home compound, dragging me towards the bus stop that heads to the local village.

"Don't you think it’s colder than usual tonight though?" Shinbae commented, wrapping her arms around me tighter. I didn't reply to her, only looking up into the night sky, clouded by a blanket of grey and wiped off of its usual twinkle.

I had to agree with her. It was a little colder tonight.

We ate our dinner at the French restaurant along the slightly bustling street and finished watching the latest blockbuster that had been screened at midnight. It was two now, and I remembered telling my parents I'd be back by then. Guess I'll be an hour late.

"Oh god. First the cinema, and when I thought I'd finally be free from the air-con I come out into another one," Shinbae says through chattering teeth.

I laughed and punched her lightly."Don't be such a . I even lent you my sweater!”

"I don't understand how you don't feel cold at all."

"I do," I admitted."I'm just able to bear it better than you do."

"I think it's because you're thick-skinned," Shinbae grinned at her lame attempt of a joke, and I happily helped her to wipe it off by touching my cold hands to her exposed neck. She jerked away with a yelp and glared at me afterwards.

We waited in line with everyone else for the bus to go back to the neighbourhood, and I had to bid farewell to Shinbae first as her stop was earlier than mine.

"Get home safe, yeah?" She said as she sidled past me and turned to walk down the bus. Tossing me back my sweater and giving a curt wave, I waved back and watched as she made her way down. She stood by the side and kept watching me, waving till the bus drove off and we lost sight of each other. Letting out a natural sigh that held no meaning at times like this, I put on my sweater and leaned back into the seat. By the time my stop was here, there were only three passengers left, including me. I pressed the alight button and stood up, making my way towards the entrance and tapped my card. The bus came to a jerking halt, and I gladly made my way down. The stop was four houses away and just around the corner, so I fastened my footsteps, looking forward to plunging under my duvet and into the warmth of my bed. 

When I stepped into the house, a pitch black silence greeted me back. I close the door softly behind me so as not to wake the family, and prodded towards my room. Without closing the door, I dumped my bag on the ground, wiggled out of my sweater and dived under the comfort of my bed. Pulling my duvet all the way to my chin, I huddled underneath it and closed my eyes. With the comfortable silence luring me in, I soon found myself falling into a state of unconsciousness before I knew it.

I woke with a start, my conscious state of mind still replaying images of the eyes that haunted me in my sleep. My eyes focused on the ceiling above me, lingering there as it traced the outline which came as a result of uneven painting. Noises outside my room caused me to shift my gaze, and I sat upright, pushing my unruly hair out of my face.

It was a Friday today, and I found myself getting energized just at the thought of it. With this little shot of energy, I was able to push myself out of bed and make my way out of the room. The first thing that came into view was my father sitting by the dining table, a cup of coffee in front of him and a newspaper in his hand.

"Good morning," I greeted my dad as he greeted me back. I headed off to do my usual washing up, taking a quick shower as I had failed to do so yesterday, and changed into my school uniform.

"You want eggs?" My mum asked from the kitchen as i sat down beside my dad.

"Nah, I'll skip it today," I replied and took a sip of the milk my mum had already placed for me on the table.

My dad closed his newspaper, and I watched as he took off his spectacles and place it into the casing. He then took a sip from his coffee mug, and then placed it back down before catching my gaze on him.

"What?" He asked.

I blinked up at him. He usually doesn't just stop reading his paper midway, but I pushed this minor change aside."Nothing."

My mum placed a plate of toast and ham in front of me, and I immediately dig in. She took a seat opposite me, not touching the cup of tea she had in front of her and instead watched as I ate. My father too watched me, occasionally glancing somewhere else. Swallowing my first mouthful of egg and ham, I frowned at my parents who were acting really weird.

“Is something the matter? You guys are a little out of yourselves today,” I told them, glancing between the two.

My parents look at each other for a measly three seconds before turning away. My father cleared his throat, filling the silence in the empty kitchen and motioned for me to continue eating.

“Eat first. We’ll tell you once your brother comes down,” He says.

“What do you have to tell me?” I asked, curiosity rising in the pits of my stomach. I wasn’t hungry anymore; instead a nervous feeling crept up in my heart as I studied the worried look etched out on both my parent’s faces. They ignored my question, and I stared at them in silence as I waited for my brother to make his appearance. After two minutes, Daehyun finally clambered out of his room with his uniform still ed and took a sit next to me.

“Good morning,” He greeted and his hand immediately shot out to grab his cup of milk. However, my own hand shot out to stop his, and his eyes look at me questioningly before noticing the situation. I watch as his own eyes flickered between both parents before he asked the same thing I did.

“Is something wrong?”

My mother took in a sharp intake of breath, and exhaled with a shaky one. “We’re just going to cut straight to the point, alright?”

My brother and I didn’t bothered replying, and my mother took it as a yes.

“This might come as a surprise to the both of you,” She says, forcing a bright expression.”But after some consideration, we’ve decided to send the both of you to boarding school!”

She said the last few words with as much zest and enthusiasm as she could muster up, but that was not enough to get the reaction she wished for from the both of us. Silence greeted the four of us, half of which was trying to process the information while the other half awaited our response.

“Boarding school?!” I was the first one to break the silence, exclaiming in shock.”What do you mean boarding school? Why? Where?”

“It’s only my second year in college and Danbi’s last year in high school, how can we go to boarding school all of a sudden?” Daehyun questioned with the same appalled tone I had used.

“We just thought that it’d be a nice change, and plus that boarding school allows students from the ages of sixteen to twenty-four to be there, so you guys won’t be alone in the new environment,” My mother explained and looked at us, genuinely apologetic but hoping so badly we’d understand.

“What about you guys?” Daehyun asked.

“We’ll be staying here. The boarding school is just a four hours ride from here, and two hours by plane so it’s not that far,” My father says.

My eyes almost bulged out from its sockets.”Two hours by plane? How is that not far, dad? And you can’t expect us to just leave everything here and fly off to wherever that boarding school is. You didn’t discuss this with us!”

“It’s not far, sweetheart. We’d come visit whenever we can,” He says, and I noticed my mum looking at him sadly when he said that.”There is no need for any discussions. We’ve already signed you up with the school and everything has been confirmed. You’ll be leaving today in the evening, so come back home straight after school to pack your things.”

I opened my mouth but my father fixed me with a stern gaze.”No buts, Danbi. The decision’s final.”

 My pressed my lips together. I wasn’t angry, neither was I annoyed. I was just confused, and very much baffled. Why the sudden decision to send us to boarding school?

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The first chapter is a little boring, I know, and it's even worse since EXO has yet to make their appearance. But I promise they'll appear in the next chapter. I just thought it would be good to let you know about Danbi's life before she gets swept up into a more complicated one. Anyway, boring aside, I still hope you enjoyed this first chapter! ^^