Krystal's POV

"Oh my god. You really did it."

I was engulfed into a hug from Sulli while trying to adjust to the brightness that had entered my eyes since the haunted house was quite dim. Once my eyesight had readjusted, I saw that Luna, Amber and Ailee were looking at me. Sulli still had her arms wrapped around my waist as we walked up to them.

"That's awesome." Amber had a proud smile on her face. "You're the only girl that I know who was able to go through a haunted house all by yourself."

I knew I should have felt happy that Amber was praising me but all I could do was just to smile and quickly gestured to them to leave the place. While we were walking away from the haunted house, coincidentally we met up with Unnie's group just a few metres away.

"Hey, what are you all doing here?" Tiffany-unnie asked as Amber answered that we had just finished walking through the haunted house. "Really? Was it scary? Did you all go in as a group?"

"It was not that bad. But you should have seen Krystal. She went in all by herself." Sulli answered, causing Jessica-unnie to frown as she looked at me. 

"Alone? Really?" I saw the disbelief look in Jessica-unnie's eyes as she arched her eyebrow at me. "Why was she alone, by the way?"

Luna decided to explain everything as I saw Unnie glaring at Amber. There's a possiblity that Unnie was not happy with Amber for her suggestion to play the scissors-paper-stone which resulted in me without a partner.

"You should have gone in as a group. It's safer that way. Anything could have happened to Krystal." Sooyoung-unnie said.

"I think if Eunjin was here, even if all 12 of us went in as a group, she won't want to do it." Yuri-unnie said with a chuckle. 

"She's really that scared?" Taeyeon-unnie asked as Yoona-unnie and Yuri-unnie nodded their heads. "With her current condition, I believe it's going to be worse."

I saw Taeyeon-unnie using her hands to show a gesture that showed like an example of an enclosed area as the Kwon siblings and Sooyoung-unnie nodded their heads.

"What condition is she having?' I blurted out the thoughts in my head as everyone looked at me. "I mean, Eunjin-unnie."

"Just some minor condition." Yuri-unnie answered vaguely before she smiled. "But I can bet my whole savings that she will never step in to any haunted house her whole life. She fainted once when me and Yoona did a ghost prank on her when we were all very young. Both of us received scoldings from our parents because of that."

"But we're not really sure if she's still scared after all these years. By the way, where is that girl? Which toilet did she even go to?" Yoona-unnie said before explaining to us that Eunjin-unnie had went off to look for the Ladies while the rest of them had went to the carpark to keep their shopping bags in their cars. She also said that they had tried calling her but there was no answer. "I'll try and give her a call again."

I turned back to look at the haunted house exit while biting my lips, praying that someone would be fine.

(Flashback 15mins ago)

I didn't move at all as I tried to adjust to the darkness of the room. I noticed that I was in an empty space between the entrance door and an opening, where the journey through the haunted house would actually start.

'Should I just go out?' I thought to myself as I started to hear all sort of eerie sounds coming from the opening in front of me. I started to imagine that something scary would appear suddenly out of nowhere as I took a few steps back.

"Ahhhh!!" I shouted in fear when I realised that there was a figure behind me.

"Ssshhh.. sshhh.. It's me, Eunjin."

I heard the familiar voice and noticed the familiar clothings but the lights were very dim and I couldn't really see her face clearly. It was only when she leaned closer and smiled that I instantly knew that it was really her. I was so surprised when a loud wailing sound was heard that I accidentally grabbed Eunjin-unnnie's shirt and buried my face into her shoulders.

"Aigoo.. why do you even enter this place when you're that scared?" I heard her mumbling as I let go of her shirt.

"I had no choice. I have to complete this." I replied as I bite my lips, thinking if I could actually manage to do so.

"Just to impress someone?" I heard what she said and was about to rebutt when she continued talking. "Let's just get this over and done with."

Both of us stood near the opening as we took a deep breathe. There were all sorts of lightings inside, producing a really eerie environment as the wailings and background music added on to the atmosphere. I took a step back as the fear in me returned but Eunjin-unnie pulled me closer.

"Stay close to me. If it gets too scary for you, close your eyes and stay still. I promise you that we will reach the exit. One way or another." Eunjin-unnie said as I just nodded my head at her instructions. 

I felt like dying when we started walking in as things and figures appeared out of nowhere, some even reaching out their hands to touch me. It came to a point that I was so scared, I just closed my eyes and froze on the spot. Eunjin-unnie must have felt it when I didn't moved at all. Suddenly, I shouted when I felt my legs being lifted off the ground. I heard Eunjin-unnie's voice telling me that everything would be okay.

It was then that I realised she was carrying me in a bridal style. My arms automatically wrapped around her neck as I felt cool breeze hitting my face. Eunjin-unnie was running towards the exit with me in her arms. I continued to close my eyes until I didn't hear any more eerie sounds.

"You can let go of my neck now." 

I opened my eyes as Eunjin-unnie put me down slowly. I looked around and saw that we were in another empty space ,which was almost similar with the first one which we were in earlier, as Eunjin-unnie pointed to the exit door behind us.

"I can't go out with you because your friends will be waiting outside." She said as she leaned back against the wall.

I noticed that she was panting hard and kept avoiding my eye contact by looking up the ceiling.

"Are you okay?" I asked as she nodded her head but I noticed that her face was very pale. "You don't look so good."

"That's because you're heavy. I'm exhausted." She replied as I gritted my teeth and punched her shoulders lightlly. "Please go out and drag your friends away quickly so that I can leave this place as soon as possible."

(End of flashback)

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'What the hell was I even thinking?' I thought to myself as I gulped down the remaining water from the mineral bottle. I was glad that I had always kept my medication close to me, no matter where I go. 

"Stupid, Eunjin. You could have killed yourself inside."

I scolded myself as I felt the vibrations in my pocket again. Pulling it out, I saw Yoona's name flashing on my phone screen. Taking a deep breathe, I tried to imagine that I was having a stomach upset. 

"Heeellooooo..." I answered the call, purposely lowering my tone of voice and dragging the greetings. 

"Yah, Han Eunjin. Where the hell are you? And what's wrong with your voice?" Yoona's voice echoed from the receiver.

"I'm in the toilet. Stomach upset. Must be something I ate yesterday. Are you guys waiting for me?" I asked while controlling myself from laughing.

"We've been searching for you since 20mins ago. Are you okay? Which toilet are you at?" Yoona asked, her voice becoming a little worried.

"I should be out soon. Tell you what. I'll meet you guys up somewhere, once I'm done." I suggested as Yoona asked me to hold on to the line while she consulted everyone else.

"Okay. We'll wait for you at the indoor ice skating rink." 

The moment Yoona hung up the phone, I sighed in relief as I took a peek from behind the pillar where I was standing. I saw the girls moving of towards the skating rink direction along with Krystal's group. Once again, I saw Krystal turning behind to look at the haunted house exit door which was just a few pillars away from me.

"That's the second time that you're looking back. Are you that worried about me?" I chuckled at my own remarks as I threw the empty bottle away. "Yuri will never believe me if I told her that I had entered a haunted house. But in the first place, what made me do so?"

I shook my head as I recalled what happened earlier.

(Flashback)

After running off by myself to avoid further questionings from Jessica, I wandered around the amusement park. I didn't even know where I was going but I was trying to locate the nearest toilet. When I saw the signage, I followed it and was surprised that it was near the haunted house booth.

"People who go in that house will surely need the toilet. Either before or after going in." I said to myself and was about to walk towards the toilet when I saw a familiar group of girls. "That looks like Krystal and her friends."

From where I was standing, I could see that Krystal was frowning and they seemed to be discussing about something. Amber kept pointing to the haunted house while Ailee was just nodding her head.

"Don't tell me they're really planning to go in? I thought Sica said that Krystal is afraid of ghost?" I mumbled.

I continued watching from a distance as the girls started playing scissors-paper-stone. Ailee then hugged Amber excitedly after both of them threw out the scissors sign while Luna and Sulli looked at their hands which showed the paper sign. Only Krystal was the odd one out with the rock sign. Ailee and Amber proceeded to the entrance door and waved at the other 3 girls before walking through the door. 

I didn't know why I took the risk to walk closer to them but at the same time, trying my best to keep away from their sight. I noticed Krystal shaking her head and after 5mins, Luna and Sulli walked nearer to the entrance door.

'Wait... Don't tell me they're leaving Krystal by herself? Or maybe she's not taking part and will meet them at the other end?'

Those thoughts came to my mind but I was surprised when I saw Krystal walking towards the staff at the entrance door and handed her ticket to him. I saw her standing still and closing her eyes, taking in a few deep breathe as she placed her hands on the door before pushing it.

I should have just walked away but instead, I went to the booth and bought an entrance ticket to the haunted house. Walking to the staff to hand him my ticket, I rubbed both my hands and sighed. I could feel my heartbeat getting faster. Truthfully, I was scared. I remembered fainting once when I was 8yrs old when Yuri and Yoona pulled a ghost prank on me. 

"She's crazy to go in by herself." I mumbled to myself. "And I'm crazier to go in, just to ensure that she's going to be fine."

Since I understood that Krystal might be having the same fear, I quickly pushed the door slightly and walked in. In the darkness, the small light from the open door behind helped me to spot Krystal from a distance. She was busy looking at the opening in front of her as her head moved from left to right. She was too focused looking ahead that she didn't noticed me at the back. Suddenly, she walked backwards and knocked into me.

"Ahhh!!!"

I could almost feel my ears going deaf by her high-pitched scream as I told her that it was me. She must have been having trouble trying to look at my face so I leaned forward and smiled. At that moment, a loud wailing sound was heard as she grabbed my shirt and buried her face on my shoulders. My arms automatically went up, intending to hug her but I stopped myself. I was not sure if she could hear the fast beating of my heart as I mumbled my thoughts out.

"Aigoo.. why do you even enter this place when you're that scared?" 

She released her clutch on my shirt and defended her actions. I didn't want to prolong our conversation since I was starting to feel uncomfortable in that space. Not because of her but because of my fear.  Even so, the feeling of wanting to protect her made me feel like I should be braver than her so that she would feel safe. I noticed that she took a few steps back so I took her hands and pulled her closer.

"Stay close to me. If it gets too scary for you, close your eyes and stay still. I promise you that we will reach the exit. One way or another."

Krystal could only nod her head as I looked in front and took a deep breathe. In my head, I kept repeating the phrase of 'Protect Krystal till the end' like a chant as we took our first few steps forward.

I wasn't sure if it was because of the chant or because of Krystal's presence itself but I didn't feel as scared as I thought I would. We made our way quickly through the twist and turns as props appeared out of nowhere. I could feel Krystal squirming beside me as she gasped at certain times. Her body leaned closer to me as we moved further in but then she suddenly stopped. 

At that moment, I knew that she was too scared to even move further so I went nearer and picked her up, bridal style. It was the second time that I pitied my ears when she shouted again.

"Gwenchana. It's just me." Krystal automatically wrapped her arms around my neck after I said that and it was then that I realised the poor girl was trembling.

'I need to bring her out as soon as possible.' I thought to myself as I broke into a run towards the exit. 'Damn it. Why is the walkway getting smaller?'

I started to have difficulties breathing as I ran through the enclosed area. With Krystal in my arms, it was making the situation worse and I was almost out of breathe when I finally came to another empty space and saw the exit door signage.

"You can let go of my neck now." 

I placed her down and pointed to the exit door, telling her that I couldn't go out since her friends would be waiting outside. I looked up at the ceiling while my right hand were rummaging through my front pocket, trying to look for my bottle of blue pills.

"Are you okay?" Krystal asked as I nodded my head. "You don't look so good." 

"That's because you're heavy. I'm exhausted." I replied and received a punch on my shoulders for that. "Please go out and drag your friends away quickly so that I can leave this place as soon as possible."

I really needed her to go out soon so that I could take my medications and calm myself down. I noticed that she wanted to say something but I quickly shoved her to the door as she walked out. The moment the door closed behind her, I took out my medications and swallowed it. Grabbing a bottle of water from my small sling bag that had swung to the back when I ran earlier, I gulped down the drink until it was half-empty.

Closing my eyes to let the medication take effect, it didn't take long for me to open my eyes again as I was surprised by the sound of a loud hysterical laughter out of nowhere. 

"I better get out of here as soon as possible." I told myself as I pushed the door slowly and took a peek outside.

Krystal and her friends had walked a distance away so I carefully slipped out from the door and walked towards a pillar nearby. Since the route to leave the haunted house was only one way, I had to ensure that Krystal and her friends had moved off but they stopped when they met up with the other girls. 

(End of flashback)

************************

10mins later, I was seated beside Yuri with a view of the rink in front of us. Sooyoung and Yoona were busy munching on some snacks while Taeyeon and Tiffany were busy taking selfies of themselves and the surroundings. The 4 of them were seated on the bench behind us while Jessica was seated slightly apart from me and Yuri on the same bench.

"Aren't any of you going to skate?" I asked as the girls started to look at each other. Yuri was about to say something when I stopped her. "I know Seohyun is the only one among the Kwon siblings who can skate well."

I grinned dorkily as Yuri and Yoona pretended to be angry at me before I turned to look at Sooyoung and Taeyeon.

"Don't bother about them. One is as fragile as a paper and the other is just long with no sports capabilities." Yuri answered as Sooyoung almost choked on the water that she was drinking while Tiffany laughed at the pouting Taeyeon.

I was about to join in with the teasing when I saw Jessica waving her hands excitedly towards the skating rink. Following her gaze, I saw Krystal skating by gracefully. I didn't realised that she and her friends were also at the skating rink since I didn't see them when I arrived.

"Krystal's here?" I asked to no one in particular.

"Yes. She came with us along with her friends. By the way, did you know that they went into the haunted house earlier? Krystal went in all by herself, even though she's scared of ghost." Yoona informed me.

"I know." I accidentally replied as Jessica's sudden turn of her head to face me, took me by surprise.

"You know? You were not even around earlier when we met them outside of the haunted house." Jessica asked me as I scratched the back of my head with a silly grin on my expression.

"I mean.. I know they were discussing about going to the haunted house since they talked about it during lunch. I was at their table, remember?" I was praising myself in my head for my quick-witted reply to Jessica, who continued to stare at me as if she didn't really believe my words. "You're not skating?

I decided to quickly change the topic by asking Jessica that question as she shook her head. Yuri nudged me by my shoulders and gestured me to look at the ice rink. I turned and saw Krystal skating towards us and stopped at the edge.

"Aren't any of you going to skate?" She asked as everyone suddenly turned to look at me.

"Wae, wae, wae?" I asked with a confused look while blinking my eyes rapidly. 

"You asked the same question earlier." Tiffany answered. "Actually, we should all try it out since we're already here. We can ask Krystal and her friends to help us if you guys want to."

"Me and Yul-unnie, should be able to skate a little even though we are not as good as Seohyun. I think Eunjin should be able to skate too. Her dad used to bring us to skate when we were younger." Yoona said as everyone looked at me again.

"I did skate when I was in Japan but I stopped when I came back to Seoul." I took a deep breathe when I was suddenly reminded of those times that I spent with Appa.

Yoona must have noticed my reactions as she quickly apologised for bringing it up. I told her that it was fine as Yuri placed her arms on my shoulders.

"We're here for you now. No worries. We can learn together. Let's go and change into our skates." Yuri said as she patted my back and stood up.

************************

"You shouldn't have entered the haunted house if you're scared of ghosts."

I looked at our entwined hands in front of me and smiled as I looked up. Krystal had her normal cold expression as she led me slowly around the rink as a warm-up exercise. I ended up pairing with Krystal since Yoona wanted to skate with Sooyoung and Tiffany, who knew how to skate, was guiding Taeyeon. What was surprising though, was that Jessica had agreed to Yuri's offer to skate together.

"How come your Unnie doesn't know how to skate?" I decided to change the topic as I saw Krystal rolling her eyes.

"She's too lazy to learn." Krystal answered nonchalantly as I nodded my head. 

"You are scared of ghosts too. So if you can enter, why shouldn't I?" I asked as she suddenly stopped. Luckily, I still remembered how to brake my skates during ice skating. "Yah... I almost barge into you."

"It's not going to be the first time if that happens." Krystal's sarcastic reply caused me to shake my head at her. "Just for your info, I'm not going to feel indebted to you just because you helped me out at the haunted house."

"I'm not asking you to feel that way either." I released my hands from her and took a deep breathe. "Thanks. I think I can skate by myself now."

I skated off, leaving Krystal behind even though I was moving cautiously. It's been almost 10yrs since I last skated so I was taking extra cautions with my movements.

"What's wrong with her? One minute she was fine and the next minute, she's throwing daggers at you." I mumbled to myself. 

"Hey, Unnie. Are you going to be okay, skating alone?" Amber appeared from behind with Ailee beside her.

I noticed that both of them had one of their hands around each other's waist as I replied that I'm fine by myself. I told them that I actually knew how to skate but I needed some time to familiarise myself.

"We saw that you were skating with Krystal earlier but then both of you went your separate ways. Is everything okay between the both of you?" Ailee asked with a concerned look.

Just as I was about to answer, Krystal skated past us without even turning behind. Even then, I noticed her pouting cheeks from her side view which caused me to smile.

"Everything is okay. I just didn't want to be a burden to Krystal so I told her that I'll skate by myself." I replied as Ailee and Amber nodded their heads before I told them to carry on skating and not to worry about me.

After both of them left, I stopped by the edge and looked around. From where I was standing, I saw Krystal on the opposite side and just when I was about to move off, I saw her stopping at the edge too. She turned and looked around as if looking for something until her eyes locked on to my direction. She saw that I was looking at her and at that moment, she clasped both hands in front of her and bowed down a little at me before skating off again.

"Aishhh that girl. She's more cold than her sister. But cuter. I think she was jealous of Amber's interactions with Ailee. Too bad for me then." I mumbled to myself after I saw Krystal's gesture. "By the way, was that gesture suppose to be her thanks or was she apologising to me?" 

I chuckled and shook my head before skating off to look for the rest.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(Author's Note)

Wishing my readers, Happy Chinese Year, for those who are celebrating. May the new year be filled with good health and fortune. For those who are not celebrating, Happy Holidays. Take care everyone and thank you for your continuos support. Peace Out.