Whimsical
Spirits
My grandmother told me about spirits when I was 15. We lived in a small village in the outskirts of Seoul, I remember desperately wanting to visit the bright and vivacious city my entire life because I couldn’t find joy in living in such a quiet and conserved place. In actuality, I lived in a state of boredom because the secret hidden gems of my town didn’t reveal itself to me until I turned 15.
“Hanbyul, there are spirits in the forest.”
“Spirits?”
Grandma knitted her scarf meticulously; making sure every single stitch was perfect. “Some say they are like people, but we can’t see them.” She began. “There’s a story that’s been passed on from generation to generation for years in this town about a spirit that resides in the forest. Some say he was raised by nature and others say he was abandoned as a young child…and then one day he just…became invisible to the world.”
“What’s his name?”
Grandma shrugged. “No one knows; he’s a spirit.”
“Why are you telling me?”
Grandma chuckled. “No reason, I just thought you’d be old enough to hear this. If you were younger, the Hanbyul I know would’ve spent all her days in the trees trying to find a spirit.”
“That’s true.” I laughed. “What do spirits do?”
“Some believe that they protect you. It’s just a legend, but the story goes that spirits protect you from danger. Things like that, no one’s really sure. I’m positive every family makes up something when they tell their children.”
I knew Sehun was a spirit when my childhood friend asked what I was doing. I saw him in the woods when I was 17, I waved hello and asked if he was new. Sehun looked so surprised.
“Hey there! Did you just move here?”
The boy who stood under a tall tree gasped, even the leaves moved with him. “You…can see me?”
“Of course I can, silly! Did you just move here?”
“I’ve always lived here.”
“Really? That’s weird; I’ve never seen you around.”
He chuckled. “Me too…but if I did, I’m sure I’d remember a face as pretty as yours.”
I scoffed and looked away. “Stop it.” Then I put my hands in my pockets. “What’s your name?”
“Sehun. Yours?”
“Hanbyul.”
I approached him and rolled my eyes when he backed away. “I don’t bite.”
“Neither do I.” He grinned a playful smile and shuffled back with every step I took.
“Playing hard to get?”
Sehun and I dodged each other’s moves for nearly an hour while learning about each other. As if we were playing 21 questions, one asked and one answered.
“Age?” I asked.
“19. You?”
“18. Favorite color?”
“Color?” He raised an eyebrow.
“You know…the trees are green. The sky is blue, the sun is yellow, and the lilies are purple. Colors, like those.”
Sehun looked around. “The sky. You?”
“The lilies.”
“Favorite thing to do?” He asked.
“Reading.”
“Exploring the woods.”
Then I ran towards him and reached out. Even then he dodged me. “Ask me a question.”
“Why can’t I touch you?”
“Because I’ll disappear if you do.”
I stopped and bent over to catch my breath. “Disappear?”
Sehun nodded. “I can’t touch humans, or else I’ll disappear forever.”
By now the day was over and night was approaching. Fireflies danced around him in a medley, everywhere he went, tiny glowing creatures followed. “Humans…?”
Sehun looked at me. “Humans.”
“No way…” The thought that he might be a spirit crept up behind me, yet I still reached out for him; I was curious. We played around for what seemed to be forever until a familiar voice snapped me back into reality.
“Hanbyul! What are you doing?”
I stopped and turned around to see my childhood best friend. Chanyeol walked up the steep hill with his baseball cap pulled over his messy pink hair. He always experimented with odd colors- he told me to be wild for as long as I could before the real world set in because having rainbow hair could be acceptable now but not in the future when you’re working in an office.
He walked up the hill and met me. “Whatcha doin?”
I pointed and turned around. “Trying to catch-“
Sehun wasn’t there.
My hands dropped to my side. Sehun? I looked around and the reality set in- he was who I thought he was…a spirit. “Fireflies, I was trying to catch fireflies.”
Chanyeol raised an eyebrow. “But…you hate bugs?”
“But these are different, they glow!”
He laughed and slung an arm around my shoulder. “Grandma is looking for you!”
I didn’t tell anyone about Sehun. If I could see him, does that mean I could see spirits? I sat in bed and thought about all the people I’ve seen around my tiny town, there were many I’ve seen once and never seen again. Perhaps they were spirits too?
The night was dark and my room was pitch black, it only took one or two fireflies for me to know Sehun was near. Instead of the moonlight that peeked in, glowing creatures hovered against the glass panels. I sat up peeked outside just to see him standing outside my window. I slid the glass up. “Sehun?”
He waved. “Sorry I left so fast.”
“Why did you leave?”
“Because your friend can’t see me…only you can. You must be the girl everyone talks about, the girl who sees spirits.”
“E-Everyone?”
“The trees…the hills…the rocks…the rivers…everyone. You resonate in them.”
I looked at him. “And you’re a spirit…” I whispered.
He nodded at me. “I am.”
“Am I going to see you again?”
Sehun smiled. “Do you want to?” He teased.
“I do.”
“Then you will.”
I stared at him. “Promise?”
“Promise.”
I held up a pinky and so did he, we pretended to swear on the promise before he looked up at me one last time.
“Night, Hanbyul.”
[a/n]: comments are much appreciated! <3 I hope this was good omg
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