Jungyeon paces in her office room. She relaxes the moment Jihyo steps inside, but the latter’s eyebrows raise at the sight.

“You look like .”

“Shut up,” Jungyeon answers. “I need to tell you something,”

“And what is it, Co - CEO? May I remind you we have tons of work hanging and -”

Jungyeon frowns. “ - Just a minute.”

Jihyo looks at her for a second, then shrugs. “Okay,”

Jungyeon starts telling her everything about the recurring dreams. From the first to the last one. From the girl to the pain and from the room to the clothes.

Jihyo looks at her, pensively.

“Is it just in black and white then?”

“Yes!” Jungyeon frustratedly answers, desperate for explanation of what’s happening to her. “I- I mean it is, safe from her lips.”

Jihyo hums.

“Yesterday was too much Jihyo, I need to know what these dreams mean.”

“Did you try looking up on the internet?”

Oh right, internet. “I didn’t.”

“Then that’s settled.” Jihyo stands up. Jungyeon watches her walk toward the doors. Huge and imposing.

“Look it up first. I’ll keep you on about what I find.”

“Thanks.”

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Jungyeon declines Jihyo’s offer to go to another of Jinyoung’s party. Declines Chaeyoung’s offer to crash a party of hers where she’ll be the DJ of the night. Declines Momo’s calls.

How does it feel?

She wrote that on the closest piece of paper she could find with the closest pen she could find.

She doesn’t stare outside the glass wall to look above the city like usual.

Jungyeon sits on her couch and reflects on the words.

How does it feel?

She was only dressed in black after she did that. That means that her dreams are related to what happens in her life.

Now that she thinks about it, the first dream occurred the night she first asked herself: what am I doing with my life? Am I happy doing what I do? Should I stop?

Then it happened on that night, she fell asleep, and the first dream happened.

Jungyeon isn’t at all feeling good about that fact.

Does that mean that the girl is real too? Or just a fruit of her imagination?

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The same girl, in the same white room, is walking on an endless white ocean, on the tip of her toes.

Jungyeon is standing on the side, watching her. The girl walks until their eyes meet.

This time, she can feel her legs. She doesn’t hesitate, she walks forward. The girl walks to her.
They meet in the center. Jungyeon’s chest burns when the girl stares at her, right in her eyes. She feels ashamed, for a second, for a reason she has no idea of.

“I’m sorry.” She whispers.

The girl looks down. Jungyeon notices the shadows forming all around them. They’re surrounded by people, the room turns oddly dark, Jungyeon thinks of a party, and the girl is getting more and more distant.

“Don’t leave!” Jungyeon calls out and reaches out to grasp her. The girl is still staring at her, and dark shadows trail their hands on Jungyeon’s arms, shoulders, chest, lopsided smiles piercing through their faces as if to seduce her.

She doesn’t want any of them. She wants the girl.

“Hey!” She screams, eyes not leaving the girl’s. A name flashes in her mind.

“Nayeon!” She yells this time, and everything stops. Her eyes go wide. “Nayeon?”

“That’s my name,” The girl finally speaks, woken up from her reverie. “I’m Nayeon!”

Jungyeon blinks and they’re back to where they were. Face to face. “Nayeon…”

“It’s coming.” The girl whispers urgently as she looks behind Jungyeon. Jungyeon can’t turn around.

“So you’re Nayeon…”

Nayeon’s eyes turn from urgent to panicked as she glances behind Jungyeon’s shoulder.

“What’s wrong?”

“It wants you, it’s getting closer it’s--”

Jungyeon doesn’t understand what she is saying. “Why? What’s happening?”

Nayeon gasps and launches forward, wrapping her arms around Jungyeon. A second later, they’re submerged by water. Jungyeon feels her body get submerged. It’s dark all around them. They’re in the water, but it’s dark, abyssal.

She looks down at Nayeon, who’s holding her with all her might. Her eyelids are shut tight.

She’s not used to this.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Jungyeon furiously scribbles the name on her notebook. Nayeon. Nayeon, Nayeon.

If the girl isn’t real, then why does her touch feel so vivid on her skin? It’s haunting. She doesn’t dare look up her name on the net, what if she’s really real?

Her intercom rings and she stands up with a small frown; who could call at this time?

Jihyo’s face flashes on the intercom screen, a big and sheepish smile baring her cute dwarf tooth.
Jungyeon pushes the button open and leaves the door ajar for the girl to get inside once she gets on her level.

“Is there anyone?” Jihyo immediately asks when she steps inside, closing the door behind her and settling in like it’s her own flat. It is, in a way.

“No,” Jungyeon answers without looking up from her notebook.

“There’s this party the day after tomorrow.” Jihyo starts immediately after. Jungyeon is about to protest when the girl goes on. “No refusal, we’re going as representatives. It’s more like a business meeting coupled with music and entertainers.”

Jungyeon groans. “Do I have to?”

“Why do I feel like I’m sharing this business with a child,” Jihyo merries as she sits on the couch beside her.

Jungyeon doesn’t answer to the mocking dart. “Her name is Nayeon,”

“Who?”

“The girl, Nayeon.”

“Which one? From last week or the blonde?”

Jungyeon turns to Jihyo with a disgusted expression on her face. “No. The dream girl.”

Jihyo raises a single eyebrow. “You’ve gone crazy.”

“Maybe.” Jungyeon mutters under her breath. What if? It’s all she can think about. What if this? What if that?

What if … What if what?

She doesn’t realize Jihyo has been staring at her in silence. “I know a movie we could watch,”

Jungyeon looks up from the notebook. She finds Jihyo biting her lips, a cheer hanging in the air.

With a sigh, she flicks her remote to Jihyo, who catches it swiftly.

“Movie night!” Jihyo cheers the moment the word Netflix vibrates on red font on the flat-screen.

“Put it on, you know my password.”

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The same girl, in the same white room, is walking on an endless white ocean, on the tip of her toes.

Nayeon is standing in front of her.

“Nayeon,” Jungyeon starts. “Are you real?” Her voice sounds distant and somewhat shaky.

Nayeon looks at her in confusion. “If you’re real, then I’m real.”

Jungyeon heaves in. She feels the air in her lungs escape her. Her breath runs short.

Nayeon takes a step closer to her. She raises her hand up to her cheek.

Jungyeon leans into the touch.

It feels so real...

“Let me help you,” Nayeon says. “Meet me, and let me help you.”

“Where?”

Nayeon frowns, looks away, “I don’t know.”

Jungyeon’s head hurts when she tries to think of something. The white light starts getting strong. She squints.

“We will.” Jungyeon declares, a little rushed. She reaches out for Nayeon. She wants to feel her under the tips of her fingers.

The light gets too strong before she can do anything about it.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________