IMPORTANT: The second part of this chapter is pretty angsty (contains mentions of depression, suicide, and self-harm) If you are sensitive to thse topics, please stop reading after the first half.

"It's just a small fever, nothing to worry about." Mrs Choi removed her hand from Su Ji's slightly hot forehead.

"That's what I've been telling her since yesterday!" said Grandma. "But she keeps saying that she's really sick!"

"Grandma," whined Su Ji. "Shh!"
Mrs Choi laughed. "Don't want to go to school on Monday do you?"
"It's not bad," said Su Ji truthfully. "Ah, do you know anything about this boy called Kim Namjoon?" she asked, suddenly remembering that he lived in this neighborhood.

Mrs Choi knitted her brows together. "Namjoon? Hmm... " Her face suddenly paled. "Why are you asking me about him?" she asked urgently in a low voice, so Grandma wouldn't hear from outside in the garden. "What is he doiong to you?"
"Nothing," said Su Ji, surprised at this reaction. "He and I were assigned to be partners... and I heard he lives in this neighborhood-"
"Yes, he does." Her tone was bitter. "From what I know... he lives alone."
"Oh," said Su Ji. She couldn't imagine living right now all by herself. "Are his parents dead-"
"I don't know," said Mrs Choi briskly. "But anyway, the day he moved in this village was a curse."
"A curse?" said Su Ji sceptically. Wow, what did Namjoon do to merit those words? Maybe he was one of those bad boys who annoyed the poor neighbors – but she couldn't imagine the uptight Kim Namjoon overturning garbage bins or toilet papering anyone's house.
"That's right." Mrs Choi's eyes were sharp and full of resentment. "If he had not moved here, my husband would not have died."
Su Ji's heart skipped a beat. What did this mean? What would Namjoon have to do with Mr Choi's death? And above all, why was Mrs Choi saying this to her? As far as Su Ji knew, Mr Choi had died in an accident.
"You saw the wolf," said Mrs Choi, as if reading her thoughts. "I saw one too. Believe me, there is a reason why we see them." Her eyes filled with tears and she hastily wiped them away.

"What do you mean?" asked Su Ji.

"You'll see. No, actually I hope you won't see. Su Ji, there are two kinds of worlds: the world of the hunter, and the world of the hunted. Don't caught between them"
"Mrs Choi..."
"I didn't come here just for a simple visit – I came because you saw the wolf. I need to tell you this: in a few days, or weeks, or even months, something might happen. You cannot fight it, and it in fact you'll be happier if you simply accept it."

"I don't-"
"It might not happen, though," said Mrs Choi briskly. "So don't worry too much about anything." Her face had regained a bit of it's color.

Grandma came in, wiping the dirt off her hands on her work-pants and started chatting with them. Su Ji was still a bit shaken by Mrs Choi's reaction to Namjoon, but she tried her best to join in the converstaion.

She hated to admit it, but she was relieved when Mrs Choi finally left. It was a pity; Mrs Choi had seemed like a nice, normal person – even though she looked like a librarian.

"She's a very lonely person," suddenly commented Grandma.

"Who?"
"Mrs Choi. Ever since her husband died... well, she hasn't been the same. She can say some very odd things sometimes too."
Su Ji nodded. Oh yeah, they were odd all right...

Feeling stuffy after being cooped up indoors all day, Su Ji decided to go out for a short walk, just to stretch her legs.

After pulling on her coat, she slowly strolled up the path that led to the woods, but did not go inside. It still seemed intimidating...

Her eyes searched for a sign of white, but the only colours were the browns and reds of autumn.

"What are you doing here?"
A deep voice made her jump slightly; it was Namjoon. He had his arms crossed and wore a very disapproving expression.

"What are you doing here?" he asked again.

"N-nothing," muttered Su Ji, looking away.

"Don't tell me that," he said dryly.

"What about you?" she challenged.

"I live there." He pointed at the house opposite them.

"Oh."
"How's your fever?"
"Better, I guess."
"Good. So you can do the research I told you to do."
She shot him a dirty look, which he ignored. He just said, "Do you want to read the notes I prepared?"
"What?"

"Why are you so surprised? I'm not always that mean? I made some notes, you can read them."
"Thanks..." said Su Ji, slightly stunned. What happened to the whole no-mooching off of him lecture?
He cleared his throat gruffly and ran his hand through his hair, clearly embarrassed. "Um, well... come to my house, I'll get it for you."
Su Ji nodded, still slightly stunned, and followed him across the road to his house.

It was small – smaller than the one she lived in right now with Grandma. He awkwardly opened the door and she stepped in. It was immaculately clean. Not a speck of dust or even a crooked cushion on the couch could be seen.

"It's kinda messy, I know," he said. "Hold on..."

Messy? This place was far from messy...

He disappeared and returned about thirty seconds later, holding a lage blue notebook. He held it out, and said gruffly, "Here."
She accepted it. "Um, where are your parents?"
"Don't have any."
She could have bitten her tongue off – stupid, she should have known better not to ask! - and after about five more minutes of weird and strained conversation, she was out of there, hurrying back home.

Urghhh, so awkward...

And yet, she felt something stirring deep within her – maybe it was something close to pity... and she had no idea why she felt that.

She accidentally dropped the notebook, and after desperately looking around to make sure that Namjoon had not seen that, she picked it up. Papers had fallen out, and she hastened to collect them as well. One of them, however, caught her eye. Namjoon had written, in his clear, precise handwriting, a passage from the novel. It was when the main character, Atticus Finch, was speaking to h