There are Five stages to your afterlife. Stage one:

 

Freaking out.

 

Wonwoo couldn't remember how he woke up or how he ended up sitting on his usual seat in the library on his first day.

He glanced over the huge clock that hung above the checkout counter.

It was 2:14.

“Am? Or Pm?” He asked aloud, turning around to see that he was the only soul there.

He walked to the windows and saw the pitch black darkness outside.

“Am.” He answered his own question.

It wasn't the first time he was there after hours. The first time it happened was an accident, he was locked in when he was too engrossed in his book and the careless librarian was totally oblivious to the boy curled up on the seat by the window, reading away.

“hmm must've fallen asleep or something.”

He reasoned out his presence there. The last thing he could remember was riding his bike, heading towards the library. He couldn't exactly remember actually entering the place itself.

He shrugged and strolled towards the fiction section. His finger trailed the spines of the books that were arranged on the shelves.

“Hmm, read this before.. read this before.. this too... yep.. this one too..” His eyes then spotted a book he had yet to read.

“Oh this one is new!”

He slipped it off the shelf and walked towards his favourite seat by the window. He switched on the lamp beside his seat and read away.

As the Sun began to rise, Wonwoo was already reaching the end of the novel.

He was off to pick another book to read when he heard the keys rustling in the keyhole. He picked out a new book and was ready to check it out before heading back towards his dorm.

The librarian who was always on morning duty, Yoon Jeonghan, was used to having Wonwoo greet him inside the library before he even clocked himself in for his shift. Wonwoo happily walked towards the counter, waving at Jeonghan. He was rather disappointed when the older boy looked passed him, not even aware of his presence, despite him calling out for the older boy.

“Hey Hanie! Morning! Hey? Helloooo?” Wonwoo was standing directly in front of the counter, trying to greet his older friend who seems to be completely ignoring him.

“Yah! Hyung! Stop ignoring me.. Hyungg” Wonwoo called out but to no avail, the other boy turned a deaf ear to him.

Feeling hurt and annoyed, Wonwoo slammed the book onto the counter and was ready to turn away and leave.

The loud bang of the book made Jeonghan jump and snap his attention to the book that sat squarely on the counter. Jeonghan looked all over from where he stood, trying to find the punk who was pulling a prank on him.

“Yah! Who is it? Come out and show yourself! Don't think of hiding, coz I'll find you!” Jeonghan threatened.

Jeonghan tries his best to hear any sign of noise that may give away the prankster’s whereabouts. He was only met with silence.

Wonwoo however turned back to face Jeonghan, completely confused.

If this was a some kind of joke that Jeonghan was trying to pull on Wonwoo, then the boy deserves an Oscar. His acting was so on point that it felt as though Wonwoo really wasn't there.

The following words that came from Jeonghan worsened his confusion. He heard the boy muttering softly to himself.

“Maybe it's the ghost of Wonwoo that's haunting this library. He never leaves when he's alive, so it'll be no surprise if he's here after death.”

Jeonghan laughed to himself before slapping himself on the face gently.

“Wait what are you saying Han? It's too soon!” He scolded himself.

The boy let out a sad sigh and headed off to sort out the returned books from last night.

Jeonghan’s words buzzed in his head.

“The ghost of Wonwoo”

He leaned over the counter to check what date it was on the computer when his attention was caught by the school's daily paper that Jeonghan had brought in with him this morning.

The front page bared his face.

Wonwoo had to read the headlines four times to comprehend what it actually said.

“Student, 22, passed away last night in a car accident, whilst the drunk driver is still in a critical condition.”

“WHAT?!” He read through the article over and over again.

“I'm dead?! WHO?! WHAT?! WHERE?! WHEN?! WHY?! HOW?!”

His head starting pounding. Everything around him was spinning.

He dashed out of the library, only to be harshly pulled back into the building once more. Crashing onto the floor, he felt his tears rolling down his cheeks.

He stood up again and tried running straight through the open door, but an invisible force blocked his way and pulled him right back in when he collided with the entrance.

He was totally freaking out.

Glancing around him, Jeonghan was looking totally unaffected, aside from his sad demeanor. He totally couldn't hear nor see what was happening to Wonwoo, who was just a couple of feet away from him.

Wonwoo stood up once more, this time taking slow, shaky steps towards the door. Just inches away from the exit, he reached out, stretching his hand ahead of him slowly.

The exit was blocked. It felt as though there's a barrier in front of him, preventing him from leaving the premises.

“I'm Dead?!”

He didn't know what to do, or how to feel.

He's dead and he's freaking out.

× × × ×

After a few days of freaking out, curling himself up to a ball behind his usual seat, rocking back and forth, trying to come to terms that he was no longer alive, he entered stage two of his afterlife.

 

Reflection.

 

Jeon Wonwoo stood up from where he had spent days crying his eyes out.

He never knew ghosts could have emotions. He always believed that they're just soulless souls, if that even makes any sense.

Wonwoo wrapped his arms around his body, hugging himself tight as he walked around the library. As he traces the spines of the book arranged neatly on the shelves, he groaned inwardly.

“Really Woo? The library? How big of a nerd can you get?” He face palmed himself.

He reflected on his past views of life.

Was books really the thing that matters most to him?

Was he really content with the idea of spending his entire afterlife in a library?

Was he really THAT in love with specifically THIS library?

“Gosh why didn't you ask for something more general like Paris or something? Or at least the largest library in the world?” He sighed, dropping his hand to his side.

× × × ×

Jeon Wonwoo quickly got over stage two of reflection and went straight into stage three.

 

Acceptance.

He sighed and simply shrugged his shoulders.

“Well, I guess if I'm going to be a library ghost, I might as well make my time spent here more meaningful I guess.”

He picked out a new book to read and settled in his usual seat.

One cool thing he found out was that if he held onto a book, no one around him would be seeing a book floating in mid air, with a page flipping periodically.

Only when he placed the book down, would the others around him be able to see the book. This only works for books though, he couldn't pick up a table or even his chair, when he tries to touch it, his hands just goes right through it.

He wonders how he was even able to sit normally when he can't even physically touch the chair.

“I don't understand the logic of the afterlife.”

Wonwoo spent his days hovering about Jeonghan, rearranging the books that his older friend had sloppily stuffed onto the shelves.

And at night, he was slumped on his usual chair, reading the night away.

There was a new librarian who just started working there, three days ago. Wonwoo was sure of himself that he had seen the boy a couple times before he started working.

He remembered the same gorgeous features on the face of the boy who was entirely engrossed in his work, week before the boy started working there.

Wonwoo initially thought that the boy's presence in the library was a one time thing. That he just needed a place for his last minute mugging session.

He was pleasantly surprised to see the same boy slumped over the table with notes piling up around him.

The boy came again the day after that.

And the day after that.

And the following day after that.

Once, Wonwoo had slipped into the seat in front of the boy, interlacing his fingers together under his chin as he watched the boy work. A smile crept up to his face.

“He's cute when he's so focused like that.” He said aloud.

Another thing he learnt about the afterlife was that no one hears you. He could scream in the middle of the library and no one would flinch.

He could stand on a vacant table and start spitting fire with a dope- rap performance and no one would stare at him funny.

Wonwoo noticed the slight change in the boy’s expression, a slight smile tugged the edges of his lips, looking as though he was trying his best to suppress the smile on his face. It was as though he had heard the comment Wonwoo had made.

Wonwoo instinctively slapped his hand over his mouth.

Testing the boy, his voice called out.

“Er.. C-can you hear me?” Wonwoo asked, waving a hand in front of the boy's face.

But the boy in front of him was unphased, returning back to the soft frown on his face as he continued writing his notes.

“Hmm maybe he thought of something happy.”

Wonwoo considered, as he slipped out of the chair and staying as far away from the boy as possible, just for safety measures.

The boy came to the library everyday, almost like clockwork.

It came to a point where Wonwoo realised that Mid term mugging sessions were over but the boy was still coming back to the same seat with a pile of notes scattered about the table. Not that Wonwoo was complaining.

Wonwoo was sure that the boy who unlocked the door of the library for his morning shift was the same boy he had been observing for the past few weeks.

“Well he can't be a book theft if he has the employee set of keys to the library..”

Wonwoo lingered about the boy, watching his every move.

Wonwoo was happily trailing after the boy who was rearranging the books on the shelves when the sound of the the doors opening caught their attention.

“Wahh Mingyu you're early!” Jeonghan says, smiling at the boy who was bowing politely at him.

“I thought I should start cleaning up first so you could have more time to explain things to me.” Mingyu replied.

Wonwoo leaning against the counter, resting his chin on his palm.

“Being able to see such a beauty almost everyday compensates for being stuck here for the rest of eternity.”

Wonwoo followed a routine for the next few days:

Find a new book to read,

Read till the end,

Return the book accordingly,

Help keep the shelves tidy,

Trail Mingyu everywhere he went whenever he was on his shift, till the moment the boy leaves the premises

And repeat.

Wonwoo never tried interacting with the living. He sort of enjoyed the isolation. He also feared that if people found out that there's a ghost haunting the library, they may close it down or something. So he stayed away from any attempts to communicate with the living.

After about two months, he broke his streak.

If there's anything that Jeon Wonwoo can't stand, it's the disrespect towards book. He believes that books deserve to be treated with greater care than how he had treated other human beings (when he was alive).

He was happily following Mingyu around the library during one of his night shifts, occasionally rearranging the books that the Mingyu had sloppily stuffed onto the shelves.

After a while, Wonwoo was starting to get very frustrated by the half assed effort Mingyu was had put in the arrangements of the books.

Some weren't in alphabetical order, while others were not following the same direction, with the other ends showing and not the spines. Wonwoo let out a puff of air out of frustration, grumbling to himself as he corrected Mingyu’s mistakes.

Mingyu was too distracted with the song he was blasting out to give his full attention to his work. The boy was joyfully spinning around, belting out the lyrics, off pitch and out of tune. Wonwoo’s frustration was starting to disappear, seeing how adorably happy the boy was.

As he was too engrossed with the music, he had tripped over his own two feet, scattering the pile books that he was holding onto. Wonwoo winced as he watched the books collided with the cold hard floor. He scowled but was ready to brush it off, seeing how it was unintentional.

Mingyu groaned in pain as he pushed himself off the floor.

“Aish!” He let out a sigh of frustration as he looked at the scatter of books on the floor.

Mingyu carelessly picked up the book closest to him, not caring that he had accidentally folded the cover page, creating an unsightly crease right across the front page.

Wonwoo was triggered.

That utter disrespect was appalling, Mingyu went from a 10 to a straight -75.

Wonwoo burst out,

“GODDAMIT CAN'T YOU JUST BE CAREFUL?! LOOK AT THAT HORRENDOUS CREASE YOU'VE CREATED WITH YOUR DISGUSTING HAND! HOW DARE YOU TREAT BOOKS SO CARELESSLY?! IT WAS BAD ENOUGH THAT YOU DIDN'T ARRANGE THE BOOKS ON THE SHELVES PROPERLY! IT'S BAD ENOUGH THAT A CLUMSY GIANT LIKE YOU CAN'T WALK PROPERLY THAT YOU DROP THOSE PRECIOUS BOOKS. WAS IT SO HARD TO JUST PICK THEM UP PROPERLY?! CAN'T YOU JUST LIFT IT OFF THE GROUND GENTLY AFTER DROPPING THEM ONTO THE DIRTY FLOOR?!”

Mingyu fell back onto the floor in shock. He stared up to Wonwoo who was glaring down at him.

There was a moment of silence after Wonwoo had unleashed his rage. Mingyu’s voice broke the silence.

“So.. Like… What..? Are you the ghost of this library who'll avenge all the mistreated books?” a playful smirk tugged the side of Mingyu’s lips.

Wonwoo realises that at that moment, he could be seen.

“Was it the powerful rage that allows me to be visible?”

Wonwoo took a step back, confused with the situation. He eyed the boy who was still staring up at him.

Mingyu’s words finally processed in his mind.

“Ghost of the library who'll avenge mistreated books.”

The thought of being just a ghost who haunts a library was lame enough. To have the title of an avenger of mistreated books was tenfolds worse.

So, Wonwoo did what he'd always do in a situation like this.

He ran for it.

He didn't go far, just hid himself behind the bookshelf. His cheeks were flushed from the embarrassment. He continued watching Mingyu from where he hid. The boy had lost his smirk and it was replaced by guilt.

Mingyu stood up and brushed the dirt off his pants.

“Awe come back ghostie. I didn't mean to offend you..”

The boy looked around all over and was disappointed that Wonwoo persisted on staying hidden. The boy thought to himself for a moment before calling out once more.

“Wait how do I do this.. Spirit of this library.. if you're listening to this, show yourself..”

Mingyu waved his hands theatrically trying his best to mimic those ghost whisperers he had seen in the movies. Wonwoo quietly snickered to himself. The boy was honestly looking so ridiculous right now.

No wonder those people who go around looking for ghosts constantly fails, they really look stupid like that.

Mingyu’s hands fell to his sides when his second attempt had failed to make Wonwoo come back. He sighed before turning back to the scattered books.

“Well, just so you know.. If you are even listening, I didn't mean to ill treat the book. It was just an accident.”

Wonwoo watched as the boy gently picked up the book he had destroyed with extreme care. He could see that Mingyu was faking it for his sake. He was somehow feeling touched at the effort.

“Oh My God. Am I really falling for his trick now? He practically destroyed the book just a moment ago. There's nothing he could do to redeem himself.” Wonwoo thought to himself as he continued watching the other boy.

Mingyu pressed hard along the crease he had formed across the cover page with thumbs in an attempt to iron it out. Giving up, he placed it onto the nearby table and carried on picking up the rest of the books. He dusted each one of them before piling them back up once more and heading off to sort them out.

“Awe well at least he tried.. That's cute..”

Wonwoo stayed aways from Mingyu, afraid that he'd snap and suddenly be visible again.

Even if he did missed human interactions, the didn't want to be regarded as a library ghost. So his petty, and stubborn self stayed hidden away.

He spent his days and nights reading away at the window letch that was large enough for him to comfortably sit on and high enough to be hidden out of sight.

× × × ×

Wonwoo was doing a fantastic job of hiding himself, till he entered stage four of his afterlife.

 

Boredom.

Wonwoo caved in after a whole month of staying hidden. He barged into the staff-only room where Mingyu was sorting out the computer usage records.

“Mingyu I'm bored. I've read all the books here and it's been two weeks since I've found something new to read. Aside from those disgusting Sci Fi books, I've read all of them.”

Mingyu’s jaw fell.

“All of them? But there are about at least 7 thousand books in this library you can't possibly have read all of them.”

“Kim Mingyu. Listen to me. When I was alive, I've read almost half of the books in this library. And I've been dead for about four months now, and FYI, ghosts can't sleep. So day and night I've finished reading those I didn't manage to complete while my heart was still beating. So now yes. I've completed both fiction and nonfiction. Well like I've said, aside from those horrendous Sci Fi genre.”

Mingyu smirked at that comment.

“Oh don't lie about hating Sci Fi. I saw you two weeks ago with your nose buried deep in that, ‘Dune’ novel by Frank Herbert. You may not have realised it but that book lies under the genre of Sci Fi. And you can't even pretend that you don't like it because I watched you frantically look all over for the sequel but to no avail. That's coz you didn't check the genre it was meant to be placed under. SCIENCE. FICTION.”

Just as Wonwoo began protesting, his words fell as he finally digested Mingyu’s words.

“Well that was dif- Wait. Did you just said that you ‘saw me two weeks ago’?” Wonwoo gave Mingyu a confused look.

Mingyu’s eyes grew wide. He instantly covered his mouth with both of his hands.

“You mean that… All this while… You can… See me?” Wonwoo’s words were carefully said, trying to understand the situation.

Mingyu guiltily nodded his head.

“You mean all this time, I've been trailing him and drooling over him… HE CAN SEE ME?!”

It finally dawned upon Wonwoo.

“Wait then can you hear me as well?!” He frantically searched Mingyu’s face for answers.

Once again, the boy nodded his head.

Wonwoo’s face flushed as embarrassment sets in. He his heels and made a dash for it out of the room.

“Damn it! All this while he knew I was crushing over him. God how embarrassing!”

Wonwoo said as he buried his face into his palms.

He was sitting atop of the third bookshelf on the second floor. He didn't wanna be seen by Mingyu because of all the humiliation. All those embarrassing things he had done, like bloody performed a serenade for the boy in the middle of the library was all heard and seen by the boy it was secretly meant for.

If he wasn't already dead, he would've wished for death right at this moment.

Wonwoo stayed hidden for several days. Mingyu constantly tried calling out for the boy, begging him to come out of his hiding, but Wonwoo resisted and continued staying out of sight.

Four days in, Mingyu gave up and decided to to go for drastic measures and threaten Wonwoo to show himself.

It was another one of his night shift.

He stood at the foot of the stairs, holding a book in the air with one hand and a lighter in another.

“Jeon Wonwoo this is my warning to you. If you don't show yourself now, I will burn this book down. And that is not all, if you are persistent in shying away, I will dog-ear each and every book in this goddamn library.”

Wonwoo appeared behind Mingyu and smacked the lighter out of the boy's hand.

That was the first physical contact he had ever made with a living thing in months. God how he misses it.

He crosses his arms across his chest and pouted.

“You don't have to go all barbaric. It's your fault anyways. You pretended that you couldn't see me. Why?”

Mingyu ignored the accusation and waved off the question.

“That's a question for another day. Now, you have some reading to do.” Mingyu tossed the book he was using to threaten Wonwoo.

‘Dune Messiah’ by Frank Herbert. It was the second book in his Dune series which had consisted of six novels. It was the one Wonwoo was desperately searching for.

“I'm doing you a huge favour here. This campus library doesn't carry that collection anymore, so I'm smuggling this from the national library. Once you're done with it, you can return it back to me and I'll get you the next one.” Mingyu smiled before turning away, carrying on with his work duties.

So that's how Wonwoo settles his boredom. Mingyu would be his book dealer and smuggle in more books for him to read.

After getting over the boredom stage, Wonwoo settles in the final Stage of his Afterlife.

 

Content.