[May 26^th, 2017]

And that night, the sea called her name.

Ye Seul walked slowly, her eyes glazed over with a distant look of yearning, towards the very beach that she had walked upon the day she had turned human.

She continued to walk towards the light that beckoned from a distance out of reach—a distance beyond the waters. The light was a soft, barely visible orb of sorrow that glimmered ever so slightly above the darkness of the night sea. And when her feet came to a stop, she realized that the warm water was slightly sitting above her waist. 

Then the serene ripples that lapped gently against her skin ceased to move and the water was as still as death itself. The only thing she could hear was the sound of her own breath—shallow and lighter than air. The waters then lit up in a uniform manner, like an old movie screen projector that suddenly coughed to life. A stream of memories—even those she had forgotten even existed—began to play, one by one.

The first time her mother had told her that she had made her proud—the heartwarming way that her eyes had crinkled into crescents as she patted her daughter's head, a grin stretching ear from ear. 

The time her brother, who had always and bothered her, had cried and told her that she couldn’t die. He had woken her up at the brink of dawn, his eyes filled with tears as he told her about the bone chilling nightmare. Oh, how much he had cried that day.  

The countless nights that her parents would stay up at night worrying about what the doctor had said. Her mother, especially, had always been worried sick. 

The early mornings her father would wake up just to prepare a hearty meal for her before leaving to work. He had gotten up far earlier than the hour that the first traces of sunlight would leak into the water, rubbing the sleep from his eyes as he began to get ready.  

Her tenth birthday party, when her mother had surprised her with the gift she had been wanting for years. The ten-year-old Ye Seul had been a beaming ray of sunshine, with full cheeks and a joyous smile as she twirled her hand in the air, admiring the custom made ring her mother had gifted her with. 

The times her parents had come in while she was asleep to kiss her forehead goodnight. Even after a night of arguments, when Ye Seul went to bed with tear filled eyes and an unsaid apology lodged in after all the vile things she had impulsively said, her parents had kissed her goodnight, as if that night would be the very last. 

Her eyes began to brim with tears as the tape of nostalgia continued to unreel before her. And that was when she realized it. She had, for the past nineteen years, been loved. She had been happy. She had smiled and laughed, far more than she could remember. Her parents had always wanted the best for her, and her brother had always looked up to her. 

And now… within one month… these precious memories would cease to exist. They would be wiped from her mind, only to become one with the waters when her body turned to foam.

It’s… not fair.

She began to sob now, her tears quietly hitting the surface of the water before disappearing.

Mom… Dad… And yes, even you annoying little brother… I miss you so much.

She dropped to her knees, completely submerging herself into the water as the last of the memories faded to nothing. The waters resumed their repetitive, yet calming motions once again.

I can’t…

And then she thought of Hoseok.

The very first meeting they had—how he had been kind enough to let a complete stranger stay the night.

How he had never judged her weird antics—how he had always tried to understand her instead.

The countless times he had always tried to make her laugh and smile when she was sad for reasons she could never tell him.

His smile that was bright and warm enough to change a rainy day into a sunny one.

I can’t … Not to Hoseok…

And for the first time in her entire life, her heart genuinely ached with something far more than just sadness.

If she couldn’t kill him, she would kill herself.

By breaking his heart and trying to forget him. By disappearing from his life.

If she were to truly die, at least... he wouldn’t know.

--

[May 30^th, 2017]

Hoseok waited outside the classroom, his hands lodged deep in his pockets as a thin tune escaped his lips in the form of a low hum. After a long moment, he gazed into the classroom, wondering why she was taking so long. She slowly placed her notebook into her backpack and headed towards the door. There was something about the way her shoulders drooped and the way her lips lacked their usual smile. Her eyes were lackluster, void of happiness.  

“Ye Seul!” He called as she exited the room, waving his hand excitedly in the air towards the female. 

She walked past him, without a trace of any emotion on her features.  

Hoseok's smile faltered completely for a brief moment before it appeared again, in the form of confusion. Then it slowly melted to a frown as he watched her figure melt away into the crowd. It felt as if someone had poured a bucket of cold water over his head. 

Perhaps she had not heard him.

[June 3^rd, 2017]

He furrowed his brows in frustrated confusion as he ran his fingers through his hair. If stress had a tangible form, it would have, in the very moment, been Jung Hoseok.  

“Not going to eat?” Yoongi asked quietly, motioning towards his container of untouched food.

He pushed the lunchbox further away from him, weakly shaking his head.

“I…”

“What’s wrong?”

“Ye Seul… She completely ignored me today. Just like yesterday and the day before.”

“I told you she was no good for you,” Taehyung interjected with a bitter frown. “She’s… not normal.”

Hoseok slammed his hand onto the table. “How is she not—” He inhaled sharply, gritting his teeth in the process. “Normal?”

Taehyung raised his brows in slight surprise— it wasn't often that he saw Hoseok so frustrated. It was a startling contrast to the smile that he was so used to seeing all the time. Then Taehyung shrugged. “She’s that old and yet seems to be amazed at every single little thing? Seems like—”

“I must have done something wrong.”

Yoongi rubbed his chin, lost in thought. His voice was low and contemplative when he spoke, his eyes narrowed in a pensive manner. “Say…”

“Huh?”

“Did she tell you she was going somewhere?”

“No?”

“I don’t know… It’s just strange that she wasn’t carrying anything today. No backpack. No books. Emptyhanded.”

“What?”

“Huh… I guess that’s true. Maybe she’s transferring somewhere,” Taehyung muttered. 

“Leaving? Without saying a word? Just like that?”

Jungkook walked over, his tray bustling with a huge load of French fries. He grinned and tilted his head in confusion as he placed the tray onto the table, assessing the seriousness of the conversation.

“What’s going—?”

“I’m going to find her,” Hoseok stated abruptly as he rose from his seat and exited the cafeteria.

“Who? Ye Seul?” Jungkook asked with a frown as he munched on a fry.

Namjoon stole a fry from the boy and nodded grimly. “I guess they got into a fight or something.”

Jungkook blinked. 

“I saw her in the elevator of the sports building just now. I think she was going to the pool…?”