A dusty ceiling greeted her the moment she woke up, the headache quickly kicking in and she closed her eyes. A deep frown formed upon her face, listening to unfamiliar footsteps from all directions.

That was weird. 

She shot upward, groaning loudly as she held her aching head.

The footsteps, however, didn’t stop.

In fact, the variety of the sound grew larger that she could even hear various conversations that she believed happened to not only one place.

“You’re awake.” She was so confused with the new experience that she missed someone stepping into the room.

She then just realized that she was inside an isolated room.

She recognized the woman right away; wavy blond hair, clear eyes, commanding gaze yet kind smile. The customer that frequently came to the cafe she worked at and always sit at the same table.

“I remember you.”

“Glad to know that.” The woman sat cross-legged on one of the empty chairs near the door. “Though that doesn’t stop me from introducing myself.”

“You’re Miss Eunbi.” Minjoo stated, remembering the woman’s name since she has written it numerous times on the woman’s cup every time she visited the cafe.

“But just that.” Eunbi smiled. “You didn’t know that I’m a detective, or that I’ve been watching over you since you were brought here.”

Silence lapsed between them as they stared at each other; Eunbi kept flashing her smile while Minjoo narrowed her eyes.

“And who knows if you remember my friend or not.”

“I also remember her. Miss Sakura, isn’t it? Your friend every time you came to the cafe.”

The smile grew into a wide grin and the woman leaned forward. “She is right.” Eunbi whispered amusedly to herself, “So your power is mind reading?”

Minjoo tilted her head, “What do you mean?”

“I didn’t say anything about my friend, you know. Well, out loud.”

“So you’re saying I read your mind?”

“I didn’t say that out loud either.”

Minjoo turned her eyes to her lap, staring at her two hands in between her legs. Just then she remembered about the voices and sounds still reaching her ears. “What happened to me?”

Eunbi took the map she brought with her and pulled out a document. “Kim Minjoo. What was the last thing you remember?”

“I...I was on my way home. It was pretty late since I had to cover a friend’s shift. Then...I remember someone pushing me to the ground...”

Eunbi waited for a good twenty seconds, taking the silence as a sign that the younger woman didn’t remember any more than that. She put the document on the table. “You were attacked by a serial killer, though you’re just a random victim on his list. Fortunately, someone saved you before he could kill you.”

Minjoo sensed the tensed tone of the older woman. “But?”

“But unfortunately, he attacked your vital organ. You were in a narrow alley and it’d take a long walk to reach the main street so you were bound to lose your life even before the ambulance could reach you.”

Minjoo forced a laugh. “You said that but I’m alive right now.”

“Yeah, which came with a price.”

“What do you mean?”

Eunbi let out a sigh as she turned to the mirror on the wall. She waved her hand, sending some kind of signal and Minjoo realized it might not be a normal mirror.

Two seconds later, the door opened and a man in a police uniform stepped in with a tray of food.

“Aren’t you hungry?” Eunbi asked, gesturing the tray with the bowl of ramyeon put on the bed. “You’ve been unconscious for a week, you know.”

“A week?” Minjoo repeated. Just then something caught her attention and she peeked below the hospital robe she wore. No trace of a scar, let alone any medical treatment on her skin.

“You said he got my vital organ?”

“Yep, a deep stab to the liver.”

“But there’s no scar.”

“Ah, that...” Eunbi turned to the man. He got her message and silently left the room. Upon hearing the door’s closing sound, Eunbi turned to Minjoo, “You’re hungry, right?”

“I do,” Minjoo admitted, feeling the coiling pain in her stomach and throat. Weird, hunger shouldn’t feel like that.

“Why don’t you eat? The ramyeon is still hot, and our canteen’s ramyeon is delicious too.”

Minjoo stared down at the food, watching the steam deliciously tickling her nose with a delicious aroma.

But somehow, Minjoo wasn’t interested despite her sickening hunger.

“Why? Aren’t you hungry?” Eunbi stood up from her chair, walking closer to t