‘Hey guys! Before the episode starts wanted to say that we filmed this almost literally some days after filming at the Fifth Division Grounds!’

‘We were trying our best to film as much as we could before university started. So that also means!’

‘This was all shot before quarantine was issued!’

‘We hope you guys stay safe wherever you are!

Wear a mask!’

‘And also a massive thank you for last week’s episode! We know we did a whole live on twitter but just wanted to say again, thank you for being so generous, and for not skipping the ads!’

‘Thanks again!’

‘Now please enjoy this excellent video with our good and lovely friend Yongsun-noona!’

‘Yes! And also though I’m sure we say it in the video, please subscribe to her channel!’

‘BYE!’

‘BYEEEE!’

*

‘Wow!’

‘Don’t say it, you always say it-‘

Minseok pans the camera back to Baekhyun who smiles uncomfortably. Minseok purposefully zooms in a bit too much into his face.

‘I hate this place!’

Minseok pans the camera back up to the large condominium building.

‘It’s a building- with at least 100 people living in it, you can’t just say that about every place!’ Jongdae argues, arms crossed, foot tapping aggressively on the pavement.

‘I can and I will,’ Baekhyun replies back as Minseok pans the camera back to the two of them, dressed warmly as an unexpected cold chill settled all over the country. ‘I’m getting uncanny vibes.’

‘Well, I think it makes for wonderful city aesthetics,’ Jongdae points at the camera, ‘City-aesthetics lovers out there, you know exactly what I mean.’

Minseok certainly appreciates the aesthetic Jongdae is referring to. If only he wasn’t so tired.

Normally, Minseok sleeps well. He doesn’t have to wait long to fall asleep. If he has any difficulty sleeping it’s either because he’s drunk too much coffee and energy drinks, grinding away at a project/assignment, or because he’s anxious.

‘I mean sure but-‘

‘Baekhyun, my bro, you need to understand that with certain aesthetics, it’s important to maintain a mood- and that mood is, at least by you, being translated as spooky,’ Jongdae says pedantically, ‘But for me, a cultured artist and enjoyer of the human condition, I see it as the stain of humanity.’

‘You take one philosophy and anthropology class and suddenly you’re Nietzsche,’ Baekhyun rolls his eyes hard.

‘Hey, you take that back- we don’t tolerate mocking people for taking an interest on something or realizing something after being introduced to it! Those classes opened my eyes to a different perspective-‘

‘Sure, Professor Yoon was really good and I appreciated her lectures regarding human culture as a whole and how it effects the distinctions of environmental aesthetics depending on the era of history but what I’m saying is that I really am not getting a good vibe from this place-‘

‘-that’s just projection-‘

‘Uh- are they gonna keep yelling at each other?’

Minseok is slightly shaken out of his stupor- momentarily surprised from his own thoughts. He hadn’t realized how much he hadn’t really been paying too much attention. He hopes that the footage he’s captured isn’t cutting Baekhyun or Jongdae off at an odd angle or something.

Minseok just wants to be able to sleep properly for once.

‘Oh yeah,’ Minseok smiles at the woman with a nod, ‘Don’t worry about them- this is how they start most episodes.’

‘Well, I guess everyone has their own style!’ she says emphatically with a small gesture.

‘I mean, we can start the interview right now,’ Minseok turns the camera away to direct it towards Yongsun, their guest for the episode.

She was a YouTuber herself. It was quite a “funny” story how she came to reach out to them.

While her channel covered a variety of topics from the occasional daily lifestyle vlogs, makeup, skincare, hair and style, education, music and singing (especially the singing!), even pole-dancing, and cooking and the arts, Kim Yongsun was beloved and popular in the lifestyle/vlogger side of YouTube in her own right. Minseok had heard of her because she had been the topic of conversation on the internet when she released an episode on raising awareness about female mutilation. Lots of people commended her for bringing such a horrible topic to light with honesty, well researched information, and while not mincing the details, maintaining professionalism and discretion.

So about 2 months ago, Yongsun had made a vlog visiting her sister to babysit for her. Her sister had moved to a new apartment, and she was there to help the moving process as well as look after her nearly 3 year old niece. In her video, she had said that only her sister and herself had been there, setting up the apartment. A few people had asked who then, was the third person in the video, and why she was lying. This had caused quite an issue within her channel’s community with people who saw no one else other than the sisters and the baby, and those who claimed they saw someone else. So Yongsun had decided to ignore the issue. She was somewhat used to the usual toxic comments she occasionally received. She believed it was some sort of attack regarding her comment in the video where she had jokingly made a comment about the sisters being more efficient than a group of men at moving and organizing. So she thought people were trying to frame her as some sort of anti-male/man-hater yet still recruiting the help of one by claiming someone else was in the video. Yet somehow, the next time she filmed herself babysitting at her sister’s place, she received the same comments.

She had ignored the comments, but during a live, someone had asked if it could have been a ghost. And then someone suggested to her to contact the Unsolved Vlogs. Yongsun then thought it over, and had confessed over their meetings that she didn’t think they were actually credible, but a few of her subscribers, were fellow Unsolved subscribers, had vouched for them. Minseok remembers being very touched, alongside Baekhyun and Jongdae. She then watched their episodes.

But still wasn’t convinced to do anything about it!

But that wasn’t until her sister actually confessed to her that she didn’t feel safe in her apartment. Concerned, Yongsun started staying with her sister at her place for a few weeks. And then decided that yes, she would definitely contact them to arrange for some sort of collaboration.

So here they were, after several emails, two face-to-face meetings, and some additional phone calls, standing in front of the condominium her sister and niece lived in.

Not for long though. Because Yongsun explained that her sister and niece were living with her at the moment. She would move out at the end of the month.

Yongsun was a bright and energetic woman, definitely competing with Baekhyun on both charm, energy, and general likeableness. Minseok absolutely understands why people love watching her content. She had a strong positive vibe to her and was very genuine. Working alongside her for this episode was easy and smooth as well. In one of the meetings, they even met her sister and niece.

That was an interesting meeting because while Yongsun’s niece easily took to Baekhyun and Jongdae despite being shy at first, almost started crying the moment Minseok said hi, or even got close to her. And while Minseok understands that children and babies definitely had their preferences for preferred adults, he knows babies and children tend to like him a lot. It was almost as though she was scared of him. Both Yongsun and her sister were apologetic but Minseok, tired and strung-up, feels a strange bout of oddness settle over him.

Watching her episodes where people supposedly saw another person in her sister’s apartment, neither Baekhyun and Jongdae can see it but Minseok can.

There’s definitely something in the apartment- in fact, several of them. They’re only visible inside the niece’s room. Shadowy forms that appear briefly for a frame or two- standing with their backs turned to the door, facing the wall by the low baby crib.

‘Yeah?’ Yongsun laughs sunnily, cheeks pushing up in a way her fans describe as rising bread. ‘Okay! Let’s do it! I’ll do my own greeting!’

‘Please do!’ Minseok encourages her, pushing a smile and a cheeriness he most certainly did not feel. He’s just tired and sluggish and wishes he could sleep, wishes his eyelids would close, wishes his dreams weren’t draining, wishes he didn’t see those eyes-

‘Everyone! It’s me! So-! La-! Shi-! Do-!’ she winks at the camera, twirling in an exaggerated flashy manner. ‘And you must be wondering what I’m doing here at Unsolved Vlogs but-!’

‘Noona!’

‘Hyung! Noona! That’s unfair!’

Yongsun bursts out into laughter. Minseok pans the camera back to them where they’re huffing at both of them in comic offence.

‘Come on then! Or I’ll take over your careers!’ Yongsun chides good-naturedly.

‘Threatening us at our own channel!’ Baekhyun gasps as he jogs over, ‘Noona!’

Yongsun just tosses her hair back and winks at the camera in a conspirator-like manner.

‘Well guys I guess noona did the introduction already?’ Jongdae grins at the camera.

‘But we should do it properly again!’ Baekhyun declares before quickly blurting out without tone with one breath, ‘Welcome to today’s episode of Unsolved Vlogs, I’m Baekhyun, this is Jongdae, that’s Minseok-hyung in the back and this is Yongsun-noona from So-La-Shi-Do, we are here to investigate a possibly haunted and chilling apartment where its inhabitants have said they felt unsafe and watched, with strange rashes, sounds, exhaustion, and general bad luck have been reported. Let’s begin.’

Both Yongsun and Jongdae stare at Baekhyun, amusement and some form of awe in their eyes before the clap in unison.

‘Have you considered being a rapper?’ Yongsun asks Baekhyun seriously as he blushes.

Minseok thinks it’s a good ending cut for their introduction for the episode.

They make their way through the courtyard/driveway of the condominium building and come to the public outdoor lobby. It’s definitely a lot more crowded than where they’re used to filming. This was a good condominium building and not more than a decade old too. They of course did their research on the location and whatever they could find of the building or past inhabitants.

They arrange the camera and set up the lights as best as they can before starting the interview.

‘All right where do we even start?’ Jongdae begins, ‘This is honestly a first time for us I think.’

‘Yeah, we’ve never done an Unsolved vlog in a place where someone is still living- well sort of living, your sister and niece stay with you now don’t they?’

‘That’s right,’ Yongsun nods.

‘Okay, well we know the story, but for our audience, will you explain what’s been happening to you, your sister and niece, at this apartment?’ Baekhyun asks, gesturing to Yongsun.

‘Wow- yeah, I’ll be honest, I never thought I’d be covering content like this at all!’ Yongsun laughs, ‘I’m I guess, what you would call a soondoongie?’

Jongdae and Baekhyun both laugh out loud.

‘I mean, sure I spook easy, I can’t watch horror!’ Yongsun claims at once, ‘But that’s all for good fun. I never thought I would ever experience something that could come from a horror movie!’

‘To be fair, the whole thing does sound a bit like a horror movie.’ Jongdae nods in agreement.

Minseok quietly takes a seat, drawing a brief worried look from Baekhyun because Minseok normally liked to keep a sharp eye over the recordings. His headache, a daily occurrence now, was starting to slowly build up behind his eyes and over his temples.

Yongsun explains what happened. They received permission to take some of Yongsun’s footage to show over her speaking for the final cut of the video.

Baekhyun, though he’s heard this before and has watched the episodes in question many times, still shudders as Yongsun tells them what she experienced.

‘You know, you’re tired, you’ve moved to a new place, new part of the city, new job; you’re preoccupied by a lot of things,’ Yongsun explains, ‘My sister started a new job, and my niece just started day care. They weren’t always at the new apartment for prolonged periods of time. And she often slept with her baby- children have a hard time adapting to new places for a longer period of time after all.’

Jongdae and Baekhyun nod as though experienced.

‘When did you start getting worried, or like, alarmed, that something was wrong?’

‘Oh for sure after what my sister said to me,’ Yongsun replies, ‘She said she felt unsafe. Like she was being watched- like something was just…she described it as well, when you’re in like a public place, and you turn the corner on the street and you expect to see someone walking towards you, because you know you’ve heard them, seen their shadow approaching, and you’ve tensed to adjust your walking as you turn the corner and then- well, nothing. And for a moment you don’t quite realize you haven’t just seen a person- but as you walk past, there’s that realization. A strange sinking feeling in your gut. Like you just missed something, but also somehow just witnessed something you didn’t understand.’

‘She’d feel like that? Inside her own home?’

‘Yeah- and whenever I would talk to her or see her, she’d always be so tired looking- like, her eyes were tired, her whole…her whole countenance was just so diminished. She also said to me she felt drained- she was crying when she spoke about it. She didn’t realize she was crying until I told her not to cry. My niece was also unwell- she developed a strange rash. And my sister first thought, well, children do tend to get rashes and the like occasionally. That too, she was mingling with more kids and that’s just a thing that happens.’

Both Baekhyun and Jongdae nod again as though experienced.

‘But then the bruising started- and she started freaking out. And well, one weekend, she was cooking. My niece has started walking, but mostly crawls about. She still keeps baby monitors around of course, and she heard my niece screaming from her room. She instantly rushed over, terrified, but the moment she reached the room, the screaming stopped and my niece wasn’t even inside the room. She was in the living room, sound asleep. In fact, the baby monitor wasn’t even her little bedroom’

Despite being a skeptic, Jongdae is clearly disturbed by this story. Like he had told them last time, he doesn’t understand why or how Yongsun or her sister would lie about something like this.  

‘So I started staying with them. Luckily, with the nature of my job, I’m quite flexible with how I can schedule myself,’ Yongsun continues, ‘So I thought, okay I’ll stay with them, watch over my niece, take care of her rash and stuff.’

‘Yeah of course,’ Baekhyun nods, ‘It’s not like you’re immediately gonna assume something supernatural is happening. Babies definitely develop rashes out of nowhere randomly.’

‘Then I uh,’ Yongsun laughs nervously, something she did quite frequently, ‘I uh, started noticing things too. I mean! Of course with what I’d been reading online and people’s comments, it wasn’t far removed from my immediate thoughts of course!’

‘I don’t blame you,’ Jongdae nods.

‘But like I said, I’m a skeptic, so I ignored it most times-‘

‘-most times? So like, you’d notice something but then pretend it didn’t happen? Multiple times?’ Baekhyun asks in a high voice.

‘Uh-‘ Yongsun glances at the camera, smiling nervously and uncomfortably, ‘Again, I should say this because I don’t want people to just think I’m jumping to conclusions but- well, about a week before my sister and niece moved in with me, around the evening, she called me to tell me she’d be a little late. She was bringing home dinner and so she was like, maybe get a snack or something. And I thought, okay I’ll shower than. So I put on something entertaining for my niece to watch- and I hopped in to shower quickly. I was halfway done and I heard the main door opening. So I yelled out ‘oh you’re here?’ and I heard back-‘

Baekhyun literally closes his eyes, knowing what was coming next, hands forming fists over his thighs as he winces in advance.

‘-‘yes I’m here’.’ Yongsun ends, ‘I literally actually heard what I believe was my sister replying. So I finished washing up, I was super hungry by then, and I hop out and well- my sister was not home. She wasn’t there. No food, nothing. But well, worst of all- I guess in a sense you could say worst of all- I found my niece in her bedroom. We normally keep a playpen around her if either of us are going to be preoccupied about something. And even though she’s gotten much stronger and walks around and can push the playpen down- she’s very well behaved. And the playpen hadn’t fallen over or been moved.’

‘I think I know that most of the comments are going to be “YOU STILL STAYED?!?”,’ Jongdae interjects with a short laugh. This makes both Baekhyun and Yongsun laugh as well.

‘You also mentioned that your niece might actually, well, actively see these things in the unit?’ Jongdae asks after they’ve collected themselves.

‘Ah yeah,’ Yongsun fidgets again, looking uncomfortable, ‘Well, this happened before I moved in with them. At the time, I didn’t think much of it. I was just talking with my sister in the kitchen as she cooked, and we heard my niece babbling. She’s started saying some words clearly now, and her comprehension is getting better day by day right now.’

‘Oh I’m gonna hate this so much,’ Baekhyun is lifting his hands to his ears.

‘So she was repeating ‘no, no, no want’ nonstop.’ Yongsun tells them, ‘At first we ignored it because again, she does babble a lot.’

Jongdae and Baekhyun nod knowingly again.

‘But then I went to check on her, and she was just standing by her crib, and uh well, I realized later on, she was facing that wall, that people say they saw uh-‘

‘-saw a ghost standing there?’ Jongdae concludes.

‘Yeah,’ Yongsun confirms with a heavy sigh followed by a high uncomfortable chuckle before adding, ‘There was also that thing that happened- while staying with my sister, of course I didn’t have friends or guest over.’

‘Of course,’ Baekhyun nods while Jongdae adds, ‘That’s common decency folks!’

‘And again, when my sister called, she asked me who was talking in the background,’ Yongsun fidgets a bit, ‘And well, obviously it was just me and my niece. I wasn’t watching tv or had music on. I had actually been editing an update of mine. She thought I was lying- and well, I guess the stress of things was really getting to us- we argued, uh, extensively, on the phone. She swore she heard a man’s voice and some other people behind me, and I literally a video call to prove to her I was alone. I think that kinda really triggered something for us- a realization that something was not okay. Like, not even in a supernatural way, or anything. So I told my sister after she got home, to just move in with me. And that she should move out.’

‘Well guys I think this is where we also mention that, it’s been some weeks now that Yongsun-noona contacted us and of course, as per usual we do our thorough research,’ Jongdae explains. ‘But unlike other places that are either abandoned, empty, or is a public space, this is an elevated space for rent in a large building.’

‘Exactly- so it’s not just this one singular area, it’s a living space, surrounded very closely by other living units,’ Baekhyun continues, ‘So of course, we had to find out if well, the neighbours around, above, below or anywhere in the building have felt odd things or seen things they can’t quite explain.’

‘So of course, Yongsun-noona and her sister immediately set to find more information about the place,’ Jongdae continues, ‘You can watch that episode on her YouTube channel! As well as our first awkward meeting!’

‘It really was!’ Baekhyun beams brightly while Yongsun cackles heartily.

‘So head on over there to watch all of that! But as a recap of the information Yongsun-noona found there, we’ll summarize it for you!’

‘Basically, what I first did was ask management about who lived in the unit before my sister started renting it,’ Yongsun explains, ‘As it’s a condominium, it’s not like the management necessarily owns all of the units. But of course, records exist. So my sister and I went to ask and well, the unit my sister was renting was leased by the management themselves. But well, with some slight egging and a bit of wheedling, I was able to get out some additional information about the place.’

‘And you just found out about this like yesterday right?’

‘Day before!’

‘And we’re finding out right now!’ Baekhyun is nearly shaking with excitement as he looks at the camera, ‘Noona said we would find this very interesting!’

‘Yes so!’ Yongsun is on the same frequency of excitement as Baekhyun as she leans in a little into her seat, ‘So basically, the whole building is about 10 years old. And for almost 7 years, my sister’s unit has never been rented out by the initial people who bought it.’

‘Suspicious!’ Baekhyun declares.

‘That’s what I thought too! So the management couldn’t contact the owners- they had changed out the locks so they couldn’t get in with the master key after years of completely vanishing on them. So basically, there was a whole legal thing that happened and management took back the unit, refurnished it, renewed everything and made sure it was still functional, and then put it up for sale and rent.’

‘Your sister is not the first to rent it though?’

‘No! That’s the thing, when I asked the staff, they weren’t too surprise after we told them that my sister was going to move out,’ Yongsun looks gleeful as she adds, ‘They say people don’t tend to stay for more than 3 months.’

‘Oh? So there’s a definite pattern here then,’ Jongdae leans in as well, looking thoroughly interested.

‘Is there any information about the people who owned the unit originally?’ Baekhyun asks.

‘Nothing. The staff I spoke to is new- well, she’s only been here a little over a year.’ Yongsun replies, ‘And that would definitely be something against management policy I’m sure.’

‘Ah, policies,’ Baekhyun sighs heavily.

‘She did however,’ Yongsun begins, making both Jongdae and Baekhyun lean way forward at her words. ‘Say that, from what she heard from the senior management staff who were working at the time of them opening up and checking the unit, it was fully furnished and had like, cooking utensils, couches and sofas, curtains, lamps- like it was all set up, super dusty, but just, no one lived there for a very long time.’

‘This is very suspicious,’ Jongdae nods slowly, ‘I mean this is a good area, you’re definitely gonna get renters or even buyers for a place like this. Why would anyone just leave it?’

‘Either way, you can watch the full details about that on Yongsun’s channel!’ Baekhyun cheerily adds, ‘We will now head on up for a tour!’

‘Yay! Leggo!’ Yongsun cheers, winking and pointing at the camera, making both Baekhyun and Jongdae imitate her.

Minseok stands up, reading to take down the tripod. He had already planned on where to set up the cameras based on the videos they had watched of inside the apartment space. He ignores how his headache was now on full blast.

‘Hyung you okay?’

Minseok looks up to find that Baekhyun’s walked over to him. Jongdae is talking to Yongsun, showing him their handheld camera setup.

‘Yeah, I’m just a little tired,’ Minseok smiles at the younger.

‘We could reschedule things if you’re not feeling good,’ Baekhyun looks at him with concern, ‘Have you been getting enough sleep?’

‘Not really,’ Minseok gets out, deciding to be honest, ‘I don’t know why though.’

Baekhyun’s lips do that funny upturn when he’s upset and Minseok reaches up to pinch his lips instinctively.

‘It’s okay, if I’m feeling very poorly, I’ll tell you guys,’ Minseok reassures him. ‘Maybe that obstacle course really wore me out.’

Baekhyun gives him a hesitant smile, still worried as he looks him over.

‘Are we good to go?’ Yongsun asks, looking at them with some concern.

‘Yeah!’ Minseok hefts the stand over to his shoulder to balance it as he holds up their main camera.

‘You were saying something interesting about Minseok-hyung last time,’ Baekhyun begins.

‘Yeah!’ Yongsun agrees brightly, ‘Guys, I don’t know how to explain this, but I think my viewers will know it when I say it, but Minseok-oppa looks a lot like my cameraman!’

Minseok would kinda have to agree if he’s being honest. Yongsun, though she normally vlogged by herself, also had a cameraman and editor, much like Minseok is to Baekhyun and Jongdae, who according to the kind of content Yongsun would be filming, would help her out. They had met her in their first meeting, and though it hadn’t really registered at the time (most definitely the tiredness and lack of sleep), Minseok guesses he does share similarities with Moonbyul.

‘I mean I guess there is definitely a similarity,’ Jongdae nods fervently as they pick up their camera equipment.

Minseok is acutely aware of the heightened nervousness emanating from Yongsun (also Baekhyun but that’s expected), and it’s also what’s makes him nervous. Because he knows a skeptic who is trying their best to remain a skeptic despite the evidence around them. And Yongsun was definitely one of them. Her doing this was a sort of way for her to be able to dismiss all of this as a result of stress and anxiety.

They got on the elevator and they all kinda don’t speak much. The unit was on the 8^th floor.

‘I uh- gotta admit I’m nervous,’ Yongsun confesses.

‘Hey, it’s okay if you don’t wanna go back in,’ Jongdae tells her sincerely. ‘I mean, if you don’t want to do this, it’s okay.’

Yongsun shakes her head as the elevator comes to a stop at their designated floor.

‘No I want to do this,’ she tells them with a serious nod.

When they step out, Minseok is internally bracing himself. But he senses nothing out here. And that was to be expected. If this was an isolated event, then only the affected area would display any signs of a haunting or something like it. Out here it’s a well lit hallway, clean, if not a little too lengthy.

‘This is not a hallway I want to walk through by myself at night,’ Baekhyun remarks to no one’s surprise.

But it’s not that bad, Minseok thinks. There were some nice potted plants outside a few doorways, bright colourful number plaques, some doors were painted a different colour too. Overall it looked lived in and used which Minseok appreciates.

‘So we’re in unit 811?’ Jongdae asks as Yongsun leads them down to the left.

‘Yes, we’re actually right at the corner,’ Yongsun adds.

‘Basically you’re neighbours with only one other unit,’ Baekhyun comments as they walk down the hallway. ‘Other than the people in front?’

Yongsun confirms his question before slowing to a stop at the doorway. Still, Minseok senses nothing. Doesn’t mean he’s not prepared.

‘Well, here we are,’ Yongsun giggles nervously before adding, ‘Oh, I’m suddenly so nervous, what do I do?’

‘Would you prefer if I opened the door?’ Jongdae offers.

‘I uh- I’ll unlock it,’ Yongsun says, ‘Could you push it open?’

Jongdae nods encouragingly.

Yongsun’s hand is shaking slightly as she unlocks the door and pushes in the additional electric lock code.

Minseok doesn’t know how to feel.

There’s something- he knows it. He’s seen it. And in fact, when the door opens completely and Minseok is allowed a view inside, he’s 100% sure there were some things inside waiting for them to enter. He could almost see them, backs turned in the shadow, anticipating them, slowly turning to look at them when Jongdae switches on the lights. His head suddenly feels like it’s going to explode.

‘Well. This is a very nice place,’ he remarks, looking about with appreciation. ‘It’s a good set-up for a small family! Oh! Double sinks!’

This makes Yongsun laugh, allowing her to be less nervous. They take off their shoes and enter the place.

It was a nice set up. The hallway was short, and to the immediate left a deep set cupboard/storage space. Then the floor lifted a tad bit, to create a separation between the entryway and the rest of the living area. The open style kitchen spread to the right, and opposite it was the living room space. To the left were two doorways, obviously leading to the bedrooms. To the block end past them was another door that was open to show a bathroom.

‘Uh, well, when we left we kinda packed just the most important stuff, which was mainly things for my niece to make her comfortable at my place,’ Yongsun explains, ‘So the place is kinda messy, please forgive us! We wanted to come back here to clear things up a little but to be honest, the idea of coming here, just us, it made us both feel sick.’

‘Of course,’ Baekhyun says at once from the kitchen area. ‘Please don’t apologize, we absolutely understand.’

‘I do have suggestions for where you can keep the cameras,’ Yongsun smiles at them as she stops by one of the bedroom doors.

Suddenly, all the hair on the back of Minseok’s neck stands on end, his head is pulsing like there’s something pounding inside his brain against his skull, his breath is suddenly cold in his lungs and-

‘This is my sister’s room,’ Yongsun says, opening the door and switching the lights on inside.

-a weight sort of drags up against him, something behind him clinging hard onto him. He’s barely able to climb further up into the unit- as though something was pulling him back from entering.

He’s holding the camera up, he can’t reach into his pocket for the charm he brought with him. So he pushes forward, and like a snapping elastic band, Minseok trips forward, foot catching on the ledge of the short step.

‘Oh -,’ he manages to get out as he stumbles forward, falling to one knee.

‘Hyung!’ Baekhyun is instantly on him, worry etched all over his features.

‘Everything okay?’ Yongsun asks worriedly, coming over quickly.

But Minseok can’t quite hear them- instead he winces as high shrieks erupt from somewhere within the unit.

‘Oh I just tripped,’ Minseok manages to get out, ‘I miscalculated the height of the step.’

‘Actually noona, do you have like juice or something, I think hyung is tired.’ Baekhyun says at once. Jongdae is on them in an instance.

‘Hyung, you’re not feeling well?’ he asks worriedly.

For a brief moment, an unknown foreign flare of irritation sparks up in him but it vanishes almost at once. It was fleeting, but Minseok was suddenly irrationally angry and had every mind to yell at his friends. But it’s gone almost at once- making him second guess what he had even been feeling. Even his headache has dissipated somewhat- just a faint remnant of the pain lingering like muscle memory.

‘Ah, it’s lack of sleep I think,’ Minseok tells them as he stands up. Yongsun has opened the fridge and takes out a juice pack, the kind designed for children.

‘Here! We can all use it I guess,’ she offers cheerily.

‘Thank you,’ he takes the cool juice pack with some relief. Minseok hadn’t even realized he was feeling unnaturally warm. ‘I’m okay, let’s continue.’

‘Okay,’ Baekhyun says slowly.

‘I’ll order food in right now so we can eat,’ Yongsun declares. ‘I’ve watched your episodes I am sure it must be draining!’

‘Noona, you’re a genius.’ Baekhyun says earnestly.

After a short delay, they start up the tour with all of the lights still on. Yongsun keeps her niece’s bedroom for last. She’s also clearly the most nervous for this. And Minseok can understand why. He hears them. They’re still screaming- and it’s such an odd unnerving thing.

‘I’m getting goosebumps,’ Baekhyun shudders, pulling up his sleeve to show the camera his goosebump-covered skin.

‘Actually, so am I,’ Jongdae says with some surprise, ‘Hey look, my hair’s standing on end.’

Yongsun fidgets, twisting the edge of her jacket sleeves nervously, ‘Oh I hate this- I’m getting it too, my neck feels so-‘ she shudders, knees wobbling as well.

‘I’ll open it,’ Jongdae says, pushing the door open and reaching to the side of the wall to switch on the lights.

And they’re standing there.

Right next to the crib, 3 cowering tall figures hunched up pushing desperately against the wall, their shrieks turning into whimpers, black hands gnarled and smoky helplessly pushing.

Minseok can’t breathe. He doesn’t understand what he’s seeing.

‘So this is where, according to some of your viewers, they saw something in the background of this room?’ Baekhyun asks, nervously stepping into the room.

The 3 figures scream their loudest as Minseok enters and immediately stop. They go completely still.

‘Yes,’ Yongsun replies, walking to the other side of the crib. ‘And well, I don’t know if you can tell, but this is the-‘

‘-coldest place in the unit,’ Jongdae frowns as he looks around, clearly looking for air vents as he backs up to the window. ‘I don’t feel a drought from the window.’

Minseok feels sweat dripping down his back.

‘I thought this was a good angle to keep the camera,’ Yongsun says, moving away from the crib towards a white wooden drawer. ‘This is a good stable place to balance a tripod.’

‘Yeah,’ Minseok says in agreement, turning away from the 3 figures to address Yongsun. ‘Thank you.’

They set up the cameras- keeping a motion detector in there as well.

By the time they’re done setting up all of the cameras and they’re ready for the final shoot, their food arrives. Yongsun and Baekhyun go to get the food, while Minseok and Jongdae remained at the unit.

‘Are you sure you’re okay hyung? You’ve been looking pale,’ Jongdae asks again as they set up the table to eat. Minseok catches a glimpse of the frozen 3 figures inside the baby room, still unmoving from where they were stuck.

‘I’ve been having difficulty sleeping,’ Minseok tells him, ‘It’ll pass, I’m sure.’

He’s not sure. In fact Minseok has a sinking feeling this was something he was going to have to really look into.

They eat their dinner with gusto. Yongsun had wanted to be there for the investigation part of the shoot, though she had no intention of sleeping in that unit anymore.

When they finish eating, Minseok realizes it’s no longer quiet. Instead, the previous shrieks which turned to silence was now changed to whimpering cries.

It makes Minseok incredibly uncomfortable and unsettled and with him being so tired he’s not quite able to maintain a normal façade, causing his friends to occasionally give him worried looks.

Yongsun has her own camera setup as well, not unlike what Jongdae and Baekhyun had on them. Seeing as this was not a wide area for them to walk around in, Baekhyun and Jongdae had decided to bring an EMF reader, and Baekhyun’s favourite Spirit Box.

As part of their video editing process and overall style of their videos, they do another short in-the-dark replay of events they had already discussed and narrated downstairs. But as soon as that’s done, they pick up the EMF reader as well as a thermal-imaging camera filter over on the camera Baekhyun had attached to his chest.

‘You know, I don’t quite trust EMF readers,’ Jongdae tells Yongsun as Baekhyun starts it up.

‘Oh? How come?’

‘It goes off with electric readings right? In the city, literally within a building that is surrounded by wires, with WiFi signals, television signals, phones, radio- there’s no way we’re not gonna get a hit-‘

‘AHA!’ Baekhyun yells. ‘The lights spiked up to red!’

‘There’s literally a water filter beneath that cupboard,’ Jongdae deadpans. Yongsun giggles nervously.

Obviously, they leave the baby-room for the last.

‘Oh my god-‘ Baekhyun suddenly gasps, ‘Guys you won’t believe what I just saw on the thermal cam I swear to god something was like moving-!’

Yongsun squeals, holding her hands up to her ears, expression terrified.

‘…did someone fart?’ Jongdae asks.

Their laughter borders hysterical.

‘Okay so let’s settle here,’ Jongdae sits down in the middle of the baby room. Baekhyun and Yongsun follow suit and Minseok stands by the door, capturing all of them from a slightly higher angle for a while before he also sits down.

‘Okay, I’m gonna start up the Spirit Box,’ Baekhyun announces to the room. Minseok hates the way the 3 figures won’t move but they won’t stop whimpering. He also feels, with an increasing sense of apprehension, something building up from within the room but he doesn’t know what it is.

Yongsun flinches as Baekhyun starts up the Spirit Box.

‘Is anyone here with us?’ he asks nervously, leg twitching nonstop. Obviously they don’t get any responses- or at least, none that Jongdae finds credible. The sound is starting to make Minseok feel hazy as they push past 2 minutes of it.

‘Why won’t you leave?’ Baekhyun asks.

Suddenly, the 3 figures writhe against the wall and as though with a lot of effort, they turn around.

‘-can’t-!’

Their scream mixes with the frequency of the Spirit Box, making Yongsun scream, and even making Jongdae jolt in surprise.

‘Wow- , I mean, fudge, uh- that was a very clear-‘

‘-that was “can’t”-  I heard that too,’ Jongdae frowns, leaning into the Spirit Box.

‘-STOP-!’

Minseok is frozen, unable to tear his eyes away from the 3 figures struggling to move, inching closer to him by the doorway, their choked screams directed straight at him.

‘-LEAVE US-!’

‘Uh- hold on this is terrifying-,’ Baekhyun stammers, ‘This has never happened before-!’

‘-PLEASE-!’

They scream at Minseok and he’s frozen he can’t move he can’t he can only watch in horror as they twitch harshly, gnarled hands stretching out before them as they recklessly throw themselves towards him-

The lights are blinding when Yongsun, unable to tolerate being in the dark with the Spirit Box anymore, switches on the lights.

Minseok flinches, quickly closing his eyes at the sudden assault of light.

‘I’m so sorry!’ Yongsun says as Baekhyun quickly switches off the Spirit Box. ‘But it was too much and-!’

With the white noise of the Spirit Box gone, suddenly, everything is lifted.

Minseok can’t see them in the room anymore. No more crying, no more whimpering, no more shrieking. Their forms are gone completely.

‘Hyung here,’ Jongdae is crouched before him, handing him a tissue for his watering eyes.

‘Thanks Dae,’ Minseok takes it, dabbing at his face.

‘I think- that concludes the investigation part,’ Baekhyun says shakily before he and Yongsun both shriek as there’s a knock on the front door. But it’s only Moonbyul who came to pick up Yongsun.

They bid them both goodnight, additionally thanking Yongsun for taking the trash out with her which she finds very amusing.

‘That was absolutely terrifying,’ Baekhyun says.

Minseok is so confused.

He doesn’t see them anymore. Doesn’t see the 3 figures, doesn’t feel them anywhere in this apartment. There’s nothing here now. And Minseok doesn’t understand.

He wonders if he should try stamping the charm or placing a few of the stickers onto the walls. He retrieves the stamp and small bits of contact-paper but to his surprise, his hands and fingers come out smudged with ink. None of the stickers can work, and the little rubber stamp he had carved out himself has crumbled, leaving only bits of the rubber pad still attached to the plastic handle.

Even after they return from Minseok’s parked car with sleeping bags and some additional items they would need for the night, Minseok sense nothing inside the unit anymore. It was almost as though he hyper-dreamed the whole thing. They camp out in the living room as planned. They insist that Minseok takes the couch as he’s unwell so he obliges them and lays back. In a way that terrifies him, he’s at peace again.

They talk for a while, before slowly drifting off to sleep. Minseok doesn’t even realize he’s fallen asleep until he suddenly wakes up.

He can’t move.

He’s frozen in place in his sleeping bag on the couch. He can just make out Jongdae’s foot and Baekhyun’s form on the floor below. But most of all, the tall bent shadowy form he last saw in full at the Fifth Division Grounds is hulking by the doorway of the baby-room.

This time, the eyes that watch him from the darkness seem to smile at him, a strange stretch in the darkness that moved as though it were a mouth full of food, chewing slowly.

It swallows with relish before sinking away into darkness.

Minseok watches the sunrise, flooding the quiet unit with morning light, sleep deprived and terrified.

The light of the sun brings him no comfort as he sits up, exhaustion wearing down at him. The moment he keeps places his feet on the ground, he catches sight of the shadow seeping around him. It’s barely noticeable, barely audible- but Minseok can sense it now.

He was being haunted.

*

Where there is a will, there is an iam: There are many reasons why this episode was terrifying and we don’t have time to unpack every single one of it so you know what, let’s just let it be

minghaoFrogagenda: Okay we’re back on track boys we’re going straight back into terror again I knew that last week’s wholesomeness was just a ruse for this absolute nightmare of an episode

167 is average height: …I don’t want to sound crazy but uhh did anyone else notice in the short behind the scenes footage inside the elevator there’s uhhhhh, something reflected standing behind Minseok

Wanna Be Myself: I loved their chemistry so much! I hope they do more stuff in the future together!!

Bocchann: Hi and not to sound hysterical but I went to watch the video mentioned in the episode as well as additional stuff on the So-La-Shi-Do channel related to this unit. And I’m completely with those subscribers who said they say something in those frames. Someone please validate me.

Erikyoooooooonggggg_ggg: Baekhyun was right: AND THEY KEPT ON STAYING THERE??? I’D HAVE RUN OUT IN AN HOUR TOPS ALL I NEED IS MY PASSPORT, PHONE, CHARGER, DOG, AND WALLET THOSE GHOSTS CAN KEEP EVERYTHING I’M NOT GOING BACK

Why Are All The B-Sides Bops?: GUYS I DIDN’T THINK THEY COULD TOP SEASON TWO LIKE THE GREENHOUSE EPISODE AND THE HOSTEL EPISODES HAD ME CRYING BUT THIS ONE- WHEN THOSE VOICES SAID “LEAVE US” I NEARLY PEED MY PANTS

Mareete: I hate that this involves a baby this just made it a billion times scarier

Radishes Are Good For The Soul: I wanna point out to anyone who might read this comment that yongsuns sister is a divorced-single mum. She obviously has a lot of pressure to keep up looking like a super mum so any comments about her or even Yongsun or least of all the little girl, should be respectful. I really appreciate how this channel respected that and did not air out unnecessary information unlike SOME channels who covered this

DrinkThatWaterBtich: THE FACT THAT THE SPIRIT BOX ACTUALLY SAID ALL OF THAT I HATE IT SO MUCH IT’S SO UPSETTING I TOTALLY UNDERSTAND WHY YONGSUN PANICKED AND SWITCHED ON THE LIGHTS IT WOULD HAVE BEEN TERRIFYING EVEN WITH THE LIGHTS ON

Incorrect Baekhyun Quotes: Hey is it me or is Baekhyun getting braver in this season?

Four Seasons, Four Colours: Lmao I wanna say that was definitely something really suss in the thermal camera footage but now I’m like- it’s a ghostly fart and I can’t stop laughing

DaeDroid: You need to watch their awkward interview after this episode trust me you’ll feel better

Indigo_salad: OH NO OH NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO MINSEOK AND MOONBYUL REALLY DO LOOK ALIKE WHAT DO I DO WITH THIS INFORMATION MY BIUAL IS SO CONFUSED  

Lilithesue25: Yongsun’s absolute inability to deal with anything scary and her instant reaction being nervous laughter is ME- I was laughing nervously the ENTIRE TIME

Sehun_omayaaaaaa: baekhyun hyung make a shirt that says 'wow i hate this place' and sell it as merch

(Author’s Notes)

Special thank you and shout out to my brother in law for telling me this account from his co-worker. Basically his co-worker is Yongsun in this story. Please redirect any cries of terror towards him and not me, I am merely a second-hand messenger

ALSO I LOVE SOLAR’S YOUTUBE CHANNEL HONESTLY SHE REALLY DOES HAVE A LOT OF FUN WHOLESOME STUFF ON HER CHANNEL PLEASE CHECK HER OUT! SHE HAS ENG SUBS TOO!!! She also covers some important social matter on her channel!!

Also who is doing it like Mamamoo with doing ad songs that sound like actual comeback singles???????

Stream Wanna Be Myself for clear skin, confidence, and morale

Also the fact that Minseok and Moonbyul genuinely look more like siblings than most siblings I know (including me and my sisters) is something I thought I had to put out there

And most importantly

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BEST BOY MY BEST SUNSHINE HUMAN BEING KIM JONGDAE I WISH I COULD TELL YOU WITHOUT SOUNDING LIKE A CREEP HOW MUCH I LOVE YOU AND ADORE YOU AND HOW YOUR MUSIC HAS TOUCHED ME AND HELPED ME AND HAS JUST INSPIRED SO MUCH CREATIVITY IN ME

I love him so much

I wanna hug him super hard but as we’re all socially distancing and pretty sure if I tried to hug him even with the best intentions I would be body slammed onto the ground, and you know, that’s on me no one bail me from jail

Jokes aside, happy birthday to such an amazing and strong human being who has displayed outstanding artistry, talent, hardwork, dedication, loyalty, love, and provided so much comfort, peace, and bliss with not just his voice but his actions and words. He deserves everything beautiful and good in this world.