"I've been able to see ghosts my entire life, honey. But you're the first and only one I've seen go through puberty in the afterlife!"

♦ ♦ ♦

Save me Mingi, please.

"Mr Song, we're landing soon," Mingi was awakened by the flight attendant gently tapping his shoulder, and he took off his blindfold. He was sure he mouth tasted like death, a 12-hour flight would do that to you. He blinked several times to register his surroundings, and he remembered he was in his own pod; right next to his mother's. Being exceptionally tall, the confined place made his feet sore and so he got up to refresh himself in the private restroom. 

As he walked down the aisle, he could see the warm sunset out the windows - apparently they were landing in the evening. When he reached the restroom, he splashed the cold running water onto his face. It could have been the jetlag, but his mind was messing with him again. Different images flashed through his mind, of falling into the pool, his hands flailing and feet kicking, Yunho eyes closed as he sunk deeper into the water.

Yunho.

Eight years. It had been eight years since the incident happened, and yet that was all that occupied Mingi's mind without leaving. He looked at his reflection in the mirror while that ringing in his ear faded in and out, it always happened whenever he recalled that memory. Unconsciously his hand reached for the bottle of pills in his jacket pocket, and he stopped himself. 

'Doctor's Prescription' was written on the label, and after much consideration - Mingi poured all the pills into the dustbin, and he felt himself relax a little. It wasn't like he needed them anyway, it was all for show - so that people stopped hounding him. It was fine if no one believed him, he knew what he saw. He wasn't crazy. 

This time, he would change things.

By the time he returned to his seat, his mother was already waiting for him. Seated next to the window, she was on her phone (probably dealing with her work as per usual) and Mingi cleared his throat. She adjusted her sunglasses, "Glad to see you're awake, I hope you have enough energy to join me for dinner tonight. We're having it with Chairman Jeong,"

Mingi's ears perked, "The Chairman Jeong?"

"Our old neighbours, yes. We've talked over the phone quite a few times before, and they were nice enough to ask about you and how you were doing,"

Mingi raised his eyebrows, "Chairman Jeong asked about me?"

"Well it was Mrs. Jeong who asked, but it's the heart that counts,"

Instantly, Mingi felt something churn in his stomach. "Oh, her."

His mother frowned at him, "Now young man, I thought we've gone through this both in private and with that counsellor years ago. What Chairman Jeong's son said about his stepmother-"

"That's how we're gonna address Yunho now?" and he sighed before he could protest anymore, it wasn't going to help. "I know, mom, sorry. I just...Yunho and I were more than friends and...I'm older now and know better. Okay? Trust me."

Sympathetically, she leaned forward and held his hand. "You're my son, I know you and I trust you. Even if I wasn't always by your side these past few years, you've managed to be independent and I'm proud of that,"

"Which is why you'll let me do things on my own when we land?" Mingi continued, much to his mother's displeasure. "Mom, you promised me. Remember?"

Chairlady Song sighed, "What was my promise to you again?"

"That I can do whatever I want? Come on mom, I'm a legal adult now. I can vote!"

"Since when have you cared about voting?"

"The point is, I don't need to tell you every single thing that I have to do."

"Under one condition," her sly smile didn't sit well with her son. "As one of the many contracted models under our company-"

Mingi groaned, "Mooooooom..."

"You are required to be faithful to your modelling commitments whenever I request them, are we clear?"

Mingi rolled his eyes, he shouldn't be surprised. The only other reason he had unlimited allowance all these years was how his mother had taken advantage of his fetching good looks (he took her word for it) and profited off it, he would feel betrayed if it was false. Mingi knew he wasn't a bad looking person.

"Fine," he grumbled. "It's a good thing I'm your son, so I'm letting you exploit my labour,"

Chairlady Song chuckled, "Of course, why would I miss that opportunity when I have such a handsome son?"

"What?" Jocelyn blinked at Yunho while she fried the eggs. "They could see you too?"

Eagerly, Yunho nodded as he was seated across the counter, like an innocent child raving about his day at school. "Her name's Araminta and Jongho was her friend's name, I was really shocked too when they could see me - let alone continue to communicate with me. I...." he was beaming in joy. "No one's ever talked to me like that since you,"

And with that, Jocelyn's expression softened; it was how she always reacted with Yunho, entertained by that childlike wonder his eyes held. And now it was full of excitement, that he finally had other people to talk to. Yunho was genuinely happy, he was practically bouncing on his chair. "Now you might want to tone down on that jumpiness, or else you'd fall out your chair," she warned playfully. She scooped up the eggs and laid it on the plate, her food for the night after a day's work at the hospital. 

To be more specific, she worked at the morque. 

"So how was work?" Yunho asked her. 

Jocelyn shrugged and stretched, "Same old, though I did find this awfully difficult fella who wouldn't stop telling me about lottery numbers. Tsk-tsk, even in death he's still obsessed with money,"

Yunho raised his eyebrows, bemused, "Cause of death?"

"Owed someone money, got killed before he could pay it off. Other than that, just very peaceful souls who moved on without causing many issues. Oh!" she clasped her hands together. "I forgot to mark the tally for you!" and with that she dashed into Yunho's bedroom, took out the marker in the drawer and drew a black line on the wall, joining the thousands of others. 

"Thanks, Jocelyn," Yunho said as he entered the room with her. Both staring at the tallied wall, an endless count that started years ago after they started to notice strange things about this young ghost boy who had been found by Jocelyn in the snow. 

It had been a month or so after Yunho realized he was a ghost and remembered nothing of who he was, with no identity or memories he had wandered on the city streets without purpose. Wandering into every alley regardless if it was safe or not, encountering other ghosts who looked far more gruesome in detail. He was a lost boy, with no name, no past, and definitely no future as he did not know how to move on. Under the colourful Christmas lights of a run-down furniture store, Yunho had crouched, fists clenched and lips pursed to keep himself from crying in sadness - until a woman finally approached him when he thought it would be impossible.

Yunho remembered Jocelyn exactly the way she was on that fateful night, warm bronze skin tucked in a green coat, curly hair let down passed her shoulders, eyes which colour matched the shade of emerald green of her clothes - she had taken pity of him and took him back to her home, away from the cold winter streets. Initially the plan was for him to finally be free of the world and whatever unfinished business he had, by regaining his memories. But the days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months yet Yunho still failed to even recall his name - and then things completely changed when they noticed he was getting older.

His sudden growth spurt was the most obvious.

Now towering over Jocelyn, Yunho reached out and laid his arm across her shoulder. Sure she couldn't feel it, but seeing it was enough to allow her to imagine that this boy wasn't just a spirit but an actual living human. Jocelyn granted Yunho that sense of being more than dead. "Do you think we're ever going to find out what's wrong with me?" Yunho asked, wonderingly.

"Of course we will," she assured him, even though Yunho could sense she was being far too optimistic. "I've been able to see ghosts my entire life, honey. But you're the first and only one I've seen go through puberty in the afterlife!" and she chortled. 

"Are you sure I'm still alive somewhere?" 

"I can't be certain, but I'm very sure you're not dead either," in return she caressed his cheek, even though all she could probably feel was air. "How can someone so lively like you, be a ghost hmm?"

"I wish I wasn't a ghost, though I don't anyone wants to be a ghost," he answered meekly. " And I'm going to see them again tomorrow, that should be okay right?"

Jocelyn sighed half-heartedly and nodded, "Oh well, it's nice to see you're making friends. But remember, honey, don't easily trust people - especially people who can see you or any ghosts in that matter. Some are born with this ability and carry on with life, but some use it for bad intentions. You know that right?" Yunho understood what she meant, it was the first few things she had made caution with him. That was the reason  he had avoided straying too far from the neighbourhood, where located somewhere deep in the city were places older than its skyscrapers and complexes. 

In the heart of the city, lurked the witch covens, warlock dens, places far more sinister and dangerous for even ghosts to lurk. A mosaic of otherworldy things hidden in the shadowfolds of an otherwise modern-looking city. 

"I know," he answered. "I'll be careful."

"Right, I should finish up my dinner before it gets cold. Can you go and check the dryer ans see if the laundry's done?" and she was leaving the room when Yunho suddenly thought about something.

"And Jocelyn can I ask you another question?"

She glanced back, "Sure, honey. What is it?"

"Why didn't you just give me a name that night after you found me? You know, just curious,"

She seemed to think about before answering, "Because as much as you're like a son to me, I wasn't part of your life before that and I don't think I'm in the position to give you a new name or identity. And if I gave you a name, you could have completely forgotten your past. I didn't want to take that away from you."

"It's been eight years, I still don't remember anything,"

"And we're not giving up hope. Not yet."

Ara was trying to sound interested, "You know Kyle, I just don't think it's working - this relationship I mean,"

"Why don't we just take a break? Come on Rara, you know I'm serious about us..." Kyle, her current boyfriend - soon to be ex, tried telling her through the phone call. But all Ara could get out of it was white noise, that cheesy nickname he had given her didn't help the cringe. He had come up to her during a basement concert two months ago, all Ara could really remember about it was that he had a crooked grin, a septum piercing and long skater-boy hair. Oh, and that he had been looking at her for the past hour before actually giving her his Instagram ID.

Ara had given it the benefit of the doubt, and was like 'why not?' and went along with it. Two dates in with almost absolutely no chemistry whatsoever, at In-N-Out and a Starbucks, Kyle had decided they were officially a couple. Ara continued to play along, to see how long he would take this. Then came the moment of truth whether this skater boy was worth her time.

"Kyle, you called me crazy,"

"But then I said I like my girls crazy, nono wait don't hang up!" he backtracked when he heard Ara scoff. "I was joking, Rara, you know how I am right?"

"No I don't, dude," she added the end. Frankly, she only told him about the dead Puerto-Rican man in his shabby car because she purposely wanted him to stop calling her his girlfriend (and the man had also complained about  the unbearable stench of flamming hot cheetos too, Ara had to agree with him). "It's honestly not your fault, it's me. I just don't see us going anywhere in the future, though I do appreciate the time we spent together. So can we just end this on good terms and move on? I'm sorry if I was a waste of your time,"

Kyle paused, "W-wait so you're breaking up with me? After all we've been through?"

"Kyle, I never said I was your girlfriend, you did all the talking," she replied, now slightly annoyed. "And it ain't that deep, we've only been dating for barely two months,"

"Are you really mad at what I said? I told you I was joking about it all when you said you could see ghosts-"

"Well, I wasn't lying when I said that." 

In the spur of the moment, she hung up. Ah well it had to be done, she thought wearily. She didn't want to be that aggressive, she didn't necessarily end it well with her past relationships either. But nothing else could take it back, she didn't want to either. That, or she just wasn't cut out for romantic relationships. 

"Hey," she heard a voice call out to her right ear, and she turned around. 

At first she thought it was one of those loitering teens who were at the skatepark next to the thrift store, but then she saw the excessively formal shirtsleeves and trousers - and she grinned. "Ghost Boy!" she exclaimed, a little too obvious when others could think she was talking to herself. For some reason she didn't really care about that bit now.

Towering over her was the handsome ghost she and Jongho had met only yesterday, now returning the same bright grin at her. Hastily she stood up from crouching, still very much shorter than him. "You really came, I almost thought I was imagining things yesterday," she continued.

He shrugged, "Well I'm here now, aren't I? So, what am I supposed to do now that I'm here?" he asked, curious. 

"Well that's a surprise, isn't it?" and she was about to take him by the hand before she stopped mid-way. "Oh, sorry about that," she said awkwardly, slowly rubbing her neck. "It's just that, I've never met a ghost this...undead-looking?"

Ghost Boy replied with a laugh, so human-like it threw her off even more. He is a ghost. She reminded herself again. 

"Yeah, I understand. I get that a lot."