Wendy whined, staying close enough to Irene that she could feel her, but not close enough to touch her.

“I can’t. No, no, no.”

Irene smiled. “Are you nervous?”

“A little, yes.”

“Nothing’s gonna happen, okay? I’ll be right by your side.”

“I know, but what happens if I make a noise? Or if…”

Irene looked at her pointedly. “Listen to me, nothing’s gonna happen. We are going to have dinner, talk and then you and I will go home, okay?”

Wendy nodded, playing with her hands in an attempt to distract herself.

Irene rang the bell, waiting.

“It’s past seven, I thought you wouldn’t come,” Seulgi said, supporting her weight against the door frame.

“I’m also happy to see you again,” Irene said. “I’m sorry, I stopped to buy thai food and wine.”

She handed Seulgi the two paper bags.

“How did you know?”

“You’re not as mysterious as you think you are, Kang.” Irene rolled her eyes. “Are you going to let us in?”

Seulgi squinted her eyes.

“Us? Did you bring someone else?”

Irene, wide-eyed, shook her head. “Uh, no, no. I was just… I meant the wine and me.”

Seulgi seemed doubtful, but she let it go anyway.

“Whatever. Get inside.”

Irene discretely made space for Wendy to enter too. Contrary to popular belief, Wendy hated crossing walls. But, she wasn’t just a ghost without a corporeal body. She could feel things and touch them. She could also cross through things, but she didn’t try it that much. She hung on the last bits of humanity she had.

Inside, Seulgi went to find glasses for the wine while Irene and Wendy made themselves comfortable on the sofa.

“That was close,” Irene whispered, a small smile plastered on her face.

“You’re a really bad liar, Joohyun, did you know that?”

Irene laughed. “I’m aware of that, yes. It just slipped out, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize, the problem isn’t…”

“Who are you talking to?” Seulgi interrupted, handing her a glass of wine. “I heard someone else’s voice.”

“No one,” Irene said, taking a sip from her glass and looking at Wendy, who was trying to hold her laugh.

“Isn’t it that maybe you don’t want to spill about the man you met?” She asked, at the first bite of her food. “Were you talking to him on the phone?”

At that moment, two things happened. Irene blushed and Wendy lost all her color.

What friend? Wendy wanted to ask, but if Irene hadn’t told her it was because she didn’t trust Wendy yet. She would need to wait till they were alone.

Irene did notice the change in Wendy.

“It’s not that I don’t want to tell you, it’s that I can’t.”

“Don’t tell me he’s married, Irene!” Seulgi cried out, letting the chopsticks fall to the table. “What were you thinking?”

“No! God, no. You know I wouldn’t.” She said, agitated. “Anyways, it wouldn’t be a he, it would be a… she.”

Seulgi sto