“Karina?” Winter asks as if to confirm if the person in front of her is indeed Karina. Winter laughs inwardly. The universe has a wacky sense of humor. She smiles at the beautiful woman in front of her and observes their whereabouts. Convenience store. Huh, Winter thinks. She hasn’t really imagined Karina to be the type to be seen in convenience stores. Now that’s just judgmental, Winter. She says to herself. 

“Lovely meeting you here,” Winter says and observes that Karina’s smile widens at what she said. 

“I was actually with a friend,” Karina says gesturing towards the convenience store. Ah, Jeno, Winter thinks. She knows Jeno through Yizhuo who knows the guy through a former classmate. Winter does not know much about him except for his reputation. 

Winter thinks that Karina and Jeno together are not exactly surprising especially since they are of the same pedigree and social status. She wonders, though, if they are dating. Why would you be curious about that? Winter asks herself.

“Ah,” Winter says. “Don’t let me keep you, then. I am just enjoying an evening walk.”

“Can I join you?” Karina asks and smiles when Winter is not able to hide her shock. Winter nods slowly. “How about your… friend?” She asks. Karina made an ‘ah’ as if realizing that she is with someone. She gestures for Winter to wait for her a bit and entered the convenience store.

Winter observes how confident Karina is with her stride. She demands attention from everyone while being confident in the shadows. She is a stigma that Winter couldn’t quite read. And this frustrates her. She sees Karina talk to Jeno and said her goodbye, obviously not giving the boy a chance to disagree. 

Karina walks toward Winter with a smile. Winter offers a small smile back, still thinking what could be the role of Karina in all of this. Why does she offer comfort when the world turns into a harum-scarum place?

“Let’s go?” Karina asks, a little giddy. Winter nods and observes the girl beside her. Karina is beautiful at a distance. Looking closer, Winter sees the little details -- her eyelids, the little smirk she wears, and the humor in her eyes.

“Is it okay that we left your friend there?” Winter asks. Karina nods at this.

“He is actually talking to a friend of his and I am getting impatient,” Karina explains. “What are you doing alone, though?” She asks.

“I actually came from Yizhuo’s house. The gang decided to hang out because we have no classes today.” Winter smiles warmly and Karina notes how infectious it can be.

“Did you have some classes today?” Winter asks the taller girl. Karina shakes her head a this. 

“I don’t have summer classes. I just figured I’d enjoy the summer season here.” Karina says, a little slowly. Winter nods. The two of them walk in comfortable silence. Winter looks up to the clear, night sky. For the first time in weeks -- no, years -- she feels at peace. Her chest feels light, gone was the stress she’s feeling behind her eyes. 

“Hey, look,” Winter excitedly says. “It’s Taurus! See the V-shaped constellation? The reddish-yellow star? That’s Aldebaran!” Karina chuckles at Winter’s enthusiasm. Winter abruptly stops, blushing. She may have felt too comfortable. 

“Please tell me more,” Karina encourages, smiling warmly at Winter. “I haven’t really been good with constellations so I envy those who can easily identify them.”

“Ah, I’m no expert,” Winter replies shyly. “I just read a book about constellations and how ancient people used them for navigation.” Karina hums in thought.

“Do you think we’ll ever go full circle? Humanity, I mean. Will we ever go back to explore the world and feel at home?” She asks. Winter looks at Karina. Whatever image she had of Karina is broken by this soft-spoken, starry-eyed woman beside her.

“'We were wanderers from the beginning.’” Winter replies.

“Carl Sagan,” Karina says back, smiling and obviously impressed. Winter smiles back shyly at Karina and once again enjoys the comfortable silence. Both girls are now looking at the sky, the constellations moving silently with them.

“How come I have never seen you before, Winter?” Karina asks after a few moments. “I believe I’ll hardly forget you if we did.”

“I never really go out much,” Winter states simply. “I value the peace I found here.”

“Ah, I see what you mean,” Karina agrees. Both women continue to walk, enjoying the chill, summer breeze. “I chose to study here because I want to be far away from the city,” Karina says. Winter looks at her and smiles, urging her to talk.

“My older sister, Bae Joohyun, got her degree in agricultural engineering here,” Karina explains. “Fortunately, we had a merger with a big agricultural company through my half-sister Jisoo. She was able to use her agricultural background there.” Winter looks at Karina, shocked and in disbelief.

“Really? The Kim Jisoo? She’s married to my cousin Jennie!” Winter exclaims. Both girls laugh. 

“Oh my, small world. I guess the universe is really trying to get us together. Too bad, I wasn’t at the wedding.” Karina says which makes Winter blush. 

“That’s okay, it was uneventful,” Winter says. Her memory travels back in time. It was far from being uneventful. The press hounded the newlyweds, their grandfather caused a scene because of her dad, and the ghost of their departed granduncle was always making his presence felt. 

Karina and Winter walk in silence once again. The surprising comfort they found in each other’s company is thoroughly enjoyed. Winter steals glances at the girl beside her. She smiles inwardly. She feels giddy, no doubt. A part of her tries to chastise whatever she is feeling by providing the fact that Wonyoung wants her to be close to Karina. 

The taller girl, on the other hand, feels at peace. For her, it feels similar to when she is with Giselle. Unlike with Giselle, however, there is no instance that her loneliness and yearning insert their presence. Karina simply looks at Winter. With her, she sees pastel skies and… hope. 

A few meters from Karina’s condo unit, Winter stops walking abruptly and starts looking straight ahead. Karina follows her view but sees nothing. Karina looks at her companion and sees Winter starting to get pale. Unbeknownst to her, Winter sees a floating specter on the corner of the street. The specter is familiar but also unfamiliar. It’s Wonyoung. But instead of her usual beautiful face, she is bloody, her face is full of shrapnel, and her bones are in a weird angle. 

The streetlamp is illuminating the spot where the specter of Wonyoung is standing. Winter wonders why Wonyoung is not approaching her when usually she’ll be the first to come to Winter. The distance between the girls and the specter is a good meter but Winter clearly feels the emotions it evokes -- wrath, jealousy, and malice. Winter feels chills run up her spine when Wonyoung slowly opens her dead eyes and smiles.

“Winter,” Karina calls, obviously alarmed. “Everything alright?” Karina is surprised when the smaller girl holds her arm. Her cold grasp is enough to put Karina in protective mode.

“W-Wonyoung,” Winter whispers softly. This did not go unnoticed by Karina.

“What?” She asks Winter softly, air starting to clog .

In a split second, the specter is gone and Winter snaps back to reality. She feels cold and definitely unnerved. Winter suddenly remembers that she called Wonyoung’s name near Karina. She slowly looks up at the taller girl and sees battling emotions.

“Are you alright, Winter?” She asks, rather coldly. Winter simply nods. She is starting to feel the fatigue. She tells Karina that her place is already near and it is no longer necessary to walk with her especially since Karina’s condo is a few steps away. Winter did not get to hear Karina say her goodbyes as she dashes through the dark streets, chanting I am a good soul, dark spirits begone over and over again. She learned this chant from her nanny who learned this from her mother and grandmother. Winter remembers her saying that old provinces have traditions in keeping bad spirits away. The chant worked for Winter throughout her life.

Minutes later, she realizes, she is already at her front door. Winter’s adrenaline rush may have been at work, she didn’t notice she passed by the security personnel and ran through the stairs. 

The penthouse was quiet -- mysteriously quiet. The doorknob feels extra cold when Winter touches it. As Winter turns on the main switch, she is greeted by a horrid view. Her specter friends are petrified and hanging from the ceiling. Vernon, Gahyeon, and Seolhyun are gaping, black blood seeping from their hollow eyes and mouths.

“Winter…” Vernon slowly says, his voice more of a whisper. “Please… help us.”

Winter screams and clutches her bag. The scene in front of her is enough to make her scramble through her bag. Luckily, she easily finds her phone and dials Yizhuo.