I was so sleepy and tired even if I didn’t do anything for the whole day and just lay down on my bed.

                It’s already 10:00 in the evening and I saw noona opened the door of my bedroom. She smiled when she saw me still awake with sleepy eyes.

                “Good night, Wooyoung,” she said and closed the light.

                “Noona,” I called her before she close the door. “Thanks.”

                I saw her lips smiled and she nodded, “You’re always welcome, Wooyoung. Good night,” she closed the door slowly and I went to sleep.

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                I woke up because of the sunlight coming from outside the window and I heard the chirping of the birds like there’s a singing competition outside. I stretched my arms and yawned. I waited for noona to come and give me a good morning smile. I feel stronger than yesterday and I’m in the good mood to visit IU again with noona even if she’s angry at me. I just want to see her face and look what she’s doing because I miss her so much. Maybe that can help to strengthen me.

                One hour passed and noona’s not here yet. She’s supposed to be awake and cooking the breakfast for mother and me.

                I got up carefully and slowly and I heard my bones made an unusual sound because they were stretched and moved again after two weeks. My back bones were still in pain and even the back of my neck. I just scratched my head and walked slowly towards the door and opened it.

                “Eunna!” I heard mother screamed noona’s name and I was nervous so I went to noona’s room with quick steps.

                The door was widely open and when I came in I saw mother crying on the floor and hugging noona. I can’t see the face of noona but her body is lifeless. I ran to them and saw blood on the bed sheet.

                “Mom, what happened?” my voice was shaking.

                “Wooyoung…Wooyoung…” mother cannot answer me because she kept on crying. She showed to me the bloody face of noona. Her nose was bleeding, her tears were blood and her lips have no color. I was scared. I covered my mouth and I started to cry too.

                “Noona,” I shook her hands but it’s not responding. “Noona!” I cried.

                Mother put down the head of noona carefully on the floor and ran outside to call an ambulance. I stayed there and was so shocked by the face of noona and I saw many bruises on her arms and legs.

                “Who did this to you, noona? Wake up and tell me!” I put her head on my arms and shook her shoulders, hoping she would wake up.

                “Woo…”

                I wiped off my tears and looked at noona. was half-open.

                “Noona! Noona! I’m here!” I said and encouraged her to speak.

                “The witch…the witch…” she said.

                A violent and extreme anger rose to my mind like I’m ready to kill someone when I heard the word ‘witch’. I know noona’s talking about IU’s mother and there’s no one else in this world that we call ‘witch’.

                “Why did she do this to you?!!” I yelled with great wrath in my voice.

                Noona tried to raise her hand to my cheek but it fell. I took her hand put it on my cheek.

                “I can’t see you,” she said and her eyebrows furrowed. Her eyes were closed.

                “I can see you, noona,” I said while crying.

                She smiled a bit but I can’t smile because I was completely hurt and affected by her weak appearance. I just cried in front of her and her head was getting colder and heavier.

                “I love you, Wooyoung,” she said and later her smile was gone and her hand on my cheek fell down.

                She’s not dead. She’s not dead. Noona likes joking with me. She’s not dead.

                I laughed while tears from my eyes kept on falling to her bloody face like I was a crazy man.

                “Noona, you’re so fictional too. Come on, we need to eat breakfast together,” I said.

                She’s not moving and her face was pale. She was not breathing anymore. I cried silently and slapped my face because I know this is just a nightmare.

                “Wooyoung! The ambulance is here!” I heard mother shouted and she came in with two men who were wearing white shirts with the hospital’s name printed on its back. They took noona’s body from me and I just looked at her face.

                “I love you too, noona,” I whispered while looking at her face.

                Mother followed the men and called my name but I didn’t move because I was so weak and my knees were shaking. I just stared at the bloody bed sheet and at my hands and shirt with blood of noona. My hair was wet because of sweat. I felt dizzy because of stress, head ache, shock and pain in m heart. My eyes closed and I fell down on the floor.

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                I knew I was inside my dream again because I found myself inside the white place, facing the huge door.

                “I’m expecting for your arrival, Jang Wooyoung.”

                I looked behind and saw the hag smiling at me.

                “So you’re also expecting for my revenge, witch,” I said angrily.

                Her face turned serious and annoyed when she heard me calling her ‘hag’.

                “Do you think it’s possible for you to kill me?” she raised an eyebrow.

                “Of course it’s possible. You hurt noona so I can hurt you too,” I said bravely and showed her my fist.

                She laughed like an evil, “I didn’t hurt your noona. I killed her. Hospitals are useless.”

                Tears fell down from my eyes and I fell on my knees and got weak, “Noona didn’t do anything to you, witch.”

                “Go on and cry forever,” she said and walked towards me. “I’m so happy to see you crying and kneeling in front of me,” she laughed and I heard she opened the huge door. “Your noona is so stubborn. I never expected that she would help you so I put her away from this game.” She laughed again and opened the door.

                I was so angry at her so I stood up quickly and ran to her, “You didn’t expect this too, right?”

                She looked at me and I pulled her long hair and we came out from the door.

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                I opened my eyes and saw the bloody bed sheet. I looked around to see the witch but she’s not here so I stood up and went inside quietly. It was silent and empty in the whole house. I went down to the kitchen and took the sharpest knife with me and headed to the living room.

                My whole body was shaking especially my hand which is holding a knife, because I know this is a crime. I don’t care what would happen after this, I just want to take revenge for my noona. That witch took away the life of a very kind and caring lady.

                I was already at the living room but the witch wasn’t there too. I thought I was tricked by her again and went to someone’s house after we came out from my dream, but then I heard a deep breath behind me and when I turned around I saw a very scary monster with sharp teeth and terrible face. I don’t know where it came from.

                “Boo!” it said and I stepped back. The monster was big and before I could stab it, it slapped my face and I flew and bumped on the TV violently. I felt my head bleeding. I saw the knife flew away from my hand and I don’t know where it landed. I tried to stand but the monster got me and its big finger pointed my head.

                “This is what I did to your poor noona.”

                I figured out that this monster is the witch who killed noona. I tried to release my own whole body from her hand but my body was badly hurt and weak.

                “Give noona back to me, you monster!” I shouted and spat saliva at her face. She got mad and screamed loudly. She threw me away and I landed on the floor and I felt so dizzy. My vision was getting blurred and I shook my head to see clearly. Fortunately, I saw the ceramic knife beside my foot. I reached for it before the monster saw me.

                “Jang Wooyoung! Die now!” the whole house shook like there’s an earthquake and the things hanging on the wall fell down.

                I looked at the monster and shouted, “I’ll kill you first!” I stood up unsteadily because my knees were shaking. I let her came to me and before she could slam my whole body, I stabbed her old palm and it bleed. Her monstrous scream made my hairs rise.

                I conquered my fear and took the chance to run to her and stabbed her belly with great force.

                “AAHHH!!!” she looked down at her stomach and then to me. I gave her a smirk and quickly, I stepped on her arm and jumped to give her my best attack.

                “For noona,” I whispered and pushed the end of the knife to the monster’s eye. I kicked her chin before I fell down on the floor badly.  The monster raised both her hands and screamed to death.

                “NO!!!!”

                I saw her disintegrated and vanished.

END OF CHAPTER 23