Donghae’s words continued to ring in Sooyoung’s mind throughout the rest of the week. In the midst of her acceptance over Yuri’s death, she completely forgot about the fact that Yuri’s killer has yet to be identified and was still free and on the loose. A tinge of anger churned in her stomach whenever the thought crossed her mind, but Sooyoung refused to allow herself to fall back into that dark place she was in when she first found out about the murder. The darkness of sorrow and despair swallowed her whole and she was selfishly unaware that others were suffering just as much from Yuri’s death. If Jessica hadn’t stopped her from jumping off the bridge to join Yuri, Sooyoung could only imagine how much suffering her friends and family would go through.

Jessica Jung.

A complete stranger who literally slapped her back into reality. Sooyoung could never thank her enough for what the blonde did. It was thanks to Jessica she finally saw the error of her ways and helped her take that first step forward to move on. Sooyoung was finally able to face reality head on and in return, found the finally gift Yuri left behind, almost as if her deceased girlfriend was telling her to live on for the both of them. The thought brought a small smile to her features.

However, the smile soon faded and her lips pressed together into a thin line when it’s been a week since Jessica left on her trip back to the city with her benefactor. There was a strange feeling of emptiness inside of Sooyoung and she found herself missing her new friend more than she expected. It was strange not seeing that familiar color of blonde by the river whenever she walked home. They met almost every other day when Jessica wasn’t preoccupied with her errands and chores while visiting Krystal in between everything. But it was more than emptiness, there was also worry lingering in the back of her mind.

The hushed and gossiping whispers at school about disappearances happening in their small town have spread from her school to the rest of the residents. Sooyoung would hear people at the grocery store or around her neighborhood about people disappearing, yet there have been no announcements from the police about any missing people, and as far as Sooyoung could tell, no one she knew has disappeared and no one she knew mentioned about anyone close to them disappearing as well. It was puzzling, to say the least.  

Sooyoung left school grounds alone after her last class of the day was over. Yoona had to stay behind due to a group project she was working on for her photography class while Tiffany was at home, bedridden from a cold. She couldn’t blame Tiffany for getting sick considering the weather turned very cold suddenly the past couple of days. The tall girl was thankful she had Yuri’s scarf to help her keep warm. On the way home, Sooyoung decided to stop by the local convenience store to buy a bottle of pure orange juice for her sick friend, picking up a box of strawberry pepero for herself and Tiffany as well. As she was browsing around, she overheard a couple of ahjummas gossping nearby.

“The town seems a lot quieter these days. The only really loud sounds you hear are motorized vehicles like cars and delivery trucks. You hardly see kids playing out on the streets anymore.”

“I bet you it’s because of that rumor going around. Even if it’s only a rumor, I suppose parents are only being careful. This reminds me of how the town used to be several decades ago.”

“I know what you mean. My own mother lived in the town back then and said they were difficult times. She never elaborated why, only mentioning it was dangerous.”

“Do you think the rumor about people disappearing is true? No one has been reported missing, yet it seems like many are taking all this talk seriously.”

“Well, if it were true, perhaps the people who are disappearing are tourists or outsiders? Our town isn’t that big so it’d be clear if a local went missing.”

Sooyoung paused as she was reaching for the bottle of orange juice when she heard that last bit. Jessica immediately popped into her mind as she originally came from the city and she hasn’t lived in town for long. It could only be a coincidence, right? There was no way Jessica disappeared because she was on a trip to the city… Right? She let out sigh and took her things to the register to purchase, attempting to push away that possibility from her mind.

~~~

“Aww. Sooyoung