[Play: You Wouldn't Answer My Calls - 2AM]

It was Krystal’s day, her special day. Her wedding day if you want to be more specific. She was excited; thrilled by the fact that she would marry the one she loved since childhood, a man who went by the name, Choi Minho. To her, he was like the tranquil breeze – warm and delicate. Something which no one had the ability to grab hold of.

But just when she thought she had him in her arms, he escaped. It felt as if he turned around and aimed directly at her heart with a lethal knife, leaving behind a fatal damage which she could never forget.

-

Underneath her white veil, she smiled innocently once she reached the double doors which separated her from the church. She tried to visualise the scene inside. In her mind, behind that barrier would be an aisle and at the end of it, Minho would be waiting for her with his charismatic grin. Chairs would be occupied by their family and friends on both sides, greeting her with their heart-warming expression.

However, when those doors finally opened, nothing was like how she imagined it to be. Instead, it was far from it.

Instead of sitting on the chairs which were set on the sides, everyone gathered on the other end where Minho was supposed to stand. The bouquet she was holding instantly dropped once she heard the sombre screeches from his mother. Her vision blurred once a thought hit her head, yet her brain refused to accept it. Then, her eyes finally managed to focus on the crowd in front of her, but everything else seemed to be spinning. Unknowingly, her lips quivered at the possibilities which could’ve caused them to react like that. She prayed that they were just fooling around, but would they really use such a serious issue to joke with?

‘Someone, call the ambulance!’
‘Minho! Minho! Wake up! MINHO!’
‘How can this be? He’s getting married today.’

Those comments rung in her ears and created a spherical crystal in the corner of her eye, waiting to plummet. Like a living corpse, she strolled towards the crowd. She didn’t dare to believe it, but reality was right in front of her. The moment she got closer, she removed the veil herself so her eyes could confirm the situation. Immediately, a sour, tingly feeling reached her nose, resulting in it being tainted with a bright scarlet colour.

There he was, lying recklessly on the marble flooring with his limply body. Those charismatic eyes were closed. The colour of his skin had already faded. The sight simply caused her heart to dive to her stomach as if she was on a rollercoaster. Only difference was - there was no excitement.

Tears dwelled within her eyelids until his mother slapped her across the face. Her head remained low as she listened to her cries. The tears were released whilst gravity helped to pull them away from their home, causing them to patter down onto the merciless floor.

“My son wouldn’t have died so soon if it wasn’t for you! What kind of devil are you? Are you cursed or something?!” Her scream echoed within the vast building, sending shivers as well as melancholy down everyone’s spine, giving them discomfort.

Krystal simply stood still, waiting to wake up from her nightmare, but she knew very well that it was not a dream. Wouldn’t it be great though? Waking up to find that everything was just the way it was supposed to be. Unfortunately, those only happen in fairy tales, where the princesses always get the happy ending. Her unfortunate wedding just confirmed that Minho was not her prince…and she was no princess. Her imaginary castle which was protecting her all along had disappeared along with the happiness within her.

Soon, the ambulance arrived, sending Minho to the hospital. The sirens sent them all into a reverie, numbing their traumatised souls.

Everyone waited patiently in the waiting area; friends and family seemed to have created an invisible wall between them, occasionally sending glares to the other side. Krystal just leaned her head against the wall, thinking everything over. Did she bring misfortune to the Choi family? Was it really her? Was she responsible? Those questions suffocated her, trying to force her to come up with an answer. Yet the answers wouldn’t surface and the questions continued to exhaust her.

Minutes later, the doctor finally came out with a motionless expression plastered onto his face. Some tried to guess the fate of their beloved Minho, whereas some did not even dare to look at the doctor. Everyone stood up in order to form a crowd around him, pressuring him to tell them the result. Hopeful, desperate and sorrowful eyes surrounded him. He swallowed hard before allowing himself to announce the news which would send them all to abyss.

“I am afraid we were too late.” Those seven words tore their soul out from their body. Sanity escaped whilst chaos emerged. Miserable cries filled the room, adding another ounce of guilt onto the doctor’s chest. The father grabbed the doctor’s shoulders, begging him to save his son. He was so distraught that he even threw away his pride to kneel before him, banging his forehead against the floor until it bruised.

Minho’s mum on the other hand, went directly to Krystal. Her bloodshot eyes appeared as if she wanted to devour her alive. She pulled the poor girl’s hair whilst crying her son’s name. Surprisingly, Krystal did not push her away. She remained still like a puppet – only moving when someone pulled or pushed her. Even though her hair was being pulled, she did not feel any pain. The only pain she felt was hidden deep inside her chest. It felt like there was a giant rock blocking air from going in and out of her lungs. She felt as if she was slowly dying as each second ticked by. She wished she was, yet God was not so lenient to grant her wish.

When a couple of nurses finally managed to separate the two, the broken woman pointed to Krystal with her shaky crooked finger.

“I don’t ever want to see you again! Never will I let you step into the Choi family. Leave, LEAVE!” she demanded as she fell onto the ground, whilst her niece; Yoona, held her in her arms to comfort her.

“Auntie, please don’t be like this,” Yoona pleaded as she cried with the wounded woman who clung onto her for security. “Krystal, please leave. I beg of you, I beg of you.”

Krystal did not blame them for acting that way, because she understood how corrupted they were. She too hated herself as she was beginning to believe that she was the cause of Minho’s death. He was like one of God’s angels, and she was not worthy of possessing such greatness in her life.

---

Hiding away in the corner, under the shadows was a lost spirit who had been lurking around for years as he was unable to reincarnate. He watched the poignant scene happen, but he was unable to do anything. Clenched fists banged against the wall, yet no sounds were produced. Like always, he was unnoticeable to humans. However, for the first time in many years, someone called his name.

“Key, is that you?” A frighteningly familiar voice called from behind. The spirit immediately turned his head around to see the ghost of the deceased Minho. Confusion was then replaced by wrath. Seriousness consumed his eyes, making Minho slightly disappointed about their reunion.

“It’s not your time to leave yet. Get back into your body, now!” he decreed, giving his friend his stern looking expression.

“I haven’t seen you for so long. That’s the first thing you say to me?” Minho laughed half-heartedly, which only aggravated Key even more, causing him to repeat his sentence again in a more sinister manner.

“The spirit guards are waiting for me, I need to reincarnate now. Did you know how hard it was for me to see you? I begged for hours!” Minho folded his arms childishly.

“It’s not even your time to go. You promised me. You promised you’d look after Krystal for me!” Key gritted his teeth as he grabbed Minho by the shoulders, staring at him with his furrowed eyebrows.

“That’s the reason why you can’t leave this place,” Minho sighed with a burdened heart. “Look, Krystal would get over it soon. Besides, I’m not the one who loves her; you are.”

“But I’m dead,” he uttered under his breath.

“Same here!” Minho joked again, causing Key to glare daggers into him. “Key, I’m leaving, but I’m leaving you with a gift. The thing is – you kind of need to find this gift, but I’m sure the spirit guards would help you.”

“Ghosts don’t need gifts you idiot. Are you going to get back in there, or do you want me to force you in there?” Key rolled his sleeves up, prepared to use violence on him. However, even when they were humans, Key was never a match for Minho, hence why Minho was sniggering in amusement.

“I’d love to play with you, but they’re calling me. Key, I’ll miss you. Take care and remember about my gift.” Minho winked before disappearing to the other dimension, leaving behind a hopeless spirit.

---

A day after Minho’s death, Krystal returned to her apartment. Every time she went into the bathroom, tears would leak uncontrollably once she saw her own reflection in the mirror. She hated her reflection so much that she threw things at the mirror, causing it to shatter. The familiar noise caused her to cry even more, as it reminded her how much her heart had shattered after his death. At the end of the day, she would just crouch into a ball, hoping that everything would just disappear.

Later on the day, when she had calmed down, she decided to eat some ice-cream, but every bite she took led to more tears. In the end, she could take it no longer.

She threw the ice-cream onto the floor and pushed all the furniture over, occasionally breaking a photo frame or an ornament. Pieces of glass, wood, food were scattered across the wooden floor. All the cables were broken and tangled together. She was like an uncontrollable crazy woman, until someone was with her.

“Krystal!” A gasp was heard from the entrance. Krystal turned around absently before acknowledging what she’d done.

“U-unnie,” she stammered. “What should I do?” Her face scrunched as she could feel her lukewarm tears trickling down her chin.  Without any second thoughts, Jessica pulled her into a hug.

“It’s ok. Unnie is here. Don’t be afraid. Everything will be fine. Pack a few things and move in with me and Heechul. Everything will be fine. Don’t forget, you’ve still got me. I’m right here Krystal, don’t be afraid.” Instantly, Krystal collapsed in her embrace. Jessica had the urge to collapse as well, but forced herself to be strong for her sister.

---

Once Krystal was shown to her room, she unpacked her things until she came across her diary. Not long ago, she wrote an entry regarding her happy marriage. Tears streamed down her face, dripping onto the cover of the diary whilst she thought about it. After wiping her tears away with the back of her hand, she went to the desk and wrote another entry, hoping that writing would somehow free her from the pain.

----------

Here, you leave me in this cold bitter world. Without you, there would be no one to console this pitiful me. Why did you leave me like this? Never had I imagined life to be so difficult. Somehow, I can’t speak properly. Every time I walk, I stumble. Every time I breathe, I think of you. When my eyes close, this broken heart would mourn for you.

If you were the breeze that surrounded me, then I must have been the hopeless sand. You carried me in your arms whilst I had no choice but to follow. If you chose to fly, then I would fly with you. If you chose to settle down and rest, then I would do the same.

Without you, I would just remain stationary, because that’s just how hopeless I am.

----------

After writing her feelings and thoughts, she realised that she had reached the end of her diary. Quickly wiping her tears away, she hid her diary before heading out to buy a new one. However, before she reached the door, Jessica stopped her.

“Where do you think you’re going?” she asked with her paranoid tone of voice.

“To buy a new diary,” Krystal replied, trying to sound as casual as possible so her sister wouldn’t worry.

“Stay here for a minute,” she instructed before she went into the living room and came back with a book in her hand.

“I found this when I was tidying up. It’s empty. Use this for now. Although, I would prefer you to talk to me about your problems instead of writing diaries,” the elder one sighed as she handed her a brown leathered diary. Dust was clearly visible on the ridges, yet there was something special about it. Krystal wasn’t exactly sure what it was that made it so special, but she felt strange when holding it.

“If you found this, then doesn’t this belong to Heechul oppa?”

“It’s empty. Besides, if he wants a new one, I’ll buy him one. He won’t mind. Just use it.” After seeing her supportive sister, Krystal embraced her in her arms.

“Unnie, thank you,” she whispered with her hoarse voice before hiding herself in her room again.

---

Krystal placed her new diary carefully onto her desk before lying on her bed, continuing to cry for Minho. Pathetically, she whispered the same phrase over and over again: ‘Oppa, I miss you. I can’t live without you. Why can’t you come back?’ She cried until her muttering casted a spell on her, forcing her to sleep.

Whilst the corrupted princess was lying there blissfully, Key appeared from the other side of her room. Slowly, he strolled towards her desk with his fingers floating over the diary as he wondered why it looked so familiar.

“Was it wrong to make you love Minho? Did I cause you to suffer even more?” he asked as he went over to her. “Krystal, be strong. Oppa is right here,” he whispered tenderly whilst his heart wrenched, knowing the fact that the one she was crying for was Minho. The dead should have no feelings, yet he still had his.

FLASHBACK

[PLAY: Please, Don't Go - SHINee]

“I don’t want to see you ever again. Get lost!” Key uttered threateningly. Krystal was just standing there like a lost puppy, not knowing how to react to his sudden change of behaviour.

“Oppa, what do you mean? Why are you like this?” Her eyes were watering, pleading him to stop, but he didn’t.

“Are you so stupid that you can’t see that I’m trying to break up with you? Are you blind? Can’t you see I’m sick of you? I was only playing with you, but you’ve been getting on my nerves recently. So, stop clinging onto me, we’re over!” he bellowed furiously before leaving behind a damaged little girl. He walked away calmly in front of her, but once he knew she couldn’t see him, he began to run with tears streaming uncontrollably. Whilst running the seemingly endless road, he prayed for Krystal to stop loving him. He wanted to prepare everyone for his death, just so they wouldn’t be as hurt when it came to it, but was he really doing the right thing?

Soon, he reached a bridge. Leaning against its railings, his cries turned into bitter screams.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” he repeated as he huddled himself into a ball. His fingers dug into his clothing, trying to relieve himself from the pain that was building in both his mind and chest.

Coincidently, Minho saw him. Without any hesitation, he approached his shattered friend. He was not surprised by his actions, since Key had already told him that he was planning to break up with Krystal.

“Key,” Minho sighed once he reached him, causing Key to lift his head up subtly, showing him his agonizing tears.

“Minho, you’re my friend right?” He forced a weak grin onto his face, causing Minho’s lips to part in sympathy. Minho simply nodded his head gravely, allowing Key to continue with his request. “Promise me one thing. If I die and Krystal wants to as well, take her to a psychologist. Let them erase her memories of me. Rewrite her life. Make it so you’re the one she loves, not me. Once her memories are altered, take care of her for me. Can that be my last wish?” he begged as more pearls fell from his swollen eyes. Minho could see that he was trying to hold his tears back as he was blinking rapidly, rolling his eyes backwards. Watching him, Minho heaved another sigh, pulling him up so he could wrap his arms around him.

“I can’t promise you that I would look after her better than you would, but I will try. I will grant you your wish…” Key could hear his friend sniff hard. He was slightly taken back, since he had never seen him cry before. It seemed like Minho was having difficulties speaking, as sounds were produced, but none of them were recognised as words. After inhaling a deep breath, he finally managed to finish his sentence. “…because that’s all I can do for you.” Just like that, Minho broke into tears. Like a child, he cried and begged.

“Key, please don’t leave us. Don’t go. I can promise you anything, but please don’t go.” Key could feel him shaking his head on his shoulder. He could sense his misery, but how could he comfort him? “We need you, Key. Please don’t go. You can’t leave like this. You can’t leave us like this.” His cries created more tears in Key’s eyes. Desperation lingered within his croaky voice whilst his tears seeped into Key’s clothes.

“Minho, you’re the best friend I’ve ever had. I don’t want to leave you guys either, and I’m sorry for leaving you with such big responsibilities, but you’re the only person I trust,” he spoke serenely, not wanting to inflict any more sufferings to his friend.

Minho shook his head harder, clutching him tighter, afraid that he would leave any second.

END FLASHBACK & SONG

“This is my fault, isn’t it?” Key sighed as he sat on the floor beside Krystal’s bed, watching over her like an angel, guarding and protecting her.

--

The next day, Krystal woke up to find her new diary missing. She searched everywhere but she just couldn’t find it. It was strange, since she swore she placed it on the desk the night before. When she turned around, her eyes widened in shock and her jaw dropped as she restrained herself from screaming.

“Who are you?! What are you doing in my room?!” She pointed at Key, who was searching for the person she was referring to until he realised it was him.

“Y-you can see me?” He pointed to himself in a baffled manner.

“OF COURSE I CAN SEE YOU! DO YOU THINK I’M BLIND?!” she screamed whilst she scrunched her face in disgust. Suddenly, Jessica rushed into the room to see what was going on.

“Krystal, are you ok?” she asked with concern once she entered.

“This guy is in my room!” Krystal pointed childishly, causing Jessica to furrow her eyebrows as she glanced around the room.

“I’ll take you to a psychologist tomorrow,” she sighed before exiting, which caused Krystal’s jaw to drop even more. Her eyes widened in bewilderment as she turned towards Key again.

“You can really see me,” Key stated in disbelief. “Can you touch me as well?” That phrase earned him a powerful poke from her. “Ouch? I can feel it!” he gasped, astonished as if he had made an important discovery.

Confusion was written all over her face, but that paranoid attitude of hers was still present. It was obvious that she didn’t like Key by the way she was glaring at him.

“So, what are you? Why can’t Jessica see you?”

“Because I’m…dead,” he spoke casually, making it difficult for her to take him seriously.

“I don’t care what you are. Just leave me alone,” she sighed distressfully as she slumped onto her bed, covering her head with her pillow until a thought popped into her mind. “If you’re really a ghost, and I can see you. Can I see Minho too?” Her eyes glistened with hope whilst she sat up to face him. Key on the other hand, just frowned despondently.

“If I could let you see him, I would.” He stared outside the window profoundly, wondering why his surroundings seemed so familiar. Then, he heard a sarcastic chuckle from her.

“Even if you could you wouldn’t let me see him. Am I right? We don’t even know each other, why should you help me? I guess I was stupid for asking such question. Don’t worry; I’ll go to him myself.” Hastily, she grabbed her jacket and headed out when Jessica wasn’t noticing. Like always, Key followed her shadow silently.

Krystal ran until she reached the bridge where Minho promised Key to look after her. Gripping onto the railings, she tried to jump over it so she could drown in the river. Just when she was about to leap off, Key held her back by the waist.

“Don’t,” was all he said, but Krystal’s reaction made her seem like a mad woman.

“Let go of me!” she screeched into his ears, but he refused to let go. She fidgeted violently within his grasp, yet she was unable to free herself.

“I’m sorry, I can’t let you go,” he whispered with his hoarse voice whilst he observed how she tortured herself. Her tears were like a drill, drilling holes into his heart if he still had one. “Krystal, calm down. Minho wouldn’t want to see you like this.”

“I want to see him,” she whimpered quietly once she calmed down a little. “I miss him. I want him back. I really want to see him.” Hanging onto the railings, she crouched down to hide her face whilst Key finally let go of her. Her cries seemed to have created hurricanes in his world. If he was still alive, he would’ve probably cried with her.  Within his mind, he couldn’t help but wonder if that was how much she loved him or how much she loved Minho. Since her love for Key was given to Minho, but was it the same love? Did she love Minho more than him? A faint tint of jealousy traced in the back of his mind once he thought about it.

“Krystal,” he murmured as he patted her shoulder. “I want to take you somewhere.”

“I don’t want to! Stop pestering me! You’re really annoying.” She glared at him with her swollen eyes, showing him how broken she was.

“Unfortunately, you don’t have a choice. You will come with me.” Forcefully, he grabbed her by the wrist and dragged her along.