Neighbours

16:30

The beer was doing nothing for YoonGi. NamJoon had taken HoSeok back to their motel twenty minutes ago after much debating about leaving the eldest alone with the new problem, but it was finally agreed upon nonetheless. Which meant, he was now really alone with a ghost. It sounded ridiculous. If he were to tell anyone who wasn’t there when it happened, they’d lock him up.

YoonGi stared at the can placed in front of him on the table. The numbness of both his mind and body put him at his wits end. Given, being able to see the problem eased his mind a little, but at the end of the day, she was still dead. She had joked earlier about the cliche of long black hair and a white funeral robe, but this much difference from the norm made it impossible to comprehend all at once.

Lulling on the cream beanbag, the pink haired woman hummed an unknown tune as she inspected what the new tenant had done with the place. It had changed a lot over the years but she could never remember how it was when she was alive, or even if she’d lived there to begin with at all.

The male half of the pair lost in their thoughts set his eyes upon the necklace hanging from the wall beside the shrine to his parents. He had so many questions, but he didn’t want her to get the wrong idea that he wanted to be friends either.

“I’m not expecting you to be my friend.” She told out of the blue and the brunet almost swore at the closeness to his thoughts. “I just hate not being acknowledged. If I were to disappear, that would be fine.” Rolling onto her stomach and kicking her feet out behind her as she watched the sun begin to set through the open glass doors, the female lowered her chin onto her folded forearms. “But if I have to stay here, is it too much to ask that there’s someone who can see me?”

YoonGi couldn’t really find much wrong with the request in general, but he still wondered why it had to be him. Was it a sick joke played by the universe? Both of his parents had died in an accident only two weeks ago. They had been driving down a back road on their way to visit family in the countryside when a truck had slid on black ice and crushed their vehicle against a tree. He was supposed to go with them, but the worst of it was that he had coppd out at the last minute due to a dance competition in which he’d become a semi finalist in. No matter which way anybody looked at it, it was a waste to quit dancing, but he still did all the same. He couldn’t bare to monitor his reflection in a mirror. He had been forced to take a break from university and began drinking alone despite his girlfriend’s detesting; of course, he felt sorry for himself. But rather than sticking around the big city where his parents had relocated him several years before - somewhere where there were too many bad memories and building problems - he ran back to where he was born.

He had never felt comfortable being by himself and so, had always surrounded himself with his two friends, NamJoon and HoSeok. They had a deep understanding of each other despite their picking at one another - it showed today. Yet, even when they had travelled miles to help him get back on his feet, he had only given them something more to worry about. As selfish as it may sound, he still couldn’t think of cutting ties with them. It was horrible, being alone. And then there was her, dropped right into his lap, the strange woman with her shocking pink bob, dark makeup, and her outlandish clothing. She was alone too, she had just said so. He couldn’t help but to think about her situation and if either of his parents happened to be stuck the same way. It hurt that he was away from them and that he’d never be able to do anything for them again, but he did always believe in karma. Maybe this could be his penance.

Resting either elbow atop of his knees, YoonGi cleared his throat. “What’s your name?”

Turning her head and resting her cheek on her wrist, the female locked eyes with the tenant. Shimmering in the golden hour, glassy eyes sparkling and hair seemingly a metallic peach under the smouldering winter sunset, the woman peered up at him. Striking unconventional beauty stared back at him like nothing he’d ever seen. By no means was she the traditional catch who you would take back to you parents - the kind of person who could wash away all of your filial sins - but then again, he didn’t have anyone to impress anymore anyway. There was just him, and whether he wanted to admit it or not, it wouldn’t be difficult to appreciate her.

“Don’t you know you’re supposed to introduce yourself first?” Hazy eyed, the woman smiled. “But I guess it doesn’t matter since I already know your name. Mine’s HaeYeon.”

“Did you hear one of my friends call me?”

“The man I made faint. HoSeok, if I recall.”

“How long have you been here?”

“Your guess is as good as mine.” Adjusting her head, she looked forward, out over the city turned golden by the flush of orange hues. “I can remember around fifteen other people before you.”

Jumping as if he’d been struck, the brunet gasped. “Really?” Wetting his lips, he kept his eyes on the stranger. “What happened to you?”

“Same as above. I don’t know who I was, or how I died. Tragic, right?” She pulled a half-assed sour pout.

“That’s crazy.”

Stretching her arms out like Superman in flight, the woman groaned. “Not as crazy as the guy that’s about to knock on the door.”

“Wha-”

Dungk, dungk.

“You’re not serious?” YoonGi shot up, eying the woman in disbelief.

Rolling onto her back, the female put her right foot on the floor, propping it at an angle as she crossed her other leg over her thigh. “Answer it and you’ll soon find out.”

Eying the female rolling around like a cat in front of a fireplace, YoonGi braced himself and headed towards the door. Unclicking the latch, he pulled the barrier open. Being met by a head of bright coral hair and a wide, rectangular grin, the homeowner drew back. “Hello?”

“You’re the new guy. I’m Kim TaeHyung.” He smacked YoonGi on top of the shoulder and burst into the foyer excitedly. “I brought you some food.”

“Told ya.” HaeYeon mused aloud with her back to the pair.

“Hehhhh~ HaeYeon’s here.” The guest sung, his cave-like voice totally contrasting with his childish personality as he buzzed around.

“You said nobody can see you!” The tenant snapped his head around and complained.

“Oh, I can’t see her.” TaeHyung paused and looked back over his shoulder to shake his head at the shorter male. “I can hear her though - It’s like a static radio.”

“Mine’s like an obnoxious alarm clock.” YoonGi droned with a dark sideways glower directed at the female.

Making himself right at home, TaeHyung placed the metal pot on the kitchen counter and unscrewed the bottle of whiskey he’d brought along. “You seem like the kind of person who likes Western alcohol.” He told as he swayed the expensive bottle a little in front of the homeowner’s face.

Inwardly grimacing, the brunet weaved around his guest and took two glasses from the cupboard. Placing them on the counter in front of the taller man, the homeowner forced himself to be polite at the abrupt fact of having a stranger for company. “Thanks for checking in on me.”

“It’s no problem. It’s hard to make friends in this block.” TaeHyung’s hefty voice did not match the speed of his speech. “There’s a lot of crazy people on this floor.”

YoonGi glanced to the woman who had moved next to him with a ‘Really? Really?!’ look.

“Where’s mine?” HaeYeon asked as she peered over the pair of glasses.

Ignoring the fact he was the only one who could see the female, YoonGi bickered with the woman beside him. “You broke the other two, if you remember.” In the back of his mind, he knew it wouldn’t really matter, not if his neighbour’s were all creepy old guards and batty young shut-ins that appeared to be Speed. Hell, TaeHyung the Mountain Man said him very self that he could hear her. If he was going to be crazy, at least he wasn’t alone. With some luck, any normal person who happened upon him would hopefully think it was something in the water of the apartment block. Or maybe grief. Anything but-

“I’ll take the bottle then.” She reached out for the container when she wasn’t answered.

Mumbling to himself, the brunet picked up the large metal pot and carried it over to the sitting room. “Can the dead even get drunk?”

Following close behind, TaeHyung asked. “It’s amazing that you can see her. What does she look like?”

YoonGi put the pot down on the table and looked the woman up and down. “Hm...” He thought over the best words for describing his new hindrance as the subject in question waited with narrowed brows and a sour pout. “Punk-ish.” He told and turned to his male guest.

TaeHyung was unimpressed. “Is that all? Is that the best you can do?”

Pulling the beanbag over, HaeYeon dropped down on it. “Let him hold the necklace.”

“What?”

Not even looking up, she wiped a tiny smear off the tabletop with her finger. “HoSeok and NamJoon saw me after touching it.”

“Why are you being so familiar?”

“Why are you sounding so angry?”

“I’m not.” Downing the shot which had been poured, YoonGi pointed across the space. “Go and get that necklace.” Pouring another drink for himself, he watched the younger man hesitantly shuffle across the room with a few look backs.

“-hat.” She snatched the bottle out of his hand and huffed into it before taking a chug.

“Awkward .”

“Lazy bast-”

“UWAH~” TaeHyung’s baritone note echoed throughout the cold apartment and the pair batting insults back and forth paused to see the newcomer gawking at them.

Head down, the female smirked to herself. “Looks like I was right.”

Rushing over to the woman’s side, the clumsy man dropped to his knees and began rambling. “Noona, it’s so good to actually see you after so long. You’re just as I imagined you. Thanks for letting me know when it’s the bailiffs calling.”

Dumbstruck, YoonGi stood in front of the dividing wall with his arms out and an expression of complete awe on his face. “How is this not weird to you?” He called out to human guest. “Why are you not freaking out?”

TaeHyung halted his hyperspeed speech to look up at the homeowner. Full brows narrowing slightly and pouty lips pinched, the man-child heaved a breath. “I’ve lived here all of my live, and we’ve spoke often.” Dropping down into an overly casual sitting position, the guest rested his elbow on the table as he continued to keep his eyes on the older man. “I’ve always felt her there; I can sense her.”

Spinning around with his hands on his head, YoonGi couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He was so baffled in fact, that he even overlooked that TaeHyung was lounging around his home like they were old buddies. “What do you say about all of this?” He yapped at the female’s back, suspicious about why she’d remained silent when from what he had gathered, all she wanted to do was give him serious afflictions.

But still, she remained silent for some more seconds. Her shoulders raising ever so slightly as the air grew heavy. “Get me a pen. Or paint.” She pushed herself up and glanced around madly.

“W-what? Excuse me, what are you doing?” YoonGi held his hand out as he saw the woman root through the kitchen drawers in a hurried search.

Finding a black marker, the female pulled the lid off and began to scribble on the back of the fire door. “Tae Ssi, you should go home, right now.” Unflicking the latch of the door, she opened it and waited for the tallest to hurry to the threshold.

“What’s going on?” The brunet also rushed over only to be shoved back by HaeYeon.

“Do not open that door while I’m gone. I mean it.” Getting a grip of the back of TaeHyung’s collar, she forced him out into the oddly dark hallway. The occasional halogen light flickered on for a few seconds, but just as quickly went out. The pungent scent filling the narrow walkway and the squealing wails of a baby a floor below told YoonGi that maybe he didn’t want to know. But his face clearly said otherwise, as the slightly taller woman stole a quick glance down the corridor and then back to him. “You think I’m bad, you should dread to think what’s gonna be here in a few minutes.” Turning her back on the brunette, she gave her captive a rough push to the right. “Lock the door.”

Posted: 9th Feb 2015 - 18:13
Updated: 18th April 2018 - 13:50