I Couldn't Tell You Who It Was

I wondered if I shouldn’t have answered as I did and said, “I love you too, let’s go out.” But after losing Yeonseon, my heart had long gone cold, hardening to the point that it didn’t react at all to my question.

I wasn’t asking for much. I just wanted to see Yeonseon’s face again.

* * *

When I opened my eyes, my surroundings were bright. Because I had become used to the dark, my head had a splitting headache. I pressed my temples and sat up. My stomach still hurt from being punched, and I felt pain deep in my chest with every breath. I frowned and looked at my surroundings.

Apparently, I was on my bed in my room. Hyehyun and Hawoo must have carried me here.

Hawoo must have complained. Even if I was skinny, carrying up a fully grown unconscious man up the stairs would be a burden. I wished that Hawoo would get angry at Hyehyun for doing something useless.

Perhaps they took it away, but Woorim’s flashlight was nowhere in sight. Would I be able to move around well in the dark downstairs? The hallways could pose no problem because I could walk with my hands against the walls. But if there was a door blocking the stairs and I needed to look for the key…

“…”

I decided to get up first.

With every step, the muscles in my body screamed. I was desperate to lay on my bed, but I was worried for Woorim who was downstairs. I could only hope that there were no locked doors and Woorim could make it back up to the top without any troubles. Even if he came up effortlessly, there was bound to be a conflict since Raehee and Hawoo suspected Woorim.

I looked at the wall clock. It was 10 past nine.

Unable to see outside, I couldn’t tell if it was day or night. Either way, it wasn’t good for me. No matter if it had been five or 17 hours, too much time had passed.

I walked up to my door and turned the door handle.

“…?” But something was off. The door could be locked from the inside, so it couldn’t be locked, yet it didn’t open. Rather than being locked in, it felt like something was obstructing the door from outside. I banged on the door a few times. Unmoving, the door simply shook in its place.

“Is anybody there?” I ended up shouting to attract the attention of the people nearby. Despite my yelling, there was silence outside. There wasn’t even any sign of people.

If this was the top floor, that meant Raehee’s group met up with Seoyoon Kim, Seogeung Ahn, and Seohang. There were at least six people outside my door, but I found it bizarre that there was no reaction to my shouting. Now, I was becoming more worried that something happened to the people outside rather than Woorim.

I kicked the door. Bang, bang! After a few more loud noises, the door opened a crack.

Through the crack, I saw that the outside was pitch black. The crack was narrower than my finger, but I could figure out two things from it. First, my room was blocked with heavy objects. Second, the hallway lights were off.

I couldn’t believe that the lights had gone out.

This was the dorm on the top floor. It should be normal for the hallways to be lit. It was in the rules that the top floor lights were the only ones that were on. I suddenly recalled what Woorim had said. “Well, if the rules are running as normal.”

Did the rules lose their function? I remembered what happened on the hospital floor. I remembered that Woorim had left the hallway lights on, but then they had all turned off as if they had never been lit before. Our efforts to turn them back on were fruitless.

What had happened? Was the incident in the hospital hallway not limited to that floor? Did someone turn off the lights on purpose? If so, when? Where and how? For what purpose? Those weren’t the only issues.

If someone purposely cut the lights, then it could mean that the hallway lights would permanently never come back on. The hallway lights weren’t the only issue. Were the stairway lights fine? Not just that, but perhaps even my room…

Then, I felt rushed. I banged on my door with my fist.

It was then that someone spoke.

“Be quiet, Haeseo.”

I finally heard a voice from outside my room. It was Hyehyun.