For Yena and BE'O.

"huh, where the fuck am i?!" seungmin immediately sat up and glanced around, noticing he was in some forest. "and why the fuck am i laying on a pile of dead, brown leaves?! i was just hanging out with hyunjin and minho! how the fuck am i in a—"

"seungminnie, shut up!" the brown-haired boy flinched from the familiar voice, quickly looking up to see hyejoo peering down at him, her eyes narrowed. "also yes, i'm back. but c'mon, get up you idiot." she put her hand out and seungmin grabbed it, pulling himself up while still looking at her in disbelief.

"h-hyejoo?" he stifled, staring into her black-colored eyes that didn't hold shadows across them anymore. "i thought you were finally back on earth? why are you with me again? and why are we in a fucking forest?" he was still unconsciously holding her hand.

the black-haired girl sighed, letting his hand go, "because, seungminnie, something happened." hyejoo now gazed at him sympathetically, which quite scared seungmin because she was never this nice. "to put it simply, you were killed. then, you were brought to me like how i was brought to you because you have something you still need to do. i don't know what though and only jihyo knows that because she's the one who told me mine. she decides all of our fates."

seungmin didn't say anything. he didn't know what to say. hyejoo must've noticed his face full of mixed emotions as she went on, "i know this is a lot to take in but trust me, i felt the exact same way when we first met. except, i didn't know the bitch and my now ex-friend heejin killed me for ditto and i just thought my friends were ignoring me on purpose—"

"HEEJIN KILLED YOU?!" the brown-haired boy screeched, causing hyejoo to flinch from the sudden loudness. "YOU MEAN FELIX'S BATSHIT CRAZY AND HOMOPHOBIC AS FUCK COUSIN WHO'S A STUCK-UP BITCH TO EVERYONE?!"

the girl looked at him in concern, "uh, yeah...i never knew they're cousins but i guess that's why she would randomly talk shit about him even though none of his knew who he was."

"enough of that, heejin isn't any of my concern," seungmin rapidly shook his head. "now, tell me how and why i'm basically now a...ghost?!"

hyejoo frowned, "well, you got killed. you're not a ghost because if you were a ghost, i wouldn't be able to talk to you, see you or touch you. you're just immortal like how i was, except i can only see you, yet you can still interact with the world like normal."

the brown-haired boy glanced around, "oh, i guess that makes sense...but why were you standing in a forest when i fell here?"

"well, i just happened to be here because i was walking to go meet my new girlfriend by the pond we've been going to ever since i turned mortal again." hyejoo softly smiled to herself, her eyes twinkling at the thought of her lover. "you probably know her, her name's park chaewon but she goes by gowon. she dyed her hair a kinda greenish-blueish color recently."

seungmin curtly nodded, "yeah i know her, i've had a few classes with her these last couple years." he suddenly paused, a wretched thought striking him. "wh-who killed me?..." the boy knew he was a shitty person and has said stuff he probably shouldn't have. but, he couldn't think of anything he has said or done that could get him killed.

the brown-haired boy watched as hyejoo looked reluctant to answer and a bit horrified. "do you know?" he looked at her expectingly, but she only looked at him in distraught.

"yes," her answer was barley audible, the look not leaving. "it showed me when i pulled you up. that's how you saw my murder when you grabbed my arm for the first time back then." the black-haired girl looked down at her hands, then back up at him.

seungmin's stomach began to slowly fill with anxiety at how she was avoiding answering his question. was what she saw really that bad? he crossed his arms, tilting his head.

"what did you see? c'mon hyejoo, you can literally tell me anything. when we were together for all those months, we told each other everything because you couldn't leave my side," he exasperated, now starting to become impatient with the girl.

her expression suddenly changed as she scoffed, "do you really want to fucking know?! and don't tell me that bullshit because you know damn well i had no choice." hyejoo glared at him and crossed her arms. "fine, but don't lose your shit and cry or whatever when i tell you!"

the brown-haired boy rolled his eyes, "i won't, do you know who you're talking to?"

"mhm, sadly i do. now, i'm going to put my hand on your arm so i can repeat what it tells me," she placed her hand on his left arm, lightly holding it. "hyunjin and minho only wanted to hang out with you at your house when your parents were away so they could kill you with a dagger. they stabbed you with it when you weren't looking and pulled it out immediately, running away and leaving your dead body splayed out on the floor. you've been officially reported and filed to have committed suicide because nobody could find a suspect. apparently, the dagger is an heirloom to lee minho's family, but he took it to give it to hyunjin so he could kill you."

"hyunjin and minho killed me?..." he felt lifeless, well, he already technically was, but he still couldn't believe what the black-haired girl was saying to him. my childhood friend, the person i liked, the one that knew everything about me, was the one to kill me? seungmin started to slowly begin to hyperventilate as his mind was whirling. i can't fucking believe this, what the actual shit. was my whole life a lie?—

"wait, there's more. minho's motives: he hates you and thought his life would be better without you in it but he knew he would lose all his friends if you two stopped being friends. hyunjin's motives: he killed you to kill his love for you and so you couldn't get in between him and felix," hyejoo paused, her eyes widening. "it's showing me the dagger they used. oh my god, that can't be it, right? there's no way, there's no fucking way that's minho's..."

the brown-haired boy looked down at the ground, defeated. "what the actual fuck, man," he muttered to himself, but she heard him as the girl looked at him in concern. "i thought they were my friends, but i guess they gave less of a shit about me." especially jeongin, he still stared down, tears beginning to form in his eyes. i thought we were best friends...

"wait," seungmin suddenly blurted. "jeongin. yang fucking jeongin."

the black-haired girl raised an eyebrow, "yeah? what about him? i thought you told me he was your best friend because he was the only one who understood you, besides hyunj—"

"don't fucking mention that bastard," the older hissed at her, feeling pleased that she quickly closed her mouth. "i just wanted a friend group. it's their fucking faults i was dragged into so much shit. i heard everything. i saw everything. do you know how that fucking made me feel, hyejoo?! do you?" he started to slowly walk towards her, enraged, taking one step at a time as she backed up with a scared look.

"y—yes, you told me about it," the girl rapidly nodded as she watched the brown-haired boy with rounded eyes.

his enraged gaze flickered around at the trees around them, noticing how the sun was about yo set, "sure, i'm not a good person myself and i did partake in the fights. but they're going to pay, for everything. if i was stripped away my life because of the actions of others, then i might as take people's lives."

hyejoo furrowed her eyebrows, rushing up to grabbing his arms, "seungmin, i know you're angry and can't think rationally right now, but how are you going to do that? you can't go and stab seven other people! you would be sent to, y'know. you need to go talk to jihyo and calm down."

he narrowed his eyes, "how am i supposed to talk to someone i don't know?!"

"great question because," the black-haired girl looked over her shoulder. "you can come here now."

seungmin's eyes couldn't believe who he was seeing walk over to where the two of them were standing. he stared at her while she elegantly walked over to them, before stopping next to hyejoo. she gently smiled at the two students, her figure glowing and glittering. it was park jihyo.

the goddess of youth, life and death jihyo. the queen of all the other goodnesses jihyo. seungmin only knew this because he used to be in really into greek mythology back in middle school, which should've told him something about the future. if you know what i mean, cough cough, wink wink, ahem ahem.

"minho's dagger that you got stabbed with, connected you to the original owner of the weapon, which was the family of jihyo's," she blinked, before turning to jihyo. "hello goddess jihyo, seungmin was wondering about his fate and if he'll be able to become mortal again?"

she softly smiled again, before closing her eyes and raising her hands up. the goddess rose elegantly, "kim seungmin, you were unrighteously murdered. however, you will not return to earth and become mortal once again. your soul will be put to rest as they already know you're dead, i'm sorry. though, you will only be able to do so if you save han jisung. by next year, he will be put through so much that he would have no other choice but to end his life himself."

jihyo looked at the black-haired girl, "son hyejoo has already agreed with this because she made a promise to save you whenever you needed help. that is why she was in the forest; this forest used to hold my castle, but it was burned to the ground centuries ago. son hyejoo has already moved to jeju island alongside park chaewon, where han jisung is going to soon reside."

the goddess turned away and looked back the boy, her figure still beautifully shining, "use son hyejoo to save yourself as she used you to save herself. you two will work together to make sure han jisung returns on the ship back to jeju island next january, completely unharmed. he will be scarred from what he will go through while back in seoul, but han jisung will be returning to a trustworthy person to tell those events to. son hyejoo, i hope i am clear with your role; become a reliable friend of han jisung's. you will know you have succeeded if you begin to rise and fade into the sky like how i am about to. good luck, kim seungmin." she floated above to the sky, fading away.

it lowkey kinda reminded seungmin of when the lorax flew away from the onceler. suddenly regaining consciousness and processing what he was just told, the brown-haired boy screeched, "JISUNG?!"

•••

(a/n: minho's family's dagger 😵‍💫)