Chapter
6
Huh Narim couldn’t sleep deeply.
It was as if something was pressing down on her, making it hard to breathe.
‘I can’t breathe.’
In her discomfort, she unconsciously reached for her neck. No one was strangling her, but it was hard to exhale.
Her stomach wasn’t swollen, so it couldn’t be because of the baby. Groaning in pain, Narim slowly opened her eyes.
And the moment she met the pair of eyes staring at her right in front of her, her breath caught.
[You’re awake.]
The little ghost was standing straight, looking down at her.
Her gaze slowly shifted downward. Maybe it was because she had let her guard down, thinking this ghost was a little ridiculous.
[Narim, someone’s been ringing the doorbell for a while…]
The little ghost was standing right on top of her stomach. The moment she realized that, a piercing scream shook the house.
It was Narim’s scream.
“You—what are you?! Get off!! I said get off!!”
[Narim, what’s wrong? Wait…!]
“Get away from my body!!”
To an outsider, it would have seemed like an overreaction. But from Narim’s perspective, she couldn’t help it—she feared the little ghost might harm her baby.
Her only family, Huh Naryeon, had lost her trust, and even Baek Yuhyeon, who had dreamed of being family with her, was dead.
Now, this child might be the only family she’d have left.
‘I have to protect it. No matter what.’
Narim roughly pushed the little ghost away and curled up, desperately cradling her belly. She could feel the bewildered gaze watching her.
The ghost had been sent tumbling ungracefully off the bed by her shove. When she had thrown things before, they hadn’t even hit him properly, but now…
[…I just heard the doorbell outside and was trying to wake you up.]
The little ghost added, almost defensively. Only then did Narim realize someone had come to the house, but to her, that wasn’t what mattered.
She bit back her genuine anger and replied through clenched teeth,
“Who asked you to do that? I told you to get out of my sight because you make me uncomfortable!”
[Narim.]
“That’s not a name you get to call.”
Drawing a clear line.
It was absurd to even be acting this way toward a ghost. She still didn’t know what his purpose was in sticking around her.
Nothing was going right. The ankle she had neglected throbbed once she became aware of it.
Just as she was about to get up to apply an ice pack, she heard someone’s voice.
“Narim!”
Her heart sank.
‘Why is my sister here?’
A voice calling her name while knocking on the door. She didn’t have to think twice.
“What’s going on?! If you can answer, please do!”
It was her older sister, Huh Naryeon—the person who had spent the most time with her.
Narim turned to look at the little ghost. She finally remembered why he had woken her up.
‘Never thought my sister would come in person.’
She had thought that at least for the time being, her sister wouldn’t show her face out of guilt.
She had been completely wrong. Narim glanced toward the laundry room.
‘I can’t let my sister find out.’
Her sister was quick to notice things. If she came inside, she’d see right away that the washing machine was slightly out of place.
Then she’d figure out that the basement door’s lock was broken.
And if she thought to open that basement door… the thought made Narim dizzy.
‘After that scream I let out earlier, I can’t even pretend I’m not home. This is bad.’
Narim frowned. The hand gripping the blanket was damp with cold sweat.
[…]
The little ghost just stood there silently watching her. His eyes flicked toward the door now and then, almost as if he was nervous.
Why he should care at all, she had no idea.
Narim took a deep breath and picked up her phone to call her sister.
She called Huh Naryeon.
—Narim! Are you okay?
Naryeon answered right away, as if she’d been waiting. A glance at the clock told her it was already well past lunchtime.
Had she left her wedding midway to come here?
Narim let out a sigh without trying to hide it.
“What are you doing here?”
—I wanted to talk to you, but you kept avoiding me…
“If you were me, would you want to talk face to face in this situation?”
Her voice came out sharper than she intended.
—…Narim.
To someone who didn’t know the whole story, it might seem cold to treat blood family this way. They might say she was abandoning her sister over a man she’d only dated for three months.
‘But you were the one who abandoned my trust first, for the sake of a man, Naryeon.’
The betrayal hurt, but her disappointment in her sister came from somewhere else—
She had treated Narim as though she were precious, only to throw her away for the sake of a man.
‘I was worth only that much to you.’
To Naryeon, to Baek Yuhyeon.
What she couldn’t accept wasn’t just the betrayal—it was the fact that the two people she had trusted most had thrown her away.
—I’m sorry. Please, let’s talk in person. Okay?
“I have nothing to say. Please, just leave me alone for now.”
—I’ll stay here until you open the door.
Narim was at a loss for words. She wanted to tell her not to say ridiculous things, but she knew her sister well—
For all her maturity, Naryeon became stubborn when it came to Narim.
‘She’s the type to follow through on her word.’
Narim looked toward the laundry room again. It was midsummer outside.
She hated to even think it, but… dead bodies start to smell when they decompose. How long did it take for that smell to appear?
If the strange situation was discovered sooner than she expected…
“I’ll come out. We can talk outside.”
She couldn’t let her sister—or anyone—come near the house. That thought alone filled her mind as she grabbed her hat again.
As she limped toward the door, her swollen leg throbbing, she felt a flurry of movement beside her.
[Narim… I’d rather you didn’t go.]
The little ghost stopped himself from calling her name properly, then said his piece.
But to Narim, it was nothing worth hearing.
She ignored him completely, pretending not to hear or see him. She could feel his eyes on her back, but she ignored that too.
“Narim.”
Even with her hat on, the sunlight hit her eyes when she opened the door. Shielding her from the glare, Naryeon appeared.
She must have only changed clothes after leaving the wedding, because she looked more glamorous than usual. She was already considered beautiful with her sharp features, but dressed up like this, she was dazzling.
When they were young, Narim had been subtly compared to her beautiful older sister, and her mouth tasted bitter at the memory.
‘I grew my hair long because I wanted to look like her.’
Now, that was all in the past.
Narim closed the door behind her. Naryeon’s eyes flicked briefly toward the inside of the house.
She seemed concerned about the scream from earlier. Then her gaze swept up and down Narim’s figure, checking for injuries.
“Your ankle—what happened? Is it sprained? It’s all swollen!”
Her face was filled with genuine worry.
Narim looked back at her with a strange expression. Naryeon blinked in surprise, as if thrown off by the unfamiliar gaze and the sense of distance.
This was the first time they were meeting since the news of her marriage. The first time Naryeon could directly feel Narim’s distance.
“Narim?”
“I was on my way to the hospital anyway. If you have something to say, talk while we go.”
It was her way of saying she wouldn’t make special time—if her sister wanted to talk, she’d have to fit it in.
Narim started walking without waiting for a reply, and the startled Naryeon hurried after her.
She had a hundred questions—about the wedding, about Baek Yuhyeon’s family’s reaction.
‘Did you come here because you suspect me?’
But she swallowed back the one question she most wanted to ask.
The empty house was silent.
Then—
Knock, knock.
A strange knocking sound came from the laundry room.
Clack.
The unlocked doorknob turned.
Through a small gap, a pale, terrified-looking woman’s arm appeared.
Her hand felt along the washing machine, as if gauging what was blocking the door. The bony, fleshless hand withdrew again.
And then—
Thud! Thud!
As if slamming against it, a loud noise rang out.
The washing machine blocking the door was slowly being pushed back.
Slowly—but surely.
