countdown... | Ateez Yunho

4 days remaining..

Today I decided to go back to the fortune teller. I knew it wouldn't change anything, but there was no harm in seeing her again. When I got there, she immediately made eye contact with me. It was uncomfortable and I didn't know why she decided to look my way.

"Hello, Aera," she spoke.

"You can see me?"

"Of course I can see you. You're standing in broad daylight."

"But, I'm dead."

"Not quite. You're just not living."

"What's the difference?" I mocked.

"Only the people who found love have the privilege of dying."

"So, what does that mean for me?"

"It means you're stuck between life and death for all eternity."

At this point, I started laughing hysterically. I should've known that life wouldn't be so kind to me.

"And there's nothing I can do to change my fate?"

Before she could answer, the door creaked open.

"Excuse me, miss. Are you available right now?" the boy spoke. When I looked over, I saw Yunho standing there, shyly.

"Right this way," she said while motioning for him to follow her. Why was he here? Was he curious about his relationship with Nari?

I decided to invade his privacy by going into the room with them. The psychic glared at me as I stood in the corner. I watched as she grabbed his hands to read his palms. His body was tense, much like how mine was when I was in the same position a little more than a week ago. I was praying for good news. I couldn't bare to watch another person get struck with bad fortune.

"I'm seeing a very intense soulmate line for you. There must be a girl you're pursuing."

Nari. She was the one who was going to save his life.

"Is she my soulmate?" he asked.

"I'm getting a faded reading if I'm being honest. This hasn't happened before. I'm sensing that you must have gone through multiple lives to get to this point?"

"I think so. But I just came here because I wanted to know if I'm making the right choice with finding my soulmate currently."

"I'm not seeing any blockages that would prove her to be any harm during pursuit. But, take my advice with a grain of salt. If you love her, you'll know. You won't feel confusion when you meet your true soulmate."

"Thank you. That's all I needed to hear," Yunho said, before paying her and leaving. As soon as she left, she walked over to scold me.

"You're not supposed to hear about others futures, especially when you don't know them."

"I do know him."

"Who is he then?"

"Jeong Yunho. The boy I desperately want to be my soulmate."

"Just because you have a little crush on him does not mean you can change your fate."

"How are you talking to me right now?" I questioned, completely disregarding all her doubts.

"I have a gift of communicating between the living and the undead."

"And don't you think that's a little out of the ordinary?"

"Of course it is."

"Then, why is it such a crazy idea for me to try and change the status quo? If you were able to breakthrough the norm, then I will too."

"You don't get it, Aera. This world is based off the idea of finding true soulmates. You're an oddity. A mistake. Life didn't want you to live so they cut off your soulmate line. You're being punished."

"Punished for what?"

"For loving someone who doesn't belong to you."

"But, I found Yunho after I found out I had no soulmate."

"I can't tell you any more. For everyone's sake, just suffer alone."

"Why can't you tell me? What are you hiding?" I started to raise my voice.

"I said I can't tell you, so just listen to me!" She screamed. Her expression was so angered and I was stunned with fear.

"You're the only who I can talk to! You have to tell me everything!" I tried to argue back.

"I've already said too much. Just live life idly, please. It won't be so bad after a while," she tried to comfort me after our screaming fit.

"An eternity of isolation. How am I supposed to be okay with that?"

"Think of it like this, if not you, then who?"

"There's no way I can find love without hurting someone else?"

"If you take someone else's soulmate, then logically, won't you take their life as well?"

"So, my fate is to watch my best friend fall in love with the boy I love for the rest of my life?"

"The girl he's pursuing is Nari?"

"You couldn't tell that in the reading?"

"His soulmate line was much different that what I've seen before. It was hard to decipher what any of it meant."

"Do you think there's a chance that they aren't soulmates then?"

"Possibly. But, that information won't do you any good. He doesn't even know you exist." Her words were a harsh reminder that I wasn't even an option. I looked down at the ground, my eyes welling up with tears.

"Why do you love him?" she asked all of a sudden.

"Because, he gives me hope. I always see him in my dreams."

"That just means you love a version of him that you created, right?"

"Unfortunately. But, when I see him now, it's like he's even better than I imagined."

"Well, if you can't have the real thing, is it so bad to just keep dreaming?"

"You want me to pretend that Yunho is my soulmate without actually going after him?"

"Yes! That's a great idea! Have a good day now!" she cheered before shooing me out of her shop.

After getting kicked out, I went back home and screamed into my pillows for hours until my voice became hoarse. This was my life now. All I could ever have are the delusions I create in my head. I was okay with that thought before I died, since I thought death could relieve me. But now, it was even more torturous than before.

Could I really be selfless enough to let you be happy while I suffer?