Between the Pages of Her Life.

Chapter 2

The ringing of a cell phone interrupted the somber and drowsy atmosphere of the room, stirring the slumbering teenager and earning a groan from her.

Annoyedly, she reached for the ringing device and answered it without looking at the caller ID.

"Hello?" she murmured, her voice hoarse as she struggled to open her eyes.

"Did it ever occur to you that you should have informed your manager that you've arrived? That he'd be worried sick, miss writer?" the voice on the other end chided.

"I forgot and fell asleep," the girl said, getting up from the couch to get a glass of water to ease the hoarseness in her voice.

"Fell asleep?" the voice asked uncertainly, before continuing, "Did you change your clothes?"

She glanced down at her baby pink top with bishop sleeves and teal dress pants, then answered uncertainly, "Yes?"

"You are lying, aren't you?"

"Yes, I'm sorry"

The voice on the other end sighed, and you could almost hear him massaging his temples. "Did you eat anything?" he asked.

"I'll microwave something," she replied, followed by a long silence. Realizing her mistake, she hurriedly added, "I'm sorry, that was a horrible joke. I'll cook something after changing."

The man on the other side of the phone hummed before the call ended, she sighed before going to open her suitcase.

While searching for comfortable clothes, she stumbled upon a big bucket of kimchi the orphanage staff gave her. A fond smile crossed her face as she decided to make kimchi-jjigae, or kimchi stew, for dinner.

She remembered passing a convenience store on her way home. Setting her goal, she quickly put on her baseball cap, slipped into her sneakers, and headed out. The stars had already appeared in the sky by now.

Her melody filled the air as she walked and hummed along the road. Suddenly, a soft meow interrupted her concert, capturing her attention.

Eun Byeol halted, her steps arrested by the sound. She scanned her surroundings until her gaze locked onto a pair of dual-colored eyes peering at her from the shadows of the alleyway.

Now, you would think that such an avid reader, who delves into all genres, would not venture into a dark alleyway of a new place unarmed. Yet, if you thought that, you'd be wrong.

The young girl continued walking toward the alley where the pair of eyes lingered. She probably assumed no one else was there.

Her footsteps echoed eerily against the pavement, accompanied by occasional gusts of wind that whispered through the nearby trees, creating haunting melodies with the rustling of the leaves.

The alleyway felt eerie, as if it possessed a strange, haunting allure, drawing people in with an unsettling magnetism.

As Eun Byeol finally reached the watching cat, she discovered the unsettling truth.

Alongside the cat, there stood... well, nobody. Absolutely no one. She assumed right-empty alleyways were apparently all the rage that evening. And as for the cat? Well, let's say it could use a spa day.

Eun Byeol frowned at the malnourished feline, shaking her head in sympathy before continuing her journey to the convenience store.

After what felt like an eternity, okay, maybe just four minutes, she finally reached her destination with a very lacking amount of adventure.

After greeting the shopkeeper upon entering the store, the girl caught a glimpse of a black silhouette in the corner of her eye. She brushed it off as a shadow or something similarly mundane, a conclusion she would soon regret.