The Cursed and the Wicked

The Reaper and the Outcast pt. 10

Not to further bother Yeona anymore with this case, Bahati left with Hyung, Jae and Do Hyun. Bahati wanted to be able to converse with Do Hyun without upsetting Yeona. She wanted her old friend to be able to pass on peacefully and finally rest. He deserved that much.

The four of them stopped in a nearby park and sat down on the bench. It was pretty crowded, but everybody was too engrossed with their activities to pay attention to Bahati and Hyung.

Bahati looked up at Do Hyun, tears forming in her eyes. If felt as though her heart was clenching together and breaking all over again. Bahati hates crying in public. She didn't like being vulnerable in front of other people because they always took advantage of that. However, she couldn't stop the tears from forming and trickling down her face.

"Do Hyun", she mumbled, sniffling and trying to wipe away her tears on her sleeve. "I'm sorry".

Do Hyun only smiled warmly at his old friend.

The two were friends since they begun high school. The fact that she saw ghosts, didn't deter Do Hyun from befriending the young girl. He didn't care about those he couldn't see. Only Bahati.

They were inseparable. Do Hyun always wanted to be by Bahati's side, to protect her from those that were unseen that wanted to cause her any harm, even if he couldn't see them.

Other students talked and blabbed and started rumors, but it didn't matter to Bahati or Do Hyun. The only thing mattered was each other.

Do Hyun wiped away Bahati's tears.

"Don't cry for me Bahati". He told her.

"Why couldn't it have been me instead?" Bahati cried.

"Because I wouldn't want that. You deserve to live a marvelous life, Bahati, even if you don't think so". Do Hyun said, grazing her cheek.

It felt cold to Bahati, but it didn't make her flinch.

"Oh she thinks so. Made a deal with the reaper in order to postpone her death". Jae said out loud, making Do Hyun look at him.

"What?" He asked.

"Bahati was supposed to die a long time ago, but she figured out a way to escape that, or at least post pone it". Jae explained. "Make a deal with me".

Do Hyun looked back down at Bahati and chuckled. "Why am I not surprised? You always had some kind of fire in you that I always saw. I'm just glad it's ignited now". He smiled at her.

Bahati wiped away the rest of her tears and sniffed up the remaining mucous.

"I will solve this for you, so you can finally rest after 1o years. I'm just sorry, it took this long". Bahati told Do Hyun.

"It's okay. At least I get to see you one more time". Do Hyun replied.

Jae groaned and turned his head, disgusted at the mushiness that was unfolding.

"Ignore him". Bahati said, chuckling, making Do Hyun chuckle as well and Hyung too.

All laughing at Jae's expense.

"Anyways, do you mind telling us how you died?" Hyung asked, wanting to get straight to their job.

Do Hyun was about to answer Hyung, but Bahati interrupted him.

"I can tell you that because I was there when it happened". She said, getting Hyung and Jae's attention.

Do Hyun looked at his friend with a sad expression on his face. He knew she blamed herself for his death.

"Yeona had every right to blame me for the death of her son. She was right when she told me I attracted evil spirits because it was that evil spirit that wanted to get at me is what killed Do Hyun". Bahati explained.

Hyung and Jae became engrossed in Bahati's story.

"This spirit didn't have any grudges against me. All I did was acknowledge him and because of that, he stalked me. Back then, it was hard for me to tell the difference between certain ghosts and the living. If I would have known, I wouldn't have acknowledged him". Bahati said.

"Me and Do Hyun was in town, hanging out, what "normal" teenagers did. It was night and I did have him out past his curfew, but he wanted to stay and hang with me, so of course I didn't tell him no. I loved him and his company".

Do Hyun placed a hand on Bahati's shoulder, trying to comfort her, since he knew what was coming next.

"It was dark, so it was hard to see, even for me. Ghosts take advantage of the night for that very reason. We were in this very park and in this exact spot. Do Hyun went and got us something to eat, so I was alone, though I never told him about the evil spirit that stalked us that whole day. I didn't want to worry him, so I wasn't actually alone. I had come face to face with the spirit, who I didn't know was a spirit at the time".  Bahati squeezed her fists.

"I stood up and tried to protect myself against him, throwing punches and kicks, but to no avail. It went right through him. That was when I figured out he was a ghost. I was useless up against him. The spirit attacked me, cutting up my face, arms, and legs with his sharp nails. He then pushed me down on the grass, clenching his hand around my neck, so that I couldn't breathe and was gasping for air. I tried to fight him off, but it wasn't like I could just push him off". Bahati clenched her fists again, making Hyung hold them.

"I thought I was the one that was gonna die, would have preferred it that way, but Do Hyun came back just in time. Fortunately, we wore iron rings in both of his hands. He punched the ghost on top of me, even though he couldn't see anything. Only saw that I was on the ground, dying. The spirit dissipated and I was finally able to catch my breath. Do Hyun helped me back up on my feet. We were both chuckling st the situation. Do Hyun had busted his first ghost without realizing it". Bahati chuckled at the thought, making Hyung and Jae do the same.

"The thing is, iron doesn't kill the ghost. It just makes them disappear. They can come back if they are that provoked and persistent. This one did, but it appeared behind Do Hyun. He couldn't see and I couldn't see, until it was too late. The ghost's nails grew longer into sharp talons and pierced through Do Hyun's heart. Do Hyun ended up bleeding and died in my arms".  Bahati ended the story.

"I'm so sorry". Hyung said, squeezing her hand, trying to comfort her.

"It was my fault that you died Do Hyun and for that reason, I'm so sorry. I will fix this and you will finally be able to rest". Bahati told him.

Do Hyun never blamed Bahati for his death and still doesn't. He knew she'd take it personally, but he was hoping she wouldn't.

"I don't blame you Bahati, I never did. If the same situation happened again, I wouldn't change it because you lived". He said to her, grazing her cheeks again.