Dark and Gloomy Evening.
The hill behind the academy, where the shrine was located, exuded an eerie atmosphere.
I arrived at the designated meeting spot, dressed in a black tracksuit with three stripes. ‘
Most of the kids were already there, their faces alight with excitement.
‘Why are they so thrilled about this? It’s just something they wanted to do. Grow up, kids.’
The group exchanged jokes and playful scares, half-joking, half-serious.
“Hey, there’s a woman in a white dress standing behind you!”
“Stop it, seriously!”
“Still time to run away, you know?”
“Run? Never.”
I chuckled as I watched them.
The shrine ghost story was nothing more than a typical urban legend.
Students claimed to have heard strange noises after sneaking up to the shrine late at night, away from the eyes of adults.
‘So childish, really.’
I brushed off the tales as I scanned the surroundings.
The courage test was a two-person team event, requiring us to visit the shrine and return.
“Team one, ready?”
At Jinyoung’s words, the first team reluctantly moved forward.
The dark forest path was shrouded in shadows, with jagged silhouettes of trees piercing through the pitch-black night.
The birds seemed to have fallen asleep, leaving only the constant buzz of insects in the air.
‘This atmosphere is wild. If a ghost showed up now, I wouldn’t even be surprised.’
Not long after the first team started up the hill, a scream echoed.
“Ahhh!”
The shriek resonated through the mountains, clear even from our spot.
“What was that? What’s going on?”
“Stop joking around, seriously!”
The group, now visibly tense, huddled together in murmurs.
‘No way.’
A few moments later, the first team returned, pale and shaken, as if they had seen something terrifying.
“Hey! What happened?”
“Did you really see a ghost?”
Despite the barrage of curious questions, the first team remained silent, their lips tightly sealed.
The second and third teams returned with similar reactions, each looking as pale and unnerved as the last.
***
As time passed, it was finally my turn, along with Seo Yuna.
We started climbing the forest path together.
Yuna wore tight black leggings paired with a light crop top, with a thin windbreaker over it.
She also had on a baseball cap.
Her outfit was light, yet her well-toned figure stood out.
‘About a solid B? Or maybe more…’
I casually struck up a conversation with her.
“Are you scared?”
Yuna smirked.
“Not at all.”
Surprisingly, she maintained her composure.
I glanced at her profile—despite her confident words, her body was trembling.
“Really?”
Yuna walked slowly up the dark stairs, then suddenly spoke.
“Hey… sorry.”
Her unexpected apology made me stop in my tracks.
“Sorry for what?”
After a moment of hesitation, she replied in a subdued voice.
“For making you argue with someone like Choi Gihoon because of me.”
‘Turns out she’s more thoughtful than I thought.’
Her constant apologies were beginning to feel a little overwhelming.
I shrugged nonchalantly.
“Why are you apologizing again? It wasn’t even a big deal.”
“I just feel like I caused you trouble…”
I gently tapped her shoulder.
“Don’t worry about it. Guys like him pick fights with anyone.”
Finally, Yuna smiled faintly and nodded.
Before we knew it, we arrived at the shrine.
The old shrine was dilapidated, as if it would collapse at any moment.
The bell hanging by the door was rusted, and the pillars were cracked.
According to the others, it was built during the Japanese occupation and had been abandoned ever since.
‘Damn Japanese, building stuff on someone else’s land. What a mess.’
The overgrown weeds on the ground hinted at how long it had been neglected.
The atmosphere was unsettling, but there were no strange noises like the rumors claimed.
“See? I told you there’s no such thing as ghosts.”
Yuna, now emboldened, had a smug expression on her face.
And then, it happened.
“Yaaaah… huuuuuu…”
A strange, mournful sound echoed from somewhere.
It was a voice—no, a sound so ambiguous that it was hard to determine the gender.
‘…What?’
I froze.
It wasn’t the wind.
It was something else entirely.
A low, drawn-out noise emanated from deeper within the shrine.
Yuna grabbed my arm tightly.
‘Damn it, that scared me.’
“What is that? Is it really a ghost’s voice…?”
I could feel the trembling in her hands.
Trying to appear calm, I glanced around.
“It’s probably just the wind.”
Even as I said it, I was terrified.
‘Why am I actually hearing a wailing sound?’
“Really…?”
Yuna clung to my arm, trembling so much that she instinctively wrapped herself around me.
Her usual confident demeanor was gone, replaced by vulnerability.
“…Let’s at least check it out.”
I mustered up some courage and moved cautiously toward the shrine.
My legs were trembling uncontrollably.
‘I’m not scared. Nope, not at all.’
Humming the national anthem in my head, I approached the shrine’s door.
“Yaaaah… huuuuuu…”
The strange sound grew louder from within.
Yuna pulled me back.
“Hey, let’s just go back. What if there really is something in there?”
Wiping the cold sweat off my forehead, I stared at the shrine door.
‘I’m so freaking scared.’
‘Should I go in? Or should I just go back?’
Every fiber of my being screamed to leave.
‘Should I? Or not?’
But then, Jinyoung’s mocking face flashed through my mind.
[Scared?]
[Coward.]
[Hahaha.]
His irritating voice rang in my ears, spurring me on.
Even if it killed me, I wasn’t going to let him mock me again.
I swallowed hard and grabbed the door handle.
Creeeeak—
The old door opened with a heavy groan.
The sound alone made the atmosphere ten times scarier.
“Hey… are you sure this is okay?” Yuna whispered, clutching my arm tighter.
“It’s fine.”
I pretended to be calm as I stepped inside.
The interior was darker than expected.
Faint moonlight seeped through the cracks in the windows, illuminating the dusty floor.
In one corner, there was a broken altar scattered with old trinkets and worn-out talismans.
‘See? Nothing to worry about.’
Just as I was reassuring myself, something moved in the corner of my vision.
‘…What is that?’
I held my breath and cautiously focused on the figure.
Two glowing eyes pierced through the darkness.
A black silhouette slowly turned its body.
“Yaaaah… huuuuuu…”
Yuna grabbed my arm even tighter at the sound.
‘Of all times…’
I tilted my head to get a better look.
In the shadows, a small furry creature wriggled.
Its tiny pink toe beans shimmered in the moonlight.
‘Wait, it’s a cat?’
I had been bracing myself for a ghost or something sinister.
‘So much for that. What a letdown.’
With an exaggerated sigh of relief, I spoke up.
“See? Nothing to worry about. It’s just a cat with a weird meow.”
I glanced at Yuna with a smug grin.
“A cat? Really?”
Yuna let out a deep breath, visibly relieved.
I confidently stepped out of the shrine.
***
And then—
“Ahhh!”
Yuna’s scream shattered the silence behind me.
Startled, I spun around to see three large white shapes rushing toward us.
‘What the hell?!’
My body froze.
I knew I needed to move, but my legs felt like they were cemented to the ground.
‘Ghosts? Have they locked onto us with some supernatural force?’
Yuna stumbled backward, tripping over something, and fell to the ground with a thud.
Meanwhile, the white shapes closed the distance rapidly.
At that moment—
“Pfft, hahaha!”
Laughter echoed, breaking the tension.
The white shapes revealed their faces—it was three male students who had drawn the short straws earlier.
They tossed off their white sheets, laughing uncontrollably.
“Their reactions were priceless. Seriously.”
“Wow, even Yuna fell over. That was unexpected.”
“And Dohyun didn’t even flinch. Does he have no fear?”
‘Huh? I was just frozen stiff because I was terrified.’
Now that I realized what was happening, I pieced it together.
‘So this is what they were plotting? Cute little pranksters. I almost wet my pants, though.’
But the mood wasn’t as lighthearted as they thought.
Yuna sat on the ground, her face pale, with tears welling up in her eyes.
“Are you kidding me?! Do you want to die? What were you thinking?!”
Her voice shook with anger, and her tears spilled over.
The boys, looking flustered, began to fidget awkwardly.
“Hey, are you okay?”
I quickly approached Yuna.
She mumbled through her tears, “I… my ankle… I think I twisted it.”
I examined her ankle—it was red and swollen.
‘That looks painful.’
“Looks like it’s sprained,” I said.
Yuna clenched her teeth and tried to stand, but she couldn’t put any weight on her foot.
“Ah… it hurts…”
After a moment of deliberation, I made a decision.
“Get on.”
“What?”
Yuna looked up at me, surprised.
“Hop on my back. If we keep going like this, we’ll be stuck here all night.”
“I’m fine. I can walk on my own,” she protested, even though every step made her wince.
Sighing, I knelt down in front of her and turned my back.
“Just get on.”
Yuna hesitated, her face flushed, before finally climbing onto my back.
‘Women only listen when you take charge,’ I thought, half-amused.
As she settled, I felt something soft brush against my back.
‘Oh… This is… Definitely CFC. My instincts never lie.’
I adjusted my posture, trying to focus on anything else.
“Am I… heavy?” Yuna asked softly from above my shoulder.
“No, you’re light,” I replied, keeping my tone calm.
It was true she wasn’t heavy, but that wasn’t the problem.
The soft sensation pressing against my back had my nerves on edge.
‘Think of the national anthem. Stay focused.’
In my head, I sang to myself.
‘Rose of Sharon, eternally blooming across our land—’
“Hey… go slowly,” Yuna murmured.
“Got it,” I said, my voice deliberately steady.
She rested her head gently on my shoulder and whispered, almost inaudibly.
“…Sorry.”
“For what?” I asked.
“For being a bother again… because of me.”
“There you go again. I told you, it’s no big deal.”
Yuna lowered her head and held onto me tighter.
Her breath tickled the back of my neck.
‘Ah, damn it. This is driving me crazy.’
I doubled down on the anthem in my head.
‘Forever preserve Korea, land of the great—!’
Taking a deep breath, I carefully made my way down the steep hill.
Yuna didn’t say much, but the occasional brush of her cheek against my neck made my shoulders stiffen.
“You’re sweating. Am I too heavy?” Yuna asked, worried.
“No, it’s not because of your weight.”
“Then why?”
“It’s nothing.”
Yuna tapped my neck lightly and giggled.
I just needed to get to the bottom of the hill, and this ordeal would be over.
Yuna, resting quietly on my back, seemed completely relaxed.
Unlike her, I was the only one tense in this situation.
Carrying her down the steep slope, I couldn’t help but notice how the warmth of her breath and the soft touches against my back were incredibly distracting.
That’s when it hit me.
‘What’s scarier than a ghost… is… a woman’s touch.’
They really got scared of people in sheets? Highschoolers simply wouldnt fall for that.