Chapter 2 - Making Her Feel Safe

"Who are you?" Do Hyun asked.

The girl looked frightened, confused for a moment. She started rummaging through her bag—it had been safely hidden under a pot.

Do Hyun said, “Come outside. This place isn’t safe for you.” His eyes gazed downward.

Nam Ha-in chimed in, “Do Hyun, now we’ll get a special prize!”

Do Hyun was speechless.

Woo Jin, trembling, said, “L-Look, Do Hyun... behind you... there’s a ghost!”

The girl appeared again. Nam Ha-in shouted, “Do Hyun! You already got a girlfriend before us?!”

Do Hyun tried to explain, but before he could, Woo Jin blurted something funny:

“Do Hyun is dating a ghost!”

Do Hyun said, “She isn’t a ghost! She was hiding inside those abandoned houses.”

Nam Ha-in asked, “Miss, what’s your name?”

Do Hyun quickly added, “She can’t speak—she’s mute!”

Nam Ha-in blinked. “Mute?”

He turned to the girl. “Hey, lady, can you write? Don’t you have a name?”

Do Hyun thought to himself, She should have a notebook or a writing pad… how else will she communicate with us?

But when he glanced at her and gestured the idea, the girl shook her head slowly—no.

“Oh,” Nam Ha-in said softly, a little deflated.

Then Woo Jin spoke up, “Guys, let’s do one thing. Let’s at least give her shelter for now. We just found her, and she looks completely lost.”

“What about my guesthouse?” Nam Ha-in offered. “There aren’t any customers staying there at the moment.”

Later, at the quiet guesthouse, they showed her into a small, clean room.

“Be safe and comfortable,” Woo Jin told her kindly. “We’ll figure things out and try to get you back to your home tomorrow.”

“Keep the door closed until it’s one of us,” Ha In added, more cautious than the others.

“If anything happens, don’t hesitate to beat him!” Do Hyun said firmly, his voice charged with energy and conviction.

The others looked at him for a second, surprised by the intensity in his tone, but he didn’t waver. His eyes stayed locked on the girl, as if willing her to understand.

The girl gave a faint nod.

“Alright then. We’re heading out now,” Woo Jin said, giving her one last reassuring look.

The boys left the guesthouse, leaving the girl alone in the quiet room. But as they walked away, Do Hyun couldn’t shake the doubt in his chest.

Was this the right decision? he wondered. Leaving her alone like that... in a strange place?

He looked back once more, the warm lights of the guesthouse glowing behind them in the midnight haze.

......................

Thinking and walking, Do Hyun was chatting with his friends on the way home.

He overheard a heated conversation nearby that made him pause.

“We women should be safe. However, there are cases of attacks on women,” someone said.

“I don’t know what goes on during the ‘team do.’ I can’t keep off watching myself,” another voice added.

Do Hyun stopped in his tracks. His legs froze, his heart raced, and blood surged through his body. Why was he shivering?

He turned around and spotted her.

Should I turn back? Keep walking? he wondered. But something in him stirred. Without thinking, he reached her door and opened it—without any hesitation.

Inside, she was sitting quietly, eating instant noodles.

She looked startled to see him.

Confused, but safe.

She didn’t speak.

Neither did he.

......................

Next Day -

“Let’s communicate with her. Let’s record her issue,” Woo Jin said.

“I am just wandering what could be the reason she ended up in our village,” Ha in said.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***