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Sungho was currently leading Seri across the school. Wait, scratch that. He was dragging her across the school with his surprising strong grip.

❝ Almost there! ❞

When they got there, the door was slightly ajar, and the pair could hear a mixture of laughter and hushed voices from inside. Entering, Woonhak noticed her standing there and eagerly motioned for her to come in. While she hesitated for a bit, Sungho led her into the room, closing the door behind them and hanging an "occupied" sign in the window slot.

As Seri entered the room, she was greeted by the Neighboyhood Club members, all wearing mischievous smiles. Jaehyun, the president, stepped forward.

❝ Seri, we're about to perform a little experiment to prove the existence of Riwoo to you. If everything goes according to plan and he really is a spirit, you should be the only one who can see him. ❞

Seri nodded, her curiosity piqued. She took a seat as the boys started setting up their equipment and drawing symbols on the floor. The atmosphere in the room grew tense, and Seri couldn't help but feel a mixture of excitement and nervousness.

❝ Okay, everyone ready? ❞ Jaehyun asked, glancing at the others.

The boys nodded in unison, and the room fell into a brief silence. In a hurry, Leehan turned the lights off as Taesan swung the blinds down. The only light coming from Sungho's phone; their replacement of a candle since they couldn't bring it in the school with them. Woonhak clacked away on a computer as Jaehyun began to recite various random buzz words from a thesaurus.

❝ Ghost, Spirit, Soul, Light, Folder, Printer... ❞

As mystical as the scene was supposed to appear, Seri wasn't even close to being impressed. From her perspective, it just looked like a bunch of boys running around a classroom and spouting nonsense, as red chalk surrounded a cell phone flashlight.

Suddenly, however, the temperature dropped to an almost chilling degree, and a soft, familiar breeze rustled through the air. Papers that were spread around the room began to float in a circular pattern, encapsulating everyone in the room. Seri's eyes widened as she saw a shadow of a person appear from outside the whirlwind, however she couldn't make out who it was. She tried to focus on the person's face until-

The lights flicked on, with a tired janitor standing in the doorway. The papers dropped to the floor in that instance, only amplifying the exhausted mood of the man. He quickly shooed them all out into the hallway as he got to work.

❝ Oh my gosh... ❞ Leehan started. ❝ I genuinely can't believe it! Like, that happened just now?! This is unreal! ❞ The other boys shared the same sentiment while Seri stood on the sides trying to make sense of everything that went on. After all, even though it lasted a second, Seri saw him. She saw Riwoo past the shadows of papers.

❝ Wait guys. So... not only is this whole ghost thing actually and legitimately true, but the boy I just so happened to randomly meet is dead? Like, dead dead? ❞

❝ Um, yeah, I guess so. Huh, I never really thought that deeply about the logistics of this whole ghost thing but yeah, he would've had to be dead in order to be a ghost. ❞ Woonhak replied, now taking Seri's words into consideration.

❝ This is... this is so wild. ❞ Seri still couldn't wrap her head around the whole concept. Even though one question was answered, many were still left open. Like, who was Riwoo? And why can she supposedly only see him? None of it added up.

Sungho walked over to Seri, patting her shoulder with his hand. ❝ Well, now that we've proven that ghosts are real to you, albeit not the way we had intended, we can move on to the next step! ❞ Seri stared at him puzzled.

Fortunately, Taesan butted in, adding, ❝ First, we've gotta figure out when this kid supposedly died and why you can only see him. Next, we've gotta see if there's a way we can make it so everyone can see him or, at the very least, believe that something is there, ya know? ❞

Seri nodded, following along.

The Neighboyhood Club, now fueled by a renewed sense of purpose, huddled around Seri as they discussed their next steps. Jaehyun took charge, organizing their thoughts and forming a plan to uncover the mysteries surrounding Riwoo.

❝ First things first, we need to find out when Riwoo passed away and why he's still lingering around. If we can uncover the circumstances of his death, it might shed light on why Seri is the only one who can see him. ❞ Jaehyun spoke with determination, his eyes gleaming with curiosity. ❝ Now let's go! ❞

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WORD COUNT ( 790 ) ⋆ MAR. 14. 24
🧸 // ignore the logistics of how this school works and why the time in between classes is longer than the classes themselves...