West: The Sun From Another Star

In the dimly lit room, I could hear the ticking of the clock, the hum of the air conditioner, and the sound of dripping water. Looking around, I saw sunlight streaming through the balcony, casting a shadow of someone standing at the foot of the bed. A suffocating feeling overwhelmed me. The room was unusually cold, unlike anything I remembered. 

 

I slowly closed my eyes, not bothering to consider whether I was awake or asleep. A moment later, the blanket at the foot of the bed was suddenly pulled forcefully. It wasn't hard to guess who it was. I gently used my foot to push the blanket back into place. But at that very moment, the dark figure at the foot of the bed began to approach, grabbing my ankle with a strong tug, making me jump and quickly sit up.

 

"What are you doing?" I asked, slightly annoyed. Nothing irritates me more than being disturbed while I'm trying to sleep. He didn't answer, slowly raising his right hand and pointing directly at me.

 

"What's up?"

I looked in the direction he pointed.

Necklace?

 

"The necklace? Do you want me to take it off?"

 

“No, no more talking, I want to sleep,” I said before lying down again. This time it was a more forceful disturbance; he pulled my leg so hard that I slid along with the pull. I had to cling to the edge of the bed and use my strength to keep from falling to the floor. I looked up, bewildered.

 

"Okay," I replied, before sitting back down in the middle of the bed and taking off the necklace.

 

"Pulling my leg so forcefully is very impolite. Speak quickly, what do you want?" I said with a hint of displeasure. This was clearly harassment; if he had pulled any harder and I hadn't managed to grab onto the edge of the bed, I would certainly have been injured. The figure slowly revealed a face.

 

Mr Donut?

He lay on the bed, looking like an ordinary person, wearing a white T-shirt and long pants, with no blood on him, and a slightly pale face. He slowly sat down at the foot of the bed.

 

'We…'

"?"

 

'Your name is Daotok, right?'

 

"Yes, what do you need? But I won't give up my bed; I have to sleep on the right side, otherwise I can't sleep."

 

"No, that's not it. I... I want to ask you a favour."

"What is it?"

 

'I want to eat Jum's stir-fried chicken with basil.'

“…”

 

"Please, I really want it."

 

"...Are you holding me back just because of this?"

 

No, there's one more thing.

'Help me find out who killed him.'

 

"Isn't she your girlfriend, according to the news?"

 

"I can't believe my girlfriend would do that. Please, help me."

 

"No, I won't do it. I'm too lazy."

'...' 

 

Mr Donut turned to look at me, beginning to put on a dejected expression, sighing slightly, 

 

'How can you be so heartless? You seem like a good person from the outside.'

“…”

 

"Can't you help me a little? Otherwise, I'll bother you every night."

“…”

 

"You know what? The place where you're lying is where I died. I can do whatever I want to you." I was really scared by a ghost…

 

"So how do you want me to help?"

'Don't know.'

"Huh?"

'Try asking the doctor in the next room. He knows your girlfriend.'

 

After saying that, Mr Donut disappeared before we could explain ourselves. I lay back down and closed my eyes, not wanting to think about what had just happened. It was better to sleep first because I was really sleepy.

════[changbins_delulu_wife]════

I leaned back on my sofa amid the pub's noisy atmosphere, the live music mingling with the boisterous chatter of the people around me, the smell of alcohol permeating the air. Raising my glass of whiskey, I slowly savoured my favourite flavour as it flowed down my throat until the glass was empty. Setting the empty glass down, I reached for the bottle next to me, only to find it was already empty.

 

"Is that all?" I asked.

"Then order more," another friend replied.

 

I just returned from a race after a long break. I recently replaced my old rims with new ones that I ordered, the ones Direk paid for. After changing the rims, I hit the race track, and all I can say is: it was incredibly exhilarating. I won and made a decent amount of money, so now I'm out celebrating with my racing buddies.

 

"Aren't you supposed to be on duty at the hospital?"

 

"I'm off tomorrow, feel free to call again," I said.

 

"Yeah, I'll get it myself." A friend got up from the table. We had been drinking together for almost two hours, and I was probably starting to get tipsy since it had been a long time since I'd had a drink; my throat was dry and sore. I kept raising my glass and drinking. After a few more bottles, my head started to feel hazy.

 

"Let's go, Thit. I'll give you a ride home, just leave the car here."

 

"Uh..." I replied, my eyes barely open. 

 

Someone lifted me up, mumbled something I couldn't hear, and then helped me to the car. After that, I completely lost consciousness. It wasn't until I felt someone pulling me out of the car that I vaguely regained consciousness.

 

"Thank you… Who is this?"

"It's me, Mai. Never mind, just go up to your room."

 

"I can get up there; you go home."

"Are you sure?"

 

"Yes, thank you. Drive carefully."

"YES."

 

I stumbled into the apartment building, pressed the elevator button, waited a moment, then stepped in and pressed the seventh floor button. My whole body was spinning, and my stomach was upset. Normally, I'm quite good at drinking, but tonight I drank too much because it had been a long time since I'd had a drink, plus I'd won money from the race, so I just kept drinking without stopping.

 

When the elevator stopped, even though my vision was blurry, I guessed it was the seventh floor. Leaning against the wall, I walked with difficulty to the end of the hallway, stopped in front of the room door, leaned against the wall, and began searching for my card in my pocket.

 

Where's the card? What the hell? Why did it have to happen at this exact moment? My head is already aching enough. I gave up searching for the key and turned to knock on the next room's door. Soon after, the occupant slowly opened the door.

 

"I've lost my room key. Can I stay here for one night?"

 

He said nothing, just closed the door immediately. What the hell is that? I banged on the door again in frustration.

 

"What else?"

 

"Let me sleep on the sofa, I've lost my room key, and I'm drunk."

 

"Yeah." He just replied with one word and closed the door again.

 

I knocked on the door again, but this time he wouldn't open it. "What the hell? Are you even human? What kind of friends are you? It's just you and me on this whole floor!"

 

Damn it, my head hurts like it's going to explode. I pressed the button to answer the call. I took my phone out of my pocket and immediately dialled North's number, hoping he'd answer. After a while, he finally picked up.

 

(What's wrong?) Jo's voice replied.

"Let me speak to your wife for a moment."

 

(What's wrong with my wife?)

"This isn't the time for jealousy; I can't get into the room."

 

(That's your problem.)

 

"Johan, damn it, hurry up! Your wife's friend won't open the door for me, I'm drunk, and I've lost my room key too!"

 

(Uh-huh.) Jo replied, sounding annoyed, probably getting ready for bed too. A moment later, North's sleepy voice rang out.

 

(What's wrong, sir?)

"Tell your friend to open the door for me."

 

(What do you mean?)

 

"I'm drunk, damn it, completely drunk. I can't stand up anymore, and I've lost my room key. Your friend didn't even think to help me, even though I was in the room next door!"

 

(Oh, so what do you want to do? Sleep with my friend?)

 

“Just let me sleep on the sofa or on the floor, I’ve slept in the hallway before and been bitten all over by mosquitoes,” I said, recalling a previous time I was drunk and lost my card like this. But that time, there was no one here; I was the only one on this floor. I was so drunk I couldn’t even stand up. I tried to go to another floor or downstairs, but couldn’t, so I just lay down right outside my room door. When I woke up, I thought I was going to die of dengue fever.

 

(Okay, let me try to say it for you.)

 

"Yeah." I just replied with one word and dropped my hands to the floor. I was as drunk as a dog now, all I could do was lie there. After a while, the door to the next room opened, and they gave me a mosquito net.

 

"No need to return it."

 

He placed the small bottle of mosquito repellent down next to me and closed the door again. Damn it…

Yes, thank you. He was worried I'd get bitten by mosquitoes lying out here, so he gave me some mosquito repellent. No need to return it, I'm very grateful.

 

I spat it out, then called North again.

(What else is it, sir?)

 

"What did you tell your friend?"

(Tell him not to let you sleep out here, the mosquitoes will carry you away. Can we get inside the room now?)

 

"I don't know what to say anymore. He gave me mosquito repellent." My remark made North burst out laughing.

 

"Having fun, huh? What kind of friend are you? A dry, emotionless friend with no feelings at all."

 

(It's not that it's cold, maybe he just hates you.)

 

"Yeah, tell him again. If he doesn't let me into the room, I'll throw up on the door."

 

(Damn it.)

 

"Yeah, tell him to let me use the restroom for a bit, I'm about to throw up."

 

(Damn it, wait a minute.)

 

North hung up, and shortly after, the landlord next door opened the door. This time, he looked at me with annoyance, but I didn't care. I pulled myself into the room and went straight to the bathroom.

 

What the hell did those guys give me to drink? It's so strong, my head hurts so much I feel like it's going to explode. Direk, help me, I have a terrible headache. I threw up everything I ate, my head hurts, and I feel nauseous, I feel like I'm going to die.

 

I flushed the toilet and sat down to rest for a bit. While resting, I heard a girl crying; the sound was similar to when I was in my room, but this time it was clearer and louder, as if the source of the crying was very close, almost right next to my ear.

 

"Gasp... huhu, it hurts so much..."

 

"Ugh..." It felt like my insides were churning, so I bowed my head and vomited again, feeling like my intestines were about to burst out.

 

"Huhu... please... don't hurt me anymore... 

 

*sobbing*."

 

"Shut up!" I said in a low, weak voice, exhausted from vomiting so much that I felt like I was going to die, and then I was tricked too. Damn it, my head hurts so much.

 

“Huhu… huhu…” The crying echoed through the bathroom, growing louder and louder. I was already annoyed, and now I was even more so.

 

"I told you to shut up, or I'll shut you up completely!"

 

I yelled because I couldn't take it anymore, and the crying immediately stopped. I turned back to focus on myself, utterly annoyed. My head was throbbing, and now there was crying in my ear too. If you cry again, don't blame me, I'll make you cry non-stop, damn it!

════[changbins_delulu_wife]════

I secretly watched the drunk man hugging the toilet in my bathroom and didn't know what to do next. At first, he said he wanted to sleep with me, but I refused. I was going to leave him there, but then North called and asked for my help. I had to bring him some mosquito repellent. In the end, I had to let him use the bathroom because I didn't want him to throw up outside the door.

 

I drink alcohol too, but I've never been this drunk. He must have drunk a lot; you can tell from his condition. I just heard him yelling at the crying woman in the bathroom. Not just yelling, but threatening her, too. I don't know what happened next, but the crying woman in the bathroom is gone. I no longer feel like there's a ghost in the bathroom. It must have disappeared because of his yelling, right?

 

Never mind. What am I supposed to do with this drunk guy who's collapsed and clinging to the toilet? I certainly can't carry him out; I'd be exhausted, and I'm not planning on wiping him down or taking care of him anyway.

 

Well, I think I should try waking him up first.

 

I walked closer and gently shook him, but there was no reaction, so I shook him harder. Thinking of calling security, I immediately grabbed my phone and called the building's emergency number, reporting that there was a drunk person needing help. A short while later, two security guards arrived and knocked on my door.

 

"He's in the bathroom," I said, leading the two guards inside. They exchanged glances, looking a little awkward, probably reluctant to enter the room.

 

"He's in the next room, he said he lost his key card," I explained further.

 

“Oh, I’m a little sorry. The management office is closed now. We can only help get him out, but if he loses his key card, he’ll have to stay outside. Could you let him stay here for the night?” One of the two security guards replied softly with a forced smile. I nodded, indicating that I understood.

 

"Then could we leave him lying in the hallway?" I asked, causing the two guards to exchange glances again.

 

"Ah... excuse me, I'm also worried about his safety. If you don't mind, could he stay here?  Or is there something else bothering you?" one of the two security guards asked politely.

 

I paused for a moment, then sighed, and replied, "Okay, that's fine. Sorry to bother you so late at night. I'll handle it."

 

"Yes, feel free to call us anytime if you need anything," the security guard replied in a gentle voice with a smile on his face.

 

Then I went back to the room and started making a place for him to lie down. Although I was very tired and didn't want to bother him further, that was the only option left.

 

"Yes." After leaving, the two security guards looked at the person who had caused trouble with disappointment. Surely no one likes having a stranger in their room, especially when they're drunk like that.

 

I decided to lock the bathroom door and leave him in there. I'll open it for him tomorrow morning.

 

"Aren't you going to take him outside?" Emma's voice came from the bed.

 

"Are not."

'Why so?'

 

"It would only cause us more trouble. Why should I help?"

 

"Don't be so heartless, after all, he's our neighbour. Who knows, Michael might need his help later." Emma's words made me sigh deeply. "North also asked you to check on things for him."

 

"Really?" I asked again.

 

"Just mentioning North will soften Michael's heart. It's the same for all three of us," Emma said.

 

"Because he's our friend," I replied.

'Helping out a little is no big deal, Michael. Being kind to others isn't a bad thing.'

 

"I don't want to be kind anymore."

 

"I know, but not everyone in this world is as cruel as those people. The friends you have now have proven that."

 

“…”

 

'It's really hard to change a cold personality, isn't it?'

 

“I don’t want to fix it, and I don’t see the need to,” I replied curtly, my eyes inadvertently glancing over to see Mr Donut standing in front of the bathroom door I had locked. I turned back to my computer screen as usual, deliberately letting Emma continue to persuade me to help him, until she stopped talking.

….

 

When I realised it, sunlight was streaming in from the balcony window. I had been working all night. I went to open the bathroom door and gently shook the person lying on the floor. He slowly opened his eyes.

 

"Go back to your room," I said in my usual even tone. He sat up, then looked around.

 

"Room?"

 

“…”

 

"Did I sleep here last night?"

 

"YES."

 

"Yeah, thanks for letting me sleep here. What time is it?"

 

"6 o'clock."

 

"Yeah." That was all he replied, then leaned back to stand up and walked out of my room. At first, I thought he'd be angry or yell at me for letting him sleep in the bathroom, but he didn't seem to react at all. I looked around the bathroom and saw that it wasn't messy or dirty because my bathroom is always clean, so sleeping in there shouldn't be a problem.

 

I turned on the warm water and filled the bathtub, soaking for a while to relax after a hard night's work, and finally lay down on the bed.

════[changbins_delulu_wife]════

~Arthit~

 

I feel so tired...I'm not sure whether sleeping outside or in the bathroom is better, but at least sleeping in the bathroom means I don't have to worry about throwing up and getting dirty, and I don't get bitten by mosquitoes to the point of risking dengue fever. Anyway, sleeping in the bathroom isn't so bad. It's not dirty at all. I can sleep anywhere, really.

 

I went downstairs to the building's office. Luckily, they had been open since early morning. I retrieved my spare key card, went back to my room, showered, and went to bed. Still feeling a little dizzy from the alcohol, I quickly fell asleep.

 

It's you again...I was in a state of uncertainty, neither awake nor dreaming, but I felt like I was dreaming because the room was pitch black, and I saw Donut sitting next to me.

 

"What? I want to sleep."

 

"But let's talk for a bit."

 

"I'm not fully awake yet."

 

"Last night I really wanted to come in and help you, but they wouldn't let me in."

 

"Go into the bathroom, you mean?"

 

"YES."

 

"Who's not letting me in?" I asked. Strangely, I didn't have much of a headache, probably because I was dreaming. Donut appeared again in his favourite pyjamas, a t-shirt and long pants, but his face was pale and bloodless.

 

“Cream, the one whose throat was slit near the sink, she’s really fierce. But even she was threatened by you,” Donut said, then burst out laughing. “Before, he even masturbated in front of Aeng, and now he’s threatening Cream too. Thit, you’re such a bastard.”

 

"Really? He must have been drunk; he doesn't remember anything."

 

"Yeah, but when you threatened her, Cream actually stopped crying; she didn't dare cry anymore." Donut's words made me laugh.

 

"So, what brings you here?"

 

"Seriously, Thit, it takes me a ton of energy just to get into the dream or through the room, so this is really important."

 

He put on a serious face.

 

"Go ahead and speak."

 

"I want to eat basil chicken rice downstairs at the apartment building."

 

“…”

 

"Go buy some incense and offer it to her for me, please. I already asked Dao, but it seems she forgot."

 

“Jum left her husband and ran off with a young man to Suratthani,” I said. Jum owned a small, affordable eatery near the apartment building, but I'd recently tried to visit and found it closed. I heard she married a younger man and ran away to Suratthani. She's over 40 now; life is strange, always full of bizarre events.

 

"Oh my god, what bad luck. If you're going to make chicken stir-fry, tell my mom to skip the braised eggs; I'm tired of eating that."

"Otherwise, you can just enter your mother's dream yourself."

"I can't get in; something's holding me back. I have a feeling it won't kill me."

"Just think of it that way, he's already confessed everything," I said. "He killed you, and you're still defending him? Why don't you open your eyes and see?"

"No way, you know how much he loves me, he wouldn't kill me."

 

"What shamelessness!" I couldn't hold back. He even dared to claim he loved her, even though she'd already killed him. "You betrayed her, do you think I didn't hear? You two argued all the time, so what's surprising about Min killing you?"

 

"My God, you're a doctor, why aren't you on my side at all? Am I so bad that I would betray him?"

 

"YES."

 

"There was no betrayal, just a misunderstanding. Although Min is hot-tempered, ill-mannered, and has a sharp tongue, unlike a normal woman—never gentle, kicking and cursing at me every day when she's in a bad mood, and we even argued recently because she thought I betrayed her, and she was drunk that night—she wouldn't kill me, right?"

 

"Really?" I asked, frowning. What it said didn't seem contradictory, so it appeared to have killed itself.

 

"Yeah, I don't know anything anymore, really. But I don't remember anything at all; it wasn't until three or four days later that I realised I was dead. At least I need to find out the truth so I can move on."

 

"Where to go?"

 

"Where else would I go but to a peaceful place, you idiot? Stop asking such weird questions. Even though this place is full of beautiful ghosts, I don't want to stay here anymore."

 

"What's up?"

"There's only one man here, but he's always being bullied. The girls are so strong. You know, I'm afraid of ghosts. I'm here because Min isn't afraid. I've seen things like Aeng hanging herself, Prow jumping off a building, and Cream dying in a bloody bathtub. My heart is weak, and I'm still scared; those ghosts keep playing tricks on me."

 

Donut's words made me feel sorry for him immediately. What kind of person is he, being tormented by ghosts even after death? How pitiful.

 

"Okay, wait until I sober up, then I'll go find Min for you."

 

Okay, okay.

 

Then I drifted off to sleep again. When I woke up, it was one o'clock in the afternoon. I felt much better. I took a shower, changed my clothes, went out to find something to eat, and then stopped by the prison area. I sat and waited, and after a while, Min, wearing a grey prisoner's uniform, came and sat opposite me. He seemed a little surprised to see me.

 

"Hey, long time no see," Min greeted me in a casual tone. I don't know how many girls like Min you'll ever meet. She's the feisty type, sharp-tongued like Donut said. Covered in tattoos, but I actually have quite a few female friends like that.

 

"Hey, how are you?"

 

"It's fine, there's nothing to be happy about. What kind of question is that? He's in prison," Min replied, her voice slightly irritated. "And you, have you gone to the ward yet? Why are you here now?"

 

"I went to the department, so I came to visit. I talked to Donut last night," I replied.

 

"Yeah, so how much have you smoked?"

 

"I didn't smoke anything, it just likes to come into my dreams. Damn it, it's been coming to my room all the time since it died."

 

"Wait a minute." He gestured with his hand, asking me to stop. "Are you still in your old room?"

 

"Yes, why?"

 

"Not moving?"

"I'm too lazy to move, and besides, someone else has already moved into the old room."

 

"Really?"

 

"Are you serious?" The person opposite me looked disbelieving. "What do you think? What kind of person would dare move into that haunted, mosquito-infested room?"

 

"You used to be there too, didn't you?"

 

"Well, the room was cheap, and I'm not afraid of ghosts anymore. I'm practically used to them, but Dount is terrified. Did he say anything about himself? He probably isn't afraid of ghosts anymore, right?"

 

"What? Oh, he told me he's still afraid of ghosts, and that the female ghost in his room is teasing him. Poor thing." I told him, and Min chuckled softly.

 

"Yeah, without me, he wouldn't have anyone to protect him anymore," Min said, shaking his head slightly, but his eyes showed a hint of sadness.

 

"Getting back to the main point, Donut said you didn't kill him, really?" I asked, causing the person opposite me to frown and look thoughtful. "You really didn't kill him?"

 

"Honestly, I don't know either," Min replied, his gaze distant.

 

“We had a huge argument because I found out he was cheating on me. I was furious, thinking he treated me like an idiot. At times, I even thought about killing him. That night I was drunk, really drunk, I drank rice wine, if I remember correctly.”

 

"Even if you hadn't called me, I would still want to drink rice wine."

 

“Sorry, I forgot. I argued with Donut and then went out to drink more. I was completely drunk that night, and I don’t remember anything. When I woke up this morning, I saw Donut lying in a pool of blood, and I was holding a knife. At that moment, I just thought, It’s over, damn it. Do you understand that feeling?” Min said, rubbing his face, clearly remembering every detail.

 

"So you think you actually killed him?"

 

"If I didn't kill him, who would? Even if I don't remember, the knife in my hand is my kitchen knife, perfectly fitting in my grasp."

"But there's no evidence, right? Because you don't remember anything either."

 

“Yeah, that’s right. But I had to call the police. If I just left it like that, or if I did something, things would only get worse. When the police arrived, they kept asking this and that, and I was so flustered, I ended up getting arrested.” 

 

I rubbed my forehead as I listened to Min’s story. “I couldn’t completely deny it because I don’t remember anything, I just kept saying ‘yes, yes,’ and I just had to accept being arrested.”

 

"So… Min, I'm asking you seriously…"

 

"Didn't the police find any more evidence?"

 

"Probably not. You understand the phrase 'they did everything they could to frame me,' right?"

 

"Yeah, but Donut said you didn't kill him."

 

"Tell him to leave, you bastard; he's overthinking it. If it's not me, then who else could it be?"

 

"It's as if you don't want to get away with it."

 

“No, if I could, I wouldn’t want to go to prison either. But you understand, he can’t do anything anymore. Even I’m not sure myself. It took me a long time to accept and adapt to life here,” Min said, sighing heavily. Without saying more, I understood it must have been very difficult. “I thought about killing him, but it was only because I was angry. Thinking back, I didn’t want him to die; I loved him so much, no matter how bad he was.”

 

"With all this crying, I don't know what to do anymore."

 

"There's no drama, Min. Who would cry? Someone like you, haha."

 

Min muttered under her breath, then casually wiped away her tears, smirking and mocking herself, "I haven't even been to his funeral yet. We've been together for four or five years, and I haven't even seen my husband's face one last time."

 

"Yeah, when Donut died, our apartment building was under renovation."

 

"And then what?"

 

"Cut off the camera system, too. It'll be easy for anyone to kill Donut," I said, remembering that. Min turned to look at me, his expression as if he'd just figured something out.

 

"Yeah, but who would want to kill Donut? I don't remember him having any enemies. Or maybe he was secretly gambling without telling me?"

 

"So if someone else killed it, how did they get into our room? Who else would have a room key or a spare key to that room?"

 

"Yeah, I gave spare keys to a lot of people, all my friends have them, my sister, my parents too, just in case I come home drunk and can't get into my room. Dount gave one to his parents, too." He continued, "Are you suspicious of the people around you?"

 

"That's possible. But why would I have to play Sherlock Holmes like this?"

 

"Then let's play Conan."

 

"Yeah, that's fine." I sighed, feeling a little tired, "Let's see how it goes."

 

"So you're going to investigate this case for us? Wow, that's so touching. If you don't mind, could you help me out a bit? If I hadn't done anything wrong, I wouldn't want to be here. If you help me clear my name, I'll treat you to drinks for three months straight."

 

"Are you telling the truth?"

 

"You get all serious when it comes to alcohol, huh? Hey, have you ever heard of the phrase 'a real person'? Now I'm not allowed to smoke or drink in here, and I feel like I'm going to die." 

 

Min sighed, looking quite displeased, "So how's the person who moved into the new room doing?"

 

"What do you mean, 'how'?" I asked again.

 

"I mean, is there anything unusual? Have you spoken to them yet?"

 

"I didn't talk, but last night I got drunk and went straight to his room to sleep."

"You're going straight to bed without talking?" He raised one eyebrow and asked.

 

"I was drunk and lost my room key."

 

"Besides, I remember you used to come and ask to sleep on my sofa many times, getting drunk and losing your key card. Be careful, there's no one else on this floor."

 

"I have a wife."

 

"Well, if you want me to be your wife, just say so," he said with an annoyed half-smile. He was always like that.

 

"Female dogs are better."

 

"What's wrong? I want to have a doctor as a husband just once. I can imagine it with my eyes closed."

 

"Donut is crying."

 

"Just kidding," Min said, giggling. "So what? He let you sleep in his room? That's great!"

 

"Terrible, I ended up hugging the toilet all night." My remark made the person opposite me burst into laughter. "I think I woke up once too, tried to go outside, but got locked inside the bathroom. Lying there wasn't so bad, but I woke up feeling dizzy. I slept in the bathroom all night."

 

"Really? I thought it was a dream, but I actually fell asleep."

 

"The person in the room next door is really nice, I like that. Are they in the same year?"

 

"He's my junior, a friend of my younger 

brother."

 

"Oh, so did she encounter anything in the room? Did you ask? Did you see Dount?"

 

"Yes, I heard it's still scratching its claws."

 

"Really?"

 

"Mom, when I get out of prison, I'll slap him hard. I'll cut off all his fingernails, that bastard. He won't stop unless I yell at him; he'll just keep causing trouble."

"Yeah, that's annoying. Just recently, it said you might not kill it." I said, "Hey, Min, my sister said the guy in the next room can communicate with spirits."

 

"Really?" He made a disbelieving face. "Huh, that's great. Ask the ghost in the room if it saw anything when Donut was killed?"

 

"You're asking that directly?"

 

"Ask them. The witnesses are right in front of us, just pacing around the room. Finally, something useful has come of it."

 

"Are you serious?" I asked because I didn't really believe it. To be honest, I didn't really believe ghosts either; hearing voices or dreaming about them was hard to believe. Especially when it came to supernatural things like talking to the deceased. If there was some kind of psychic ability involved, I was even less inclined to believe it.

 

"Just give it a try, you have nothing to lose."

 

"What if it's lying? Who talks to ghosts? I believe in science more."

 

"Oh, that unpleasant-looking doctor, I just want to punch him in the head," he said angrily.

 

"Why are you such a rude girl? Don't ever get out of prison, you're so fierce. And you still say you don't believe me? You still curse ghosts in my room every day."

 

"I don't know what to say, but people can lie."

 

"And yet you were talking to Donut, weren't you just tricking me?"

 

"What's the point of lying?"

 

"See, you're just asking if it's possible to talk to ghosts, and you're still drunk? You're talking nonsense, I want to punch you."

"Yeah, right." I raised my hand to scratch my head lightly, probably still not sober. I couldn't deny it, since I'd even talked to Donut myself. 

 

"If he can really talk to ghosts, I'll have to ask him for help."

"That's right, go ask him, don't cause any more trouble, otherwise you would have already caused him trouble last night."

"See, Min, you're always complaining."

 

"Let me grumble a little. This is my fate; you have to take responsibility. Go talk to her properly, apologise to her. You've given me false hope of getting out of prison, while I've already tried to accept it. If possible, bring her to see me too, understand, you stupid doctor?"

 

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, don't forget my three-month supply of wine."

 

"Yeah, go ahead. Next time you visit me, bring something, don't come empty-handed, I'm hungry."

 

"This is so annoying. I'm in prison, what more do you want? Do you think I'm afraid of threats?"

 

"As soon as I get out of prison, I'll make you do it, Thit."

 

"I'm scared now, you bastard."