"Help me"

"Please, help me"

"I know you can hear me"

I closed my eyes tightly and pretended not to hear anything. I'm afraid, I don't know what is happening. All I can remember was I was in a car and then something happened. The car was hit by something, I barely remember. Then everything came crashing and I lost consciousness.

Then this morning, I woke up seeing people whom I thought was alive. I was in a hospital, I can hear their cries and their agony of pain. At first, I thought I was dreaming that maybe this was the result of the accident. The doctor told me that I have temporary amnesia and the memories that I had forgotten, will go back once I'm fully recovered.

But the thing here is, I can see things naked eyes won't see.

I can see spirits, I can see them lurking around. I can see them crying, some have blood and dirt. They want me to help them because they cannot crossover to where they should be. The doctor said that I will be discharged tomorrow morning. It means I need to keep pretending that I cannot see them.

Am I crazy? Because this thing is making me insane.

I only see this thing on TV, people who can see ghosts and people who can talk to them. I don't believe in those and now it was happening to me.

"Baek?"

I look at Suho, my friend that I met when I moved here in Seoul. He was the owner of the apartment building I was staying in. He's kinda rich and he also owns this coffee shop I am currently working. He has a boyfriend named Zhang Yixing, but he is called Lay. They both became my company when I started to live here.

"Yes?" I asked. He then leans towards the counter. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Suho was staring at me suspiciously like I did something wrong. I raised my brow at him, waiting for his response.

"Didn't see any ghost? Apparitions?"

I shook my head. "It has been a week since I helped that woman to crossover. After that, I didn't encounter another ghost again." Suho knows my ability, Lay knows too. I trusted them and they still accepted me despite it. They are helping me when I'm helping spirits and when I fulfill their last wish.

At first, I don't want to have this ability. It freaked me out and tried ignoring it. But then, I had a dream telling me to accept this gift. In my dream, I helped spirits and fulfill the things they needed to fulfill before they finally go. So I did. I decided to do it and accept this unbelievable ability. As time passed by, I get used to it. I met different kinds of spirits, some wanted to have vengeance, some wanted to say goodbye and some wanted to live again.

There are times that it was all too hard. It was hard to convince the spirits that they needed to let go. That there is a better place waiting for them. I know that it was so hard to let go of the things you used to be with. Things you imagined to stay until you grow old, but there are things we cannot control. Like time, if this is the end, it is the end.

"At least you have time to rest" he stands up straight and looks at the customer who comes in. "Good morning, sir!" he greeted.

I smiled and started to take orders behind the counter. While I was taking the orders, I cannot take my eyes off of the new customer, sitting near the glass window of the Cafe. He has a bronze skin that makes him attractive, well-built body and handsome face. He also looks so sad and lonely, he looks like he barely got enough sleep. But the thing that made my eyes squint, was the little guy that was looking at him. Eyes full of emotion, regret, sadness, fear, and love. He has wounds and dirt. 

He is a spirit.

A ghost.

"Baek? You okay?" Xiumin my co-worker questioned me.

I looked at him and smile. "I'm fine. Can you please take my place for a while?" I said pleasingly. "I need to do something, can you please do it?"

Xiumin nodded. "Of course! Not a big deal"

I only look at him apologetically and gave him a small smile. I thank him before walking towards Suho who was currently visiting the coffee machines for a check-up.

"Suho, there's a spirit here" I whispered. He looked at me surprised. "He's with the guy sitting near the glass window."

But when I look at the guy with the bronze skin, the ghost who was standing near him a while ago was not there anymore. I look around, trying to have a glimpse of the guy who has an owl-like eye.

"You can see me, do you?"

I almost jump in the place I was standing, when the ghost guy suddenly appeared right on my face. Suho was looking at my eyes wide, maybe he could feel the sudden change of atmosphere.

"Come with me" I mumbled. "We can't have a conversation here, there are so many customers."

Suho is staring at me like an idiot, his face shows any emotion. "B-baek, seriously you are freaking me out again," he muttered, eyes wide. "Y-you talk with it at my office, not here. People might think you're crazy or something" he added.

I nodded as a response and walked to Suho's office while the spirit was trailing behind me. I can feel the sadness of his aura and it feels like he died not a long time ago. Base on what I see, the wounds he has on his body looks like he had an accident. Like he fell or hit and run.

We stopped when we reached Suho's office desk. I cocked my head to his direction and I saw him looking at me with his wide, emotionless eyes.

"What do you want from me?" he asked.

"I can help you"

"Why?" he jeered. "Can you give my life again? Can you make me alive again?"

I bit my lower lip, "No, I can help you to crossover. You need to."

"Then, no thanks" he answered immediately. "If that means living my fiancé. No, I won't."

"You need to crossover. If you won't, worse things will happen. Do you see the pain your fiancé has on his eyes? He'll have that every day when you're still holding onto him." I sighed and grin a little. "You need to let him go and he needs to let you go too. Let me help you."

He looks at me hesitantly, he doesn't know if he will believe me or not. But as I stare at him genuinely, he finally gave in and gave me a nod.

"He's Kim Jongin" he whispered smiling. "He's 25, a dance instructor and a businessman. He loves dancing so much but he said he loves me more" he chuckled and then gave me a wide smile. His lips formed into a heart shape. He's gorgeous. "I met him during a school festival. Jongin and I were both in 12th grade. We bumped into each other, you know those cliché stories you read and watch. But for me, it was the most magical moment of my life."

I learned that he was Do Kyungsoo, a 25-year-old teacher of people who have disabilities. People who have special needs. We're both sitting at the office's sofa while he shares their story. I need to know his background, to know where it came from and what happened.

"Second-year college when we became official. He waited for a year and the consistency, it didn't change. The Jongin I met during the festival and the Jongin who asked me to have a date with him, was still the same Jongin when we became a couple." his voice was so happy while telling the story and I can't help myself but to feel sorry. Their love story needs to end now and it's somehow giving me the pain. "But his parents do not like me." his voice dropped and the pain was evident. "They, you know, want Jongin to be with a girl. Those sexy ladies and beautiful ladies. Unfortunately, I'm not a woman. Jongin was the only heir of the family, he was an only child and if he marries me I cannot give him a child. A child who will continue their bloodline."

"So what happened? Did Jongin broke up with you?" I asked him, but he gave me his most genuine smile.

I could see the happiness when he answered me back. "No," he looked at me happily. "Jongin fought for me, he fought for us. Even how many times I pushed him away. Leaving me never crossed his mind and that's how much he loves me." he sighed and the first tear fall from his eyes.

Spirits can feel emotions too, they feel hurt and cry and laugh and smile. Yes, they can. In the books, we read and on the TV maybe they don't. But in reality, they can. Seeing Kyungsoo made me feel the pain he has inside him. Letting Jongin go was difficult for him, but he needs to.

"How did you end up? How you died?"

"His parents killed me."

I gasped and my eyes went wide. "W-what?"

"Not literally, but they hired someone to threaten me." the betrayal in his voice and the pain. I can feel it. "Jongin was not at home at that time, he had an appointment to teach students from a nearby university. I was at home because it was my day off. Jongin and I started to live together since his parents kicked him out. Someone barged in the apartment and threatened me using a gun." Kyungsoo was smiling but his eyes were full of tears. "The man was wearing a face mask and a cap. He told me to stay away from Jongin or he will kill me. I fought back, I threw things to the man that made him so angry." he bit his lower lip before continuing. "Our apartment has a veranda and I ran there trying to escape using the fire exit ladder. The man was so mad and he tried to stab me, using the knife from the kitchen" He showed me his shoulder and I saw the long stabbed the man did. "When I was trying to escape, I could feel the blood flowing from my shoulder and it was so painful. I felt unnerved. Then I tried to go down using the ladder."

"You didn't make it." I whispered. "You fell."

He nodded. "I felt so weak and I fell trying to hold the ladder, but it was so far and my arms didn't have enough power to hold. My head cracked and I knew at that moment I was gonna die. Look at me now, I am dead." he started to sob and covered his face using his palm. "I didn't want to leave him and to make him feel like it was his fault. It wasn't Jongin's fault that he was not there for me. I want him to know that it was not his fault. The criminal already confessed what he did and said that Jongin's mother hired him. I want Jongin to know that I love him and my death was not because of him. He needs to know that and it's hurtful to watch him every day, sulking and painfully staring at our picture. He needs to live his life again and be happy because he deserves that. Even without me. He needs to live happily."

"I will let him know, I will let him know that, Kyungsoo."